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I think it would be great to buy a car from Amazon. The WYSISYG pricing is something missing from car buying. Negotiating a car price can be a lot of fun if you

by ejcx 10y ago

I think it would be great to buy a car from Amazon. The WYSISYG pricing is something missing from car buying. Negotiating a car price can be a lot of fun if you're a good negotiator, but people who aren't might love this. It also gives you a tool for negotiating if you DO plan to take the offer in to a local dealership.

lfowles 10y ago
Carmax does exactly that and is pretty big nowadays..
__derek__ 10y ago
Oops. Beaten to the punch. --- In the used-car market, this is what CarMax does.[1] [1]: https://www.carmax.com/car-buying-process/why-carmax https://www.carmax.com/car-buying-process/why-carmax
- lfowles 10y ago
  Forgot to note that it was only for the used-car market, but would also be great for the new car market.
bonestamp2 10y ago
> The WYSISYG pricing is something missing from car buying. You can do this on most manufacturer's sites. Just configure the vehicle and print out the result. Unless it's an extremely hot vehicle, they will give you that price since most people are trying to haggle below that price. The real problem is inventory. You're not likely going to find one with exactly what you want, and you can order one at that price but then you're 1-4+ months before it arrives. That's fine if you've got a lease ending soon and can plan for it, but when I buy a new car it's usually because my current car has a problem and I can't really wait more than a month. They need to figure out how to shorten lead times (perhaps making more options dealer installed), or change the way inventory is ordered/stored so Dealers aren't all ordering the same thing (which I don't blame them for doing).
- NickNameNick 10y ago
  Dealer installed options can be problematic, My dad's last car had some dealer installed trim applied to the door sils, they drilled holes to mount the trim, and didn't properly re-seal the metal, so it rusted. Dealer installed radio in a previous car had faulty wiring. Friend had a car where the dealer had replaced the normal badge with the premium hood ornament. Rust again.
ryandrake 10y ago
Apparently dealers are selling cars like hot cakes nowadays, because the last few times I went to a dealership and tried to get a discount they wouldn't really budge. When you threaten to walk, they say "Well.... bye!" A few years ago, they would practically sell for less than cost. So, yea a service that gives you a WYSIWYG price sounds pretty good these days.
gambiting 10y ago
Do manufacturers not advertise prices in the US? Right now I can go to UK site for Mercedes, or Audi, or any other manufacturer, click on a model, and the website will show me a price for a new car + pricing on all options. I know I can walk into any dealership and they will sell the car for that exact price. What am I missing here?
- ghaff 10y ago
  You're missing that a lot of people (here and elsewhere) want a fixed price but they want that fixed price to be what you'd get if you bargained down the price from MSRP.

by ejcx 10y ago

lfowles 10y ago

Carmax does exactly that and is pretty big nowadays..

__derek__ 10y ago

Oops. Beaten to the punch. --- In the used-car market, this is what CarMax does.[1] [1]: https://www.carmax.com/car-buying-process/why-carmax https://www.carmax.com/car-buying-process/why-carmax

lfowles 10y ago
Forgot to note that it was only for the used-car market, but would also be great for the new car market.

bonestamp2 10y ago

> The WYSISYG pricing is something missing from car buying. You can do this on most manufacturer's sites. Just configure the vehicle and print out the result. Unless it's an extremely hot vehicle, they will give you that price since most people are trying to haggle below that price. The real problem is inventory. You're not likely going to find one with exactly what you want, and you can order one at that price but then you're 1-4+ months before it arrives. That's fine if you've got a lease ending soon and can plan for it, but when I buy a new car it's usually because my current car has a problem and I can't really wait more than a month. They need to figure out how to shorten lead times (perhaps making more options dealer installed), or change the way inventory is ordered/stored so Dealers aren't all ordering the same thing (which I don't blame them for doing).

NickNameNick 10y ago
Dealer installed options can be problematic, My dad's last car had some dealer installed trim applied to the door sils, they drilled holes to mount the trim, and didn't properly re-seal the metal, so it rusted. Dealer installed radio in a previous car had faulty wiring. Friend had a car where the dealer had replaced the normal badge with the premium hood ornament. Rust again.

ryandrake 10y ago

Apparently dealers are selling cars like hot cakes nowadays, because the last few times I went to a dealership and tried to get a discount they wouldn't really budge. When you threaten to walk, they say "Well.... bye!" A few years ago, they would practically sell for less than cost. So, yea a service that gives you a WYSIWYG price sounds pretty good these days.

gambiting 10y ago

Do manufacturers not advertise prices in the US? Right now I can go to UK site for Mercedes, or Audi, or any other manufacturer, click on a model, and the website will show me a price for a new car + pricing on all options. I know I can walk into any dealership and they will sell the car for that exact price. What am I missing here?

ghaff 10y ago
You're missing that a lot of people (here and elsewhere) want a fixed price but they want that fixed price to be what you'd get if you bargained down the price from MSRP.