Well, a week and a half ago I went down and test drove and found the perfect car.
The dealer gave me the price and what they would give me for my truck and I didnt take the deal.
So today I called to see if they were ready to deal. The sales man got all exited and ran some numbers. I told him what I would take for my truck.
So he calls me back, with the same exact deal he offered me a week and a half ago.
The price of the car is MSRP plus some dealer add ons.
The car is a 2016.
They arent budging on the price.
They wont go up on what they say they will give me for the truck.
WTF?
We are $1000 apart.
Do I just suck it up, or do I just forget it?
At this point Im thinking a Mini Cooper wont be in my immediate future.

 

Shop around - send an email to the next closest Mini dealer and see what they're willing to do. I got about 4 or 5 bids when buying mine.

 

If it is the perfect car, you could do one of 2 things. See if they will meet you half way, or just buy the car. It comes down to $17 a month or so.

If you can find other "perfect" cars, then shop around.

 

split the difference and come up 500

 

I say be firm, and also see if you can find a 2015 that offers what you want right now it looks like the dealers in the northeast still have plenty of 15's. if anything the high stock should allow wiggle room even on the 16's. My deal is not set in stone yet so I'm not willing to discuss my numbers yet but its far better then 1K off MSRP.

There will be another mini and if forced to pay MSRP now order the car EXACTLY the way you want it.

Chris

 

Stand your ground. There's more than one mini for ya. They get extra kick backs if you pay it off early to. And if you have good credit. You can go where you want. How long has the car been at this dealer. There's more cars for you than there is customers for them these days. Don't get sucked in by dealer games.

 

You can also always take your truck to the nearest Carmax and see how much they will give you for your truck. If it is more than the Mini dealer is willing to offer, you can ask Mini to match Carmax. If they won't and it gets you to where you want, sell your truck to Carmax and go buy your Mini.

If you can get the Mini without trading in your truck, sell your truck yourself (you will get more money) and just to the Mini deal with no trade.

 

what are these dealer add-ons?
paying MSRP for a Mini is pretty common, but a lot of us order our cars to get EXACTLY what we want.

If you're paying MSRP, I would consider ordering one for yourself. Maybe there is an option or two that you could do without to make the price easier to stomach, or maybe the dealer will be willing to work a little more on the price of the car they have in stock when you mention ordering one (they should be!).

 

Unless there is a sales event or some rebate, you'll find most MINI dealers stand firm. Their thought is someone is coming in right after you and will pay their asking price.

If you really want the car, you'll likely have to pay their price (naturally you can tell them to take all their added crap off the car) or just order one the way you want it.

As far as trade-in pricing, they say that the decision on what to pay for your car is done at their corporate office and they have zero input on the figure arrived at. Whether this is true or not, it takes any leverage you have to ask for more, since they will say it's really out of their hands on the trade-in price. Crafty, no?

Best to call other dealerships in your and surrounding states to get a feel for their business model. Course, if you drive 500 miles for a deal and find out it's a bait and switch deal, you just wasted your time and gas money.

No easy answer to this, it comes down to if you want to pay the price they are asking to dance.

Good luck on your quest.

 

Email your offer to a number of dealers and see if they bite. If they do, either go there for the car, or show the offer to your local dealer and give them an opportunity to match it.

 

I echo what is being said already. Considering they aren't taking anything off, if you are comfortable with splitting the deal, make the offer to split the difference. If you need help, let me know. I sent you a private message.

 

It's always wise to check prices and availability with more than one dealer. However I don't think any dealer would give you a firm offer without actually evaluating the condition of your trade-in. Can you drive the truck to the next closest dealer(s)?

The Carmax idea has worked well for me, but a private sale might be 20% better. If you can remove the trade-in aspect, you can probably generate more interest from the dealers (who don't really want your trade).

Also, since it's the end of the month, you might call your local dealer at the last minute to remind them you're still ready to buy that car on their lot today if they can help you out on the price ($1,000).

 

Dealers absolutely positively want your TRADE, at a price they can make money on. It is a huge profit center for them and if they get a car they really don't want they wholesale it out for a few bucks profit.

Shop your truck around if you don't want to do a private sale. Look for dealers who sell a lot of trucks off the used car lot.

 

Another aspect of the deal you've been offered is that they may be over-allowing on your trade. Leave your trade out and they may have some room to discount the new car - but they can't give at both ends. Is your truck really worth as much as they're offering you for it? (A Carmax offer might be a good test of its wholesale value).

 

Thanx for all the input. It is appreciated. Thanx to those who PMd their help also. It is appreciated.
So I dont know if I should give an update or not. I dont want to jinx anything.
I didnt get any kind of deal. I got a fair trade price for the truck, my friend traded it in last year and I bought it. I got 2 grand less than the dodge dealer gave him.
The price of the car is basically the price of the car. MSRP for a new 2016.
They threw in black Bonnet stripes.
Ill pick it up tomorrow evening or Sat.
Cross your fingers for me.

 

Blues Trucker... where are you located?

 

Im in Arizona.

 

I haven't found shopping online to be super effective when you have a trade. If it's a straight buy you can get prices on a new car through email, but no dealership is going to commit to a high value for your trade without seeing it.

 

I wouldn't do the deal. I had one dealership that I went to say the MSRP is it. I told them I am not paying MSRP. Went home and went back and forth with them over email and added a couple of aftermarket accessories. They said they would take $1k off the price of a new ordered MINI. I did notice they seemed to up the accessory price. Left me with a bad taste.

I then sent an email out to MINI dealers in my state (NC) and surrounding states. I found one that immediately offered $1500 off a brand new ORDERED car. If it were in stock I would've expected even more. I would reconsider if I were you. I would also sell your vehicle privately.

 

This.

Otherwise the dealer gets caught with their pants down when a customer rolls up with a trade that's nowhere near as nice as it was described. And it's always the truth.

 

Never say "never" or "always" unless it is you making it so. I did have a salesman tell me my trade was the first ever accurately described by an owner over the phone once, but it wasn't the first or last time I did it.

 

My local dealer low balled me on my 2012 Justa and would only discount the 2015 $1,600. So I sent a dozen detailed pictures of mine to the dealer I bought it from. I wound up driving 640 miles to his place and got 1,900 more on my trade and saved another 1,500 on the 2015. Since you're getting a 2016, could you sell the truck privately and do better? If you were working a deal on a leftover 2015, I'd say go for the deal as they are moving out quickly. Guess it depends on how bad you want it. Maybe they'll split the $1,000.......pull back and wait. Time is on your side.

 

Just remember that selling your vehicle privately will "up" the sales tax on the new vehicle...so make sure the extra you get on the private sale more than covers the sales tax increase on the new car.

 

Depends on where you live.

 

My dealer ate most of the ridiculous dealer add ons. I mean they had this windshield sun screen in a box in the boot for $300. I said I didn't want it they said they couldn't take it back. So they gave it to me. A $200 stubby antenna??? Eat that. I got about $2000 off for that garbage.