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Did I negotiate badly?
LittleMissAspie
Posts: 2,130 Forumite
in Motoring
My boyfriend found a car he liked and we went to look at it today. The dealer gave us a price for the car plus a "lifeshine" protective coating for both interior and exterior, total £12300. I said we'd take it for £11000 and he went to ask someone, he was gone for ages, not sure what took so long. He came back and said something about only having a £300 margin on the car, I didn't really understand what he was talking about, then said the lowest he could do was £11500.
Then I made what I think was a bad mistake by saying that if we went up to that price could they supply and fit a towbar as well. I thought the towbars were a few hundred but actually an OEM towbar is like £600, shockingly expensive, so I think asking for that made me look a bit stupid? I was a bit flummoxed by the cost and forgot what I'd prepared to say so I said £11400 then, he said he couldn't go any lower than £11500, I said we'd have to leave it then.
My boyfriend really wanted the car (hence why I was the one trying to negotiate) and looked very unsure and hesitant about walking away so the sales guy left us to talk for a few mins. Personally I'd have walked away and hoped for them to call us later to agree on £11400. But boyfriend really wanted it so we said okay.
Now I think I was a bad negotiator because I asked for something really expensive by mistake and we accepted the price he came back with without any further movement. And I would have felt better with an extended warranty because it's such a lot of money to spend on a car, it makes me nervous. So I should have asked for that instead of the towbar, but my mind went blank. I keep going over what I should have said and different ways of phrasing it. I think I did a bad job.
Then I made what I think was a bad mistake by saying that if we went up to that price could they supply and fit a towbar as well. I thought the towbars were a few hundred but actually an OEM towbar is like £600, shockingly expensive, so I think asking for that made me look a bit stupid? I was a bit flummoxed by the cost and forgot what I'd prepared to say so I said £11400 then, he said he couldn't go any lower than £11500, I said we'd have to leave it then.
My boyfriend really wanted the car (hence why I was the one trying to negotiate) and looked very unsure and hesitant about walking away so the sales guy left us to talk for a few mins. Personally I'd have walked away and hoped for them to call us later to agree on £11400. But boyfriend really wanted it so we said okay.
Now I think I was a bad negotiator because I asked for something really expensive by mistake and we accepted the price he came back with without any further movement. And I would have felt better with an extended warranty because it's such a lot of money to spend on a car, it makes me nervous. So I should have asked for that instead of the towbar, but my mind went blank. I keep going over what I should have said and different ways of phrasing it. I think I did a bad job.
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Comments
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You'd have walked away over £100? So would have been happy at 11.4 not 11.5... seems more ott than anything tbh.0
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Not really, your boyfriend would have paid £12300 if you weren't there, you got it for £11500 so you "saved" £800.I want to go back to The Olden Days, when every single thing that I can think of was better.....
(except air quality and Medical Science
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the lifeshine is a con. a huge commission earner for the salesman and little else.0
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The "lifeshine" will be the salesmans xmas bonus. Only mistake you made was taking the boyfriend along.Years back when we needed a new car I never took wife along,she was always impressed with the radio or colour of the seats rather than price.
You had right idea about walking away and letting you both think it over,so many things bought in the shop or showroom in haste are regretted next day.Has all paperwork been signed yet or can you still get out without loss?0 -
How much are similar cars?
If it's already the cheapest available, then you did well to save £800, whereas if it's £2300 more than the next one then not so much..0 -
No, I'm just rubbish at thinking on the spot. In hindsight I should have pointed out that the retail price of the tow bar isn't the same as the cost to the company and (assuming that wouldn't change his stance) then said that leaves us at the original car plus lifeshine deal so I will meet him halfway from there at 250. He would probably say no so then I could walk away at that and see if they phone us back OR maybe ask what he'd throw in for going up to 500 and try to get the extra warranty but I'm not brave enough for that.You'd have walked away over £100? So would have been happy at 11.4 not 11.5... seems more ott than anything tbh.0 -
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LittleMissAspie wrote: »No, I'm just rubbish at thinking on the spot. In hindsight I should have pointed out that the retail price of the tow bar isn't the same as the cost to the company and (assuming that wouldn't change his stance) then said that leaves us at the original car plus lifeshine deal so I will meet him halfway from there at 250. He would probably say no so then I could walk away at that and see if they phone us back OR maybe ask what he'd throw in for going up to 500 and try to get the extra warranty but I'm not brave enough for that.
Before you start you need to know how much the car is worth so do your research online, you'll then have an idea if it is overpriced and roughly what margin there will be for negotiation.
Probably worth ignoring the life shine, it can be ok but you can buy it for a few quid anyway, so that might have made up £500 of your discount on its own.
Extra warranty is only worth the strength of t company backing it, and on used cars the length of exclusions, normally ascribed to wear and tear, is probably far longer than what's included.
Teh negotiation is a process where hopefully both parties are happy with the ending, tyrrell be a point where the salesman realises he can't drop any further, and they'll just move onto the next customer.0 -
It's okay, it wasn't bought in haste, he's been researching for ages so he knows it's the spec he wants. He's pretty excited about having more bhp, whereas I'm the one asking if the fans have a preheater to clear the windows quicker, and noticing that you can't move the seatbelt up and down. I really should have asked why the previous owner didn't want it anymore, we're guessing it was a lease arrangement so that would have been a good reason to barter. If you only expect to own a car for a few years there's no incentive to drive it gently.The "lifeshine" will be the salesmans xmas bonus. Only mistake you made was taking the boyfriend along.Years back when we needed a new car I never took wife along,she was always impressed with the radio or colour of the seats rather than price.
You had right idea about walking away and letting you both think it over,so many things bought in the shop or showroom in haste are regretted next day.Has all paperwork been signed yet or can you still get out without loss?0 -
nomoneytoday wrote: »How much are similar cars?
If it's already the cheapest available, then you did well to save £800, whereas if it's £2300 more than the next one then not so much..Before you start you need to know how much the car is worth so do your research online, you'll then have an idea if it is overpriced and roughly what margin there will be for negotiation.
I've actually no idea, I went into it completely blind. I thought we were just looking at it so I wasn't prepared at all. I've just looked on autotrader and the cheaper ones all have lower bhp, he didn't want that model, except one with much higher mileage. One is 11650 and a year younger but higher mileage. One is 11995 with slightly lower mileage, otherwise identical. The rest are all a higher bhp model than his or nearly new. So the asking price of 11990 was precisely in line. That's a relief
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