JeffKeryk

Yes, the manufacturers have come down on dealerships with good reason. People don't forget when you hit them in the pocketbook.
But what can they do? They are bound by contract. Again, the dealer is not your friend even though they want you to think they are.

Funny thing; people are praising Tesla for their direct "no haggle" pricing. But at least to an extent, customers are being fooled because Tesla has raised the MSRP by almost $5,000 I believe.

mmarshall

Well, I can't say that I disagree......you being up a valid point. Tesla strikes me as somewhat of a cult that people are (now) willing to pay extra just for the "priviledge" of joining...if nothing else, Model 3 sales prove that. Personally, I happen to like the Buick nameplate (I have for many years), but I won't let it treat me that way. I buy their products only as long as I think they are giving value for the money.

SW17LS

My opinion is, in an environment where I can use my ability to negotiate to save myself considerable money, I'm all for the current dealer model, which I have argued for in this thread.

In this environment, bring on the buy direct from the manufacturer for MSRP. Buying a Tesla or Lucid for whatever it costs sure beats screwing with Mercedes with these markups.

mmarshall

Yes, I'll agree that, all else equal, simple, no-dicker deals beat a Middle-East-Bazaar atmosphere any day. But I say "all else equal", because if someone felt he or she paid too much even at a fixed price, they could end up with Buyers' Remorse even if the paperwork was simple and quick.

In your case, I can't (and won't) say much else, First, because you, not us, are your own boss when it comes to your own satisfaction, and, Second, you apparently don't like to discuss price-specifics.

SW17LS

I have no problem discussing price specifics, I do that all the time.

JeffKeryk

This is true of many makes... Vettes, Porsches, Bro-dozers, MBZ, you name it.
There is no doubt a Civic will do much of what a Model 3 does for far less money and likly far less money over its lifespan.
I tell perspective buyers this all the time. Teslas are expensive. They are also great cars that are a blast to drive.

Och

iTrader: (3)

I wonder what will happen to the car market going forward. So many people are working from home, and barely driving, except local errands. We've been paying lease on my wife's car for a year and a half, and it doesn't even have 10k on the clock yet. I may buy it out at the end of the lease term, it should last for a very long time being driven so little. Many people are probably in the same shoes, and the car market should cool down, but I am not sure if the prices will go down as raw materials are just insane right now.

4TehNguyen

iTrader: (1)

only the dealerships are making the money hand over fist, not the automakers, wont last forever

AMIRZA786

People are now getting back to work here in the Bay area. Traffic is now back to almost what it was and the company I work for just leased a second building to accommodate growth

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

car sales imo are still surprisingly strong even with supply shortages, work from home, etc. i think a lot of people are buying cars even though there's probably not much wrong with what they have because they want the latest safety features, android auto, apple carplay, etc. part is FOMO.

the more i drive my LC though, the more i think i will keep it even though it will become out of date quickly, unless i get an offer that's too good to refuse. but then it's the fun car, not the work/daily.

Och

iTrader: (3)

With my wife and I driving so much less than we ever used to, I don't know why we even need two cars. For fun, I got the motorcycles.

92 SC400

Definitely some uncertain times! You would think the market should/will cool, but the combination of expensive/hard to get materials and the fact that people are paying premiums right now so I'm guessing that cool down will take a while to actually see. Over the past two years, my wife and I probably have driven a combined 15K miles, we used to easily double that before being full time work from home. We either just make short trips (less than 10 miles) or road trips.

With the change in driving habits for us, we've talked about an EV and I started to look at the Mustang Mach-E (not that seriously, mostly poking around) but that lead us to this...

All else equal, I'd rather just buy a Tesla at this point - something I would have NEVER said two years ago!

Not sure where you are in the Bay Area, but it's not really close to that in the South Bay, from what I've heard from the few I know who still commute. Majority of the people I know in my area only go to the office on an optional basis - most are not required at this point, especially those in tech. There are some companies (like yours) who have expanded their physical footprint, but there are also a lot who have basically gone "remote first" permanently and have (or are looking) to get out of their buildings.

AMIRZA786

We are in the North San Jose and Milpitas area, and traffic is pretty bad in the morning. 880, 680 and 101 are packed during commute times. We are medical device, so 90 percent come to the office and the other 10 percent work hybrid or remote. I could work hybrid, but I'm the type that needs to in the office, I hate working from home

Och

iTrader: (3)

Traffic in NYC is worse than ever, but most office buildings are still empty.

SW17LS

Dealerships don't like this as much as you might think. They are making way more per vehicle, but volume of sales is way down