[228Powered]

I'm new here, and I'm hoping that this great community can give me some advice.

I waited 2 months on a new 228 that I ordered. I just wanted to get everyone's advice on whether the salesperson
and new car manager were being honest with me when they
said they couldn't give me a better deal, because they weren't making any profit on this car. I've bought a bunch of bmw's from this dealership before, and salesman told me that this was a price where he wasn't making any profit.


I bought a 2015 228.

I paid $420 over invoice (I looked up invoice according to KBB).

However, this was added on afterwards:
Dealer fee: $699
Tag and Title: $370

I guess I have 2 questions.

Do you guys think I received a good deal (were they being honest)?
According to them, if I didn't take the deal, someone else would buy the car in a heartbeat.

Could i have avoided the Dealer fee?

Thank you!

[overcoil]

Seems you did well, if you had agreed to an Out The Door price when ordering it would have prevented the last minute price bumps.
The Dealer Fee is high and in the future you should walk if they don't dismiss it.
Adding those fees plus telling you someone else would buy the car was their negotiating tactic and pretty much a bluff.

[228Powered]

Originally Posted by ScottSinger

Seems you did well, if you had agreed to an Out The Door price when ordering it would have prevented the last minute price bumps.
The Dealer Fee is high and in the future you should walk if they don't dismiss it.
Adding those fees plus telling you someone else would buy the car was their negotiating tactic and pretty much a bluff.

Understood and thanks. The dealer fee did seem rather high.

I guess I messed up and didn't even consider that the dealer fee was negotiable when I ordered it 2 months prior.

[TBro2002]

My 228i deal was an ED deal at $500 over ED invoice. The dealer provided a complete detailed breakdown of the numbers in writing before we placed the order (there was no dealer fee). When we signed the final lease papers on the car three months later, it was exactly what was quoted when we agreed to the deal. My advise is only work with a dealer that provides the details of the deal in writing before agreeing to order the car.

[228Powered]

Originally Posted by TBro2002

My 228i deal was an ED deal at $500 over ED invoice. The dealer provided a complete detailed breakdown of the numbers in writing before we placed the order (there was no dealer fee). When we signed the final lease papers on the car three months later, it was exactly what was quoted when we agreed to the deal. My advise is only work with a dealer that provides the details of the deal in writing before agreeing to order the car.

I appreciate the answer. That's where I messed up. Actually, I had never even paid much attention to the dealer fee until now. I always thought it was something that everyone paid.

And my dealer did not provide me with a detailed list of the exact charges when I ordered the car. However, he did assure me that i was getting a price where they weren't making any profit (because I had ordered previous cars from him).

[Declio]

My dealer fee was $499 (VA) and was "non-negotiable". Out of state dealers had lower fees, but they couldn't match the out the door price.

[TBro2002]

Dealer fee = dealer profit.

[chaswyck1]

I have never heard of something called a "Dealer Fee". Fee for what? They're already charging you for doc fees. What else are they doing to earn this fee? I think TBro2002 has it right. It's just another way to add dealer profit. It's like those little window stickers they add except in this case they're not telling you about it until the end of the deal. I'd rather they be upfront about it so I can walk away without wasting more of my time.

[SteveInfante]

This is what's called a "mini" and by mini they eek'd the cost of the dealer fee as commission from you. You keep saying that the assured you that they weren't making any money off the sale of the car but in fact they did as the "dealer fee". They just didn't make any money as the overhead price. All dealerships know that once in a while they can do a deal like this and then stick a dealer fee on it to make sure that they make a little change. This is for a couple of reasons. One, they know that they can order that same car the second you drive off the lot and someone else will buy it and make money in overhead for the dealership. Two, the dealership may be telling you that they are selling the car to you for the bottom dollar price you won't know unless they show you the actual ordering invoice for the dealership. This will never happen unless you work there. They probably still make some loot off the deal because they usually don't sell a car, even on a mini, for less than 950 over invoice before the dealer fee to squeeze some commission out of you. Since you have bought from them before in the past they feel like they have your trust and that you won't question the deal they are magically giving you because you are a prior customer. Unfortunately for them, here you are asking us questions.

[Declio]

Originally Posted by Stevedotmil

This is what's called a "mini" and by mini they eek'd the cost of the dealer fee as commission from you. You keep saying that the assured you that they weren't making any money off the sale of the car but in fact they did as the "dealer fee". They just didn't make any money as the overhead price. All dealerships know that once in a while they can do a deal like this and then stick a dealer fee on it to make sure that they make a little change. This is for a couple of reasons. One, they know that they can order that same car the second you drive off the lot and someone else will buy it and make money in overhead for the dealership. Two, the dealership may be telling you that they are selling the car to you for the bottom dollar price you won't know unless they show you the actual ordering invoice for the dealership. This will never happen unless you work there. They probably still make some loot off the deal because they usually don't sell a car, even on a mini, for less than 950 over invoice before the dealer fee to squeeze some commission out of you. Since you have bought from them before in the past they feel like they have your trust and that you won't question the deal they are magically giving you because you are a prior customer. Unfortunately for them, here you are asking us questions.

Ok...but it all comes down to being smart and understanding the process. In my case the dealer had a sign front and center stating that their dealer fee was $499 Like it was actually posted in the showroom. Then for instance I ask for a quote from an out of state dealer and they itemize a $199 dealer fee--great right? Until you see they charged me the $950 destination fee twice. It's all adding to the out the door price and you need to have a target in mind going in.

Sale price
State and local tax
Tags and registration (standard amount)
Destination (standard amount)
Dealer fee

Manipulate each component all you want, im still seeing the bottom line price. My out the door price was the lowest at the dealer with the 499 fee and it didn't bother me at all because I was able to negotiate the sale price itself low enough.

[fuddman]

Originally Posted by 228Powered

.... advice on whether the salesperson
and new car manager were being honest with me when they
said they couldn't give me a better deal, because they weren't making any profit on this car.

I paid $420 over invoice (I looked up invoice according to KBB).

However, this was added on afterwards:
Dealer fee: $699
Do you guys think I received a good deal (were they being honest)?
According to them, if I didn't take the deal, someone else would buy the car in a heartbeat.
Could i have avoided the Dealer fee?

If you paid $420 over invoice, then you got a good deal; but, ONLY IF you got the right invoice prices. Until you say what the base price + the options were and what you paid for each, it's impossible to conclude what kind of deal you really got. If you got 10% off sticker, I think you did ok. Better than that? Then A-OK.

Were they being honest? Not really.
If a guy says he can sell the car in a heart beat, then he is saying it's in demand. If the car, in fact, is in demand it can be sold at sticker or sticker minus a bit or, in some circumstances, sticker +. Bottom line - if he 's willing to deal starting at invoice, the assembly line is backed up with the cars.
Know going in that a salesperson will not know whether the dealership is making money on a new car sale. Nor will the Sales Manager. For that reason, never believe either when they say "We're not making anything on this car."
As far as the "extra charges" that seem to get tacked on at the end, you can avoid the surprise if you ask to see, as others have mentioned, the details of the OTD price.

[SteveInfante]

Yep.