| Author | Message | ||
     Comeauzee |
Whats with canadian dealers? I tried to buy a Buell the other day and wanted just a little deal since I was forking over a good chunk of money for this bike. The sales guy tells me, that since they don't sell very many, they won't go below list price. I know just as well as everyone here that there is a bit of mark up on these bikes and these sales guys are making a good commission. I ended up leaving the dealer a bit pissed off, and the money that I was willing to fork over in my pocket. I really want the bike but I want some what of a deal. I knew exactly what I wanted, it's not like the sales guy had to work for the sale and convince me to buy it. Has anyone here had any experience dealing with Canadian dealers? | ||
| Aussie_xb12ss |
Sounds like a dealership in Melbourne, Australia. When I was looking for my first Buell I asked about a deal for cash & the salesmen said to me “we don’t do deals, we work on the theory that if you walk in our doors then you either want a HD or a Buell. If you walk out then you didn’t want it hard enough”. I walked out. (Message edited by Aussie_XB12SS on March 03, 2007) | ||
| Comeauzee |
You would think it wouldn't matter how many they sold. You would think they would try to fight for your business. Instead of losing a couple hundred dollars in profit, they lose 12, 13 thousand in sales on there books for that day. And in turn lose that money to a competitor. That sounds like the smartest think to do.  | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
Buy globally. Check dealers in other places. If you have to go once to a location 250 miles away, but if provides a price that is $1,000 less than list, it was worth the trip. It's easy to find a crappy dealership. They exist for every product produced. Don't reward them for their attitude. Reward the good dealers. | ||
| Edmbueller |
As a fellow Canadian; If you are looking at buying brand new - buy one used(under 1000kms) and bring one up from the states. They are American made so no duty.... | ||
| Kdan |
As another fellow Canadian, Ex-Pat though...Yeah, fly down, hang out with some Buellers and ride back. Or send me the money and I'll drop the bike off when I go to visit my Mom. She lives in Winnipeg, so it'll be kind of a round about trip...I was shopping Suzukis about a month ago and asked the salesweasel how much for a DRZ400-SM. Now I know what they are retail. He tries to log in to the dealers computer and can't so he calls someone for the password...15 minutes later he's logged on to the Suzuki website, calls me in a quotes me the retail price. I looked at him and said, "That's retail." He says, "Yeah, we only sell retail, no discounts here." Since he obviously didn't know much, I handed him the yellow pages online sheet I had printed with the 8 other Suzuki dealers within 50 miles. "Here, you can buy bikes for $200 over invoice at 4 of these dealers. You could make a fortune selling them over here for retail!?" I used to buy accessories and gear there. Now I try it on there and buy off the internet. | ||
| Comeauzee |
You would think they would realize that by not taking your money in the shop, they are just throwing business out the door, and we're just going to buy it or something similar somewhere else. It just really pisses me off because the Buell dealer in the city is the only one in the Province, so they pretty much got ya by the balls unless your willing to travel 14 hours to the States to get deal  | ||
| Endoman28 |
comeauzee, the profit margin on a buell is a great deal less than what people assume. and unlike car/truck and even some metric bike companies hd and buell dosen't offer rebates or buy money for selling the bikes. and the comisson on a buell averages $75. per bike sold I work for a dealership hope this will easy some of the money pain | ||
| Comeauzee |
Salesmen  I wasn't looking for thousands of dollars off just a little something to at least make me feel like my business was appreciated, but thanks for the info  | ||
| Endoman28 |
i under stand when i bought my 2004 firebolt my cost for the bike was $10,158 out the door that north carolina sales tax 3% tag $18.00 and $40.00 for title fee plus the dealership charges $150.00 doc fee | ||
| Cixyx_pilot |
When I went to buy my City X,at the first HD Dealer(Mackie HD ) the sales guy told me this. " I'm only here for the Harleys I don't know anything about Buells." Then I asked for a phamplet or any info on Buells, He tells me If I want any info to go on the internet. I.m thinking "Hello I'm at a Buell dealer". The second dealer was great(Barrie HD), Got to demo ride one, got lots of info, ordered the bike and held it until spring for me. | ||
| Shawartz |
Try buying last year models. I bought mine when the 2007 came out in September and saved over $1500.00. I also bought it out of province and got a deal on shipping to. Called Deely Canada directly because there is no dealer in my area. Talk to the sales rep from the Maritimes and he arranged it through the french dealership, he spoke french and english and really wanted me to have a Buell. Only one thing to make sure of when buying out of Province is to be sure you dont pay taxes in that province but when you register in your own. If you dont you have to apply for a refund through the government and you know how long that takes. Which means you pay taxes twice. | ||
| Don668 |
Funny, I (being a salesman I never pay retail) asked for a deal on my 06 XB9sx and I got $900 right off the top. Calgary Dealer and this was in sept '05. Generally they (salesman) will get a flat on a bike that is sold for less than retail. So maybe the salesman will get $200 for just moving the bike. Dealer gets paid for moving a bike. This is how most car dealers work. Guess it all depends on the dealer. Go to calgary and talk to Ron. =D Don | ||
| Aussie_xb12ss |
I basically bought my XB12Ss on service more than $$. I walked in & they made me feel comfortable straight off. I knew what the Buell was worth and asked for their best price. They gave me the price then asked if I wanted to test ride one. I said no, I know what they are like so they gave me a voucher for the local coffee shop to go & have a think. Didn’t cost them much but it was a nice gesture as I had ridden 200 km’s. I went back & asked if they could have it ready that day as I wanted a muffler fitted. The service manager was straight onto it as soon as the deal was done & I rode away a happy man 3 hours later. And they sold 4 Buells that day. | ||
| Bake |
Shawartz, who was the shipper? I bought a tuber in Ontario and want it shpped. (Message edited by bake on March 03, 2007) | ||
| Plag |
Something for nothing.... MSRP - Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price or the price the Manufacturer believes the average dealer needs to sell their product for to run a successful business. These guys go to work to sell Motorcycles. If they could sell them for less and still run a profitable business then I'm sure they would. If selling them at list is what they need to do to keep the doors open or to keep a particular line of bikes in their store then so be it. There are not huge mark ups in Buells at list. Comeauzee, maybe when shopping for a motorcycle dealer you should start your process by asking the dealer for his financial statement as you seem to know more about how much he needs to make to survive than he or the manufacturer does. Profit is not a dirty word and if they can't make money selling them they won't be selling them in the future or be there to look after you when you need parts or service. Support your local guy if you want a local dealer to be there for you unless they are incompetent and don't deserve to be there. | ||
| Kootenay |
Has anyone here had any experience dealing with Canadian dealers? Yeah, I bought my Firebolt from a dealer in Kamloops, BC, and I'm still a bit annoyed with some of the stuff that happened, even several years down the road. Got an OK price on it (it was a 2-year-old "leftover"), but I get my parts out of the States and any service I can't do myself gets done in Vancouver, even though it's farther from me than Kamloops (in fact, last time I went down I stayed overnight in Kamloops on the way). | ||
| Tleighbell |
What model are you looking for? Dealers in Ontario were advertising some good deals to clear non-current models but they are all gone now. A U.S. dealer cannot sell you a new bike to import into Canada. Probably due to the factory's exclusivity agreement with Deeley. I have imported 2 used Buells from the US. You have to pay the GST and PST when you bring them in. That plus shipping costs brings the price up pretty close to what you would probably pay in Canada at least on a private sale (no GST). I didn't think it was worth the money to go through the import hassle. I purchased from a reputable dealer because of concerns about title, outstanding liens and condition of the bike. The big advantage I found was availablility. I have to sell my 04 XB12s this spring if you are interested. Just bought it last fall. | ||
| Edmbueller |
The biggest hurdle to buying a Buell in Canada (especially used) is the lack of supply. I spent 4 months this winter SCOURING newspapers, bike traders, websites looking to replace my stolen Buell from last season. I had to literally search the COUNTRY to find less than 20 Buells for sale at any on time, and the asking price on some of them were so far beyond what the bikes were worth...I manage a DMV and was SERIOUSLY entertaining bringing one from the States because selection AND price are worth it. I have seen several deals in the Badweb classifieds that would bring the bike to me delivered, taxes and import fees paid still saving over $1000. I got extremely fortunate to find what I was looking for locally because some guy "forgot" he had purchased this bike and it was in storage for almost 2 years... | ||
| Comeauzee |
So from what I'm hearing I'm better off just bitting the bullet and paying the list price for the at the local dealer. Because by the time you factor in the taxes shipping or duty if coming from the states it looks like it's going to be just as much. They wanted 13269.42 for a black 2007 XBCitySX with upgraded seat. If anyone has any suggestion on what I can do to get a deal at my dealer I would really like to know.  | ||
| Gazoo |
Don 668 Thats funny I'm in Calgary too. I was just talking to Ron yesterday-- looking at getting a new Uly --now I can hammer him.  | ||
| Plag |
Calgary - the new center of the universe!! I bought mine there too...I dealt with Tom. He did a great job. | ||
| Nsbuell |
Comeauzee: I see you're in Halifax so I assume you're referring to Privateer's. It's got nothing to do with Canadian dealers, there are plenty of stories on here about bad experiences with American dealers too. That being said I tried to deal with Privateer's at first too and they wouldn't move a dollar on a demo XB9R. So I went to Eldridges in St. John, NB and saved $1,800 on the exact same bike only it was new not a demo. I'd give them a call before writing Buells off altogether. I hope you get one, we could use another Buell rider around...although there are getting to be quite a few of us in the area. Good Luck | ||
| Nsbuell |
Oh, by the way Comeauzee, if you're interested in used at all fellow Badwebber Hogs has an 03 9S for sale right here in Halifax (I think he's still got it anyway) for a good price. You could save a ton that way. I can put you in contact if you are interested. | ||
| Goozyman |
i can also vouch that Hogs is a top notch guy. If i needed another bike that would be mine! | ||
| Comeauzee |
Hey Nsbuell thanks for the info I am really looking for a new or last years model of the XBCity9SX, but thanks for the offer, but I will sure call the NB dealer to see what they say. Thanks again.  | ||
| Gopher |
I've always had good luck with Toys here in Moncton.....they were "flexible" with the MSRP..... | ||
| Smokescreen |
Cash is not king anymore. The days of paying cash and getting a deal are dead. Dealers don't make money selling bikes for less than MSRP even for a cash customer. Dealers make money in the finance. I have tried both with new car dealers and motorcycle dealers. Until the bike is costing them money to be in the showroom, expect no mercy. It's simple supply and demand. If you want THAT bike, you'll have to pay THAT price. They sell for what people will pay for them. My $.02 from my dealer experience. Results may vary. Smokescreen | ||
| Naustin |
Dealers HATE cash customers. They make alot of money on kickbacks on the financing from Banks and other Lenders. They'd rather sell the bike to the next guy than take your cash. They can finance anybody with a heart beat, and there are enough idiots willing to pay any price as long as they can get financed that the dealers don't have to negotiate anymore. Why should they when the next Bankrupt SOB that walks though the door will sign a contract $2,000 over MSRP at 18% interest and the dealer can net back 2.5% of the interest in the loan to boot? Not only do they make an extra 2K on the bike because the customer will take whatever they can get as long as the payment is right - the Dealer gets another $1,000 in interest reserve as a kickback on the financing. (Message edited by naustin on March 05, 2007) | ||
| Bumblebee |
Getting a deal on an HD or a Buell is rare. A no discount policy has been in place at most HD dealers for a long time. This doesn't mean it never happens though. Markup on bikes is about 15%-if that. | ||
| Comeauzee |
Hey Nsbuell, thanks again, I call the NB dealer that you recommended and he at least threw in the seat for free. I guess the issue is that there is only one black XB9 in eastern canada available, but at least I got something.  | ||
| Don668 |
Gazoo, Ron is a pretty fair guy I'm sure he'll take care of you. I also dealt with Tom on a few things, he's Tim Wilds brother (service writer) who I've known for years. Although I now live in Guelph Ontario I have to find a new place for service.  Don |
