Brand New 2009 Maybach 57S At An Unreal Price!
Member
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 194
Likes: 10
From: Orange, CA
'12 528i, '05 E320, '05 Jag XJ8L, '04 CLK500, '03 S600, '92 Jeep Briarwood, '79 Rolls Royce
After reading this thread I can happily say that I will never go see the chaps over at Westminster Mercedes.
Sad, I hope the thread poster is no longer employed there.
Sad, I hope the thread poster is no longer employed there.
Super Member
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 998
Likes: 136
From: VA
W212 E-class, W211 E-class, F10 5-Series
I do believe I was correct in my statements, but maybe did not convey them as nicely as I wanted to do. I have a hard time balancing my time when 24/7 I have at least a dozen things going on.
but let me try to refresh my post, and maybe you and others would understand.
As I do not believe you or your company is to blame solely, but believe the manufacturer is at fault also.
First I will start with business 101:
You have a product that is not a commodity. It is limited production, hand built, geared toward a market that is esoteric.
said product normally retails for mucho denaro
the manufacturer spends some money instilling the value of the product globally, not only that they sell the perceived value of the vehicle to the public. after all you are not driving up in a blacked out crown vic.
now not only does the manufacturer go out of their way globally they had it to you on a platter, a handfull of franchises, protection from other MB dealers, basically exclusivity.
the product is leaps and bounds better in quality than any other competing manufacturer (I have driven many Maybachs, Rolls, Bentley's, Etc... even took apart a Maybach to fix an electronics problem that was to the dealer 3x that couldn't be figured out including armored suburban for the 6th fleet Admiral while visiting Malta)
Now a handful of dealers have said product, say 20 dealers with 5 units a piece.
sticker is $400k
Now comes the stupid part, with all that is in your court in terms of marketing, and exclusivity, you have to haggle the sticker with the client, because the dealer does not see the perceived value in it. (your mistake and since congress rescinded unilateral pricing protection laws, Maybachs mistake for not making it as it is what it is)
but now, since you are sitting on one in inventory and need to move it, you drop the price, exponentially... like you said it is cheaper than a CPO vehicle and it is new.
you just cut the perceived value, the value of the manufacturer, the value to the customers before this that paid much more for a similiar vehicle, and pretty much started the downward spiral of the vehicle's name.
Maybach should of jumped in and bought the vehicle from you to save the value of the vehicle or gave it another dealer that can sell it.
Now all maybach's that are grouped at $410k can be purchased at $300k? You started a trend, Maybach let it go, and I know it is a hard sell to begin with, but I believe that it is because the dealer looks at it as a number instead of looking at it as value first then a number.
I think your target audience or perspective buyer knows little of what Maybach is, and that is the dealers fault.
anyways the perceived value is destroyed, the value of the vehicle is destroyed, and this go's for resale, since when you CPO them you guys take another $100k off, so is it worth $200k after the "sign and drive"
Could of gone with buy the Maybach and get a free S class...
or a free condo
or a free sprinter vehicle
I hope you can understand where I am coming from, and it is just my opinion, my observation, but now I will forever reference every $400k maybach to $300k, and used at $200k, and along with everyone here that reads this, and their friends, and their friends, and the 100 other people they tell when it comes up...
Businessmen are no dummies, and if they ever catch wind of it, besides knowing that it is a depreciated asset to begin with, they are going to be inclined to look at something else or expect to get it at $100k+ off. After all they didn't get where they are at by not being very good businessman...
And I hope that your prospective clientele were not rap stars and pro athletes... because you missing the overall big picture of what it was for...
answer me this... if Princess Diana was in a Maybach, would she of walked away...
also the Guard edition with today's moronic population would be a great seller also... hell even the Biggy Small would of benefited from that
end rant...
awaiting the backlash
but let me try to refresh my post, and maybe you and others would understand.
As I do not believe you or your company is to blame solely, but believe the manufacturer is at fault also.
First I will start with business 101:
You have a product that is not a commodity. It is limited production, hand built, geared toward a market that is esoteric.
said product normally retails for mucho denaro
the manufacturer spends some money instilling the value of the product globally, not only that they sell the perceived value of the vehicle to the public. after all you are not driving up in a blacked out crown vic.
now not only does the manufacturer go out of their way globally they had it to you on a platter, a handfull of franchises, protection from other MB dealers, basically exclusivity.
the product is leaps and bounds better in quality than any other competing manufacturer (I have driven many Maybachs, Rolls, Bentley's, Etc... even took apart a Maybach to fix an electronics problem that was to the dealer 3x that couldn't be figured out including armored suburban for the 6th fleet Admiral while visiting Malta)
Now a handful of dealers have said product, say 20 dealers with 5 units a piece.
sticker is $400k
Now comes the stupid part, with all that is in your court in terms of marketing, and exclusivity, you have to haggle the sticker with the client, because the dealer does not see the perceived value in it. (your mistake and since congress rescinded unilateral pricing protection laws, Maybachs mistake for not making it as it is what it is)
but now, since you are sitting on one in inventory and need to move it, you drop the price, exponentially... like you said it is cheaper than a CPO vehicle and it is new.
you just cut the perceived value, the value of the manufacturer, the value to the customers before this that paid much more for a similiar vehicle, and pretty much started the downward spiral of the vehicle's name.
Maybach should of jumped in and bought the vehicle from you to save the value of the vehicle or gave it another dealer that can sell it.
Now all maybach's that are grouped at $410k can be purchased at $300k? You started a trend, Maybach let it go, and I know it is a hard sell to begin with, but I believe that it is because the dealer looks at it as a number instead of looking at it as value first then a number.
I think your target audience or perspective buyer knows little of what Maybach is, and that is the dealers fault.
anyways the perceived value is destroyed, the value of the vehicle is destroyed, and this go's for resale, since when you CPO them you guys take another $100k off, so is it worth $200k after the "sign and drive"
Could of gone with buy the Maybach and get a free S class...
or a free condo
or a free sprinter vehicle
I hope you can understand where I am coming from, and it is just my opinion, my observation, but now I will forever reference every $400k maybach to $300k, and used at $200k, and along with everyone here that reads this, and their friends, and their friends, and the 100 other people they tell when it comes up...
Businessmen are no dummies, and if they ever catch wind of it, besides knowing that it is a depreciated asset to begin with, they are going to be inclined to look at something else or expect to get it at $100k+ off. After all they didn't get where they are at by not being very good businessman...
And I hope that your prospective clientele were not rap stars and pro athletes... because you missing the overall big picture of what it was for...
answer me this... if Princess Diana was in a Maybach, would she of walked away...
also the Guard edition with today's moronic population would be a great seller also... hell even the Biggy Small would of benefited from that
end rant...
awaiting the backlash
But when jbondox made the above bolded comments, his credibility shot out the door like a cannonball. Who is he to say which cars should be sold to whom? Who is he to say that athletes and rappers don't "deserve or appreciate" nice vehicles? And then mocking Biggy Smalls' and Princess Diana's deaths?????
All this coming from someone who probably makes less than 1/1000th of their salaries... 
Now I truly see where the gentlemen at Westminster Mercedes was coming from and why he was flustered.
Last edited by tresean1; Jun 18, 2017 at 10:41 AM.
