New car purchase

Honest John Back Room » Motoring discussion
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Wed 29 Oct 2014 16:27
New car purchase - parfour

I haven't bought a 'new' (as opposed to 'used') car for quite a long time so I suspect that in the interim things have probably changed. If I were to select, say, a new Peugeot 308 would the dealer have to order the car from the factory or is it likely that he would have a few different models in stock from which I could choose? Or is the reality that there are now so many variations of trim, accessories and colours that vehicles are only built to order?

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Wed 29 Oct 2014 17:50
New car purchase - 72 dudes

It deprends hugely on the brand of car you choose. Most of the volume manufacturers will be able to call up a list of variants/colours/specs from group stock or even nationwide stock. The more premium brands tend to build more to order.

If you intend to spec the car up with certain "personalised" extras, then it's more likely the car will have to be built to order, regardless of whether it's a Peugeot or a Mercedes.

If you're not too bothered about extras, you could for example say you want the car in Titan Silver or Moody Grey and you must have at least rear parking sensors as an option, and see what they can find from stock.

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Wed 29 Oct 2014 20:15
New car purchase - Rich320d

There are some cars in stock, ask your local dealer for info.

Also check sites likebroadspeed.com/new_cars/Peugeot/308/Choose_Number_.../

And carwow for discounts you can expect.

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Wed 29 Oct 2014 22:51
New car purchase - parfour

Thanks for your replies. Supposing the desired vehicle needs to be ordered, what sort of time span are we talking about?

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Thu 30 Oct 2014 06:48
New car purchase - daveyK_UK

Peugeot / Citroen lead times from my experience depend entirely on the model.

For a 308, I doubt it will be more than 10 weeks.

Peugeot / Citroen do keep a decent sized stock in the UK, you should find the one you want in stock unless you planning to add lots of extras.

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Thu 30 Oct 2014 08:17
New car purchase - Eddy56

If you are looking at a volume marque then try to find out where the national stock is located as your local dealer shows you a list of what is in stock across the network. If they have something you want then haggle and agree a price with your local dealer and then take a day or two to "think it over". Then ring the dealer holding the stock, tell them you are being offered the car locally for £xx (you might mis-recall the exact amount and inadvertently quote a lower price). Then tell them you are about to pay a deposit for the car today with your local dealer but wondered perhaps if they'd like to try and beat the price, you'd be perfectly happy to buy the car from them direct if they make it worth your while. There's a good chance they will jump at a chance to wrap up a deal out of nowhere for a they have car sitting on the forecourt, especially if you take a finance package as well.

I did this with a Ford grand c-max purchase a couple of years ago and got another £700 off an already heavily discounted price. All for the price of a phone call.

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Thu 30 Oct 2014 17:10
New car purchase - Ed V

Why not think about it for another 6 months, and buy a one year old one, saving a few 000s.

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Thu 30 Oct 2014 21:52
New car purchase - parfour

Why not think about it for another 6 months, and buy a one year old one, saving a few 000s.

That might be the best idea of the lot (although I do like the idea of having a car that has not been owned by anybody else).

Many thanks for the replies.

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Sat 1 Nov 2014 08:00
New car purchase - drd63
While I agree with the negotiating tactic, why would you think it's acceptable to lie to the dealer. By all means negotiate but try and keep it all in good faith.
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