'Cash Buyer' - this term confuses me

plys

I'm close to committing to buy a car from a main dealer, if i can get the price right. I am, however, undecided as to my finance options.

At the moment I have a personal loan out which will cover the cost of the car - this would enable me to walk into the dealership as a 'Cash Buyer'.

The alternative is walk in with a deposit and get finance arranged by the dealership. (and pay the balance off my personal loan)


All else being equal (ie if you ignore my personal finances and simply focus on the deal I can strike with the garage), I am pretty sure I have more bargaining power if I walk in as a 'Cash Buyer'.

Is this a realistic assumption? If so, how much more? Is the difference likely to be substantial?



Ok, lets say I am going to spend 15k on a motor. If I do turn out to be a 'Cash Buyer', am I literally going to have to get fifteen grand cash out of the bank and plonk it on the counter in from of the sales guy? Or is it much more subtle than that??

Honey-ec

It will avail you little to nothing, tbh. Dealers prefer customers who'll finance through them as they earn commission on that.

Not having a trade-in would make you a far more attractive proposition than being a "cash buyer".

As an aside, that term means virtually nothing anymore.

ETA:

plys wrote: »

Ok, lets say I am going to spend 15k on a motor. If I do turn out to be a 'Cash Buyer', am I literally going to have to get fifteen grand cash out of the bank and plonk it on the counter in from of the sales guy? Or is it much more subtle than that??

That actually happened to me before. Guy bought a demo off me for 14k. Told me he was paying cash. Everyone who's not financing says this. Both myself and the BM nearly died when he arrived in to collect the car with literally 14 grand in fifties in a duffle bag. He was kindly pointed in the direction of the nearest bank to do either an EFT or get a draft.

No main dealership in the country will take 15k in cash off you.

djimi

Cash buyer usually means you are not looking to trade in a car.

plys

Honey-ec wrote: »

Not having a trade-in would make you a far more attractive proposition than being a "cash buyer".

djimi wrote: »

Cash buyer usually means you are not looking to trade in a car.

This makes much more sense to me - thanks. I had heard the term thrown around, and the idea of carrying that much cash even for a short time puts the sh**s up me!!

For the record, I'm not trading in - so I guess I do fit into the 'Cash Buyer' category!

bazz26

As said the term "cash buyer" in motor trade terms that you have no part exchange or trade-in, not the method of payment. If you are a cash buyer then you are in a better position to negotiate a discount off the price of the car. If you are going to finance a car through the dealer then you should be able to negotiate a bit more off the price as the dealer/salesperson will get a commission from the finance company for getting them a new customer.

Del2005

bazz26 wrote: »

As said the term "cash buyer" in motor trade terms that you have no part exchange or trade-in, not the method of payment. If you are a cash buyer then you are in a better position to negotiate a discount off the price of the car. If you are going to finance a car through the dealer then you should be able to negotiate a bit more off the price as the dealer/salesperson will get a commission from the finance company for getting them a new customer.

Then you need to figure out if the cost of the dealer finance, less additional discount if you get one, is cheaper than a personal loan without additional discount. Be wary of the fine print of dealer finance.

lookitsme

when i was buying a car i was thinking i would get a better deal by offering cash. cash is king so i thought but as previous commenter said they wouldn't take cash i asked why. he told me if i bought the car off him with a load of cash i could come back 5 minutes later with a balaclava and baseball bat and there is nothing he could do. have to see his point.

dbrunson

lookitsme wrote: »

when i was buying a car i was thinking i would get a better deal by offering cash. cash is king so i thought but as previous commenter said they wouldn't take cash i asked why. he told me if i bought the car off him with a load of cash i could come back 5 minutes later with a balaclava and baseball bat and there is nothing he could do. have to see his point.

Also the banks charge extortinate fees to lodge cash..

Honey-ec

dbrunson wrote: »

Also the banks charge extortinate fees to lodge cash..

And any cash lodgement over 5k has to be reported to Revenue.

plys

plys wrote: »

........ 'Cash Buyer'...........

Same as house buyers who have their old gaf flogged and are mortgage approved, good to go to buy on the spot

ironclaw

Cash is only king in private sales simply for the relative safety and potential tax dodge element. Its irrelevant in reputable main dealership purchases.

Henry Ford III

dbrunson wrote: »

Also the banks charge extortinate fees to lodge cash..

Cash sometimes might not be lodged?

If you're dealing with a lower value car, say €5k or less, producing the folding will quite frequently make the seller agree to a lower price.

The sight of a big bundle of cash is still a very powerful thing, particularly in hard times such as now.

yllw.ldbttr

Honey-ec wrote: »

And any cash lodgement over 5k has to be reported to Revenue.

Used to be anything over 15k unless it has changed. And it doesn't necessarily mean it is assumed dirty, just that revenue may ask to confirm source of the funds.

dinneenp

I'm looking to trade in, buying a car costing about €12000 cash price, €13,450 trade in price. But the car I'm trading in will only get me about €1,500 so in my eyes it's 'almost as' good as a cash sale cos they'll be getting €10,500 in cash (before haggling).
Am I right?

bazz26

dinneenp wrote: »

I'm looking to trade in, buying a car costing about €12000 cash price, €13,450 trade in price. But the car I'm trading in will only get me about €1,500 so in my eyes it's 'almost as' good as a cash sale cos they'll be getting €10,500 in cash (before haggling).
Am I right?

No, all they will do is give you the cash discount in the form of a trade-in price of your old car. As already stated "cash sale" means no trade-in, nothing to do with the method of payment.

So if they want €13450 for it and allow you €1450 for your old car then you are paying them €12k to trade-up. If you remove your trade-in from the deal and you sell your old car privately and get €1500 for it then you buy the new car for around €12k minus the €1500 you got for your old car by selling it yourself so the car cost you €10500 rather the €12k with your old car. Now these are rounded figures but selling your old car yourself it will cost you less than trading it in.

Trading any car in against a new one will always cost you more than selling your old car yourself.

dinneenp

bazz26 wrote: »

No, all they will do is give you the cash discount in the form of a trade-in price of your old car. As already stated "cash sale" means no trade-in, nothing to do with the method of payment.

So if they want €13450 for it and allow you €1450 for your old car then you are paying them €12k to trade-up. If you remove your trade-in from the deal and you sell your old car privately and get €1500 for it then you buy the new car for around €12k minus the €1500 you got for your old car by selling it yourself so the car cost you €10500 rather the €12k with your old car. Now these are rounded figures but selling your old car yourself it will cost you less than trading it in.

Trading any car in against a new one will always cost you more than selling your old car yourself.

Thanks for the reply.
it's a bit stupid- with trade in I'm only getting cash price so no benefit for me.
Could sell privately but hasn't passed the NCT...will look into how much to fix for NCT .

Sofiztikated

Honey-ec wrote: »

It will avail you little to nothing, tbh. Dealers prefer customers who'll finance through them as they earn commission on that.

Not having a trade-in would make you a far more attractive proposition than being a "cash buyer".

As an aside, that term means virtually nothing anymore.

ETA:

That actually happened to me before. Guy bought a demo off me for 14k. Told me he was paying cash. Everyone who's not financing says this. Both myself and the BM nearly died when he arrived in to collect the car with literally 14 grand in fifties in a duffle bag. He was kindly pointed in the direction of the nearest bank to do either an EFT or get a draft.

No main dealership in the country will take 15k in cash off you.

Must have been a horrid small duffle bag. 14k in 50's can easily by carried in a large envelope.

bazz26

dinneenp wrote: »

Thanks for the reply.
it's a bit stupid- with trade in I'm only getting cash price so no benefit for me.
Could sell privately but hasn't passed the NCT...will look into how much to fix for NCT .

But see the dealer will have to NCT your old car too, service it and offer a warranty before sells it on. In that price range it leaves little or no profit for him. You cannot expect to get the same deal as a cash buyer when a dealer has to spend money to get your old car into a saleable condition and still make a profit from it. Not trading your old car means the dealer avoids all that bother and will be more flexible on the price of the newer car.