My wife's truck is getting up there in miles and we've been thinking about trading it in. My wife has taken a liking to the spy shots of the new Bronco and it should be able to meet our needs for towing and the like. We are finally in a financial position to get something a bit nicer for her so I don't mind splurging a bit but I want to be smart.
I've never attempted to buy a model right when it comes out and part of my justification is the idea that these types of retro offroaders are doing really well in retaining value. I think the demand for light overlanders will increase as people seek other entertainment avenues away from sports stadiums and movie theaters. So we may pay a bit more now but we'll retain a larger percentage of the paid price at the end. So some questions about the purchase.
1) Is my premise that the Bronco will keep its value likely to be accurate or just me trying to justify the decision.
2) Would it be better to get a more mid level 2wd version or pay extra for 4wd with the thought that it will retain an even greater percentage of value.
3) Tips to try to get a decent deal on what will likely be a fairly in demand new model during a time where production is down
I have a few offroaders, that the hipster man bun crowd covets. All are (straight dollar), worth more than I paid for them.
1) I do think the Bronco will keep its value, long term.
2) 4wd.
3) I think initially MSRP is best you will be able to do.
4) I wouldn't worry about it being a "new model" as so much of the motor/trans are from other applications.
Good luck.
1) It's a brand new car. It's not going to retain it's value. Ford is going to make hundreds of thousands of them.
2) I think 4wd is worth it for resale value, but also utility. If you're not buying this type of vehicle for it's off-road capability, why are you buying this type of vehicle?
3) Wait. Give it six months for the initial demand to die down. Do you really want to be that guy who paid more than sticker at launch, only to see them with $3k on the hood later that same year? Plus, I'm a bit leery about first-year Fords after the whole Explorer launch fiasco.
I would just wait the 2 weeks until they release it so you can quell the rumormill stuff and understand if what actually is out there will suit your needs or will it just look cool and not do what you need.
Get set up for the Ford Friends and Family discount (I think called S-Plan.) This is a modest price over invoice. It is intended to be a win-win for seller and buyer. What it will do for you on a high demand model is keep the seller from adding a huge mark-up.
I did this when my M-I-L wanted the just released and popular 2013 Escape hit the scene. A GRM'er set me up with what was needed to get the pricing.
In reply to John Welsh (Moderate Supporter) :
Ford most likely won't offer any incentive plans on it (at launch at least.) They currently aren't available on Raptors, Bullit or Shelby Mustangs, and RSs and Cobras weren't included in the past.
I also wouldn't count on getting one at sticker for a few months.
Don't buy a 2wd one.
mr2s2000elise said:
I have a few offroaders, that the hipster man bun crowd covets. All are (straight dollar), worth more than I paid for them.
1) I do think the Bronco will keep its value, long term.
2) 4wd.
3) I think initially MSRP is best you will be able to do.
4) I wouldn't worry about it being a "new model" as so much of the motor/trans are from other applications.
As someone in the industry, and who has read lots of other forums (only once or twice each, I promise) with people who do buy early build first-year vehicles, there are a lot of other potential differences between first model year (heck, even first month) production, and later builds. They may not all be problems, but I would expect overall quality to go up as there are more months of builds. Like mr2s2000elise said, the drivetrain should be rock solid - it's the rest of it you'll want to keep an eye out for, even if they may be only onesie-twosie problems here and there.
Don't play the dealer market adjustment mark up bull E36 M3.
Be patient, shop around, not just local, cast a wide net, one way flights are cheap.
Car salesmen aren't real people, don't be afraid to hurt their feelings, they don't have any.
Saron81 said:
In reply to John Welsh (Moderate Supporter) :
Ford most likely won't offer any incentive plans on it (at launch at least.) They currently aren't available on Raptors, Bullit or Shelby Mustangs, and RSs and Cobras weren't included in the past.
I also wouldn't count on getting one at sticker for a few months.
Don't buy a 2wd one.
I don't think the Bronco is going to be a special like all of the ones you listed. Last I've seend for it, it is supposed to be for the masses- which means A, X, and Z plans will likely all apply in one way or another. That being said, I don't see much else in terms of incentives for quite a while, if ever. I'm very much hoping that it will mean better Escape incentives in Aug- and add that to manufuacuring getting back on line, we could get another cheap lease vehicle,.,.,, But I digress.
Too many employees plan on getting one for the base employee plans to not be available.
I never buy the first model year of anything, especially from Ford or GM.
bigdaddylee82 said:
Don't play the dealer market adjustment mark up bull E36 M3.
Be patient, shop around, not just local, cast a wide net, one way flights are cheap.
Car salesmen aren't real people, don't be afraid to hurt their feelings, they don't have any.
Actually- to avoid the dealer add crap is a good reason you want to find the friends and neighbors discount code.
I've got a reasonable relationship with a dealer nearby and my company qualifies for the S plan so I do intend on taking advantage of that. We are mostly getting it cuz the wife likes taller vehicles and really likes how the Bronco looks. Her dad had a mid 90s bronco while she was growing up and she loved that truck. She also likes the big touch screens with apple car play and the Ford Sync 3 is actually pretty decent compared to Chevy, Toyota, and Nissan's setups.
She likes her truck but wouldn't' mind an enclosed cargo area its mostly for daily driving. I'm fine with getting a poser offroad truck that never sees dirt as long as she is happy and the road manners aren't too god awful. I use her truck to tow my MR2 to events so it needs to be able to do that but overall weight of car and trailer is around 4k so we don't need the most maximum towing around. I'm hoping to get the family involved in some light overlanding and camping but that is more of a nice to have than a necessity so the 4wd decision was more about trading off mileage and initial costs over resale rather than about capability.
In reply to Maniac0301 :
FWIW, S plan is for Mazda, A, X, and Z are for Ford.
Ironically, S and X plan give almost the same discount (and S plan is the best we got when we owned Mazda, those cheap bastards).
In reply to tremm :
Financing... Credit Score over 800 so generally fine in that regard at least as well as you can be. I have no real info on the gas or insurance costs of 2wd vs 4wd I don't think we'll know until the July reveal event.
Most of Ford's other current offerings see a 1-2mpg drop from 2 to 4wd - I would expect this to be similar. I would expect this type of vehicel to devalue more quickly in 2wd because it doesn't match with people's image of the vehicle. Think about the value on old 2wd Cherokees vs old 4wd Cherokees. I think the 2 door models are less likely to sell well, more likely to be discontinued in a couple years, and more likely to retain more value. Honestly though, buying new is always giving away something on resale value, that's just part of it.
I expect it to have better road manners than the current wrangler (which isn't a high bar), probably in the range of the current 4Runner if they really want it to be competitive.
I'm really loving these things and I suspect I will be lusting after a new 2 door heavily. Wether or not that happens is a different story, it just doesn't fit my actual needs and I can't justify the cost of that kind of thing being a play toy. in a couple years when I pay off my truck I might look one.If my wife's car suddenly goes belly up it might be a different story, but as a 6 year old Mazda I doubt that will happen. If they had been on the market 18 months ago I can almost guarantee I'd be driving one instead of buying a full size pickup.
I don't expect the thing to gain in value at least not while its still being produced. But you can expect for a normal 30k vehicle to lose about 50-60% of its value over the course of 5 years and I'm hoping to see more like 20-30% loss. Meaning I've spent a bit more but didn't lose as much over the course of ownership compared to other vehicles that fit my needs. Financially I'm able now to look at the purchase more holistically taking in the TCO rather than finding the cheapest reliable vehicle that still does what I need it to do.
My wife is amenable to going whole hog depending on cost. 4wd, big engine, 2 door, manual transmission, in a striking color like orange or green. I know this will seriously limit the amount of buyers at the end of the loan but it could pay off in finding that sweet spot of mythical but ultra desirable spec at least until they release a Raptor version.
1. You're going to have to wait a few months. Look at the Supra's, when they were released, dealers had them marked up way over MSRP.
Now there are literally hundreds sitting on lots all over the country, with $3-6k off MSRP and 0% financing.
2. I wouldn't worry about the S/X plan pricing. When I purchased my Mustang GT back at the end of '12, they gave me a better price than the S plan pricing.
Maniac0301 said:
you can expect for a normal 30k vehicle to lose about 50-60% of its value over the course of 5 years and I'm hoping to see more like 20-30% loss.
Hopefully it will follow the trajectory of my FJ Cruisers, instead.
alfadriver (Forum Supporter) said:
In reply to Maniac0301 :
FWIW, S plan is for Mazda, A, X, and Z are for Ford.
Ironically, S and X plan give almost the same discount (and S plan is the best we got when we owned Mazda, those cheap bastards).
This. I used S-plan when I bought my Protege5 in 2003.
Just to explain a bit more, A-plan is for current employees, Z-plan is for retirees (they are the same price) and X-plan is for suppliers and "friends and family". It's not as good a deal as A or Z-plan, but it's decent.
FWIW, any Ford employee can get you "friends and family" X-plan. I'm not an employee anymore, but I certainly know how to find some. 
Anyone is just guessing on 5 year resale on something that hasn't even been released yet. So let's guess.
My bet is that it will be somewhere between the Jeep and the FJ Cruiser for the first couple of years. Even then, over 5 years you're still going to lose $1-2k a year after five years. Or rather, combine that with whatever interest you're paying, that's what it costs to drive it.
I think I want one too, but I want to wait and see.
Save your money until you have enough cash to buy one, don’t tell them you are paying cash so you get the best price possible, then pop the “can I write you a personal check?” question on the F&I guy at the close. Meantime prices have stabilized, first run issues have been sorted out, you are money ahead vs. where you’d be otherwise. Then drive it until the wheels fall off (so resale is irrelevant). But then again, this plan delays the fun, so there is that.
In reply to einy (Forum Supporter) :
Last new car we bought, we got an extra $1K off incentive for financing with the manufacturer's credit service. In that case, finance, pay the note the first month, then pay it off the next. Assuming there's not an early payment penalty.
einy (Forum Supporter) said:
Save your money until you have enough cash to buy one, don’t tell them you are paying cash so you get the best price possible, then pop the “can I write you a personal check?” question on the F&I guy at the close. Meantime prices have stabilized, first run issues have been sorted out, you are money ahead vs. where you’d be otherwise. Then drive it until the wheels fall off (so resale is irrelevant). But then again, this plan delays the fun, so there is that.
You'll get a better deal financing because they get a cut.
Just make them match the best rate you can find, and they will because they know you can just get the other loan for the same rate and then that's even less they make.
This of course assumes you have good credit so you aren't dependent on them to get a high-risk lender to approve you at 15% or something
OP said his credit score is over 800. I am sure he won't have any issues getting financing.
In reply to mr2s2000elise :
That was really just a general statement vs being directed at OP.
