Where are these cheap cars ?

bullinn1

Hi chaps ... I'm VERY vaguely looking for a new car, super mini type I'm thinking, Corsa, Yaris, Clio. All the chaps in the pub say "...dealers are giving them away..." - well, not the ones I've spoken to. I haven't pushed very hard, I'm afraid I'm not very good at driving a bargain, but none of them seem desperate. I even tried getting a cheap broker's price and showed it to my local Toyota dealer and he basically said that I should go away and do the deal, he didn't even offer to go half way, but I'd missing out on the "personal service" etc etc - also some mates say now (ie before the end of the year) is a good time to haggle and others say wait 'til after Christmas ... any observations most welcome. Regards Roger

Badger_Lady

Nah, of course none of them seem desperate - they want to create a facade and convince you to snap their hands off! My recent example:

Saw a car advertised online by a local dealer, had been dropped from £1999 to £1699. Not a bad price for the vehicle in question. I phoned to book a testdrive and the guy pushed his luck saying, "I've had a lot of enquiries about this one - you really need to reserve it by paying a deposit up front, otherwise it'll be gone". He rang me three times trying to convince me of this that day! I naturally declined.

During the test drive, I looked a bit dubious and could see him getting nervy - constant reassurances that, "We can fix all the odds and ends, just make a list... we'll fully valet it for you... stick a new CD player in..."

I phoned a few days later and said "I've seen a cheaper one privately - tell you what, forget all the little extras and I'll drive it away as is for £1200." He declined.

Three days later, guess who got an answerphone message I'd actually already bought something else though...

DKLS

Different Car, but I was looking at a Merc CLS a couple of weeks back that has lost 50K in value over two years!!!

As my commute has been slashed I can finally justify buying something that I really enjoy driving.

I will wait till march to start seriously looking, I want a used CLS or a G Glass and the missus wants a 350Z/Boxster should be able to pick up a great bargain. :beer:

Keep hunting and politely play hard ball you will find a bargain.

Badger_Lady

Certainly the big-engined and high-maintenance cars have taken the biggest dive - seen lots of bargain Mercs out there, and I ended up with a surprisingly economical Beamer at approximately half its perceived value (good old eBay).

vikingaero

Dealers can't afford to make a loss so there's only so far they can go on discounts. Some may use volume/sales bonuses to subidise retail sale prices. Best to go online to Drive the Deal.

vansboy

You will work a bit harder, on smaller cars - small cars = small margin - but discounts are there, as you've discovered.

Check This Weeks Deals inhttp://www.honestjohn.co.uk this will give you a good idea of what's on offer.

You mention Corsa, well you've 4years 0% on them, just now, so don't expect to 'haggle' much of a discount AND 'free' finance, there, but always worth a try!

VB

goldspanners

the biggest bargains are on the bigger cars. small cars like the corsa, yaris and clio will always sell,more of a market for them than 5.0 v8's.

Conor_3

goldspanners wrote: »

the biggest bargains are on the bigger cars.

And even mid sized ones.

Last year, I paid 5k for my Mondeo Ghia which was the going rate. This week, I've seen a Zetec 6 months older with 40,000 fewer miles on the clock for £1900. There's a shedload of them around the £2200-£2500 mark.

flutterbyuk25

My local renault dealer are doing brand new 58 plate Clios £120/mth 5yrs 0% finance, no deposit.

A few other dealers are doing similar.

x

sheslookinhot

I am looking for a 2 or 3 year old Seat Ibiza or Suzuki Swift. The cars I have seen advertised are way too expensive so I will have to wait.

Mobeer

Superminis start that much cheaper so that its harder to get a discount

For example the Corsa has about 2k off at Broadspeed, whilst the larger Astra has up to 6k off