Buying a new 450F, What a dealer tried to pull on me

[FLTHUMPER]

Ok Guys, so I headed down to the local Yamaha dealer to pick up that nice 450F LE that I had been drooling over in the window for several weeks. I am greeted by a young lady who asks me if I have any questions. I tell her not really, that I am ready to buy and just want to talk about the price. I dont really want to drive too far away and want to give my business to a local dealer who will be doing the maintenance. I ask her to come off the LE a couple hundred and I would be happy to buy today. At first she said that she wouldnt be able to and started babling about them going into a museum one day because they are so rare ?????. I informed her it was yellow plastic and a graphic kit. No big deal... Anyway she gets the manager who agrees to take 200 off the RETAIL price and starts to write it up. They try to add almost $600.00 for shipping and building the bike ? I said no way Jose. I am not paying 600 dollars, then 189 for a title fee, then 150 for administrative costs. They would not budge on the price and needless to say, I didnt buy from them.

Lesson: Dont EVER try to buy from the Yamaha dealership in Tallahassee, FL they totally SUCK!!!

[ESC]

Nope...not just that dealer. They ALL suck.

[grayracer513]

Econ 101

Supply, Demand and Market Price Tolerance.

As long as the supply is limited, relative to the demand, and there are buyers willing to pay higher prices in sufficient quantity to move the inventory, the price will stay high. As soon as consumers collectively resist the price to the extent that the inventory stops moving, the price will come down.

The problem here is that the dealers believe that they can get that kind of money for the bike, and so far, they've been right. Is that their fault?

[brycee]

You just need to find a more volume based dealer... they're around... just hunt.

I got my LE last week for $6400 out the door (without taxes or titling fees...oregon). I was happy because that's way under retail and he didn't put any shipping or setup costs on top either.

Thats BS man... hope you find a great deal somewhere.

[Yak]

Econ 101

Supply, Demand and Market Price Tolerance.

As long as the supply is limited, relative to the demand, and there are buyers willing to pay higher prices in sufficient quantity to move the inventory, the price will stay high. As soon as consumers collectively resist the price to the extent that the inventory stops moving, the price will come down.

The problem here is that the dealers believe that they can get that kind of money for the bike, and so far, they've been right. Is that their fault?

Just because you CAN charge more for market conditions, doesn't mean you should.. Would you charge a thristy man $10.00 for a glass of water? Obviously if he has the means and desire, he'd pay for it, but that doesn't make it right.

[Wicked Xtreme]

I have to say that my dealer is awesome. They are at every race to give support to there customers. Everyone who works there rides so they are familiar with the bikes. They have great support and contingencies. It is the only place I go for parts and service.

Time for a tasteful plug:

If your in Lower N.Y and looking for great deals on all Yamaha products, stop by and visit the great people at HUNTER motorcycles in Thornwood N.Y. Great people and good times.

[grayracer513]

Just because you CAN charge more for market conditions, doesn't mean you should.. Would you charge a thristy man $10.00 for a glass of water? Obviously if he has the means and desire, he'd pay for it, but that doesn't make it right.

What I would do has nothing to do with it. The harsh, simple reality is that as long as people will pay $10 for a glass of water, that's what the price will be.

Something that isn't apparent from the information given here is that very often, how many "special" vehicles a dealer gets is dependent on their sales totals for previous years. Higher volume dealers are rewarded with the ability to order larger numbers of the really hot sellers. Chevrolet does that with Corvettes. Some dealers can sell seemingly as many as they like, while others get one a year, and that's it. I don't know if Yamaha does this with the LE's but it's starting to look like it. If that's the case with the dealer in question, and they have only one or two units available to them for a given time period, management may feel they have more to gain by getting the highest possible price for them, no matter how long it takes. A larger dealer would have more to gain by maximizing his sales volume.

[RCannon]

This is how many of the dealers around here operate. Not that I would mention PLAZA CYCLE or Perry Brothers Honda by name......

These dealers also add 150.00 for document fees. This is on top of the 700.00 freight and set-up fees.

These dealers are not for people like us.

I sold for both of them during High School and made a LOT of money. We catered to payment shoppers. Get them approved for X amount of credit. Find out how much they were putting down and how much a month they wanted to spend. The guys always said...200 per month.

You would then go in the "Back room" Really you just sat there punching numbers in the calculator. You figured the maximum amount you could charge for everything involved. You ALWAYS went back in with a payment of 193.68 or so...like you REALLY tried. 99% of the time they were thrilled at how hard you worked to save them 7 bucks a month. WHATS THAT! WOW!!! 20% off on accessories? Damn.....and a free helmet?? SOLD!!!

I was paid 15% of the profit in the whole deal. The entire profit was usually not a giant amount on the motorcycle. Maybe only 300-400 bucks. BUT, the inflated set-up, doc fees, etc was straight profit. You could double your share by creative number inventing. Often times the sexy finance lady could sell them an extended warranty. This was sweet. Sure, the payment was now 208.44, but the guy was so happy from the previous interaction that the extra 15 bucks felt like he was looking out for his family. Obviously it was smart to pay an extra 15 bucks to see that your family was ok in the event of your death.....

Most deals went that way. The people that hated the system ended up at Honda-Suzuki of salt Lake. They did not dick people around. Here is the price, this is set up, here's out the door. Those people were offered a reasonable deal. The smart ones went for it.

So, if you walked into the shop and offered money for a desireable bike, why would I want to sell it to you? The supply was limited on the good bikes. A sale to you would cost me commission. It was one bike out of the system. 20 minutes later another payment shopper would walk in and I was in fat city once more.

Find another dealer. Sometimes you can spot a decent dealer by noticing if the price is hanging on the bike. The "system" shops rarely do this unless its a non-current bike.

[TeamScream]

Find another dealer. Sometimes you can spot a decent dealer by noticing if the price is hanging on the bike. The "system" shops rarely do this unless its a non-current bike.

That sums it all up perfectly.

[DPW]

LOL...the story I could tell, but I start sounding like a broken record.

Shop around is my best advice. There are good deals to be found, but it takes some time and playing a little hardball.

[kirkray1]

I paid 7000 out the door with title for Le in west palm beach actually had abetter deal in okeechobee 6800 but bike would not be her till april could not wait why not order one from this site ? they have some good prices i think thats how i will buy my next one

[riderman329]

honda east toledo (www.hondaeasttoledo.com) 2006 yz450f blue $6189 out the door and you being in FL shipping would be need, the LE is $300 more. ask for jeff eckman, and tell them Matt Carver sent you!

[Drfletcherdc]

I bought mine over the phone. I just called up a couple of dealers and told them this is what I would pay OTD and could they do it. The one I bought it from said yes, I said have it ready I will be there in 2 hours. It was the easiest and quickest bike I have ever bought.

[Blaster21996]

honda east toledo (www.hondaeasttoledo.com) 2006 yz450f blue $6189 out the door and you being in FL shipping would be need, the LE is $300 more. ask for jeff eckman, and tell them Matt Carver sent you!

Even the better deal can be had better-er! I got my LE from EAST also. I paid 6195+295 shipping to Florida+ 50.00 Document Fee ( Overnight Fed-exing).

We are a capitalistic society! I have some worthless TECH stocks leftover from 2000, to prove it! But, I am not complaining, I am jeering! Caviar wishes and champagne dreams to all ?

[dirtbikindad426]

LOL...the story I could tell, but I start sounding like a broken record.

Shop around is my best advice. There are good deals to be found, but it takes some time and playing a little hardball.

Yep what DPW said.

[stknrdr]

Theres only one way to do this stuff...do your research, find out what you should pay for the bike. Walk into the dealer and offer them that much for it. If they refuse..walk out...go to another dealer. Rinse repeat until youve got your bike. Your biggest enemy is impatience..."I HAVE to have this bike today" will kill you every time.

Same if you are offering a trade in...figure out what your bike is worth..realisitically, and then stick to your guns. Youll find a dealer who will make your deal if its reasonable.

He who can walk away controls the deal.

I dont even try at my local dealer here in Logan, Ut anymore...they wont ever deal and they are always 500 bucks too high. Screw Cache Honda Yamaha and go to Vescos, and sometimes screw Vescos too if they want to jack up the price with doc fees.

Point is that even here in northwest podunk there are plenty of dealers to choose from...and you can usually make your deal over the phone..you dont even have to go down to the dealership.

[MotoGoalie]

Just because you CAN charge more for market conditions, doesn't mean you should.. Would you charge a thristy man $10.00 for a glass of water? Obviously if he has the means and desire, he'd pay for it, but that doesn't make it right.

Dude its a stinkin dirt bike.

If I'm selling something on e-bay I want as much geetus as I can get my grubby hands on.

If I'm buying, I want it as cheap as possible.

That's market economics.

There is no moral to it. It just is what it is.

[Juniordog]

i gotta agree with motogoalie, a dirtbike is essentially a luxury item.

its not an essential item. they know a guy will come in after you and pay full pop cus he has the money.

sad but true...

[quartzite]

Just because you CAN charge more for market conditions, doesn't mean you should.. Would you charge a thristy man $10.00 for a glass of water? Obviously if he has the means and desire, he'd pay for it, but that doesn't make it right.

I dunno, sounds awfully close to "Pinko"...

I'm just pulling your chain. I really don't agree with "what's good for business is good for America." I'll probably get deported to "Hallistan" pretty soon... ?

[JetBlueJoe]

I went to the Yamaha dealer near where I work today to purchase a EF1000i generator for when we go away. I frequent the store a lot checking out there bikes so they kind of know me. Anyway I purchase the generator (which I got a good price on) and I start inquiring about the Yellow 450 (I've been dreaming about this bike) that's on the floor. They know I've been eyeing the bike. My atitude is this; if I can buy a brand new model year bike from a local dealer with an out the door cost for suggested retail or less, the dealer has my repect and most likely my business. I ended up buying the bike too; the dealer made it pain less. I paid $6850 for a Blue 06 450 they had in a crate. That price includes .0875 percent New York State sales tax and registration fees. I agree it's still a lot of money but I was able to sell my 04 so I'm not doing to bad. Plus I want the dealer to make money he's got to pay rent, some day I may need him and I don't want a cheseler relationship. It's just to bad that Yamaha had to make that big price increase this year. There playing catch up with Honda. The bike is being prepped as I write this; it will be in my garage Thursday and on it's way to Englishtown Friday!