I'm currently leasing a mini cooper S and am happy with it. My lease is gonna end in May so I'm considering custom build one online.

So when I bring the spec to the dealer, can I still negotiate the price as normal or just paying MSRP??
If there is a manufacture rebate/offer going on at that time, can I take advantage of the rebate?

Thx.

 

Ham, as a motoring advisor, I can tell you it's going to depend on the dealer. Most of the time an ordered car is going to be written at list price. However, I encourage you to do a bit of homework and see if you can't find a dealer to offer you a discount or perhaps at least extend the factory promotion to you, whether it be rebates or what have you.

 

Hi, there...I trying to decide between buying a 2011 MC or MCS. It's just to be used for daily driving and a little fun but nothing serious like tracking or anything like that. As an MA, what would you recommend? (Also, considering that the MCS could cause more problems down the line than the Justas).

 

I think you answered your self...
So, buy an MC, and two weeks after you will be lusting after the one with "ugly hood scoop"...

 

Ham

I have just been through the process...My local dealer adds $1500 to MSRP. The dealer was really stuck on these numbers. On the advice of people on the forum I shopped around. Different dealers in person and on the web. To shorten the story I got a price I was happy with at a distant dealer. My local dealer beat this price when I presented it to them. I got a very nice discount on a car that I speced out. Be prepared to travel to buy your car and make sure the dealers know this. They want to sell you a car they have on their lot or can find from another dealer... but I ended up getting a better deal on a car I ordered than one off the lot, albeit a little further into the negoiating process. Hope this helps a little.

gary

 

Since I don't have a dealer in town, I shopped around between 3 dealers and contacted them via email and phone. I did a round of offers from the dealers and then countered with the best of the bunch to see if they would beat it. The offer I went with was over 5% off of MSRP and the out the door price including tax, title, etc... was under MSRP. I believe I could've gotten a better price, but I didn't haggle much. Hopefully delivery will happen within the next couple of weeks XD.

 

As a MA and a Cooper S driver, I would suggest this: Drive both cars. if price and maintenance are your main concern and you prefer the S, get the S. You're not going to spend THAT much more in maintenance on the S and the cost difference isn't too obscene in my opinion.

That being said, the Justa Cooper is still a sporty and "spirited" ride and for many offers the right combination of value and a fun ride. There is no right answer for everyone or MINI would just market one variant.

The Cooper S isn't a track car, it's just a quicker MINI. If you don't need to be the first off the line, don't need to get to the head of the pack in traffic and don't like taking curves at the highest speed possible, you're probably more well suited for a Justa.

to sum up, drive both. if you really prefer the S, don't let cost of maintence of vehicle price stand in your way.

 

I'd have considered the S, but in the used market around here, it was a full $10k more. It looks like US pricing is a lot more reasonable, I think I might make a trip to the Pacific Northwest when I buy my next ride.

 

1500 - 5% over invoice? where are you guys at?

My 2011 clubman i ordered was delievered christmas eve with the same price that was on the sticker less 1500 dollars....i also received $750 loyalty cash and $750 of "negotiations" needless to say i got an amazing deal on a 2011 clubman s total of 3k off the sticker

I purchased mine from Mini Of the Mainline in Bala Cynwood PA. i had to pay for tax,tag,registration etc above the agreed price but thats to be expected. but i have 3 mini dealers all within an hour of them so maybe they are just more competive.

Good Luck...i recommend ordering it! that way you car is exactly how you like it!

 

We are discussing the Countryman pricing in this thread.
The demand on a new model keeps the pricing higher.
They're doing amazing deals on Clubman's here too, but only MSRP on ordered Countryman S cars.

 

"...don't like taking curves at the highest speed possible, you're probably more well suited for a Justa."

What suggests to you that a Cooper S can go through a curve faster than a Cooper?

 

i think you have the wrong thread...OP wants to order a mini COOPER s

 

Custom building one online is simply a way of deciding what you want ahead of time. Take your printout to the dealer, say that you want to order a Mini, give him the sheet and when he totals everything up including dealer fees, tell him that the price is too high and that he'll have to do better. Mini dealers are hurting the same as any other dealer, so they are willing to negotiate.......if you find one that isn't (highly unlikely), then move on to the next one. Yes, they always want to sell you what they already have on the lot and you're more likely to get a better deal on something that's sitting in the showroom, but you will still do better than msrp on a spec order. Don't get caught up in the "It's a Mini, so it's msrp", that went the way of the Dodo bird after the 3rd year (there's a reason they are advertising 0.9% on 2011 models).

 

lol yeah. unless you're going around a curve over 130, i don't see any reason why a justa can't do the same speeds.

 

I totally agree. MINI USA is hurting right now. They are offering one free option package ($1,250 value) and 2.9% financing for 60 months. In my area, getting $1,000 off MSRP is very doable.

 

Good catch.
Well in that case there are lots of Justa cars around Boston area and they're doing amazing deals on the in stock inventory right now. I would guess ordering one special would not get the best discount.

 

So do these words of wisdom still apply in 2012? Seems like none of the dealerships around me will budge on anything, not even the leftover 2012s. I'm seriously considering going Japanese after wasting two whole afternoons getting nowhere in negotiations.

 

By negotiating with two dealers in the NYC area I got $1750 off of MSRP on a Countryman I ordered in July (not here yet). Probably could have gotten better buying off the lot, but I was pretty happy with the discount. You should be able to get a discount of some sort.

 

1st dealer (who I had purchased from before) said no negotiation. They car would be sticker and no other dealer would negotiate either. That is just a Mini thing. So I shopped around and found another dealer who was happy to negotiate the price on my 2012 CountrymanS I ordered. I got a good deal. While taking delivery, I told them I just might buy two and asked for the price of a 2012 convertible. They thought I was joking and quoted me dealer cost. I bought it also. Shop around.