Bargain Techniques, tips and tricks

HotChillyPepper · 6th December 2007, 16:21

Hello TeamBHP,

All of our members will be having great experience in dealing with new/used car purchase. What are all the tricks you used to bring it down when you purchase a car ?

So please list down the important things you taken care to reduce the price while purchasing a car?

anonymous · 6th December 2007, 16:39

Please refer to
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/buying...car-india.html
Hope it helps.

HotChillyPepper · 6th December 2007, 16:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by anonymous

Please refer to
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/buying...car-india.html
Hope it helps.

This is absolutely a great compilation from GTO and others ... But what we lacking here is the exact bargain points. On what points actually you reduced the price? That list would be really wonderful.

condor · 6th December 2007, 17:15

Bargaining is more an art than a science. A lot depends upon how much you are willing to pay for what you want, and how badly you want it. To put a value/price on what you are trying to buy, you need to know what you are trying to buy. That's where the above thread can help.

Just remember, to not fall in love with the car until after you buy it. Else you will most probably end up paying more than what you wanted to.

Jorge · 6th December 2007, 18:06

I don't think that in India, there is much room for bargaining. Maruti started out as a government company that would build a modern car for ordinary Indians. It still controls the market, and variation in price is tightly regulated. Other than what they officially offer as discount, corporate discount and exchange bonus there is not much else to get.

In the US, because of the huge size of the american economy, banks, etc. the car manufacturers are actually able to sell cars below cost for short periods of time, so there is a lot of variation in the prices. But that variation too is an illusion. Not many of the "bargains" that consumers get are really bargains.

Just my feeling, not based on any solid facts.

HotChillyPepper · 6th December 2007, 20:22

On first call the the Hyundai dealer offered me half of the insurance (12 K) and 7 K as corporate discount. The best part is he told me that I would be eligible for a special cash discount since I am working with a Korean company

He assured me that he will confirm the amount tomorrow. Do you think any Indian company doing it ? Atleast abroad?

maddy42 · 6th December 2007, 20:30

well i have a friend who is kinda good at it. Got himself floor mats, autocop and lrvm for his indica which they dont have as a standard fitment. Alos there is always a difference from one dealer to another

DrunkenMonk · 9th November 2010, 18:52

I'd like to revive this old thread from three years ago.

I want to buy a car "x" from a dealer "y", who happens to be the only dealer in city "z".

I met the dealer for the first time yesterday, took a test drive and was given the raw printed quotation. I asked for a revised quotation with any applicable discounts. Today, the dealer called me back saying 1) they were not giving any cash discounts on any of the cars and 2) it was not company policy and 3) the margins he was making were just 2% of the car price (and would I want to see him bankrupt?) 4) he was also including 4.1) original floor mats, 4.2) underbody treatement and 4.3) extended warranty in the price.

Now the question... I know (from Team-BHP forums) that massive _cash_ discounts of upto 35,000/- to 50,000/- were given on the said car.

What should I do next? Any tips from the pros' out here? What are the cards I have to bargain with the dealer?

1) I already told him that this was the end of the year, and just after Diwali (not much money with me).

2) I told him I started with the Dzire, and am stretching myself beyond my financial breaking point to purchase this car.

3) I told him that I really, really _do not_ want to be forced into buying alternative "a" for "p" and "q" reasons.

How do I conduct the negotiations? by phone? by email? meeting? should I take a tall, hefty guy along? (just joking!)

Any advice on how to proceed will be really helpful.

---
Hey! dealer! in the off chance you are reading this... send me a revised quotation with a reasonable discount.
---

blackasta · 9th November 2010, 23:02

Negotiations should always take place face to face.
Make sure that you give the impression that you are serious about buying the car, but not desperate to buy 'that' car.
Also, do not have any inhibitions while letting the SP know about what discounts/freebies you expect.
I fought for 5 minutes with a used car dealer for $25 - but politely and firmly. And I won.

sreedotk · 9th November 2010, 23:52

If the Said car is an optra then yes there are discounts. If it is a Logan then the list price has been reduced.

If you can scan magazines like AutoCar and Overdrive where they have price points suggestions in the Bargain of the month section then use it to your advantage.

Print out messages from Forum's like Team Bhp and show him price points where people are buying it at

And lastly is the Car a honda Jazz :-)

Vijay.Krishnan · 10th November 2010, 02:58

I too think that bargaining is an art rather than a science. When I bought my first car (Alto) in 2006, I had gone to the dealer to buy a M800. The SP showed us (me, my mom, and my dad) the Alto too, telling us to buy the Alto instead of the M800. My mom instantly asked if we could buy the Alto at the same down payment of a M800. The SP gave us that option and we instantly got a 10k cash discount.

In the U.S., I got my used Camry for a $500 discount after hard (polite and firm) negotiations. That truly gave me a sense of satisfaction, even though the car probably was only worth that much.

DrunkenMonk · 10th November 2010, 13:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by sreedotk

If you can scan magazines like AutoCar and Overdrive where they have price points suggestions in the Bargain of the month section then use it to your advantage.

Print out messages from Forum's like Team Bhp and show him price points where people are buying it at

That's a good suggestion... I'll buy the mags and print out the relevant posts to show the dealer.

Quote:

Originally Posted by sreedotk

And lastly is the Car a honda Jazz :-)

Not even close... this car is ~11 lakhs. I started looking at the Swift Dzire (ZXi) (7 lakhs), moved on to Linea T-jet+ (10 lakhs), then the Honda Civic (14.5 lakhs). Did not like the City (dull) or the Optra (dated)

The search left me confused and disappointed, when I had the revelation that the car "x" was for me. And if you've seen my other posts (I have very few posts here) you will know what it is!

(Alok) · 10th November 2010, 13:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by HotChillyPepper

On first call the the Hyundai dealer offered me half of the insurance (12 K) and 7 K as corporate discount. The best part is he told me that I would be eligible for a special cash discount since I am working with a Korean company

He assured me that he will confirm the amount tomorrow. Do you think any Indian company doing it ? Atleast abroad?

Friends,
Please clarify a few things (in my opinion it should be cleared to us before starting bargaining).
Many dealer offer discounts like mentioned quoted post and also body cover, floor mats, gold/ silver coins. Now my question is who bear these items/ amounts? Dealer in this business are very cunning.
Discount likes half/ full amount of insurance, corporate discount are big amounts. Who pays it? manufacturing company or dealer?

DrunkenMonk · 10th November 2010, 13:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by (Alok)

Who pays it? manufacturing company or dealer?

The customer pays. For all of it. (otherwise neither the manufacturer nor the dealer could not exist as a business).

The point of bargaining is to reduce the huge margins manufacturers and dealers tack on to the basic manufacturing and operating costs.

Normally, in India the retail individual customer pays around 20% to 30% more for things like cars than compared to businesses or government. As an example, the Maruthi SX4 VXi costs ~6 lakhs under government DGS&D rate contract compared with ~8 lakhs retail.

.

GTO · 11th November 2010, 11:47

Want to know about a sure-shot successful way of bargaining? Shop Around. Be sure to tell the dealer that you are serious about the purchase (not a time waster), and that you WILL shop around. Pit different dealers of the same brand against each other for your business, or even other vehicles from the same category (e.g. Mahindra Xylo versus Tata Grande MKII). Watch the numbers tumble

6th December 2007, 16:21	#1
HotChillyPepper BHPian Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Bang_a_lore Posts: 666 Thanked: 392 Times View My Garage	Bargain Techniques, tips and tricks Hello TeamBHP, All of our members will be having great experience in dealing with new/used car purchase. What are all the tricks you used to bring it down when you purchase a car ? So please list down the important things you taken care to reduce the price while purchasing a car? Last edited by HotChillyPepper : 6th December 2007 at 16:25.
	() Thanks

6th December 2007, 16:39	#2
anonymous BHPian Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: NCR Posts: 564 Thanked: 26 Times	Please refer to http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/buying...car-india.html Hope it helps.
	() Thanks

6th December 2007, 17:15	#4
condor Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Speed-brkr City Posts: 16,242 Thanked: 16,902 Times View My Garage	Bargaining is more an art than a science. A lot depends upon how much you are willing to pay for what you want, and how badly you want it. To put a value/price on what you are trying to buy, you need to know what you are trying to buy. That's where the above thread can help. Just remember, to not fall in love with the car until after you buy it. Else you will most probably end up paying more than what you wanted to.
	(1) Thanks

6th December 2007, 18:06	#5
Jorge BHPian Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 72 Thanked: Once	I don't think that in India, there is much room for bargaining. Maruti started out as a government company that would build a modern car for ordinary Indians. It still controls the market, and variation in price is tightly regulated. Other than what they officially offer as discount, corporate discount and exchange bonus there is not much else to get. In the US, because of the huge size of the american economy, banks, etc. the car manufacturers are actually able to sell cars below cost for short periods of time, so there is a lot of variation in the prices. But that variation too is an illusion. Not many of the "bargains" that consumers get are really bargains. Just my feeling, not based on any solid facts.
	() Thanks

6th December 2007, 20:22	#6
HotChillyPepper BHPian Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Bang_a_lore Posts: 666 Thanked: 392 Times View My Garage	On first call the the Hyundai dealer offered me half of the insurance (12 K) and 7 K as corporate discount. The best part is he told me that I would be eligible for a special cash discount since I am working with a Korean company He assured me that he will confirm the amount tomorrow. Do you think any Indian company doing it ? Atleast abroad?
	() Thanks

6th December 2007, 20:30	#7
maddy42 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Coorg Posts: 2,189 Thanked: 1,657 Times View My Garage	well i have a friend who is kinda good at it. Got himself floor mats, autocop and lrvm for his indica which they dont have as a standard fitment. Alos there is always a difference from one dealer to another
	() Thanks

9th November 2010, 18:52	#8
DrunkenMonk BHPian Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Pune Posts: 80 Thanked: 4 Times View My Garage	I'd like to revive this old thread from three years ago. I want to buy a car "x" from a dealer "y", who happens to be the only dealer in city "z". I met the dealer for the first time yesterday, took a test drive and was given the raw printed quotation. I asked for a revised quotation with any applicable discounts. Today, the dealer called me back saying 1) they were not giving any cash discounts on any of the cars and 2) it was not company policy and 3) the margins he was making were just 2% of the car price (and would I want to see him bankrupt?) 4) he was also including 4.1) original floor mats, 4.2) underbody treatement and 4.3) extended warranty in the price. Now the question... I know (from Team-BHP forums) that massive _cash_ discounts of upto 35,000/- to 50,000/- were given on the said car. What should I do next? Any tips from the pros' out here? What are the cards I have to bargain with the dealer? 1) I already told him that this was the end of the year, and just after Diwali (not much money with me). 2) I told him I started with the Dzire, and am stretching myself beyond my financial breaking point to purchase this car. 3) I told him that I really, really _do not_ want to be forced into buying alternative "a" for "p" and "q" reasons. How do I conduct the negotiations? by phone? by email? meeting? should I take a tall, hefty guy along? (just joking!) Any advice on how to proceed will be really helpful. --- Hey! dealer! in the off chance you are reading this... send me a revised quotation with a reasonable discount. ---
	() Thanks

9th November 2010, 23:02	#9
blackasta Senior - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: WB 26 Posts: 3,408 Thanked: 2,928 Times View My Garage	Negotiations should always take place face to face. Make sure that you give the impression that you are serious about buying the car, but not desperate to buy 'that' car. Also, do not have any inhibitions while letting the SP know about what discounts/freebies you expect. I fought for 5 minutes with a used car dealer for $25 - but politely and firmly. And I won.
	() Thanks

9th November 2010, 23:52	#10
sreedotk BHPian Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Chennai Posts: 248 Thanked: 90 Times	If the Said car is an optra then yes there are discounts. If it is a Logan then the list price has been reduced. If you can scan magazines like AutoCar and Overdrive where they have price points suggestions in the Bargain of the month section then use it to your advantage. Print out messages from Forum's like Team Bhp and show him price points where people are buying it at And lastly is the Car a honda Jazz :-)
	() Thanks

10th November 2010, 02:58	#11
Vijay.Krishnan BHPian Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: New Delhi, Milwaukee Posts: 30 Thanked: 3 Times	I too think that bargaining is an art rather than a science. When I bought my first car (Alto) in 2006, I had gone to the dealer to buy a M800. The SP showed us (me, my mom, and my dad) the Alto too, telling us to buy the Alto instead of the M800. My mom instantly asked if we could buy the Alto at the same down payment of a M800. The SP gave us that option and we instantly got a 10k cash discount. In the U.S., I got my used Camry for a $500 discount after hard (polite and firm) negotiations. That truly gave me a sense of satisfaction, even though the car probably was only worth that much.
	() Thanks

11th November 2010, 11:47	#15
GTO Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Bombay Posts: 71,821 Thanked: 322,706 Times View My Garage	Want to know about a sure-shot successful way of bargaining? Shop Around. Be sure to tell the dealer that you are serious about the purchase (not a time waster), and that you WILL shop around. Pit different dealers of the same brand against each other for your business, or even other vehicles from the same category (e.g. Mahindra Xylo versus Tata Grande MKII). Watch the numbers tumble
	() Thanks