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Thread: Negotiating 2nd Hand Car Prices at dealers

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
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    Rangiora, Christchurch
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    111

    Default Negotiating 2nd Hand Car Prices at dealers

    Been here a week and just got a house rental sorted. Cars are next on the list.

    Looking at 2 2nd hard cars maybe between $15-30k each.

    How much can we expect to negotiate off the advertised price at a 2nd hand dealer?
    Last edited by nellyt; 29th June 2007 at 08:27 PM.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Waterloo, Lower Hutt
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    505

    Default

    To a certain degree it does depend on the car, dealer and your location.

    If you are financing or including additional warranty insurance etc dealers are more flexible on price.

    As a general guide I would expect approximately a 10% discount.

    Shawn

  3. #3
    Join Date
    May 2006
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    Scotland > Hamilton, Waikato
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    Default

    I would agree with Shawn. We have just bought 2 cars in the space of 2 months and have managed to get just over 10% off the screen price on each car.

    If you buy a car but it won't be ready for 2-3 days and you need a car, ask the dealer for a loan car. We were given one when we bought our first car and offered one with the second.

    Happy dealings.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
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    8

    Default

    On a related theme, I've noticed on Trademe that a lot of the second hand cars for sale are Japanese imports - some with very low mileage despite being up to 10 years old. How reliable are these? Can you be sure that odometers haven't been tampered with?

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    Wellington NZ
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    One can never be sure, though there is a gov't process in place w/ imports to ensure the readings haven't been tampered with. Importers make money without needing to roll back odometers.

    In general I'd accept lower odometer readings than common sense would suggest, based on four things:
    (1) Japanese automobile commutes are typically short. (Not brief, but low distance - there is status associated with driving to work when most of one's colleagues take the train or a bus.)
    (2) There is also status associated with driving a new car and ditching an older one.
    (3) In Japan, auto taxes grow as the car gets older, which is unusual,
    (4) Emissions tests are strict in Japan and nonexistent in NZ. Penalties for noncompliance in Japan are severe and trivial in NZ (the WOF test says 'no visible smoke after 10 seconds' or some such rubbish).

    Put all those things together and you can see why low-mileage Japanese domestic market cars in decent shape would be widely available as imports in NZ.

    You do have to put up with some oddities (no user manuals in English, odd symbols on controls, and incorrect FM radio coverage come to mind) but your $ goes further with these imports than with an 'NZ new' vehicle.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
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    Browns Bay, North Shore
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    Are the Japenese imports left or right hand drive?

    How easy / expensive is it to insure a japenese import?

    How easy is it to get parts?

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    France - UK - NZ (Auckland)
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    343

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by speckythecky View Post
    Are the Japenese imports left or right hand drive?

    How easy / expensive is it to insure a japenese import?

    How easy is it to get parts?
    Can't speak about parts but our 1996 Nissan Sunny is fully insured for $450/year with AMI, which I though was pretty cheap. I have to say they were the best, compared to AA who wanted $1200 We need to renew the insurance next month and will be shopping around before

  8. #8
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Posts
    227

    Default Haggling,Clocking & Servicing

    Hi guys,
    Clocking (mileage tampering) is a huge problem on imported cars the world over. As is importing damage repaired (write-offs) and ringers (stolen cars normaly cloned/twined).
    If you know little about cars yourself, I would always ask someone who does to inspect a vehicle prior to purchase.
    I think basically anything more than 10% discount and perhaps you should ask yourself, why? That said, I would always start my ‘bidding’ very much lower.
    Japanese cars will be right hand drive, as long as you buy a model common in NZ with a common engine; I don’t think parts/servicing nor insurance should be too much of an issue.
    As I have said on this subject before…
    Caveat emptor.
    James

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Rangiora, Christchurch
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    111

    Default

    Well we bought a Subaru Outback and Mazda Axela (from 2 different places). Prices were about 10% below quoted price.
    Insurance $426 and $467 through State. (comprehensive)
    They are both Jap imports a couple of years old with low mileage (20k and 1.5k km).
    Right hand drive.
    AA provide an odo tampering check which most of the cars on the forecourts have had done already.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Posts
    227

    Default

    The AA check is great for analogue odometers, however cars increasingly have digital odometers which are actually easier to clock. Basically if its too good to be true it probably is, don’t be complacent.
    Japanese cars are good for high mileage, so let age, condition, price and an expert be your guide.
    James

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