Are dealers getting away from price haggling?

[Whimsey]

From the same Ford dealer I purchased new a 1989 F-150, 1996 Contour and a 2002 F-150. I used Consumer Reports paid service to get the dealer invoice cost and offered the dealer $200 over this. These I ordered so the dealer got to keep the total 3% hold back. Could I have gotten a slightly better deal with haggling, maybe. BUT other dealers were not up front and played all sorts of games, such as claiming the factory incentives did not apply to their selling offer. it was easier and more pleasurable to do it my way. Both the dealer and I were "happy" in the end, without the aggravation of haggling. It may have cost a bit more but both sides made out fairly and I got extra "warranty" service even though it had expired. This was worth the little extra I might have paid for the vehicles. My wife bought a new Explorer in January of 2017. She used the "internet sales department" at 2 of the dealers to get pricing. At both dealers when she went in person she was handed off to a sales rep who said what ever the internet sales person told you was not valid. Needless to say those conversation did not last long

. She bought from a dealer who told her the up front cost of the vehicle, not just the monthly financing costs, and she got ALL of the Ford rebates, even the one for being an EMT. The price was fair for both parties.

Whimsey

 

[Linctex]

I don't know how to make this not sound sexist.....

But I know two women that bought their cars with pretty much NO NEGOTIATION AT ALL.

A lot of women are making a lot of money nowadays....

and I think their "No haggle" negotiating "tactics" are ruining it for the rest of us.

 

[PimTac]

A lot of people go in to dealerships blind. With all the resources on the interwebs today you should be able to get a decent price.

Some makes and models are selling so well that dealers probably have a floor and they won't go below that.

 

[Skippy722]

Originally Posted by tony1679
Originally Posted by Skippy722
Traded the Durango in for our 2016 300 at Carmax. So much less stress than any dealership. I'll probably stick with them for car buying.

Also tried leasing a 2016 Charger SXT at one point. What an absolutely aggravating experience that was. Ended up walking away from that... sales guy said "we don't haggle here at all" and I knew that they did. That was the last time I ever stepped foot on one.
Am I the only one confused by this?

Wants to stick with Carmax for no-haggle pricing (which is a rip-off, Carmax is ALWAYS higher on every vehicle I've ever looked at, even prior to any negotiation elsewhere), yet was upset with no-haggle somewhere else.

For the dealer that said it was no haggle, it actually was and still is. Had friends buy cars after that and haggled their way down. That sales guy no longer works there.


Paid 23k towards the beginning of the year for my 300 at Carmax. At the time they were 26+ at all the dealers. Just looked up the fair purchase price on KBB and it's 19-20k now for the same 300. Sometimes you can find a perfectly fair deal on a car there, but you have to know what you're looking for. Could I have gotten one cheaper or with fewer miles elsewhere? Definitely. Would it have taken more time I'd rather spend elsewhere? Yep.

 

[artbuc]

Originally Posted by Linctex
I don't know how to make this not sound sexist.....

But I know two women that bought their cars with pretty much NO NEGOTIATION AT ALL.

A lot of women are making a lot of money nowadays....

and I think their "No haggle" negotiating "tactics" are ruining it for the rest of us.


Don't worry. It doesn't sound sexist at all, just stupid.

 

[edyvw]

When I was buying SIenna, at Toyota dealer:
Dealer: This is ticker price, cannot lower, it is popular vehicle, it is Toyota after all (I jumped in to say that that is really not something that I take as a value).
Me: I found one in Michigan for $4,000 lower.
Dealer: Yeah, but it is in Michigan, you won't drive your trade in there.
Me: Yes I will, would not be first time.
Dealer: For $4,000?
Me: I would walk for $4,000.
Dealer: Well, I cannot do that.

Two months later:
Dealer calls and ask am I still interested as suddenly they can negotiate.
Me: Dude, do you really think I was lying to you when I said I will go elsewhere to get a car?

Point is, too many people are just willing to pay MSRP, especially when it comes to these poorly engineered, lack of any sound insulation, miserable driving Toyota's.

 

[DoubleWasp]

Too many dumb people willing to pay whatever price they are given. This is not a problem limited to the auto sales industry. This problem has caused get reductions in quality, along with huge rises in pricing.

Best thing you can do is never be in a position to "need it right now!". That is the attitude that gets people.

"I can't take off any time from work."

"I can't spare the time away from my family"

"I just want this to be over with "

Etc, etc. I've never understood the URGENCY people get about getting a new car. The dealerships everywhere, and they are loaded with cars, but people act like a device is strapped to their neck with a clock ticking down.

Unless I came across a neck breaking deal, I have always spent months getting a new car. Just trolling the water until I found a deal I liked.

Negotiations: He who cares less wins.

I did accidentally discover a good negotiating tactic. Go to their parts department like you're going to buy a part. Ask for something there's no way they actually have, or just say you don't have you VIN#. Then just kinda troll the showroom a little on your way out. Salesmen know it's a steep grade toward convincing someone who only came for an oil filter or clip into buying a new car.

I think they cut me good deals in that situation just so they can tell all their buddies they sold a car to a guy who came to buy an oil filter.

 

[JTK]

Originally Posted by DoubleWasp
Too many dumb people willing to pay whatever price they are given. This is not a problem limited to the auto sales industry. This problem has caused get reductions in quality, along with huge rises in pricing.

Best thing you can do is never be in a position to "need it right now!". That is the attitude that gets people.


I don't disagree with you, but a totally clueless car buyer has got to be an extreme rarity now. Everyone has access to the innerwebs and getting a feel for pricing and costs is only a few clicks or swipes away.

I don't consider myself a tech savvy guy at all, yet every one of my dozens of car purchases in the past ~20 years (for me and family) began, or was totally based on the internet.

 

[DoubleWasp]

You can have a clue, but still not have a spine. When I've gone to dealers, I'm still hearing the same spiel I was hearing 15 years ago. Same tactics, same everything. People are definitely falling for it.

 

[marine65]

Originally Posted by Linctex
I don't know how to make this not sound sexist.....

But I know two women that bought their cars with pretty much NO NEGOTIATION AT ALL.

A lot of women are making a lot of money nowadays....

and I think their "No haggle" negotiating "tactics" are ruining it for the rest of us.


a lot of women lawyers,Doctors etc making a ton of money
they dont have the time or patience to play the dealer games.
the time they spend in their careers out weighs a couple grand or so haggling
they just want the car they like and they buy it
not so dumb.

 

[JTK]

Originally Posted by DoubleWasp
You can have a clue, but still not have a spine. When I've gone to dealers, I'm still hearing the same spiel I was hearing 15 years ago. Same tactics, same everything. People are definitely falling for it.



That is a fact. A lot of it is the same. The only difference I've found is if I leave, most of the time that's it. I never hear from them again. They used to follow you out, or call you within a day or two..

 

[tbm3fan]

Originally Posted by E150GT
I emailed three mazda dealers wanting a price on a 2016 mazda 6. Only one would provide a price via email. the other two were the types of dealers that prey on people and make them come in to talk price. They never got my business.


I just bought a 2018 Mazda 3 from a local dealer. Actually the closest one to my house at 2 miles while my list had them out to 100 miles. I knew the sticker price of the car I wanted. Located all of them within 100 miles. Wrote them done on my legal pad along with the attributes I needed to check off when looking at the car. My mind was made up unless something was wrong when looking at the car. The first dealer had one and I could tell it had been there awhile. Essentially a basically optioned sedan with no large tires and wheels. Examined the car from inside, to outside, to engine and to under carriage checking off my list. No test drive was taken as I didn't need one. Manager was out while I did that as the first guy said I couldn't remove the cover from the engine. It was remove or I leave.

I knew the price range people were getting which was between 17,500-18,200 before tax and license. He saw my 91 626 I drove up in. When we sat down he offered 18,000 and I asked if that was with tax and license? It was as tax and license was just over $1500. That was $500 more than my 2004 Focus ZTS which was the last car I bought. This was for my wife and I was happy. Nice car and great mileage.

 

[Anduril]

Originally Posted by twoheeldrive
Their favorite trick is called "hide the trade". Never, ever give them the keys to your trade in. If you do, it will disappear so they can "appraise" it. It will be hard to get back. So, if they want to appraise it... go with them and KEEP YOUR KEYS. It makes it hard to walk out if you can't find your car.

Report it stolen. If they won't give you your car back when asked, technically they did steal it.

 

[KrisZ]

Originally Posted by Anduril
Originally Posted by twoheeldrive
Their favorite trick is called "hide the trade". Never, ever give them the keys to your trade in. If you do, it will disappear so they can "appraise" it. It will be hard to get back. So, if they want to appraise it... go with them and KEEP YOUR KEYS. It makes it hard to walk out if you can't find your car.

Report it stolen. If they won't give you your car back when asked, technically they did steal it.


Not if you gave them your keys and they can claim their techs has taken it for a test drive to appraise its condition. Or if it's a big dealership they can claim it was parked in some odd spot and they couldn't find it.
I hardly doubt police would waste their time on something like this, unless you were there for hours waiting for them to give your car back.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Originally Posted by JTK
Originally Posted by DoubleWasp
You can have a clue, but still not have a spine. When I've gone to dealers, I'm still hearing the same spiel I was hearing 15 years ago. Same tactics, same everything. People are definitely falling for it.



That is a fact. A lot of it is the same. The only difference I've found is if I leave, most of the time that's it. I never hear from them again. They used to follow you out, or call you within a day or two..


I've heard that a lot. Local market conditions have a lot to do with it. If business is good (i.e. credit is cheap) the salesperson doesn't need the headache just to make a couple of hundred bucks. I even think dealers keep internal records of their customers where they notate which ones are prone to "pay MSRP" and which are not, which are loyal and not.

 

[Jarlaxle]

Originally Posted by Anduril
Originally Posted by twoheeldrive
Their favorite trick is called "hide the trade". Never, ever give them the keys to your trade in. If you do, it will disappear so they can "appraise" it. It will be hard to get back. So, if they want to appraise it... go with them and KEEP YOUR KEYS. It makes it hard to walk out if you can't find your car.

Report it stolen. If they won't give you your car back when asked, technically they did steal it.


My brother found that yelling, "GIVE ME MY KEYS. RIGHT (expletive) NOW!" with the last three words screamed at the top of his lungs worked pretty well.

 

[thescreensavers]

I saved 15% on my purchase with 2-3 hours of haggling. Would do it again in a heartbeat

 

[Exhaustgases]

So lets see the average 30k priced car costs what 5k to build. It could be less if they stopped the costly yearly changes that aren't always for the better.
Profit = greed tax.

 

[Lubener]

Originally Posted by Chris142
The last couple times we bought a vehicle the dealer would not move from the sticker price.

"No haggle pricing" is getting popular in my area.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Originally Posted by Exhaustgases
So lets see the average 30k priced car costs what 5k to build. It could be less if they stopped the costly yearly changes that aren't always for the better.
Profit = greed tax.


Try again,

Toyota has a pre-tax profit margin of about 8 percent and it's one of the highest in the industry. Domestics are lower (GM ~ 7 percent). So in your example it would cost a car company anywhere from $23k-$25k to build/market that $30k car.