C.J. Ichiban

That's ok they deserve your business if they treat you that well!

I'm patient and can grow slowly.

usctrojanGT3

But make sure to boot the flippers so the only folks on the list are true nutters.

br911

On the relationship side, if I may, you could throw a once a year track day for GT customers or other customers that you know would appreciate a day in the track. You (someone) could showcase a top of the line car (e.g. 675 LT for Mac or Clubsport for P), provide hot laps, a nice buffet lunch, and make some instructors available for beginners. You could even charge. My dealer in another country charged, and the event was always a big hit. Not only the sales team deepened the relationship with customers, but customers developed relationships with other customers. Some cars were on display and there was not a single time when there were no sales done right there. Friends brought friends for lunch, who later became customers. Just a suggestion, based on past experience. Sort of a one day driving school/experience. I would not hesitate to dump my dealer to become a client of someone who asks for suggestions instead of $100 K over.

DrJupeman

MRSP and maintain a fair list. This doesn't necessarily mean first-come, first-serve, but make a transparent algorithm for how people rank on the list so that everyone understands their position and there is no perception of games. You may want to favor locals, but in this day and age, I'm not sure why you would. You likely should favor repeat business, as I suspect you can generate repeat business with a lot of non-local customers for many reasons, including not monkeying-around with list games.

A list algorithm maybe something as simple as: for speculative lists (cars that are not yet available), your rank on the list is based on the # of cars you have previously bought (primary sort) and then sorted by time arriving on list (secondary sort). For any time you pull off a list, you lose credit for one of your cars purchased for future list ranks.

For cars currently available: first come, first serve.

JDHertz11

I like a lot of what I'm reading but how would you handle a guy like me that only buys a car every few years? I'd get penalized for not being a frequent buyer? Despite having owned quite a few Porsches over the years and keeping a few at any given time I'm not much of a late model guy. Than you're back to playing Ferrari games. I'd say, sell at MSRP in the order the deposits were given. It's hard to mess up a chronological order! Remember many of us are longtime PCA members, not only GT3RS/ R owners.

TRAKCAR

This or any $$ over MSRP.
More local to me P dealers have raped, cheated and lied.
I'll never buy any car from them, not another brand, not a used car. They do not deserve the business..

TRAKCAR

And now I have a plan B

tasman

I prefer to buy locally. I have no issues with purchasing across the country though and have done that several times (although used). That said I will not buy from my local Pcar dealer. I want a dealer who is MSRP and is up front and honest. Want to know what the rules are and will not play these games. I like to have a relationship with someone I can count on and who knows their product. I give a dealer all my business who does this. Local Ford store is like this and I bought several cars from him including my GT350.

DrJupeman

I can't argue with this, even though I wrote my recommendation above. I have only ever purchased one new Porsche, my '16 GT3. But I've owned 14 over the years. Dealers, and even Porsche itself, don't care too much if you're faithful to the brand on the used market (other than if you're a frequent dealer service user).

robmypro

While I like the concept of MSRP only, the only way this is going to work is if C.J. can sell a lot of other less exclusive Cayenne's, Macan's, Panamera's as well. So showing up and putting your name on an MSRP only list for an RS is great, but even the out of state buyers need to purchase their next SUV from him as well.

There is a market for these cars, and currently the market for RS cars is far north of MSRP. Asking any dealer to sell you it at MSRP is taking tens of thousands out of their pocket. The only way they can do that is if you come back over and over, buying other cars, and not beating them up on price every time you do.

You also have to agree to give that same dealer first stab at your car when you decide to sell it. Otherwise that dealer is going to be pissed every time an MSRP GT car they sold is flipped for $50k more a week later. But what happens when that GT car you bought from them does appreciate $50 or $100k. What is that talk going to be like when you talk to the dealer and they want to buy it back at MSRP only? Because, that's what they sold it to you for.

Selling these cars at MSRP means a long list, and little chance of getting one. A new dealer isn't going to get a ton of allocations. So 3 guys got a nice car at MSRP. Great! But now what? You are going to have to buy something else from them to get a relationship going, and probably not beat them up on price while doing it. Maybe after two or three times of buying cars you really didn't want, probably over paying a little each time, you may get your GT car. But life is short. Do you really want to wait 5 years to get that car, when you can easily pay over MSRP to drive it today?

Personally, I understand what the market is. I know the cars are selling for $30 to $50k over MSRP. Do I want it that bad? If I do, I want to buy from someone I have a solid relationship with. Someone who is going to be open and honest with me. Someone who is going to value our relationship, and consider that I am a repeat customer, and sent them customers. So maybe that RS is going for $230k right now, but I am going to get it for $225k with something a little extra thrown in. I feel like my loyalty was rewarded, and I am obviously coming back for that SUV next year.

I am just not sure being a mile down an MSRP list for a nice GT car is going to help.

JPMD

Very spot on and well devised especially with respect to transparency and a sophisticated ranking system. But would slightly disagree in not favoring business from local customers.

Why scope out an area and open a dealership in a particular location and not cater more to the local customer.

If selling at MSRP there should be no problem having all inventory sold to local customers (this of course applies to highly sought after models) . This will also make it much easier to manage any "list."

JDHertz11

I get it but why should you or I be obligated to doing anything with a dealer, service or otherwise. Let's flip this and see what they would do to you. They are semi obligated by the manufacturer to sell an item "at MSRP", often they do but sometimes they don't. I'm involved in an auto parts based business that relies heavily upon the manufacturers MSRP. If I try to sell for any more I'll lose my clients, if I sell for less I may lose my vendors. We don't scalp the clients when stock gets low. It all evens out in the end, it's a business...

C.J. Ichiban

I really appreciate all the suggestions.

I will say that with Mooty on my list I know I will get cars back in stock.

I've already proven to be a good source of GT cars for my top guys- used and new.

We have a chance at my store(s) to develop an awesome culture together: annual parties at track days, events, here on the west coast and internationally for races etc.

With the right group of enthusiast clients we'll grow fast enough to enact some of these principle and practices that everyone has been suggesting

WernerE

For high demand models, a well run dealership will of course favor locals for the simple reason they're service and parts customers AND are far more likely to be future customers of new models. For the non-GT, regular models, dealerships already put their new and used inventory online and it's first-come, first-served.

CAlexio

^^^^
This, exactly. the open and honest part is key, you'll never make everyone happy, but you'll keep people's respect if they know which way you decide to go and you don't change with the tides, or tell different customers different stories which makes people feel tricked.