LewisB

From the Walters Porsche website....

Special Pricing on New Car Inventory!

2012 Carrera S Cabriolet Was $116,920 Now $99,989 #754229

2012 Carrera 4S Coupe Was $111,770 Now $99,989 #720101

2012 Carrera 4S Targa Was $107,350 Now $92,989 #733130

2012 Carrera 4S Targa Was $125,800 Now $109,989 #733131

2012 Carrera 4GTS Coupe Was $128,800 Now $108,800 #721055

2012 Carrera 4GTS Coupe Was $134,270 Now $114,270 #721110

2012 Carrera S Coupe-New 911 Was $110,215 Now $100,215 #120120



Similar Saving's on ALL New Car 's In Stock!






Article posted on: Jul 01, 2012

Zeus993

You are a pro my friend. Thanks for detailing out your technique.

cairo94507

I prefer to negotiate in person too. I once agreed to go negotiate for a friend on a slightly used car he wanted. I called the dealership to make sure the car was still there and they called me back and confirmed it was still available.

We went in and I made the offer I felt was fair and reasonable given the market. The salesperson was kind of a jerk but I was polite and professional. After about 1 hour of talking I said I had made our best offer and if they wanted to sell the car, right now, they should accept or we would walk. He refused and we walked.

My friend was freaking out and wanted to throw another $2,500 into the deal as he really wanted the car. I told him we were going to go have lunch and I bet the phone would ring. Sure enough as we sat down to eat the phone rang and the salesperson was like "I can't believe you actually left. OK, we will accept your offer and you can have the car." I said, "Look, we were there and ready to perform and you refused our offer. We are now out of the area and if you expect us to return you need to drop an additional $500. He was saying but we are accepting your offer. I said that offer is dead, the new offer is $500 less. Accept it now or we are gone." They accepted it and we returned and bought the car on the spot. I saved my friend $3,000, he bought me lunch and we both had a great time.

eflight

Its funny how everyone tells the story about the great deal they made but never about the ones that got away

I was looking at a real nice 08 c4s in Utah, Got the dealer down to 63K From 66K, but was hoping to get it down a little more. Car even came with winter wheels and rims. then dealer told me they had to put new tires on since it was a CPO and needed N rated tires. Did I jump on it, nope, I was playing the hold firm and wait for a call back game. Guess what, they e-mailed me back later that day saying they had sold it.

So you can play hardball if you want, sometimes you lose.

fast1

My last two car purchases were made over the phone and only took about 45 minutes to complete. I started with the Dealer closest to me and planned to work my way out farther if necessary. There are 7 Porsche Dealers within 90 minutes of my house. Of course I do lots of home work prior to making my calls so when I call I can tell them how much over invoice I'm willing to pay them and that includes documentation fees which can range in my area from $200 - $500+. I've found that salesmen are less prone to play games over the phone than they are when you are in person. Of course you must convince them that you are a serious buyer and not merely on a fishing expedition.

sjfehr

I had to walk away from the local dealership twice on used Porsches because their sticker price was considerably above KBB and they simply refused to negotiate. Hate to say it, but it worked out well for them; apparently, when people buy Porsches, they're willing to pay a massive premium to buy it from a dealer- the 2nd car, I found out later I was the 4th test drive that day and they sold it for sticker the next day. Screw paying dealer mark-ups; I ended up driving 3 hours to buy the car from ta private seller, for several thousand below dealer blue book, yet several thousand above what the seller would have gotten as a trade-in. Win-win!

USMC_DS1

+1... I find phone and internet negotiations works best for me. 2 Toyota trucks, 1 new Lexus SUV, and my CPO'd '08 C2S over the past 4 yrs have been negotiated this way. Discounts have typically ranged from 15-20% of asking price. The new Lexus was closed over 4 text messages at $10K+ off retail... we found the highest volume sales rep at the supposed highest volume Lexus dealer in the nation - Sewell Lexas in Dallas.

My C2S was negotiated over a few calls and some email messages... I prefer this as it leaves a written paper trail. Secured $11K off asking, had an Indy do the PPI, flew out to test drive, then closed the deal... also had another car(backup option) waiting for me on that trip.

In the end it's all a game where I find myself trying to one up my last negotiation. I'm fortunate enough to have multiple vehicles and the luxury of time to enjoy the hunt for the perfect car as much as the perfect deal.

OP, best of luck and enjoy the ride... once you find the right deal/car for you.

wanderingwheelz

I don't sell P-cars but in my line of work I would never make my best deal over the phone with a prospective buyer. Until a person is sitting in front of me, I figure it's almost certainly just another jerk*ff. Look at it another way... Can a buyer take delivery of the car they want the best price on over the phone? No.

If you're a buyer, get cash in hand and get in front of the sales manager. That's the only way you can be sure you are getting your best deal. Oh yea, and definitely be ready to walk.

Just as in real estate, all markets are local so be prepared to take a drive. Get started over the phone, but don't agree to anything until you're seated.

Iceter

The problem is that when you search for a car nationwide (as I sometimes do), once you fly in, you are essentially at the store's mercy. Negotiating a price beforehand is necessary before you travel and no dealership can be trusted to hold a car for you unless you put a deposit down--meaning most of the substantive negotiating has to be done ahead of time and can't be done in person.

Once you're there, unless you can make the case that the vehicle is not as they represented online, you have almost no negotiating power sitting in their showroom.

I have had some luck moving the price down a bit once I'm onsite by offering to finance as opposed to stroking a check. That way the store can make some reserve and the F&I manager is always willing to cut the salesman's pay to make some money of his own. This has a side benefit. Financing cars and keeping the loans open for a few months before you pay them off keeps fresh installment credit on your CBI and keeps your Beacon score high. To avoid paying interest, make an initial principal payment of most of the loan amount and leave about five or six months of payments outstanding. Make your regular payment until the balance of the loan is paid off. With today's sales finance rates, the total interest you'll pay is miniscule.

Other than that, I see very little opportunity to negotiate at the store unless you're someplace local.

sandwedge

Sorry but I disagree. I've negotiated my last four car purchases over the phone and got what I consider great deals and great cars. What's the difference between sitting in front of the sales guy with cash in your hand and talking on the phone with a credit card in your hand? You can't leave the dealership in person in dramatic fashion talking on the phone but you can achieve the exact same effect by ending the phone call.

As long as you have comprehensive information in writing from the dealership stating the condition of the car I just don't see what edge you gain being "seated" at the dealership. Frankly I think it can be detrimental for long distance buyers. You've paid for airfare, lodging, rental car and everything else that goes along with a two day trip. How big is the temptation to accept a higher price than you expected to pay or accepting some defects you didn't anticipate because of the trouble and expense you've already plowed into the deal?

USMC_DS1

+1... In my line of business I negotiate multi-million dollars business contracts over the phone why not a car. Back in '09 a test drive and a FTF negotiations with the local Lexus dealer landed me a poultry $1,500 off a $57K GX-470. A phone call and a few text messages with the dealer in Dallas yielded a $10K discount. Once I hit that 17-20% off mark on the phone I'm no longer interested in any further discussions re the price... especially as phone is so much more effective than FTF. If the car checks out after the test drive and/or PPI we cut a check and enjoy the drive home. In fact, I find that negotiating upfront minimizes the test drive emotions as a factor in the equation. A good thing as I was immediately enamored with my current p-car the moment I saw it at the dealer. Fortunately I had pre-negotiated a price discount of $11K prior to flying out after receiving a clean PPI from my Indy. BTW, the local p-car dealer here in Austin was a complete joke... could not even bother to call me back after I made them a written quote online. I called their sale manager who promised to call me back in an hour... You know what they say about promises. In Austin we only have one Porsche, Lexus, and BMW dealership... so you have to go outside the local markets to secure a good deal.

The biggest factor today is the ability to shop throughout the nation for the car you want w/o having to make a FTF visit... flying out before you secure a price would just hand that dealership all the negotiating cards. Sellers only get me to fly out if everything lines up upfront. Also ideal if you have two or more options at the same locations JIC. To each his own but this has worked for me with four vehicles over the past 4 yrs.

Tcc1999

Generally, I wouldn't disagree but it depends on the product. Most Porsche's are not limited production and dealers make their money by moving sheet metal (it's a car, not a house). If you won't deal over the phone/EMAIL you are probably going to lose sales. Sure, you might be able to get a little more profit face to face but what seems apparent is that dealers who are phone/internet friendly make up for what they may lose in percentage profit by volume (and I doubt PCNA cares how the cars are sold, as long as they are sold - plus, the more cars you sell the better your standing w/ PCNA). Further, it also seems very time efficient to exchange EMAILs and phone calls than spend time face to face and maybe not close the deal. What dealers (and private party sellers) probably understand is that when you are spending this much on a car it is not big deal (as a percentage of what you save) to either have the car shipped to you or get on a plane and pick it up. Of course this is just my simple opinion.

rolex11

To all who have stated their negotiating methods, are we talking only used cars? Most of you mention a PPI, I assume this is not needed for a new car so we're talking used, right?

USMC_DS1

Yes - I think we're all referring used cars... I've never done a PPI on a new car. I will get a PPI, however, on CPO'd cars even though they're under warranty. CPO does not identify prior accidents nor other ailments the dealer did not catch during their 100+ point inspection.

scotsskier

Nope. You are speaking here as a seller. Always easier to get the buyer to spend more when you can see his emotions and play off them to drive them up. From a personal perspective I like to get to a close to final deal by phone/email and then do the final closing f2f if required. And yes, as a supply chain vp in a former career with a 500m spend used very similar approach very successfully.

What really cracks me up with car buying is dealerships that advertise as Internet friendly and give contact emails for their Internet sales manager and their response to an inquiry is "please give us a call and come in so we can discuss.....". Wtf? I am not going to waste my time if you are not prepared to show some of your cards up front to see whether or not you are serious.