Buying a new car: "cost to change" query?

Question

I'm planning on part exchanging a 2 year old Mercedes (yep, because of fuel cost!) for a cheaper, more economical model.

Can anyone advise if franchised dealers have a minimum "cost to change" figure when taking a part exchange in return for a new car sale?

The differential between my current car and the one I want will be about £800 - £1200 and I wondered if dealers will just want to see more cash out of the deal in order to be interested. Thanks

Answer 1

You may be better off selling your car privately - because there is such a small differential they will probably give you a much lower value on the part exchange for your car.  I have just been through the same process - I have an Audi and was thinking about part exchanging on a Yaris - I couldn't do it in the end - my hairdryer had more power than the Yaris!

Answer 2

Generally, yes, especially for your model.

The risk they have is of buying in a car which will be slow to sell and depreciate in value whilst sitting on their forecourt. At the moment, good mpg cars are selling like hotcakes and low mpg models are plummeting in value and are slow to move without heavy discounting.

With a model such as yours, a buyer would also expect the car to be retailed on a virtually "as new" basis, so the dealer would have to service the car and prepare it to the highest standards and then provide a warranty comparable to a new car. All of these things cost the dealer a lot of up-front money.

To try and offset these issues, the dealer has to offer you the absolute minimum possible and currently it's often below what current printed and online price guides are indicating. The dealer also knows that fuel-efficient cars are selling very strongly at the moment so not only have the windscreen prices gone up but the dealer also has less incentive to offer a discounted price.  

Your cost to change will therefore likely be somewhat higher than you planned.