What price should you expect to pay for a used car

samh_2

Hi, our car has just been written off so we need a replacement in a hurry. We did some reading up about haggling then looked round a couple of dealerships today. There was a car we fancied, we made it clear that we were very interested, that we would buy it today, no part-ex required, if the deal was right, but the manager just said the price on the car is what we sell for, no discounts, other than possibly the £50 admin fee. We walked out, they have sent us a text to say if we reconsider to get back in touch, but that's it.


Can anyone give us some tips? We've checked glasses guide, the windscreen price was at the top end of the valuation, but not the highest. Should we expect to pay the price on the windscreen, if not what kind of discount should we be hoping for.


We're looking for a small hatchback, somewhere around 7 - 8K.

Thanks for your help.

[Deleted User]

Why would the dealer reduce his price when you already said you were very interested and wanted to buy today.

Also you ask what I should expect to pay for a used car? How does £400 sound?

samh_2

Sorry, we said we would buy today if the deal was right - I missed that bit out, I'll edit the post! We did stress the bit about not being prepared to pay the windscreen price.


What I'm asking is do people haggle and pay less than the screen price, and if so what kind of discount do they aim for.

Richard53

What a dealer will sell for depends on a million variables - day of the week, day of the month, state of the market, state of his stock, phase of the moon, how much he thinks he can get away with, and so on.


In the end, you have to ask the best price and either take it or leave it. There is no rule about how much you can knock off - it could be 50% or it could be zero. No way of telling.


Parkers is a reasonable guide if you take it with a pinch of salt. Ads in Autotrader and the like can give a guide to price, but bear in mind that the final price paid to the seller may not be the same as the advertised price.


If you like a car, make a silly offer and see what happens. The guy can only say No. The last car I bought, I got 15% off the screen price just by asking what was the best price he could do, no haggling involved. The time before that, I paid full price and got a set of mats thrown in. There is no rule.

gilbert_and_sullivan

What Richard said basically.
The dealer there might be offering a proper 12 month warranty worth more than the paper its writ upon, or the car might be an exceptional one, or it could be neglected rubbish and he best avoided, you can only judge the car and seller at the time.

Up to a point with no trade in, and cash sale?, you've given the dealer very little haggling room (and the car might be worth what he's asking anyway), if there's an identical car £500 cheaper at another dealer just walk away and buy there if the dealer won't play ball, hardly a shortage of small hatchbacks.

Hintza

If a car is priced at £8,000 and they knock off £1,000 is that a good deal?

If the same car is priced at £6,995 and they won't budge is that a good deal?

The only place you will get an idea of what cars are actually selling for are the sold listings on ebay. If buying from a dealer you will probably have to add £1-£2k for the added peace of mind / warranty that comes from buying from a dealer.

You need to know what a good deal is before you buy.

Hintza

Just to add I saw a car in the summer at a local dealership for £12k I could buy similar for around £8k (but would have had to be patient) I offered the dealer £8k and he laughed and said I could have £200 off the price, I laughed.

In my view he was overpriced by about £2-£3k but perhaps some mug bought it at his price.

In the end I bought from Copart for £4,500 but once you add all the fees, small repairs, VIC check and transport costs (Wiltshire to Scotland) etc I was in at about £6k. The car is a CatC so value will be diminished but our cars come and die here so that is not really a concern to me.

Did I get a good buy? In the end yes because there was a lot less damage than I envisaged so I am happy.

Did I pay the right price no! We had been without a big car for about a month by then and I was getting desperate and paid £500 more than my limit. Fortunately it paid off.

AdrianC

The deal needs to be "right" for him, too, remember.

samh_2

Thank you all for your replies. So basically it's a matter of asking if they can drop the price a bit, but people do pay the price on the windscreen. That's fine, we just needed to know what to expect. Thanks!


1 more question - the big used car dealers seem to be cheaper (slightly) than e.g. the skoda and VW dealerships. Is there a benefit to buying from a main dealership? Presumably the warranty for skoda backed by skoda would be an advantage, but are there any other pros / cons?


We're grateful for help as this is the first time we've bought a used car in the UK so this is a totally different experience for us.

Foxy-Stoat_3

Think the key is research and know the market. If you want a Ford Focus or Vauxhall Vectra, know how much the trader in value and private sale value. You will be able to work out if its worth paying the premium for buying at a dealer.

forgotmyname

samh wrote: »

Thank you all for your replies. So basically it's a matter of asking if they can drop the price a bit, but people do pay the price on the windscreen. That's fine, we just needed to know what to expect. Thanks!

1 more question - the big used car dealers seem to be cheaper (slightly) than e.g. the skoda and VW dealerships. Is there a benefit to buying from a main dealership? Presumably the warranty for skoda backed by skoda would be an advantage, but are there any other pros / cons?

We're grateful for help as this is the first time we've bought a used car in the UK so this is a totally different experience for us.

Whats the car really worth? Compare prices to other dealers. They maybe the type of place that put the best price in the screen with no room to haggle.
When you compare prices to other dealers for cars in the same condition and spec is it cheaper?

Benefit from buying from a Main Dealer. Is the car still under the manufacturers warranty? Any potential claims beyond the warranty maybe honoured. But you pay for that privilege.

A manufactures warranty is worth paying a bit extra for. Most of the used car warranties are worthless.