I searched through other negotiation threads, and didn’t see this issue raised.
I’m currently negotiating a car purchase, and one dealer offered me 10% MSRP before incentives, straight out, without negotiating.
A second dealer couldn’t believe I had been quoted 10% before incentives, and asked if I could forward him this e-mail so he can show it to his finance manager.
For some reason, I’m hesitating (probably irrationally). Thoughts?
Others will disagree with me, but I generally won’t forward on the message. Either they can beat the deal, or they can’t.
That said, I don’t know what car you’re looking at, but if 10% is considered a deep discount for that car before incentives, why shop it? That assumes that the other aspects of the deal (MF, fees etc) are all up to snuff.
Yeah they at times ask for confirmation. I guess if they can prove to their bosses that they would loss the sale otherwise they can discount deeper maybe. I had dealers ask for it before.
Once you get into the 10% off msrp, you will need to shop it against big dealerships. The smaller ones rarely play ball.
It’s for a purchase, not a lease. This was my first e-mail to the dealership, and they just flat laid it out there - I was pretty surprised, but obviously there’s still room to go down on a first offer. That’s why I’m shopping.
I see. Agree that you’ll need to go to big dealers to see if it can be beat - no small shop is going to play ball unless there is significant unpublished backend money on it.
What vehicle is this?
It’s an Audi S3. Terrible car to lease right now (RV is 47% for 36/10k), so I’m going for the purchase. It’ll actually be a fairly similar payment, and they seem to hold their value quite well.
What’s the make and model of the car? Some people are just straight shooters. When I was looking for a car three years ago, I actually had a guy that did that. Not this time around though. They all wanted me to come in, well at least the Chevy and Acura sales.
I have. He’s in SoCal, I’m in NY. He couldn’t help me because I’m so far away, but was very kind and helpful to me nonetheless, and discussed what I should be looking for.
That being the case, I would use his guidance. If 10% off seems like a deep discount and a good deal, I wouldn’t walk away from it to save a couple hundred bucks…
He said I should shoot for 12% in NY, so that’s what I’m looking for.
Obviously, nice to have the 10% to start from - I just hope the last 2% isn’t too tough to get pull off.
@mbchest Maybe I’m paranoid, but I wouldn’t forward or disclose which dealer offered the deal either. I don’t know if certain dealers are in cohoots or if they would start price fixing.
I agree, I don’t agree with sending others offers either. So… you want another dealership to grind out a deal and then just jump in at the last minute to match it? No. There’s something to be said about the first to come in with the best offer, and they will generally get my business.
2% on an S3 is probably another $1000 off the sale price before incentives, give or take a few. I’d give this straight shooter dealer a chance at your business by telling them what you’re targeting straight up - you want to give them the business, and if they can match it, you’ll take it.
If they don’t want it, start shopping. But I still wouldn’t forward the actual offer.
Unless this dealer doesn’t have the car you want, you should give them your business. If the dealer is straight from the beginning, the whole process will likely be smoother the whole way thru. Dealers that ask for quotes to be forwarded will play games with you all day. Not worth the headaches in my opinion.
Yeah, something about it rubbed me the wrong way. I mean, I don’t know what could possibly happen (one dealer gets on the phone and yells at the other? LOL), but something is holding me back
I like that approach a lot - I may do just that.
It’s interesting blanketing a lot of different dealerships - some have been upfront, even if their discounts are not the best. Some are blatantly just telling me they’ll beat any offer I get, but won’t discuss a number at all. LOL
The dealers that promise to beat any number but you have to come in are usually sleazy.