Reply to: Buying a new car - advice wanted

[Damon]

Was speaking to the sales guy that I bought my Mercedes from. The GLA is going to be a monster hit judging by the amount of interest the dealership has had. The chances of getting anything in the form of a discount from a dealer is zero. I used Broadspeed very many years back. They used to broker the deal for you. I don't know about now. As for the in car solution. I don't know about this new toy that they have in the newer A-Class/CLA/GLA models but the full on command is far better than any other sat nav system I have used. Bare in mind its not just Command its normally uprated speakers and IPOD integration.

Other than that keep an eye on the Mercedes Website they will tell you what the UK-MB deals are going to be. Unfortunately you are going to be buying from a premium dealer none of them care if you buy the car as there will be a willing punter along behind you...

If you want to feel like you got a good deal, Land-rover might do something on an Evoke once the GLA starts hitting them...

If you go for a LR I can give you an intro to the Perrys group as a friend own's it. You'll get better treatment if the MD passes you on to a salesman

[bobspud]

I'm buying a new car for virtually the first time in my life, any tips/tricks?

Vague plan of action is
1. Get list price with options from manufacturer site.
2. Look up the indicative discount available on Broadspeed web site.
3. Go for test drive.
4. Ask dealer if they will match Broadspeed indicative price, if not get full quote from Broadspeed.

If it makes a difference, car is a Mercedes GLA, base price about 27K, but I'll be adding 5K worth of options. Paying cash. (Well, not literally, I mean paying with debit card.)

The GLA is a new model, so likely not much discount available. (Broadspeed indicating about £500, I think.)

The Broadspeed indicative prices don't take into account 5K of options, so I wonder if the indicative quote will over-estimate what I'd actually have to pay.


...


Second issue, choosing navigation, high quality traffic info for navigating through London rush-hour is the priortiy, options are:-
1. Continue with current TomTom HD that sticks to windscreen
2. Mercedes Command navigation (£1000 option, apparently now does/soon will use TomTom traffic info.)
3. Becker device in glovebox that displays on built-in screen, from memory something like £500.
4. Mercedes Drive Kit plus will allow selected iphone applications to display on car screen, selected navigation app is from Garmin. Cost about £500, in reality a lot more as I'd also need to buy an iphone.

Becker is ruled out, no traffic.

Mercedes Command - even if they get traffic info from Tomtom, is the sofware any good? Does it re-route automatically based on traffic info? Does it even do 3D display? I suspect the software is inferior to TomTom, but willing to be informed otherwise.

The Garmin software - it's not actually clear what Garmin iphone software they are talking about, what reviews I've found of Garmin for iphone have said it's not good, and similarly reviews of Garmin traffic info say it's not as good as TomTom HD. So unless someone can tell me otherwise, I guess the Garmin is out.

I can't believe that the best Satnav option for a 32K car is a £150 device stuck to the windscreen, but at the moment that's what it looks like.

Was speaking to the sales guy that I bought my Mercedes from. The GLA is going to be a monster hit judging by the amount of interest the dealership has had. The chances of getting anything in the form of a discount from a dealer is zero. I used Broadspeed very many years back. They used to broker the deal for you. I don't know about now. As for the in car solution. I don't know about this new toy that they have in the newer A-Class/CLA/GLA models but the full on command is far better than any other sat nav system I have used. Bare in mind its not just Command its normally uprated speakers and IPOD integration.

Other than that keep an eye on the Mercedes Website they will tell you what the UK-MB deals are going to be. Unfortunately you are going to be buying from a premium dealer none of them care if you buy the car as there will be a willing punter along behind you...

If you want to feel like you got a good deal, Land-rover might do something on an Evoke once the GLA starts hitting them...

[Peoplesoft bloke]

My sister in law has the countryman, been in it a few times, very spacious in the back for a mini, was thinking about getting one later this year (1-2 years old). Not being a car expert I am not sure what you mean, is it just your opinion on how the car looks or are there issues with the design?

I cannot imagine anyone (expect maybe David Blunkett) taking one look at that thing and not having to avert their eyes. It is the single ugliest car available new today. It really makes me laugh that people take the piss out of the Allegro (which I concede was no looker) but because this thing is German they seem able to overlook the hideous looks - it is awful from every single angle.

[eek]

My sister in law has the countryman, been in it a few times, very spacious in the back for a mini, was thinking about getting one later this year (1-2 years old). Not being a car expert I am not sure what you mean, is it just your opinion on how the car looks or are there issues with the design?

It looks hideous externally. And on the two occasions I had one as a courtesy car the one thing I remember is seeing rear seat belts in my rear view mirror as they are built into the roof not the rear seats

[Unix]

apart from not as good-looking as an Evoque which ranks only above the Mini countryman as the most hideous car ever designed doesn't the Evoque now have new better engines?

My sister in law has the countryman, been in it a few times, very spacious in the back for a mini, was thinking about getting one later this year (1-2 years old). Not being a car expert I am not sure what you mean, is it just your opinion on how the car looks or are there issues with the design?

[original PM]

putting my BA hat on you are doing this all wrong

you have given me a solution are now justifying it

tell me what the criteria for the car is e.g.

what MPG
what size
what spec
how many seats

etc etc etc - then we will be able to help you out!

[Damon]

If you do speak to Gareth (which I recommend you do) mention Damon referred you.

I have a good friend that owns a national franchise (doesn't have Mercedes)and he tells me this time of year is the worst to try and get discounts on new cars, especially desirable models.

All franchises have just started their financial and sales years. Salesmens annual targets have just been set and they won't be bending over to cut deals yet. The best time to get deals is late June or early July. If they haven't hit their Q1 and Q2 numbers they will be keener to deal.

Buying new is a rewarding experience but yes you need to go in eyes wide open to the first depreciation hit. I have rinsed too much money on cars having a petrol head past so now I would only buy new if it was a 'keeper' i.e. own it for 5-10 years or more.

If you wish to speak to someone who specialises in vehicle search and has existing relationships with dealer principles at Mercedes nationwide speak to Gareth at Bespoke Automotives | Prestige Vehicle Sales & Hire Gareth has source and disposed of several cars for me and has always got me better deals than I could manage with my trade contacts.

Good luck with search.

[Damon]

I have a good friend that owns a national franchise (doesn't have Mercedes)and he tells me this time of year is the worst to try and get discounts on new cars, especially desirable models.

All franchises have just started their financial and sales years. Salesmens annual targets have just been set and they won't be bending over to cut deals yet. The best time to get deals is late June or early July. If they haven't hit their Q1 and Q2 numbers they will be keener to deal.

Buying new is a rewarding experience but yes you need to go in eyes wide open to the first depreciation hit. I have rinsed too much money on cars having a petrol head past so now I would only buy new if it was a 'keeper' i.e. own it for 5-10 years or more.

If you wish to speak to someone who specialises in vehicle search and has existing relationships with dealer principles at Mercedes nationwide speak to Gareth at Bespoke Automotives | Prestige Vehicle Sales & Hire Gareth has source and disposed of several cars for me and has always got me better deals than I could manage with my trade contacts.

Good luck with search.

[IR35 Avoider]

How to Buy & Sell - Buying New | Honest John

drivethedeal.com is worth getting a price from

good luck

Thanks, will try them.

[IR35 Avoider]

Check out the app called "Waze" for your smartphone. Rather than calculating how long it should take to drive a route in theory, it looks at what route other people have taken from A to B and determines which is the quickest. It showed me some great short cuts on routes I'd driven lots of times.

The Waze traffic reporting is great too. If people see a hazard, traffic jam or speed trap then they report it and it shows up in real time on everyone's maps. Nothing is perfect but I've found it's traffic reporting and routing very good.

Maps are updated when people find errors too so they are fairly up to date though sometimes you come across roads that are missing.

Oh, and Waze is free too so what's not to like?

Waze does sound interesting. I read it has been bought by Google, so it looks like it has a solid future.

[Peoplesoft bloke]

I can't comment on the merits of the nav systems, but I'd imagine not having fitted nav (however poor) would make it less popular/valuable when you want to move it on.

It is very interesting that you're spending 5k on options - the "superior resale" of most "premuim" brands is an illusion based on retained value vs list when no-one ever pays list.

[darmstadt]

tax stuff? please explain?

Taxed differently in Germany for business use, for a start I get all the VAT back then depreciation plus all VAT on service, repairs, petrol, etc. and a load of other stuff (which I don't understand which is why I have an accountant) so basically it works out pretty good for me as long as I don't go over the maximum amount allowed for personal use then whatever you claim back, goes down.

[CoolCat]

tax stuff? please explain?

[darmstadt]

WHS - You're potty spending £30K on a brand new one

A few years ago I bought a brand new AMG and after 4 years it had paid for itself through tax stuff. My Alpina, which I bought new also, has now done 5 years and has paid for itself so when I trade it in, in a couple of weeks I'll actually make little bit of profit on it....

[CoolCat]

How to Buy & Sell - Buying New | Honest John

drivethedeal.com is worth getting a price from

good luck