New sales and discounts?

[Clemmo]

Just wondered how others had got on with buying new and discounts?
We have a budget of £70k and have been very actively shopping over last 3 weeks.
I have learnt that you need to start real low with offers.
Offer 2-3 thousand less they will certainly readily accept.
Offer 10 thousand less and after they have groaned a bit they normally come back with £8k discount
Is this normal?
are new Motorhomes not selling?
Clemmo

 

[nicholsong]

Deleted when I realised topic is NEW SALES.

I do not know much about them and hope I never have to.

 

[Saucer]

We recently got about 20% off our hymer (albeit an overspecced stock van) based on list with the extras, also have seen southdowns advertising some decent discounts on stock vans.
It seems the market is turning, and this end of the season, I think they will now be keen to discuss discounts.

I’d be interested in how you went about that? Did you ask for more?

 

[bobnick]

Everybody wants to believe they got "A Deal" on their new purchase.

 

[Silver-Fox]

I would compare new Moho prices etc to builders merchants.

There’s a bottom line and they won’t/can’t go below it.
They know how much they need to make on their product to stay afloat considering all the costs.

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[bobnick]

Can't really apply the loss leader tatic on new MHs eh.

 

[Silver-Fox]

Loss leaders work great in Supermarkets as we know people go in pick up the loss leader then continue to fill their baskets with stuff a bit over priced.

Can’t see that happening with a Moho

 

[bobnick]

Loss leaders work great in Supermarkets as we know people go in pick up the loss leader then continue to fill their baskets with stuff a bit over priced.

Can’t see that happening with a Moho

Exactly.

 

[Steve and Denise]

The key thing is to put yourself in the position of the dealer and salesperson. They have sales targets they need to achieve and margin thresholds they can’t breach.

End of quarter, most sales organisations work with quarterly targets, gives you the best opportunity to achieve the most advantageous deal as the buyer. They are chasing their quarterly number, especially as the market is (has) changed to a buyers market, according to the consensus of opinion on MHF.

Be reasonable in what you’re asking for, have justification for the price you’re after, for example you need to do XYZ to make the vehicle work for you. If price and or a bargain is your biggest driver, negotiate the price first, then ask for some concessions in other areas second. So if you want some dealer concessions in on the deal, you at least know that they aren’t loading the price to pay for those.

If you’re mid month in Sept when you’re having this negotiation, walk away and let them come back to you. The nearer it gets to the end of the quarter the better the deal you may get.

They will not like you doing the above as you’re playing them at their game a little, but be bold and confident and it will give you the best opportunity to get the best deal.

How do you know know when the quater years start and finish?

 

[Carpmart]

How do you know know when the quater years start and finish?

99.99% of businesses run calendar quarters. The only real difference is if they run April to March or Jan to Dec fiscal years

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[Pausim]

I am starting to wonder if there has been a market shift from motorhomes to camper vans? We are currently on a coastal site in Wales, in our field there is 1 motorhome and 8 camper vans. 6 of the drivers look too young to have a C1 licence and I have reached a point where I no longer want to to do the health tests to keep my C1. Every year the number of people with C1 grandfather rights is reducing, perhaps this is starting to impact on the market? I am thinking I might have sold my over 3500kg motorhome at the right time.

Edit. I have just taken a look at Southdowns ads. They are discounting some of their Carthago motorhomes but all their Malibu Vans from the same manufacturer are on order for delivery next year. They have just opened a new factory in Slovenia just to make panel van conversions. Food for thought.

 

[Steve and Denise]

I am starting to wonder if there has been a market shift from motorhomes to camper vans? We are currently on a coastal site in Wales, in our field there is 1 motorhome and 8 camper vans. 6 of the drivers look too young to have a C1 licence and I have reached a point where I no longer want to to do the health tests to keep my C1. Every year the number of people with C1 grandfather rights is reducing, perhaps this is starting to impact on the market? I am thinking I might have sold my over 3500kg motorhome at the right time.

Edit. I have just taken a look at Southdowns ads. They are discounting some of their Carthago motorhomes but all their Malibu Vans from the same manufacturer are on order for delivery next year. They have just opened a new factory in Slovenia just to make panel van conversions. Food for thought.

I think at our age I’ll have what I want now before it’s made impossible by the government

 

[enark]

So you get 20% off the price tag…..um

Dealers know the real price….

 

[Pausim]

I think at our age I’ll have what I want now before it’s made impossible by the government

I think increasing age and declining health will get there before the Government but I agree with the sentiment.

 

[The Wino]

So you get 20% off the price tag…..um

Dealers know the real price….

Do they though? They know what they would like to get for something but can only achieve what someone will pay

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[gus-lopez]

How do you know know when the quater years start and finish?

It was always Jan, feb ,march = 1st quarter then so on. If unsure when you went in the office of my Ford dealer it would be pinned up on the door
" Quarter target = 196
amount to today =179 etc.
I was an "employee " sale always so basically hated except at the tail end of a quarter when they needed any sale to get past the allocated amount

6 of the drivers look too young to have a C1 licence and I have reached a point where I no longer want to to do the health tests to keep my C1.

Spain goes to 4250kgs on a car licence as from january 1st 2025

 

[Steve and Denise]

I am starting to wonder if there has been a market shift from motorhomes to camper vans? We are currently on a coastal site in Wales, in our field there is 1 motorhome and 8 camper vans. 6 of the drivers look too young to have a C1 licence and I have reached a point where I no longer want to to do the health tests to keep my C1. Every year the number of people with C1 grandfather rights is reducing, perhaps this is starting to impact on the market? I am thinking I might have sold my over 3500kg motorhome at the right time.

Edit. I have just taken a look at Southdowns ads. They are discounting some of their Carthago motorhomes but all their Malibu Vans from the same manufacturer are on order for delivery next year. They have just opened a new factory in Slovenia just to make panel van conversions. Food for thought.

I was talking to a dealer at Norfolk and he said they do not want any pop top type of vans in px as the bottom has dropped out of them since covid

 

[Pocket Rocket]

My impression from various forums, discussions, motorhome articles and news etc is that most demand is currently for good quality PVCs. In particular this is because “pop top” campers are considered too small (and the post-Covid market is flooded), whilst larger motor homes are considered too big to easily get around, drive or store, along with more costly to run (eg fuel economy)

I’m aware that is a generalisation, and that there is still demand for both campervans and large motor homes. But I think “peak demand” is for PVCs, both new and used.

 

[Wh05apk]

I’d be interested in how you went about that? Did you ask for more?

It was a cancelled/rejected order (very minor chipping on rear where rear camera had fallen out on delivery, I suspect the buyers just used as an excuse) very well spaced, and I think they had it in stock for a while, the price had already been reduced but managed another few thousand, and free alarm/tracker.

 

[The Wino]

It was a cancelled/rejected order (very minor chipping on rear where rear camera had fallen out on delivery, I suspect the buyers just used as an excuse) very well spaced, and I think they had it in stock for a while, the price had already been reduced but managed another few thousand, and free alarm/tracker.

Theres a price for everything. I have a friend who used to own a ford dealership he sold when he saw the internet coming and thought it would make the business unprofitable. He said that there were sometimes deals he lost money on but the thing was to keep stock turning over. I would definitely have bought a motorhome at a much better discount than I could get elsewhere with a few minor marks it's going to get some pretty soon anyway if you use it a lot.

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[bobnick]

On Plassey this week, which is a big site, counting the touring stuff only, i would say a wild guess was PVCs 40%, Campers, 20%, Tents 30%, MHs 10%.

 

[Pausim]

Spain goes to 4250kgs on a car licence as from january 1st 2025

There is hope yet. Has that been confirmed by the EU or is Spain going it alone?

 

[Steve and Denise]

On Plassey this week, which is a big site, counting the touring stuff only, i would say a wild guess was PVCs 40%, Campers, 20%, Tents 30%, MHs 10%.

Well one likes to keep the exclusivity of a Motorhome

 

[gus-lopez]

There is hope yet. Has that been confirmed by the EU or is Spain going it alone?

EU passed the legislation to include motorhomes using Any means of propulsion, and left it to the individual states to do as they wished. Spain stated that as from january 2025 it would be 4250 on a B. It suits many businesses here as most refrigerated Luton vans here run at 3500kgs which usually leaves 200kgs for product . most people won't pay for a C1 test themselves & most companies will not pay for them to do it as there is nothing to stop them just walking away after.

 

[DT]

Possibly now is about the time new 2025 stock is being ordered so manufacturers may be giving extra support to dealers to clear their 2024 stock. 2025 may be a lean year for dealers as they wait for the market to stabilise. Without some intervention on weight or similar there is a chance that the new governments actions will cause more sales stagnation maybe into 2026.

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[IRHP]

Gordon
[/QUOTE]

Last week a friend who makes his (good) living buying and selling MHs privately offered me a "golden" deal. He had knocked a seller, advertising a van for £20k, down to £10k and wanted me to cough up the money and store it: he was sure it would sell for at least £15k.

So the question is: where is that van now?

Gordon

He's doing really well if he doesn't have 10k spare........

 

[Lenny HB]

Plenty of new Carthago’s on Autotrader with sizeable discounts, up to £30k. Admittedly it’s mostly the top end models but certainty shows how sales have slowed.
I suspect it’s coming up to the time when the dealers will have pay the manufacturer/finance company for them.
Not an inconsiderable amount of money to find if they have a few models normally retailing around the £200 k ( and higher) price range.
Certainly a lot more motorhomes, of all makes, available than there has been for a few years.

Best I’ve seen off a ‘normal’ price carthago is £9k on a display model. But that’s off a £153k c tourer so still expensive: Most don’t have any discount though. Used prices are still strong or at least the asking price is - c tourer at camper uk at £135k and been there a while but seems little appetite for discounting it

Most of them have been in stock a while and a new updated models are have been out for a while so the bought them at a good price. Smaller Carthagos are still a long wait for a factory order so no discounts.

 

[Jon Stewart]

Spain goes to 4250kgs on a car licence as from january 1st 2025

I thought that was EU wide, intended for special purpose vehicles, including motohomes?

 

[oldiesontour]

No matter what type of leisure vehicle if it runs on fossil fuel it has to be a prime target for taxation particularly for a government that views it as for the elite....I wouldn't want to have a big investment in a motorhome manufacturer

 

[enark]

Do they though? They know what they would like to get for something but can only achieve what someone will pay

And the price tag is part of that “deception” as well as the “feeling” that we got a good deal…they wont sell at a loss. Or they wont be in business…

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[gus-lopez]

I thought that was EU wide, intended for special purpose vehicles, including motohomes?

It is. but when for most is the question?
See post #53 Eu passed but have left up to the countries to implement as & when. Spain immediately stated january2025