Any good bargaining tips ?
Discussion
I'm looking at 2 cars tomorrow, we already spent a lot of time looking at 1 of them today and the dealer has offered me a pretty good trade in price on my car and was hinting that he would also throw in a 6 month warranty (the car is a 5 year old focus) and will tax it as well. I've never been in the position of having to haggle on 2nd hand cars so was really looking for some tips. The px value + warranty + tax seems like quite a good deal, would it be greedy to try and knock him down on the price ?
The 2nd car we won't have anything to px so I'm assuming we will have slightly more leeway on the price. If a car is up for 8995 would they laugh at me for offering 8500 ?
The 2nd car we won't have anything to px so I'm assuming we will have slightly more leeway on the price. If a car is up for 8995 would they laugh at me for offering 8500 ?
RedLCRB0b said:
I'm looking at 2 cars tomorrow, we already spent a lot of time looking at 1 of them today and the dealer has offered me a pretty good trade in price on my car and was hinting that he would also throw in a 6 month warranty (the car is a 5 year old focus) and will tax it as well. I've never been in the position of having to haggle on 2nd hand cars so was really looking for some tips. The px value + warranty + tax seems like quite a good deal, would it be greedy to try and knock him down on the price ?
The 2nd car we won't have anything to px so I'm assuming we will have slightly more leeway on the price. If a car is up for 8995 would they laugh at me for offering 8500 ?
So what if he laughs? The 2nd car we won't have anything to px so I'm assuming we will have slightly more leeway on the price. If a car is up for 8995 would they laugh at me for offering 8500 ?
FWIW I'd probably go in at £8k, you can always offer more, btu you cant get it for less than your first offer!
va1o said:
Agree with the above, offer £8k to start with and he will probably meet you in the middle at £8.5k... although those prices sound really expensive for a 5-year old Focus
Agreed! you can get a 5 year old BMW 5 series for that money...for example... http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2006-BMW-520-/270697250087?p...
va1o said:
Agree with the above, offer £8k to start with and he will probably meet you in the middle at £8.5k... although those prices sound really expensive for a 5-year old Focus
No the 2nd car isn't a focus, it's a mini cooper s.Edit: we are buying 2 cars, a focus and a mini - sorry I should have said that originally.
va1o said:
Agree with the above, offer £8k to start with and he will probably meet you in the middle at £8.5k... although those prices sound really expensive for a 5-year old Focus
I read it as looking to buy 2 cars - one a 5 year old Focus and something else as well.The Focus isn't £8.5k.
calibrax said:
Agreed! you can get a 5 year old BMW 5 series for that money...
for example... http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2006-BMW-520-/270697250087?p...
You can also get 14,166 cans of Heinz soup for that money. Asda are selling them at 5 cans for 3 quid for example... http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2006-BMW-520-/270697250087?p...
RedLCRB0b said:
I'm looking at 2 cars tomorrow, we already spent a lot of time looking at 1 of them today and the dealer has offered me a pretty good trade in price on my car and was hinting that he would also throw in a 6 month warranty (the car is a 5 year old focus) and will tax it as well. I've never been in the position of having to haggle on 2nd hand cars so was really looking for some tips. The px value + warranty + tax seems like quite a good deal, would it be greedy to try and knock him down on the price ?
The 2nd car we won't have anything to px so I'm assuming we will have slightly more leeway on the price. If a car is up for 8995 would they laugh at me for offering 8500 ?
It sounds like you may have found the cars you wish to buy, so there are a couple of tips. Firstly consider a full mechanical inspection, this is more important on the one from a private seller. If you commission the AA or RAC to do this, you'll probably find some faults which you can use to batter the price down, and which you really need to be aware of anyway.The 2nd car we won't have anything to px so I'm assuming we will have slightly more leeway on the price. If a car is up for 8995 would they laugh at me for offering 8500 ?
Secondly, regardless of whether you've done your research and narrowed it down it the internet, it's not a great idea to buy the first car you see. Having other cars to go and view can also be a great negotiating ploy. You just say 'Well it looks great, I do like it, but we have other cars to see and one of them is younger with fewer miles and at a better price'...etc. It's a soft way of negotiating on price, the seller will either say 'Well it's obviously a piece of crap since mine is really keenly price' or try to get you to buy his at a discounted price.
It's your hard earned money, so make it go as far as you can. When the dealer wont' go lower on price, make him up the warranty, 12 months instead of six, £2,000 maximum claim limit instead of £1k etc etc.
Good luck.
I must admit I had forgotten all about getting them hpi checked etc.Don't get hung up by the fact he will tax it for you, or throw in a six month warranty. He isn't. You're paying for it somewhere!
Again, don't get hung up he's giving you a really good trade in. He isn't.
Stay focused on the cost to change as that's all that is important.
It's all very well offering £8K on a £8,995 car but what is it actually worth?
Again, don't get hung up he's giving you a really good trade in. He isn't.
Stay focused on the cost to change as that's all that is important.
It's all very well offering £8K on a £8,995 car but what is it actually worth?
Have you thought about selling the trade-in car privately instead of px-ing it? You might not get the same money as the px price, but you'll almost certainly get more knocked off the car you're buying (i.e. Net gain to you). Two caveats though... this only really applies if you're buying the 'new' car with cash, and if the px car isn't particularly saleable (i.e. If your px car is a MINI/500/KA the dealer will be able to turn it round really quickly, so will give you more for it)
Ended up getting a different focus (2 years newer, less miles) for a little bit more money and with a better trade in. Very pleased with the deal there 
For the mini, it was already very well priced (only 3 minis with comparable spec on auto trader and all at the same or more price) and was in good condition so the dealer wasn't moving on the price. He did however agree to fit 2 new tyres and it will be serviced before I get it so quite happy with that.
Thanks for all the tips.
For the mini, it was already very well priced (only 3 minis with comparable spec on auto trader and all at the same or more price) and was in good condition so the dealer wasn't moving on the price. He did however agree to fit 2 new tyres and it will be serviced before I get it so quite happy with that.
Thanks for all the tips.
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