wildbill@ucbvax.UUCP (William J. Laubenheimer) (04/22/84)
Jim Kent: > Does anyone out there have information on the new Honda 2-seater. I > know its been chosen as "import car of the year" by Motor Trend, > but do they actually exist? Yes they do. I have seen a few here in the Bay area. > I ordered one 2 months ago at a dealer > in the Chicago area. At that time, quoted delivery was to be within > 2 months. They now say I wont get one for another 2 to 3 months! > Anybody getting a different story? Sounds like the same story a friend of mine has been getting. He placed his order on December 13 of last year -- "2 Months". He was #5 on the dealer's waiting list. February -- "#2 on list, probably next month". March -- "Top of list, the next one's yours, but it didn't come. Next month". April -- "Nope. Next month, maybe." So, you see, things can be worse. We're still waiting. Lucky for him, I'm rooming with him and my car's working. > I know they are now selling > these cars at a BIG markup over list. When I ordered mine, the price > was still around list. Could it be that the said dealer is delivering > the cars based on the amount of profit he makes, and not on first come > first served? Nah, that wouldn't be ethical and we all know car dealers > are ethical. Don't we. (:-) ALso, I didn't put on any dealer applied options. > I think I'm in big trouble. Yes, you are in big trouble, but it's probably not your dealer's fault. If you really suspect it is, ask if he keeps a waiting list, and ask to see it if he does. If not, ask him if he would show you his invoices for cars he has received. Explain (politely) that you are interested in finding out what has happened to your car. This should uncover any shady dealing. Odds are you won't find any, though. Last week, my friend decided it was time to apply some pressure. Working through another dealer, he got hold of the regional sales representative for Honda and told him about the problem. The sales rep revealed that the Honda allocation algorithm was probably the cause of the problem. Allocations for dealers are based on last year's sales, and shipments are COMPLETELY RANDOM! The dealer has no control over which variety he will get. Since the cars are selling like cold drinks in Death Valley, this doesn't hurt the dealer. > An appeal to anyone who has taken delivery of a CRX, is the car > worth the wait? What are they currently selling for in your part of the > world? How long did you have to wait to take delivery? I heard a rumor > that Honda is only making a small number for export to the USA. Any > comments welcomed. Obviously, no idea whether it's worth the wait. My friend got his for $8500. Still waiting after 5 months. Can't say about the rumor. > P.S. The car I ordered was the 5-speed with the 1.5 liter engine. > I hope it gets here before the snow flies. According to information we have gotten, this is far and away the most popular version, particularly if it's blue. Good luck! Bill Laubenheimer ----------------------------------------UC-Berkeley Computer Science ...Killjoy WAS here! ucbvax!wildbill
jjsk@ihuxn.UUCP (jim kent) (05/10/84)
[ ]
Does anyone out there have information on the new Honda 2-seater. I
know its been chosen as "import car of the year" by Motor Trend,
but do they actually exist? I ordered one 2 months ago at a dealer
in the Chicago area. At that time, quoted delivery was to be within
2 months. They now say I wont get one for another 2 to 3 months!
Anybody getting a different story? I know they are now selling
these cars at a BIG markup over list. When I ordered mine, the price
was still around list. Could it be that the said dealer is delivering
the cars based on the amount of profit he makes, and not on first come
first served? Nah, that wouldn't be ethical and we all know car dealers
are ethical. Don't we. (:-) ALso, I didn't put on any dealer applied options.
I think I'm in big trouble.
An appeal to anyone who has taken delivery of a CRX, is the car
worth the wait? What are they currently selling for in your part of the
world? How long did you have to wait to take delivery? I heard a rumor
that Honda is only making a small number for export to the USA. Any
comments welcomed.
Thanks,
Jim Kent
..!ihnp4!ihuxn!jjsk
P.S. The car I ordered was the 5-speed with the 1.5 liter engine.
I hope it gets here before the snow flies.ferg@opus.UUCP (David Ferguson) (05/11/84)
I ordered my CRX, (Red, 1.5 liter, 5-speed), on February 20. The dealer is
promising to deliver sometime in early June. He tells me that they are selling
for $2500 to $5000 over list price. I saw one sitting on his showroom with
dealer-installed wheels, sunroof, A/C, $800 stereo, that had a $12,500 price.
Whew! He bought the car from another dealer at something over list ($6600),
added the above goodies, bumped the price, and sold that car within a week.
When I ordered my car, there was only a 1.3 liter automatic available to drive.
But later he had a 1.5 liter 5-speed, that I drove for 20-30 minutes. I loved
it (why else would I wait so long). This is my first NEW car in 6 years, and I
think it's worth waiting for. Every few years a car comes along where demand
(usually caused by an extremely good value) outstrips supply. Looks like the
CRX is keeping pretty good company (240Z, Rx7, GTi).
sleep( &honda_dealer, CARPRI);
David Ferguson
NBI, Inc.
Boulder, Colorado
{hao, allegra, ucbvax}!nbires!fergstan@clyde.UUCP (Stan King) (05/14/84)
I have seen quite a few little white Honda CRX's here. Also, there seem to be quite a few of the new Civics that look like Vega station wagons.
rsg@cbscc.UUCP (Bob Garmise) (05/14/84)
$12,500 for a CRX??? Now don't get me wrong. I've owned Hondas for 12 years and I swear by them. But I just bought a Prelude with everything on it for $12,700. Perhaps I don't get the gas mileage, but gosh...$12,500??? There is some chance you're being taken. I assume you've shopped around. Maybe all the bargains are here in Ohio? Color me astounded! ...bob garmise...at&t bell labs, columbus...
jackh@zehntel.UUCP (jack hagerty) (05/16/84)
I have a CRX story which is a welcome relief from the endless-waiting-
list/loaded-with-unwanted-options/dealer-gouging norm.
Some friends of ours in Salinas (East of Eden country) were looking to
replace their '71 Super Beetle. They went down to the local Honda
store thinking of getting either the Civic sedan or wagon. When they
got there, they found a CRX 1.3 which the intended owner decided he
didn't want (no reason given, the small engine maybe?). The only option
of significance was A/C. Even though there were a couple of dozen people
on the dealer's CRX waiting list, none of them wanted the "econo" version
so guess who drove home in their shiny new Honda CRX that afternoon?
Admittedly, this was an aberration to the system, but it's nice to know
that miricles do happen.
Jack Hagerty
ihnp4!zehntel!jackh lambert@vax4.DEC (06/04/84)
>>>*<<<
Why pay $12,500 (or even $10,500) for a CRX when you can get a VW GTI for
about $9100 list - less if you get a good deal? You get better perform-
ance, more cargo and passenger space, more comfortable seats, and better
suspension. The only thing the CRX might have in its favor is gas mileage.
So, the VW is a little boxy... I've had a GTI for a year now and I've got
no complaints. I haven't even lost the knapp on my (very comfortable)
corduroy seats. And you probably won't have to wait 6 months for it,
either.
Happy shopping,
-- Sam
(decwrl!rhea!vax4!lambert)jjsk@ihuxn.UUCP (jim kent) (06/27/84)
[ ] This is an update to my previously submitted artical, part of which is shown below. >Does anyone out there have information on the new Honda 2-seater. I >know its been chosen as "import car of the year" by Motor Trend, >but do they actually exist? I ordered one 2 months ago at a dealer >in the Chicago area. At that time, quoted delivery was to be within >2 months. They now say I wont get one for another 2 to 3 months! >Anybody getting a different story? I know they are now selling >these cars at a BIG markup over list. When I ordered mine, the price >was still around list. Could it be that the said dealer is delivering >the cars based on the amount of profit he makes, and not on first come >first served? Nah, that wouldn't be ethical and we all know car dealers >are ethical. Don't we. (:-) ALso, I didn't put on any dealer applied options. >I think I'm in big trouble. Yes I was in big trouble. Last week (6/21) I received a letter from my friendly Honda dealer concerning this order. The letter thanked me for waiting, but since Honda could not supply CRXs in sufficient numbers to satisfy existing orders, they are hereby cancelling my order enclosing a check for my down payment. They appreciated my business and hoped that they could satisfy to my future transportation needs. I called my salesman about 2 weeks prior to this and he refused to tell me my position on the waiting list, reason: "not company policy". I immediatly got to the sales manager and found that I was 5th on the list. Two weeks later I'm cancelled. After receiving the cancellation notice, I again called the sales manager for an explaination. He said its all in the letter. I asked if the price of the car has increased. He said yes but "couldn't remember how much". I asked how they were going to distribute the CRXs they do get? He replied that his salesmen will call their customers and offer them for sale when they get a car in. They will not take any specific orders. They were doing this to "give everyone a fair chance to get the car". (roughly translated to plain English, "We will sell this car, loaded to the gills with dealer options, to the highest bidder.") I called Honda America in Ohio. They said they could do nothing about questionable business ethics of thier dealerships. I contacted two other nearby dealers, both were taking CRX orders. Each quoted 8 weeks maximum. One dealer showed me his waiting list complete with names, order dates and the actual delivery dates. In June he delivered 11 CRXs. I would be #4 for a blue, 1.5, 5-speed. The price about $200 more than my original deal in March.(7200 + 200) I am curious as to my rights, if any, in this case. Anybody care to guess. The order form that was signed by the dealer and myself had "Non Binding Contract" printed on it. It also stated that if I had cancelled the order a 5% cancellation fee would be imposed. (5% of the total delivered price.) Obviously one-sided. No mention of cancellation by the dealer. Jim Kent ..!ihnp4!ihuxn!jjsk P.S. How does one get even with this dealer? Any suggestions? P.P.S. I just talked to a salesman at the dealer who cancled my order. It seems that cars are magically available again. They are taking orders at an additional $500 markup over my original price. Surprise! Surprise! They are quoting 4-week deliveries.
bbanerje@sjuvax.UUCP (B. Banerjee) (06/28/84)
In the original followup that I posted a while ago,
I had mentioned that the lateral acceleration of the
Omni GLH was (the absurd figure of) 8.2 G.
The typo was promptly brought to my attention by a number
of people. Sorry folks, the figure is 0.82 G. Actually
a stray cosmic ray happened in on our machine and flipped
the bits around.
Anyhow, the remainder of the article still stands, and 0.82 G
is still the highest lateral acceleration for any front wheel
drive car.
Regards,
--
Binayak Banerjee
{allegra | astrovax | bpa | burdvax}!sjuvax!bbanerje
P.S.
Send Flames, I love mail.bbanerje@sjuvax.UUCP (B. Banerjee) (06/30/84)
Sorry if this response is late. We've been cut off from the net due to our two upstream sites being down simultaneously. In fact they are still down, and I am posting this courtesy of a major site that was kind enough to allow us to feed them an L link. Please reply (if you wish) by mail. >> Why pay $12,500 (or even $10,500) for a CRX when you can get a VW GTI for >> about $9100 list - less if you get a good deal? You get better perform- >> ance, more cargo and passenger space, more comfortable seats, and better Some time ago, this may have been valid advice. However, the latest incarnation of the Omni Horizon, the GLH (short for *Goes Like Hell*) gives you maximal bang for your buck. It contains the Shelby 2.2 litre 110 hp engine in a far lighter body. It does 0-60 in 8.7 seconds; the lateral acceleration of 8.2 G is the *highest* of any front wheel drive automobile -- and it goes for approx. 7.5 K. Its got tons of luggage room and seats 4 comfortably (no kidding), 5 in a pinch. My greatest regret is that they didn't come out with this 7 months ago. I bought the Omni with the 2.2 liter engine (not Shelby-ized). Even so, I have no problems whatsoever with the VW Gti or the Honda CRX on straights. I do have to admit that the handling isn't as good as it should be. When I can afford it, that will be my first major outlay on the car. In addition to all of this, I still get 35-38 mpg on the highway (at ~ 75 mph). Give me a restrained car that can blow the wheels off cars with hefty price tags and pretensions of performance any day of the week. Regards, -- Binayak Banerjee {allegra | astrovax | bpa | burdvax}!sjuvax!bbanerje P.S. Send Flames, I love mail.
knutson@ut-ngp.UUCP (Jim Knutson) (07/02/84)
Contact your local news stations. I'm sure they would love to report on the questionable business dealings of some of the businesses in town.
andrew@inmet.UUCP (07/23/84)
#R:ihuxn:-73500:inmet:2700105:000:241 inmet!andrew Jul 8 14:19:00 1984 > Contact your local news stations. I'm sure they would love to > report on the questionable business dealings of some of the > businesses in town. And risk losing ad revenues? Andrew W. Rogers ...{harpo|ihnp4|ima|esquire}!inmet!andrew
dklow@ssc-bee.UUCP (Donny K Low) (04/19/85)
For those people who own a Honda CRX, what is your actual mpg? Please specified the model of your CRX, CRX 1.3?, CRX 1.5? or CRX HF? What do you think about the car?