Dismal Sales figures

[jnappier]

I think saying your paying cash means they don't have to go thru alot of work only to have your credit turned down or having to wait a day or so for approval and maybe the buyer gets cold feet or finds a better deal else where. In other words if you agree on a price you will buy it right now. A done deal.

[jnappier]

Originally Posted by Wes

It's funny despite slowing sales, it just depends on the bike and the inventory. I had no trouble getting an amazing deal on a ZX-14 or ZX-6 but on the C-14 the best I could get was "drive out" at MSRP. They threw in the top case and an icon refelctive vest but I figured I could do better in this economy. Either way, I am still loving the bike.

Off Topic. Did you not like the ZX-14? How do you like the C-14?

[humanrace]

[quote=Wes;600648]Are you referring to fees charged to the buisiness for running the card? Otherwise the only percentage point is your interest rate on the card. Am I missing something?QUOTE]

Credit card companies charge the company selling the product an up front fee. That is why many dealerships will not accept a credit card for a bike purchase. There are many ways to set up the fee deal. The last place I worked had a deal with MC/Visa for a 0.20 fee per transaction plus 1 1/2% of the total. Returns were also charged the 1 1/2% charge. For some reason, business cards were nearly double. A business transaction for $100.00 that was returned would cost us $6.00. Same day returns costs us nothing!

[whoa]

Originally Posted by innominate

was this the older guy with glasses at lonestar? just wonderin and just a WAG on my part.

He was the reason I almost ended up with a Harley. I went back one more time and ended up doing a deal with Peter. I think they are in a pickle right now with pricing from the UK giving them less room to work, but some don't do as good a job explaining as others.

I bet Harley is a good place to shop a deal right now. New and used prices seem to be reasonable.

[JasonJ]

yeah i had the older guy with glasses and as i said, my experience with him was enough to turn me off the whole dealership.

i did poke my head into a harley dealership to look at a Uly. say what you like about their bikes, but the experience i had at both central texas and cowboy were outstanding. friendly, chatty, helpful, decent guys and easy to talk to.

[Wes]

Originally Posted by humanrace

Credit card companies charge the company selling the product an up front fee.

That is interesting, I had a friend who owned a jewlery store and he ran into that same problem with fees plus the company that brokered the deal and provided the equipment plus the charges from the card companies. But his sales did increase by taking cards.

Originally Posted by jnappier

Off Topic. Did you not like the ZX-14? How do you like the C-14?

I liked the ZX-14 a lot! It's just that I do more touring than anything, plus if I was to go full bore sporty again it would be a 600. The C-14 is very nice. I have no complaints except the seat hieght is a little tall. PM me and I can ramble about the bike all day and answer any questions.

[Chirpy]

Originally Posted by Wes

Are you referring to fees charged to the buisiness for running the card?

Yes. The smaller the volume, the higher the fees. Different cards also charge different fees. So paying cash versus a credit card is automagically 1.5% to 3.5% more margin points to the vendor.

Originally Posted by Wes

I am not trying to be a jerk but I have asked this question to just about anyone who will listen? Why do people believe cash is a magical way to get a deal. I have bought cars and motorcycles in cash before and it doesn't change a thing. It usually makes them less likely to deal. No one has ever given me an explanation of this miracle.

Maybe you're not approaching it properly.

For me when I say cash deal, it's to limit the BS around "What's do you want your monthly payment to be". I want to discuss a cash price, and that's all.

Now, once we have real numbers on paper, then I might actually look at their financing. The last two (four-wheeled) vehicles we bought were at 0% interest, but that discussion only occurred after a price was agreed on first.

No magic, but it does force them to treat two different processes as two discrete negotiations. Most of the time they WANT it to be one negotiation.

Originally Posted by Wes

Is this like the rumor that buying a sportbike instantly makes you more attractive to the opposit sex?

It didn't work for you? Huh, that's strange.

Originally Posted by kurt

Cash allows the mom and pops to skim off some of the sales and keep it tax free. Not an issue in the legitimate dealerships. Cash has never been an asset in my purchasing endeavors. Then again, how I financed a sale has never come up until a price was negotiated.

Ouch, that's a little harsh. Unless you're claiming Woods Fun Center is legitimate

[Wes]

You are definately right Chirpy, I would negotiate price before trade in or financing options.

But the real money is in financing. Articles on vehicle purchases always tell you to never tell them you aren't using thier financing until after settleing on a price. I always use my own financing and have a check in hand before I walk in the door. (or cash in my pocket) But the minute you say I want to pay cash or refuse thier financing, you really do see the salesmen lose interest. You just killed his hopes of making good money on the sale.

Why do you think the auto makers branched out into financing? They realized that they only make a few thousand selling the car but can make tons more on the loan. look at how much interest you payed on your last car or your mortgage. That is also why financial consultants always tell you to pay double payments and pay off your loans sooner.

And yes the sportbike never got me chicks... I guess if your ugly before your still ugly after. My first thought when writing that comment was the myth that loud pipes save lives but I figured that would set off a firestorm so I went with that myth.

[catapultdude]

I put my Harley up for sale on craigs list last weekend and havent had one call. The market is flooded with bikes. I wouldnt mind trading it in on a Goldwing, but most honda dealers want do the trade because they cant get rid of them. I wouldnt mind getting an Ultra from harley, but my goal is to sell both bikes and start paying off some debt and then go bike or boat looking next year, But looks like i we will be keeping both bikes. My Wifes bike would be easier to sell, but dont want to sell hers if i cant sell mine

[Cagiva 549]

I have never paid MSRP for a new bike in my life , a couple year old new bikes were as much as 40 % off list . The Ducati was 1500 cheaper than I could buy local . Both KTM's were around 20% off list and all my parts are below list . The Cagiva was 30% below list and I had it shipped from the importer to me thru a dealer in Austin . Any dealer that sucks that bad on the sale price is not going to get any after sale buissness either . As if I ever take a bike to a dealer for work anyway . One out of town or out of state trip to pick up a new bike at a two to three thousand dollar savings sounds like a good deal to me . SEYA

[Wes]

It took me 2 or 3 months to sell my Warrior here recently. You just have to be patient and hit all the spots (Craigslist, etc.) I had to bend some on the price but got a fair price.

Good luck with the sale.

[STman]

Originally Posted by Tim Kreitz

Keep in mind that U.S. motorcycle sales have been in a state of gradual decline since 2005. Combine that with the current contraction of the economy, and it's no wonder the first quarter of 2009 was down 32 percent.

Also, several of the Japanese manufacturers reduced production in response to the recession, so even if demand were to suddenly spike, there aren't as many new models available as in recent years past, so prices will likely not hit the floor in either case.

That's not entirely true. Last spring motorcycle sales spiked due to high fuel costs. I think in Texas alone they jumped 30% from the previous year. Gas prices dropped and people seemed to have gotten over it. Everything seems to be down now however, except maybe for anti-depressant medication.

Update: My bad, there was a temporary spike in sales in 2008 but overall sales were down that year. That stat surprises me. I know the chart is new bike sales but I wonder if there is any data on total bike sales, used and new. Guess that's probably hard to track.

[innominate]

Originally Posted by Chowdown

i bought a new bike recently. my head and my heart wanted a triumph scrambler. the sales guy scoffed (literally scoffed, and laughed at me!) at my offer of msrp + tax (hardly a deal) and responded with $1400 over msrp. the best i could get out of him was $1100 over msrp

i walked out of their very dissapointed and somewhat shocked by the whole process. i had to ditch my plans of a scrambler because the sales guy had soured me against the whole dealership and i didnt want to buy a bike out of town without in town dealer support.

bike sales may be down, but it was my experience that some sales guys dont seem all that motivated to sell.

i just thought about this yesterday. were ya lookin at the green scram with the arrow exhausts? i haven't been in the dealership in a while so i'm not sure if they still have it or not. but if that's the one you looked at that would explain the msrp+ price. the arrow is pretty pricey iirc, ~$800. and i don't remember if they had added anything else to it. but it was a sweet looking scram.

[JasonJ]

yeah i was looking at the green one. the $1100 over msrp included zero addons, so the arrow was going to be another $1100 over that, and i wanted centerstand, skid plate, engine bars, solo seat....was prepared to spend quite a bit because i loved the bike, but no way was i going to start at $1100 over and go from there. no freakin way.

i picked up a new KLR at half the cost, and while it doesnt have the eye candy and cool factor appeal of the scrambler, i am finding that it does have an appeal all of its own, and i have several thousand left in my pocket (that my wonderful wife is having a ball spending on things to add to my rapidly expanding honey-do list around the house )

[free2ride]

Originally Posted by Wes

Not to trot out the horse and beat it again, but "Cash" doesn't help in a sale. Why would you paying in US currency improve the deal? The dealer gets "cash" no matter how you pay.

I assume they are similar to car dealerships so financing is preferred as they the dealership gets a piece of the action. I sold cars for a short period and when someone was approved for say 4% we would offer 4.5% and make a money on the financing as well as the sell.

[WoodButcher]

Free2ride, welcome to the site. Just a FYI that if you are new to forums, one thing to check when you are reading all the messages is the date on the threads. This one is over 3 years old. It is fine to resurrect old threads, but sometimes new folks don't notice they've done it.

[free2ride]

Thanks for the tip. I am asleep at the switch.

[SL350]

I am kind of glad you did. Maybe someone can update some sales numbers. I bet 2011 was good compared to 2010 but not near pre recession levels. I still hear about the geryatric age of the avg rider, but not as many shops are closing.

[DaveC]

dead thread nacromonger.
googled motorcycle sales for 4q 2011 good and bad news

[bluedogok]

Don't blame me....I bought a brand new bike last weekend.