Audi Approved Used - Negotiating

Soldato
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Thunderdome
I don't 'involve' my wife in the purchase, but I certainly discuss and explain what I'm buying and why. If you went and changed the family car for an Aerial Atom, pretty sure she'd 'bat an eyelid' there.
 
Soldato
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South of the Watford Gap!
I always discuss a major purchase with the wife but the way I play it is start off with a low budget and then over time mention to her in passing that there is nothing suitable so I'm going to increase the budget by a few k, do this a few times to get to where I want and hey presto, like a magician on Britains Got Talent :D
 

LiE

LiE

Caporegime
Joined
2 Aug 2005
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Milton Keynes
I always discuss a major purchase with the wife but the way I play it is start off with a low budget and then over time mention to her in passing that there is nothing suitable so I'm going to increase the budget by a few k, do this a few times to get to where I want and hey presto, like a magician on Britains Got Talent :D

The other approach is to use the same trick housing developers use. Go in and say you want to spend £50k on a new car, when really you want to spend £35k. That way when you compromise down to £35k you'll appear to be a saint.
 
Soldato
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I saw a class quote once that said, If anything happens to me, I hope my wife doesn't sell my old computer collection for the prices I told her I paid for em.
 
Soldato
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Nottingham
Bought a 17-plate S4 Avant days before lockdown and got the price I had in mind for a PCP deal at Nottingham Audi. They gave me a very reasonable trade in price for my Golf R32 given it's age and mileage which helped, I offered to pay a slightly higher deposit to show I was serious (£1000 rather than £500) and was adamant I didn't want to pay more than what I had in my head. I got the usual sales manager blurb where he said he can't get close to that price. I told him then that's fine, I'll leave it. He stood up, shook my hand and walked off promptly and I was completely prepared to walk off. Before I did he came back out saying he's ran the numbers again and his boss has given him permission to offer a new deal which turned out to be exactly what I wanted....go figure!
 
Man of Honour
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Before I did he came back out saying he's ran the numbers again and his boss has given him permission to offer a new deal which turned out to be exactly what I wanted....go figure!

They are professional sales people. I don't know why people find it all so sinister. Their job is to sell cars for the maximum margin for their employer. They do this by using their judgement to work out how much you want the car and how much you'll pay for it. If they perceive that you'll pay £x (and £x is an amount you'll pay) then this is what you'll be paying for the car. Most of the time people who complain they couldnt get any money off just got beaten by the salesman who was very good at his job. Why sell a car for less than the customer will eventually agree to pay?

Remember, the ones they win are funding the discounts for the ones they don't :D
 
Soldato
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3,202
Apparently because of COVID people have not been replacing their company cars. Either because the factories have been shut, deliveries have been delayed or they’ve just extended their current lease arrangements to allow for them not running as many miles. Because of that there is a shortage of newish used cars and that is pushing up prices. Give it 6 months and you might find the flood gates open or if the WTO levies come in, used car prices may firm up even more.
Used car sales have been on the rise, there’s currently LESS incentive for price flexibility than there used to be.
I wouldn't bet on prices softening any time soon. Dealers are maximising profits at the moment whilst the pressure on new car sales is reduced. For years there has been excess supply in most brands driving bigger and bigger discounting and pre-registration of new cars . Thats all stopped in the last six months with the exception of a few marques. Dealers know that the recovery is fragile and market uncertain due to covid and brexit. They have been making much stronger margins in new and used cars since lockdown ended. If we end up in WTO then 10% goes on the price of new and I would guess they will reprice used accordingly. For many of them its about survival. Peak market (new cars)was 2015 at 2.8m units. This year will be 1.8m and most still have the same if not greater cost base. No trade deal likely means c1.8m market again. The days of bargain cars might be over for a while.
 
Soldato
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Essex
I got £500 off the screen price on TT that was up fro £16999 in March, oh and air from London to Glasgow and then picked up from the Airport and a full tank of juice to go home with .

It was the cheapest one ( age . model and mileage) from an Audi dealer in the UK at the time though so was about as good as I could find . Just compare all approved sites around the UK for the same car .
 
Associate
OP
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15 Jan 2011
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This thread took an entertaining turn :) I've enjoyed reading different people's perspectives on how much a wife should be involved in financial decision making.
In my view, purchasing a £32k car is a luxury not a need. That money could be made use of in ways that are more beneficial as a couple such as appreciating assets or joint experiences like holidays. So buy-in from my wife is an important part of making a decision like this. Her point of view was that given the uncertain times, it would be better to wait a year and have a larger financial safety net which I think is a valid opinion.
 
Man of Honour
Joined
13 Oct 2006
Posts
90,805
Bought a 17-plate S4 Avant days before lockdown and got the price I had in mind for a PCP deal at Nottingham Audi. They gave me a very reasonable trade in price for my Golf R32 given it's age and mileage which helped, I offered to pay a slightly higher deposit to show I was serious (£1000 rather than £500) and was adamant I didn't want to pay more than what I had in my head. I got the usual sales manager blurb where he said he can't get close to that price. I told him then that's fine, I'll leave it. He stood up, shook my hand and walked off promptly and I was completely prepared to walk off. Before I did he came back out saying he's ran the numbers again and his boss has given him permission to offer a new deal which turned out to be exactly what I wanted....go figure!

Surprised it worked these days - I've tried it, sat in a couple of different dealer's while waiting for work to be done and seen other people trying it and they usually come back and say pretty bluntly someone else will buy it at full price if you don't - even when it is plain the other party is going to walk so I don't think they were trying to call the bluff.

Only time I've seen it work was September 2019 when the dealer was clearing space for an event selling new stock.
 
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