No negotiation at dealer

[juggsy]

Hi folks, hoping to get a bit of insight and experiences. I've been looking at getting a used (07-08) V8V roadster tor a little while and an AM dealer alerted me to one meeting the spec I was looking for. After a bit of back and forth it seemed to meet the bill, but was slightly more than I was willing to pay when taking into account a P/X.

So when we got talking about price, I was told in no uncertain terms that there was no negotiation on the sticker price at all, as all prices were set (and monitored) by head office, and updated daily to represent 'absolute value'.

This all sounded like sales spiel, and I'm a bit surprised a main dealer has no autonomy on the price of their cars, I was hoping for some wriggle room for a deal before Christmas.

Is this the experience of others, do AM main dealers not negotiate at all, the price you see is the price you pay? Any insight and experience welcome as I'd like to gauge whether they are just playing hardball or if it's futile to bother negotistkng. Maybe it's just down to the dealer group I'm dealing with (without naming/shaming this is the group owned by writing instrument-mythical creature )

[juggsy]

Big Ry said:

If it's genuinely the right car and spec for you then do you want to loose it ?

Absolutely, that's the internal debate I'm having, that's why I wanted to see if I was being spun a yarn before either trying to find the extra funds or push them harder.

tonyhall38 said:

That would be a dealer group starting with a S then.......
You could negotiate other incentives....free service , mats , etc.....

Correct

[juggsy]

Thanks for all the thoughts, advice and feedback so far, good to have it ratified that I'm not the only one experiencing this! Some good advice to go for the extras for added value.

Big Ry said:

All depends, if it's silver or black then there'll no doubt be another one along, if it's somewhat rarer then you might be waiting a while, and who's to say the next "right" car won't also come up at the same dealer network so you'll be in the same position. All comes down to where the individual sees value really.

Exactly - at the end of the day I've got an amount in the bank that I want to spend and it's a couple of £k out. Its meteorite silver so not exactly unique, but it is a manual which is what I'm gunning for and they seem a bit rarer. So my options are to raid the emergency fund (wife would have my bks), get a loan to cover the difference, or wait a bit longer and save a few more pennies. It's got to work financially for me and I'm in no rush at all, I want to buy outright so I don't have any monthlies associated with it. So ultimately I'm going to be patient and wait for the right deal to come along, and save a bit more in the meantime.

The best bit was then he tried to sell me a brand new car with an 'amazing finance deal'. Yeah I'm debating £44k so sell me a car for £90k instead. Had to laugh at that one for trying it on!

hyphen said:

Is this all by email/phone or in person?

Combination, been to see them regarding another car which subsequently sold. They then emailed me with this one which has been a mix of email followed by phone calls.

Buster73 said:

If you inform them of your ideal spec and they manage to match it as near as damn it , you've shown your hand and it leaves any dealer with a much stronger position.

Actually I was deliberately vague about the spec, they mailed me due to having a previous conversation on another car, they weren't really aware of my ideal spec but it just so happened this one ticked the boxes

[juggsy]

The Surveyor said:

OP, If the dealer won't budge on the screen price, will they come up with the part-ex valuation? It's the 'price to change' that's important, not what you're paying for the new one.

They may have a 'no discount' rule on their stock but the valuation of any trade-in is much more subjective. Ultimately be prepared to walk away from any deal that doesn't make you happy.

Agreed completely, I always work on the cost to change figure as that's the important number. Unfortunately their P/X was laughable so little scope there unfortunately.

jonby said:

I think it's a good thing that people on here confirm the same experience, because it confirms that it's their standard practice and not that the OP is a poor negotiator getting a bad deal

Haha, appreciate the clarification! To me the key to negotiation is be prepared to walk - sometimes you want something so bad it puts you on the back foot (don't get me wrong, I really want to join the Aston club!), however I'm prepared to bide my time which means I won't just through my cash on the sales guys desk.

Edited by juggsy on Wednesday 7th December 13:55

[juggsy]

Ex Boy Racer said:

Just spotted this thread.
Seems a strange subject to me. They have a car and a price that they're willing to accept. You want a car and have a price you want to pay.
If they match, happy days. If they don't you go your separate ways. There's nothing personal or insulting in any of that, surely?

I don't think I ever mentioned that I took it personally or was insulted by the refusal to negotiate?

Ultimately the car in question was more than I was willing to pay, which is why I wanted to get others opinions//experiences with said dealer and whether this was a common tactic. I'd never come across a blunt refusal to negotiate before, and is why I started the thread.