I had an interesting experience at 2 dealerships last week. I registered on the forum a while ago to look at pics and do my research. I did my test drives and chose the S over a VW GTI and Acura TSX, picked out the colour / specs etc. even decided on the mods I would make off the bat to the audio (sub / focals etc) and had made the decsion to go for it. I had an Audi A6 to trade in, and was going to put $3K down on top of my trade in value and finance the rest. The net net is that I was offered $1500 more for my trade in by Acura and VW and of course no budging on the sticker price of the MINI (whereas VW particularly would sell the car barely above invoice). Couple that with awful APR rates (6% Vs 2.9% for the same loan - and my FICO score is over 780) and I walked. I appreciate that MINI don't discount but figured they would offer top $ for my trade in. Before I walked I asked if they could do anymore on the trade in and they said no. I am not trolling just expressing my disappontment/venting. I really wanted to be in a MINI but I think the dealers made it prohibitive. Also, I now keep getting annoying automated emails from the sales people when I told them my decision. I just wondered if others think I am just a big whiner or if I have a valid point?

 

You're always better off financially to sell your used car privately. Sure, it's more hassle and effort, but usually the difference in transaction price will be thousands. Separate the sale of your used car from the purchase of your new car, and buy the car you want.

--Dan
Mach V
FastMINI.net

 

I've been basically a lurker here. I've been reading all the threads trying to get a good idea about the MCS and what options I should order and what not. I finally made the decision that I was going to either sell my 2003 Evolution VIII or trade it in. I went to Global Imports in Atlanta, where my wife and I test drove a MCS. We were both instantly hooked. It had much more get-up-and-go than the Civic Si that I was initially interested in. When we arrived back at the dealership we were ready to order. That all came to a grinding halt when they only offered me $13,000 for my Evo, when Kelly Blue Book says that it is worth as much as $16,600 and Nada Guides suggests $17,000. I would have gladly taken $15,500 but they would not budge. They tried to use every excuse in the book that it was "wholesale" price, and that's the price they would expect at the auction block. To me it was insulting, because my car is a specialty car, and someone would be willing to pay for it's true value. It's not a civic DX, or a Toyota corolla that are a dime a dozen.

I still plan on purchasing a MCS some time soon, but in the mean time I'll have to sell the Evo myself.

 

My MA suggested that Carmax would offer a better deal than they would. We sold the car privately while our MCS was being built. My impression is that our VW Jetta wasn't worth much to them because it's a MINI/BMW dealership without their own used car lot. They would just turn around and sell it to a wholesaler or another retailer - not an individual.

A larger dealership with a broader focus would have been better equipped to give us more money on the trade. That's one of the downsides of buying more of a "boutique" car.

 

Don't think your a "whiner" but don't know about valid points, for myself that is. You have your own determining factors. As long as they work for you and your happy with your decision, so be it.

I personally like that they don't drop the prices at all, I actually get a little disappointed when I hear they drop 500 here and there. Not because I'm jealous, but be cause as long as the demand stays intact and they hold firm on the price, then these little cars hold their value like very few new car can.

I also agree with Dan that you are better off selling your own car, you can't tell me if you put up your A4 for sale at the price ANY dealership tells you, that it wouldn't be gone in a heart beat.

Good luck with the new car of your choice.

 

Agreed but I travel extensively for work all over the country and wouldn't have the time or availability to sell the car myself. So was hoping for top dollar on a trade in. Additionally, the financing was a big issue with me too as it wasn't competitive.

 

From your post it sounds as though you are doing financing through a dealer...one big mistake.....Your financing should be prearanged and not dependant on what kind of car you choose....dont go to banks, credit unions are by far the best rates...and as others have said sell the car privately.

 

Someone with a great credit rating can go to any lender and get a good rate. You don't have to buy your loan from the same place you buy the car.

Again, selling privately is better. I've heard that some people get pretty good prices from Carmax too if you don't.

You do have a valid point that the deal didn't work for you in your personal situation.

 

Agreed--and if you can't join any credit union, go with your bank or other bank. Then see what the dealership can offer you--maybe or maybe not it'll beat whatever financing you've already set up.

2 things to draw from this:
1) Never assume the dealership will offer top-dollars for trade-ins.
1a) Keep sale and trade-in separate. Do NOT discuss trade-ins UNTIL you've got a firm price written down for the new car. Discussing trade-ins prematurely only muddle things up to your disadvantage.
2) Always have prearranged financing.

Ok, that's more like 3 things....

 

For what it's worth, this Article from Edmunds does a great job of explaining the "four square" system dealers use. I'm sure all you guys knew about this already, but it enlightened me.

When I went to buy my new MINI, I took some time and sold my old MINI privately first. The MINI dealer was actually pretty honest about not offering top trade-in dollar and suggested I sell it myself.

 

wilks,

There is another option. You can always take your Audi around to different dealers and see what they will give you for the vehicle as an outright sale. Of course it would make sense to go to a few dealers that specialize in and value your Audi. Just as it has been mentioned that a Mini dealer wont value an Audi since they cant sell it on the lot, and Audi or VW dealer might give you more for your car.

I sold cars for a couple years awhile ago so I have the inside perspective. Used car buyers work independently in most car dealerships. They are responsible for the bottom line regarding the cars they purchase and sell. If they price a car wrong and take a hit on it then it can affect their personal pocket book. Every used car buyer I knew would start with the Kelly Blue Book value for a TRADE-IN and work down from their. Most people dont realize what their car is truly worth to a dealer since they always see a value that is inflated with discounts off the list price of the car they are buying. With no discounts at the Mini dealership you see the true value of your car TO A DEALERSHIP. As was previously stated, a private sale is the most financially sound decision you can make.

Try finding a friend who doesnt travel who will act as an agent for you for a small price or for free. List the car for below retail but much higher than the dealership offered and chances are you will sell it quicker than you expect.

Incidentally, contrary to popular belief, the number one money maker in most dealerships is parts, followed by service, then sales and there is usually more money in used cars sales then new sales, especially in today's car sales world.

You have a right to be upset, but at least you know what your car is truly worth to the dealer. In my humble opinion this is good news for you, as this situation will actually allow you to get more money for your Audi then if you had just traded the car in and had gotten a fake discount. Regardless, I wish you the best of luck. Please let us know what you decide.

 

I agree... not sure where you are at, but Carmax seems the way to go if you have one nearby and do not want to take the time and effort to sell locally. We do not, but I hear great things, and actually considered travelling to a Carmax for my wife's Mini.

In the end we bought new (delivery in the next couple of weeks), and yes it is odd paying sticker, but as mentioned, the resale on these things is unheard of, with maybe the exception of some high priced, limited run exotics.

As always, it is a trade-off. Best of luck on your decision.

 

One more follow-up...

A close friend just brought his A4 to trade for a new A4 (about 6 mos. ago). He indicated he ended up with a higher payment for the exact same car, same deal, etc., just the newest model. He has ideal credit, etc. (single, successful lawyer, etc.), but didn't necessarily get what he felt his trade was worth.

But, to each their own, as everyone's situation is (at least slightly) different. Again, best wishes!

 

I got multiple quotes from 8 MINI dealers within a 500-mile radius of where I live and I was able to take $1200 off of a custom-order MCS plus some freebies. Yes, that's $1200 off of a custom order. I was willing to travel large distances for the best deal so I contacted all the dealers in my state and I had them bid against each other. Now, 4 of them did not want to bid at all and said they sell for MSRP only. But the remaining 4 dealers were willing to do some discounts and add some freebies.

Selling my old vehicle was another matter. As I had expected, the dealer that gave me the best deal on the new MCS insulted me with the trade-in value of my 3.5-year old BMW. So what did I do? I sold it privately myself for $4000 more than the trade-in value the dealer offered me.

 

The bottom line net cost is the price of driving a Mini. That price is too high for some people. They will chose a different car. It's that simple.

 

My CarMax experience was a joke, they offered me $4000 below the trade in value. I would have actually recieved $2000 more if I traded in at the MINI dealer, but I ended up selling outright while my MINI was being made.
The MINI dealership here said they are part of some autonation that includes most brands so they are actaully pretty good about trade ins.

 

When a dealer can sell more MINIs than he has allotments, he is not going to give good deals. That's just the way it is with a car that has more demand than supply. Miatas were going for way over sticker when they first came out. It happens with popular cars. The MINI is just to the point where it has come down to MSRP, and a few dealers will give small discounts. When I ordered, the dealer was charging $1,500 over MSRP. By the time my MINI arrived, they had dropped that markup and I paid MSRP.

VWs aren't selling that well, so they are willing to deal. I test drove both and chose the MINI in spite of what deals I might have gotten.

As others have said, trade-in doesn't get you top dollar. You pay for the convenience it offeres. Also, get your financing elsewhere. Your own bank should be able to do better than the dealer.

 

Trade in is worth it when you save enough money on taxes to make up for the difference between trade-in and private sale. I don't like trading in in general unless my car is in such a poor condition that no one will buy it in the open market. If you take care of your car, there will always be a private party that will pay top $$$$ for your car. Don't trade it in.

 

I don't know about the typical MINI dealership approach, but my personal experience with CarMax was similar to Salty's. In fact, I think CarMax has carefully crafted their business model to focus on trade-ins as the primary profit-producing aspect of their business.

CarMax will rarely give you their used car appraisal up front. Instead, while the appraisal is taking place the sales rep will get you out on the road in the vehicle you have your eyes on, get you to fall in love with it (easy, if it's a MINI!), have you meet the business rep to run the numbers, show you how easy and doable the transaction can be, and generally put out a group effort to get you hyped up to get the deal done. Then, and only then, do the appraisers show up with price they will offer for your trade in. The typical fall-out? The potential buyer is almost always insulted by the trade-in offer, there is some fruitless, follow-on haggling; but because the buyer already has a vision of themselves in their new wheels they are more often than not inclined to make the easy, on-site sacrifice in order to get the deal closed.

I think they have this down to a science...

 

When I purchased my MCS and my wife's MC earlier this year, we came to the lot with financing from our credit union. Best way to purchase a car, basically paying cash at the dealer side with no hastles.

The one big thing most people don't understand is when a dealer or manufacturer does the incentives or price cuts it is actually dropping the value of the car at time of purchase. My wife purchased a Santa Fe new but got the incentives on the price and such and when we traded that thing for her MC not 9 months later, the value was dropped be a quarter to almost half at trade-in. On a lower priced car that is a huge drop in trade-in value.

If the trade-in is high mileage and/or a common model, the dealer would simply sell it to a wholesale dealer to effectively auction it off. This is why the dealers don't want to give too much for the trade.

Only options are to sell your car yourself, trade-in and tack the negative equity on to your new car loan (not too bad if it's not a huge amount and your lender will allow it), trade and put more money on the new car if you are not upside down from your pay off amount for your current loan.

I cringe when I see new car offers with like 2K off the price or where some friends of mine went and purchased their Dodge RAM truck and got 10K in incentives and now they are farther upside down on that truck then they were with their initial trade-in.

 

one thing to consider with a trade-in vs sale (at least here in NJ)
Trade-ins reduce the price of the car your buying and thus the tax your paying...

Private sales, the buyer pays the tax when they register.

No idea about selling to a dealer or used car lot...

HTH, and good luck.

 

The key to going to CarMax is not being interested in buying a car form them, just selling it.

 

FWIW, selling a car privately is a WHOLE lot easier than it used to be. Gone are the days of $40 for one week in a paper! Computers open entirely different venues--Ebay, Craigs List, etc. My husband put my last car on his company's intra-net, and it sold in 2 days--a 14 year old BMW, 190,000 miles, original clutch, etc., with the buyer knowing it needed $1500 in engine repairs. We got $5,000 for it--amazing! And no hard feelings, Hubby still sees it from time to time in the parking lot. So you never know.

I'd never go for a trade in. OTOH, a dealer might have a better rate on financing--BMW was offering a special deal a few years ago and we couldn't beat it, even at the credit union. Just have to shop around, and ask for a "cash deal" bottom line quote.

 

not true...It depends on the state, many states have a refund process that allows for refund of the diffrence in taxes if you sell your old car within so many days....call your local DMV and check before you trade in. You have to fill out a form and it takes a while to get your money but my understanding was that most states are like this

 

From my own experience and what I’ve heard from others, Mini is notorious for low balling you on your trade-in. Like previously suggested, just sell it privately or at Carmax. On the financing, I was shocked when they told me their rate as well. I just smiled and said I’ll get my own financing. The MA laughed and said that’s what I’d do too.