Discount on factory ordering vs. buying a car on the lot

[neversummer78]

Hello!

My gf wants us to try out BMW Performance Center Delivery program. However, I don't know how to go about negotiating for discount on a factory order. Should I get similar discount as if I were to pick one on the lot? I have done dealer trade a few times but never factory order. Any tips would be appreciated.

Thanks all!

[Jet in Oz]

Originally Posted by neversummer78

Hello!

My gf wants us to try out BMW Performance Center Delivery program. However, I don't know how to go about negotiating for discount on a factory order. Should I get similar discount as if I were to pick one on the lot? I have done dealer trade a few times but never factory order. Any tips would be appreciated.

Thanks all!

Just went through that myself. You will always get a much better deal on cars in stock, particularly around End of Financial Year as the dealerships get additional factory support to 'move' stock. The factory support can sometimes effectively be a discount of another $5 to $10K at this time of year. Unfortunately you can't negotiate a huge discount on something that takes 3-4 moths to deliver as it's not captured in this quarter's sales figures until you actually take delivery.

As a guide, the price they offered in June was $11K better than what they offered me back in March, purely because BMW Head Office kicked in.

Hope that helps.

[neversummer78]

Originally Posted by Jet in Oz

Just went through that myself. You will always get a much better deal on cars in stock, particularly around End of Financial Year as the dealerships get additional factory support to 'move' stock. The factory support can sometimes effectively be a discount of another $5 to $10K at this time of year. Unfortunately you can't negotiate a huge discount on something that takes 3-4 moths to deliver as it's not captured in this quarter's sales figures until you actually take delivery.

As a guide, the price they offered in June was $11K better than what they offered me back in March, purely because BMW Head Office kicked in.

Hope that helps.

Thank you for the tip, so is it safe to say that all the existing factory incentives are off the table on the factory order car?

[BMWMilan]

Originally Posted by neversummer78

Hello!

My gf wants us to try out BMW Performance Center Delivery program. However, I don't know how to go about negotiating for discount on a factory order. Should I get similar discount as if I were to pick one on the lot? I have done dealer trade a few times but never factory order. Any tips would be appreciated.

Thanks all!

I ordered my 650i coupe back in late 2012 and took delivery in early 2013.

I forget the exact numbers but I got probably around 10-11k off the final price, it essentially came out to just paying the MSRP sticker price without any additional amounts added for taxes (8.5%) and license/reg fees (2% or so).

What I did was spec'd the car that I wanted with the color and options, then emailed all the dealers that I was willing to take delivery from and asked them for their best final-out-the-door price. When you do it, give them your zip code where you intend to register the car. Then you can just shop the price you get from one dealer to another and get the best price you can.

Because you've spec'd the car and have the zip code for DMV there's no variability in prices from the different dealers.

So, yeah, long way of saying yes you can and should negotiate discounts in factory ordered cars.

Good luck.

[neversummer78]

Originally Posted by BMWMilan

I ordered my 650i coupe back in late 2012 and took delivery in early 2013.

I forget the exact numbers but I got probably around 10-11k off the final price, it essentially came out to just paying the MSRP sticker price without any additional amounts added for taxes (8.5%) and license/reg fees (2% or so).

What I did was spec'd the car that I wanted with the color and options, then emailed all the dealers that I was willing to take delivery from and asked them for their best final-out-the-door price. When you do it, give them your zip code where you intend to register the car. Then you can just shop the price you get from one dealer to another and get the best price you can.

Because you've spec'd the car and have the zip code for DMV there's no variability in prices from the different dealers.

So, yeah, long way of saying yes you can and should negotiate discounts in factory ordered cars.

Good luck.

Thank you for the tip, that sounds like a great way to do it. I tried internet once but not for factory order. It is great to know that I should be able to get similar discount even with factory order. Plus, the dealer that I used to give my business to screwed me over on the service, so I should certainly shop where else.

[Brazz]

I purchased my 2014 GC from the dealer in Aug last year and still did the PC Experience for free. If you let Corporate BMW USA know that you bought a new car of the lot but really wanted to do the PC Experience, they will probably let you go. At least they did for me.
It was GREAT!!!

[neversummer78]

Originally Posted by Brazz

I purchased my 2014 GC from the dealer in Aug last year and still did the PC Experience for free. If you let Corporate BMW USA know that you bought a new car of the lot but really wanted to do the PC Experience, they will probably let you go. At least they did for me.
It was GREAT!!!

That's awesome! I didn't know you can do that. Thank you for the tip! Getting PC experience without the wait is definitely a bonus!

[BMWMilan]

Originally Posted by neversummer78

Thank you for the tip, that sounds like a great way to do it. I tried internet once but not for factory order. It is great to know that I should be able to get similar discount even with factory order. Plus, the dealer that I used to give my business to screwed me over on the service, so I should certainly shop where else.

Internet is the only way to go.

Plus, sales and service are separate at dealerships. I have yet to have any of my cars serviced at the same place where I bought it. A dealer would much rather have your service business than your sales business.

I believe you're in SoCal, right? If so, feel free to PM me for some good leads around town. Otherwise, enjoy the chase!

[neversummer78]

Originally Posted by BMWMilan

Internet is the only way to go.

Plus, sales and service are separate at dealerships. I have yet to have any of my cars serviced at the same place where I bought it. A dealer would much rather have your service business than your sales business.

I believe you're in SoCal, right? If so, feel free to PM me for some good leads around town. Otherwise, enjoy the chase!

For me, the only reason for bringing it back to the same dealership is to get free loaner. But, I am not going to do that any more since they always take my car out for joy ride when I leave it overnight. I was waiting for it for my last oil change.

Yes, I am in SoCal. I commute to bay area almost every week, but dealers there are not very friendly. I like my recent experience with Nick Alexander Imports for my Mini Cooper, but I would like to check out other options. I'll PM you later and thanks again for the good tips!

[sk0525]

This is off-topic but I figured it's appropriate with the SoCal people...

Are you guys getting loaners during standard oil changes, vehicle inspections etc? One dealer used to do it but the service manager left and now they say they don't allow loaners for oil changes...moved to another dealer and they're usually pretty quick with oil changes but still no loaner. Any recommendations in the northern LA area?

[neversummer78]

Originally Posted by sk0525

This is off-topic but I figured it's appropriate with the SoCal people...

Are you guys getting loaners during standard oil changes, vehicle inspections etc? One dealer used to do it but the service manager left and now they say they don't allow loaners for oil changes...moved to another dealer and they're usually pretty quick with oil changes but still no loaner. Any recommendations in the northern LA area?

Yeap, you can try Pacific BMW. I hate Century West which is where I got my car from. I usually call in ahead of time, a few weeks in advance, and request for loaner for my service. May be you can tell them that you are changing to them because you dislike service at your current dealer.

If you don't mind driving, you should try giving Nick Alexander a call to see if they can provide you with loaner. My experience with them has been better than the rest so far.

[BMWMilan]

Originally Posted by sk0525

This is off-topic but I figured it's appropriate with the SoCal people...

Are you guys getting loaners during standard oil changes, vehicle inspections etc? One dealer used to do it but the service manager left and now they say they don't allow loaners for oil changes...moved to another dealer and they're usually pretty quick with oil changes but still no loaner. Any recommendations in the northern LA area?

Yes. Loaners.

[ctenidae]

I spec'd and ordered my 2012 650. Picked my dealer based on 2 criteria- price and when their production slot was coming up. Ended up getting a 2-month sooner production slot and about $20K off what the off-the-lot prices were at the other dealerships that had a 6 on hand. Which wasn't many, and none with a manual tranny.

I'm pretty sure my car sat at the dealership, on the showroom floor, for a week before they told me they had it. They were all sad to see it go.

[neversummer78]

Originally Posted by ctenidae

I spec'd and ordered my 2012 650. Picked my dealer based on 2 criteria- price and when their production slot was coming up. Ended up getting a 2-month sooner production slot and about $20K off what the off-the-lot prices were at the other dealerships that had a 6 on hand. Which wasn't many, and none with a manual tranny.

I'm pretty sure my car sat at the dealership, on the showroom floor, for a week before they told me they had it. They were all sad to see it go.

Thank you for sharing your experience and tip!