GMS - Dealers Participating

[live2well]

Hmm.... see where you are coming from. I think the issue that the dealers have isnt with the customer but with GM. GM is allowing for the discount therefore the dealers should honor it (even initially). If the dealers can sell more volume because of the discount then that is what they should do. I would rather sell 100 cars at a dollar profit then sell 1 car at $100 profit. It makes the whole chain flow. Which keeps people working and allows them to have money to spend. SYNERGY :-)

[City Chevrolet]

The only thing I would have some issue with here is the "I would make everyone I know go to that dealer to buy if they gave me the car for little to nothing" is theory.. this is not practiced by the everyday customer and we all know it.

Customers are dedicated to their pocket books, not to a dealer who gave them a good deal. Next shopping time comes around and they will send emails to every other dealer around and go to the one who cuts the throat of their peers the best. Loyalty in this day and age is non exsistant I fear.

Just my 2 coppers on that subject.

[rico-2SS]

Originally Posted by LS 1st gen

This issue shouldn't be as controversial as we're making it. If a dealership wants to honor GM discounts then that's their business. Nobody is going to force them to, just like no one is going force a customer to find the best possible deal. I know I'll be searching for the best deal I can get. A dealership that can make a fair deal will earn my businesss.

Thank you

[trm0002]

Originally Posted by live2well

Hmm.... see where you are coming from. I think the issue that the dealers have isnt with the customer but with GM. GM is allowing for the discount therefore the dealers should honor it (even initially). If the dealers can sell more volume because of the discount then that is what they should do. I would rather sell 100 cars at a dollar profit then sell 1 car at $100 profit. It makes the whole chain flow. Which keeps people working and allows them to have money to spend. SYNERGY :-)

And they do..

on Impalas
on Malibus
on 1500 trucks
on...
on...

and how many dealers have we lost recently because of it? Keep the other end of the equation in mind also; what happens to the consumer when 8 "area" dealerships become 3 ? Supply and demand my friend. They have to make a reasonable profit to stay in business, while at the same time, usually, have to battle with competing dealerships. Take some dealerships away and the average consumer, without GMS/GSU will be paying more and more as time goes on.

[live2well]

I would agree with you except for the fact that people spend money on emotion. If one gets the best deal in the world and the people selling it are totally rude, I would say that one would go to the second best deal in the world if the sales people were pleasant and made the buyer feel comfortable. SY+BV+SN+CD = Sale.

[Speedy1975]

Originally Posted by City Chevrolet

This is not true and here is an example:

GMS: 31012.53
SUPPLR: 32401.34
MRM: 33915.00
MEMO 1508.25
GSU: 439.80

That is taken from an invoice on an Impala SS. GM Employee is $31,012 from a $33,915 MSRP and the dealer gets the Memo money back of $1,508.25.

The dealer would lose $1403 to sell it at Employee price less the advertising (Only if a true GM Employee)

To sell at Supplier price the dealer get MUCH less. It would be about the same as selling it at invoice price plus I believe like 1% of advertising.

Let us all keep in mind that without a dealer making some money there is no dealer to bring your car back to, no free oil changes, no loyalty discounts, and a good chance that with less dealers = less compition = more money out of consumers pocket and many more drawbacks. All for about $20 per month on a 60 month term. ( Yes I am devils advocate here as I am on the other side looking out )

Just throwing this out there for those concerned about the wellfare of those who have families and work at dealerships and all.

Other than that, shoot I sell 90% of my cars at invoice now as it is, I personally sometimes don't even know how dealerships can keep up right now.. oh, that's right, they are not!

Regardless of all of this, I am a consumer too and I am always for a good deal and hope everyone can get one with some ease, I just would not want that deal at the expense of someones job.

If the parent company "GM" is accepting the discount there is no reason for a dealership not to. Period. Even allowing this to be "dealer discretion" creates a disconnect which just pisses people off. Add on top of that there are dealers also accepting the discount and that just makes a dealership that doesn't look worse in the eyes of the customer and they'll just go to the ones that accept the discount. You guys need to remember this car isn't going to be unobtanium.

Originally Posted by Alaska Chony69

Profit is not a dirty word, but also remember most for most dealers sales are not there only income.. My dealer up here charges $100 shop rate for maintenance... Just how much do you think they are paying there mechanics..

Plus we are not talking about giving this to all buyers. Just the ones that qualify... Plus i would venture to guess that there is less time spend on a GMS purchase that someone negotiating from MSRP.

Like I said earlier, I have bought 10 -15 vehicles with GMS pricing and the saleman and management i have dealt with have been fantastic, even though the profit was not there.

One last point.... someone sells me this Camaro at GMS and they will have my business and anyone else i can convince business for years to come... That equates to more sales and more money in the long run.

Exactly.

Originally Posted by live2well

No disrespect intended but, if I were a dealer I would honor what ever discount the customer was entitled to. Why? Because that is the honest/right thing to do. Also word of mouth works wonders for business. The customer who gets what he is supposed to get will speak highly of my dealership to others therefore I will have more customers. The one who doesnt will find out later that he didnt get what he was supposed to get and then not only tell others about how I cheated him but wont come back to my shop to have repairs and up keep done on his vehicle because he will think I am gonna cheat him there too.

I think a lot of dealers dont think long term but are trying to get a quick buck. That is not how to run a successful, long standing business. That is not an opinion but fact.

Precisely.

Originally Posted by City Chevrolet

The only thing I would have some issue with here is the "I would make everyone I know go to that dealer to buy if they gave me the car for little to nothing" is theory.. this is not practiced by the everyday customer and we all know it.

Customers are dedicated to their pocket books, not to a dealer who gave them a good deal. Next shopping time comes around and they will send emails to every other dealer around and go to the one who cuts the throat of their peers the best. Loyalty in this day and age is non exsistant I fear.

Just my 2 coppers on that subject.

Then maybe you're not treating your customers right? Not accepting discounts is a key indication of that already. I can guarantee you on a big ticket purchase like this if the sales staff/dealership take care of me, I make sure to take care of them. Just ask the local motorcycle shop that I have bought 3 brand new bikes from in as many years, or the realtor that I bought my house from, or my local favorite service center that I've had lunch delivered to his entire crew for taking such good care of my vehicle on things I didn't wanna do myself and send people to on a weekly basis for work they need done, or the small business I buy ALL of my motorcycle hop up parts from, even giving him free advertising on my website that gets thousands of unique hits per month.

However, all of those businesses went above and beyond to insure I was happy with our business dealings. I mean they really shined. However, Sony screwed me on a $100 battery for a digital camera 7 years ago and I've refused to buy one product from them since. How much do you think that has cost them over these 7 years over that $100 battery, plus all the people I steer away from Sony retelling that story to?

Not to blow my own horn, but I'm VERY good with finances. When I buy a new big ticket item (car, motorcycle, etc) I do my research and find the avg price others are paying, as well as the high and low for my area. I then take those averages to the seller printed out clearly showing what's up to see what they'll do. If they're really good, I add in a percentage above that for their add'l profit. If they're jerks, I don't and stick to my guns on the price period which has only been two times in dozens of deals I've completed.

I've visited 4 local Chevy dealers to discuss this new Camaro. One has stood out far above the others having info and not brushing me off just because they don't have any in stock yet, and goes to look if they don't know the answer to one of my questions. Others have just said "we don't have any news yet" and blow me off rushing to the next customer who might buy something already on the lot. They're marked off my list when they do that. I've narrowed it down to one and we'll see what they wanna do on pricing when the time comes, but so far they're in the category of me adding some add'l monies to the purchase price for them to make more profit than I'd allow one of the other dealers to make off my purchase. They've earned it.

Food for thought coming from the outside looking in as you say. Profit isn't gauranteed, it's earned.

One last comment on my rant....3% profit may not sound like much to you, but to the consumer who takes a 15% depreciation hit the minute the paperwork is signed it IS a lot on a $30,000+ purchase.

[LS 1st gen]

Originally Posted by City Chevrolet

The only thing I would have some issue with here is the "I would make everyone I know go to that dealer to buy if they gave me the car for little to nothing" is theory.. this is not practiced by the everyday customer and we all know it.

Customers are dedicated to their pocket books, not to a dealer who gave them a good deal. Next shopping time comes around and they will send emails to every other dealer around and go to the one who cuts the throat of their peers the best. Loyalty in this day and age is non exsistant I fear.

Just my 2 coppers on that subject.

This just makes me think of everyone on the forums that bashed the UAW a weeks back. The principle that one should look after their peers in matters of business is very touchy in a free market economy. This is kind of the flip side of the coin. There is no dealership "Union" though. Very interesting.

[City Chevrolet]

Speedy, don't rush to judge me because I have been in business for awhile and I do know how customers are, being as I deal with quite a few and would have a list extremely long of folks who would say they had a better than average experience with me to a terrific one, but to say they would forfit their next purchase to me because I gave them the discount they wanted in the first place and whored it out is just not a fact.

(excuse me here while I get really real about things, the dealership rant)

And also, to say because the dealership I work for has decided on the 8 or so Camaros alocated to them would not be supplier or GMS sold has no reflection on the dealership as a whole and how they treat their customers. To say that if they don't give away this luxury it is somehow evil to any potential client and reflects badly on their customer service is revolting in itself. Who is being greedy again? Remind me as I keep forgetting as I type this. "Give car away free, treat those who don't like to pay like Gods, plead for referals from those who don't like to pay to send more who don't pay and then kiss their ass too..." oh geeze, sounds like a new ride at Disney World."


The more I read over this forum (except for a few really good people here) the first rule I ever learned has become more and more apparent. Customers typically get into a rage when they can not have what they want for the price they want to pay. Who is holding who hostage again? If I had a dollar for every person since the housing crash who said "I want less than invoice and you guys need the business, call me when you will lose money"


When has the Brand new ultra cool Camaro been something that was put into the Constitution as everyone deserves one at a few bucks over cost?.. alot of the people here act as if we are holding the last glass of water in the desert and holding it for ransom... for Pete's sake, you WANT the cool car but don't want to pay anything for that LUXURY really take a step back..


anyhow, maybe I should exit stage left before I say something that people not in the car business would not understand.

Remember, I have read more threads on this forum demeaning my work, my livelyhood, my career... I have been called a liar without a word being spilt from my lips... I have been called a cheat when that person has never done buiness with me and I see thread after thread of people talking about "How can I beat the dealership up?" So I am sorry if I come off a bit abrasive but I work damn hard for myself, my family and my clients and I know I deserve better treatment than I see most of the people on here...

Have a great day.

[Speedy1975]

Originally Posted by City Chevrolet

Speedy, don't rush to judge me because I have been in business for awhile and I do know how customers are, being as I deal with quite a few and would have a list extremely long of folks who would say they had a better than average experience with me to a terrific one, but to say they would forfit their next purchase to me because I gave them the discount they wanted in the first place and whored it out is just not a fact.

(excuse me here while I get really real about things, the dealership rant)

And also, to say because the dealership I work for has decided on the 8 or so Camaros alocated to them would not be supplier or GMS sold has no reflection on the dealership as a whole and how they treat their customers. To say that if they don't give away this luxury it is somehow evil to any potential client and reflects badly on their customer service is revolting in itself. Who is being greedy again? Remind me as I keep forgetting as I type this. "Give car away free, treat those who don't like to pay like Gods, plead for referals from those who don't like to pay to send more who don't pay and then kiss their ass too..." oh geeze, sounds like a new ride at Disney World."


The more I read over this forum (except for a few really good people here) the first rule I ever learned has become more and more apparent. Customers typically get into a rage when they can not have what they want for the price they want to pay. Who is holding who hostage again? If I had a dollar for every person since the housing crash who said "I want less than invoice and you guys need the business, call me when you will lose money"


When has the Brand new ultra cool Camaro been something that was put into the Constitution as everyone deserves one at a few bucks over cost?.. alot of the people here act as if we are holding the last glass of water in the desert and holding it for ransom... for Pete's sake, you WANT the cool car but don't want to pay anything for that LUXURY really take a step back..


anyhow, maybe I should exit stage left before I say something that people not in the car business would not understand.

Remember, I have read more threads on this forum demeaning my work, my livelyhood, my career... I have been called a liar without a word being spilt from my lips... I have been called a cheat when that person has never done buiness with me and I see thread after thread of people talking about "How can I beat the dealership up?" So I am sorry if I come off a bit abrasive but I work damn hard for myself, my family and my clients and I know I deserve better treatment than I see most of the people on here...

Have a great day.

No worries man. I'm not judging anyone. I can tell ya if dealership A is offering the discount, for which I am eligible, and dealer B does not, dealer A gets my business period.

The person that buys from dealer B and didn't get the discount they were eligible for, they more than overpaid for the car. How will customers that bought from dealer B WERE eligible (key words) for the discount feel when they find out they could have saved several thousand dollars had their dealer honored this discount? They'll feel HAD and taken advantage of and POOF they never come back. At least that's how I'd feel.

You keyed in on a major issue I have with the car biz. You keep using words like "ultra cool" and "luxury" to sell this new product. However a year later you'd say it was used and worth half what it was bought for initially whether I have my invoice slip in my hand or not.

Good luck.

[City Chevrolet]

Nah man, no worries.


Keep in mind, consumers set the used car values, not dealerships. If you will only pay X for a pre-owned car it will only bring Y at auction.


It is no biggy, we all know cars are depreciating items, they have been forever, to act suprised about it or down a dealer of cars because of it is absolutly not fair. We all know when we buy a car it's value deminishes, that is each buyers burden, not a dealerships.


If this car (2SS RS) came out at an MSRP of $50,000.00 people would be happy to buy it at $47,000.00.. it is all perception and that is your only reality.

Also, it isn't just me using that word, look about this forum, tell me how many people you see that say this is ultra cool. I did not ever use that word to sell a vehicle and if I ever do, someone smack me. The fact is, this is an awesome luxury item, it is not a need it is a want, to try to deminish that is also being untrue to yourself.

[mglumske]

Has it finally been decided that the GM Supplier discount will be on the Camaro??
The last I knew it was still up in the air.

[City Chevrolet]

Originally Posted by mglumske

Has it finally been decided that the GM Supplier discount will be on the Camaro??
The last I knew it was still up in the air.

It is up to your dealer and I would guess not many dealers will want to let a vehicle go that low at first. Good luck!

[RPO_Z28]

Gary,

Do not try to defend the car business in this or any other forum. It is 98% customers and we all know how that works. You can never win. PM me off the forums and we'll chat.

[Montrose]

Gary not every one is trying to ripp off the dealers, i for one am not. i will be paying full msrp no more no less, yea i know i can get the gm military discount because i wont be reciving my car until my return from afghanistan in july 2010, but none of the dealers where i am stationed were willing to work with me, but i did find one out of state about 622 miles away from me that was, and since he will take care of me i feel as if he should get his profit. i wont payfull price for everything but if i feel it's been earned then i have no problem paying full msrp. just my 2 cents. Montrose