is there a market for a "simple" R1300GS?

[littleade]

The difference in trade-in money was only a few hundred quid, and I'm not convinced that I'm seeing much return for the several thousand I spent on options. maybe the message is - whatever you do, the house always wins.

As a bit of a cynic I believe most if not all options you add to a new bike add no value at all come trade in as they base the value of your bike on the model, it's age, condition, milage and service history. The options are really just for your convenience and just benefit the next owner, make your old bike more attractive to a similar model without them to prospective buyers and of course the dealer makes more money on the original sale with those extra options too. As you say the house wins.......

 

[stick]

Typically, the finance arm is a separate profit centre and relies on its judgement of residual values to avoid a loss or make excess profit. The cost of money is the additional cost they are insulated from as the puter is obliged to meet it.

Its no more or less than an alternative method of making a purchase. And a third party can provide PCP if the punter bothers to reach out to one.

So I'm not sure why it's an issue to some . Cash is no longer King for the bike and car purchase.

Got to ask is that for the new purchaser or someone who has always paid cash . May be my old school values that believed cash was always king .

 

[roundincircles]

Always paid cash myself but, today, 80% plus purchases are financed. I get the impression some think the manufacturers have some agenda to sell on finance, which is not the case, they are focused on volume out-the-door targets. The method of funding sales, be it cash or finance, is secondary to output targets.

 

[stick]

Always paid cash myself but, today, 80% plus purchases are financed. I get the impression some think the manufacturers have some agenda to sell on finance, which is not the case, they are focused on volume out-the-door targets. The method of funding sales, be it cash or finance, is secondary to output targets.

It’s the commission, times have changed , I remember buying Cosworth Escort cash and the salesman had no issues, try that now and they call the cops lol . Times have changed that the fellow with the money to pay is now the pariah of a sale .

 

[listermint]

When I bought my current bike I ticked almost every option, because that's what I wanted on the bike. Is was going to be my bike-for-life ... until the 1300 came along. I've hawked mine round a couple of dealers (two BMW and one Triumph when I was flirting with a Bonneville). The BMW dealer knows what's on the bike as he sold me it, the Triumph dealer didn't even ask. The difference in trade-in money was only a few hundred quid, and I'm not convinced that I'm seeing much return for the several thousand I spent on options. maybe the message is - whatever you do, the house always wins.

I suppose they do if you're bringing it back to them, personally I wouldn't ever grace a dealers door with a trade in ever. Its like giving money away.

 

[Clifton]

.... According to their last statement to the DAX “in excess of 70% of new motorcycles sold with BMW finance“. They make motorcycles to finance….they are a finance company.

They're a ways off but I'll try to ask the BMW dealer next time I stop in around what % they sell through credit (BMW or other).

I did speak with the manager of the local shop which sells the 4 Japanese and KTM, he said probably 85% of the bikes and side by sides they sell are financed. Said they would sell more but can't get a lot of applicants credit approved. They don't lease any.

 

[oldnfat]

Is that the dealer, or the BMW mothership making 4x? I assume it's both, given that the days of being able to haggle a discount as a cash buyer seem to be long gone.

The mother ship, can't answer for the dealer. There is nothing wrong with the business model, some years make more out of manufacturing than finance, and others not. BMW Motorrad have made more margin out of Finance than manufacture for the last 8 years, maybe more (furthest I can see back on our company analysis tool). What it does mean is that the firm is driven by model change lifecycle to drive unit volumes that drive finance. Some years, in a drought, they will need volume so will do offers on finance to drive volume to keep the fixed unit cost of manufacture under control. The gamble they play then is residual values with currency fluctuation being the biggest gamble of all.

 

[Clifton]

It does carry risk holding the paper. Any number of things (economy tanks, resale value drops more than expected, etc.) can change and then......

I just saw that in the US there is now a record number of people behind on their car payments. If I were a manufacturer I'd only offer finance to the most solvent individuals, but those people will just write a cheque.

Car Owners Fall Behind on Payments at Highest Rate on Record

The risk of vehicle repossession is rising for many Americans facing a budget crunch.

www.bloomberg.com