November 24th, 2011 • Posted in Auto Trends • No Comments »

First of all A VERY Happy Thanksgiving to all of you & your families!! This is just a quick recap of the LA Auto show (off the top of my head) part two to follow. Some cars that immediately stand out to me were the Toyota Camry SE. I thought it had great lines & flow also Toyotas new “Enform” system is pretty impressive. “Hands-free phone capability; Phonebook access; Advance voice recognition; Text-to-speech with programmed and customizable text responses; Music streaming via Bluetooth wireless technology; Entune is a collection of popular mobile applications and data services, including Bing and Pandora, integrated with select Toyota vehicles. Entune includes three years of complimentary access to apps and services delivered via most smartphones connected to the vehicle using Bluetooth wireless technology or a USB cable. Entune’s features are operated using the vehicle’s controls or by voice recognition for some services.” With the available 6cyl 268HP w/18″ Alloy wheels I gotta say it’s not your grandmas Camry!

LOVE the new Beetle VW outdid themselves on this one! I would get a manual R Turbo which i’ve driven & the car is a BLAST!

Also VERY impressed with the new BMW M5 & also the Mercedes Benz C63 AMG. I think the C63 will give the M3 a big time run for it’s money the car is impressive.

Otherwise the Morgan girl looked like a great ride! Enjoy the pics, email or call with any questions & part 2 will follow.

     ☮& ღ

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November 10th, 2011 • Posted in Newsletter • No Comments »

We’re keeping it brief this month just a couple quick things now & we’ll be updating from the LA Auto Show next week. A lot of people calling/emailing looking for large discounts on “end of year models” which just don’t exist this year. We all know it’s been a rough year for auto manufacturers the disaster in Japan effected just about every manufacturer. Inventory has been a huge problem all year & continues to be the case now. Even though manufacturers are still running ads for 11′s for the most part those cars don’t exist at least not in CA.

There are a lot of new models out or coming out & there are great deals out there if you know where to look, we do. The new Beetle is awesome really fun ride, the Prius V is out & it’s nice if a Prius is to small for you also the Mercedes ML Class & C Class Coupes are GREAT!! It going to be an exciting month & we’ll keep you posted.

At PAL we will always be up front & never steer you in the wrong direction, we just don’t roll that way!

2012 Infiniti M35H Hybrid Sedan
Heated/cooled leather bucket seats, voice activated/touch-screen navigation, bluetooth, premium bose surround sound, satellite radio, ipod/usb,  rear view camera, keyless go w/push button start, power rear sunshade, dual zone automatic climate, heated steering wheel, white ash silver-powdered wood trim, 18″ alloy wheels, xenon headlights, illuminated kick plates, 27mpg city/32mpg hwy & 360HP of blazing fast, ultra luxurious fun. This car has a $63,000 MSRP.

**ONLY $649MO**

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2012 Honda 2wd Accord Crosstour EX-L
Dual power/heated leather bucket seats, bluetooth, premium sound, satellite radio, ipod/usb, sunroof w/remote operation, tinted windows, dual zone automatic climate, 18″ alloy wheels, leather/alloy trim & 18mpg city/27mpg hwy. The car is fun 271HP, functional & unique.

**ONLY $359MO**

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2012 redesigned VW Beetle 2.5L PZEV (partial zero emission vehicle)
Heated leatherette bucket seats, automatic, bluetooth, premium sound,  ipod/usb, 17″ alloy wheels, heated power mirrors, power windows/doors, leather tilt/telescopic steering wheel w/controls, tinted windows, 22mpg city/31mpg hwy & PZEV (partial zero emission vehicle). FUN ride, FREE maintenance & UNIQUE which is the theme of all three of these cars!!

**ONLY $277MO**

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      ☮& ღ

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October 19th, 2011 • Posted in Newsletter • No Comments »

Wanted to talk about a couple more things this month. First we need to revisit my Truth in Advertising blogs (bottom of the page) because there is a ton of funny business going on in auto ads right now. Ford & Chrysler are being investigated by the feds Ford has actually already pulled a bunch of ads. Auto manufacturer ads are designed to GET YOU INTO A DEALERSHIP & just like a dealer they will say ANYTHING to do it! Read my blogs they explain auto ads pretty well but the bottom line is you have to read the ENTIRE ad not just the payment. They never include tax & license so a $299 a month payment is really $325. a month & “zero down” is never “zero down”. Chevy will be next as they’re trying to advertise the Volt as an EV? The Volt is an electric/hybrid it goes MAYBE 30 miles on a charge than it’s a gasoline/battery hybrid. Lastly there is a ton of confusion where cars are made I have already blogged on this but I will go into more detail in a future blog. Briefly the Chrysler 300 ISN’T “imported from detroit” it’s made (& imported) from Canada with an engine made in Mexico. Chrysler builds & does A LOT of business in Mexico. The Fiat 500 isn’t an Italian sports car it’s made in Mexico by Chrysler in the old PT Cruiser plant. This car is a SUB-COMPACT it’s TINY smaller than a Mini Coupe (no bs) it’s basically a 2 seater. Our goal is to call people out that aren’t playing by the rules or doing business in a deceptive way. All we want is a level playing field.

At PAL we will always be up front & never steer you in the wrong direction, we just don’t roll that way!

2012 Newly introduced 4cyl (turbo) Mercedes Benz C250 Coupe
Heated leatherette bucket seats, voice activated navigation, bluetooth, premium harman kardon logic 7 surround sound, satellite radio, ipod/usb, panoramic sunroof, LED taillights/daytime running lights, dual zone automatic climate, 17″ alloy wheels, 21mpg city/3mpg hwy & PZEV (partial zero emission vehicle).
**ONLY $399MO**

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2012 re-designed Volkswagon Passat SE TDI Clean Diesel
Built on the Audi A6 platform & MADE IN THE USA you can’t go wrong with this car. It’s got luxury, environmentally friendly, it’s a great driver (turbo diesel this thing gets up & moves!) & FREE maintenance.
Dual power/heated leatherette comfort seats, sunroof, bluetooth, premium touch screensound, satellite radio, ipod/usb, paddle shifters w/sport mode, dual zone automatic climate, 17″ alloy wheels & 31mpg city/40mpg hwy.
**CLEAN DIESEL**

**ONLY $369MO**

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2011 Toyota Corolla Sport
Not many of these left but what a deal the remaining cars! Premium cloth bucket seats, bluetooth, premium sound, satellite radio, ipod/usb, 16″ alloy wheels, rear spoiler, 28mpg city/35mpg hwy & PZEV (partial zero emission vehicle). Fun ride & you can’t touch it for the money!
**ONLY $199MO**

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      ☮& ღ

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October 14th, 2011 • Posted in Newsletter • No Comments »

Happy October everyone (better late than never). Lets start off with us trying to move away from these news letters & just have blog posts. Please go to our blog page & follow this blog (left side of the page) once there are 100 people following we’ll pick one at random & give them a Tom Tom XXL 550 5″ Portable GPS Naviagator. If you’re on the page simply click the “follow this blog” button on the left.  We give away gas cards & portable navs pretty often usually on twitter or facebook so make sure you “like” & “follow” us. We also post cars throughout the month like the Toyota Corolla S on fb right now for $199mo. It’s one of the best deals we’ve seen in a long time so is the Lexus IS250 convertible posted on fb.

October is national breast cancer awareness month so make sure you do your part no matter what it is.

Looking forward to the LA Auto Show next month. There will be a bunch of debuts like the Tesla S 100% electric, 300 mile range & 50k due middle of 12. Also three new Prius due over the next 6 months the Prius V (similar to the Lexus CT), Prius C smaller “sportier” Prius (don’t ask me?) & the Prius Plug -In which goes 13 miles all electric than it’s a regular Prius. I’ve already seen the new Audi A6 & Mercedes ML both look great. Hoping the redesigned Honda CR-V, Ford Escape & Porsche 911 will be there haven’t seen anything but pictures of those. All are due beginning of 2012. Also saw the new 3-series BMW due in Jan it’s bigger & to me looks less sporty or a bit more conservative. We have GREAT deals on remaining 3-series yes you will be driving an “old” model but you’ll be paying about $200 a month less? Exciting times right now & in the near future & we’ll keep you posted through it all.

Wanted to get this A4 out because like I said they won’t last long. I will blog again & post three more cars over the weekend so be sure & check back. Have a great month.

2012 Audi A4 Quattro Sedan
We have been offered 4 of these (3 black/1 white all equipped exactly the same) when they’re gone that’s it & at this price they won’t last long. Duel power leather bucket seats, sunroof, bluetooth, premium sound, satellite radio, ipod/usb, xenon headlights, LED day time running lights/tail lights, aluminum window surrounds, 17″ alloy wheels & 21mpg city/31mpg hwy. A TON of car for the money!
**ONLY $399MO**

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      ☮& ღ

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October 10th, 2011 • Posted in General • No Comments »

Just took a walk with the “edge” or Gibson & we bumped into some guy with his dog so we started talking. We were talking about Al Davis & he said “he was a crazy old man now that he’s gone maybe the Raiders will get back on track”. It would be a shame if that’s how the majority of people remember him he was so much more than that. Football was his life it’s all he ever wanted to do & he worked his way up from the bottom. He held almost every position in a Football organization & league. He was a scout, coach, commissioner of the AFL in 1966, GM, part owner & owner. He was one of the key people that forced the merger in 1970 that formed the NFL as we know it today, one of the most successful businesses in American history. The NFL since 1970 is responsible for millions of jobs & billions of dollars poured into communities across this country. Forget the hundreds of thousands (maybe millions) of “Football” jobs  what about the construction, stadium maintenance/workers from ticket takers to security, restaurants/bars, hotels, vegas etc. Football has had a HUGE influence on the infrastructure of this country & it wouldn’t be what it is without Al & the FEW other like minded people.

Beyond Football Al along with the Steelers was THE FIRST to scout African American schools, THE FIRST to hire a Hispanic head coach, THE FIRST to hire an African American coach, THE FIRST to hire a woman Amy Trask as the first female chief executive in NFL history she is still there. He was known to give people chances that other people wouldn’t he didn’t see color, age, religion, gender he just saw a person & that can’t be said of many people at that time or any time. He was a visionary who was way ahead of his time & he had a profound impact on this country. We should all aspire to be more like Al & I think it would be a shame for anyone to remember him as the “crazy old man that ruined the Raiders” that would be a disservice.

RIP Al you deserve it……..☮& ღ

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September 17th, 2011 • Posted in Newsletter • No Comments »

Please contact us with all your new/pre-owned, lease/purchase auto needs. We are full service auto brokers. Please also follow us on Facebook & Twitter for exclusive deals & you never know what or when we may decide to give away free stuff gas cards, portable navigation etc. Lastly please talk to us let us know what your thinking about when it comes to the lease or purchase of any auto? Have a GREAT month.

2012 Redesigned BMW 650 Convertible
About as good as you can get in a sporty 4 passenger convertible. Heated/ventilated/active nappa leather front seats, voice activated navigation, bluetooth, premium hi-fi, satellite radio, ipod usb, power soft top, 20″ light alloy V-Spoke wheels, front/rear parking sensors, rear view camera, ceramic controls, bmw apps & FREE maintenance including brakes also as with all BMW’s/Mini’s PAL’s exclusive concierge service. This car is as good as it gets!
**ONLY $1199MO**

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2012 VW Passat SE Sedan
Heated premium leatherette bucket seats w/power drivers seat, bluetooth, premium sound, satellite radio, auxiliary input, duel zone automatic climate, 17″ alloy wheels, rear center 3-point belt & FREE maintenance. People have been waiting for this one & it was worth the wait! Built on the Audi A6 platform a luxury great driving sedan at a wallet friendly price.
21MPG CITY/32MPG HWY & PZEV Partial Zero Emission Vehicle
**ONLY $269MO**

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2011 BMW 328i Sedan
Automatic, bluetooth, voice activated navigation w/real time traffic, heated duel power dakota leather bucket seats, satellite radio, ipod/usb, duel zone automatic climate, 17″ v-spoke alloy wheels & FREE maintenance including breaks. Also included is PAL’s exclusive BMW/Mini concierge service.
18mpg city/28mpg hwy & PZEV (partial zero emission vehicle)
**ONLY $459MO**

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September 15th, 2011 • Posted in Auto Trends • No Comments »

Hello virtual & real life friends we hope all of you are well. We wanted to put together an update of the state of electric (EV) & Hybrid vehicles since things are changing so rapidly. First I think we need to correctly classify the cars like a Chevy Volt is a Hybrid by definition not an EV. A Hybrid is a car that runs on two power sources again by definition it’s semantics that it’s battery powered then gas/battery powered to us.

Let’s start with the Volt Chevy is advertising all over the place that they are “lowering the base price” of the Volt. Funny I don’t see in any of the ads that they took a lot of standard equipment out of the base car? Simply put you’re getting much less of a car for the lower price. We’re not big on this kind of BS. Also Chevy & Nissan with the LEAF are saying sales haven’t met expectations because of a lack of supply? WRONG every time clients have called for either dealers have had them in stock. These cars have not met sales forecasts because of one or more of the following reasons price, range, no carpool lane stickers, CA state refunds ran out about 3 months ago & did I mention price.

The Volt is basically a Cruze that’s twice the price which I unfortunately think will be the problem with the EV Ford Focus due in CA in approximately 3 months. This car has some cool technology that we’re really looking forward to checking out. Regenerative braking that a lot of Hybrids use to charge the batteries but this car has a more advanced system & “brake training” to show you on the  navigation screen how to get the most out of it. I haven’t seen any sales projections but price, range & it’s a Ford Focus (pictured) will be a big problem for this car.

As we all know CA “ran out” of clean air stickers in July but the big corporate money got them to come up with a new designation ATPZEV “Advanced Technology Partial Zero Emission Vehicle”? So they will start issuing a new green sicker on Jan 1, 2012 so the people that buy these cars just to drive in the carpool lane will have more options. The new Plug-In Prius qualifies for this as Toyota has a lot of money & pull with the politicians. The car has an electric range of “approx” 13 miles before the gas/battery engine kicks in. Just like their sales forecasts NONE of these cars have gotten close to their original projections.

I’m going to pass on commenting in depth about the Fisker Karma Hybrid while the car is spectacularly beautiful there’s no mass market for this car at OVER $100,000. Their sales projections are off the charts? Nissan says they have sold “approx” 3,000 LEAFs this year that means they have sold less than 3,000 & Fisker will never sell as many cars or even close to as many as the LEAF

So exciting times ahead with almost an alternative fuel vehicle in all price ranges & gasoline cars becoming far more efficient over just the last two years. Everyone has a reasonable option to drive a car that gets at least 30mpg & has low emissions. Almost all 4 cyl & most 6 cyl cars sold in CA are now PZEV Partial Zero Emission Vehicles. This includes Mercedes C, E Class, BMW 3-Series & pretty much all Hondas, VW’s & Toyotas. Also don’t rule out the great Diesel options available out there.

This is not meant to sound negative we are actually happy go lucky guys who really care about the environment. Since we deal with these cars 24/7/365 we have to look at the big picture. We have to look at it as how practical & cost effective is this in day to day life for regular working people like us (sorry Jeff). We think that each manufacturer is essentially building the same car instead of moving the technology forward as we are very far from an end result. I’m not an engineer but the batteries are to heavy & that should be a main priority to change. Also we would love to see a combination of say a more efficient battery combined with a Diesel (we think Volvo is working on this?) or Natural Gas engine? Again we’re not engineers & there has been a ton of progress it just seems we can all agree that this isn’t the end result so we’d like to see someone step out in different direction.

Check our our Showroom or Contact us with any questions or information about the lease or purchase of a new environmentally friendly car.

We welcome your constructive thoughts & opinions?

      ☮& ღ

 

August 11th, 2011 • Posted in General • No Comments »

We’re asked everyday “am I better off leasing or buying a car?” We’re of the belief that buying only makes sense in two scenarios. One is if you’re sure your going to drive the car for at least 7 years & two is the opposite usually only on very high end cars if you’re going to drive it for less than a year & put no more than 5k miles on it. Any other scenario you will loose money 100% of the time. My favorite is when people tell me they buy because “they have equity once it’s paid off & if they lease they have nothing”? We’re of the opinion that you should never put your cash into something that is going to depreciate & ALL new cars depreciate a new car isn’t an investment it’s an expense. Their are also far more tax benefits to leasing.

All that being said we NEVER tell anyone what to do that isn’t our job. We’re more than happy dicuss the pros/cons of all options but ultimately it’s your decision. See a typical scenario below & please contact us with any questions or comments.

To Purchase Cash:
 
Total price including Doc, DMV and Sales Tax = $71404.83
 
$3,570.24 x 5% interest per year (VERY low rate) = $3,570.24 per year in interest loss
 
$3,570.24 x 4 years = $14,280.96 in lost interest on principal (not compounded!)
 
$71404.83 + $14,280.96 = $85,685.79 TOTAL COST OF CAR OVER 4 YEAR PERIOD
 
 
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To Lease for 48 Months
 
Pmt. = $1089 Incl Tax
 
Driveoff = $5000 (1st Pmt, DMV, Doc, Cap Red, Sales Tax)
 
$1089 x 47 Pmts = $51183 + Driveoff $5000 = $56183 TOTAL COST OF LEASE OVER 4 YEAR PERIOD
 
The car would have to be worth $29,502  ($85,685 – $56183) on trade or private sale for you to BREAK EVEN with the lease scenario! Even the bank
says it will be worth only $25625 residual value (90% of cars aren’t worth close to their residuals at the end of any lease). Even if you earned less interest, it still would not be financially feasible. If you earn MORE interest, it’s even more beneficial.
 
In addition, if the car is in an accident or repainted for any reason you will have diminished value since it is considered an high line vehicle when you
go to sell it. In a lease, as long as the vehicle is repaired properly there is no loss of value provision.

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July 21st, 2011 • Posted in Newsletter • No Comments »

Hello everyone we hope you’re having a great start to your summer & everyone is well. As usual a lot going on again my sister is walking in the Avon Breast Cancer 2 day walk Sept 17-18. We will donate $150 in your name for each car leased or purchased between now & then. While inventories & production remain low we pretty much haven’t run across anything we haven’t been able to get. We’ve even found a couple of 100% electric Nissan LEAF’s, no waiting. We are slowly trying to cut out the Newsletter & move everything to our site where we will incorporate our Newsletter as a blog. It will benefit everyone in the long run there are more cars on our site & occasionally my blogs are semi interesting. Please “like” our Facebook page & follow us on Twitter if you already don’t.

Also you can follow our blog from our site (look to the left) or on Facebook. It’s worth “liking” our page, site & following us on Twitter we post exclusive offers & give free stuff away all the time.

As always PLEASE feel free to pass on & contact us with any & all auto needs or questions.

Have a great rest of the month!

☮& ღ

2011 Porsche Boxster Roadster
Considered by many to be the ultimate handling mid engine roadster ever built for the public there’s NOTHING like taking this car through a canyon! This one is carrera white/sand beige interior with a power black soft top. 6-speed manuel, bluetooth, power seats, power spoiler, wind deflector mounted rollover bar, 17″ cayman II wheels and wheel centers w/color crest. This one is a real driver & you would be hard pressed to find anything more fun to drive!
**ONLY $549MO**

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2011 VW EOS Hardtop Convertible
Heated premium leatherette bucket seats, bluetooth, power retractable hard top, premium touch screen sound, satellite radio, usb/ipod, duel zone automatic climate, alloy wheels, power rear seat easy entry & free maintenance. Luxury, sporty, convertible these pretty much offer it all.
21MPG CITY/31MPG HWY
**ONLY $399MO**

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2011 Mini Cooper Convertible
Automatic, bluetooth, premium leatherette bucket seats, premium harmon kardon sound, satellite radio, auxiliary jack, ipod/usb, manuel folding soft top, duel zone automatic climate, colored ambient lighting, automatic headlamps & free maintenance including breaks. Also included is PAL’s exclusive BMW/Mini concierge service.
28mpg city/35mpg hwy & PZEV (partial zero emission vehicle)
**ONLY $379MO**

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July 8th, 2011 • Posted in General, Uncategorized • No Comments »

Went to a local dealer yesterday they are new and I just swung by to check them out. I was reminded of the reason why we do what we do, it’s because dealers run their stores essentially as numerous separate business’s. Each only interested in there departments bottom line not in the business as a whole and definitely not in the customer unless it helps the bottom line of their department.

The used car manager isn’t over paying for your trade so you’ll buy a new car, he doesn’t care. If you are getting more for your car than it’s really worth some money is going into your new car, not 90% of the time it’s 100%. The exact same thing can be said for the parts department and service department which is usually the most profitable department in a dealership.

This window sticker for “dealer installed accessories” is what caught my eye & made me think. EVERY car on the lot had a separate sticker for “dealer installed  accessories” which is not uncommon. The problem is if you want the car your buying the accessories & they will explain in detail why you need them & why they will save you money in the long run? Let’s look at a couple of these:
       *XZILON (paint & leather protector) $1,897 dealer cost less than $500.
       *LOJACK $995 dealer cost approx $175.
       *Window Tint $497 dealer cost approx $100.
       *Decklid Spoiler $995 dealer cost approx $250.
       *Aftermarket Leather $1,995 dealer cost $1,300.

Then there’s the finance department or F&I where they sit you down sometimes for hours selling you the really crazy stuff while also marking up the rate & bank fee’s. Again very common, the finance department is only interested in the finance departments bottom line, that’s how they get paid.

Next is  the dealer/bank relationship, basically they don’t have one. So & so BMW has nothing to do with BMW financial so the dealer that says they’ll “cover your wear/tear or mileage” well, no they won’t. They will however happily put it into your new car. If any dealer paid for lease return mileage or wear/tear they would be out of business within 6 months! They don’t build those fancy buildings by loosing money & frankly they SHOULDN’T loose money. There’s also no reason they shouldn’t make money they should there’s just a right and a wrong way to do it. We will be the FIRST one’s to tell a client, a family member or even ourselves when one of us is getting a car that there’s a place that’s fair for us, the dealer and you the customer.

That’s where we stand and where the value of our service is. Our starting point is your day, week or months long ending point if you’re lucky. So ask yourself the next time you’re in the market for a new car how much is my time worth or is the hassle and aggravation worth it? We think you’ll come to the conclusion that it isn’t and contact us. Why not make getting a new car the enjoyable experience it should be?

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