Just want to say hi to everyone, and thanks for all of the good info that has been archived on the forums. I've been silently browsing for a couple days now. Been looking at Monte's for around a week, and have gained an interest in the '06-07 SS model. Thought I found the perfect one about 35 miles away, but when I called they said it sold shortly after it was listed. Since then I've spoke with a few other dealers, but haven't committed yet. Not sure what to do, as all of the cars are between 130-300 miles away, so it's not just an afternoon trip. The cheapest of them is GM certified which is nice, but that car is 300 miles away. I'm not real familiar with the certification, but I would hate to have to haul it 300 miles to get something fixed under warranty. Yet the 100k mile powertrain warranty could be handy, as i've read the transmissions aren't overly built for the engine. Another vehicle is only 130 miles away, one year newer, has 15k miles less, and has rally stripes, but it's $1k more. The other car is an '06 and is in between them both in miles and price, but is around 150 miles away. A salesman from the dealer where my folks bought a new truck is doing some searching for me in the mean time. Any suggestions on car shopping?

Also, since I registered, I no longer have access to the photo gallery or the garage. I received the confirmation email and activated the account. Am I restricted for some reason?

 

Good luck in your search. You will have limited access until you make 5 posts and after 10 days your account should be fully activated. If not contact one of the mods. I found my 05 for sale locally but won the car via ebay.

 

Heyy! Welcome to the forum!

 

Welcome and good luck on the hunt.
If its certified warranty, couldn't you take it to ANY Chevy/GM dealership for repairs?

 

welcome to the forum...

 

Welcome to the forum. Your account should be good now. Happy New Year by the way!

As far as I know, the factory original warranty and extended warranty is good at any GM dealership. But if I'm not mistaken, a dealership's used car warranty is only good at that dealer.

This is just me, but I would try for the 07 with 15k less miles first. Take a serious look at how much you can afford. Make them an offer. Never give the dealer what they're asking on the window sticker. Cash (or a certified check) with no trade in is usually a plus for you. Dealership sees it as "guaranteed money" up front with no risks, and they don't have to wait for your trade in to sell in order to get their money. I've gotten great deals with dealerships that way. You might be surprised by how willing they are to deal with you when they know there's no trade and your paying either cash or certified cheque.

If you do have a car you want to trade in, don't. Sell it privately. You can get more money out of it that way. Car lots always low-ball you on your trade in.

Not sure about your area. But around here 2006 & 2007 Montes pop up at car lots all the time. Especially now that the 07 leases are expiring. And they usually sit for a while. Where do you live?

 

Hi, and welcome! You'll find LOTS of useful information here. I bought an '07 back in July and am extremely happy with it. Since I live in a large metropolitan area (St. Louis), car shopping isn't a problem. I hope you get what you want - even if travelling 150 miles is required. Good luck!

 

Thank you everyone for the very warm welcome!

I'm from southern Minnesota. Honestly I started looking around a couple weeks ago because i'm in need for a newer and reliable daily work commuter. I had seen a couple -04's out in the parking lot at work a week or so ago, and caught a glimpse of the backside of them as they were cruising away, and I think that did it for me. I figure a Monte would look right at home next to an old classic Caprice and a couple of Celebrity's. The -06's and -07's interest me because of the factory remote start and the LS4 engine. I do like the gauge cluster on the earlier models, but i'm willing to give that up.

I ran a check on the certified '06 with 58k miles, and it was a fleet/lease/rental vehicle and has had 3 owners. When I talked with the dealer I was told that there were a lot of small things replaced when it went through the inspection, which could be good or bad. Comparing the two on a VIN Decoder, the '07 would show to have more options than the '06. But comparing the dealers descriptions, that wouldn't seem to be the case. The dealer doesn't list the '07 to have XM, but I thought that came standard on the -07's. They both list premium sound, but only the '06 is optioned with a cd changer. The decoder doesn't show the '06 to have remote start and traction control, but I thought that came standard, and the dealer lists that it has it. The decoder doesn't list the '06 to have fog lights or a spare tire, but it clearly does have that. I have yet to run a history check on the '07, that is on my list of things to take care of. They do list their price as their "best price", so I don't know what to think of that. It is probably fair if you take the KBB value into consideration, but they've had it for a month. Personally i'm usually accustomed to leaving the bickering and bartering to someone else, not my best role play. If that's the case, I may have to make an exception.

If financing, would you suggest to finance with the dealer, or have that taken care of independently before going to the dealer? I went through a dealer for my pickup, but seven years has been awhile.

Thank you......

 

Welcome!

 

I belong to a credit union and by far they have the lowest auto loan rates. You might want to shop around for local bank rates.