Quote:
Originally Posted by wtwo3
Unpopular opinion here... but I prefer the dealer network over direct sales. I consider myself a savvy shopper and as a result am able to put in a little legwork to get a much better than average deal for myself (in normal times). And since I go in knowledgeable, no dealer BS gets to me because I'm able to smell it a mile away.
A direct sales approach removes that ability and im stuck paying what everyone else pays. There's NO room for negotiation and I'm at the mercy of manufacturer pricing. I prefer the competition between multiple dealers and my ability to shop around.
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Car salesmen do not work for free. So their battle of the negotiations are all dependent on how much commission they make. Why do we, as the customer, need to deal with that?
I would much rather pay, for example, 80k for an M3, and you will pay 80k for an M3, and everyone who wants an M3 will pay 80k, if it results in not having to deal with a 3rd party, which is what a dealer is. If i want an M3, i go on the BMW website and order it. Someone else, a small company who doesn't profit much from the work they put in, drives the car to your house and gives you a short test drive. You like the car, you sign papers for 80k. You don't, then that person leaves with the car. I assume there might be a small penalty if you decide you don't like the car but that cost will be no where near what you would pay, if you had to deal with all the haggling dealers do.
I can almost bet that if this became reality, you would see how much dealers make as a profit, if they car makers actually start selling directly to a customer.
Another example, we can probably get what we would pay 80k for an M3, perhaps 65k, because that gap in cost are all profits to the dealer and whomever else is involved in that 3rd party process.