Buying New From England

[gpaevo]

I don’t see why that’s their concern, they get what they want and move on

Well I'm glad it's not just me that thought that

 

[davyk31]

I would think the same, sounds very odd. Wonder would he have sold it to you for asking price as based on his 3 to 4K over there would still be money made. Sounds like he is talking nonsense as there won’t be many dealers from here buying cars retail in England to bring back here to sell.

 

[AlpineF30]

So here's a new one (to me) for you.

I was enquiring about a used car from a dealer in England. Negotiated a price but it was still 3k more than what I wanted to pay. Told them I'd fly over if we could meet the price in the middle.

Sales manager phoned me and said he couldn't offer anymore off due to me taking the car to NI.

He said 'to many cars are being sold through the networks in England and ending up on forecourts in NI for 3/5k over what they where sold for'.

Despite me assuring him the car won't be sold he was having none of it. Oh well, their loss.

What does it matter?

If he sells it at a price he is happy with then who cares if someone sells it on for more.

Whether you take it home to sell it or to drive it off a cliff what difference is it to him.


Although in saying that a few years ago I had an old Corolla as a run about bought it for 800 quid and then sold it on for 1300. The guy I bought it off actually messaged me calling me everything as I had it up for more than what he sold it to me for a year ago. Halfwit

 

[Coog]

This is just a guess but could be policy from head office and not a decision that particular franchise has taken.

There’s a few local dealerships with parent companies across the water. Policy might be there to protect the local business... and prices.

 

[FM155]

Sort of like a cartel?

 

[Eager]

This is just a guess but could be policy from head office and not a decision that particular franchise has taken.

There’s a few local dealerships with parent companies across the water. Policy might be there to protect the local business... and prices.

100%. Local franchises continually knowing they are getting undercut on brand new cars, at some point a local dealer is going to say something to HQ. Maybe it’s made enough noise.

whole thing does seem odd that the exact same product can be thousands more expensive at times, I guess that’s down to local overheads and extra transport costs maybe ?

but there will always be someone needing that sale I guess

 

[Dan.86]

Sounds like it could be an excuse not to sell you the car as they didn’t want to knock anymore money off it?

bought a car from a dealer last Monday in England. Very easy sale and a couple of hundred knocked off so the monthly budget was within what I wanted to pay.

 

[FM155]

Other than transport costs, there is no other reason that new or nearly new cars in NI should be significantly dearer than the mainland, especially when wages and commercial property prices are generally much lower than the rest of the UK. Happy to be put right of course.

 

[gpaevo]

Other than transport costs, there is no other reason that new or nearly new cars in NI should be significantly dearer than the mainland, especially when wages and commercial property prices are generally much lower than the rest of the UK. Happy to be put right of course.

Captive market for car sales. I'd say 10% of the NI population would travel to UK for a car purchase.

The rest are easy pickings and will pay the window price

 

[FM155]

I'd say less than 10% tbh. I'm not taking a pop at the trade here as they have businesses to run and people to pay but there is a disparity in prices that isn't fully explained in my head at least by the transport costs. My current daily is a small petrol turbo estate and I couldn't locate any of them here at all in the spec / engine combo that I wanted. I contacted a main dealer who just said they couldn't source one in that spec. Around 3 weeks later I had the car I wanted from a main dealer in the UK at a price that was below all the lower spec models with diesel engines and a hatch etc. Might be because I was looking for something specific but hey ho. Last family car was bought from an NI dealer at a good price because it had been a trade in and wasn't their franchise brand. I test drove it and paid in full immediately, the sales guy told us when we went to collect a few days later, that his manager was going to give us our money back because he was getting offers of 3K more from UK dealers. I guess it cuts both ways sometimes.

 

[AMG]

I know when my dad bought his E pace, he was fit to buy a HSE model in Manchester cheaper than what any dealer here were quoting him for an S.
One garage here took the thick over it and told him that they were going to contact Jag UK about it.

 

[DougL]

I'm sure that refusing to sell you a car on the basis of being in another part of the UK would be against anti-competition rules. Trading standards might have something to say.

 

[davyk31]

But he wasn’t offering to pay the asking price so they will use that as an excuse. That is why I asked I wonder what they would say if he has been agreeing to pay their asking price. I suspect it would be a yes and thank you and who cares where the car is going to.