hopefully someone can explain to me how this works.

I recently was in need of a coil pack on my R56 MCS. Well I called all the local dealerships and was quoted 4 different prices by 4 different dealers.

I wont name the dealerships but they were in the LA/OC area of CA.

1st dealer was at $93.XX
2nd dealer was at $86.XX
3rd dealer was at $74.XX
4th dealer was at $52.XX

I obviously went with the 4th option and ended up getting it for cost thanks to RMW.

I am confused how dealerships can get away with charging over $40 more for the same part.

Now if I were to have replaced all 4 I would have spent an extra $160 going with dealership #1.

Which I feel bad for people who go to that dealer.

We called around and found out list on the part was about ~$48.XX. So we called one of the dealerships back and asked if they would honor the MSRP on the part and they said no and pretty much said we were crazy for expecting them too.

So does noone regulate the cost of parts?

Really opened my eyes to calling other dealers and getting pricing instead of just going with whomever is closest.

 

Stealership. They mark up prices. At least you have 4 to shop from.

 

Dealerships are franchised...

They charge the mark up they see fit....same for labour and other services they offer...just like when they price a new car....some sell it at msrp, some slightly more, some less....same for parts, just most places take a fixed markup on parts.

 

Look up the part on here and see what the cost is:

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/

My dealer was within $5.00 of the on-line price on a quote for a window.

 

You could also find the same exact MINI on the each one of their lots, and have the same vehicle for trade in and probably get 4 different deals ironed out....not sure what your point is when their a franchise market ?

Do all Mobil gas stations charge the exact same amount for a gallon of premium leaded fuel ?

It's $59.21 at mine....so that makes 5

 

In all honesty I would have expected the dealers to all be priced the same or within a couple dollars. Not.. within $40 on a part that only cost $48. since when 100% mark up fair.

 

Free market...
I find that any product i ever price from a CA based small company to be THE MOST EXPENSIVE.
I guess the extra rules and laws out in CA makes running a bussiness more expensive....and they must recoup it....a large company can likely take the hit, but a smaller regional company can't i guess....so lack of adherance to MSRP can be expected.

 

MSRP = Manufacturer " SUGGESTED " Retail price....

 

I have seen the same issue out here in So Cal as well. One part, the warning light switch on the boot, $25 at LB MINI and $14 at South Bay. I have also seen a different price on the dealer website as opposed to in the dealer.

 

I guess my post was more of heads up to people in SoCal to shop around.

 

It's more than 100% markup because retail price is already marked up from the cost the dealer pays. This is more like price gouging. We're not talking price & demand here. There is no shortage of coil packs out there...

 

I thin k most people incorrectly assume that the part is priced by BMW and that it's the same price at all dealers. This also affects decisions about repairs. If LB MINI is charging $25 for the coil pack and South Bay is charging $14, you can probably assume that a $500 part at South Bay would be almost $900 at Long Beach. That's enough to make it worth your while to drive or even get towed to South Bay for a big repair, but most people probably just go to the closest dealer for repairs. I assume they're all using the same "flat rate" schedules, or are they? If so, the place to make the money is on the cost of the parts.

 

I think you should list the names of the dealerships. We should out those companies that try and screw their customers.

 

The cheapest and by the far the nicest was Crevier in Santa Ana.

The most expensive was Nick Alexander in Los Angeles.

South bay Mini and Long Beach Mini were #2 and #3

 

It used to be that most dealers would simply charge the suggested retail price set by the importer. But as dealer margins on new cars have dropped, they've been forced to raise the prices. They also now have computer systems that allow them to reprice all their parts with a few keystrokes or have different prices for different types of sales.

It's like the airlines. Do you expect everyone on the same flight to pay the same for the ticket?

- Mark

 

How about a different price from the same dealer? MINI of Peabody has one price they give you over the parts counter at the dealership. But if you log onto their web site, minipartsmass.com you can order the part for significantly less and pick it up at the same counter, which is exactly what I did while I was standing right in front of the parts guy.

 

That is typical for BMW/MINI dealers here.

 

aggravating? yes

unique? no

I find the very same price variation for Honda parts locally .. fortunately I found a web based supplier that had the best price even after adding shipping - IF I bought quantity (6 oil filters at a time) - they beat the wide varying cabin and engine filter prices by 100% (dealers want twice as much) which works out OK if you buy oil filters at the same time and spread the shipping charges

and it is not just restricted to auto dealers

prompted by a thread here on NAM I was looking into a combined jack/jack stand. The price on AMAZON was TWICE what that very item was available for at the local Tractor Supply. Not a similar item - the EXACT item.

Is this good or bad? Free market and all that stuff . . .

Flip side:

last week I was looking for a new iMac. I went to a variety of sources and the price variety was about 5% - and that was tied to 'special discounts' aka students.

in some markets the companies that control their prices like this are accused of price fixing or holding a monopoly

** p.s. having lived in the Bay area - North Bay to be exact - don't ask me about my thoughts of prices in CA.... CA is very proud of everything they sell and let you know it. My 'income' went up 20% when I left CA, earning the same salary. {OP is from CA}

 

Another example, called Long Beach MINI for a lower grill.. $91.07 called Ontario MINI $24.65 needless to say who got my business.

 

I had an interesting parts pricing experience today. I needed a minor part that only lists for $7, so I thought I'd get it at the dealer. I called both my local dealers and the price was exactly double the list price - in fact, the first place I called started to speak the list price and then corrected it with the doubled price. It's available online for about $5.50. So dealer cost is probably around $4 or so.

I really want to support the local dealers, but doubling the list price is getting a little ridiculous.

- Mark