buying experience rant

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Feb 18, 2014 | 07:32 PM

#51

SecondGear

Thread Starter

Road Captain

Joined: Nov 2013

Posts: 528

Likes: 14

From: pittsburgh

Quote:

Originally Posted by equandt

If you bought a bike, where is the picture?

I posted some crappy cell phone photos in the Rushmore forum. They won't deliver for a week for two. We had 4" of snow last night and there's more coming next week. I wasn't in a hurry to get it delivered. When it does arrive, I'll post better pics.

https://www.hdforums.com/forum/new-r...a-limited.html

Feb 18, 2014 | 08:10 PM

#52

Guntoter

Outstanding HDF Member

Joined: Mar 2009

Posts: 2,216

Likes: 102

From: Central Illinois

I haven't bought a Harley for years, but I wonder if the dealers would work better deals if everyone wasn't so fixated on only the Limited or SGS. Just like everyone else is.

Feb 18, 2014 | 08:29 PM

#53

ultra_classic

Club Member

Joined: Jan 2011

Posts: 937

Likes: 22

From: Ontario, Canada

Quote:

Originally Posted by dynhd1

I got the same " I lost your paperwork line" too ,,, S.C. HD?

Maybe...just maybe.... it was a napkin quote, Example: "Salesman: we could give you X for your bike and the new bike will cost you Y" and after you say: "I will think about it" ....You and Your "paper work" are forgotten

Jul 8, 2014 | 02:07 PM

#54

UUNetBill

Outstanding HDF Member

Joined: Aug 2012

Posts: 2,442

Likes: 418

From: South Carolina

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harleydaddy

Because I used to work in the car sales business for several years and I'd see it happen all the time. Especially with a popular vehicle. Someone would come in, look at it, test drive it, hammer out a price, take up hours of a sales guys time, then walk out and say "I'm not ready, I gotta think about it." Then they'd come back a few days or a week later and say "I want the car now" only find it was sold. People think that sales guys are giving them a line of crap when they say "This car's (bike's) not gonna stick around long." In some cases it may be a line of crap, but it's true and I've seen it happen tons of times. Just sayin.

+1 on that! I used to sell Hondas myself (the 4-wheeled kind) and me and another salesman used to always - ALWAYS - sell each other's cars out from under each other. A couple would come in, drive one with the other dude, and pull the "We gotta talk about it over lunch" thing, and as soon as they'd leave, I'd get a be-back from a day or two before and have it written before the couple got back from Taco Bell. And he'd do the same with my clients...seriously, if it's a good deal, you can bet your @$$ you're not the only one thinking about it. If you want it and think it's a good deal, do the deal and do it NOW. Just sayin'...

Jul 8, 2014 | 03:53 PM

#55

son of the hounds

Seasoned HDF Member

Joined: Aug 2011

Posts: 5,269

Likes: 3,366

From: Idaho Panhandle

Quote:

Originally Posted by SecondGear

The second dealership was the worst buying experience I've ever had. In November they offered $4k for my trade and a discounted price on an SGS. Now they explained that since the new year, my bike was worth $500 less and could only offer me $2500 and the bike was now straight MSRP since "we're in the riding season". During the sales conversation I said I was just trying to get the best deal I could and explained that I know that some dealerships do work on price. I said I knew of a guy that got a SGS for $19.5k OTD. </rant>

This is an old post picked up today by someone esle, but the topic remains viable. When I bought my new bike in November '10, I was ready to buy right now if the deal was solid. That is the key to deals. In November here it was pouring rain, few to zero customers looking at bikes, month end looming and new model years arriving making last summers models easy pickings. Perhaps your biggest mistake was not asking the salesman, "How long is this deal good for?". I suspect he would have told you less than 10 days. My salesman said three days, I said right now if you throw these other things in. They did. $ 1000 less than 2010 MSP which was $ 1000 less than the new MSP for the 2011. A rack, sissy bar and pad off other used bikes in inventory and the riders backrest off his own Road Glide to make the deal that day.

I also got great trade in value on my old bike, more than they were selling on craigs list. Only restriction was that I had to leave the optional stuff on it. The increase in trade in value was more than removing the optional stuff and selling it bit by bit on craigs list or the swap meet.

Know what you want, have a list of the options/ add ons you want and be ready to sign that day at that minute. If not, the lost opportunity is on your shoulders, not theirs. This however does not address the lack of call backs or follow-up from the other dealers, but I do not know you or what you told those salesmen. Perhaps they did not think you were serious. Lots of tire kickers out there.

Jul 8, 2014 | 04:13 PM

#56

Six7One

Tourer

Joined: Mar 2014

Posts: 380

Likes: 0

From: New Mexico

I don't think HD dealers have embraced the Internet Age as far as customers go. The local dealership here acts as though they are giving away the recipe for Coke when asked over the phone about prices and deals.

They suck in that respect here in Albuquerque. BUT...they made a sweet deal when I came in. Very high pressure and tack on some crazy mark-up because of what the market will bear (this can be understood as because they can) or that it is riding season.

HD's website is marginal from a performance standpoint and there is not a lot of QC going into the content on there. It seems very disconnected from the reputation of the product they sell. Is it demographic of buyers? Lack of corporate guidance on the site? Who knows. But when they get that right AND the dealers learn to work with "Internet" customers, the experience, at least in my opinion will be better.

Heck, they sell them like hotcakes. But they may be able to sell more hotcakes.