Viewing 9 posts - 1 through 9 (of 9 total)
  • Used car – pricing / discounts at dealers
  • theotherjonv
    Full Member

    Further to the very helpful responses to the 'what car' thread last week, we've whittled down a list and are now staring to look.

    Next question then is what sort of discounts we should be targetting at a franchised dealer for a used car? Of course depends on the car, and I'll happily offer ridiculously low (I get turned down all the time in all walks of life) but what is realistic for eg: new Fiesta, Kia Ceed, type cars.

    Is cash king or can we haggle more if we were to consider finance?

    And when's good to buy – I'm thinking March just before the new model year?

    cinnamon_girl
    Full Member

    Good question! I saw a used car at a main dealer. Test drove it and then went to discuss price. I immediately said "I'm a cash buyer with nothing to sell so what's your best price?".

    As expected, he said "what's your offer then?". I responded, he went and checked with his manager then the deal was done!

    So … perhaps I should have gone lower, who knows. I was on my own and just used my C_G Forum bravado, and was quite prepared to walk out if I didn't get my own way 🙄

    simon_g
    Full Member

    You can use http://www.networkq.co.uk/buying/value-your-car/ to get an idea of trade prices for what you're interested in. Don't expect to get your price that low (the dealer will want to make some profit) but it gives an idea of what to aim towards.

    March can be good especially for nearly-new – anything pre-reg or demo cars that are still hanging around will be replaced with ones on the latest reg. My civic belonged to the dealership – so used by one of the staff as their transport, plus occasionally used for demos or as a courtesy car. I got a huge chunk off compared to new, was still eligible to take out the 5 year service plan (normally limited to new only) and was immaculate.

    Ultimately though whether your offer is accepted depends on whether the dealer thinks someone else might come along soon offering more. Things like new Fiestas are selling well and there's plenty of demand for nearly-new ones. Hyundai are claiming such strong demand for nearly-new i10, i20, i30 that they're offering to upgrade people who bought them to a new one on the latest plate for only a small charge to get cars back into their network. The best deals will always be on things that are less desirable – lukewarm reviews, poor sellers, or things that have been recently replaced or facelifted. Desirability = demand = higher prices.

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    theotherjonv
    Full Member

    how far below asking was your offer. I'd brazenly take 15% off as a start point,

    Another comment – we do have a car to sell and the benefits of PX to just get it done as opposed to endless streams of tyrekickers coming round outweigh the likely small cash benefit we could get, but how much does that harm your purchasing power?

    Or should I phone webuyanycar (dotcom)

    theotherjonv
    Full Member

    thanks simong; comments well noted but it's not so much the actual price as the amount of negotiation room they build in to windscreen pricing.

    Looking at autotrader etc. there are plenty to look at but how far down can they be expected to be knocked? I'd assume windscreen prices are pretty well based on taking their acceptable sales value + a mark up, and clearly more desirable cars have a higher value they'd settle on but still then add in the % upcharge for haggle? or doesn't that happen?

    cinnamon_girl
    Full Member

    Firstly cars don't interest me so it's just used to transport bike/s. The model I decided on was going to limit me for choice, also did not want high mileage or diesel. These last two factors meant even less choice.

    I've been without a car for 12 days now and it's doing my head in! Just wanted to get one asap and this one fitted the bill. But I did not offer 15% less, perhaps I should have done!

    When you don't have a car and need to look at cars, it becomes a real PITA. I was even seriously considering hiring one for a week.

    simon_g
    Full Member

    Nothing ever seems to be on a fixed percentage above what they really want. Some places price high in the hope that someone comes along who doesn't want to haggle, or those who insist on getting x% off anything so they still make a reasonable amount. Others price low to attract buyers (esp via autotrader) but won't be willing to move much at all. The likes of cargiant are completely upfront about their prices and won't negotiate on them.

    chrissyboy
    Free Member

    Working for a main dealer I know that it depends where you are in the country and how competitive the local market is. Where we are, we expect to get the screen price on a used car – although if it's been in stock for more than 30 / 60 / 90 days we'll haggle / take offers. A main dealer will typically look for a margin of £1,500 from a used car, plus a certain amount from finance products. Cash is no longer king, we like to make some comission from the finance company, we like you to buy a GAP/VRI/warranty product – dealers are run as a business rather than a charity!

    On the other hand, offer them £500 less than the screen price and expect a fortune for your old car like everybody else!

    Beware ex demo or pre reg vehicles – you can sometimes buy cheaper new from a dealer that's chasing his targets than you can pre reg.

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    chrissyboy – ive noticed that a few times – i can buy a brand new combo cheaper than the same spec combo with 20k on the clock ….

    but conversely a new shape berlingo with 700miles on the clock on a 1.6HDI engine is gonna cost me half the list price of new ……

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