Budman1

It is interesting to get some of the 'behind the curtains' F&I info from dealer folks who are 'in the know'. Pretty much confirms the old adage that the F&I person is just another salesperson.

When we picked up our 992 a few years back we brought our own financing - which their F&I person said was the last they would accept. Of course, he was more than a bit sour that we purchased nothing extra - no rim or key fob protection, no deferred maintenance, nothing.

Its not that we were special for saying no to any extras (am sure most Porsche buyers are the same), but what stood out was how rude the guy was in the process. Thankfully, every other part of the ordering & purchase experience was top notch.

dixonk

The F&I guy always bothered me. The salesman just spent his time going through the car and making a point about the reliability of the vehicle and then you sit in the finance office and this dude is scaring you into crazy repair costs based on unreliability of certain components.

For the most part here people grab the windshield and tire and wheel and leave the rest on the table. I haven’t lost on the windshield warranty yet with our roads and trucks, and wheel and tire I usually pick up a few new rears to close the gap and the rest is just insurance for bent wheels.

Crusje

Yep. I bought an X5 in cash last year and the lady was flabbergasted why I wouldn't get any warranty, insurance, etc. It was like 6k or something for 5 years, but the car already comes with a 4 year warranty so it made no sense. She was trying to make me feel bad saying it's expensive to fix and this is peace of mind. So painful.
​​​I'd rather just have a "spinner" that just signs paperwork like that guy mentioned to be honest.

Motorin Mark

Sorry I was not referring to our intelligence, nor anybody else', lots of smart people are around these days. But I do think that buyers of cars costing what ours do, $150,000-$350,000, tend to do more research on things like interest rates, extended warranties, gap, wheel protection etc. Again YMMV.

Ikone

I remember when I was buying a GTI a few years back, the Finance lady tried to tell me that the standard warranty covers parts but not the labor. I was shocked and challenged her on it asking a few questions and she immediately back pedaled. Crazy. She must try that with every buyer, hoping someone bites.

vladie22

Do I ? I do not. I'm actually on your side with this topic 100%. Between the hours involved, and the amount of work required day to day, F&I managers earn the money they make. Why do people have a problem with the money they earn?

redtanrt10

Budman, If you look at Q1 data from the "Big 6" public dealership groups, F&I income is approximately 25% of the total profit on new and used cars sold at retail. Porsche is a unique and small brand so that number is directionally correct for Porsche dealers. F&I income critical profit center for all auto dealers, and the vast majority of that profit comes from product sales, not facilitating financing.

vladie22

Because the dollar amounts are a lot higher than "normal" cars, F&I profit is split pretty equally between reserve and product sales.