Off to the dealership tomorrow, very green first time buyers, advice please do the dealers expect you to haggle with them over the asking price, these guys are offering a very good first time buyers package including
Water tank, leisure battery, hook up, number plate,water hoses, gas connections, tow hitch cover,
With all this thrown in would it be exceptable to haggle, if so how low would you go!!
I always haggle no mater what I buy. There will always be room for negotiation how much depends on how much the dealer is likely toake out the deal. Thus will be different for every dealer as their overheads will be different.
cash doesn't work the same either as the dealer gets comision for setting up a finance deal.
the main thing is your happy with what your getting
Once you've decided which van you want to buy I would contact 3 dealers. Tell them you are only contacting 3 dealers for a price and whoever bids the lowest will get the order. No negotiation, they just submit their best price once.
Saves going back and forth. Done it once on a caravan and twice on a car and I think i got a good deal on all 3 counts.
You still need a waste container, a step and a gas bottle before you can use the van. I'd price up all the bits above and see how much it comes to and then haggle accordingly.
Our son in law doesn't like to haggle and has mug stamped on his forehead when he sees the salesman. When he bought a new van he told me how much he was paying, 5 minutes later on the phone I had saved £1700 on what he was paying. He paid the higher price though as he didn't want to spend an extra few minutes travelling to make a huge saving! The finance was so high they couldn't afford to go away and the van was "taken back" by the finance company.
The more you save, the more you have to spend on bits and pieces and going away. Haggle hard but keep smiling, if the chap won't budge just get up and walk away, he will either improve his price or you can always try again tomorrow.
Haggle like mad, what have you got to loose? I even haggled a half-price first service into my price. Bare in mind though, good after-sales warranty service from the relatively local supplying dealer, it was high on my list of priorities and I didn't want the cheapest deal a 300 mile round-trip away from me. I know in theory any dealership can do a warranty service but in practice it's not that straight forward.
Dave
------------- Never argue with an idiot, they will drag you down to their level and beat you on experience.
Mark Twain.
Judging by the warranty problems that have been highlighted on this forum I would be asking the dealers about their record on warranty claims. I'd be looking for evidence through written testimonials from customers where they have successfully had problems sorted out.
Buy from the dealer that is interested in their customers beyond the sales signature.
------------- Ollie
2016
Monplaisir - Provence
Camping Les Gorges du Loup
Thanks everyone, that gives me a bit more confidence, the caravan we're after is secondhand so the price is set by the dealership not sure that I could play one dealer off against another in that case, they offer a 12 month warranty and all caravans are serviced before collection, he has said we'd need to buy a gas bottle but they'd be happy to fit it for us, but I shall go in at a lower price and see what happens, just wasn't sure in the caravan community if it was a big no no, thank you👍
I have never paid the asking price for anything unless there is no option.
Remember all the things he is offering have cost him a LOT LESS than you would have paid for them, so the value to him when making you that offer is not that much.
You dont say how much the caravan is so go for a percentage reduction in the price, even if its only £100. (better in your pocket than his)
I would also expect the gas bottle and a spare wheel to be included without additional payment.
One of the best thing that my Dad taught me is.
If you dont ask you wont get
If he wont budge on price at least get a free spare wheel and gas bottle included in the items he is offering
No idea why the salesman is saying he will fit the gas bottle for you???? it takes about 20 seconds to do??
Good grief yes, haggle. many dealers don't like it and some won't give any discount - I think because most buyers are of a certain age and don't like an argument.
These buyers get ripped off!
I saved nearly £3K on an 18K caravan in July of last year - and with an excellent dealer too.
------------- Camping Gear expands so as to fill the space available for its transportation.
You have to ask yourself when are you planning on using it? If not this year, then wait until Feb next year. It is well known to be a very quiet month for everyone.
Only then will you get the best bargain!!
Good luck
------------- Live life to the full, life life on your own terms, live peacefully but go to where others fear to set foot in.
It's a great time of year to buy. They want to reduce their stock for the end of season. There will be a whole load of trade-ins in the spring when the new vans go out.
Yes everytime.The price on the van is the max. Even be prepared to walk away. They will hate to see you walk away. They hate you to say " I will think about it". On a purchase of the value of a van and no part ex you can call the shots. There are always other vans just the same or better.
Its just one big bluff, lol, I saw a van i wanted and tried to play the sales guy at his own game, said I'll have a wee think about and walked away, went back 3 hours later and the salesman had a big grin on his face. Sorry it sold. AHHHHHH. lol on the plus side I actually ended up getting a better van for my money. So don't worry if they don't play ball another one will always come along.
But more importantly the main thing is that you are happy with your purchase, in this life it doesn't matter what you buy there will always be someone who claims they could get it cheaper.
Haggle, especially as your first timers, haggling not just on price, but on extras, some will give new batteries, awnings, gas bottle, water bottle, maybe dining sets too? Although you might not get the cash discount, these are things you will end up buying anyway.
Thank you sound advice, originally we were thinking early next year, but having done the research on make and model a dealer that's fairly local has that model, if it's in good Nick for its age( 2009) then I feel tempted purely because I will kick myself if it then takes a while to find one later, and I don't want to comprise on the model,I don't really want to go on lots of wild goose chases either we visited 3 dealerships last week just to research layouts etc and we saw some real horrors and got quite despondent at one point, this is why if this one is in good order then I think we'll feel happy to buy a bit earlier than originally planned
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: To haggle or not
