Saggy said:
David_S said:
Saggy said:
Supply and demand ... what's wrong with that though to be fair .....
Do you think Seat themselves would be happy that some of their dealers are offering cars substantially above list price? I'm not sure they would...
I think that is why Tell asked if you were talking dealers or internet traders
Depends on the franchise deal they have with SEAT I guess ....
They all seem to be able to give different discounts so perhaps SEAT just ask a set price per car and dealers can do what they want as long as that is met?
New cars being built to order would be one thing but if the dealer has paid Seat the price they want for the car then he can sell at whatever he wants? Same as I could? I don't know what agreements Seat dealers have with Seat.
So many factors at play here:
in terms of their costs it could be the wholesale costs of each car from SEAT, which may depend on the volumes each dealer buys & when; might get them cost discounts which can be passed on; big dealers will buy in bulk in advance knowing they'll shift them, and sell really cheap - I give you ....Arnold Clark
volume bonus/registration allowance, most manufacturers offer these to dealers as incentives to sell cars, which is why buying at month/quarter end can be giod as both sales execs & dealer principals try to make sales targets for commissions and achieve volume bonus from SEAT; some dealers will put %f this into deals for subsequent sales to secure them & keep the rest
'Pack cars' - which dealers may be obliged to buy so they have some stock of car cars for demo & sales; manufacturers often either decide what these will be (spec, colours etc) and sell to dealers at a discount, again which can be passed on
Finance - manufacturers finance co's often provide stock financing to dealerships, the terms / costs of which may vary and affect the overall cost of buying / stocking the car for the dealer - again costs & savings may be passed on
Dealership overheads will vary massively and affect sales prices & deals; bigger dealers have lower unit overheads and may offer better prices / deals
Competition locally - a big factor; the big guns of Vardy, Sytner, Lookers, Arnold Clark can & do apply all of the above, and squeeze local competition including buying them out altogether.....
However you get a good deal, you can be certain all of the above, and other factors, are all at play at the same time,
As for charging higher prices, my learned frien Saggy hits the nail on the head - demand v supply - and manufacturers could not ever officially tell dealers what to charge- that's ant competitive behaviour!
And they will continue to supply any franchise dealers who can sell enough cars to meet the manufacturers targets - indeed manufacturers also often finance the capital investment required to keep franchises up to speed with e.g, company branding, showroom design etc. So everyone has a vested interest in this - all about cash flow & profits for all parties !
