Negotiating with a dealer!

[GeordieVanJam]

Hi all,
Another daft newbie question in relation to dealers (only ever bought private before)... How far can you push negotiations and what can you squeeze from a commercial dealer? I've taken car dealerships to the cleaners before, but not sure what I can push for with this.

Also, does handing over a deposit hinder the negotiations? I want to look at a van in Scotland, but I need to pay a deposit to get it here and apparently there are some 017 plate vans due with a deposit to view required?!?

I'm after an eu6 T6 tailgate (not new! But nearly new - 10k or less). I'd also like to get a deal done soon so I can enjoy the rest of my holidays looking for stuff to add to a new van!

Cheers for the advice

 

[Stigofthedub]

I have done the same with car dealers over the year's, but you have to be prepared to walk away. They all go on the psychology course so you need to train your brain to believe there is a better deal elsewhere and walk out if they are too stubborn, otherwise they see right through you. Personally I would not give a deposit up front because it shows how keen you are and that you are probably up for the screen price. Also transporting a van costs, and someone is going to pay for that.

 

[DPS]

Hi all,
Another daft newbie question in relation to dealers (only ever bought private before)... How far can you push negotiations and what can you squeeze from a commercial dealer? I've taken car dealerships to the cleaners before, but not sure what I can push for with this.

Also, does handing over a deposit hinder the negotiations? I want to look at a van in Scotland, but I need to pay a deposit to get it here and apparently there are some 017 plate vans due with a deposit to view required?!?

I'm after an eu6 T6 tailgate (not new! But nearly new - 10k or less). I'd also like to get a deal done soon so I can enjoy the rest of my holidays looking for stuff to add to a new van!

Cheers for the advice

I've always found that the best approach is to make them want to sell it to you, rather than make them think you want to buy it from them. Wander about the showroom looking 'lost'. Let them know you're in no rush to buy until the you see the right vehicle at the right price. Say you've seen a vehicle at another dealer than you are really keen on but just checking what else there is around before you decide to buy. If you see a vehicle you like, and would like to buy it, decide in your mind what you are prepared to pay for it, but don't tell the dealer. Then start to walk away, and as you do so just say half heartedly "I love that particular van but the most I could only go to is £xxxxx. This way you will find out how low they are prepared to go. Of course if you're in the fortunate position to pay cash (maybe arrange a personal loan beforehand) then the ball is in your court,and you can say "I tell you what, I'll give you £xxxxx for that van right now. Another tip is to buy very near to the end of the month when they are desperate to meet their sales targets! If the dealer thinks you're a sitting duck you won't get a good price.
I recently got 12% off a new Kombi this way.

 

[Wendy Jackson]

Dealers dont want cash buyers. They make too much from buyers taking out hp. Cash is know longer king. With dealers they always play the same came. The salesman can't talk a deal and always needs to talk to the sales manager. So after showing interest and they think you are on the hook, at the point when they are about to close the deal, ask for more discount. If the salesman says know right out just leave, if he goes to see his manager,just leave. Within minutes they will be on your phone. Just take control and don't let them play you for a fool. Wendy

 

[DPS]

Dealers dont want cash buyers. They make too much from buyers taking out hp. Cash is know longer king. With dealers they always play the same came. The salesman can't talk a deal and always needs to talk to the sales manager. So after showing interest and they think you are on the hook, at the point when they are about to close the deal, ask for more discount. If the salesman says know right out just leave, if he goes to see his manager,just leave. Within minutes they will be on your phone. Just take control and don't let them play you for a fool. Wendy

If you don't think cash is king you can't be doing it right! Don't forget that you don't get finance for free!!

 

[Chrisfraser05]

If you don't think cash is king you can't be doing it right! Don't forget that you don't get finance for free!!

That was kind of the point, they make less from a cash sale than a finance sale so you won't get a bigger discount going in with cash.

 

[Gavandi]

If it helps...I got the 11% that dealers say they get from VW.
They were quite upfront and said that it was all about volume sales.
I tried the cash deal and the finance deal .... there was no difference apart from the fact that I could have had a cheap service package for a decent price if I took finance.
I did get a set of rubber mats for front thrown in!

 

[Jon]

In my experience the best deals are to be had when negotiating the vehicle discount it to verbally agree to everything, finance, gap insurance their rubbish over priced paint protection and the low part exchange value they offer. With all of the additional income expected from the sale they will give a bigger discount than a cash buyer. As said above get up and walk out if need be, when a deal is struck and the figures in writing whilst waiting for delivery cancel the extras sell your part exchange privately if you can job done. I know 12.5% off is more than achievable as retail customer.

 

[DPS]

Are you taking into account the cost of finance?

 

[Jon]

Most order forms will state amount due, be it cash dealer finance or if a better rate loan is arranged. Finance doc's will not be signed till they are about to register it for you. The deal I refer to with the 12.5% off yes VW low rate finance was used with a £500 additional deposit from VW Finance.

 

[GeordieVanJam]

I've managed to get around 10%+ off ATM - I think? As I have only seen a few 2nd hand 17 plate high lines on dealer sites. Not settled final deal until I see the van in September - ex lease on order from dahn sawf! I did put a small no obligation deposit down, which does slightly weaken my position, but I'm getting a newer plate with the spec I can afford.

 

[Sjacko20]

We are collecting our van on Friday, we were cash buyers and haggled hard over the showroom model as cash is king BUT the salesman started talking finance and explained if we borrowed £5000 on finance for 12 mths, VW give £500 deposit contribution and 2 free services which we have agreed to. My plan is to 'withdraw' from the agreement almost immediately and pay off with the money we already have thereby increasing the overall deal discount which seemed pretty good to me unless I am missing something.
At the end of the day don't be afraid to walk away, you may find them come running after you.

 

[Ed Webb]

The problem we have is the Vdubs kind of sell themselves. A Vdub salesman I know said he recently moved over to commercial because 98% of the people that walk into the showroom already know what they want and it's just a case of waving the right shiny thing under their nose. vdubs are in a league of their own, it's not like the Vauxhall vivarro, Renault traffic and the other one that are all a very similar van and therefore more competitive sale should market. The dealer knows you want the van from the offset.
I found when buying mine (approved used) the dealer wouldn't give much when just asking for discount. The minute I said another dealer has a similar van cheaper the manager was called and the price fell.
I personally found having a spec in mind that you wanted but only letting a few details slip to the dealer when haggling on mine meant that there were loads of vans that still matched and therefore this van wasn't the perfect spec and could easily be walked away from. Checking when it was last taxed and knowing it hadn't been taxed for 3 months meant it wasn't as popular as they made it out to be. I also pointed it out towards the end and got a free paint touch up kit and valet bag.

 

[GeordieVanJam]

We are collecting our van on Friday, we were cash buyers and haggled hard over the showroom model as cash is king BUT the salesman started talking finance and explained if we borrowed £5000 on finance for 12 mths, VW give £500 deposit contribution and 2 free services which we have agreed to. My plan is to 'withdraw' from the agreement almost immediately and pay off with the money we already have thereby increasing the overall deal discount which seemed pretty good to me unless I am missing something.
At the end of the day don't be afraid to walk away, you may find them come running after you.

That's a great piece of knowledge, because I haven't settled all the details yet, I'll try that one and let you know how I get on. I've got the cash, but like you say, the amount of discount increases quite a bit. Cheers!

 

[GeordieVanJam]

The problem we have is the Vdubs kind of sell themselves. A Vdub salesman I know said he recently moved over to commercial because 98% of the people that walk into the showroom already know what they want and it's just a case of waving the right shiny thing under their nose. vdubs are in a league of their own, it's not like the Vauxhall vivarro, Renault traffic and the other one that are all a very similar van and therefore more competitive sale should market. The dealer knows you want the van from the offset.
I found when buying mine (approved used) the dealer wouldn't give much when just asking for discount. The minute I said another dealer has a similar van cheaper the manager was called and the price fell.
I personally found having a spec in mind that you wanted but only letting a few details slip to the dealer when haggling on mine meant that there were loads of vans that still matched and therefore this van wasn't the perfect spec and could easily be walked away from. Checking when it was last taxed and knowing it hadn't been taxed for 3 months meant it wasn't as popular as they made it out to be. I also pointed it out towards the end and got a free paint touch up kit and valet bag.

Yeah, I drip fed him bits, but now he knows I'm in the market for a tailgate, it makes it a bit harder to negotiate when they are rare at my budget, which won't stretch to a 16 plate kombi Still, I've reserved a 17 plate t28 102 highline tailgate for the price of a 16 plate... still going to see how far I can push in the final stages though. Although like you say, I just really want the van, plus I've got the money, so it'll be a case of how much my nerve will hold out - we'll see!

 

[Ed Webb]

I took the mrs along when I went to look at ours as she would be able to keep a sensible head and not let me get to excited, in reality roles reversed as she was trying to convince me to buy it when the salesman was sat next to her on the test drive. Luckily she saw some shiny California's in the show room and was browsing those when negotiations kicked off.

 

[Stigofthedub]

Not quite relevant here but if you can then don't be in a rush, when I got mine I had already been in a few months before, test drove a few then walked away. Unless you have the salesman going to talk to the manager a few times and better still having him come out to see you then you aren't near their limit. At the end of the day they have overheads and mimimum profit margin which can include them selling on your part ex if you have one. But you need to feel you are at their minimum. As someone said, end of the month can be good especially if they haven't reached their targets. Two identical vans on a forecourt can have two very different profit margins, it depends how they acquired them.

 

[Sjacko20]

I took the mrs along when I went to look at ours as she would be able to keep a sensible head and not let me get to excited, in reality roles reversed as she was trying to convince me to buy it when the salesman was sat next to her on the test drive. Luckily she saw some shiny California's in the show room and was browsing those when negotiations kicked off.

Exactly the same happened here, she is usually the hard one to negotiate with but she just had to have it.

 

[DPS]

P

Most order forms will state amount due, be it cash dealer finance or if a better rate loan is arranged. Finance doc's will not be signed till they are about to register it for you. The deal I refer to with the 12.5% off yes VW low rate finance was used with a £500 additional deposit from VW Finance.

To be realistic you have to take the cost of the finance, for the term of the loan, from the agreed purchase price.

We are collecting our van on Friday, we were cash buyers and haggled hard over the showroom model as cash is king BUT the salesman started talking finance and explained if we borrowed £5000 on finance for 12 mths, VW give £500 deposit contribution and 2 free services which we have agreed to. My plan is to 'withdraw' from the agreement almost immediately and pay off with the money we already have thereby increasing the overall deal discount which seemed pretty good to me unless I am missing something.
At the end of the day don't be afraid to walk away, you may find them come running after you.

This sounds a brilliant ploy. Would love to know if the plan succeeds! I can't think why it shouldn't work but of course it all depends on what's in the small print, it may say that if the agreement is ended early the £500 contribution has to be paid back as well as the balance of the loan. Let's hope not.

 

[Ed Webb]

When I bought mine there was also some service plan discount that was offered if taking out their finance. It was over half price.