Negotiating with dealer

I do not see a problem with your offering. The worst they can say is no or counter. Its your money and you are in control until you sign the paperwork. The only case where another party may have say, is if the car is on consignment to the dealer.

 

They get what they can get. You should offer what you feel like offering. All they can say is "NO".

A while back, 2011, I made an offer to a dealer in Newport Beach for a car on their showroom floor. They basically laughed at me. They called me back a number of times to tell me the car would be gone by the end of the day, I better snap it up. I stood my ground.

A week later, they called one afternoon and caved into my offer. Problem for them was, I was sitting at Desert European in Rancho Mirage finishing paperwork when they called, buying a far better one off the showroom floor, at a HIGHER price, but a far better deal.

 

When I was in my exhaustive search for a 360, I found that around 10% less than asking was the "right" price for most cars.

Don't forget to use factors like service history as a negotiating point. They may not take 130, but would they take 135 if they included a fresh major service? on their dime?

 

Don't be intimidated by the dealer or think you'll insult them with an offer. Figure out what you think is fair, then offer less. These are not rare cars, there are lots for sell and a lot of these cars have been on the market for a long time. With the 458's flooding the market and 458 prices falling, the dealers holding f430's know this and it may makes them nervous. They need to move inventory. That's their business. They are not end users.

Remember, it is typically much harder to sell your exotic at good price than it is to buy it at a good price (In a nutshell, it's easy to buy a Ferrari, but not so easy to sell it when your ready to).

Don't fall for the old bit about "someone else being interested and the car may be gone by the end of the day" BS. I own a number of properties, etc., and it must just be coincidence (sarcasm intended), but every time I get serious, the representing real estate agent always pulls the: "I have other interest in the property. There is a doctor and his wife that are moving to town..." Total BS.

The same thing always seems to happen when I purchase cars...I currently have 9 in the stable, and wouldn't you know it, I've purchased all 9 (+the many others over the years) by the skin-of-my-teeth right before someone else swooped in (again sarcasm). This concept is known by compliance experts as "The Principal of Scarcity."

BEFORE YOU BUY, YOU ARE IN CONTROL. ONCE YOU BUY, THEY ARE IN CONTROL.

 

I made almost exactly the same offer to a Ferrari dealer. They were polite but declined it but about a month later accepted my offer. They then tried to add $1000 to the negotiated price to do a full service. I told them to take a hike.

On the flip side I was offered 60-65K for my 360 when I saw very similar cars being advertised in the high 80 to 90's by the same dealers. I think there is a huge margin on these cars so 130 seems like a very reasonable first offer.

The only exception is that if you want the particular car then paying a little more is probably worth it. In my case, I ended up buying my F430 the first day it was advertised because it was almost exactly what I wanted with some unusual options that don't come up all that often.

 

I was only able to get my seller to come down a little bit on price; however, I was able to get him to pay for or supply a nice list of desirable goodies including: new tires, variator replacement, cam belt replacement, new alarm system, free oil filter, new cover, accessory belt replacement, replace missing tool kit, leather refurbish, one year warranty, replace one scratched wheel, etc.

So work on the price, but also work on getting extras. Remember, most of these things cost the shop or dealer a LOT less than they will cost you. If some wear items are OK now but will need service in the foreseeable future, shoot for free belt change, clutch change, brake change, or something like that. Try for a free full service when next it's due. Whatever you do, don't just pay the asking price. Get something.

 

they are one step away from selling Hyundais......

 

You'll find that many of the veteran sales folks are very down to earth and not intimidating. If the salesman is becoming hard to deal with or you feel is marring your buying experience (you deserve a positive buying experience), then ask to deal directly with the sales manager. I've done this a couple of times. The last time that a salesman treated me with disrespect and talked condescending (he was "green" and young and frankly, I couldn't believe the way he was addressing me and speaking), I went directly to the sales manager, told him my feelings and purchased the car on the spot with the stipulation that the salesman who insulted me not be involved in the transaction and receive no commission. It did put the sales manager in a hard spot, which maybe it wasn't fair of me to do, but he agreed and I bought the car (who knows what he did or how he handled it when I left).

Another option in this situation, is to simply steer the conversation to the salesman and just ask "what kind of car do you drive?" This is a non-judgemental way to bring things back into your favor as you are the one looking to buy the F-car. (The salesman probably just drives a Lambo (grin))

 

Another negotiating chip in your pocket is - if the dealer is reasonably local - who is going to do the service? A dealer local to you with a decent service department may well be willing to flex a bit more in price if they know they will make it up in the service bays.