Good morning Oppo, let's talk about Doc. Fees

"Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras" (jegoingout)
09/26/2016 at 09:30 • Filed to: None

Manual M3 for your time

Now to be clear, my job doesn’t jack up car prices like other places. That being said, I feel like a dick everytime I have to go over the shit about Documentation Fees. My job charges you $495 for the Doc fee and while that’s cheaper than other dealers I have been to, it’s still insane.

I can also say for a fact I didn’t pay a Doc fee for my Si or even my TL. What are your thoughts on a dealerships Doc fee?

DISCUSSION (19)

S65 > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 09:34

You had me at something S65 powered

E90M3 > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 09:40

I bought my M3 over the phone from a Porsche dealer in Dallas. They did all the paperwork and when it arrived at my door all I had to do was sign for it. They charged me a $145 doc fee, that’s very reasonable, anything over $200 is outrageous.

Edit: Looked at the paperwork for my 128i, they also charged a $145 doc fee.

Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow > E90M3
09/26/2016 at 09:42

Yeah, if I remember correctly my doc fee was around $145 when I bought the FR-Slow.

Steve is equipped with Electronic Fool Injection > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 09:47

It really depends. Handling paperwork for registration/title/etc is worth another ~200 or so but when I see $795 doc fees it makes me shy away from a dealer.

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 09:48

I have classmates and friends who went through a dealer for their car. The fee was usually was than less 200 and not over 200 or they would haggle over it.

Rico > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 10:09

It’s not your fault, the State regulates the doc fee or in NJ’s case doesn’t regulate it and therefore there is no limit.

NY sets the max amount at $75. Obviously no dealer in NJ is doing more work than a NY or any other State dealer but there’s nothing you can do about it. You’re job theoretically can make the fee much less since it’s totally on them but as a dealership their job is to squeeze as much money out of the customer.

Future next gen S2000 owner > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 10:11

A documentation fee solely exists to advertise a lower price. If your window prices are lower you have more back-end fees, documentation, vehicle prep fee..... Higher window, you can do “zero” fees. It all comes out in the wash.

Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras > Future next gen S2000 owner
09/26/2016 at 10:17

We dont have any prep fees.

Future next gen S2000 owner > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 10:33

Some do.

shop-teacher > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 11:12

I will only buy from dealers who charge the actual price of the title/license fees. In Illinois that’s somewhere in the $260-270 range. I have and will continue to walk from any dealer who charges their own bullshit doc fee on top of or at a more expensive price.

Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras > shop-teacher
09/26/2016 at 11:12

I have done the same, hence why i feel like a dick having to explain it to people

shop-teacher > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 11:22

I bet, that sucks. The last time I walked because of a bullshit doc fee, and this one was $795 (on top of the actual license/registration fees!), the salesman literally called me twice a week for a month. Then the manager started calling me. All they would’ve had to do was lose that fee. They kept calling even after I bought a car from another dealership. The thing that really drove me nuts, was their absolute insistance that it was a state mandated fee. I finally said to the manager, “How fucking dumb do you think I am?” He finally stopped calling after that. Now I’ll never buy from them.

PotbellyJoe and 42 others > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 11:24

The dealer I worked for was $149 up until 2007 when I left. I’m sure they’re higher now, because they can.

GM had a rule that GMS and Supplier sales had a cap of $75 for a doc fee. We didn’t lose money on those deals.

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 11:25

At least here, the law is if you charge one person doc fees, you have to charge everyone doc fees.

There’s like 2 dealers here that don’t.

The dealer where I got my Accord charged $700 in fees!

Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras > shop-teacher
09/26/2016 at 12:06

I had the same experience when I was hunting for my Si.

There was a Si sedan 5 minutes from my house and I was nearly aboht to buy till they hit me with a $895 doc fee. I walked out and they called me twice a day for a month

Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
09/26/2016 at 12:07

Never wouldve bought from them

shop-teacher > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 13:33

Maddening, isn’t it?

Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras > shop-teacher
09/26/2016 at 13:36

Very

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
09/26/2016 at 15:04

Right at the end of negotiating I made them take another $500 off to kind of cover it. $199 is reasonable.

Reasonable enough.