I am a new member and new to motorcycles. I have an F&I background from the finance side working with auto dealers. I know that auto dealers have a lot more wiggle room and use a lot of different fees to the OTD price to make them more profit.
I am under the assumption that motorcycle dealers are the same. The saying assume nothing comes to mind because it makes and *** out of u and me.
I am trying to get info on how the dealers operate and how much room a buyer has in negotiations.
Are prices more set but can you negotiate add ons and warranties?
Will the 2016s effect the price on 2015-2014s? Demo bikes that have never been sold but have 1k-2k miles on them from test rides get a price break?
Any and all information about similar topics as well.

 

What I'd like to know as well. How will the 2016's coming soon effect the pricing on the 2015's currently on a dealer's floor?

Does anyone know if HD provides any "incentives" to dealerships to clear out 2015's? Meaning, bonus money from HQ to the local dealership?

Thanks.

 

Imagine the deals, if any are on slow movers. It's going to change from dealer to dealer. Buddy recently bought a 2015 Heritage. The dealer he bought it from had some 2014 Fatboys marked $3000 off MSRP. With riding season coming to an end here they are probably motivated to clear the floor with 16s coming in.

At another dealer 100 miles away there were no deals to be had.

 

Great question 407. Thanks Harly Dude. Any one with information on how F&I works with motorcycle dealers that is different than auto dealers?

 

My experience has been just like auto dealers and I've always approached it with they will make some money to pay their bills and I'll walk away paying what I wanted to pay.

They do have incentive to sell for 2016 models, and when its cold dealers are better. Both coming soon.

MSRP is about 19-20% above dealer cost from most discussions but they have operating costs so their cost is more than just what they paid for the bike. They might finance it from the factory, may get kickbacks on the financing, etc.

Nothing seems to deflate the finance guy more than you handing them a check from your credit union and refusing to let them run your credit though....heh.

 

Last Sunday at Battlefield HD in Gettysburg, they were reducing the prices on most of their 2015 bikes by 3K right up front. Some screaming deals there.
Not sure if there is any inventory left.

 

If a dealer won't negotiate price, ask them to include break-in service in the deal, accessories or motorclothes. You might also ask them to waive freight, prep or doc fees. Just ask. You've got nothing to lose.

With the 2016 models coming out, you might find dealers more flexible on remaining 2015's.

 

Ask them to throw in a new compensator and cam tensioners when they fail, lol

And try not to finance it!

 

Tiber closer to autos than I thought. Thanks Wish I was in PA Red but living in Ky. Geoff thanks that is the type of info I am looking for. I have no issue with the dealer making money but also looking for the best deal possible. Heritage I plan on being able to pay with out of dealer financing but want to see what they have to offer just in case they can beat my bank. When I bought my Honda CRV Honda financing beat my bank by 2%

 

The problem is every dealer operates different. No different than any other business. Should they be making deals on 2015's, of course they should be but who knows, half of these dealers act like they are the only ones with a bike for sale. Most of these bikes have between $2000-$4500 markup from invoice to MSRP. Obviously the cheaper the MSRP the less markup. Finance works the sames as a car dealer, if you take advantage of the .9 or 1.9% the dealer gets $100-$200 kickback from the bank.

If i was buying a new 2015 at this point in the year i would expect a $3000 discount. You might have to shop a couple of dealers to figure out which one really wants to work a deal.