Any advice on negotiating with a dealer, for a "nearly new"

[RakeshS]

Hi everyone,
I'm hunting around for a nearly new car with low milage and have settled on the new Jaguar XF, probably one up-to about 12 months . I've spotted two potential vehicles, one at a local main dealer and one 100 miles away with have all the options I want, both for £30k. The list price for a new version with the same spec would be £38,500, and would cost £34,500 new via Carwow.

I have the cash to purchase but I've read that it can get a discount by taking out finance, then immediately paying it off. Can anyone take me though how I should go about doing this?
Should I aim to discuss finance after trying to negotiate a bit on price or after?

When I spoke to a main dealer recently, he open the conversation by asking me how I intended to pay for the car. What would be the best way to avoid this question until the right time?

Are there any other negotiating tactics I should be thinking about?

Also, I'd like the usuals extras like mats, mud flaps and a tank of petrol. I guess it would be best to mention these at the start? Or maybe not...

Thanks for your help in advance.

[RakeshS]

21TonyK said:

FWIW I have been a "cash buyer" on numerous occasions with same dealer. It does not help.
They want to sell a finance package, not a car.

I've heard this too. That's why I was thinking of taking finance, banking the discount, but then paying off the finance immediately. The question is, do I tell them I want to makeup finance from the start or later on? Which way would help me negotiate better?

WJNB said:

Mentioning such miniscule details when possibly spending £30k will just undermine your credibility, salesman will think you're a real muppet.
Car salesmen earn real money on financing & cash buyers are a pain.

Fair point. maybe I'll mention those right at the end

lord trumpton said:

I'd be surprised if you can't get a new one for 30k with some haggling.
An 8k drop off list after 12 months is pitiful - especially for a Jag that depreciate pretty heavily.
I'd be looking for a new car for similar money for a used one for 25k tops

£30k is the cheapest I've seen for a used XF R-Sport that was a "16 plate" and had 5000 miles on the clock, and with all the extras I'm seeking. I was hoping to pay £28k but I don't know if that's realistic...
Ive seen "65 plates" (registered last September) for about £28k, but these have either tended to have higher milage, lower spec or both.

Through both Car Wow and DriveTheDeal, the cheapest listed price with the spec I want is £34.5k. Is an additional £4.5k realistic?
Any advice that you could offer would be appreciated.

[RakeshS]

simonr100 said:

It might be best to try to do a deal very close to the end of a month/quarter as they may be close to meeting their target and could offer you a better deal?

I wonder if this might not apply at the end of September? Seeing as the new registration has just come out, are they likely to have smashed their targets anyway? Either way, it's definitely worth considering...

SWoll said:

Out of interest OP, what are the options you are after?

Ideally i'm looking for a 180 R-Sport with a sunroof, black pack and in Ammonite Grey. That amounts to about £2325 worth of extras. Anything on top of this is a bonus, but I do plan on changing the standard wheels at some point.
I presume you ordered a new one? What kind of deal did you manage, if you don't mind me asking?

SWoll said:

My local dealer (Jag Tamworth) had 4 or 5 on the forecourt when I popped in last weekend so I reckon £27.5 is definitely achievable personally.
I would tread carefully as you'll be looking at early production cars and there have been a few reported issues with fit and finish especially inside and around the boot.
I will also add that they can be leased for < £10K on a 2 year deal at the moment with options.

I just had a look at Jaguar Tamworth, and they seemed a little more expensive than some of the other dealers I've come across but its encouraging to know that there are a few XFs around. Hopefully it's a good time to pick one up.
I've read about some of the issue they've had, like the boot rubbing on the paintwork, so it's something to watch out for.
I don't think I'll go for the lease option, but thanks for the heads-up.

was8v said:

Just got a few hundred off the price, then I asked about finance.

With PCP they offered £500 "dealer contribution" and 2 free services. On a 30k car they should give you much more!

The day after I picked the car up I rang VWFS and told them I wanted to pay it off.

This sounds like a good way to do it... Tell them I'm a cash buyer, and try to negotiate the best discount possible off the vehicle. Once I have a price agreed, when we're sitting down to start the paperwork, ask them what they can do if I go down the finance route... The only complicated situation with this is I can only really do this with the local dealer... I think it might be a bit more difficult with the one 100miles away.

[RakeshS]

TazLondon said:

However, the OP asked about the method of buying a car on finance and then paying off the finance straight away. I'm also interest in how this actually works in practise.

I've looked into this a little, and I think you need to look into the Ts&Cs, of each individual policy. One thing that is pretty standard is the cooling-off period that's normally associated with finance. I believe this is normally 14 days. I'm guessing you can call up the day after picking-up the car and tell them you've changed your mind about the finance, and you're within your rights to do so.

SWoll said:

Mine's a company car so I just get a list provided and choose the car I want from there. No finance deals etc. to worry about, which is nice.

I had a budget to stick within for the options (similar to yours) and went a different route to yourself. I liked the black pack and ammonite but at £1600 combined they come to the same as the Incontrol Touch Pro + Meridian infotainment upgrade so went with that instead as founbd the standard system a little slow and wanted the larger screen and digital dash. Also added 20" star alloys as it's such a big car and felt they balanced it out. Having driven one on 20's I was amazed at how well it still rides, much better than equivalent Audi/BMW on 19's.

I was thinking of getting a set of 19" or 20" too, but was leaning towards finding a set on the open market rather than the Jaguar branded ones. You car sounds like a great choice. Congratulations

[RakeshS]

Hi all, just to update you. I managed to pickup an XF with a decent amount of extras for £28,500 cash. It's list price would have been £41k, and it's 9 months old with 5600 miles on the clock, so I'm pretty please with that.

After agreeing a cash price, I did ask they guy in the showroom, "out of curiosity, what would the finance price have been? Could I save any more if we go down the finance route?" but he replied that, as the car was over 6 months old, that it would't be possible to get any finance contribution... I'm not sure this is definitely the case, and he didn't even seem to want to want to sell me it after I asked (although he did try to sell it to me initially, when I sat down with him.) Anyone know if a finance contribution is possible on cars over six months old?

All the paperwork has now been signed, so I'm not sure if it's possible to re-open the conversation again, to try to see if it's possible... Any thoughts? It would mean they'd make a bit more money...
He actually said to me that some savvy customers take out finance to get the discount, then pay it off immediately... LOL!

Edited by RakeshS on Saturday 17th September 21:33

[RakeshS]

That's exactly what I would have done too, but after we spent an hour agreeing a price, I guess he didn't want to go back to his boss to try to get a finance price for me... Either that, or he sussed that I wanted to do that too, as I told him I had the cash anyway.

[RakeshS]

Here you go:


No Black-Pack unfortunately, but I'm going to try to get those bits of the trim which would normally be part of the back-pack wrapped (e.g. the veins on the front grill and the power vents)... Shouldn't cost me too much. I want to get a black set of alloys. The guy in the showroom said that it's also bossing to get those ones already on the car professionally painted to be black. Anyone know if that's an easy/simple process?