MSRP Plus

[djb383]

Here's the deal.......our local powersports dealer (Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki) adds $200 to every new bike in the store, regardless of make or model. Example: '07 DL650 non-ABS MSRP is $6699.00. The dealers tag on the handlebars shows $6899.00 plus all the other fees. Is this common practice at other dealers? Thanks.

[crowtdog]

Here's a link to a dealer in my area. Prices the Strom at $500-$700 below msrp but then charges $219 set-up fee.

http://www.troycitygarage.com/street_bikes.htm

[jdpower]

I've not seen that before. I sure wouldn't be a prime customer for them. I won't pay MSRP for any bike or car. There are just too many great options, and I'm not very brand loyal or fixated. Do they just put a sign on everyone who buys a bike that says "SUCKER" on it or what? More than likely, they knock off a few hundred bucks which makes the buyer feel better.

JDP

[markjenn]

Yes, it is common for dealers to tack on a "Frieght and Setup" fee. It is not standardized - it is whatever the dealer feels the market will pay, or whatever is best for negotiations to provide some room to give the customer a "discount" and still be at or above MSRP.

- Mark

[torqueman]

That is a huge rip off. Since they get reimbursed by the manufacturer for setup they should not be adding anything. I always check out Honda East pricing to know what the rock bottom selling price could be.

[iron_llama]

Call around and ask for an "out-the-door" price. Advertised prices are usually useless since they add all sorts of dealer fees to the advertised price. Thus there is, in my (limited) experience, little correlation between the advertised price and the price you pay.

Also, if you're not paying cash, get your financing squared away before you walk into the dealership. I got a loan pre-approved through my credit union, and that made the process much simpler.

Beware dealerships that refuse to quote an out-the-door price, especially if they have a really low advertised price. When I was shopping for my Wee, a Tucson dealership advertised a price about $2k below the local dealer's agreed-upon OTD price. When I called them back an hour later to beat the local dealer's price, they all of a sudden had sold that bike weeks ago, then confessed that they add on between $2-$3k in 'dealer fees' when I told them I knew their former sales manager.

Moral of the story, call around and do your homework.

[VStromtotheMAX]

Plus if you time it right you can save some serious cash if you don't mind buying last years model. I bought several bikes that way and was able to get them out the door, setup, freight, tax, tag, title, etc... just barely under MSRP. And at around 10% sales tax that is a pretty good deal. CASH can make the discount even nicer.
A couple other items to consider is service, and good dealership relationships.
A good dealer won't penalize you for NOT buying a bike from them.
A good dealer will knock 10-20% off the price of everything besides bikes in a store.
imo.

[markjenn]

That is a huge rip off. Since they get reimbursed by the manufacturer for setup they should not be adding anything.

It varies by mfg whether there is a "setup allowance" in the dealer price of the motorcycle. For Kawasaki's it's only $70 or so for most bikes and many shops say this is inadequate to do a proper setup. And those mfgs that do provide they allowance just build a higher price into the dealer invoice to cover it, so there's no net difference.

In any event, it's pretty stupid to worry about whether a dealer adds a setup fee or not given that the entire price of the motorcycle is negotiated anyway. How they want to play the shell game is immaterial - all that matters is the final price you negotiate. Do you care if the bike is $7,000+$200 setup or $7,200+$0 setup? I sure don't.

- Mark

[randyo]

best way to get a good deal with a dealership is to be a regular customer, not so much for buying a bike every 2 years, use their service department

it can be cheaper in long run, I spent over $15k on my SV for service, sounds like a lot, but that's for 135k miles, in summertime they would service bike at least once a month, being a regular customer, they always assign the same mechanic, he knows how I ride and can predict preventative maintenance.
I always get same day service and 15% discount from regular pricing on parts & labor, I also get discount on gear , tires prices are competitive with internet, etc.

and when it came to buying a new bike, I got my 07 strom for $7500 otd

[handyhiker]

One dealer near me markes up all there bikes as well. When I was looking for mine, there out OTD price was still higher than others. When I told them what I could get from other dealers, they didn't seem to care. This is the price, is what I was told. The door did not hit me on the way OUT!!!

[djb383]

Wow randyo, awesome deal. Did that include state tax and license fees, etc.? Thanks.

[randyo]

Wow randyo, awesome deal. Did that include state tax and license fees, etc.? Thanks.


we have no state tax (tax free new Hampshire) , it included temproary license plate (good for 20 days) and title fee, the regular license plate cost about $150 total, in NH you cannot do that at the dealer, its has to be done with the local town clerk in the town you live