How Much Discount to Ask for on a Brand New 140K Mercedes GLS 350d?

BestofOZB on 28/07/2016 - 10:55
Last edited 02/08/2016 - 19:54 by 1 other user

Hi ozbargainers!

I have achieved a new milestone in my life and decided to treat myself and my family to a new car.

This is my second brand new car, my first one was during the financial crisis so rules don't apply now.

I have already decided on the car, test-driven it and am in the final stage of negotiating the price (please do not suggest used or alternative cars).

Dealer's initial price is 140k, my question is how much does a dealership usually margin their prices to allow for discounts? How much discount should I ask for/expect?

Details:

Car : Merc GLS 350d
State : QLD
Price: 95k
Options (heated seats, TV etc): 9k
Dealer delivery : 4k (max on Merc website is 2,700)
Rego: 900
GST : 11,000
LCT: 16,000
Stamp : 4,500

As a comparison Audi Q7 with similar specs quoted us 130k discounted to 119k.

I want to ask/get it for 125k, is that a reasonable ask, how much should I negotiate for. Any thoughts/facts would be appreciated.

Ask any more details if it is not there.

EDIT: Closed a deal at $125,800 drive away from a dealer 2 hrs away.
Ended up calling 5 dealerships. Prices ranged from $138-142K. Which makes it a discount of 9%-11.5%.

Automotive

Comments

      • jerjergege on 30/07/2016 - 17:34
        +1

        Never had a old car to trade in, this is my first car :)

        EDIT: Forgot to answer your questions, It's a 2015 automatic Sedan VTI-S

    • Matt P on 29/07/2016 - 22:15

      its possible because the civic's just aren't moving these days. new model on the horizon and lots of existing stock = great prices

  • [Deactivated] on 29/07/2016 - 14:22

    You want to be in the best position to negotiate the cheapest possible price on the Merc, then think like a merc.

    1. Find salesperson who is not intimidating and who you simply do not like the look of, someone you feel you could comfortably bully.
    2. Find out where he lives, wait outside his house with camera and let him see you taking photos of his family, then drive off quickly. Do this several times.
    3. Approach him in his sales office and show photos, be very threatening as you ask for best price on car.
    4. Enjoy new car :-)
  • porsche26c on 29/07/2016 - 15:21

    ummm mercedes, i would get the audi q7, much more update technology and i find the interior much better quality. andi n your case - cheaper.
    to get the best price, just get a broker to do all the hard work for you - some dont charge, some only charge like $150 - basically email the whole of AUS and find the best prices.

    • BestofOZB on 29/07/2016 - 19:24

      I would take your porsche :)

      • porsche26c on 30/07/2016 - 07:36

        i wish lol
        my ebay name from when i was 15 yo lol.

    • Matt P on 29/07/2016 - 22:17
      +1

      The brokers charge, just not you. They charge the dealer who supplies the car. You know how that charge gets paid? out of the discount bucket for your new car

  • Tasmaniac on 29/07/2016 - 15:26
    -1

    Cars aren't assets and I'm guessing your not making a million dollars a year. If I told my friends I was spending that kind of money on a luxury car they would genuinely think I was an idiot and that I'd learnt nothing. Throwing that kind of money at a Mercedes is a very poor business decision.

    That being said congrats, I hope you enjoy the car.

    • abovethelimit on 29/07/2016 - 16:50

      Well what's the harm aye? If you got it then flaunt it eh….the OP has made some wise business decisions early on to get to this stage…let him reap the benefits of his hard work I say. Now is the time to capitalize when the interest rates are historically low and finance companies are throwing deals with no initial or on-going fees and interest rates starting from 4.2%. The diff in repayments between my old loan at 8.5% to my current loan at 4.5% is so minimal that I don't even notice.

      On the other end of the spectrum, I have a colleague who took money from his home equity to buy a Tesla p75 brand new….now that's a poor business decision in my books

  • csjc on 29/07/2016 - 18:48

    Congrats on the promotion! One of my clients and his friends bought 3x X5s. The price after options came to about $145k each…they walked away paying $100k each. That is a very big discount, but I'd say you can start at $120k and they wouldn't really be pissy just yet.

    • BestofOZB on 29/07/2016 - 19:25

      That's a very huge discounts, makes you really wonder how much margin they make on these things!!!

  • snajper on 30/07/2016 - 06:49

    Congrats on your promotion

    I think start at 125 and you will get it for $130k….realistically…
    I have purchased 6 new cars over the past 10 years and always get 10% off… that is usually my guideline… unless it is outgoing model and last year plated where you can get more.

    • wtfnodeal on 30/07/2016 - 07:07
      +1

      A BMW dealer of my friend said:"at least 20% off their RRP easily".

  • peterw1 on 30/07/2016 - 08:27
    -1

    you reach a milestone and mercedes benz gets the treat. i don't get it, but each to their own. anyway recently BMW brisbane had a professional package or something like that where they offered 10% off the driveway price and included 5 years complimentary scheduled servicing. you should at least get something similar from benz in your dealings. good luck and congratulations

  • MkVIGTI on 30/07/2016 - 09:12
    +1

    I would be aiming for 20% off Op, you can always get a better deal for something they have in stock that they can deliver straight away. Can just call up with ur credit card and don't even need to go into the dealership to negotiate.

  • scratchback on 30/07/2016 - 10:37

    15% off is normal negotiation and it will make final price116000. So start with 110k.

  • dissin on 30/07/2016 - 13:38
    +1

    Totally off topic, but I now buy 3 year old second hand luxury cars. I ensure there is 1 owner, all serviced by manufacturer dealer and still has 1-2 years manufacturer warranty remaining (a must).

    Bought twice this way. No regrets at all.

    Car is "new", current shape, low km's and huge savings as the 1st owner takes the hit / depreciation etc.

    BMW X3 & 1 series convertibe in garage.

    Total paid by 1st owners new $145K (well optioned)

    I paid $80K total.

    Oh and most important is to pick models that are tried and tested and have no reliability issues. Ideally several generations in, as you have to consider servicing costs after manufacturers warranty ends. I take to independent specialists, not the dealer once warranty over.

    Just got the X3 annual service yesterday in fact, for $375 all up. Running smooth as.

    • jabbairc on 30/07/2016 - 14:40

      You nailed it, same approach and same results :)

    • [Deactivated] on 30/07/2016 - 18:18

      55% retail residual after 2-3 years. You bought VERY well.

  • Penalty boxer on 30/07/2016 - 16:07
    +1

    Have bought 3 Mercs (all new) in the past and my experience is this:

    • Every dollar you save from the base value of a car means you will save an additional 30 cents because of LCT, GST and stamp duty.
    • Dealer delivery is BS. So knock that off your driveaway price
    • There are fatter margins in options than there is in the stock car
    • At the end you're never going to get a better value car than a Toyota
  • Unknown1 on 30/07/2016 - 16:17
    +1

    Post from djkelly69 on 19/10/2012 - 21:52, who posted David Sklansky (professional poker player) method:

    "I got the best price on a new car many years ago by shuttling back and forth between two Buick dealers in Vegas who had different owners and were selling the same model with virtually identical options. The trick is to start with an insanely low offer, gradually raise it each time you visit or revisit the dealership and to divulge your strategy to both of them. Unless they are colluding, this technique cannot fail to land an offer that is right at the lowest number they will take. Because they know that if they let you walk away without accepting a profitable offer, the other dealer will certainly accept the slightly higher one you offer him.

    The beauty of this technique is that you need not know anything about the invoice price, dealer kickbacks, general demand for the car or whatever. The only downside is that it takes a few hours. Plus you need to be in a town big enough to have two dealers for the same car with two different owners*."

    Reference:
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/81984

    *Assumes model of car can be bought from dealerships.

  • cDNA on 30/07/2016 - 18:27
    -2

    Treat your family to a Toyota Prado with all the extras and buy them each a new Samsung Galaxy Note 7 next month.

    Mercs are horse shit.

    Use some of that money to hire a nice and private beach side property (unless you already have one) and enjoy a break.

    That's what I would do. :)

  • ganymede on 30/07/2016 - 18:58
    +1

    OP,

    There is an active discussion on the smaller GLC on whirlpool, take a look there and perhaps you can get some idea how much discount you can get, I know the discussion is about GLC but good info too.

  • 00 on 31/07/2016 - 14:51

    Tesla Model S

  • Kiz on 31/07/2016 - 18:30

    I've heard of people doing the following.
    1. Find a few dealers that have your car available
    2. Get there email addresses
    3. Email every single one of them (with their email addresses visible) asking what the best price is, being specific to exactly what you want
    4. As they know they are now competing against others, let the offers role in and see what you can get!

    Good luck

    • lilkid28 on 31/07/2016 - 19:56

      Maybe start a group chat and get them to offer their best prices, like an open tender?

  • Lyndo Lowkey on 07/01/2017 - 19:30

    How much did you manage to buy this for in the end?

  • mygame on 28/03/2017 - 18:05

    That sounds like a really good price. I am looking to buy the base GLS 350D with no additional options. The cheapest I have been quoted is $121k from a retail price of $129k.
    Can you pm with dealer details of where u got yours from

    • BestofOZB on 28/03/2017 - 18:27

      Sorry couldn't PM you not sure what's wrong!
      It was the Sunshine Coast dealer.
      Based on my personal experience, I would think you should be able to get it for $115K.
      It's a great car, good luck!

  • mygame on 29/03/2017 - 09:12

    Thanks BestofOZB
    Have you seen the car in Cavesinte Blue colour, I havent seen any on the road, but the dealer says it is a really good two tone colour

    • BestofOZB on 29/03/2017 - 20:50

      Yes it looks awesome, we considered it but decided to go with black. It will go nicely with a beige interior. We have black exterior and beige interior.
      Don't get too attached to a dealer, negotiate the best price first with a metalic paint added on and worry about the colour choices later (if you are happy to wait for a few months).

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