People are scoring 7,8,9 10+ % off MSRP yet every dealer I call for , for cars I’m looking at are going for MSRP or more. Zero discounts. I’m not in the market for a BMW or audi or Mercedes but damn according to some of these leases I’m seeing here I have to question if there really is a chip shortage going on.
2 Likes
Nice job @ZZAutoDeals
FYI, to anyone shopping these, you might get lucky now and find a dealer doing 10-11% off on a 530 but generally 540’s are discounted less.
3 Likes
330s are the only model that is plentiful right now where there is a massive shortage of 5 series.
A 330, on ground, is the easiest BMW to get a deal on right now.
@ZZAutoDeals great work as always!
2 Likes
I think dealers try to play the chip shortage card and home it would with the consumers.
I was shopping around lately for a lease and had an Audi dealer try to markup an Audi q5e by 5k over MSRP.
I told him it’s a non starter for me to deal with someone that does price gauging and walked out.
He did the famous chase me to the parking lot routine to get me back to the table. Shame on them
3 Likes
Care to elaborate? What cars/models are you getting quoted MSRP? May was a decent month for deals. June not so much.
I’ve seen shared deals and broker deals at 10% off MSRP + base MF on this car.
When I signed my Audi deal back in early May, most dealers were at 5 -7% off MSRP. Only one (the one I signed with) came close to my 10% off target. I ended up at 9.5% off MSRP (more like 9% off normalizing for a slightly marked up MF).
1 Like
X3M at the end of June for example. The dealer wouldn’t budge for anything beyond 1% off MSRP. That despite the fact that I was already in the building signing a lease on a 530i xDrive with them and ready to trade in another car I own. That 530i by the way came out to be 10.4% off with the base MF (no MSDs). However due to some rather exorbitant fees ($799 doc, $218 title, $304 registration ) the leasehackr score came out to be a mediocre 8.0. Perhaps I shouldn’t be complaining too much given the market… The OP’s deal certainly seems like something that people can only dream of nowadays.
1 Like
I don’t understand why would any Leasehackr go to dealership to begin with to negotiate. Go for a test drive, thank them and go back home. even if you want to take the car from the dealer you test drove with, just make a call, if they start with over sticker just hang up and call the next dealer, much easier than getting chased in parking lot.
The only time you go there is to pick the car up, get any free maintainance or warranty work done.
If you give an opportunity to a dealer to rip you off, they will take it 11 times out of 10.
Chip shortages are real for some brands and not so bad for others but all brand dealers are cashing in on them. They have tasted the blood and will not so easily give up cars even if inventory levels improve knowing people who really a need a car will pay higher than fair price.
We need to get in a deep recession where dealers sit with 100’s of cars on lots and floor plan burning a hole in their bottom line for them to give in. That don’t look like will happen anytime soon, so days of cheap leases are over for next few quaters at least.
3 Likes
My point was that you don’t get actual deals by just calling… you’ll leave money on the table for sure.
The reason is that they don’t think you are a serious buyer or worse, think you are a lazy buyer, and use that to their advantage.
1 Like
When I was negotiating my A6 deal in early May, I ended up chatting with the GSM of the dealership where I got my car. It took two days of negotiating via email and over the phone, but both myself and the GSM were happy with the outcome.
At the end of the day, if dealers know you are ready to sign (and not a tire kicker) they won’t play games.
1 Like
I respectfully disagree.
Walking into the dealership is the strongest signal you are serious. But also need to be prepared to walk away.
1 Like
We can agree to disagree. I was not going to drive 1.5 hours away just to “show” the dealer I was a serious buyer.
3 Likes
I like that OP put date on the thread header so people wouldn’t think deal is current when it is bumped up.
2 Likes
I’m with you 100%. Maybe if things are really close numbers wise and the dealer is close, that might not be a bad idea. But, in general, I’ve found that walking into a dealer generally just ensures you’ll waste a ton of time talking to someone who thinks you’re an idiot and has no power to actually make a deal. There are some dealerships that are never going to do what you want them to and the name of the game is figuring that out with as little amount of time and effort as possible
3 Likes
I personally always prefer doing deals via email/text vs. going into the dealership. You can show seriousness in a lot of ways, such as offering to come in right away to sign, offering to submit a credit app (once you feel like you’re close to reaching your desired target), etc.
If you go to the dealer you’re taking a huge gamble that you’re going to be there when the dealership simply does not need to make the sale so they won’t play ball. Whereas when you’re negotiating for a few days via email/text, for example, say it’s the end of the month and the dealer has to get that last sale in to meet a quota or whatever, the SA or SM might send you an email at the 11th hour and say “if you can come in right now I’ll do it for xx amount” or whatever. I’ve found that a lot of times (in a “normal” market at least, not right now), the right time to strike is when the dealer needs the sale more than you need to buy the car. That’s much more likely to happen when you’re negotiating remotely vs. in person. Just my experience!
7 Likes
As long as you know your numbers (pre-incentive discount, rebates, MF, etc) then no dealer can play games with you.
1 Like
I’ve been fortunate that it’s been a while since I needed to buy a car since I always have more than one vehicle. This week I had that situation with my brother where we were on a tight schedule and he wanted a particular car. I don’t like dealing that way.
My usual method these days is to figure out a deal that is actually reasonable. It might be aggressive, but it’s not impossible. It starts with a sale price that leaves a small profit for the dealer, includes any rebates or incentives I actually qualify for, an accurate MF, RV, origination, DMV fees, etc. and reasonable dealer fees inline with what dealers in the area typically charge. I start in order of the best compromise between what specs I want and the distance to the dealer, and once I’ve selected a car I send an email right to the sales manager and GM. I put together a spreadsheet with their stock number and all the broken down calculations based on the price of the actual vehicle they have. I include a recent printout of my credit score, and a short note saying that if they can match my numbers to send me a link to a credit app and call me for a credit card deposit. If not, I understand and appreciate their time and will consider them again in the future.
I really can’t imagine anything I do in person in a reasonable amount of time will demonstrate to the decision makers that I am a serious buyer and ready to move.
3 Likes
great deal…hopefully things gets better by March 2022 when my lease is up
4 Likes
Sorry but you’re gravely mistaken, the days of cheap leases (note that I can only speak for premium brands) are long gone. Cars won’t sit on dealers lot for a long, long time; this is the strategy going forward.
Speak for yourself. Sounds like you just didn’t get a good deal and want to justify that.
People (myself included) are still getting 5-10% off BMWs in the current market. Stacked with incentives, shopping around, and being persistent…”cheap“ leases still exist (relative to msrp / other brands).
3 Likes
Looks amazing. Congrats.
Trying to look for a good deal on a 540i Xdrive.
1 Like