Do Honda Employees get Discounts?

cminahan · Sep 14, 2002

We were showing off our '02 EX-L RES today to someone who noticed us pulling a bunch of yard sale stuff out of it (yes we actually dumped a bunch of stuff instead of buying a bunch of stuff!), and he was saying how nice our van was and he'd really like to have one, but he can get an Aerostar with his brother's employee discount, much cheaper etc. Of course I tried to talk some sense into this guy about the long haul and depreciation and customer satisfaction, etc., but I don't think he was interested in hearing it from a woman.

This lead me to question whether or not a similar program is offered to Honda employees. I couldn't find another thread addressing this. Does anyone know if Honda employees and their families can get discounts?

adam1991 · Sep 14, 2002

Ford has A-plan pricing for employees, and X-plan pricing for partner vendors and the like. A is the lowest, X is the next lowest published price. These prices are written right on the dealer's invoice. For example, I'm eligible to buy any Ford, Lincoln, or Mercury at X-plan prices. I sign up on a web site and get a PIN, and walk into any dealer and announce myself as an X-plan participant. I pick out the car and ask to see the invoice, which will have the Ford factory X-plan price right on it.

Then we take away any factory to dealer and/or factory to buyer cash incentives, and/or include any financing deals of any kind. That's right; the A- and X-plan prices are eligible for every factory incentive that's available at the time.

I looked at a Ford Focus a couple of months ago; it was pretty nicely outfitted, and the list price was $18,800. I walked in and got a quote, immediately, for $13,600. Ford employees would have gotten it even cheaper.

Other Ford-owned companies have similar offers for A- and X-plan participants. Volvo, Land Rover, etc.

Now, to answer your question: yes, Honda offers sweet deals to employees. I don't know if it's as structured as what Ford does, but a buddy of mine (OK, my Honda mechanic) is looking into a job at Honda. One of the perks, he said, was a cheap lease on a V6 Accord--one that included all maintenance (naturally) AND insurance.

sda510 · Oct 7, 2002

no honda does not have anything available to employees unless you are corporate personell. it would depend on the dealership if they have any or not. the only benefit you get by working there is employee pricing on service work or parts.

newowner · Oct 10, 2002

Key is Honda employee or DEALER employee...

cminahan · Oct 11, 2002

Actually, I was inquiring about "Factory" workers discounts. Here in "Ford" country, all my co-workers rave about their family members who work at the Ford plant getting them huge discounts. Still not worth it to me, I'd rather drive a Honda, but I was curious about Honda workers.

AlpineMan · Oct 11, 2002

I used to carpool with a Honda employee in Torrance, CA. She said when buying brand new cars, they get better deals with dealers than Honda itself! They do get good deals on lease returns, used company cars, and brand new leases (they can lease brand new cars instead of buying and they get car insurance and maintenance for free)

She also gets good discounts for Honda/Acura parts...luckily I've stayed in touch with her so I get my parts from her.

Example:
Odyssey Air Deflector part # 08P47-S0X-100 for $101.97

Can't beat that!

dicnic · Oct 13, 2002

A good friend of mine in Ohio works in the Honda MOTORCYCLE factory and yes, is eligible for a discount on Honda cars. However, it must be him or an immediate family member. They do not have an X-Plan like Ford etc. When I was shopping, I looked at value 3 - 5 years down the road. If you saved $3K or so on a Brand X van, in a few years the Ody would be worth more on the used market, even at list price for the Ody.

adam1991 · Oct 13, 2002

dicnic said:
When I was shopping, I looked at value 3 - 5 years down the road. If you saved $3K or so on a Brand X van, in a few years the Ody would be worth more on the used market, even at list price for the Ody.

It is ALL about cost of ownership--something most people don't think about as they look at the snazzy new gewgaw Chrysler put on this year's van.

How much per mile will this vehicle cost me to own over 2, 3, 5, 10 years vs. how much will another similar vehicle cost to own over the same number of miles/years?

The equation works equally well whether you're the leasing type (shudder!) or the owning type, whether you like to keep the car only three years or maybe 10-15 years. Just figure out a resale value (or percentage based on vehicle history), come up with fuel mileage and gas prices, call your insurance agent, and figure out repairs and maintenance items. Add it all up and see what happens.

For grins, go to your friendly car salesman and ask him to find you the book values for trade-in for a 99 Dodge minivan that's equipped like an Odyssey LX. Then find the Odyssey LX trade-in values for 99. You'd be amazed. Now, ask yourself whether you really need to sit down with pencil and paper and Internet research and figure out repair costs, or whether you know in your heart which one will cost more to repair over 3-5 years.

Cost of ownership, baby, cost of ownership. Of course, the automakers are happy to have you ignore that in favor of "how much per month do you want to spend". That's why consumer leasing has taken off--if you keep the car only for the length of the warranty period, then you have no unexpected repair bills to speak of. That way, you know "how much per month" for a fact--even if it's 10 times more than the average "how much per month" of keeping that car in good repair over a longer period of time. On the whole, people hate the unknown and will spend HUGE amounts of money to avoid even a small unknown.

Just buy Honda, like you said.

Jerry O · Oct 13, 2002

In my experience, for a person who enjoys automobiles, it is best to buy a car/van/truck which, first, DOES WHAT HE WANTS IT TO DO. Reliability is great, but if the velicle is only reliable and lacks the goodness of performance you enjoy, you may as well ride the bus or streetcar. Just my humble opinion. If I could go back, I would still buy that X-Car I once owned, even though the reliability prognosis was pretty bad. With regard to function, that car was very well thought out and served us (me, wife, and two teenagers), whether around town or on a trip. It also had a pretty good package (X-11) of factory performance upgrades, which made it a pleasure to drive. It is not always about money, IMHO.

Jerry O.

smstsmith · Oct 14, 2002

Honda Employee Discounts

I can't speak from the Honda manufacturing side of the house, but I am currently operations manager of a motor company that includes a Honda dealership. They have had a strict policy on the Ody, if you want one you pay MSRP, no more-no less, no matter who you are. If you look at it from the viewpoint that many dealers try to sell over the MSRP then it's not too bad, but if you plan on buying one under MSRP it's probably not going to happen. There is another Honda dealer in town and they seem to be pretty much holding the same line. I have heard that some dealers in the Phoenix area were discounting MSRP, but never actually talked directly to anyone who bought from them. Our dealership had a couple of Odys on the ground all the time and only had waiting lists for specific colors or configurations. From all the posts on pricing, it seems to come down to being in the right place at the right time for the best deal, and being willing to do lots of homework and footwork (or fingerwork

).

HondaInsider · Jan 31, 2005

Yes, all Honda employees at the Ohio factories get sweet discounts. You can only get the leases with all the maintenance and insurance if you are at least an Assistant Manager. But any employee can get a great price. For instance, I bought my 2002 Odyssey for less than the dealer. It's a nice perk. I know the Alabama plant gets a discount, but I don't know how much. They're owned and run as a separate company.

Do Honda Employees get Discounts?

cminahan

adam1991

sda510

newowner

cminahan

AlpineMan

dicnic

adam1991

Jerry O

smstsmith

HondaInsider

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