[tekhen]

Originally Posted by davequick

I'm confused by this behavior of the dealers. Are they retarded or something?

Most car manufacturers allocate based on prior sales. Most consumers (with a pulse and an IQ > 70) can access a computer or the library and get the invoice price of the car and options and use this as a starting point for negotiations. With this information free and readily available why would any consumer ever pay over MSRP?

There are so many dealers in the country for ever make and model of car that is sold (with the exclusion of Aston Martin, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Lotus, Panoz, and the super exotics that are not imported through a regular dealer network like Zonda, etc.) that you can just go down the street until you find a dealer willing to be rational and sell between invoice and MSRP. The dealers listing outrageous second stickers and not wiling to sell <MSRP loose business every day to some other dealer in a market where the car in question is not as hot.

I've had 12 cars in 7 years including some very hot (at the time) vehicles - like a 2003 MINI Cooper S (delivered in Oct/2002, 13 month wait list at the time but I had been on the list since Jan 2001), a 2001 Mercedes C-240 6-speed (first manual offered in the states on a mercedes since before 1990), 2005 Mercedes E-320cdi (first diesel offered since 1998 uses the new common rail diesel injected technology - 20k+ psi in there and starts with no spark plugs/glow plugs), etc. I've never paid over MSRP.

Why do dealers still attempt this practice? I just find it distasteful and I'm willing to wait a little while (couple months) and travel as far as need be to get any car I want at a reasionable price.

If there are any dealers reading this - I'd love them to comment - what is it that a dealership provides that you feel is worth a premium over the manufacturer's suggested retail price on a car?

The reason the dealers do this is because there are people who will pay over MSRP. As even a handful of folk on this great fourm have done.