PRNDL

Just thought I would ask the question. Buyers have no problem paying LESS than MSRP, and if sales are slow and inventories high, buyers have no problem squeezing every last penny of potential profit from the dealer. If they are offering 2004 corvettes at $7,000 under MSRP, the buyer wants $10,000 under. Nothing wrong with that. So why is it a crime for the dealer to ask more than MSRP when demand exceeds supply? He isn't selling flu vaccine, food for starving people, or even basic transportation. It is a pure luxury item, and if you "gotta have it now" then why not pay market price for it?

Personally, I would not pay more than MSRP for a "hot" new car, but I don't understand why dealers are vilified for trying to get a market price. I think what annoys me much more are the retail buyers who either sell their place in line or flip their new car out at a profit. This is profit that really should accrue to the dealer, not the customer who has gotten something for nothing. If we (the informed marketplace) force dealers through moral suasion to sell only at MSRP, we are shifting the profiteering opportunity from the dealer to the retail buyer. What I am referring to is the practice of slandering any dealer that sells a car at a premium, and expecting forum dealers to never do such a thing. If a customer walks into a forum supporting dealer and offers MSRP + $10,000 for a new ZO6, the forum dealer must reply, "Sorry, I already have a waiting list for my entire allocation, selling at MSRP." And what prevents the forum buyer from flipping his new ZO6? (answer: nothing)

I can understand indignation coming from a loyal customer who returns every year to buy a car at MSRP from the same dealer. But this is a rare bird. Most buyers are shopping around for the best deal, and when they find a "market price adjustment" they act like they have been robbed at gunpoint. I encourage everyone to walk away from overpriced deals, but as long as some are willing to pay I don't fault the dealer for trying to make an extra buck.

I also understand that some dealers consider it a matter of personal integrity and will not sell above MSRP. I respect that, but I think they are responding to an unreasonable expectation of the buying public.

Hoonose

Hay! Bidness is bidness!
Nuttin' rong wit dat.
Just stay outta my neighborhood!
You got dat?

fgordon

That may be an attempt at humor but it pretty well describes most buyers. I own a small business and your comments sound reasonable to me but you're "jousting at windmills" if you believe you're going to get many converts here.

BTW - I won't pay over MSRP for a car either.

Tri-Tip

I agree that the dealer should be able to charge what the market will pay. If that's $10,000 over because he has the car on his lot, and someone with a lot of money wants it, then that's fine.

For me, I go in and negociate the best deal that I can. In the case of my Vette, I found a dealer that had the EXACT car I wanted on the way to the dealership from Bowling Green. He wanted $5,000 over, and I negociated him down to sticker. I was willing to pay that and he was willing to sell it at that price, so we made a deal. If he had been over, I would have walked.

I had the same configuration on order from another dealer at $500 below sticker. I could have waited 3 months for that, but decided to pay more to have it now.

As far as flipping, that's also part of the free market we live in. If I get a Z06 at sticker in hopes of selling it at $10,000 over, I'm also taking the chance that I won't find a buyer and now I have to start making loan payments. That's the risk of any business, you have to have inventory to sell.

Michrider

Drug dealers do the same thing for their good stuff. They probably took the same class in whoring up the market.

Desmoden

We are living in a very different economic situation. There is now really no reason to buy anything local anymore. For those of us living in higher cost areas it's a real issue.

I have tried very hard to buy a vette from 3 local dealers. No one would make a deal with me, no one would deal with national sales numbers instead of just local demand.

Supply and Demand is good, but no on too small a scale. These dealers charge this because they can. But more and more of us and starting to buy from elsewhere. This will increase in time.

Now true, when pressure comes off locally, they will drop their prices, but in the mean time local customers have built relationships with other dealers, proven to themselves they don't have to bow down to a local dealer, and will now tell everyone they know how easy it is.

Now the jini is out of the bottle.

So if the local dealers don't start realizing that repeat business based on relationships is the only way to go. I don't mind paying a little more to support local businesses. But not 10k.

WhiteDiamond

Where does one find this so called 'market price?'

If you go on Edmunds, KBB or look in the auto mags, they never list anything called 'market price.' My point is, market price does not exist. Dealer greed exists and that is all the market price adjustment is about. If they can bend you over for a few extra, all the better for them, and the best reason to stick with a dealership that does not practice this.

VetVetter

If you own a small business making widgets and sell them for $5 a piece, but then find out you can sell them for $7 and people will still buy em .....

LTC Z06

Let the market decide, I'll buy one when I can. What I think many get upset over is when one dealer is gouging and we know another is selling at MSRP that regardless of buyer be ware, they are taking advantage of uninformed shoppers; and don't sell to us at MSRP waiting for the sucker to come in. We've all seen that with Corvettes.

Tom Steele

As a dyed-in-the-wool hardcore capitalist, I agree with you. My beef is with the dealers who take deposits and make a verbal deal for MSRP or some variation + or - sticker, and then renege on that deal when the car arrives.

And while I do not disagree with dealers who want to get maximum profit from their product, I do take offense at some dealer's stupidity. Stupidity (not the same as the occasional mistake that everyone makes, but bold, blatant stupidity) irks me. When I see a dealer with a new Z06 for $100k, it irritates me. Cause thats just dumb.

Hoonose

Market price is found best here on this forum.

When I ordered my C6 locally back in August, we agreed on MSRP.
But when the car came in, suddenly there was a $4K add!
The local price was that high.
But by using, and referring my local dealer to this forum, I was able to convince him that market price was, indeed, MSRP!

Scissors

It isn't.

Ranger

Any business needs to be concerned with customer goodwill.

Sticking a market adjustment on top of MSRP may be tempting, but it's a perilous practice, if it alienates brand-loyal customers.

Many dealers take the long view and sell at MSRP. Others take the short view and add that premium.

Two dealer pulled that on me and I will never buy another car from them.

Ranger

SLWRNU

Don't blame the dealers. Blame the numb nuts that pay those outrageous above MSRP on a depreciating asset. If no one paid it it wouldn't be done.

resmith23

IMHO it is unethical for a new car dealer to sell a specialty model like the new C6 Z06 above MSRP. A fair price with reasonable profit is built into the MSRP. Dealers only get a certain number of cars and such practices takes away the opportunity of the reputable dealers to sell the car right. The dealers should be looking out for the interest of the manufactor and want to do everything to help Chevy sell as many of these exciting cars as possible. This practice of new car dealers jacking up the turns off perspective buyers. I remember this happening with the retro-T-Bird. Many dealers started off asking 10K over MSRP. Eventually the car was perceived as flop, because they started sprouting trees on the dealer lots. Dealers should have done their part to get as many out T-Birds on the road ASAP. Hope the same thing doesn't happen to the C6 Z06. Lets hope dealers don't stand in the way of real enthusiast getting to enjoy this amazing car. If these cars get out and people find out how just how good they are, a lot more people will want them and keep the demand high so as to insure the long term success of the C6 Z06. Finally, I think it would great that Chevy would not allocate such cars to dealers caught jacking up the prices. It would be great if Chevy would do like Ferrari has been known to do with their high demand cars, when a speculative buyer quickly sales a new car at a big profit: don't allow this person to purchase another brand new Ferrari. Real car enthusiast that buys Ferraris or C6 Z06 deserve to get their cars ASAP at MSRP.

cbgpe

I have a sales agreement(not a place in line ie a contract ) with my dealer for his first ZO6 at MSRP
HE WILL NOT sell over MSRP as he has found that he will only ever sell you one car ...after you take the big hit for depreciation the first year you would never go back to him.

Gary2KC5

strato1958

This is why car companies are not doing well and resale values for these pigs are even worse.... there goes your depreciating asset

Michrider

These "market adjustment" dealers are so short sighted. They smell the greed of a hot product and go for the throat of the enthusiasts trying to get into an early vehicle.

What they always forget is buyers remorse is only a couple months away when big discounts are everywhere. Think that customer is still happy with the transaction? That same customer probably buys trucks and sedans, think they'll be buying from that ***** again?

NO.

There is no positive spin any logical person can explain their way into justifying "market adjustment."

Call it was it is - ***** TAX.

If you pay it you are an absolute idiot.

Lazerwolfe

Who said it was wrong? It's not wrong, we just don't like it.