Hi folks,

I am looking for a used Toyota RAV4 and have identified a few on comparis that meet my criteria, sold by dealers.

Are there any strategies that can be used to buy a used car from dealers?

That is, are listed prices negotiable and, if so, what factors come into play?

I am wondering (hoping) that I could try to bargain a certain % off the price -- that is, dealers are usually wiling to knock x% off the listed price. ?

Any advice is greatly appreciated -- I see quite "at sea" trying to buy a used car here.

Then get someone who knows their apples to go with you!!!

Apart from that - there is not hard and fast rule for negotiating some places will knock a bit off - but don't expect great chunks taken off. Know the prices of similar cars in the area to know what is a good/fair price.

You're better off buying from a village mechanic - getting a fresh MFK and new winter wheels/tyres then trying to save 500chf elsewhere.

Wholeheartedly agree. A village mechanic has a lot more to lose by ripping a customer off.

Short answer: hardly. Overall do Swiss dealers expect to get paid what they write on the sticker... haggling is pretty unusual here. I managed to knock a few percent off, or get a set of wheels thrown in... but don't expect the sticker price to be inflated by 10 percent waiting for you to negotiate them down...

I agree completely with the above.

This is where preparation comes in, search search and search online, get a good idea of the prices and options of the model you are interested in. See a few cars and never make a decision until you've slept on it.

good luck

Main Dealers are best for deals, my first BMW I managed to get 22,000 off price, sales guy was a little shocked I pushed and pushed.


Also new cars can work out cheaper than 6 month old ones, check if you company gets discount of main dealer, mine get 12%, some up to 25% - then haggle for winter wheels & tyres and any extras.


Guy I work with got 40K off a new car when dealer registered it for 1 day in their name then sold it to him as a used car.


Also look for stock cars, always deals going.


some dealers doing 1% lease deals too...

doesn't really help someone who's looking for a 2nd hand rav 4

As others have said, never managed to get anything off the sticker price here, best we've managed so far is a set of winter tires thrown in, but we had to buy new wheels from the dealer at the same time.

swiss garages are doing you a favour by allowing you to buy there cars, always remember that

So, the car was free?

Last deal I made I got new winter tyres on separate (new) wheel set and a 2 years guarantee extension (car had summer tyres mounted on alloy wheels). Paid full price dealer asked and I was happy with the outcome.

Dealer is actually a Toyota garage that happens to have a 2nd hand "Toyota RAV-4 2.0 16V Mountain". No idea about price and specs though, just thought it might be interesting for you to compare.

Hope this helps.

Brief update: I used comparis to locate my preferred model/make etc. Visited three dealers. 1st: car had sold 2 weeks prior; 2nd: car had sold 3 weeks prior; 3rd car: the salesman was home sick and no one knew anything about the car or sales.

Lesson 1: phone ahead.
Lesson 2: I have been told that autoscout24 is more up-to-date. I don't know this for a fact, but comparis does list cars that are already sold.

Right, expect only the first half of that phrase: that the sticker price will be inflated by (at least) 10%.
Some are doing 0% deals right now (sort of — the deal is pay one third now, another one third after one year, and the final one third after two years).
Comparis simply aggregates ads from various sources. You can and should always check the original ad (the source is shown on Comparis). However, all Comparis can do is pull together information that's out there on the web — if the original ad is out of date, so too will Comparis be.

I'm about to buy a car here too. Done my reading, but still have Qs.

Manufacturers New price for what I want with the extras is around 38k. I've looked on comparis and there are a range of examples available, from new pre reg cars with delivery kilometres only to 1 year old under 10k miles.

Plenty of options, Prices from 28k to 31k. The 31k is new. the model engine and spec i would have ordered anyway. Main Dealer has had it since Jan. Price dropped from 34k a few months ago. He has another one in a different colour about the same price.

What do you think are my chances of negotiating a set of winters/all seasons?

Second, several of the used examples are advertised by a second hand dealer called Franz. I see their sticker on lots of cars here in Zurich. Any thoughts/experiences?

Third: lease or buy? I have the cash, but which is more tax efficient. Assuming you can get a lease deal on pre owned cars here.

Regards


Ian

If you can pay cash, pay cash, it's yours to do whatever you want and insurance is cheaper

Leasing is not tax-deductible for private taxpayers. Interest on money borrowed (but not leases) is. Interest rates ere very low (so the deduction won't be much), but if you can invest your cash to earn more than the loan costs you, you're well ahead.

Thanks for advice so far.

But if a company pays, leasing is deductable? If so, I might have to have a word with my employer about our new Company Car policy...

Regards



Ian

Deductible for the company from their tax bill. As it is a taxable benefit to you, your tax would actually go up. Not an expert on tax law and company cars can get very messy, but the simple assumption is that the annual cost of the lease and any other costs the company pays on your behalf would be added to your taxable income. Equally it could be nothing of the sort - it could be based on CO2 emissions or engine capacity. I'd recommend getting some advice from an expert first.

No, deductible against their profits (if any), not their tax bill.

You know what he meant...

Sounds like cash is indeed king...

Any views on the likelihood of negotiating winters in addition to the discounts already being offered?

Regards


Ian

Swiss dealers aren't the best for offering discounts, so the best tact is knowing the markets - what are similar cars going for? their spec? winter wheels etc

At least look informed when you speak to them - for example know the cost of wheels/tyres from Reifendirekt will give you a good base position to negotiate to on winter wheels