sadpanda

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to choose between two different dealers for a new E350 (plus some other brands). The local MB dealer talks about using their own cash to offer me a 10% off deal on a 2015, and won't use the USAA incentive beyond that. They claim they can't.

Another dealer 200 miles away is offering 14.6% off - on a 2016! - and does include the USAA discount. Just for convenience and a better customer service when I bring the car in for maintenance, I'd want to figure out how to go with the local dealer.

Do you guys think there's a way to force the local dealer's hand? It's nonsensical that they'd turn down essentially free money from MBUSA. I almost feel tempted to walk into the dealer to close the deal, present them with my USAA certificate and say, let's add this or I'm going to the other dealer. But maybe I'm just being a dick?

Tonycpa

Why would you consider negotiating being a dick? Do you fell obligated to pay what people ask?

Inform them what is available to you, present your offer and await their response (there is no need to make threats or get personal, it's just a business deal). You live in a free market economy. You don't owe a dealer anything.

edbro

I thought USAA gave you a bottom line price discount that you can use for a no haggle purchase. That is what I did. I didn't know you could even try to go lower.

VegasE

I buy all my cars from SoCal dealers because there are much better deals there. Been doing it for 15 years. The dealer service depts rarely, if ever, communicates with the sales dept. Fact is, most money is made by the service dept. I guaranty that the local service dept could care less where you bought the car. In fact, I've often called the local service manager to get info on the service performed on SoCal cars before I buy.

El Cid

I did it, but the USAA discount was part of the deal so the dealer didn't lose the then $2,000. Incidentally, I believe USAA and True Car are now associated. So if you search True Car and go through them, you get same discount. I think.
When I was looking at cars, told the local dealer I found a nice one at another dealership 150 miles away. He said good, but you will bring it here for service please. Service dept. is the big money maker for dealerships and all personnel know it. Wouldn't doubt that part of sales reps. base salary is computed using overall profit for the dealership, including service dept.
Also, while the service dept. will gladly service any car, no matter where it was purchased; they do know where you purchased it and helps if you purchased it from them.
Incidentally, you can always get lower. Negotiate at 6:00 PM on Dec. 24th during a recession. Great deals.

ENV²

Go to the dealer that gave you the better deal the first time. Buy the car and then service your car at the local dealership.

sadpanda

As far I can tell, there's two separate components: the TrueCar-based pricing, and the fleet discounts (e.g. here). From everything I've heard, you get the best deal by negotiating your own price and then adding the fleet discount. In some cases, incentives don't stack. That's especially the case with two factory-to-dealer discounts - so, $3k demo OR $4.5k 2015 E350 fleet incentive, but not both.

Those discounts are meant to go allow dealers to cushion the cost of discounts. The factory pays them back, so the dealer loses nothing by applying them. So, as long as the factory won't turn down an incentive for a specific transaction, there's absolutely zero reason for a dealer to refuse the incentive. The best coa is to haggle down the dealer discount, then apply the fleet incentive.

My local dealer has simply said, "we can get you a better deal without the factory incentive", while another dealer has gotten me a better deal with dealer discount plus factory incentive. It's a bit absurd, but it seems like it's not uncommon. I think I'll put the dealer on the spot once I've taken care of my current car. I'll walk in, offer my terms, and if they refuse, I'll walk. Tonycpa is right. There's no shame in trying to get what you want.

This whole car buying process is a bit of a farce, though. I've had to make friends with local Afghan district governors who had a 12-year-old boy in the back for their amusement and the local Taliban commander on speed dial. Hell, half the time they WERE the local Taliban commander. But I swear I could trust those ****s more when striking a deal than I can trust car salespeople.

Tjdehya

The service department does not have relationship with the sales department.
When you bring your car in for service they don't know and don't care where you bought it.

However, if their is something seriously wrong with the car and you would want MB to buy back or provide a courtesy vehicle then that's the only time where the location of where you purchased the vehicle will make a difference with how you are treated during the ordeal.

Buy from the dealer 200 miles away after a thorough inspection and test drive.

samkimg

Not always true ...

I bought my E350 at one dealer 60 miles away, and when they couldn't fix my nagging issue on my 2010, the local dealer stepped up and involved MBUSA. That led to a buy-back and me in a 2014 today ... AND, when the sales department totally botched the delivery of the buyback, it was the service manager and shop foreman that came to my rescue.

shortspark

In 2012 I test drove an ML 350 at the "local" dealer 40 miles away. I liked it but they were the only dealership within 140 miles of me so being the only game in town they did not bargain much. I contacted the internet managers in other areas and one found me the car I wanted coming off the assembly line that was intended to go to a dealer in the northeast. He traded invoices with one of his cars and it was diverted to me in Texas. I got it at the right price to boot. A couple weeks later the internet manager called to tell me the car was in and ready for pick up. That was the first time I saw him or the dealership.

I did everything via email and never put down any money up front. I got the car for 9 percent off MSRP which although it was not a smoking deal it was where I wanted to be considering I did not have to drive back and forth to shop dealers. If you have a trade-in this will of course complicate the matter but you should sell your car individually rather than trade to a dealer anyway. The ML has been the best vehicle I have ever owned - and I've owned them all during the past 50 years I have been driving.

Knowing I would never drive that far to the dealer I bought the car from for service or maintenance, I wanted to establish a relationship of some sort with the dealership closest to me. I went in and talked to the service manager and purchased the three year maintenance agreement from him since there are no private mechanics in my area who work on MB. And he did not seem to care one bit about where I bought the car.

To this day whenever I need maintenance they come out to my house (80 mile round trip), pick it up, leave a nice loaner vehicle and return my car when finished (and always nicely washed and cleaned). I give the driver a good tip and he remembers me the next time. I could not be happier with this arrangement and when I buy a sedan next year, which will probably be an E class, I intend to purchase it the same way I did my ML - establish your options and the price you want to pay, send out emails to the internet managers within a couple hundred miles of you, buy the car from the dealership with the best price and have it serviced by the one closest to you. That has worked for me.

El Cid

[QUOTE=Tjdehya;6594839]The service department does not have relationship with the sales department.
When you bring your car in for service they don't know and don't care where you bought it.

Not true. When they bring your car up in the computer, it shows where you purchased the car. I know because I have asked service reps. and service managers - They Know!
And all departments work together at a dealership. That's why they have an owner and a general manager. It's the GM's butt if whole operation does not work cooperatively.

DapperStyle

I believe what the person you are quoting is trying to say is that the service dept. does not care about where you bought the car since they see no money/commission from anything that the sales dept does.

Basically, no they cannot hold anything against the OP if he bought his car somewhere else and is trying to get it serviced at an "Authorized Mercedes Benz Service Center", as long as it isn't a mom and pop dealership it won't make a difference.

To the OP: Get the car where you have the best deal, you have no loyalty to anyone to make a deal that works better for them. They cannot hold anything against you when it comes time to service your car, in fact when you bring your car in for service the salesperson who tried and failed to make a deal won't even know or care you are there.

El Cid

True enought that they will not hold it against you, but they probably won't do that something extra for you either. May make the difference in whether or not something is covered by warranty or good faith instead of you paying.
However, if the savings is substantial, I will go to another dealership for initial purchase.
The service techs, service reps and service manager ALL work for the dealership, not just the service department - and they know it. They are not independents.

rediesel

Get the best deal you can, and be sure to buy the prepaid maintenance; especially if you are taking it somewhere you didn't buy it for service.

The G Man

I have been buying my cars at the dealer that offer me the best deal on everyone of my cars, usually that means a dealer that pretty far away, and maintaining it at my local dealer. I have a very good relationship with my local dealer and never had a problem with them.

sadpanda

Thanks for everyone's input. I ultimately cast my net a lot wider and showing dealers each others' offers helped drive the price down.

Funny end to this story: I did end up getting the best deal with my local dealer, which worked out well for everyone. They had the right options and the right price. Funnily enough, it's actually a W205, not a W212, but that's another story.

Anyway, going back and forth, the dealer insisted for days that the USAA discount couldn't be applied on top of their own internal incentive. In the end, I got $1,300 below my target price, so I didn't care. We shake hands and the deal is done.

What's the first thing they politely ask for?

The USAA discount certificate.

rediesel

Congrats on the new car. Hopefully you didn't pay W212 money for a W205, and saved some serious coin going with the C rather than the E. In the end you are the only one that needs to be satisified, again congrats.

sadpanda

Thanks, I think/hope it'll work out well. I was going back and forth between an E350 and the C300 because of size concerns, until the salesman walked me over to his own C300 and showed me the rear-facing car seat in the back. It fit very easily without having to push the passenger seat forward. Since a child seat was exactly my concern, he immediately won me over for the C300.

I'm paying the equivalent of $450 a month with zero down, so that's a pretty good price on leasing (10k/36) a $46,000 car. The 2016 E350 would have been $650, and had fewer key features (no Parktronic, no brake assist plus or whatever it's called). I couldn't justify that - at least not until the W213 comes out!