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It's a multi-billion $$$ business that does not need to exist at the magnitude that it currently does. It is a scheme for middlemen and the gov to make billions. Government can tax the dealership industry and these middlemen happily pass the buck along to YOU the consumer and then charge fees and interest for doing so! You have no choice, you are forced to accept this nonsense and forego your freedom of choice.
Last edited by Lux Hauler; 02-12-2014 at 01:55 PM..
My fiance has lots of clothes/purses/shoes from a Michael Kors store.
I bought a PS3 from a Sony store. I gotten a TV the same way.
I've bought lots of Apple products from the Apple store. Some of which needed warranty work.
It's not that you don't buy straight from the manufacturer, it's that you don't have the CHOICE to buy straight from the manufacturer in the car buying experience.
Anything you want, you can go online and buy and have shipped to your door right from the manufacturers website. A car, you have to have shipped to a dealer then pay the dealer.
But, did you pay less at the Apple Store than you would have at Best Buy or WalMart?
Do shoes cost less at the Michael Kors store (NOT the outlet selling factory seconds, overstock, etc...) than they do at the shoe store?
That's all I'm getting at. You imply that you get a much better deal, that hasn't been my experience per se. Outlet stores are the exception, but the comparison is the overstocked vehicle being heavily discounted at the end of the model year.
But, did you pay less at the Apple Store than you would have at Best Buy or WalMart?
Do shoes cost less at the Michael Kors store (NOT the outlet selling factory seconds, overstock, etc...) than they do at the shoe store?
That's all I'm getting at. You imply that you get a much better deal, that hasn't been my experience per se. Outlet stores are the exception, but the comparison is the overstocked vehicle being heavily discounted at the end of the model year.
I think that you would get a much better deal with the manufacturer than dealing with a dealership.
Can anybody explain to me why you cant buy cars directly from the manufacturer and why dont the car companies own the dealerships? It seems like an old outdated model that needs to change. Ive recently heard of the car company Telsa doing this and it was pretty interesting. What are your thoughts?
It's "pitching business". Business A, manufacturer, pitches customers to business B, dealer, and so on. Anywhere you look around, it is being done.
Also, manufacturers are likely to tell you that they do not want to "deal with customers". But it does make huge sense to be able to buy direct.
Here's simple example. Back around 2000 or so, there was a successful business owner, who bought 30 BMW-s directly from BMW, for something like $250, 000.00. He made a gift of one to each of his employes. Simple math says - he paid roughly $8000 per car, that at that time, retailed for roughly $20 000 dealership..
But if you go through dealership, you have all the middle men businesses before dealer, dealer, and all the money makers after dealer. Entire food chain that lives off it.
I believe, back in old times, you could buy direct, but traders soon enough figured more $$ will be made with more traders warming their hands, if you go dealerships.
Why? You don't get a much better deal from the Apple Store than you do from Best Buy. Why would a manufacturer leave money on the table?
You can buy an Ipad at the Apple store, Walmart, Target etc.. and pay the same exact price. Each dealer in your area will have a different price for the exact same vehicle, big difference.
You can buy an Ipad at the Apple store, Walmart, Target etc.. and pay the same exact price. Each dealer in your area will have a different price for the exact same vehicle, big difference.
Do you understand that this happens because apple incentivizes retailers to sell at a Minimum Advertised Price, and because they hold their prices so high that retailers don't have much room to discount? Stores have to sell at a minimum price to get rebates and volume incentives back from Apple. Just because two stores have the same price doesn't mean that its a good or fair price; try buying a pair of their $20.00 earbuds. Ford or Honda could certainly do the same thing, but it wouldn't be any cheaper; why would the manufacturer care to sell their product for less than what consumers are willing to pay?
My personal thoughts are that I've seen plenty of arguments on why dealerships are a good thing. There are foreign countries where there are both dealerships and manufacturer-direct options for purchase. They each have their pros and cons. What I have never seen is a good argument as to why we should legally mandate that automobile manufacturers must go through dealerships. If dealerships really provide value then they'll continue to do so with or without the manufacturer opening stores, too. The problem I see is that too many dealerships provide no value at all and are simply clinging to their legal protection to justify their existence. I love my VW dealership. I can't imagine the manufacturer doing anything better. My Jeep dealership can die in a fire. There's no way the manufacturer can possibly be any worse. Get rid of these silly protectionist laws and let people decide for themselves.
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Do you understand that this happens because apple incentivizes retailers to sell at a Minimum Advertised Price, and because they hold their prices so high that retailers don't have much room to discount? Stores have to sell at a minimum price to get rebates and volume incentives back from Apple. Just because two stores have the same price doesn't mean that its a good or fair price; try buying a pair of their $20.00 earbuds. Ford or Honda could certainly do the same thing, but it wouldn't be any cheaper; why would the manufacturer care to sell their product for less than what consumers are willing to pay?
