So I'm home bored tonight and decide to see the updates on Jeep.com (I Just took delivery of my 2nd 07 Wrangler Sahara last week- Jeep Green this time). I start looking around and decide to see how many SRT's there are in the immediate SoCal area.

After going through 21 dealer's websites...there are at least 40 NEW 07's from Los Angeles to Irvine.

Makes me wonder why there are so many. Seems like a lot as the 08's are arriving. I'm guessing California is a primary market for these.

My personal opinion is that most of the local STEALERS are stupid/arrogant enough to put on 5-10k mark-ups. And few are willing to pay that much over sticker.

Any thoughts?

I know it's stupid excercise...but I just started looking and got carried away.

-s-

Probably yes, it is a good market.

Also probably a good time to find a deal

Build the SRT8 you want and email the dealers that have the color/combo you are after. You'll begin dealing with a Fleet manager from the start.

My personal opinion is that most of the local STEALERS are stupid/arrogant enough to put on 5-10k mark-ups. And few are willing to pay that much over sticker.

Any thoughts?

-s-

I did the same thing last Saturday... found the same number of units in inventory -- I went as far as contacting a fleet manager and went for a test drive.

The FM I visited said he'd sell at MSRP .. no lower, and if you walk-in through the resale department you're looking at $6K DMU. I had him roll numbers on the 2007 I drove and 2008 MY... the 08 has a $400 lower price due to the new MyGig nav system. At time of purchase a 2007 will lose at least $8K-$10K in value because the 2008s are arriving...

it doesn't make business sense to buy a 2007 at MSRP..

anyway, I told him to give me a call when the GM decides to move on the price -- tomorrow I'm calling each dealer to see if I can find someone that will order and sell a 2008 slightly above invoice.

It definitely doesn't make sense to take such a hard hit as you drive off the lot and still pay MSRP for the 07s. As the 08s start arriving, the dealers will have no choice but to come down on the price.

I have my 07 and am happy with it. I wasn't shopping per se to buy a new one...just looking around.

What struck me is that these are great cars for a decent price - and yet there are 40 of them around. And they are around only because of the DMU. It's like the dealers are so detached from the buyers and market that they actually BELIEVE because a few have paid the DMU, others will.

Makes me sad to hav 40 of our bretheren sitting, baking in the sun with no owners. But then again...it makes ours that much more special.

-s-

When I bought mine back in December of last year, I found a few dealers that weren't accepting anything less than 5K over sticker. I walked out of Shaver Jeep in Thousand Oaks after my test drive ready to write a check or warm up the plastic. They didn't want to work the numbers so I said c-ya. I found exactly what I wanted less than a week later for 6K less. They called me several weeks later to check up and I told them that I already picked mine up. Losers!

What struck me is that these are great cars for a decent price - and yet there are 40 of them around. And they are around only because of the DMU. It's like the dealers are so detached from the buyers and market that they actually BELIEVE because a few have paid the DMU, others will.

this is a major dilemma for the Big Three.. when they finally do bring something special to the table the dealers screw it up... not just during the sales process, but the service end of the customer experience as well.

The north American dealer network needs a major overhaul... I would like to see a SRT buy direct program to bypass dealers and their BS (not directed at the good ones). The infrastructure is already there.. auto shows, test drive program, financing...

WTF does a dealer do other than perform final prep and hold a bunch of inventory?... a non-value added process in my opinion.

Chrysler could easily establish regional factory service facilities and employ qualified techs that won't feel the need to dealer hop due to poor management..

this is a major dilemma for the Big Three.. when they finally do bring something special to the table the dealers screw it up... not just during the sales process, but the service end of the customer experience as well.

Chrysler could easily establish regional factory service facilities and employ qualified techs that won't feel the need to dealer hop due to poor management..

Indeed -- this could be very effective with a bit of work. I think one of the potential dowsides is handling all the trade-ins. Perhaps they would "certify" a select few and wholesale the the rest and be done with it.

The other opportunity for a regional facility is to provide a host of "factory sponsored" mods -- such as exxhaist, CAI, electronics, lighting, specialty painting, etc. This would allow a large number of buyers to individualize there cars.

After going through 21 dealer's websites...there are at least 40 NEW 07's from Los Angeles to Irvine.
Makes me wonder why there are so many. Seems like a lot as the 08's are arriving. I'm guessing California is a primary market for these.
My personal opinion is that most of the local STEALERS are stupid/arrogant enough to put on 5-10k mark-ups. And few are willing to pay that much over sticker.-s-
Hi Stephen. I too am surprised how unwilling some dealers are to negotiate. They think the car is hot, but there is a lot of inventory out there. About 2 months ago I paid about $38-39 for my new 07 that stickered at $45. It had been produced and delivered in December 06 and had been on the lot since then. Maybe no one else liked Steel Blue. :D When I bought in June, I also noticed that 07 SRTs had already appeared in the Black Book, meaning sufficient 07s had gone through auctions to register statistically reliable values. No other 07 Jeeps had made the Black Book by then. So there are also a lot of used ones out there, although I understand a fair number are the SRT Track Time cars. Still, surprising how many dealers stick to high prices.--Bob

When I bought the 07 GCSRT in the spring, I had two out of three dealers I contacted via email ready to do a the fully loaded GC for about $2500 under MSRP. I'm guessing you can get the 07 for pretty much invoice price now that the 08 is out.