[micksmastamike]

My e92 coupe is almost here! ;]

For those that have ordered their coupes, did you negotiate the price before? I'm assuming that since there is a 1000 dollar deposit, you would!

My CA gave me a brief description [around 54k; which I am definitley not going to pay that much] but not a detailed set price when ordering my coupe. He kind of made it seem like, "yea we'll talk about that later". It's been a long time waiting [2.5 months already] and as the time to pick it up gets closer, I don't want to get sheisted on a deal, preventing me from enjoying my car let alone from going home with it.The wait itself has been killer! Why hasn't he negotiated yet?

I am definitely not in the position to play games and when the time comes not in the mood to play the, "i waited 3 months. how bad do you want it" business tactic.

Any suggestions?

[samoe93]

One dealer tried to do the "we'll worry about it when you get here thing" but I wasn't comfortable with that, so ended up with a dealer who settled on a price and sent me the order sheet with signed off final price. I'm not in the clear though cause I still have to worry about the trade.

Not sure how you bargain from your position unless you can get comfortable with walking away. At the same time, I'd probably just buy the car if you get a reasonable deal. People on here get so caught up on a few hundred dollars more or less, when the enjoyment you're going to get is probably worth a lot more than that. I don't think I got the best deal on my current car, but it doesn't exactly haunt me; never thought about it again after I drove off the lot.

[micksmastamike]

Well I went with this CA because my friend had referred me. Also because of the idea that a group-buy(that is, 3 of us getting cars from the same CA) would result in a cheaper price. For him to sheist us like that would be messed up.

The other buyers still haven't heard word from him on the price as well. I'd be happy for 1500-2000 off msrp which seems like many ppl here are getting.

[samoe93]

When is your car scheduled to arrive? I'd call him between a week and 2 weeks of scheduled delivery and tell him it's getting close and you need to negotiate the final price (tell him your doing your budget, whatever). I've always had more luck negotiating over the phone myself, but just don't want until you go to pick up the car becuase then they're really at an advantage... you'll see it, touch it, not want to leave without it regardless of price.

[micksmastamike]

yep. that's what I'm thinking about doing.

I think the reasoning behind him doing that is because of the fluctuation with lease rates. But since I am financing the car, I should be able to have a set price. The other two friends are leasing so I guess he figured he'd wait for the November rates all in all.

[micksmastamike]

Its supposed to be at the Port of Hueneme on oct 27/28.

[samoe93]

Yeah they should be able to fix your loan rate by this point... I forget exactly what the rate lock period is, but you're probably within it. If you're going to use BMW Financial Services, it doesn't hurt to apply for a loan through a place like Capital One Auto Finance or E-Loan as well... if you get a good rate from them, you have some ammo when it comes to locking your BMWFS rate. I didn't want to use it when I bought my current car, but I went ahead and got approved by Capital One first and got a better rate than what the dealer originally quoted me. Surprise, surprise, when I told the dealer I wasn't going through BMWFS, BMW was suddenly able to come down on the rate and beat Capital One.

Our cars are arriving about the same time - I'm due in Port Hueneme on the 29th on Asian Emperor.

[micksmastamike]

Sweet. Which dealer did you go through?

[samoe93]

That dealer was BMW of Beverly Hills, which I didn't use this time. The dynamics were different though - it was 2004 so I wasn't buying the hot new design, etc. This time I went through a dealer where I had a connection and got $1000 off MSRP on the E93, which I was happy with, but I've been sworn to secrecy on the ID of the dealer - not that I think it's a big deal, but whatever, it keeps my friend happy. Regardless, I'm going to get preapproval from another lender like I did last time... I always want as much leverage as I can going in.

[Queenskid24]

i waited till the last minute with my CA, i ended up settling paying a couple of bucks more for a dlr closer to home(convinence and time over $). definitely go in and negotiate the SELLING PRICE, i believe november rates may be better so just wait on that.

[Aija]

Should have negotiated the final price with the dealer before you ordered.

You forget, now he is in control. He has, something you've been waiting for two months. If the car is an automatic and doesnt have saddle/coral interior, He knows others will buy it probably within the week if you dont.

I hope everything works out!

P.S. before i get flamed for the interior + automatic transmission thing, its a reality, its faster to sell an automatic with interior color that suits everyone. I myself have coral red with manual transmission

[CnoteMD]

Personally, I wouldn't have placed an order for the car without an agreed upon price with the dealer. When I purchased my car, I did the negotiations and had a signed price offer before I even placed my deposit (which was $500, fully-refundable). I didn't want to place myself at the mercy of the dealer after waiting for my car to arrive. Especially since the coupes are still at high demand, you are taking on an even bigger risk.

Suppose he wants to sell the car at full MSRP and you walk, there is still a line of people out there willing to pay his price. He still gets the sale, and you wasted your 2-3 month wait. I would recommend getting a firm price on the car (in writing) as soon as possible. If the numbers aren't to your satisfaction, take it as a learning experience and move on to another dealer.

[John 070]

I didn't know that people routinely talked $$$ when the car was almost in. Is there any advantage to that? Because the way I see it, if the price drops, where say supply meets demand or demand falls for a coupe, just walk away from the order. Deposits are refundable.

My gut says there is a huge advantage for the dealership when you've been waiting 6 weeks already and you talk price just before the car comes in. They will be aware of people who are willing to pay more than you are, and if so, see to it that the price is unattractive to you, i.e. free up the allocation to someone else.

What's funny in business, is that people are often willing to give up their home court advantage when it costs nothing to keep it. Non-refundable deposit is the key--again, if the price you negotiated is too high by the time the car comes, walk away.

[samoe93]

No deposit also works, there's no such thing as a non-refundable deposit on a car in California anyway absent some unusual circumstances. I'm just saying he's better to talk to his CA about it now instead of being shocked when he walks in the door on delivery day. And if someone knows deep down they really can't afford more than a certain price, it's better to know up front and not be talked into something they really can't afford when the car is sitting in front of them ready to go.

[brian92]

If you haven't nailed down the price yet, I would do it asap. Make sure the price includes any fees such as MACO, document fees, etc or they will just try to tack that stuff on when you go to pick up the car. I would also be willing to walk away from the car and ask for your deposit back. If you are unwilling to walk away, you pretty much have no bargaining power.

[John 070]

Originally Posted by samoe93

there's no such thing as a non-refundable deposit on a car in California

I'm curious if that's true. Years ago, I put a 5k deposit down on a car and the agreement was stamped in red, "non-refundable." When I backed out, the salesman smiled and said you lost your deposit, have a nice day. Very coc***. I just filed a complaint in Albany, and 3 days later went to pickup my deposit. He asked me why I had to file a complaint, and I told him to his face because he is a fu***** jerk-***.

New York is a very liberal state that protects consumers pretty well, but California is the king. So I find it hard to believe deposits are not refundable. But I could be wrong. If that's the case and it were me, I would not even buy a car that isn't on the lot. I'm not going to be bullied into negotiating the price right before it comes in, that's not sensible.

[ScottyGams]

Originally Posted by John 070

Because the way I see it, if the price drops, where say supply meets demand or demand falls for a coupe, just walk away from the order. Deposits are refundable.

I don't think I see demand for a BMW coupe taking a dip in the foreseeable future. negotiate ASAP

[samoe93]

And if you do want to get some financing lined up ahead of time, I just did mine through HSBC this time (used Capital One last time) - painless process and they gave me a great rate. Especially since the E93s aren't getting the great 4.9% promo rate from what I know... hopefully the dealer will still get me a better deal than HSBC, but at least I have that lined up and can give them something to beat.

[micksmastamike]

So I talked to my CA right now and he said right now he has me down for 750 under MSRP.

He locked me down at the 4.9% rate, but even with that the car would come out to 56k+ with tax. which to me is likre8 grand over invoice w/tax

I'm also in in a group-buy, that is 3 ppl of us are buying from him. So there should be more discount in my honest opinion. He's banking from all 3 of us!

I'd be happy with 1500-2000 under MSRP. I mean after all, in the end, he'd be getting it all back with the interest right? Would that be asking for too much?

Ugh y is buying a car so hard. ;]

[micksmastamike]

So I just looked through the "how much are ppl buying their e92's for" thread and found some great deals.

I even saw 2400 Off msrp. wth? That would be selling the car for below invoice.

Some Southern California ppl got 52 oTd, which would be a stellar deal

My options include
Sports, Navi, premimum, rear sunshade, active steering, comfort access, ipod, steptronic/paddle shifters, park distance, cold weather package, metallic paint

[pdub335]

Hey I know exactly how you feel, I am in the same situation as yourself. I ordered my car and I am unable to get a good deal, the most I can get is 1k off MSRP. I believe I should be able to get a lot more than that. I checked another dealer in my area and they were giving me $1850 off MSRP if I order thorugh them, only thing is I will have to wait till the end of this year. As it is now, my car should be here within a week. My only regret is not asking around before ordering a car. However I'm in northern ca, and i've checked some other dealers in the bay area, all of which have 335i's in stock, so if im unable to make a deal, well I may consider another dealer and see what they have in stock.

[samoe93]

The guy just above me in NoCal got me thinking - if there are actually 335s on the lot up there, there's nothing to say that someone in SoCal couldn't easily negotiate the price and financing for one over the phone and fly up for $70 on Southwest to pick it up and drive it back. It'd be a helluva nice first drive in the car, and spending $70 + gas to save $1000 or more would be worth it. At the very least it might be worth exploring in order to find some leverage on your current CA. The 4.9% rate is good, but I'd definitely ask for a grand more off... never hurts to ask. At the end of the day though (and I've said it a dozen times before so sorry if I sound repetitive), you'll probably be so happy with the car that 3 years from now, you'll have totally forgotten that you "overpaid" by $1000 or whatever.

Originally Posted by micksmastamike

So I talked to my CA right now and he said right now he has me down for 750 under MSRP.

He locked me down at the 4.9% rate, but even with that the car would come out to 56k+ with tax. which to me is likre8 grand over invoice w/tax

I'm also in in a group-buy, that is 3 ppl of us are buying from him. So there should be more discount in my honest opinion. He's banking from all 3 of us!

I'd be happy with 1500-2000 under MSRP. I mean after all, in the end, he'd be getting it all back with the interest right? Would that be asking for too much?

Ugh y is buying a car so hard. ;]