topic Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME? in Auto Loans

MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

CreditCuriosity — Sun, 05 Oct 2025 00:11:07 GMT

So here is a story it is a bit long but entertaining I think. Some people will think I am an arse but that is their opinion as I think finance people are the scum of the earths at dealerships.

I went into Mercedes last saturday to look at the Mercedes cle 53 amg as like the looks of car. I drove it and dang it is quick around 3.6 secs 0-60 and was nice. If I could make the #'s work I was going to trade in my 2024 Porsche Cayman S (I already miss it but needed more practical car with a bit more room for my dog and at least one person). Anyways asking price for one that had interest in was 89.5k. Anyways drove it liked it overall so let start to talk #'s. They offered me more for trade-in than owed on my Porsche so had positive equity which is obviously good after going back and forth for a bit and also the tax savings so another bonus. Went back and forth on the price of the car and talked them down to about 84k I think from the 89.5k. Just a numbers game whether more on trade or going down on price it is all the same. Anyways here is where it gets interesting with financing department as told sales man I wouldn't do higher than 5.5% and likely would refinance and don't have finance guy push all kinds of stuff on me and if they pulled more that 2 pulls one for dealership and one for the lender I would walk as had a 840 scores across board.

So walked into finance and talked and finance guy was a bit abrasive due what sales person said to him as they being finance love to make money and I know this. So went over the hard pulls and agreed on the two one for dealer then one was initially going to be for BofA. He then said something snarky like I am not going to make any more off of you on prepraid maintenance or any tire and wheel, etc. So if I finance with you I am going to mark up the rate so I make money, etc. anyways we talked and before pulling credit he say I had a 3k incentive with MBFS I believe for being a past customer. They interest rate though would be 8.49% for 72 month term thought but he said I could refinance in 6 months and keep that 3k incentive and come out ahead of the 5.5x rate we initially talked about did math and indeed I would. I then agreed and pulled credit and pulled a 885/900 TU FICO score A+ tier etc yet got the 8.49 rate lol. Anyways I took gap for 1250 is all and walked out with a sales price of approx 82k due to positive equity in trade-in and talking price down in theory and 3k incentive. So took delivery of car and that was that.

Did some research when got home and this last week and found out some interesting stuff when got all the paperwork in PDF format I read it then had AI scan it and their is no prepayment penalty mentioned anywhere in the paperwork nor mention of paying back the 3k incentive for using MBFS. Also it is Illegal in FL where I live to have a prepayment penalty on an autoloan as you can pay it off any time per the law without them just hating you for it basically. I then start to think what he said that he would make money off me then the rate and various other things and was on a mission. I saw the MB loan on their site and then it hit my credit report etc. My car was up for sale mid week and was just waiting for my NFCU auto loan to be paid off and it was. So today I applied for a loan with NFCU and got their best rate of 4.59%. I went and picked up the check then went to UPS store and sent off payoff by NFCU check that is good till the 12th on payoff to them 3 day. So got an extra 3k got my gap mainly all refunded of the 1250 as part of payoff and paid NFCU 499 cash for GAP today. I will save about 200 a month on loan even if it was only for 6 months as we "agreed" that would of been 1200 extra in payments approximately although still come out 1800 ahead due to incentive.

So am I a arse for doing this? Possibly... Was the finance person an arse for making those comments and also marking up rate and lying to me about 6 months, absolutely. Nothing they can do due to FL law on the refinance and the incentives. I am sure the Finance guy will be fuming here in a few weeks when he sees his commission or much of it go goodbye. Don't lie to me or mark up rate a point or two and lie about 6 months as it is illegal in FL and he should know that. Likely burnt the bridge at that dealership but others exists whether Mercedes or other cars for future.

Would you of done the same as I did? Just a story to entertain or possibly some in the finance world fume at people like me. They think we are uneducated lol.

I wonder if I will get a call in a week or two when they realize what happened? I guess I really don't care.

Gotta do what is best for you as they are doing what is in their best interests and pocket is how I see it. That is why good credit and education is key and both of them are power and can be leveraged.

@cashorcharge What are your thoughts? I know you like auto loans as well

PS they still owe me a TINT we talked into deal as well a week after next that makes me nervous going in their then hopefully they don't realize they didn't make what they thought they made prior to this

Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

JoeRockhead — Sun, 05 Oct 2025 02:05:33 GMT

I would have done the same and not felt one bit guilty. I loath people like this. Reminds me of an investigative report I saw a few years back where they caught several dealers selling people on one interest rate, but then when they got their loan docs in the mail the rate was bumped up.... crooks!

Nicely done on your part!

Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

CreditCuriosity — Sun, 05 Oct 2025 02:18:12 GMT

@JoeRockhead wrote:
I would have done the same and not felt one bit guilty. I loath people like this. Reminds me of an investigative report I saw a few years back where they caught several dealers selling people on one interest rate, but then when they got their loan docs in the mail the rate was bumped up.... crooks!

Nicely done on your part!

Thanks. Also thanks for not thinking I am a jerk lol. I have no illusion the dealer made some money still although the finance person certainly made less than he would of. So a small win for the little man. I really don't think they will call and complain if they do I am ready of basically too bad too sad. People get bent over all the time at dealerships to different degrees just makes me feel better i made my situation better. I feel bad for people that don't have the credit or other means to do so as you echoed on investigative reports. This dealer has awesome ratings as well but doesn't mean they don't try to get away with whatever they can and prey on uniformed people.

I can sleep better tongiht know you would of done exact same

Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

Kforce — Sun, 05 Oct 2025 19:51:45 GMT

@JoeRockhead wrote:
I would have done the same and not felt one bit guilty. I loath people like this. Reminds me of an investigative report I saw a few years back where they caught several dealers selling people on one interest rate, but then when they got their loan docs in the mail the rate was bumped up.... crooks!

Nicely done on your part!

Agree ^^^^

Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

dfwxjer — Mon, 06 Oct 2025 15:41:19 GMT

I wouldn't think twice about doing exactly what you did. Congrats on the new vehicle and for the cost saving maneuver.

Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

IaBoy62 — Mon, 06 Oct 2025 18:32:53 GMT

@CreditCuriosity You are my HERO!

Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

CreditCuriosity — Mon, 06 Oct 2025 22:35:00 GMT

@IaBoy62 wrote:
@CreditCuriosity You are my HERO!

Lol Don't know about that. Just sharing a story. See they received my chekc today and signed for at 10 am est. Hopefully shows paid off tomorrow with 0 balance. Always worry when send a big check althogh has to be endorsed by me which i did and another party which would be MBFS so pretty safe

Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

coldfusion — Mon, 06 Oct 2025 23:49:20 GMT

I enjoyed reading this thread lol

No worries about the dealer making a profit barring a bad screwup on the valuation of your trade-in but as for Biff the Finance Guy geting his comeuppance hey, sucks to be him.

Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

CreditCuriosity — Tue, 07 Oct 2025 00:00:48 GMT

@coldfusion wrote:
I enjoyed reading this thread lol

No worries about the dealer making a profit barring a bad screwup on the valuation of your trade-in but as for Biff the Finance Guy geting his comeuppance hey, sucks to be him.

Lol Biff.. Nah they wanted the car badly as manual and one of last ICE versions of the Cayman S and under 10k miles in mint condition always hand washed etc, etc. Dealerships will always come out on top they aren't dumb but Biff the sales manager he got to close to the sun and lit a fire under me to make things better than my initial deal with his greed.

Glad I gave you a good read

Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

cashorcharge — Tue, 07 Oct 2025 02:42:15 GMT

Sorry I missed responding sooner @CreditCuriosity

I do have extensive experience in Auto F&I and see the dealerships tactic and your position.

Ultimately, NO, there is nothing wrong with what you did. The dealer will book the profit from the loan...then the bank will charge them back when they get the payoff you sent from NFCU.

Coming from the business, it's obviously their goal to sell you things...anything really...and make money, specifically more money than the finance reserve. Like you, I don't ever buy anything from Finance. I don't even buy gap...I purchase Gap from my car insurance provider.

The snark from the F&I guy is him just being a jerk! Admittedly, I used to say upfront...I'm not buying anything...then I decided to just keep quiet, let them be polite and do their talk track and then politely decline.

Despite your discount....good job by the way...the CLE53 just came out and I'm surprised they gave you a deal. They are a hot commodity right now. The dealer still made money from you...just not as much as they would have liked. It's a numbers game and they'll make it from the next customer. MBFS rates are not the best....lease rates and finance rates are both lousy when you compare to some others. Unless it's a specific car with a special program (yours was not) their rates tend to be high despite exceptional credit.

Also, kudos on turning a profit on the 718. It must have been in great shape with low miles as they eagerly knew they could make money from it used...and they will.....so in the end, they are covered.

NFCU has the best finance rates right now...and has for quite some time and I'm guessing once the rate drops settle in, those may also trickle down a bit.

Congratulations on the new car. The CLE53 is a beautiful car. Did you get the Cabriolet or the Coupe?

Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

CreditCuriosity — Tue, 07 Oct 2025 03:01:31 GMT

I went with the coupe. I too was surprised they moved on the price as was just going to possibly order one and get the exact color I wanted but then they said they would play ball on the price and the game began. They had like 8 of them on the lot between coupe and convertibles. It is.a high volume big dealer. I have had about 5 Mercedes over the years as kinda go through cars like toilet paper and get bored of them after 1.5-2 years and move on. Maybe not the best financial move but have no kids or wife etc so one of my enjoyments I suppose as all work and no play saying. Ya they are a nice looking car although as mentioned I miss my Porsche as that is a true sports car and fit me like a glove once i got into it. The Mercedes is luxury and sports car on the side although it is quicker then the cayman s on 0-60 not on the top end. I haven't really driven it other than home from the dealership yet other than the test drive as it has been crazy with work for the last week being working 14 plus hour days. Meeting a friend this Fridays half way between our houses for a weekend get away to drink and eat and catch up about a 5 hour drive so will get to play and open it up on the interstate when hopefully no cops are watching. I have a tinting appt. next tuesday and as mentioned hopefully they don't know about the refi by then although I doubt I would run across that finance guy anyways. A nice tint always helps the car usually i use another person but talked it into the deal to be thrown in so will use the dealership on this one.

I also considered waiting for the next rate cut coming later this month for NFCU to drop theirs as had to nov 12th to make the payment and expect a .25 to .5 drop on fed rate and transferring likely over to the auto loan rate where i might of been able to get down to aroudn 4%, but the 8.59% was just eating me alive and couldn't handle it for even another day and 4.59% these days isn't bad. Now if i was to buy a toyota or a honda sure I can get a 1.99 rate or a non desired BENZ likely could of got a 1.99 - 3.99 rate but not on this car as you mentioned as desirable.

Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

cashorcharge — Tue, 07 Oct 2025 03:04:43 GMT

@CreditCuriosity wrote:
I went with the coupe. I too was surprised they moved on the price as was just going to possibly order one and get the exact color I wanted but then they said they would play ball on the price and the game began. They had like 8 of them on the lot between coupe and convertibles. It is.a high volume big dealer. I have had about 5 Mercedes over the years as kinda go through cars like toilet paper and get bored of them after 1.5-2 years and move on. Maybe not the best financial move but have no kids or wife etc so one of my enjoyments I suppose as all work and no play saying. Ya they are a nice looking car although as mentioned I miss my Porsche as that is a true sports car and fit me like a glove once i got into it. The Mercedes is luxury and sports car on the side although it is quicker then the cayman s on 0-60 not on the top end. I haven't really driven it other than home from the dealership yet other than the test drive as it has been crazy with work for the last week being working 14 plus hour days. Meeting a friend this Fridays half way between our houses for a weekend get away to drink and eat and catch up about a 5 hour drive so will get to play and open it up on the interstate when hopefully no cops are watching. I have a tinting appt. next tuesday and as mentioned hopefully they don't know about the refi by then although I doubt I would run across that finance guy anyways. A nice tint always helps the car usually i use another person but talked it into the deal to be thrown in so will use the dealership on this one.

Nicely done! No, it will take the bank about 90 days to charge back the dealer so you're in the clear.

I went to a local MB dealer and test drove the Cabriolet about a month ago. It was a GREAT drive! I think you'll really enjoy it.

I too go through cars entirely too quickly. When I get the letter from the DMV to renew my plates, I start shopping and since I have a lot of connections in the business from my past, I usually get out of the trade relatively unscathed and depending on what I'm focused on, my discount varies. I have had my heart set on a G63 since the 2025 came out but I have been waiting to pay down my current car beforehand. It is impossible to get a deal on those and dealers near me are all $20K to $25K over MSRP and that's just ridiculous....though I doubt that will reverse anytime soon...so I either have to suck it up...or pick something else. The money factor on their leases are just as bad as the rates you were quoted and between that and the markup, I keep waiting for a miracle....I think it'll be a long wait!

There's a lot of MB dealers in FL as there are out West. Glad you found what you wanted.

Re: MBFS PURCHASE 8.49 now 4.59 APR - WOULD YOU OF DONE THE SAME?

CreditCuriosity — Tue, 07 Oct 2025 03:24:58 GMT

@cashorcharge wrote:
@CreditCuriosity wrote:
Nicely done! No, it will take the bank about 90 days to charge back the dealer so you're in the clear.

I went to a local MB dealer and test drove the Cabriolet about a month ago. It was a GREAT drive! I think you'll really enjoy it.
I too go through cars entirely too quickly. When I get the letter from the DMV to renew my plates, I start shopping and since I have a lot of connections in the business from my past, I usually get out of the trade relatively unscathed and depending on what I'm focused on, my discount varies. I have had my heart set on a G63 since the 2025 came out but I have been waiting to pay down my current car beforehand. It is impossible to get a deal on those and dealers near me are all $20K to $25K over MSRP and that's just ridiculous....though I doubt that will reverse anytime soon...so I either have to suck it up...or pick something else. The money factor on their leases are just as bad as the rates you were quoted and between that and the markup, I keep waiting for a miracle....I think it'll be a long wait!

There's a lot of MB dealers in FL as there are out West. Glad you found what you wanted.

Wow a G63.. That won't be cheap as you know . As you said either going to have to suck it up or something else s those prices stay pretty dang firm on what I have seen about them. Pretty fast and the classic look to them although never seen the inside I will have to take a look after I post this. Get one as you only live once. I as well end up doing ok on trades usually. Granted I do overpay my payments each month a bit but been pretty lucky. I remember when covid first hit first month or so dealerships weren't moving anything i got another AMG for a steal as everyone was a bit in a panic I came out very good on buying that at a low price and then on new car getting more than i paid for that car with miles on it and about 1.5 years later