Hello, shopping around for a new 06 G and want a bit of info before heading into dealerships.

1) Do dealers all use Infiniti Financial Services (IFS), or do they each have their own individual sources of financing backing?

2) I basically want to know if I would have to apply for credit at each dealer I visit to negotiate (I fear taking a hit on my credit score from so many inquiries), or if applying at one dealership qualifies me for all of them?

2.1) On that note, does using the online IFS Pre-Approval application at Infiniti.com covers the credit check at all dealerships I visit (wondering if that would prevent them from having to run individual checks)?

3) Lastly, is there a pre-set rate or starting point that is offered to customers with well approved credit? Or would I have to negotiate with each dealer for a good rate? I am not too sure where new car rates from dealerships start at, anyone know a good reference point?
If the info helps: I am applying with a FICO score of 760, with my older brother as a co-signer who has roughly the same FICO score range as me.

I basically don't want to get screwed over on either the purchase price or financing as I know the dealership could drop the profit off one to make it attractive only to push the other one higher.

Thanks all!

 

Basically, the dealer will try to get you to pay as high as they can. If you are determined you are going in to get a care within the next week or so, all the credit inquiries will only count as one so that won't hurt your score. I recommend applying on-line at Capital One Auto finance and use that as the starting point. Current 5.65 for 60 months. The dealers first salvo was 6%, I balked and told them 5.25 was their target, they called back not more than 1 minute later with 5.29%, capital one has a rate guarantee program so I called them back and they beat that down to 5.19% so that's where we landed. I have top tier credit as well.

I don't know the answer to your first or second questions. Negotiate the two transactions separately. Get a price for the car, then negotiate the finance rate.

 

with a 760, decent income and reasonable expenses you should've have a problem getting under 6. How long have you been at the same residence? Same job? Try your bank or a local credit union. Lots of times credit unions have great rates and only require you to open a bank account with as low as 1 dollar.

 

Depends who you deal with...some dealers will try the easy creditors at first therefore you wind up with a high interest rate. I did one dealership and he was offering me 9.30% (ouch)...so I went to another dealer and they gave me IFS for 3.99. Taking to the account that I filed for bankruptcy 5 years ago and re-established credit since then. So don't let them rush on finding you a creditor. Fill out the IFS application and see what come out of it.

Good luck.

 

I am in my last year of college, hence why my brother, who's been working straight out of high school (10 years), is co-signing with me to help out with the income part of the equation. I always list my residence at the family home for applications because there's no rent/mortgage, so I dont think that will be an issue.

Does applying for IFS online at infiniti.com result in a finance offer directly from IFS?

I'm planning to wait til the 2nd half of janurary/end of the month to walk in and buy a car before the month's end, so I have these two weeks to do the research. What I have for certain is 5.5% from my credit union as my baseline rate, just hoping to get something significantly less than from the dealer.

Thanks for the replies everyone, any more insight is always appreciated.

 

type infiniti.com wrong and got this site....haha
http://www.infinti.com/

anyways check this link out for college students...it might help with you questions.

http://www.infiniti.com/content/0,,sctid-52036,00.html

 

Signature|GRADUATE actually didn't get a good rate for me, and I ended up using a sale (2.9% for 60 months) rate instead. See http://www.infiniti.com/acquire/Nati...rs/0,,,00.html for information.

They update that around the fifth of every month. I know because I watched it like a hawk to see just how "limited" the offer was. In my case, they started the sales event in January, and thanks to a slow economy, extended it, and extended it, and extended it through May. Each month however it said the sale was due to end at the end of that month. It certainly got me motivated to go buy a car each time the 30th or so rolled around... in fact, I bought mine on the last day of April.

When I bought my car (April 2005) Infiniti was doing a "Limited Engagement Sales Event" which had 1.9% financing for 24 or 36 month loans, or 2.9 for 48 or 60 month loans, both for "well-qualified" applicants.

The College Grad program entitles you to "tier 1" credit if your score doesn't get you that already. However, it won't entitle you to sales rates like 2.9% I got.

My score was 780 at the time, and I qualified with no assistance for the 2.9 rate. I got my shiny new car about a month before I graduated, and about six weeks before I started my shiny new career.

As an interesting side note, the graduate program has a "feature" that delays the first payment up to 60 days I believe. Its not worth it from what I've heard. The sales manager told me that wasn't a good deal, since its just building interest on the loan. My "regular" loan's first payment was about 45 days after I bought the car.

 

i applied on infiniti.com and i was pre-approved for a loan, as long as my payments were under a certain amount. when i went into the dealership, they still ran my credit again. i think the dealership factors in a lot more information (job history, amount of rent you pay, etc)

based on my credit score, i qualified for first tier of credit and ended up getting a good rate. i think you should skip applying online and go directly to the dealer. i'm not sure what the online pre-approval does, but it didn't really seem to help me. good luck!

 

Hello, shopping around for a new 06 G and want a bit of info before heading into dealerships.

1) Do dealers all use Infiniti Financial Services (IFS), or do they each have their own individual sources of financing backing?

Most Infiniti dealership DO work with outside lenders

2) I basically want to know if I would have to apply for credit at each dealer I visit to negotiate (I fear taking a hit on my credit score from so many inquiries), or if applying at one dealership qualifies me for all of them?

You have to apply credit with each and every dealership, unless you just use Infiniti Finance, which you are pre-approved already.

2.1) On that note, does using the online IFS Pre-Approval application at Infiniti.com covers the credit check at all dealerships I visit (wondering if that would prevent them from having to run individual checks)?

Each dealership will run their onw credit chceks, IFS basicly just to tell you wheather you are apporved or not, they dont tell you at what percentage you are approved at. so like other said, just bypass the IFS and go directly to the dealership.

3) Lastly, is there a pre-set rate or starting point that is offered to customers with well approved credit? Or would I have to negotiate with each dealer for a good rate? I am not too sure where new car rates from dealerships start at, anyone know a good reference point?
If the info helps: I am applying with a FICO score of 760, with my older brother as a co-signer who has roughly the same FICO score range as me.

I do believe IFS's rate is pre-set already, Not excatly sure about IFS but some other car company do have a "base" rate, specialy on the lease, which means that is lowest the factory offers to dealership but dealer might add few points to it. I do believe 6% is somewhat average starting point, since you have score of 760 you should have no problem to get somewhere 5~5.5% range and thats bit conservative(dont want to misled ya ), my scroe is around 720 at time of my purchase(may) and I got 4.3% from Chase and I got 5.15% back in June of 03 for my first G...Why you think you need a co-signer?

I basically don't want to get screwed over on either the purchase price or financing as I know the dealership could drop the profit off one to make it attractive only to push the other one higher.

I would find out the price of car with the options you want, I mean excatly, and then figure out what is the fair price, 500 above inovice, 1k above it...ect and figure out and what monthly payment are equal to that price with everything factors in, like the sale's tax, DMV, and interest rate...exapmle if dealer quote you an 670/mos, you should have some idea of whats the loan amout is that equals to...(35503@5%), I wrote down what amount equals to what percentage per 1k borrowed, like 18.87@5%, 19.80@6% for 60mos, so I can take quick calculation when salesman throw me an number