Best time to buy a new car from a dealer?

Forums › Transport (cars, bikes and boats) › Best time to buy a new car from a dealer?

1 | 2 | 3 | 4

Geek @ Coastguard NZ
13765 posts

Uber Geek

Retired Mod

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#941536 27-Nov-2013 10:04

BinaryLimited:
nakedmolerat: You really need to know how to haggle when buying from Dealer (even for a new car). If you would like get a used car, look at trademe and make an offer - I found this is the best way to get great deal. Make sure you do your homework first.

This only works if you are paying cash - full amount.

Can you provide me with your "haggle tactics" for car buying? :)
Yeah problem with trademe is you never know what you getting. so dodgy there!

Find the model you want.
Goto dealer A and get price.
Goto dealer B and get price.
If dealer B higher than dealer A, inform dealer B and theyll come down to at least match (in most cases)
If dealer B lower than dealer A, inform dealer A, and theyll come down in price to try to get your business.
Repeat process until both hit their lowest price - take the one that offers the most freebies (upgraded stereos, free gps, petrol vouchers, servicing etc etc)

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

LinkTree

BinaryLimited

796 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#941541 27-Nov-2013 10:10

xpd:
BinaryLimited:
nakedmolerat: You really need to know how to haggle when buying from Dealer (even for a new car). If you would like get a used car, look at trademe and make an offer - I found this is the best way to get great deal. Make sure you do your homework first.

This only works if you are paying cash - full amount.

Can you provide me with your "haggle tactics" for car buying? :)
Yeah problem with trademe is you never know what you getting. so dodgy there!

Find the model you want.
Goto dealer A and get price.
Goto dealer B and get price.
If dealer B higher than dealer A, inform dealer B and theyll come down to at least match (in most cases)
If dealer B lower than dealer A, inform dealer A, and theyll come down in price to try to get your business.
Repeat process until both hit their lowest price - take the one that offers the most freebies (upgraded stereos, free gps, petrol vouchers, servicing etc etc)

haha nice one! i like it!

Binary Limited - Safe. Secure. Simple. ™
www.binarylimited.co.nz

Inphinity

2780 posts

Uber Geek

#941543 27-Nov-2013 10:10

BinaryLimited:Do you know what date /date they do their "end of month" calculations?

This seems to vary a little between dealers, unfortunately. It is typically around about the calendar month, but it's often offset a few days either side. I often find that if I approach them early-mid month, then say I'd like to think about it for a few days, they tend to ring back around their month-end time to try and close the sale within that sales month. Can be a good time to them negotiate.

MikeB4

18435 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#941590 27-Nov-2013 10:39

BinaryLimited:
KiwiNZ: I have purchased new for the last 15 years, I never pay list price. I have been dealing with the same dealership for a long time, best way to get deals is to form a good commercial relationship with a dealer, it has saved me thousands.

Buying new is peace of mind motoring and in the last years it has cost me only servicing. In the least 10 years I have purchased one tyre and that was due to a sidewall puncture. I trade during the currency of the warranty and get very good trade in deals.

Interesting, should keep the warranty trade in value in mind for next time.
How often do you trade in? every 2 / 3years?

Yes, peace of mind is great. I noticed BMW do 3yr warranty including all services. Don't believe Mercedes do that.
What car/brand do you stick with?

Trade in times depend on the warranty currently my wives car has a 3 year warranty, it is 12 months old so trade in would be circa 12 to 18 months time. My car has a 5 year warranty and is 4 months old so it has quite some time to go, I would envisage trading that in 30+ months.

The dealership I do business with is a mixed brand dealer, it has Holden, Hyundai, Kia, Suzuki and god forbid Greatwall and Cherry. Don't ever buy a Greatwall or Cherry.

My wife has a Suzuki Swift Sport, awesome quick little car. I have a Suzuki Grand Vitara LTD 4x4, fits the wheelchair with ease. I previously purchased Holden Commodores.

BinaryLimited

796 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#941596 27-Nov-2013 10:45

KiwiNZ:
BinaryLimited:
KiwiNZ: I have purchased new for the last 15 years, I never pay list price. I have been dealing with the same dealership for a long time, best way to get deals is to form a good commercial relationship with a dealer, it has saved me thousands.

Buying new is peace of mind motoring and in the last years it has cost me only servicing. In the least 10 years I have purchased one tyre and that was due to a sidewall puncture. I trade during the currency of the warranty and get very good trade in deals.

Interesting, should keep the warranty trade in value in mind for next time.
How often do you trade in? every 2 / 3years?

Yes, peace of mind is great. I noticed BMW do 3yr warranty including all services. Don't believe Mercedes do that.
What car/brand do you stick with?

Trade in times depend on the warranty currently my wives car has a 3 year warranty, it is 12 months old so trade in would be circa 12 to 18 months time. My car has a 5 year warranty and is 4 months old so it has quite some time to go, I would envisage trading that in 30+ months.

The dealership I do business with is a mixed brand dealer, it has Holden, Hyundai, Kia, Suzuki and god forbid Greatwall and Cherry. Don't ever buy a Greatwall or Cherry.

My wife has a Suzuki Swift Sport, awesome quick little car. I have a Suzuki Grand Vitara LTD 4x4, fits the wheelchair with ease. I previously purchased Holden Commodores.

Will keep that in mind.
Those Suzuki Swift's are dam expensive!

Binary Limited - Safe. Secure. Simple. ™
www.binarylimited.co.nz

nathan

5695 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user

#941605 27-Nov-2013 10:53

In Aussie it seems you can get a "fleet discount" deal from the manufacturers if you get paid a car allowance as part of your salary. Does anyone know if that applies here in NZ too?

MikeB4

18435 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#941607 27-Nov-2013 10:56

BinaryLimited:
KiwiNZ:
BinaryLimited:
KiwiNZ: I have purchased new for the last 15 years, I never pay list price. I have been dealing with the same dealership for a long time, best way to get deals is to form a good commercial relationship with a dealer, it has saved me thousands.

Buying new is peace of mind motoring and in the last years it has cost me only servicing. In the least 10 years I have purchased one tyre and that was due to a sidewall puncture. I trade during the currency of the warranty and get very good trade in deals.

Interesting, should keep the warranty trade in value in mind for next time.
How often do you trade in? every 2 / 3years?

Yes, peace of mind is great. I noticed BMW do 3yr warranty including all services. Don't believe Mercedes do that.
What car/brand do you stick with?

Trade in times depend on the warranty currently my wives car has a 3 year warranty, it is 12 months old so trade in would be circa 12 to 18 months time. My car has a 5 year warranty and is 4 months old so it has quite some time to go, I would envisage trading that in 30+ months.

The dealership I do business with is a mixed brand dealer, it has Holden, Hyundai, Kia, Suzuki and god forbid Greatwall and Cherry. Don't ever buy a Greatwall or Cherry.

My wife has a Suzuki Swift Sport, awesome quick little car. I have a Suzuki Grand Vitara LTD 4x4, fits the wheelchair with ease. I previously purchased Holden Commodores.

Will keep that in mind.
Those Suzuki Swift's are dam expensive!

The Swift Sport is excellent value, it has a very good engine, Paddleshift, Keyless entry and push button start, Bluetooth hands free integration, Front, side, curtain, knee airbags, cruise control ABS, Traction control, hill assist,climate air, 5 star safety rating......

Sharesies kids

Free kids accounts - trade shares and funds (NZ, US) with Sharesies (affiliate link).

BinaryLimited

796 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#941613 27-Nov-2013 11:05

The Swift Sport is excellent value, it has a very good engine, Paddleshift, Keyless entry and push button start, Bluetooth hands free integration, Front, side, curtain, knee airbags, cruise control ABS, Traction control, hill assist,climate air, 5 star safety rating......

still well expensive tho :) small cars scare me lol.
They do look very zippy tho!
Reminds me of the new Fiat 500....very zippy cars!
New 2013 Mercedes C200 CDI is about 10k more. Very efficient on fuel too! Uses less fuel than our 1.8L 2005 model.

Just looking on trademe : www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/suzuki/auction-535839668.htm

The swift does 6.5l / 100
The c200 Mercedes does 5 or 5.4 / 100.

Binary Limited - Safe. Secure. Simple. ™
www.binarylimited.co.nz

meesham

973 posts

Ultimate Geek

#941629 27-Nov-2013 11:19

still well expensive tho :) small cars scare me lol.
They do look very zippy tho!
Reminds me of the new Fiat 500....very zippy cars!
New 2013 Mercedes C200 CDI is about 10k more. Very efficient on fuel too! Uses less fuel than our 1.8L 2005 model.

Just looking on trademe : www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/suzuki/auction-535839668.htm

The swift does 6.5l / 100
The c200 Mercedes does 5 or 5.4 / 100.

At the risk of getting into the whole going for a Euro or Japanese car debate, while your warranty will cover the cost of repairs you should probably take into consideration how long repairs can take if you go for something like the Mercedes c200. There's heaps of Swifts on the road so lots of parts for them are kept in NZ, if something goes wrong with a c200 you might be waiting weeks for the right part to arrive. My mother in law recently bought a brand new Golf 110kW TDi, within 6 days the a part related to the turbo stopped working (I don't know the details) and she then had to wait 4 weeks for a part to come in from Germany, all the time without her new car she'd just spent $45K on (they did lend her a Polo however).

Handle9

11386 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#941635 27-Nov-2013 11:30

When you are entering any important negotiation it's a good idea to write down what you are looking to achieve and the things you can give away to get it.

One thing that works well is time - make sure you give them your details (if it is a car you are actually interested in) and it can be worth walking away from a deal which looks OK. Often in a couple of days they'll give you a call which is your opportunity to ask if there is any movement on the price, extras etc. At the end of the day they are under pressure to achieve sales in a given time period, could be weekly, monthly or quarterly. You don't have to have a car in a given period so that is the best leverage you have. Just be prepared to wait.

Above all be nice. Don't behave arrogantly and be respectful of the sales guys, call them back if they leave messages etc. If you are nice to them you will often get a much better deal than someone being an a hole.

MikeB4

18435 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#941639 27-Nov-2013 11:40

meesham:

still well expensive tho :) small cars scare me lol.
They do look very zippy tho!
Reminds me of the new Fiat 500....very zippy cars!
New 2013 Mercedes C200 CDI is about 10k more. Very efficient on fuel too! Uses less fuel than our 1.8L 2005 model.

Just looking on trademe : www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/suzuki/auction-535839668.htm

The swift does 6.5l / 100
The c200 Mercedes does 5 or 5.4 / 100.

At the risk of getting into the whole going for a Euro or Japanese car debate, while your warranty will cover the cost of repairs you should probably take into consideration how long repairs can take if you go for something like the Mercedes c200. There's heaps of Swifts on the road so lots of parts for them are kept in NZ, if something goes wrong with a c200 you might be waiting weeks for the right part to arrive. My mother in law recently bought a brand new Golf 110kW TDi, within 6 days the a part related to the turbo stopped working (I don't know the details) and she then had to wait 4 weeks for a part to come in from Germany, all the time without her new car she'd just spent $45K on (they did lend her a Polo however).

I had a VW Golf GTi for a short time, wanted to try a euro box, whilst a beautifully built car that went very well, servicing is expensive as is with most German cars.

BinaryLimited

796 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#941658 27-Nov-2013 11:50

KiwiNZ:
meesham:

still well expensive tho :) small cars scare me lol.
They do look very zippy tho!
Reminds me of the new Fiat 500....very zippy cars!
New 2013 Mercedes C200 CDI is about 10k more. Very efficient on fuel too! Uses less fuel than our 1.8L 2005 model.

Just looking on trademe : www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/suzuki/auction-535839668.htm

The swift does 6.5l / 100
The c200 Mercedes does 5 or 5.4 / 100.

At the risk of getting into the whole going for a Euro or Japanese car debate, while your warranty will cover the cost of repairs you should probably take into consideration how long repairs can take if you go for something like the Mercedes c200. There's heaps of Swifts on the road so lots of parts for them are kept in NZ, if something goes wrong with a c200 you might be waiting weeks for the right part to arrive. My mother in law recently bought a brand new Golf 110kW TDi, within 6 days the a part related to the turbo stopped working (I don't know the details) and she then had to wait 4 weeks for a part to come in from Germany, all the time without her new car she'd just spent $45K on (they did lend her a Polo however).

I had a VW Golf GTi for a short time, wanted to try a euro box, whilst a beautifully built car that went very well, servicing is expensive as is with most German cars.

Yeah not even going to argue the expensive servicing :)

Binary Limited - Safe. Secure. Simple. ™
www.binarylimited.co.nz

alasta

6703 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Subscriber

#941664 27-Nov-2013 12:03

KiwiNZ: The dealership I do business with is a mixed brand dealer, it has Holden, Hyundai, Kia, Suzuki and god forbid Greatwall and Cherry. Don't ever buy a Greatwall or Cherry.

My wife has a Suzuki Swift Sport, awesome quick little car. I have a Suzuki Grand Vitara LTD 4x4, fits the wheelchair with ease. I previously purchased Holden Commodores

I'm assuming you deal with Brendan Foot? I bought my car there and although I really like the Swift I ended up going with the Kia Rio as it has a bit of extra luggage space which I really need.

The guy I dealt with there commented that they usually offer good trade in deals for cars that are within their warranty period, but I'm thinking that I'll probably keep it for five years because the depreciation will flatten off a bit as the car ages and I only do about 8,000km a year.

Paulthagerous

698 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#941669 27-Nov-2013 12:19

alasta:

snip:
The guy I dealt with there commented that they usually offer good trade in deals for cars that are within their warranty period..
/snip

Makes financial sense for them - at that point if anything is wrong with the car they might be able to claim it back from the manufacturer (obvious owner-inflicted damage aside). Therefore if a car needs $1000 of work done to get up to standard, then if it is out of the warranty period they have to wear it. If it is within, they can presumably claim most/all of it back. Compound that with people often stopping servicing once it is no longer free, and there is less risk associated with those vehicles (even if they are only 1 year older).

MikeB4

18435 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#941672 27-Nov-2013 12:26

alasta:
KiwiNZ: The dealership I do business with is a mixed brand dealer, it has Holden, Hyundai, Kia, Suzuki and god forbid Greatwall and Cherry. Don't ever buy a Greatwall or Cherry.

My wife has a Suzuki Swift Sport, awesome quick little car. I have a Suzuki Grand Vitara LTD 4x4, fits the wheelchair with ease. I previously purchased Holden Commodores

I'm assuming you deal with Brendan Foot? I bought my car there and although I really like the Swift I ended up going with the Kia Rio as it has a bit of extra luggage space which I really need.

The guy I dealt with there commented that they usually offer good trade in deals for cars that are within their warranty period, but I'm thinking that I'll probably keep it for five years because the depreciation will flatten off a bit as the car ages and I only do about 8,000km a year.

The Kia's offer excellent value for money, their design chief, ex VW has made their design very pleasing.They are not quick, but they reach the legal speed limit with ease without drinking too much.

1 | 2 | 3 | 4