Is it worth asking for free extras / haggle on price

[waverider]

Hi,

I am on the cusp of ordering VW California that's not far off £70k with all the added options

Is there any wiggle room with dealerships regarding getting a price reduction or something thrown in for free? Not expecting a Tag Heuer as with a Porsche but willing to take a punt on a bike rack or something.

Anyone had any success?

 

[T6 CFO]

Hi,

I am on the cusp of ordering VW California that's not far off £70k with all the added options

Is there any wiggle room with dealerships regarding getting a price reduction or something thrown in for free? Not expecting a Tag Heuer as with a Porsche but willing to take a punt on a bike rack or something.

Anyone had any success?

Yes

Search function will find your answer or have a look at the subforums. You will not only find the answer to this question but probably a great deal more that you will need to know before parting with your money.


Mike

 

[Hotel California]

Hi and welcome ,
i certainly always "try" and not only when buying a car....

 

[waverider]

ok thanks.. Will have a peruse.

 

[briwy]

You might get a set of rubber mats if you're lucky.

 

[snowy55]

We got a key ring with a trolley token, so the skies the limit

 

[Ethel's dad]

If you don't ask you don't get

 

[Jabberwocky]

If you don't ask you don't get

Good general advice from Divshwar. I have found on a number of occasions that saying to the salesman "I will place an order today if......." and then add your very specific request (start high but with a backup list of items) but only after you feel you have rung the last cash discount out of him and his boss.

 

[MattBW]

I did ask but as mine was a demo and heavily discounted already they weren't very keen to throw anything in. However as above can't hurt to ask.

I found my dealer has more interest than stock so it doesn't always encourage any deal sweeteners.

 

[Bramco]

You should be getting at least 8% off list price. If not try drive the deal.

Then have a punt at anything dealer fit, e.g. as you said the bike rack, but also window tints etc. If you don't get the rubber mats then you obviously need lessons in brinkmanship.

And when the order goes wrong, then the sky's the limit....

 

[CannellWalker]

We used the DrivetheDeal.com price to start negotiations. We ended up paying a few hundred quid more with the dealer we bought from. Just had a look on the DrivetheDeal.com and couldn't see the California listed :-(

 

[daveyboydanger]

We used the DrivetheDeal.com price to start negotiations. We ended up paying a few hundred quid more with the dealer we bought from. Just had a look on the DrivetheDeal.com and couldn't see the California listed :-(

It's not been on dtd for a while now. Ever since build times went ridiculous I think. They didn't renogotiate a deal with their dealers. It was always handy having a dtd starting point for negotiating!

 

[Bramco]

Apologies, I hadn't checked for a while and assumed it was still a valid way to get a handle on discounts. Wonder when it will reappear, maybe through the winter as they work off the waiting lists.

There are recent threads on discounts though, so worth searching the forum.

 

[CannellWalker]

Got to say I was surprised not to see it listed.

 

[daveyboydanger]

Apologies, I hadn't checked for a while and assumed it was still a valid way to get a handle on discounts. Wonder when it will reappear, maybe through the winter as they work off the waiting lists.

There are recent threads on discounts though, so worth searching the forum.

Guy at Preston VW will give you a drivethedeal-esque quote without you having to play any games or haggling hard.

 

[Jabberwocky]

Hmmmm.........yes I looked on Drive the Deal, before I placed my order, and Calis, were and still are, noticeable by their absence! Pity.

I was told by one dealer that 4% was the "Maximum allowed" I have also heard that all UK dealers are limited to the number of Calis they can sell as there is an allocation system in operation. I am not sure how this works but it seems to be increasingly reducing the cash discount available to buyers. I believe that dealers get a 7.5% discount allowable (off published list) from VWCV UK Ltd plus a rebate if they sell their allocation. So between 8 and 9% seems a reasonably achievable target. This is completely in-line with what I achieved, last month, even without Dtd's help!! But........

Now here is a dark thought and reveals the cynic in me. Build dates? Could they have anything to do with the price paid? Hear me out!

VW are in some trouble with the small matter of a bill to sort out their emissions issue and shareholders are not noted for their patience!! I am certain that all VW companies and their subsidiaries are on notice that they have to maximise their short to mean term profitability. All UK Calis are sold via a VW company and the vast majority are made to order, not supplied from stock. Why would VW supply a vehicle making less profit in advance of a one making more? Simple economics really. My off the wall theory could just go someway to explain why availability seems to be a lottery! Just a thought for this back to school Monday evening.

 

[Alibee]

Hi,

I am on the cusp of ordering VW California that's not far off £70k with all the added options

Is there any wiggle room with dealerships regarding getting a price reduction or something thrown in for free? Not expecting a Tag Heuer as with a Porsche but willing to take a punt on a bike rack or something.

Anyone had any success?

You should get at least £5k (7.5%) without having to haggle at all. Just mention that you're getting three prices from separate dealers. That should give you enough for a Tag, a bike rack and all the Brandrup accessories your heart could desire...

 

[Hantshog]

I would be very interested to know where Jabberwocky achieved 8-9%. I was offered 4% from my local dealer, had the story thats theres very little margin, 7% from a well known dealer up north and this (7%) was the absolute max he could give. So please share this info. I am looking to place my order in the next week. At the end of the day 1% is around £600. Especially now that I have probably missed the boat for the new tax law changes. £600 -£1000 would offset the increase in tax.

 

[daveyboydanger]

I would be very interested to know where Jabberwocky achieved 8-9%. I was offered 4% from my local dealer, had the story thats theres very little margin, 7% from a well known dealer up north and this (7%) was the absolute max he could give. So please share this info. I am looking to place my order in the next week. At the end of the day 1% is around £600. Especially now that I have probably missed the boat for the new tax law changes. £600 -£1000 would offset the increase in tax.

If you take finance out then you can shave another £750 off the price. You could always pay it back a few days later. Worth it for another 1/1.5% off.

 

[Skinnee D]

If you take finance out then you can shave another £750 off the price. You could always pay it back a few days later. Worth it for another 1/1.5% off.

I got an extra £600 off by not taking out finance. If I had taken out finance I would have only got £150 contributed instead of the quoted £750. Strange but definitely true, got it in writing.

 

[daveyboydanger]

I got an extra £600 off by not taking out finance. If I had taken out finance I would have only got £150 contributed instead of the quoted £750. Strange but definitely true, got it in writing.

That's strange.
Never heard of that before.

 

[Ethel's dad]

I got an extra £600 off by not taking out finance. If I had taken out finance I would have only got £150 contributed instead of the quoted £750. Strange but definitely true, got it in writing.

Well done for the £600 discount but I am not sure how you have come to those figures. The £750 contribution is removed from the credit balance so it is never included in the finance deal. You have a 14 day cooling off period so can cancel the credit and pay any balance outstanding (not including your £750) and interest calculated on a daily basis. After the two weeks, I think VW finance charge you for 56 days interest. This was confirmed to me by VW finance directly.

 

[Skinnee D]

Well done for the £600 discount but I am not sure how you have come to those figures. The £750 contribution is removed from the credit balance so it is never included in the finance deal. You have a 14 day cooling off period so can cancel the credit and pay any balance outstanding (not including your £750) and interest calculated on a daily basis. After the two weeks, I think VW finance charge you for 56 days interest. This was confirmed to me by VW finance directly.

The way the figures were set out was that, for the finance option, £600 (£500+VAT) was first added to the total discounted cash price and then £750 was deducted from the total credit balance. The logic behind this was and still is beyond me (that was early this year). I was told that the cooling off period and early settlement terms would still have applied as normal had I gone for it.

 

[Ethel's dad]

The way the figures were set out was that, for the finance option, £600 (£500+VAT) was first added to the total discounted cash price and then £750 was deducted from the total credit balance. The logic behind this was and still is beyond me (that was early this year). I was told that the cooling off period and early settlement terms would still have applied as normal had I gone for it.

Sorry, I don't understand what the £600 is added on for? When my dealer worked it out, it was discounted total - deposit -£750 = balance to pay on finance, pay off after a day or two = balance owed + daily interest.

 

[Skinnee D]

Sorry, I don't understand what the £600 is added on for? When my dealer worked it out, it was discounted total - deposit -£750 = balance to pay on finance, pay off after a day or two = balance owed + daily interest.

Me neither! That's what I was expecting too when I initially asked about the finance option.