8 September 2010

Purchasing a new car - best not in Canberra?

8 September 2010 | Eyl

Hello fellow Rioters,

I thought I could share a little experience with you guys after reading a post about people having trouble buying a new vehicle (posted like 3 months ago). Basically the issue was that dealers in Canberra would not lower/haggle the advertised price like they used too.

Anyhow the short story goes, it came to my turn to buy my first new vehicle. I had done all the research in brands/models and prices via Internet etc. The car I was looking at had a RRP of $25,000 drive away. Well long story short I too found myself having much trouble getting the related dealers (only 2 in Canberra) to lower their price, the best offer I got was $25,000 +$750 ($25,750) because the ones on the ship and in stock already had alloy wheels on it (I could go without), and that they would throw in some key rings -_-.

Well I had gone home to think about it and then a thought had occurred to me…. so I checked it out there is only 2 dealers of this type in Canberra and nearly 20 of them in Sydney (more competition). So I called 1 (only 1) dealer in Sydney and told him my story. I just said “look, can you make me a deal good enough to convince me to come Sydney to at least have a look?”

In the end the deal I got was (Exact same car MY10 2010 , 5km on the clock) $23,450 but I had to pay my own stamp duty and rego ( different state) which came to roughly $24,600 after wards, BUT they included at no cost a package they offered here in Canberra valued at $1500, also included 17″ Alloy wheels. I didn’t even mention it and they gave me key rings ^_^. I didn’t even bother haggling the Sydney dealer.

So to conclude it all I got a car that Canberra dealers would have charged me $27,250 but paid total from Sydney (after bus fare $30 (partner came) nights accommodation $110 and food $60 + car total was roughly $24,800. still less than Canberra and had a weekend get away ><.

So my point is people, for new cars have a look into dealers in Sydney as well, it doesn’t hurt to ask questions, otherwise you might be getting taken for a ride haha. As for used I’m under the impression Canberra is better for less rust, I’d never bother buying used off dealers anyhow, private only.

For those of you that are going down that path I hope this helps.

-Eyl

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creative_canberran1:52 am 22 Jul 11

If you couldn’t get a good deal in Canberra, it’s you’re own fault. I for one have found it very easy to knock them down on price.

You do need to understand some things going in.

For example, know what companies own what dealers in the street and in Canberra. Janrule for example own Canberra Toyota, Lexus and Honda along with a couple of others. Rolfe Motor Group is another one. So if you want to play them off, important to know this. If you try and play two brand dealers in the same company against one another, more than likely they have quiet arrangements not to go discount more than a certain percentage. Even if you’re bluffing, choose a competing vehicle from a true competitor.

Go in knowing the features, the car and at least a couple of reviews that say bad points of the vehicle. If they can’t wow you with features and can’t escape the negative points you already know, all they have to work with is price. Never seem wowed by the vehicle, always seem pessimistic, but at the same time, wave the dough around. You don’t want to seem uncommitted to buying (which turns off salespeople). You want to seem committed to buying but uncommitted to a model or brand.

bobzed57 said :

That’s why I’m off to Sydney in a couple of weeks to get new tyres for my Land Rover. $422 ea in Canberra, $350 in Sydney. Double the trip up with a visit to the outlaws and all good.

This is again an example of try harder, unless their some really special kind of tyre that isn’t standard stock in a smaller market like Canberra.

I’ve shopped around tyre places and just for fun have rung the same one multiple times on occasion using different voices and approaches to see the range they have to work with on tyres. You can always get better deals.

Bridgestone for example knocked down the price on some RE001s in 2009 from RRP$250 at the time to $180ea. They did so when I put on a rough voice and spoke in short, sharp sentences saying “I want RE001s all round, no nonsense, how much fitted and aligned?”

I had earlier rung though that same place and a few others with a more softwer approach saying “i’d like to get some tyres fitter, how much would 4x RE001s be?” The best price was $215 from one store and $225 from the others.

So people, it’s up to you to get the deal.

jayskette9:28 pm 21 Jul 11

Speaking of cars, also do not get your car serviced in Canberra. What a rip off for a basic service. I go to my car brand’s dealerships in Sydney and it’s at least $100-250 off for MORE service.

farnarkler8:42 pm 21 Jul 11

Sorry but why should salespeople do you any favours when you’re buying such crap; Holden Cruze, Hyundai Santa Fe, Audi (VW in a party dress) and Hyundai Tucson. Some of you really have no self respect.

KB19717:39 pm 21 Jul 11

rogueideas said :

Car salesman in Canberra are used to dealing with cashed-up public servants (no offence if you are one) that tend to buy the first thing they see. When I arrived here 15 years ago most dealers fell over when I tried to haggle and do ‘a deal’. The price on the windscreen REALLY is the price of the car in Canberra! If you’re half knowledgeable and try to talk ‘price’ or do a trade they don’t want to know you. I bought a used XR6 from the Subaru dealership in Fyshwick years ago. It sat in the yard for 6 months. I faxed them every day with a offered price. Eventually to get rid of me an car they did a deal. Same thing recently with Commonwealth Motors in Tuggeranong. Tried to talk a deal on a Mitsubishi Challenger – got treated with distain but once I complained to the boss in Phillip (after a month of trying to talk to them) we did a deal. It’s too easy now with ebay and car sales web sites to shop at home and inspect at your convenience – or go to the auctions. Give the wankers a miss and let them be another business model that goes belly up because they don’t know how to evolve in the internet world.

Agree, I wanted to buy local but the arrogance & stupidity at each end of the scale is amazing. Some places make you sit through the crap of their finance spiel before they let you go for a drive (mind you they find an ex super model to give the spiel which almost makes it worthwhile) while some just say here is the keys, off you go. One bloke tried to tell us that a Nissan Dualis was the same size as a Nissan Patrol……….

On the whole though I would say there are only two blokes I would buy a car off in this town & that is Daryl (I think that was his name) from Nat Caps in Tuggers & Gerry at Lennocks (I am only recommending him now because he handled the delivery of our new car). I have to say though I was less than impressed with all the car yards in Canberra.

The car we wanted was only availiable in 5 seat but we wanted a 7 seater, the dealer said “dont worry, you will be fine, its the same……” so essentially I had to buy a car I had not seen. We ended up driving to Goulburn to look at a 7 seater, the salesman up there was a gem. He had actually sold the car but had permission for us to look at it (pre arranged) & then when all three child seats would not fit across the back he said “this is not the car for you”. No trying to bullshit us into a deal, just straight up & honest.

I was so annoyed with the local dealers that Lennocks were lucky that we actually very lucky that they did the best deal so the lease company went for them. It was then that we met Gerry & the was excellent to deal with.

MissChief6:21 pm 21 Jul 11

There also another way to get the best deal. Try Mr Negotiator – he’ll do all the ringing around to find the best price and there’s no fee.

http://www.mrnegotiator.com.au/

rogueideas4:46 pm 21 Jul 11

Car salesman in Canberra are used to dealing with cashed-up public servants (no offence if you are one) that tend to buy the first thing they see. When I arrived here 15 years ago most dealers fell over when I tried to haggle and do ‘a deal’. The price on the windscreen REALLY is the price of the car in Canberra! If you’re half knowledgeable and try to talk ‘price’ or do a trade they don’t want to know you. I bought a used XR6 from the Subaru dealership in Fyshwick years ago. It sat in the yard for 6 months. I faxed them every day with a offered price. Eventually to get rid of me an car they did a deal. Same thing recently with Commonwealth Motors in Tuggeranong. Tried to talk a deal on a Mitsubishi Challenger – got treated with distain but once I complained to the boss in Phillip (after a month of trying to talk to them) we did a deal. It’s too easy now with ebay and car sales web sites to shop at home and inspect at your convenience – or go to the auctions. Give the wankers a miss and let them be another business model that goes belly up because they don’t know how to evolve in the internet world.

georgesgenitals5:53 pm 19 Nov 10

I bought a couple of new cars from a large Holden dealer in Phillip a few years ago, and on both occasions they gave me a great deal and I was really happy. Then last year I went in to look at a new vehicle. Well, how times have changed!

First, I couldn’t find anyone to help me (mid morning on a weekday). The receptionist had to call a guy who was “in the yard” twice before he came in. I asked about the model I wanted, and the guy points at it in the showroom. I tell him I know that’s the one, can you tell me a bit about it? Nope. Zero product knowledge (and it was a Commodore, FFS). Can I option the larger engine into this model? No idea. Does the base model come with cruise control? Dunno. Now, if this was the head car washer I’d understand, but he gave me a card with his name, saying he was a salesman.

So… what do they have in stock right now? “Are you going to buy today”? Well, depends on what’s in stock and what the price is. “We don’t negotiate on price”. So here I am getting told they won’t talk about price and I don’t even know what’s in stock. I asked for a brochure, and he wandered off to find one. 5 minutes later he still wasn’t back, so I left.

Absolutely useless. I’ll never go back there again.

ivanhec3:51 pm 19 Nov 10

Go to Sydney, you will get rolled in Canberra, big time. I want to buy a new series 3 XTrail, went to both dealers in Canberra = price $48k drive away

Called up the dealers in Sydney = price $39, and I sort out my own on road costs, which are probably $2.5k.

Simple answer is pick up the phone and do your due diligence.

bigred9:45 pm 09 Sep 10

My rules for car shopping are to go looking when you don’t need a car, never look too keen, never tell them what price range you are in and make sure the salesman gets your number so they can chase the deal. And never take your sun glasses off at Lennock so they cannot make eye contact – drives them loopy.

Blathnat8:40 pm 09 Sep 10

I’ve had the pleasure of buying 2 new and 1 used dealer car in the last 5 years. It’s an experience I never want to go through again. I’d spent months looking on the net, getting RRP’s and details from the website, so I knew quite a lot about the cars I was looking at. No one would budge a cent on the price (“this is the price the franchise makes us sell it at”), and they were even reluctant to throw in anything for free, other than some $20 car mats. Even to match a competitors price on a trade-in required them to call head office, the competitor, the finance department, and their 2nd hand dealership.
But this wasnt the most unpleasant part. Being a bloke in his 20’s, and dressing like pretty much everyone else in that age group, I spent ages just wandering around waiting for a salesperson to come up. Some places were alright, at least aknowledging my prescence, but others (Holden Belconnen in particular) would rather sit inside and stare at me. When they did finally come out, they treated me like a moron, despite how specific I was.
Honestly, I think much of it has to do with the fact that with so few car yards to chose from they feel that they can do what they like. Add to that the fact that hardly anyone is willing to haggle and you have a losing combination.

KB19711:49 pm 09 Sep 10

Another shifty that came to mind last night, last year we looked at a Subaru Forester as a likely suspect. Drove one in Phillip, I wasnt that impressed with it, drove it again, still undecided (Marius at the dealer was quite patient with me). I was over in Fyshwick (for another reason) out of curiosity & hit that dealer up for a drive, it was a completely different car to drive even though it was tha same spec & I was very interested.

So I ask:

“Whats your bottom line?”
“You have to give us an undertaking.”
“What do you mean?”
“You have to give un an undertaking that you will buy the car from us before we will negotiate.”
“But that isnt how negotiating works???”
“That is our policy, sir.”

I laughed & walked away & she even had the hide to ring later to see inf I was still interested.

Buying a car for the wifes Grandfather, he found a Falcon at the Ford dealer in Phillip he just ahd to have & was priced $4 grand more that what it was worth (knowing full well I could get the same at the acutions for less again).

I made an offer, negotiations went on & it came down to the fact that they were trying to sell us on things like extended warranty, finance & stuff. I said “we dont want any of that stuff, we have cash & you will not have to see the car again as I will service it”

They refused to sell, it to us with the reasoning that the warranty was worth $500 & could not be removed from the vehicle?? (buggered if I know why??). When I think about it later I realised they wanted it back there for servicing as one of the conditions of the extended warranty was that the car had be returned there for at least one service a year at a bargain price of $190.00 for a minor service. The parts cost less that 50 bucks when I service it…..so NO THANK YOU!!

They wanted $22,990 for that car, we got one at Pickles with 5000km more for just under $16,000. I offered them 19 cash & to remove all the added stuff that we didnt want from the deal, even rego.

They just dont bargain anymore, it is up to you to be more savvy when you buy.

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