right...in order to get a better deal on a MINI

 

If you find a car dealer that particpates in the Costco discount, you purchase the car from the dealer not Costco.

 

I love Costco, however, your not really buying a car from Costco with this program. Costco has a deal with "Affinity Auto Program". If you CLICK HERE ,you will see at the top it states you are no longer on a Costco website, read the small print on top, click the little link and you can get more info

There are many programs like this, I tried one when I was ready to buy, figured what can it hurt, but Mini doesn't go below MSRP even for them. When you build and see a price with these companies, they are just taking off a percentage of the price and accessories and state that is the average they save and usually compare that to a MSRP price.

These programs can be good for those not so experienced in negotiating but for those that are a little better, its not worth it, you can save more on your own...... just not on Mini"s and a few others with the same policies

 

True, you are not buying the car from Costco, but rather thru Costco, it still comes from a dealer. When I was sales manager for a large west coast Porsche dealer, they approached me but I didn't want to disclose dealer profit on my cars so I did not participate. Nowadays you can find out dealer cost thru the internet so it does come down to the dealer body. Kudo's to the MINI dealers for sticking together on MSRP pricing, but like others have said if you start seeing cars on the lots, there will be deals to be had. Do your homework, get friendly with your local dealer - then buy the car you want. If you get a discount, fine - if not, you'll still have a great car at a reasonable cost. Enjoy!

Remember, you're buying a car - not a deal. You can't drive the deal everyday.......

 

 

Sure would be fun to buy a six pack of discounted MINIs in assorted colors directly FROM Costco, though

 

So, I walked through the Costco web page... With the options I want, it was roughly 2500 cheaper. It then referred me to the local Mini dealer.

All of the jokes aside, has anyone been able to get a better deal from their mini dealer, by being a Costco member? The email said to expect a call from the dealership. I am just wondering, if you can get a better deal, why wouldn't everyone join costco?

 

I think there is some confusion here. On the Costco website there are a lot of research tools to use for researching cars. To find a participating dealer you need to click on the link that says "locate a dealer". If I recall you send in your information, then you get an email from Costco with the dealer name and contact name for that car type in your area. I used this on my 2007 MDX when no one was discounting them since they were a new model.

I also used this on my 2008 MCS. The discount was only $200 and looking back I could have done much better elsewhere. If I recall correctly, the dealer said they are the only Mini dealership in the continental US that gives a Costco discount. I do not wish to give the dealership name because I had a very poor experience with them and would not want to give them any additional business. They messed up big time at delivery including the sales manager making false accusations against me personally. Within minutes they admitted that they were totally wrong and had not bothered to check any facts. In the 20+ new cars I have purchased, I have never had this bad of an experience at a dealership.

They also closely monitor this site.

 

I just got an email from the dealership asking me to come in and check it out. This is what it said.


"Thank you for your Costco inquiry regarding a MINI Cooper "S". Please give me a call at your convenience to discuss in more detail. I have a few "S"s in stock that may work for you or we could order one for you. Orders should be here in late May or early June. and require a $1000 deposit."

Seems promising, although May-June seems forever... Wow...

 

Ouch! I'm sorry to hear that. That kind of poor service is just unaccepable. My locol Mini dealer has been nothing but great so far. By far the best car buying experience I have ever had.

 

I felt so bad about the situation I went to my local Charlotte Mini dealer (Hendrick) and personally appologized to them for not buying the car from them and told them what had happened at the other dealer. They have welcomed me into the Mini family and have been great. I have already referred them one customer!

The dealership that works through Costco was about an hour away.

 

There are a couple dealerships in the US that participate with Costco. It's not thousands under MSRP though (or even several hundreds).

 

Hey, PGT, he said horse not house!

 

horse, house, whateva! If I was buying, be sure I'd check with Costco first.

 

We just got back from Costco. There's one 2 miles from here - it's awesome.

Anyway... there are no dealers here that participate with Costco's thing (and really only one dealer, anyway). It ticked me off that you have to go through the whole thing, then they're like "sorry, no discount for you."

 

just check online to avoid the hassle.

 

Do you mind PMing me in regards to what happened to
the un-named dealer?

I believe it is my dealer since there are only 2 in NC.

I've had good experience with them but I am in general
extremely suspicious of dealerships.

 

I was curious too about the Costco program since several dealers around here are adding a markup to the MSRP.

I called the Costo Auto program because the website didn't turn up any dealers in my area. On the phone they said that there were no dealers in my area, northern California (or anywhere close) that were participating in Costco's program.

I think that better deals can be had haggling at the dealer's than going thru Costco if you are in the market for an American car or the second tier Japanese automakers.

 

I love Costco, but they are of minimal value with the MINI's. I was told that there were 3 dealers who participated with them, I think NC, OR, and HI. I called the NC dealer and was given a price about $300 off.
I Live in MN. Guess what I did?

Nothing.