Does anyone know exactly what kind of profit margin is made on a new sled these days. This last week I've been pricing out a new GSX 500SS and the prices have been all over the place, up to a $1000 difference between shops. :nervous: .

Also, somthing else I found, no one is offering exactly the same promo's, even though its printed right in every magazine you see. The way I read it, if you buy any fall ski-doo and you can get financing,and x cover or 2 yr warranty, but this is some of the things I've been told from diff places.
1. Covers and Warranty is only for Mxz's
2. You have to use financing to get cover or warranty
3. You can get a cover but not the X only a regular
4. And finally one dealer offered the printed advertisement

Lukily I have about 6 skidoo dealers withing 30 miles of my house, lot of competition :devil:

Most dealers do not add very much to there cost on the sled. anywhere from 150 to 1000CAD. They make the lump of there money on parts/accessories/service and rentals not from the sleds themselves.

Around here most of the dealers are not making much on the sleds. They'll cut the prices of those so they can get you coming back for parts and accessories. Thats where the big money is! They just sell the sled at a good price to get your business there.

sled people like all retail make it in the service and almost all give away their product.

Dealer mark-up on a sled to msrp is 17.5%. They get incentives to sell if they buy so many for there inventory. A dealer could sell to you at cost and still make up to $1000.00 on the deal if there is incentives from the manufacturer. Some dealers will pass that incentive on to the customer with a sob story that he is losing money. The buyer inturn will spend the savings on add ons that are marked up as much as 35%....better profit margins. Like the old saying goes; would you rather make 17 cents on the dollar or 35 cents on the dollar. I would take the 35 cents any day!

Brian
ex-doo dealer

My dealer claims he only makes $200 on a new sled purchase, yet he sold me a Rev X for almost $1,000 less than all local dealers. He claimed it was his cost which it might have been!

The dealer that I use says that they try to make 2 - 3 hundred dollars on a new unit. Can't hold that against them. Everybody wants the best deal that they can get, but they still have to keep their doors open. They usually treat me pretty good on accesories and service also. This way they make a little on everything.

Bryan

Good dealers that take care of their customers sell cheap at little profit and make it up in volume. My dealer gives me 20% off on parts and access.

I'm one the lucky ones to, I pay their cost for my sleds, and I get clothes, parts, accessories, and labor at 20% off. Plus they always take a lose on the sled that a trade. Search around, its worth the extra miles for a good dealer!

Originally posted by dirtygirlracing@Oct 4 2003, 11:03 AM
I'm one the lucky ones to, I pay their cost for my sleds, and I get clothes, parts, accessories, and labor at 20% off. Plus they always take a lose on the sled that a trade. Search around, its worth the extra miles for a good dealer!
Can we sell you a car or truck??? After hearing that, does the question pop into anyone else's heads....What interest does this dealer have in selling this guy a sled and accessories??? I'm sorry DirtyGirl, but your dealer is not losing money on you. It kills me when people say "I bought it at his cost"...how can anyone truely know what a dealers cost is, unless the dealer actually shows you the invoice, and why would he do that?? Even then, if the guy is getting incentives from the manufacturer, the cost isn't the same. Paul, do you guys ever show your invoices to your customers? The day I have to do that to sell a car/truck, I'd rather not sell it. If a dealer has to show invoices to sell a product, it doesn't say much for their service!! Yesterday, I had a customer tell me he knew what my cost was on an extended warranty....I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I asked him to verify his statement, and he had no idea what he was talking about.

Just my .02. Like Paul and the others said, a good dealer will make more off service and accessories than he will on the sled. Everyone's entitled to make a buck...if the deal feels right, go with it.

Originally posted by permafrost@Oct 2 2003, 06:01 PM
Most dealers do not add very much to there cost on the sled. anywhere from 150 to 1000CAD. They make the lump of there money on parts/accessories/service and rentals not from the sleds themselves.
LOL unless you live in newfoundland. then they have about a $2000 to $3000 mark up.

i agree on the buying quanity thing. thats just good business. if a dealer is wanting your business he will let some of it come your way. just experienced this this morning. payed for my new sled and he dropped price over 100 from what we agreed on. i then turned around and put it on a new coat. you grease my palm and i'll grease yours. plus i feel real comfortable with this dealer.

The dealer mark up is directly related to the cost of the sled, a $4,000 fan cooled will only have a $300-$400. A high end liquid, $9,000-$10,000 will have a $800 to $1,000 mark up. This does not include dealer incentives (rebates), which are paid on certain models, usually hard to move ones. There are many other incentives that are hidden from the public eye, sometimes they are added to the dealers parts account with the manufacturer. Most dealers are only making a reasonable profit.


RIDE SAFE
That is my track going straight up past the XC, notice no ski marks, LOL
I love power.

I'll bet that their's about a 1000 mark-up on sleds retailng for 5000 and probably 2000 on sleds 8000 and up.Who would invest their money for less.The local cat dealer is selling hold over's .Example 2200 off list price ZR900.Thes sleds came from the midwest.This is Maine.Must of cost a lot to ship and I know this dealer is making money on every unit.Not 2 or 3 hundred dollars.Salesman has his piece too.Like I said who would invest so much for so little???Just my observation and opinion,if anybody cares.I paid 8400 for a sled that lists for 9600.I'm sure he's still making at least 500 bucks. To the guy in the next post.I'm not complaining,I got a great deal.Yes,he does deserve it,I wouldn't sell a sled for 8 or 9 grand and not make some money.

sneakysnake you're up in the night! I wish there was that much mark up in a sled....omotm seems to know how it works!!! And out of the $500.00 that you're so sure that the dealer is making, he has to pay the set up guy to take the sled out of the crate, put the skiis on, etc and then he has to pay the tech to pdi it! Get a clue!! If he's making $500., more power to him......he deserves it!!

Originally posted by JIM FRITCH@Oct 4 2003, 12:56 PM
Paul, do you guys ever show your invoices to your customers?
jim,
not to embarass you but i have shown invoice to some of the "hard noses" just to prove to myself that they won't believe me anyways.

something that i am really surprised at is how many people think that there are kickbacks from the manufacturer. with 0% financing where can there be more to kickback ? today i showed a girl that the truck she is buying has $10,000.00 worth of financing kicked back to her in savings. sure once in awhile the manufacturer will kick $2-300.00 back on a line if we order some bacause the line is slowing down but most of the time the manufacturer will say if you want a hot seller then take a terd with it.

Originally posted by dirtygirlracing@Oct 4 2003, 12:03 PM
I'm one the lucky ones to, I pay their cost for my sleds, and I get clothes, parts, accessories, and labor at 20% off. Plus they always take a lose on the sled that a trade. Search around, its worth the extra miles for a good dealer!
why would a dealer want to take time to make nothing on their product at all with you when there is profit paying customers coming in the door ? are you a BIG TIME BIG NAME IMPORTANT PERSON in the community that sends in hundreds of deals to this dealer ? that can be the only reason, if not then you are fooling yourself. he's getting away with a little profit and the happier you are as a customer then the harder he is stroking you. {how am i doing jim ?,LOL}

sure i know retail HARD GOODS {cars & sleds} there is little for markup but a retailer/dealer has to make something.

Brand new 2001 ZR600 EFI LE $7900 as of today

I could not believe what the salesman said and made him repeat

$7900 for a 2001 600 he said it was the "LE model" :p

I was expecting something like $5500-5900 as I have seen a brand new 0 mile 2001 1/2 XC 700 ves for $6200

Then you wonder why they have so many leftovers :doh:

My local dealer say's he's looking to make about $100-$200 a sled this year...like most of you have said, he makes his money on the service and parts...he gave my father a price on a new 04 F7 of $6700.00, he's also got a 04 skidoo rev 800 for $7499.00...just whats going on in my neck of the woods...later

OneSki SWRules

Last december i bought a 2003 pro-x 700,msrp on it was $10599.00 .I paid $9700.00 plus I traded off my 99 mx-z 600 and got $4500.00 for it.All being fair I know he made money on the new sled.at least a $300.00 .plus he will have marked up the 99 mx-z to at least $5000.00 to re sell.so I will guarantee he made close to a $1000.00 if not more on the deal.plus you have to consider how many people walk through the door and pay the price on the handle bars.I don't know about where many of you live but when I buy a new truck ,sled or what ever I only ask once .If you aren't the best i go some where else to buy,it's that simple.I don't believe in a million years that these dealers only make $200.00 off a sale .thats bull $hit.i've been friends with a lot of salesman and dealers and they make out better than that.but i'm also not saying they make $2000.00 either .but they do alright .remember if they didn't they wouldn't be in the business!!

Paul not sure where you get your info from but..

To make it simple I have used round numbers and general dealer level terms.

Typical Sled:
MSRP: $10,000
Dealer Invoice: $8,900
Dealer Cost:
Bronze dealer: $8,400
Silver dealer: $8,000
Gold dealer: $7,600
Platinum dealer: $7,00

How do you become a Platinum dealer...order 150 sleds...

So a dealer can easily sell you a sled at their invoice price (and show it to you) and still make money!

They make a boatload of money on parts and accessories BUT do not think for a minute they would sell a sled and make no money...would you put $500k-$1m out on sled inventory and not make a return on it? Neither would the dealers.

Originally posted by 01MXZ700@Oct 4 2003, 09:59 PM
Paul not sure where you get your info from but..

To make it simple I have used round numbers and general dealer level terms.

Typical Sled:
MSRP: $10,000
Dealer Invoice: $8,900
Dealer Cost:
Bronze dealer: $8,400
Silver dealer: $8,000
Gold dealer: $7,600
Platinum dealer: $7,00

How do you become a Platinum dealer...order 150 sleds...

So a dealer can easily sell you a sled at their invoice price (and show it to you) and still make money!
sorry charlie but that is against the law. and have i been saying they make nothing ?

Paul,

I guess you sell an awfull lot of $100K cars to save your customers $10K!


Vehicle cost - Financing -Term (months) -Monthly payments - Cost of borrowing

$50,000.00 0% 48 $1,041.67 $-

$50,000.00 1% 48 $1,064.00 $1,072.00

$50,000.00 5% 48 $1,150.00 $5,200.00

$100,000.00 0% 48 $2,083.33 $-

$100,000.00 1% 48 $2,126.20 $2,057.60

$100,000.00 5% 48 $2,303.24 $10,555.52

Originally posted by 01MXZ700@Oct 4 2003, 10:27 PM
Paul,

I guess you sell an awfull lot of $100K cars to save your customers $10K!


Vehicle cost - Financing -Term (months) -Monthly payments - Cost of borrowing

$50,000.00 0% 48 $1,041.67 $-

$50,000.00 1% 48 $1,064.00 $1,072.00

$50,000.00 5% 48 $1,150.00 $5,200.00

$100,000.00 0% 48 $2,083.33 $-

$100,000.00 1% 48 $2,126.20 $2,057.60

$100,000.00 5% 48 $2,303.24 $10,555.52
first of all bank finacing on a car is 7.9% and if you are in the know how much interest is is there yearly on a $50,000.00 loan over 5 years. i can do this with a pencil and i do it everyday.

Brand new 2001 ZR600 EFI LE $7900 as of today

Where the heck do you live so that I don't stumble through and buy anything. That is alot of jing for that sled!!! I sure hope you can get a better deal somewhere else.

Paul,

It is not illegal to offer tiered pricing in Canada, it is a gray area in the US and you could run up against their differing laws.

Vehicle cost - Financing - Term (months) - Monthly payments - Cost of borrowing

$50,000.00 8% 48 $1,218.56 $8,490.88

Still not $10K at 0%.

Would you walk into a bank and accept their "posted" rates??? Neither would I, I would ask them if they would like to keep my business and give me a better rate than they have posted. BTW prime is 4.5%.

There are kick backs! How can a dealer sell a car/sled for invoice price if there were no kickbacks/tiered pricing/dealer incentives? The cost of the money to finance/buy alone would bankrupt them.

Originally posted by 01MXZ700@Oct 4 2003, 10:55 PM
Monthly payments - Cost of borrowing

$50,000.00 8% 48 $1,218.56 $8,490.88

Still not $10K at 0%.

no you're wrong there is over $2000.00 interest per year on a $50,000.00 loan, hey i do this everyday. 5 years @ $2000.00 equals $10,000.00

Originally posted by 01MXZ700@Oct 4 2003, 10:55 PM
Paul,
It is not illegal to offer tiered pricing in Canada, it is a gray area in the US and you could run up against their differing laws.


i've been in business too long and know different there is a thing called the consumer protection act.

Originally posted by 01MXZ700@Oct 4 2003, 10:55 PM
1.There are kick backs!
2. How can a dealer sell a car/sled for invoice price if there were no kickbacks/tiered pricing/dealer incentives? The cost of the money to finance/buy alone would bankrupt them.
1. if there are kickbacks and you know about them let me see them.
2. i never said that dealers sell for invoice, someone else did i disagreed and you can read it in a previous post in this thread. i hear about kickbacks in my business everyday from the consumer but have yet to see them. what you are saying is that it costs more money to buy from a mom and pop operation then a big dealer, that is not true. the odd time when there is a push on to move product by the manufacturer and a dealer reaches more then his target there will be some money per each unit but pennies.

Originally posted by paul yarek+Oct 4 2003, 11:12 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (paul yarek @ Oct 4 2003, 11:12 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-01MXZ700@Oct 4 2003, 10:55 PM
Paul,
It is not illegal to offer tiered pricing in Canada, it is a gray area in the US and you could run up against their differing laws.


i&#39;ve been in business too long and know different there is a thing called the consumer protection act. [/b][/quote]
Paul,

Explain, no show me the exerpts from the CPA that prohibit tiered pricing from a manufacturer/distributor to a dealer. I/everyone know(s) for a fact that it is a common occurence in business.

Would I expect to get the same price for buying 5 sleds or 1 sled????????????

Originally posted by 01MXZ700@Oct 4 2003, 11:25 PM
Explain, no show me the exerpts from the CPA that prohibit tiered pricing from a manufacturer/distributor to a dealer. I/everyone know(s) for a fact that it is a common occurence in business.

Would I expect to get the same price for buying 5 sleds or 1 sled????????????
you can access the consumer protection act yourself probably on the web. what you sare saying is it it happens in all business i know that dealers pay the same price clear across canada because i have access to their invoices and the numbers read the same as mine do.

I know how to access the CPA on the web. What I am asking you is to show me where in the CPA it states that it is illegal! I think you are misguided about the scope of the CPA.

In Canada it is not illegal to offer tiered pricing, it may be illegal in certain circumstances in the US.

You point about dealer invoices across Canada just reiterates my argument about the difference between invoice price and ACTUAL DEALER COST.

What is it that you are selling??? Where in Scotland or Brantford???

Do you think that a dealer in Brantford that sells 100 vehicles a year should buy their vehicles at the same price as a dealer in Toronto that sells 1000 vehicles a year????

Originally posted by 01MXZ700@Oct 4 2003, 11:45 PM
Do you think that a dealer in Brantford that sells 100 vehicles a year should buy their vehicles at the same price as a dealer in Toronto that sells 1000 vehicles a year????
they do pay the same and there was a time i sold more vehicles then the big city dealers, i still paid the same invoice as they did too.

do you do any type of business on a daily basis ?

Originally posted by paul yarek@Oct 4 2003, 06:32 PM
why would a dealer want to take time to make nothing on their product at all with you when there is profit paying customers coming in the door ? are you a BIG TIME BIG NAME IMPORTANT PERSON in the community that sends in hundreds of deals to this dealer ? that can be the only reason, if not then you are fooling yourself. he&#39;s getting away with a little profit and the happier you are as a customer then the harder he is stroking you. {how am i doing jim ?,LOL}


LOL Paul!! We always joke that the customers who pound us down like crazy on price, are the unhappiest when it comes around to CSI time. The ones that allow us to make a few bucks, are usually happy as he!!, and are sure to tell their friends....funny how that works. There&#39;s no substitute for good salesmanship and taking care of the customer.

No embarassment on showing the invoice, I know what you mean. When someone has it in thier mind that we&#39;re making $5000 on a $20000 car, you like to show it to those folks just to prove them wrong....but usually, that type of person won&#39;t believe anything you show/tell them, even if it came from the President. That particular customer will just think you&#39;re showing them false documents, because surely HE can&#39;t be wrong! LOL

Paul,

We have a very large Ford dealership here in Canada where I live. There are only one of a few that are SVT rated. They have yearly sales that sell vehicles at $75 over dealer invoice and they show you the invoice. While this may be near the end of year to pump ou the old models, their is no way they are only making $75 on a $30,000 plus car. Call it tiered pricing/volume rebates/kickbacks, whatever, different dealers pay different pricing.

Originally posted by dgiles@Oct 5 2003, 01:59 PM
Paul,
We have a very large Ford dealership here in Canada where I live. They have yearly sales that sell vehicles at $75 over dealer invoice and they show you the invoice. While this may be near the end of year to pump ou the old models, their is no way they are only making $75 on a $30,000 plus car. Call it tiered pricing/volume rebates/kickbacks, whatever, different dealers pay different pricing.
dgiles,
there used to be what we called "end of model" payments for the non current models but not no more. if they are selling at $75.00 over that&#39;s what they are making and their hopes is to make it somewhere else while you are there.

Hey Paul:
two words..... Volume Bonus
two more words .... Pre-season discount
another two words .... Free shipping ---(if you order a truckload)
many words .... 5% discount on all parts purchases if you order 5+truckloads

There are lots of ways &#39;around&#39; the price shown on the dealer invoice. I&#39;m not saying it is practiced across the board by sled manufacturers, but it is definitely done at times.

Originally posted by konkinj@Oct 5 2003, 06:32 PM
Hey Paul:
two words..... Volume Bonus
two more words .... Pre-season discount
another two words .... Free shipping ---(if you order a truckload)
many words .... 5% discount on all parts purchases if you order 5+truckloads

There are lots of ways &#39;around&#39; the price shown on the dealer invoice. I&#39;m not saying it is practiced across the board by sled manufacturers, but it is definitely done at times.
i don&#39;t know what you&#39;re smoking.

wow.......i bet you people dont spend as much energy on what the supermarket pays for the groceries you buy every week.i guarantee the percentage of markup is much higher and you get gouged weekly and dont care.i hope my sled dealer made enough to be there when i need service.also i dont remember reading anything about the floorplan these dealers are paying every month on the stuff that isnt selling. p.s. the restaurant you ate at last made a bigger hit percentage wise and you left a tip.

Originally posted by dheard4992@Oct 5 2003, 09:04 PM
wow.......i bet you people dont spend as much energy on what the supermarket pays for the groceries you buy every week.i guarantee the percentage of markup is much higher and you get gouged weekly and dont care.i hope my sled dealer made enough to be there when i need service.also i dont remember reading anything about the floorplan these dealers are paying every month on the stuff that isnt selling.* p.s. the restaurant you ate at last* made a bigger hit percentage wise and you left a tip.
hey, i like this guy ;) finally someone that doesn&#39;t care as long as he is happy. :thumbsup:

Originally posted by paul yarek@Oct 5 2003, 08:11 PM
hey, i like this guy ;) finally someone that doesn&#39;t care as long as he is happy. :thumbsup:
Hey Paul, make that two guys...well three, I&#39;m sure you&#39;re in the same group. Actually, many people who have NOT responded to this thread prob feel the same way.

When I call my dealer to place an order for sled parts, I don&#39;t even ask what the prices are. When I get the order, and the bill, I compare the prices he charged me to the retail prices, and he&#39;s always given me discounts. I don&#39;t ask for these, but he also knows I don&#39;t ask for rediculous favors or unrealistic pricing. He&#39;s there when I need him, so if he charged me retail for $20 to $80 dollar parts, so be it...I would still give him my business because he&#39;s always there for me.

I don&#39;t know the specifics about the $75 over invoice deal, but if any of you think a dealer nevers sells a car/truck at a loss, you&#39;re not using all your brain cells. If you could take one look at a dealer&#39;s floorplan (say, one that keeps $20,000,000.00 worth of inventory on the books), then you would understand why a dealer is happy to get an aged inventory item off the lot. On the used car side, if a dealer has one on the lot for more than 90 days, you could prob make a pretty good deal on it....likely, less than what the dealer paid for that car.

Dheard hit the nail on the head...how much markup do you think there is in that gallon of milk you bought, or prescrip drugs...better yet, all the other items sold in your local pharmacy that you pass up on your way to the RX counter. I used to work for the largest retail pharmacy in the states, and the majority of the items on the shelves had over 40% (not exaggerating) markup in them. Couldn&#39;t believe that; I rarely shop their stores, unless I have to. What kind of service does their checkout person give me....not nearly the service that my dealer gives me! :angry:

Paul, I am not sure why you are so resistant to this issue, either you are sadly misinformed or you are trying to keep this "dark" secret from the general public.

I totally agree that a dealer should make a profit on every item I buy from them. My point is the true cost of a sled/car/widget.

I lease all my vehicles; the leases are all through a private (non-dealer) leasing company. Every lease is based on dealer invoice plus $100. This is not a special deal for me or for them, most private leasing companies can offer the same pricing. My leases are both special order and from dealer stock.

There are dealers in the US that sell ALL their vehicles at $100 over invoice.

BTW I do a type of business on a daily basis, I have a US$10M quota

what kind of service do you get from the private leasing company?seems silly to get a third party involved,if there is dealer cash or other incentives involved you are paying more,kind of like a saturn buyer that feels special cause they got to pay sticker.markup on a sl1 a few years ago was over 2000. everyone seems to want the no profit deal and then when there car for example breaks they want the local dealer to drop everything and treat them like kings.i laughed one time when someone i know went to canada to buy a bike,the bike had a recall but honda of america didnt acknowledge the bike existing.i will always buy from someone i know and trust.how many people do you suppose wil get screwed by the scams on ebay right now selling new sleds for half price(that dont exist) i played with one offering an extra 2000 if he would ship c.o.d.he didnt

Originally posted by 01MXZ700@Oct 5 2003, 10:58 PM
Paul, I am not sure why you are so resistant to this issue, either you are sadly misinformed or you are trying to keep this "dark" secret from the general public.
i&#39;ve been a dealer so i am not too misinformed. if you think i am hiding something no problem you can buy the actual costs and incentive programs on the internet for $35.00. have at it. i don&#39;t know what you do with you $10,000,000 quota but it is not the reatil business by the sounds of things.

Paul, buddy, I think you lost this one :)

Originally posted by konkinj@Oct 6 2003, 12:57 AM
Paul, buddy, I think you lost this one :)
when you guys own a dealership i&#39;ll believe you.

lost nothing i speak from what i know not what i think.

Originally posted by JIM FRITCH@Oct 5 2003, 09:42 PM
Dheard hit the nail on the head...how much markup do you think there is in that gallon of milk you bought, or prescrip drugs...better yet, all the other items sold in your local pharmacy that you pass up on your way to the RX counter. I used to work for the largest retail pharmacy in the states, and the majority of the items on the shelves had over 40% (not exaggerating) markup in them. Couldn&#39;t believe that; I rarely shop their stores, unless I have to. What kind of service does their checkout person give me....not nearly the service that my dealer gives me! :angry:
WRONG!!!!!!! There is very little markup on groceries once every one gets there cut. I was a manager of a huge (nationals) grocery chain for 12 years. On that gallon of milk when I was in the biz it was around 3 to 5 %. What 3 - 5 % on $1.29 (back then)? 4 cents to 6 cents? They make there coins on HBA, those little shelf hooks that eveyone runs into, and other non-eccentional items. Non-grocery items had markup from 10 to 70%. That is why superstores that offer grocery/hardgoods got it made over the mom and pop stores. They can offset the markup on groceries with other lines. One reason why Walmart supercenters are getting so popular. As for RX we won&#39;t even go there as I was a store manager for one of them (RX chain) for years also.

Originally posted by paul yarek@Oct 4 2003, 07:32 PM
why would a dealer want to take time to make nothing on their product at all with you when there is profit paying customers coming in the door ? are you a BIG TIME BIG NAME IMPORTANT PERSON in the community that sends in hundreds of deals to this dealer ? that can be the only reason, if not then you are fooling yourself. he&#39;s getting away with a little profit and the happier you are as a customer then the harder he is stroking you. {how am i doing jim ?,LOL}

sure i know retail HARD GOODS {cars & sleds} there is little for markup but a retailer/dealer has to make something.
Actually, we buy three sleds a year and have for the last 8 years! I have seen the invoices and I work for them doing merchandising, their tech guys also do our tech at races, I guess all that matters is I think that I am getting a good deal and I am a very happy customer! Isn&#39;t that what being a good business means, HAPPY LOYAL CUSTOMERS!

remember when using the grocery store example that not many people just buy the milk and eggs that offer little mark up. they also pick up a cart of other items,besides when is the last time you saw a sled shop or car dealer with 15 cash registers all 5 people deep?the bottom line is if you are treated fairly and like your dealer for service etc... stick with them.we have a discount store that sells appliances etc . and i would rather pay a little more at the non chain locally owned store that remembers my name next time i walk in.

Paul you are absolutley right I do not work in a retail environment. I have worked for different manufacturers over the last 15 years selling to distributors and direct to the end user. In every case there was a tiered pricing program in place or one was developed.

Why do you think the car business or snowmobile business is any different?

As a dealer I am sure that you were given a level from the manufacturer which entitled you to....better pricing, better financing on you stock, better pricing on parts?

Originally posted by TnTs4mE@Oct 6 2003, 06:47 AM
WRONG!!!!!!! There is very little markup on groceries once every one gets there cut. I was a manager of a huge (nationals) grocery chain for 12 years. On that gallon of milk when I was in the biz it was around 3 to 5 %. What 3 - 5 % on $1.29 (back then)? 4 cents to 6 cents? They make there coins on HBA, those little shelf hooks that eveyone runs into, and other non-eccentional items. Non-grocery items had markup from 10 to 70%. That is why superstores that offer grocery/hardgoods got it made over the mom and pop stores. They can offset the markup on groceries with other lines. One reason why Walmart supercenters are getting so popular. As for RX we won&#39;t even go there as I was a store manager for one of them (RX chain) for years also.
Which is exactly my point...why should we give consideration for the poor grocer and worry about "after everyone gets their share"? Let&#39;s talk about the dealers after everyone gets their share.....pay the salesperson, pay the floorplan, pay the service tech, etc. But I guess dealers don&#39;t get that same consideration!? Take whatever good you want out of the grocery store, the milk was an example. And what was your experience with the RX...I was a manager as well.


01MXZ700....If you meant "most private leasing companies can offer the same pricing" as dealers, not true. If you&#39;re leasing cars through a third party, you could definately pay less if you worked directly with the dealer. Do you think that third party is doing this for a hobby? They probably provide you with a service that is worth you paying a little more through them, opposed to the dealer. You are misinformed if you think the auto business is like your manufacturing business with tiered pricing if we hit certain levels of sales. You even stated...."As a dealer I am sure that you were given..", obviously you don&#39;t KNOW, you&#39;re SPECULATING. I&#39;ll let you (and everyone else) in on a "dark secret", sometimes dealers do get additional advertising money.....but the dealer has to spend the same amount as what the manufacturer is giving them to get it...so no big gain for the dealers. If your point really is the true cost of a sled/car/widget, you need to factor in overhead....but no one wants to go there, and I wouldn&#39;t expect anyone to. By the way, why don&#39;t you put your location in your info block? You may be nearby some fellow SW members.

As it was mentioned before, if you&#39;re happy with your dealer/retailer, keep doing business with them. No good ever results from someone trying to figure what a dealer/retailer&#39;s cost is on an item....there are too many variables for any consumer to realize the true cost. If you could somehow determine the true cost of this widget, then you need to be working in that industry.

gentlemen,
i will not comment on this topic again there are people that refuse to hear from the horses mouth. ???

:( I didn&#39;t mean to fuel any huge debates, sorry Paul. Actually all I really wanted to know was how much I could get my dealer to come down? For the first time ever, the dealer I always go to has one of the higher prices on the sled I am looking at for the wife(GSX 500SS). The owner has always been more than fair and always gives me discounts but this year he is $650 higher than my best price somewhere else, I want to buy the sled from him, but do not want to insult him by asking him to come down more than he can. SWRules

A 2004 Ski-don&#39;t rev 600 H.O is 5700.00 cost. so look at how much your dealer makes off you. :p

:) We&#39;ll my dealer match the lowest price that I found, I could tell he wasn&#39;t real happy about doing it, But he said he would rather give me the sled at close to cost rather than have me buy it somewhere else. I think the price I got from the other dealer was so low because they are much larger and sell tons of extras, my dealer is much smaller and focuses on service. The dealer I go to is Reinbolds just north of Frankenmuth, I figured I should plug him considering the deal he gave me :p

always go for the lowest price!

Originally posted by TnTs4mE@Oct 6 2003, 07:47 AM
One reason why Walmart supercenters are getting so popular.
Well, it&#39;s off topic, but I was told that Walmart is the second largest importer from China. After having been in their store on more than one occasion, I have to say, I believe that they are probably THE LARGEST importer from China :hallo1:

Everyone wants the best possible service it sounds like. But none of you guys wants to pay for it. Good thing im not a dealer I would be telling cheap grinding pennypinchers to go to hell.

you already do that goonbabbler......lmao

You get your ### back in that gravel truck. Oh ya I forgot ...&#39;GO TO HELL&#39;.

dealers are making a few bucks when the sell a sled, but they are making a living on the service, supplies, and labor on that sled.

I dont know if there is a tier for buying sleds through different dealers (high volume against low volume), but in the retail world, there is. Walmart is such a high volume buyer that they are able to get cuts simply from the amount of product that they are buying. I used to work for a competitor who hooked up with a couple other competitors to try to make the same volume purchases that Walmart was doing to try to get better pricing to compete. They also decided to go out and get rid of the higher paid managers and condense positions so they could open 300+ new stores and offer over 17,000 new jobs. They should have kept the dedicated team members that they had in the first place,,,,,

sorry bout that,,,went off the wrong way,,,, simply put, in the retail world, the bigger the buyer, the bigger the discount,,,, as for sled dealers,,, I really dont know. I can say that a very high volume dealer in Michigan was able to give me a better deal than my dealer, but not by much. They are probably moving 10 times as many sleds as my dealer, so if there was a discount for volume, they should have been able to give me an even better deal,,,,,

Check the ads for Cal-Jet in Toronto, &#39;our volume buying allows to not be undersold&#39;. Has to be dealer incentives based on volume, it only makes sense.
Geez, where did we dig this one up, must be spring time :D

Originally posted by goonbabbler@Mar 27 2004, 06:47 PM
You get your ### back in that gravel truck. Oh ya I forgot ...&#39;GO TO HELL&#39;.
thats not very nice but ..............i think i&#39;ll meet you there.lol

Remember most dealers don&#39;t outright buy the sled from Cat, they pay up to $80.00/month to keep them on the showroom floor . They can drop the price early in the game and get it off the floor or keep the price higher and hope they get someone not willing to deal on it.
My dealer told me that next year he is only bringing in one of each (sleds) + snow checked machines and that&#39;s it = too expensive to keep 10+ sleds hangin in the shop when it doesn&#39;t even snow till January -can&#39;t say I blame him

Does anyone know why its so much tougher to get a good price on a spring order sled, than when you buy one off the floor in the fall? Seems like there would be less time involved(no storing/or guesswork) in a spring order hence a lower price.