Market Place > For Sale (Bike related)

Best time to trade...by Ali

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Gassoon:
Re: Best Time to trade? [Original thread here]

by Ali » Sat Apr 12, 2014

There are so many variables on when to Trade In.

Is the Trade In against new?

Many bikers believe there is a huge mark up on a new bike when actually there isn't but if a dealer needs to hit his annual target (usually end of March) then it has been known to even sell below cost to hit that target. The Solus Dealer I was at in both its guises as a small independent and later as part of a bigger company, relied on hitting the targets to get the substantial and essential bonus from the manufacturers importer. This bonus paid the wages and covered the running costs for the whole year. Fail to hit the target and we were in trouble. To compound matters if you hit the targets the bar was raised for the next year. Customers benefitted from this dilemma more over the winter months generally but if a Dealer has already failed the year before they will be determined not to make it 2 years in a row and may be keen to offer unbeatable deals any time of year. Likewise Dealers who have hit their targets without to much trouble are less likely to offer big discounts.

A word of warning with the former, these Mega Deals can be a sign that the Dealer is in trouble and only pay the least you can get away with upfront saving the bulk of the payment to when you actually get the keys in your mitts. If a Dealer insists on a big Deposit up front for anything other than a custom order then alarm bells should be sounding. This does't just apply to small dealerships, George Whites being a prime example. Sell cheap and sell volume didn't work as a business model.

Sales have also been known to sacrifice their commission to hit personal targets and safe guard their job. This is dependent on the performance of the individual salesperson and can happen at any time of the year.

If the manufacturer has an offer on a particular bike then they are selling to the Dealer at a lower price in the first place so there can be room for more haggling. This usually applies to bikes or even a particular colour scheme of bike that aren't selling well at a particular time and can be reflected in the price when you come to Trade it later. A classic example was the Suzuki GSXR600 circa K5/6 in red. The red ones just didn't sell and there was eventually a Mega Deal to be had. The later Trade In values on that colour were appalling compared to other colour schemes though.

Late winter, spring and early summer are the best times to get an attractive price on a Trade In. Dealers do not want used stock hanging around in showrooms over the winter. This is dead money and potentially losing value. They will often Trade them on to avoid this. In doing so they get it underwritten at the time of the deal and are offering you what the Trader has bid. It is also worth researching the Dealers second hand stock. If they already have examples of what you have to offer, and unless they are selling like hot cakes, they aren't going to be so generous as it will be going to the Trade. Owners also seem to have some strange ideas as to what is Mint or VGC and are offended when the reality is pointed out.

As a Suzuki Solus Dealer we only retailed very good condition secondhand bikes, and then mainly Suzukis unless it was a very good example of another make for its year. We traded out a 10 month old BMW GSA with all the extras which cost over 15K new at the time, and which had a standing value of only just over 7.5K, because people didn't come to us to buy a BMW. I actually considered that one for myself but even at that price I didn't like it and more importantly, as a Pillion, the Mrs didn't like it. Staff buying it to turn a profit was unethical unfortunately.

At the end of the day, it is very rare to get a big discount on the purchase and an inflated Trade In figure. There is a figure out there in the blue that needs to be achieved. It is common practice to re write a deal so that a bigger Trade In Value is shown against a nearer List Price of the purchase but the amount of money that changes hands remains the same.

There is far more scope for movement on price on many accessories, clothing, helmets etc so rather than keep trying to squeeze the price of the machine, consider these as part of the deal. It is sometime surprising what you can get thrown in.


Part ex'ing against a second hand bike is a completely different kettle of fish. The Bike will have a "Standing Value" which the Dealer will only go below if it has been sat around for a considerable period of time or if the Dealer is in financial difficulties which provided you don't hand money over before you pick up the bike shouldn't be an issue. This Standing Value is based on what the bike has cost in real terms including the Trade In Value, any adjustment, labour and parts required plus a portion of general running costs of the business. You also tend to be offered less for your Trade In against most second hand bikes. Second Hand have no bearing on Manufacturers Dealer Bonuses but can still play a part in performance issues within the Dealership itself. The price of second hand from a Dealer is obviously higher than from a Private Sale because of costs such as providing a warranty.

By far the best way is to sell privately if you can as you will get a better price that you are happy with and armed with cash, probably a better deal at the other end.

jockflob:
I was in Carlisle a couple of weeks ago so I went for a look at the new thou at KC Superbikes in Carlisle.   have a 2005 great condition GSX1400 with very low miles (4500) and they offered me £3800 which is a very good price for a trade in.  The salesmen told me that if the deal went ahead they would put my bike on the forecourt for £3900 making £100 profit which I found a little hard to believe.

In the end I couldn't justify spending 10k so walked away.

Cheers

Seigi:
And yet your occupation is a billionaire....could you not fit it all in the box? Are you actually a billionaire-shortcake-maker?

webby926:
Thanks for the handy advice.  I'm looking for either a 2008 V-Strom 1000, or look at buying a new one instead.

The second hand 1000's I've seen are a little overpriced at the minute, as dealers are still after £5k for a 6 year old bike with over 10k on the clock.  Once the new model starts coming onto the market as second hand and ex-demo models (and there are a few now), the old model prices should start to fall (as they did with the new DL650 a couple of years back).

I've been watching the finance deals as they have been offering a £750 deposit towards a number of new Suzuki's, including the DL650, but the new 1000 isn't included in the deal.
Seen them for as low as £9k with the adventure kit (need the panniers as the wife comes to the IOM with me), and I'd rather stick with luggage that's been designed as part of the overall bike development rather than go for an aftermarket set.

It would be interesting to see whether people trading in the old shape V-Strom 1000 are being offered less money than a few months ago.

adst:
Best time to trade in? ...before you buy it ....walk away and go second hand!

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