My Take: Who wants a C350? You DO! Forget the C300s, there is $2000 marketing cash on the C350s until 6/30 and the money factor/residuals are STILL the same. I was hammering about in February, and like a broken record, I will tell you again…GET THE C350! To encourage you to get into the C350, I will refuse to answer any C300 questions for the remainder of the month! If you are in So Cal, hit up Aaron over at Dealerplace and tell him you want the car at $2000 under invoice. That’s it. Expect to pay around $2k at drive-off and your payments should be under $500 if stick to 36/48 months. Just read the comments in the forums or in last month’s C-Class post to get an idea as to what others have found. Now, if only they would drop the MF on the C63, that would make me REALLY happy.
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| At Invoice | At MSRP | |||||
| Make/Model | Invoice | MSRP | 36-month | 48-month | 36-month | 48-month |
| 09 Mercedes C350 Sport | $37,145 | $39,875 | $525* | $470** | $604* | $529** |
NOTE: Estimates assuming the following conditions:
- Inception fees (1st month payment, DMV, doc fee, bank fee, tire tax and possible security deposit) due at signing.
- Local Taxes not included.
- 24-month/15k and 36-month/15k terms.
- All cars are stock, without any options.
- No rebates/incentives applied
2009 Mercedes C-Class
2009 Mercedes C300 Luxury
24-month | 15k miles | residual 59% | .00200 base money factor
36-month | 15k miles | residual 53% | .00165 base money factor
48-month | 15k miles | residual 43% | .00165 base money factor
60-month | 15k miles | residual 37% | .00395 base money factor
2009 Mercedes C300 Luxury 4matic
24-month | 15k miles | residual 59% | .00215 base money factor
36-month | 15k miles | residual 53% | .00125 base money factor
48-month | 15k miles | residual 43% | .00125 base money factor
60-month | 15k miles | residual 37% | .00395 base money factor
2009 Mercedes C300 Sport
24-month | 15k miles | residual 59% | .00200 base money factor
36-month | 15k miles | residual 53% | .00165 base money factor
48-month | 15k miles | residual 43% | .00165 base money factor
60-month | 15k miles | residual 37% | .00395 base money factor
2009 Mercedes C300 Sport 4matic
24-month | 15k miles | residual 59% | .00215 base money factor
36-month | 15k miles | residual 53% | .00125 base money factor
48-month | 15k miles | residual 43% | .00125 base money factor
60-month | 15k miles | residual 37% | .00395 base money factor
2009 Mercedes C350 Sport
24-month | 15k miles | residual 53% | .00089 base money factor
36-month | 15k miles | residual 50% | .00084 base money factor
48-month | 15k miles | residual 42% | .00084 base money factor
60-month | 15k miles | residual 36% | .00395 base money factor
2009 Mercedes C63 AMG
24-month | 15k miles | residual 53% | .00430 base money factor
36-month | 15k miles | residual 48% | .00395 base money factor
48-month | 15k miles | residual 43% | .00395 base money factor
60-month | 15k miles | residual 38% | .00395 base money factor
thanks G!
the other day i priced a c300 and c350. by the time you add all the options to the c300 to make it similar to the c350, along with the poor mf, you would be crazy to get the c300. especially now with 2k dealer cash on the c350.
a c350 we go!
oh yeah, no question. c350 is the way to go! For those who are still weighing your options, I say do it soon. How much longer can MB keep the residual values the same? It’s been like 3 months.
Hey G, this is the offer I got, what do you think???
C350 with P1 and Nav.
MSRP: 43230
Cash Sale Price: 40230
Term: 36 months, 15k miles
Tax capped at $300 (South Carolina)
Documents 599
Tire Tax 3.00
No money down
644.09 Initial charge (1st payment + $18 in fees)
626.09 x month
What do you think of this deal G?
C350 with p2, wheels and ipod. MSRP of 46,310. Sell price of $40215.90.
39 month lease at $489 including tax with $2000 total at drive off.
I think it is a good deal.
Thanks.
@BH. Seems like your deal has a lot of fees rolled in. You are getting invoice price and all fees are being rolled into the loan expect your 1st month and some random $18 in fees. It is better to keep your fee’s separate from the lease loan. See Mike Hinson’s deal for example. He’s getting a cool $6k off MSRP. That is an AWESOME deal. You are only getting about 3k, so there is some extra room to go down.
@Mike. Excellent deal. Just remember, 39 month leases are not ideal for states that do not allow dmv tags to be transferred. Essentially you’d pay for the 4th year of your registration and only get to drive the car 3 months before you pay again for your next car. Of course, you can avoid all that by buying the car at the end. If you live in states that don’t require yearly registration, you got yourself a NICE deal that everyone should strive for.
Is C350 a slow seller or what? This deal has been going on for months while its competitors are not offering much incentives.
not sure, but i really want one Haahaa. I just can’t unload my G37 right now because of my jacked up bumper.
G, how much you think Mike put down on this deal he posted??? looks to me like $1500? also looks like he has some fees rolled in as well.
“C350 with p2, wheels and ipod. MSRP of 46,310. Sell price of $40215.90.
39 month lease at $489 including tax with $2000 total at drive off.”
That would depend on the money factor and residual for the 39 month lease. I can tell you this though, I like his selling price, but I don’t think his monthly includes tax. The driveoff is about right. MBZ acq fee is like $1100 + $489 + DMV + doc fee + tire tax should be pretty close to $2000. I think this lease is a 39mo/10k lease.
Using his offer, but on a 48mo/10k mile lease, I’m getting 454mo+tax with about $2000 drive-off. With LA tax, it would be around $497 per month.
The $489 includes tax for 39 months. Money factor and residual is the same as the 36 month above. $2000 total out of pocket at lease signing. This is a 39 month special from MB financial.
Mike – Are you buying a car off the lot? Do you mind giving up which dealer you are using? Sounds like a great deal! I might be swayed from BMW to Mercedes.
Is the Universal Media Interface included in the Multimedia Package? Can’t seem to add them simultaneously when I build the car online.
@mike, thanks for the clarification. I just recrunched the numbers and I’m getting $456+tax per month for 39 months. So depending on your local taxes, I think you got yourself a sweet deal for sure.
@hue, the numbers on mike’s post check out, not sure you can get 6k off MSRP on all markets, but if you got decent competition, you definitely have a shot.
@carshopper no offense to BMW, but MB C350 is better deal than the 328 right now, and the 328 is supposed to me more of the C300s competitor. Of course, keep in mind that MBs don’t ever drive like BMWs.
G- Would you aim for Edmunds TMV and then subtract $2000. For example, if the car I want has an MSRP of $45,300, invoice is $42,191, and the TMV is $40,024, is aiming for $2000 below invoice ($38, 024) a reasonable request or will I look laughable? That’s $7,000 below invoice, is this possible?
Sorry, what I meant was $2,000 below “TMV” = $38,024
You could if you wanted to, but I can tell you that would be tough to do because in most cases, the TMV takes in consideration part or most of the $2000 dealer cash that’s available. It is more realistic to shoot for invoice + 2000 dealer cash. That offer has been accepted by dealers quite frequently. I believe it allows them to keep the holdback as profit.
oh I’m not saying its not possible. Of course, the higher the price tag, the more you can knock off. Just don’t be surprised if the dealer balks at your offer.
Hey G, this is what I’ve negotiated and put a deposit on.
09′ C350 with MM,Pano roof, Ipod kit and AMG 18′ wheels
MSRP $46010
Sale Price $40350
$795 acquisition fee
36 months, 15000 miles per year
35 payments of $574.18 a month
due at signing are:
first payment $574.18
South Carolina Tax $300
Tag and title fee $114
What do you think?
$45,300 MSRP
$39,500 Selling
36 months
10,000 miles
2,500 drive off
Premium 2, Multimedia package, metallic paint, and ipod connector
$501/month
Is this a good deal? I didn’t qualify for the .00084 money factor because my credit score is 670. they said my money factor would be .00135 but after a second round of negotiatons, they came down to $501 from $550/month so not sure if money factor or the selling price was manipulated. I can’t seem to calculate a monthly rate of $501 but if they can do that, is that a good deal with a msrp of 45,300 and selling price of 39,500.
What is the Money Factor for the 39 month lease at 10K, 12K and 15K?
0.00135 is still not too bad. I think there is a little bit of cap cost reduction on your part, but nothing huge. 501 is not a bad deal considering your money factor.
Right now, i’m getting $501 using your numbers and assuming a $500 cap cost reduction. This, however, does not include tax.
according to mike, the residual and money factor on the 39 month are the same. that i have not verified however. usually that isn’t the case, but you just never know.
What do you think about mine??
@BH, sorry for not addressing your question! the sale price is solid. couple things i don’t know, but that’s just pertains to the sales tax so no big deal. looks like your scored a lower acquisition fee than others have reported too, so you’re looking good.
G – How long do you expect the $2000 marketing support and the .00084 MF to last with the C350? I currently lease a vehicle and can’t get into anything new until August. Will it be a distant memory at that time? I know you don’t have a crystal ball, but I’m sure you have a gut feeling on this.
G-Just pulled the trigger today.
C350-Palladium Silver
$46,310 MSRP
$39,216 Sell price
39 month 12k a year
Money factor .00084
Residual 52%
$2000 total drive off including all fees.
$479.41 per month including CA 9.25% sales tax.
I don’t think I could get a better deal than this. I am very happy with the deal and the car.
Thanks for all the info!
@P to be honest, the marketing support could stick around. However, I get a gut feeling that the residual and money factor could change. The residual has been the same since Feb or March and we were nearing the 2nd half of the year now, where leases tend to get uglier and uglier. If you can afford to, I would pull the trigger now. Sometimes, the gamble pays off and saves you a ton of money. Whereas the worse case scenario is, you don’t get a Benz and still save money.
@mike! Congrats on the deal! I think your offer has got to be one of the best ones I’ve seen. Fantastic rate and sale price! $7k off MSRP is just insane. Congrats. Hope you can snap some pics and email them to me so i can post them on the wall.
G-
Just came across this,..probably is old news to many. Maybe they’re having all these specials because of the new updated 2010 coming out in two months. I really like the option of getting the backup camera and the keyless Go. Do you think these lease rates will be gone by the time 2010 models arrive in August?
2010 C Class available August
New standard wheels for the C300 Sport
Standard Nappa Leather Steering Wheel
4-way power lumbar support added to P1
Passenger side tilt-down mirror
Keyless-Go is a stand-alone option!
Available rear view camera – finally the scene from National Treasure will be accurate.
Tire Pressure monitoring system with read-out for each wheel
Driver’s side knee airbag added
New Dynamic Handling Package Added: for C300 and C350 Sport (2WD)
– Driver-adjustable suspension with continuously variable damping
– Speed-sensitive power steering with more direct steering ratio
– Steering wheel shift paddles
– 18″ AMG wheels
It really depends on what the banks plan to do. If they decide they want to move the 2010s, they will probably make the 2009s so unattractive that buying would be your only option.
I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that MB will lower residuals next month and either lower the MF or add more cash until remaining 09 C350s are sold out. That may not mean the deal will be better. It could stay the same or worsen. Availability for 09 C350s seem to be dwindling, so I don’t recommend waiting. If 2010s are rolling into showroom in 2 months, 09 production must have stopped.
Great deal Mike!
G is right about c350’s disappearing. very hard to find specific options/colors. If you want c350, now is the time or wait till the 2010’s come out.
my first attempt at a deal: i can do better, or should i say “they”.
C350
Premium 2 package
Ipod
Multimedia package
anorama roof
18″ AMG wheels
MSRP $46,640
sale price: $41,829
$2k drive off (acquisition, tag title and fees)
15k miles
$588/month for 39 months
50% residual
.00108 mf
sales tax 7%.
the mf is not .00084 and i think they could take off an additional 1k off sale price. your thoughts?
hue, definitely, if you can knock off another $1k and get that mf down to the .00084 base rate, I would pull the trigger on it.
hue – are you in tier 2? I was told i was in tier 2 bordering tier 3, with a money factor of .00135. my credit score is 665. What is yours? Then I talked to another dealer and they said I was close to Tier 1. I don’t know who’s being honest. Maybe they put me in Tier 3 but I’m really in Tier 2 and should get .00108 like you? Please give me more info on your credit and tier please. thanks!
I was also told that a dealer might be able to talk the bank into getting me into tier 1 based on some items on my credit that shouldn’t be there but are still indicating a crappy credit score. Is the following true? Why would it matter if it’s been submitted by another dealer already? Aren’t all dealers competing against each other?
“The only challenge with the credit will be whether or not another MBZ dealer already submitted you for credit approval, if they didn’t then we have a chance for Tier1 approval. You might want to call them and ask if they have submitted it to Mercedes Benz FInancial. I suggest you ask them not to submit yet, if they do then you have no choice but to work through them, also ask then to forward there quote via email to ensure we are comparing the same MSRP and lease terms.”
@carshopper. I am bit foggy when it comes to the inner workings of banks, but to me, what the dealer sort of makes sense since you are both dealing with the same bank. Some dealers seem to be able to pull that off and get you qualified for a better tier. I’m not sure if there are any major implications for having to run your credit twice with the same bank. I wouldn’t recommend it just purely on the fact that your credit gets hit twice.
So i finally signed my lease.
C350 w/MM, Pano, Ipod, 18′ AMG wheels, Metallic Steel Grey.
(see price in my previous post)
I ended up doing 39months, 15k miles
555 x month
About 900 drive off, including SC tax ($300), first month and Tag/title
Tier 1 credit (score >750) MF 0.00084
@BH. Congrats on the new ride! Not a bad deal considering you rolled part of the inception fees into the loan. Its not a high interest loan, so its not its fine. Looking good! So do we get some pics with that? 🙂
carshopper,
they didnt run my credit yet. thats the mf rate they quoted on our first negotiation.
i was a tier2 on my last car, so i had to put down a couple multiple security deposites but then they moved me to tier one. it all goes through the mb credit, or in my case, bmw credit. some dealers have better relationships with the credit than others.
the problem with this car deal is that its not on the dealers lot, they will have to trade to get the car i want so they are not being as aggresive as if it were their car.
i believe once your approved with mb financial, you can go to whatever dealer. unless the dealers use a private bank to secure financing.
$45,300 MSRP
$39,439 Negotiated Price
California 9.25 sales tax
money factor .00084
residual 53% or $24,009
$2,500.00 driveoff including all below
$ 511 .00 registration
$ 55.00 Doc fees
$ 8.75 tire fees
$ 30.00 County fees
$ 29.00 Electronic Filing fees
$ 500.00 first month payment
$ 122.78 upfront tax
$ 1243.43 cap reduction
39 months
10,000 miles
Is $500 a month a good deal. I’m using several calculators and I’m getting $440 a month including taxes. Am I doing it wrong.
Using the following: http://www.leaseguide.com/calc.htm with the following input:
MSRP: 45,300
Base cap cost : 39,439
Cost included in lease : $756
Down payment 2500
Net Cap Cost: 37695
Residual : 24009
MF: .00084
Months: 39
Tax: 9.25
“Your monthly payment including sales tax is $440”
What did I input wrong?
@gooddealornot. Your numbers are all over the place. Try not to plug everything into the calculator if you can. If you keep the numbers simple, you’ll get the desired numbers. As for leaseguide’s calculator, I don’t recommend it purely on the fact that they don’t take into account that cap cost reduction is taxed, among other things. Without cap reduction, I’m getting $490.46 (with tax) per month. You’d have to pay around $2002.53 at signing tho (I just added your inception fees). I think there are some hidden costs in your quote from the dealer. My advice is this, pay all inceptions upfront (you got it itemized so thats good). Don’t roll the bank fee into the lease ($756 seems to be it). Keep it simple and you’ll get the right numbers.
I’m picking up the car in 2 weeks
@BH. That’s awesome! congrats again. Looks like everyone jumping into the C350 frenzy. MB should give me a referral fee or something for helping them hype the C350 over the C300s. Haahaa.
G –
How do you get to $490 with tax with my numbers. I have calculated this over and over and I can’t get to that. If possible can you break down how you’re getting that? I thought I understood the calculation process manually and using edmunds and leaseguide I come close to my manual calculations. How did you arrive at $490..I want to make sure I understand the calculations fully so that I can manipulate it later for different mileage or if they lower the selling price more. If you have time to do this, I would really appreciate it. Thanks G! You have already been more than helpful.
@gooddealornot. no problem. I used my excel calculator to make the calculations. The MSRP is $45300. Gross Cap Cost is $39439. I kept all fees, including the bank acquisition fee out of the lease loan, so don’t put them in the calculator. Only put it in the calculator if you plan to roll it into the lease.
At 53% residual and .00084 over 39 months, your payments are 448.94. With 9.25% tax, it comes out to $490.46. You will be responsible for your inception fees. Which I totalled to be around $2002.53 (I just added them all up). Just download the excel lease calculator i made and plug in the numbers in the fields i mentioned and you should get the numbers I’m talking about. If you want to go with a 12k mile lease, your residual will drop by 1%. 3% if you opt for the 15k.
thanks guys for the advice, i pulled the trigger on a 2009 c350 with 0 down for 524 tax included a month. 39 months 15k a year, 50% residual, .00084 mf. I got steel grey, mm, p2, amg wheel. MSRP was 46,510 and was able to negotiate to 40,400 so not too bad, close to 6 grand off msrp.
@tp22. congrats on the new ride. I’m so jealous! I want one too! Too bad i don’t have room for a 3rd car. I think you did well on the sale price. I know some guys did better, but keep this in mind, you got what you wanted. 09 C350s are probably in production anymore with the 2010s around the corner. There is also no telling how good of a deal the 2010s are going to be.
Hi G-
Thanks for that! I got to your number by not putting anything in the Downpayment/Cap Reduction line. However according to the dealer, he broker out the driveoff and there is a $ 1243.43 cap reduction as part of the $2,500. (see below) Is there a reason why you did not put that in your calculator? Also your inception fee is $2002.53 but wouldn’t it be the $2,500 driveoff, or are they really suppossed to charge me $2,002.53 and are upcharging me to $2,500? Thanks again for all your help!
——
$2,500.00 driveoff including all below
$ 511 .00 registration
$ 55.00 Doc fees
$ 8.75 tire fees
$ 30.00 County fees
$ 29.00 Electronic Filing fees
$ 500.00 first month payment
$ 122.78 upfront tax
$ 1243.43 cap reduction
@gooddealornot. just so that there is no confusion. lets step away from what the dealer tells you the drive-off is. However lets stick to what we know the fees are. We know you have to pay DMV registration ($511), tires fees ($8.75), doc fee ($55), bank acquisition fee ($756 seem to be it because it got added into your deal), taxes ($122.78 is likely the taxes on the inception fees, gotta pay those). The county fees and electronic filing fees I’ve never heard of so you will have to confirm with other dealers if these really are legitimate. Now up to this point we have $1453.53. The last thing you have to do is pay the monthly payment, which I have already shown you. You are NOT required to put any capital cost reduction on your lease. When I say keep the lease loan simple, I mean that you shouldn’t roll in any fees/payments of any kind into the loan. Just take the MSRP, sale price, mf, residual value, state tax and plug into the calculator. That’s it.
This is what you tell the dealer…You tell him/her that you want to pay all inception fees and their applicable taxes upfront. You don’t want to roll any fees into the lease loan, including the acquisition fee and you don’t want to put any cap cost reduction. That’s it. Just be sure to double check the finance guy’s work.
The dealer can’t require you to put a cap cost reduction into the deal (down payment). That is your choice. Just know that when you put money down, it lowers your payments. The reason I didn’t include it into the calculator is to show you that without cap reduction, your payments are $490 per month and any cap reduction you put down, should lower that number further. I do not know how the dealer is getting $500 per month after $2500 due at signing. Obviously, the math there is a bit fuzzy there so you need to clear things up with the dealer.
Hey G. Great site. It helped us to be educated about our purchase. We got an almost base C350 for $6700 off MSRP. We got dinged on the $45 doc prep fee and $29 DMV electronic filing. Still. Best deal we had on a car, yet.
sven, congrats on the new car. the doc fee is not that bad, some people pay 595, so that’s a great deal, specially for that much off MSRP!
G, Just wanted to say thanks for all the help this site has given me on my lease search. Looked at Lexus & BMW and found my way to Mercedes C350 after reading this post! Hoping to get your feedback on the deal I have on the table:
MSRP: $40,250
Negotiated Price: 35,778.28 (includes a $200 transportation fee (to get the car i want in from another local dealer) and $295 for Door Edge Guard??
Cap Cost of $37,472 which includes a $1,095 Acq fee., and the $599 dealer fee.
Residual of 53%
10,000 miles
39 months
MF of 0.00114 (base of .00084+0.00030 Reserve rate add on)
Out of pocket is $867 which includes 1st payment along with License, Registration, & small misc. costs
Payment of $512.14 including tax/month
My sales tax rate is 6.50%
Dealer to tint all 4 windows.
That’s where I stand right now. It is the base C350 with the ipod adaptor Black/black. (Invoice of $37,494)
Do I have a good deal? My numbers show I got $2,211 below invoice if you back out the transportation fee & door guard cost.
If i have 700+ credit, don’t you think I should get the base .00084 money factor? Should I press them for that?Also, anyone have experience with Door Edge Cup Guard and is it necessary. Really want to be just under $500/mo including tax. Any thoughts? Thanks in advance.
@gizzle. glad you found the site insightful! the c350 is a great alternative to the IS and 3-series right now because you can get one with a bit more “umph” for only a little more than the is250s or 328s cost.
First thing, I have no idea what the door edge guard is, but if its a mfg installed option, you are pretty much stuck with it. The transportation fee happens, some dealers waive it, but most probably wont if it’s being brought over from a signification distance. Now here’s thing, don’t roll in the acquisition and dealer fee into your lease. Also, dealer fee is a bit ridiculous, generally, the dealer fee is negotiable, but it is really hard to know what a “fair” offer is since every state charges a different dealer doc fee. One thing I do is go after the sale price if I find it difficult to negotiate their fees. If they don’t want to bend on the fees, I try to have them lower the sale price. The trick is to know the fees before you know the sale price, so you know how much to offer on the car (after you shave off all unreasonable fees). Another thing is your money factor. I have heard of “reserve add on”, but I think it’s ridiculous because that’s just a fancy way of bumping your money factor and making it seem like it’s imposed by the bank. So yes, if your credit score is well above 700, then the base rate should be attainable and I would press for that. Worse case scenario, they may ask for a security deposit, but you get that money back so that shouldn’t be much of an issue. As you have seen with other dealer on this post, many folks are getting the c350 fairly well loaded for under $500 after taxes on a 39 or 48 month lease. Their inception costs run around $2000. There’s much work to be done here I think, you need a lower sale price (to compensate for the high doc fee and the door guard) and you need to bring that MF down to the base rate.
Any word on if the $2000 marketing cash has been extended for July as well? In June, did this only apply if you did a lease, or was it across the board – lease, finance, or straight cash deal?
Thanks for your help!
@dave. unfortunately, the deals on the C350 are pretty much over. I am hearing the residual/mf are still around the same as last couple months, but the $2000 is gone. Which means your payments are not about $60 more per month.
I saw MB C300 sport MF posted on another site: 24 Month Residual 57% of MSRP – .00200 Base Rate 36 Month – Residual 51% of MSRP.00075 Base Rate. These are for 15K miles. Can anyone confirm this as the accurate base MF?
@bha. You got ahead of me. LOL. July 2009 posted. No $2000 cash on the C350 anymore, but the numbers on the C300 have improved.