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Only $10 for all 2024 SX, MX, and SMX series (regularly $30).
Price collusion is common as fuck despite what anyone who wants to claim otherwise.
I feel like Im arguing with a bar owner that refuses to hide his cash sales from the IRS because it's "illegal" and then wonders why it's hard to stay in business. So he hires shitty/cheap bartenders and business further suffers. And it's somehow the fault of his alcoholic customer base whom he willingingly sells liquor to just above his cost.
Meanwhile the nightclub down the street sells the same shot of vodka for $18 and is hugely profitable as a business.
If looking to buy a mx bike you can usually find your best deal in the city’s where there is not a lot off land to ride on around ( these are the shops that cater to the street bike crowd most every dealership has to buy a min off every bike the the mfg builds ) they are tieing up the guys floor plan and display are where they can put a more profitable bike in its place
Buy with in the first month off delivery off that bike not all shops but most shops work off a floor plan where they start paying interest on the bike after a certain point usually 1-3 months after delivery the fourth week is going to be the sweet spot they are going to take a chance that someone has to have it and will pay there way ,that’s why there is usally 2- 3 release dates from the factory so the shop is not sitting on product they can’t move all winter most shops get one or two in the fall release and the rest come in the spring keep in mind the city shops are going to get the bare min 2-3 off that 250 f / 450 F vs 20 crotch rockets that they are going to make the $$$$ money off
I can also say they guys that came in and bought parts consumables through out the year always got the best deals on bikes because we where going to make money off you using / racing the bike trough out the year
Last but not least your dealer is going to go to bat for you when your have a mfr defect on that bike some times digging out off his own pocket to keep you coming back every year or two
The Shop
Funny all the dirt bikes are about the same price, until someone comes along and sells a 450 for $5500 out the door, the current manufacturers and retailers will always adjust their prices based on their competitors.
KTM calls their "Holdback" money a PDI or Setup credit. Basically, all manufactures want instant notification of a sale of a motorcycle so they can have accurate reporting of sales as well as they can start the warranty the day that the bike leaves the showroom. So how can they guarantee that you register the sale of a bike? They hold some of your money hostage. Some of the margin or profit of the bike is held in their possession until you tell them who bought the new bike and then they take their sweet time sending you your money. If you think it is money to set the bike up you haven't been around the business long enough. I don't care what they call it. Lot's of sales deals lose money until a few months later when you get your "holdback" money back. Or as KTM likes to call it, Setupfee. KTM is actually adding another twist to the party, on the four stroke bikes, you can't get a code to program the ECU to make the bike run until you warranty register the bike.
So here is what I have to back up my statement. Here is an invoice for a 2018 50. You will see the cost of the bike is $3401. Then you have the freight charge(to the dealer) of $300. Then you have the Setupfee(ransom) money of $400 that they keep. Now the total of the invoice is $4101. That bike is advertised as retailing for $4199. If it is sold at the advertised retail price the dealer has made $98 until months later when he receives his $400 back. You can call it set up money, I call it ransom. They hold my money until I give them the information that they want. My office lady screws up and doesn't register that bike, I'm screwed. Now if all goes to plan, I get retail on the bike, I charge the $300 freight that they charge me and I get MY $400 back I have made $798. That is not taking into consideration fuel, labor, trash removal, commission to the sales guy and other small expenses.
It doesn't go to plan when you are a fan of MX. It sucks when your best buddy comes in and wants a deal off of retail for a new 50 for his kid.
A lot of these complaints are viable & fixable. Some tho, like proven sales techniques, are not going away and you guys will have to live with it and accept it for what it is.
The VAST majority of consumers are not educated buyers. So salespeople are taught to automatically find a like substitute in the event a specific model isnt readily available.
If they assumed every buyer was as educated about their purchase as those here in a MX forum, they'd sell fewer bikes. Period.
The guy literally told me he wasn't interested in the bike and wouldn't give me anything for a trade in on it. I promptly left with my unfinished bike (the hadn't started on the recall after two weeks) and drove 30 minutes south to another Honda dealer in Tampa called Tampa Bay Motorsports.
Long story short, I left the second dealer with more than what I wanted for my trade in, a better out the door price on a 17' CRF 450, and got to keep the wheels off my 15'. Moral of the story is, LISTEN to your customers. There's nothing that makes me not want to do business with a dealer more than when they treat you like your trade in is junk, when it's basically still new. Hell we all know freestyle guys only use second gear with third on occasion.
Pit Row
A few of my pet peeves regarding customers.
1. Neglecting the bike I sold them, running the piss out of it with no service and blaming me when it breaks.
2. Assuming I get free machines because I race and work for a shop.
3. Making offers on machines at well below cost and being offended when I say no.
4. Accusing me of trying to pressure them into a sale when I tell them a certain promo is about to end. Once its gone, its gone.
5. Letting their kids climb all over everything in the store, if your kid is sitting on a 50cc quad or bike, that's fine, but they don't need to be scaling a $20,000 cruiser in muddy shoes.
6. Complaining about a scratch on a used bike with 30+ hours on it. If you want a perfect bike I've got plenty of brand new ones on the floor.
7. Showing up without an appointment with their machine and expecting us to drop everything and work on theirs right away.
I can also sympathize with dealers put on here as pet peeves , man some people sure have big ones. I'm just not a fan of these Walmart style dealerships it's impossible for them to keep a good parts inventory unfortunately that's all that's left.
They say people are less likely to buy a bike from them if they give OTD over the phone...well...that's true, especially, if their bikes aren't the cheapest. Hoping to get a customer in the door so you can sell them an overpriced bike based on salesmanship, is crap. Places that are reluctant to give an OTD price over the phone, know their stuff is over priced.
Many dealers have this entitlement mentality...support us because we're "local"...support us because we're the good ol' boys and have been around for ever...support us for our sentimental value of the good ol' days when dealerships actually mattered....I know we are more expensive...I know we don't have the part you need in stock...I know our salesman know nothing...I know our parts counter knows nothing....I know its going to take us three-four weeks to get your top end finished...but, you should support us anyway-and we'll try and make you feel guilty if you don't...because we're local, been around for ever, and remember the good ol' days when everyone used to buy from dealership...what more reason do you need?
They would have had me as a customer for everything, but they lost me. I'll buy oil and filters from there, but thats it.
As I said in my previous reply, it's the service area that gets me. Just be straight up when I drop something off. I never drop something off needing it rushed.... So tell me a week or 2 weeks or whatever if it's going to take that long! It will save us both the bother of me showing up expecting something done when you said it would be done.
You didnt cost them money on a floor unit. And now you buy the stuff with the highest margins from them.
And that dealership 3-4 hours away that "earned" your business? They thought they'd make it back on selling you oil & filters. They totally fucked themselves and are the perfect example of why you should never compete on price.
The sales price of a dirtbike is not a "customer service" issue.
And its not about MSRP...its about all the other "fees" that dealers charge before getting to the OTD price. If the MSPR was the OTD price, then you would have a point.
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