bargaining for a new bike

Discussion in 'UK Motorcycles' started by Geoff Bayes, Dec 6, 2008.

  1. Geoff Bayes

    Geoff Bayes Guest

    A couple of years ago I retired and my wife and I moved to Cornwall. I
    sold my car after a while, since it became obvious that we didn't need
    two cars, but next year I'm going to buy a bike, because I haven't had
    one for ages. Favourite at the moment is the Suzuki GSR600, for the
    excellent reason that it is very pretty. Only in my opinion,
    obviously, but then, that's the opinion that matters.
    Now, I'm used to going into a Midlands car dealership, asking how much
    they want for a new car, falling about with laughter and then telling
    them that the dealers down the road will give me a much more
    substantial discount off the list price. I don't know if that works in
    this case. There are far fewer motorcycle franchises, especially down
    here, and I don't know if they're used to people effectively making
    them an offer for brand new machines.
    So, what do you think? How much bargaining is normal, bearing in mind
    that I actually want to end up with the bike?

    Geoff Bayes
    http://freespace.virgin.net/geoff.bayes/
     
    Geoff Bayes, Dec 6, 2008
    #1
    1. Advertisements

  2. Geoff Bayes

    Gyp Guest

    Surely if you can afford to pay the sticker price (and are willing to
    pay the sticker price), you should walk out with a bike whether they
    accept your offer or not?

    But bargaining is normal, yes, and at the moment you should be able to
    negotiate a very good price indeed.
     
    Gyp, Dec 6, 2008
    #2
    1. Advertisements

  3. Geoff Bayes

    Eiron Guest

    Last time I bought a new bike I got a cash price from dealer A,
    told dealer B who made a better offer, then went back to A and paid
    a price I was happy with. Dealer A closed down a year or so later. ...

    Just hope the recession is still going on next year as I'd quite like
    an '09 gixxer at a decent discount and 0% finance.
     
    Eiron, Dec 6, 2008
    #3
  4. Geoff Bayes

    Geoff Bayes Guest

    Yep, cash. Plus, depending on what it comes with, I might want them to
    fit a hugger, belly pan and crash bobbins.
    And, apart from my old helmet, which is still around somewhere, I
    shall also need a coat, boots, paddock stand, security chain, etc.
    Those are local purchases, though, for obvious reasons.

    Geoff Bayes
    http://freespace.virgin.net/geoff.bayes/
     
    Geoff Bayes, Dec 7, 2008
    #4
  5. Geoff Bayes

    Tim B Guest

    I've found motorcycle dealers different to cars. If buying a new bike,
    they'd knock something off. You sometimes have a better chance of
    getting accessories at cost & fitted, as there is greater mark up on
    these items. For second hand bikes I was really surprised to find
    several dealers wouldn't budge on price at all. This is the experience
    of a couple of guys at work as well. Probably the biggest problem is
    we'd all travelled to see the bike. The dealer did advise to sort the
    price out before setting off. Still he gave the bike a full service,
    MOT, new chain at no extra cost a new front tyre at cost. The bike was
    below guide price for the age and condition, so not a dead loss.

    Probably worth having a look at some guide mags and checking out prices
    on Auto Trader.

    Tim
     
    Tim B, Dec 7, 2008
    #5
    1. Advertisements

Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments (here). After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.