Las Vegas Area Dealership

[vegasdude]

1st Visit: Honda West - No demo available. Just one Pilot in the showroom. It's a Pilot EX-L RES with running board and other options with a whopping $39,000 price tag. Sales manager said I need to order one to test drive the Pilot. He said, if I don't like the test drive I will get my money back. So I told them I will just head east to Desert Honda.........and ADIOS.

10 minutes later.......2nd Visit: Desert Honda - demo available. Loved the test drive...... top 90 at I-95 South. Awesome test drive with the exception of some brake noise. No available Pilot on the lot.
Sales person wants $1,700 over MSRP with a $399 doc fee and $185 BS fee......so almost $600 total fees. He would not go down in price. They were nice but I can not justify paying that much money for one.

No visit: Went to Priceline.com and got my bid accespted my Robertson Honda Palmdale, CA. MSRP plus $480 destination charge and $45 doc fees. With the California taxes, if I pick it up at California I will be paying $300 more in taxes. I will just get it trunked in to my house for about $200 - $300 bucks. They are estimating delivery after 2 weeks........ I am still waiting. Today is the delivery date.

3rd Visit: Finley Honda Henderson. Saw a SS Pilot EX RES on the lot, sales person said it is available. Told sales person I will cancel my order with Priceline and just pay the penalty if he gives me the right price. Test drove another demo......... still love the drive. Manager doubled check computer............... Pilot not availabe..... darn. Sales person Joel was nice and easy to talk to.

So now I am still waiting for Robertson Honda in Palmdale to pull through.

[Jerry]

I ended up buying my Pilot at Honda West after making the same tour. First test drove at Honda West, then went to Desert Honda and Findlay.
After the tour called Price Club auto buying service who sent me to Desert Honda and their Internet Sales Manager Britten Battisti (369-3099). He will sell Pilots at MSRP with some added bonuses like free desert protection package.

Since I live in northwest Vegas, went back to Honda West which would be closer for service and challenged the Sales Manager to match Desert's price. They did, so I bought my Silver Navi from them.

All happened on June 3, the first day Pilots were on sale in town. I had to wait 1 day for the dealer prep. Suggest you call Britten to see if he can help you.

[vegasdude]

i will give her a call tomorrow.

[vegasdude]

Called dealer, he has a great deal but I am much too deep with my other deal and the delivery is a lot closer.

Got my Pilot last night, thanks for the info.

[Jerry]

Happy to hear you got your Pilot.

If your in the northwest keep your eyes peeled for another SS.

[vegasdude]

I am in the Northwest (Summerlin) too. I haven't spotted a Pilot in the area. Saw one on the I-95 S in Herderson. I am dring a SS as well. Will honk if I see one.......if they start looking at me funny then I know it's not you.

Definitely drink to that.

Will take her to Mesquite on Sunday. What an excellent vehicle......I am glad I got one.

[vegasdude]

Jerry I noticed you have "7th Pilot in Las Vegas". Is this true and how do you know?

[Jerry]

Went to the three Vegas dealers on Saturday June 1 (two days before the official Pilot release date) did some quick negotiating (inclusing the internet deal at Desert Honda) and put a deposit down on one that was available in inventory (actually put a deposit on two and when I saw the colors I withdrew one). Six were presold for Monday sale and I picked the seventh (there were more that were presold but the color and options were not in the first shipments). On Monday June 3, I test drove a Pilot - went back and also test drove the MDX - the rest is history.

By the way, check out the message thread on Zaino car polish. It holds up great in the desert. I've used most of the car waxes on the market and they don't hold up in the Vegas sun/heat. Used the Zaino products six weeks ago. Washed the Pilot last Saturday - the polish still looks as good as the day I put it on.

Another item you may want to check out. The Honda recommended maintenance intervals (oil changes etc.) are different in the extreme heat of the desert. Stop by Honda West's Service area and they'll give you a schedule.

Good luck with your new Pilot. Will be looking for ya on the road.

[vegasdude]

Thanks for the good info. I called Honda West Service Dept. last week, they said the oil change interval for the Pilot in Las Vegas is 3,500.

[Jerry]

Honda West provided a service chart for desert conditions with 4 levels of of service:

Level A - Oil Change
Includes oil change, oil filter change, top off fluids, set air pressure in tires, visual inspection
Intervals
3,750, 11,250, 18,750, 26,250, 33,750, 41,250, 48,750...

Level B - Minor Service
Includes Service Level A plus tire rotation, inspect brakes, balance tires, check/adjust parking brake, lean battery terminals and adjust fluid levels
Intervals
7,500, 22,500, 37,500, 52,500...

Level C - Intermediate Service
Includes Service Levels A and B plus set base idle and timing, replace engine air filter, service and adjust rear brakes, adjust vavles and re-torque head bolts, check a/c, and steam clean top of engine
Intervals
15,000, 45,000, 75,000...

Level D - Major Service
Includes Service Levels A, B & C plus replace spark plugfs, inspect and adjust drive belts, replace coolant in radiator, change transmission fluid, replace differential fluid, replace fuel filter
Intervals
30,000, 60,000, 90,000...

Check in occasionally because they run oil change specials.

[LynAskin]

Hey Vegas!
I'm currently on the hunt for a Pilot EX-L. Our first experience was a couple of weeks ago, at Shack-Findlay in the Valley Auto Mall. They had one demo for test drives, and one in the showroom (which was actually sold already).

I spoke to Kevin Rucker (highly recommended). He was very helpful. Took us on a test drive, and gave us tons of info, even though they did not have a Pilot to sell us. We then left the dealership, and test drove a Highlander, a Envoy, and a Trailblazer.

The Pilot was the clear choice. Later that evening, we went to Honda West. They had pilots available, but with a 5000 dealer markup. I "talked them down" to 3000 over MSRP, they politely told me they wouldn't sell it to me at MSRP (or even close).

Kevin from Shack-Findlay called me on Saturday, and told me he had one instock, Havasu Blue, and even offered to drive it to my house (on the other side of town). But, by the time he got to the car, it was already sold. He's still looking for me.

So, I've been looking. I tried tried the Honda Dealership in St George, UT, but no pilots. I tried the Honda Dealership in Kingman, AZ. They told me they had no pilots, but lots of S2000s that they could use for trade bait. If they can get me a pilot, they will sell it to me at $200 under MSRP. They are suppose to call me back tomorrow.

Kevin from Shack-Findlay, is trying to trade for a pilot for me too. I should be able to get it at MSRP or so from them.

I'll try and Call Britten at Desert Honda tomorrow.

Any other advice for me?

Thanks,
Lyn

[vegasdude]

Originally posted by LynAskin
Hey Vegas!
I'm currently on the hunt for a Pilot EX-L. Our first experience was a couple of weeks ago, at Shack-Findlay in the Valley Auto Mall. They had one demo for test drives, and one in the showroom (which was actually sold already).

I spoke to Kevin Rucker (highly recommended). He was very helpful. Took us on a test drive, and gave us tons of info, even though they did not have a Pilot to sell us. We then left the dealership, and test drove a Highlander, a Envoy, and a Trailblazer.

The Pilot was the clear choice. Later that evening, we went to Honda West. They had pilots available, but with a 5000 dealer markup. I "talked them down" to 3000 over MSRP, they politely told me they wouldn't sell it to me at MSRP (or even close).

Kevin from Shack-Findlay called me on Saturday, and told me he had one instock, Havasu Blue, and even offered to drive it to my house (on the other side of town). But, by the time he got to the car, it was already sold. He's still looking for me.

So, I've been looking. I tried tried the Honda Dealership in St George, UT, but no pilots. I tried the Honda Dealership in Kingman, AZ. They told me they had no pilots, but lots of S2000s that they could use for trade bait. If they can get me a pilot, they will sell it to me at $200 under MSRP. They are suppose to call me back tomorrow.

Kevin from Shack-Findlay, is trying to trade for a pilot for me too. I should be able to get it at MSRP or so from them.

I'll try and Call Britten at Desert Honda tomorrow.

Any other advice for me?

Thanks,
Lyn

Lyn,
Britten can get you a Pilot for MSRP plus the 3 year oil change and desert protection included. I ended up getting my Pilot elsewhere because I can not wait an extra 2 weeks..... I also paid MSRP for my Pilot.
Try to avoid paying above MSRP if you can.

Good Luck!

[Jerry]

Originally posted by LynAskin

The Pilot was the clear choice. Later that evening, we went to Honda West. They had pilots available, but with a 5000 dealer markup. I "talked them down" to 3000 over MSRP, they politely told me they wouldn't sell it to me at MSRP (or even close).

Lyn,
Don't waste your time with sales managers or "closers" at Honda West. The "closers" are the ones that play hardball and do the dealership's final negotiation, and ultimately tick you off. Call Larry Hamilton the New Car Sales Manager directly and tell him you were insulted by the price the "closer" (or salesman) pushed on you. Tell him that you're ready to order a Pilot and the two other Honda dealers in Vegas will sell you one for MSRP. They don't have one in stock and you will have to order one from them. Since you live on the west side you'd like to give Honda West your business "but not for $3,000 or $5,000 more than other dealers." "You're only interested in buying one for MSRP." Also tell him that you'll guarantee all "5s" on the Honda Customer Purchase Satisfaction Survey (that get's everyone in the sales food chain an extra few bucks at the end of the month). If he accepts your MSRP offer, then pick a color and model and find out when he can get one in (have him check his order sheet - get a VIN number if is already built). Maybe he'd even be willing to sell one off the lot - but I doubt it. Lock his agreement with a deposit. Honda West does have the best service department in this town.

If Larry doesn't bite, then the next best deal is to work with Britten at Desert Honda. The problem with Desert is that you'll have to order one from their production allocation and wait. If you can get one from Desert, their deal for the desert package and free oil change is the best in the valley. On the other hand, maybe Shack-Findlay has the color and model coming in sooner than Desert.

If production of the Pilot in Canada hasn't changed since it was introduced, Vegas is only allocated 25 Pilots per month. That's 8 or 9 going to each of the three dealerships per month.

I don't think that Dealers with only 8 or 9 Pilots a month will do much trading. That's one of the gimmicks they use to keep you working with them. Even deposits can't guarantee you a vehicle in this town. If you order from their production allotment, bug them every few days to get the VIN number that is assigned when it is built and keep on them for a delivery date. That should give you the best chance of getting what you want.

Hope this helps. Good luck - the purchase experience does take some of the fun out of getting a Pilot, but the Pilot is well worth the aggravation.

[LynAskin]

Thank You for your advice. I'll give Larry a call first, if that doesn't work out, I'll call Britten.

I sure appreciate your help!

I've been trying to shop the best deals, but I'm running out of time. My wife wants the Pilot NOW!

Hopefully, I can find one soon.

Lyn

[LynAskin]

I tried Larry, at Honda West, but he's not in today, so I called Brittin, and he is no longer working at Desert Honda.

Eric from Findlay-Nolte in Kingman Arizona called me back, but he still doesn't have an answer whether or not he'll have one to sell me.

I'll keep trying.

Lyn