Negotiating price with dealer/private sale on used bike. How?

dMaN24

Hi there.

I'm in the market for getting myself a new bike again.
I've set my sights for a few nice ones, but i'm not sure about the haggling-part.

I've found some bikes that are up for private sale and they are (of course) cheaper. Some by about 500 euros.

So for instance. Let's say i find a 2007 model on sale by private seller for 6500. All stock. And the shop wants 7000, but this has some extras (slip-on etc)

How much room would it be for me to negotiate in a shop? Would i be able to come down to 6500?

Or get it for 7 but with added incentives like a helmet, disc-lock or something like this?

P.s. I want a bike!

cantdecide

Firstly, you should be able to do a bit better always, on a straight deal. You have two completely different scenarios there and I think they don't compare very well.

Because of the nature of used bike prices being such that they're often associated with the bikes many consumables, it's hard to say how much a shop is likely to come down. If the market value of the 2007 shop bike is €7k and it was traded-in needing both tyres, brake pads, a service and chain/ sprockets and maybe one or two other incientals, it's hard to see the shop giving you much off the asking price. If it was perfectly well maintained and needed nothing, they'll almost certainly be more competitive.

A private sale is anyone's guess. The approach should be "ya, I really like your bike, it's perfect for. The problem is I was only budgeting for €6k. I'd love to take the bike off ya but I couldn't pay the rent if I did- how close to €6k could you come?".

dMaN24

Good points there.

I guess it's a bit of comparing apples and oranges.

gipi

If you buy from a shop, you will probably get a warranty (even 3 months) with the bike, which you certainly won't get if you buy privately.

That might be worth a few quid extra, depending on what you're buying.

cantdecide

To answer your other question, in my experience, there is little difference between the price of a bike, completely standard vs the same bike with a few accessories.

I think almost every bike will have had a few changes and upgrades after a few years. Realistically, you don't get much kudos for extras. With some exceptions they can really only be used as more of a selling point than something that can be used to increase the asking price. Bikes that have been personalised too much could drop in value and/ or desirability, even if it's perfectly to your tastes. It's just something to bear in mind. For your purposes, don't pay a premium for a bike that has an aftermarket can and heated grips or that sort of thing.

In my case, my Busa had tons of cool and useful, removable extras and I still paid the same as if it were completely standard.

Keith186

If the bike doesn't have extras use that for haggling the price down.

i.e. I have to spend x to put on a givi rack/hugger/crash bobbins so give me 500 off please!

Paparazzo

Buying from the shop has the warranty advantage. They'll definitely be able to come down a bit.
And as cantdecide says, extras make fúck all difference to bike price. But if you see one with something like a nice exhaust, even an decent end can can cost €500. So if a bike has some extras you were thinking of getting anyway it can save you a lot. That's probably some of the most obvious advice ever, don't know why I bothered typing it

defike

If your buying private how does the test ride work.
Do you leave a deposit or full price or just trust the guy to come back with your bike whats the norm,(I'm a seller).

Paparazzo

defike wrote: »

If your buying private how does the test ride work.
Do you leave a deposit or full price or just trust the guy to come back with your bike whats the norm,(I'm a seller).

Was reading about it in a mag before. They reckon get his licence or take a photo.

gipi

You'll see some ads on Donedeal which state "no test ride without full price" - i.e. before you hand over the keys, the test rider hands over the full asking price in cash!

Del2005

defike wrote: »

If your buying private how does the test ride work.
Do you leave a deposit or full price or just trust the guy to come back with your bike whats the norm,(I'm a seller).

gipi wrote: »

You'll see some ads on Donedeal which state "no test ride without full price" - i.e. before you hand over the keys, the test rider hands over the full asking price in cash!

That's the problem with buying private. You want to ride the bike to see if it's OK but they won't let you in case you steal it. So you have to give them the asking price for a test ride, but you can't be sure they haven't stolen it.

If you are handing over money make sure you meet the person at the house the bike is registered to and make sure they come out of it.

Henry Ford III

Haggling is an art form. It can be fun too, but always stay civil.

Qualify yourself as a prospective buyer. I'm in the market and ready to buy now. I have cash available, plus license and insurance. That shows the dealer you are for real, and not just there to tyre kick/time waste.

Asking price €7k. How much for a straight sale? (i.e. no trade in)

Extras. If they are on the bike say you don't want/need them. If they aren't say the opposite.

Warranty. Not worth it imho. If it all checks out, and check fully and carefully by all means, you shouldn't have any issue. If you see any faults (however minor) point them out now.

Opposition. Introduce this in negotiations. I have 3 more bikes to see. Advertised cheaper too with less mileage btw. If you moved a bit on price maybe I wouldn't bother.

Control. If all is going well you really should have knocked maybe 8% off by now. So €7k becomes €6440. Now comes the good bit.....

"We're at €6440, but the bike needs tyres, tax, extras, repairs..........(pad it out here a little). Realistically I'll be putting €500 into it, so I'm going to make you an offer of €5500.
Dealer will recoil in horror at this point. He'll reject it. He should come down a bit as you've set the floor price, and now it's only about closing the gap. He might say - €6000 and it's yours. Offer €5700 or €5750. Settle between your €5750, and his €6000.

Sorted.

cantdecide

There are some good points there, HF3 but IME, things have changed in the last couple of years. My experience of haggling these days is that people are asking roughly what their bottom line is, plus a few bob.

The bike I buy in NZ will be my twentieth vehicle so I've teased out a few deals in my time aside from the dozens of car-hunts I've been dragged along on! My experience of any recent deal, whether private or dealer, is that there's not much haggling. I would definitely suggest the OP uses your techniques but in reality, I wouldn't suggest he goes looking at a bike with a price tag of €7k and expect to get it for €6k. There are exceptions of course. Eg, private sale where emigration is iminent, type thing.

Furthermore, you should always bid for a bike on the basis that you ARE prepared to walk away from it. That means that your parting shot can always be- 'I do like the bike but the deal isn't where i need to be- however, if you do it for this much, I'll cancel my other appointments right now'. Don't do this unless you're prepared to shake on the deal right there, though.

Another thing I've noticed is that they often find a way of getting you to come back or ring back, these days. 'Oh look, the boss is away, I'll ring you Tuesday', 'I'll have to find out the cost of the back tyre, ring me at the start of the week' or the oh so overdone 'we're selling it for a fella who's away for the weekend'. Make sure you side-step those techniques. Firmly but politely suggest you want to arrange a bike 'today' if possible and ask them for a price they are prepared to commit to.