Marketing and Car Prices

mountainannie

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Dec 11, 2003
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I just wanted some of the Dominicans or more experienced hands on the board to explain this to me ---

I have been watching Supercarros for the last three months and the prices have not budged an inch... now I am from the land of Let's make a deal and the Two for One Special but it would seem logical that dealers would start to be moving the prices down to move their inventory off the lots?No?

If it is true that as many as 40% of the financed cars have been returned (did I read that right?) then WHERE are the deals?

Why do these used cars - which are 5 and 8 years old - still carry such high price tags? Isn't it true that you can't even insure a car for body damage after it is 7 years old?

Is there a better place for bargins that I should be looking at?

thanks for listening...
 

J D Sauser

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Nov 20, 2004
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Because they can't see the numbers on the wall even if the lettering was bigger than HOLLYWOOD on the hill and they'd had their nose pressed against them (maybe that's why they don't). Most don't read news papers and are ill informed by the local new media and their politicians.

Our locals are not used to cut losses in business at the right time. A spectacular panoply of ruins collaborate that theory of mine.

Prices in super carros are and have been dream prices not just now but a long while ago... call them "asking" prices if you want to be diplomatic when describing them. Local buyers have a nebulous sense of true value and will bargain hard. So sellers anticipate that in their "asking" prices, while many are quite adept at showing quite some authority when trying to sell the idea that these are "rock bottom no BS sticker prices" to foreigners.

I have seen 2 year old imports (used obviously) being offered for more than the local "official" dealer offers the same vehicle HERE, NEW.

They moan and whine, claiming interest rates are too high (they are indeed for locals earning in local currency), but much like real estate, the budging has not yet really started at a large scale. It will come. There is almost no more money left on the streets. Small business and families are hurting, but still spending on funny hair jobs and other not so necessary garbage.
Yet, I seem to see a new surge of "normal" people trying to hitchhike, something which I had not seen much in the past few years along the main roads.

Money slowly starts to move things again with a little more leverage. I'd reckon car dealers will feel the heat too and that a hard negotiating buyer with the right money can or soon will be able to get real deals.


... J-D.
 
May 8, 2009
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It reminds me of some friends of mine looking for a place to rent. The place they were looking to rent at the time was vacant for a good 6 months. They made an offer that was around 1000 pesos less than what the asking price was. (I think they were asking for 7000 pesos or something monthly) The owners were in no way willing to budge on the price. My friends didn't end up renting there, and so the house remained vacant for another year or so.. Funny how some people can be so stubborn on the prices and would rather make no $ then to come down a little bit.

Some time back I sold a motorcycle, and for kicks I set the price real low but refused to drop it any more. I had many locals want to buy the bike, but as soon as I told them the price was firm, they were uninterested. I told them they would never find another comparable bike for cheaper. (which was the truth) Finally after a few weeks, one came back and unwillingly bought it for the price that I had set. Soon thereafter others came around and asked if it had sold. After I said that it had, they were all kicking themselves in the a$$ for not having jumped on the offer
 
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apostropheman

Guest
Perhaps this will help...

There are good solid vehicles available in the DR and they are not necessarily sold at grossly inflated prices. I know people that have bought excellent quality used cars, with clean and verifiable past histories, for about the same and occasionally even less than what one might expect to pay in the US.

Sometimes it's about being in the right place at the right time but usually it comes down to shopping in the right places and knowing the right people as well as having a decent history with the seller, i.e. the car dealer.

If you do not know where to shop you need to find someone who does and who has this type of relationship. You also need to be patient and able to make the deal when it is available. "ya snooze, ya lose".

I know of too many people that have successfully purchased used vehicles, that were at least happy and often thrilled with their purchases, and still are, to think otherwise.

On the other hand I've heard horror stories of the rushed or uninformed, or worse misinformed, that have gotten a poor deal or regretted trying to bring their vehicle into the DR themselves or with the assistance of a broker.

In RE the "golden Rule is "location, location, location". With vehicles in the DR it's more about "information, information, information".

While I have not purchased a vehicle in the DR I am certain, yes certain, that when the time comes I will be able to get an excellent used vehicle with the assistance of my friends that know where to shop. I'll be patient and make the deal without hesitation when it is time. Of this I have no doubt as I am blessed with friends that live wonderful lives in the DR and are happy to, no insist upon, helping their friends succeed.

I hope everyone has friends like mine and if you don't....;):bunny::bunny:
 
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AK74

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Robert edited: Another idiot post by AK74, enough!
 
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cobraboy

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Jul 24, 2004
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One truism of the DR:

There are no "comparables" in most industries to determine where the market price of almost anything actually lies.

Another truism: when a Dominican seller sets a price, it's firm. When a Dominican buyer looks to purchase, they expect a steeply discounted negotiated deal. No wonder not much gets sold...:cheeky:
 

Chip

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Jul 25, 2007
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First of all, any prices found on the internet are going to be inflated, because only the very few and relatively affluent here in the DR have internet in their house. As Dominicans are very market savvy they will take advantage of this. Furthermore, those that advertize using this medium are more than likely somewhat affluent and therefore won't be in any rush to sell their car, same with these type of people when it comes to their houses, etc.

In order to get a good, deal (and they can be found) one has to be patient and ask around for deals, "negocio de opportunidad". Also, sometime one can get lucky at a smaller agencia that is trying to move cars off the lot.

A good example of a "negocio de oportunidad" is recently my cu?ado bought a mid 90's 4 door Honda in very good condition for RD150k, something that easily could have gone for for over 200k at an agencia.
 

TheHun

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May 4, 2008
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I have seen dominican business -when they are slow- they do raise their prices, that's how they try to make up their losses.
Now try to explain the "supply and demand" situation to them.
I think those who lived and worked in the US run their business better.
The other thing is - no offense - but many dominicans are "show off". They tend to buy things that they can't afford. I see that every day in my business.
They bring their nice cars here - in which they dumped all their savings and loan- and can't pay for a basic maintenance. Why the hell do you big shot macho guy buy a 745 Li -on which nothing cost less than US$ 1000 - if you can't even afford a 3 series???
90% of them are saying:" - I just want to get the most important thing to fix, because I'm trading it in for a new car."
Well, that's what you said in February - and since you don't have any $ to fix those most important things, how are you going to buy a new one?
Thanks God for the other 10% who can actually afford to buy luxury cars.
Back to the OP's question. Yes, it is possible to find an affordable car. You will see great deals in 2-3 months from now.
Anyway, before you buy a new car definitely get it checked over, otherwise you might end up to buy a money pit.. Don't ask your gas pump operator neighbor to check it , sure he "works with cars", but it doesn't mean he knows anything about them. Take it to a good mechanic. Don't forget: the cheapest used cars are the most expensive.
Zee
 

mountainannie

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Dec 11, 2003
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I figure that the prices on suppercarros are set by the sellers... and I guess it is right that someone is going to break soon. I have noticed that there are Subaru Foresters listed which are selling for less than their book value in the STates! And these are probably some of the best rated SUVs in the world, but since they need Subaru parts (do not play well with others) I have heard that Dominicans won't buy them. Also the four which are near my house are the Japanese models which means that the steering wheel was moved but I have no way of telling whether that was in Japan or here.


They knocked of $15k pesos as soon as I started talking to them.. I mean, there are 3 of them.... the TIRES are going flat!!!

But honestly,,,,, if they want to get some traffic moving into the lot, they need to get with it on the marketing end.
 

TheHun

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May 4, 2008
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I figure that the prices on suppercarros are set by the sellers... and I guess it is right that someone is going to break soon. I have noticed that there are Subaru Foresters listed which are selling for less than their book value in the STates! And these are probably some of the best rated SUVs in the world, but since they need Subaru parts (do not play well with others) I have heard that Dominicans won't buy them. Also the four which are near my house are the Japanese models which means that the steering wheel was moved but I have no way of telling whether that was in Japan or here.


They knocked of $15k pesos as soon as I started talking to them.. I mean, there are 3 of them.... the TIRES are going flat!!!

But honestly,,,,, if they want to get some traffic moving into the lot, they need to get with it on the marketing end.

mountainannie,

Subarus- including Foresters- has quite few electrical problems and they also prone to leak coolant from the cylinder head gaskets, especially when they don't use the factory coolant - which is a phosphate type coolant.
Now, do you think that dominicans will pay US$ 18.00 for the OE coolant, when they can buy a cheap US$ 3.00 coolant? Many cars doesn't even have antifreeze/coolant here, only tap water. They probably haven't seen what electrolysis does with the aluminum blocks and heads.
Also, Subaru using a flat-engine design - the same that you find in many Porsche - and most mechanics are not familiar with this design, nor the Wankel or rotary engine design from Mazda.
Of coures if money doesn't matter, buy whatever you like, but if it does,
I'd suggest to buy something more common, easy to get parts to and every Jose and Miguel can fix it. If you need a 4X4 car, Honda CRVs or Toyota Rav4s are excellent, dependable cars and not extremely sensitive for maintenance. Parts are readily available for repair.
I also strongly suggest - as I said before- get the car checked from A to Z by a good, honest mechanic, and not with the owner's mechanic.
If the car is from the US, get the VIN# and run a check via carfax dot com.
DR is a dump site of hurricane Kathrina and other good looking salvage, lemon - or otherwise money pit vehicles.
I hope you find something nice and dependable car that you can enjoy for many long miles.
The Hun
 

rsg

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Oct 21, 2008
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Dont buy a Subaru in the DR, parts are scarce and expensive, and like the Hun said not many mechanics here know how to work on these cars.
Another thing to think about is the resale value. You might be thinking you are geting a great deal on that subaru,but when you try to sell it you will have a hard time recovering your money.
 

rsg

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Oct 21, 2008
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As far as great deals go from dealers, dont hold your breath waiting. I ship cars to the DR and I know and work with many dominican car dealers. BIG MONEY, most of these dealers are far from poor and have more then enough money to hold out for the big bucks. You are not going to buy a car for the same price as in the states from a dealer in the DR when the taxes and import fees run in the thousands. But there are deals here like any where else if you get lucky. Maybe you know someone who needs to return back to the states and needs to dump their car asap.

And about quality, please check miles and history on carfax. Most cars are bought in the states with miles over 100,000, and some how end up in the DR with very low miles. The Dr is full of cars with past flood and salvage history.You may be geting a great deal on that car because the Dealer paid such a low price for the car in the states because of it's high miles or past problems. I personally know BIG DEALERSHIPS HERE that love cars with high, high miles, who sell them with low miles...Worry about the price, but most importantly find out the history of the vehicle, and like the Hun said, get the vehicle inspected by a real mechanic.
 

AK74

On Vacation!
Jun 18, 2007
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Most cars are bought in the states with miles over 100,000, and some how end up in the DR with very low miles...... The Dr is full of cars with past flood and salvage history....... BIG DEALERSHIPS HERE that love cars with high, high miles, who sell them with low miles[/B.



do not bother to warn and enlighten the public.

you will be accused of lieing right away.

been there.

vested interests.
 

Robert

Stay Frosty!
Jan 2, 1999
20,574
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do not bother to warn and enlighten the public.

you will be accused of lieing right away.

been there.

vested interests.

yawn.jpg


Enough of the conspiracy theories. The problem is, the way you deliver the message. If you have nothing useful to say, don't say it. If you have an issue with a particular poster, add them to your "Ignore List". It's that simple!
 

Rocky

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Apr 4, 2002
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We buy great used cars in excellent condition at an average of US dealer retail plus 20%.
We buy from a dealer, get everything fixed up to perfection, just as any good US dealer would do.
I get the impression that some folks here are dealing with all the wrong people.
I have yet to see one of those Katrina cars here and it surely has everything to do with whom I deal with.
Stop dealing with fly by night dealers and you can get as good a car here as anywhere else in the world, only at approx. 20% more.
If you think that 20% more is a lot, then figure this.
The new cars are 40 to 50% more, so if you can buy excellent used cars at plus 20%, then you're laughing, and for those of us who remember the old days when cars were 300% the American prices, we scoff at +20%.
As there are nay sayers, rest assured that I can produce half a dozen folks within a day who can tell you about their excellent used vehicles at +20% or less, that were purchased from a good dealer.
And for those who think that there are no US dealers screwing around with odometers up there and selling flood damaged vehicles, you need to wake up and smell the coffee.
For those who think everything is wrong with the country, it may be time to go home from whence you came.
 

TheHun

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May 4, 2008
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We buy great used cars in excellent condition at an average of US dealer retail plus 20%.
We buy from a dealer, get everything fixed up to perfection, just as any good US dealer would do.
I get the impression that some folks here are dealing with all the wrong people.
I have yet to see one of those Katrina cars here and it surely has everything to do with whom I deal with.
Stop dealing with fly by night dealers and you can get as good a car here as anywhere else in the world, only at approx. 20% more.
If you think that 20% more is a lot, then figure this.
The new cars are 40 to 50% more, so if you can buy excellent used cars at plus 20%, then you're laughing, and for those of us who remember the old days when cars were 300% the American prices, we scoff at +20%.
As there are nay sayers, rest assured that I can produce half a dozen folks within a day who can tell you about their excellent used vehicles at +20% or less, that were purchased from a good dealer.
And for those who think that there are no US dealers screwing around with odometers up there and selling flood damaged vehicles, you need to wake up and smell the coffee.
For those who think everything is wrong with the country, it may be time to go home from whence you came.

US retail + 20% is a very good deal here. I don't sell cars, only repair them, but what I see - even in Moca, the "vehicle capital" of the DR - they are about 40-50% over of the US prices.
On my personal car I paid almost 50% duty, tax and registration. And that was with a huge discount.
The registration tax is 17% for every cars comes in, regardless of private or business import.
Sure, many dealer are well connected and pay less than an expat. It just means more profit to them, but won't make the price lower. I'm talking of the majority.
And almost no dealer -well, very few- want's to get the car back into the "perfection". They try to spend the lowest possible amount on repair. I see their dirty tricks every day. Trough my trade I deal with quite few, and I still can't recommend more than 2-3 to deal with. Of course it does not mean that they are the only good ones. We are just in the same area.
Once or twice a week I get a phone call about turning back the odometer on BMWs. No man, I don't play that way.
A while ago a client brought a Volvo to my shop with only 60K miles for a pre-purchase inspection. The car was very nice and clean, but the seller was dumb enough to leave a 105K Timing Belt Replacement service tag on the timing cover.
rsg doesn't talk BS about high mileage suddenly became low mileage, believe me.
Back in the old country emission laws are federal laws. To remove a "Check Engine" bulb form the instrument panel can set you back $ 40,000 and/or 2 years of prison, just the same as to gut out a cat.converter.
In the US most states require safety and emission inspection, during that your odometer reading will be sent to the DMV's database. If your odo reading at the last inspection was 100K miles, but now -for some miracle - it's back to 60K, their will be a "Tempered Odometer" note attached to your title. Good luck to sell it after..
Sure they try to sell salvage / lemon cars in the US. Few years ago 2 of the biggest insurance companies did that. Actually they where the two who got busted.
In the US however, if you buy a salvage and that fact isn't stated on the title, you are covered legally, and you will be compensated. What about in the DR??
They will laugh in your face.
There is a big chance that you would buy a Katrina car, unless you would do some unusual checks on them. There is no blazing orange spray paint on them "hey, I was in a flood!"
I have a 745 Li in the shop right now. Most of my customers loves it. It looks like a dream car inside - outside. I don't know if it's a Katrina car, but sure as hell it was in a salt-water flood.
Those who are selling salvage cars are professionals. They know their trade, and now how to get rid of the signs.
You might be lucky and haven't seen any - yet, or they might just did a good job to cover it up.
I still say it is possible to find a good car with a fair price tag, you just have to keep looking.

The Hun
 
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Rocky

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Apr 4, 2002
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Good post, Hun, and enlightening in many ways.
As mentioned in my previous post, I recognize that cars sell for US retail plus 40% or 50%, but I almost always find excellent used cars/SUV's in the +20% bracket or less.
There have been 2 cases that I remember that were substantially higher but the vehicle was so perfect for the person buying, he still wanted to purchase it, despite not being a killer deal.
We (I and my friends) have purchased well over 50 vehicles from the same dealer, maybe even closing in on 100, and apart from the two mentioned above, the others were all in the +20% or below zone.
There is an aspect to consider with regards to all the crap you see come your way.
Bear in mind that your stats get slanted towards problematic vehicles, as those of us who drive excellent machines, don't bring them in. So you don't get to see all of us with the good cars. From my perspective, good cars is just about all I ever see, but I'm not blind to the fact that there are constantly people posting about junkers, so they must be out there, only we (again, myself & friends) aren't the suckers who are buying them.
It's like Apos posted.
He knows that when his turn comes up to purchase, we will find him another excellent vehicle at a reasonable price, just like we have done so many times before.