Using airbag recall as bargaining chip with dealer.. Good move/Bad move?

[BigRussia]

So I've been searching and shopping for my ideal M3 for well over 10 months now. I found a minty 2011 ZCP coupe locally just 10 mins from me but the owners traded it in 2 days before I sold my current car and its now showed up at a Porsche dealership 40 mins away. They haven't listed the price yet but Im already worried it'll be higher than what the owners were asking. I then thought about the Takata airbag recall and how its affecting the M3 market since I've heard dealers cant legally sell a car with a serious open recall. Seems like the Porsche dealer didnt care about it though cause they still took in the car..

So my question is, is it a good idea to use it as a bargaining chip with the Porsche dealer to get them to lower the price on the car? Basically telling them they cant sell the car they just took in on a trade since it has a open recall with no resolution in the near term? Or will it backfire and make them not sell it to me at all for liability reasons?

Any advice is appreciated!

[opihi5]

I wouldn't, if anything they would use it to their advantage and the sellers market right now. GL

[dparm]

Originally Posted by opihi5

I wouldn't, if anything they would use it to their advantage and the sellers market right now. GL

Agreed, I wouldn't tell them anything. That Porsche dealership may not be bound by the stop-sales -- that is something BMW has instituted for their own dealers.

There's nothing stopping them from seeing that there is an open recall, and in some states they may be required to disclose this to you, but I certainly don't see it as something YOU can take advantage of.

[Blindside_137]

I don't see how pointing out a that car can't/shouldn't be sold, will help you buy said car.

[cenix]

From my experience with Porsche dealerships, they will probably not give a hairy rat's ass care about what you have to say about pricing.

[BigRussia]

Thanks for the advice fellas, I totally agree with all the comments.

Looks like I'll have to give up chasing this unicorn, the dealership has it listed with a 'Call for Pricing' so likely they're gauging interest and will put for much more than the owner was asking. Pretty bummed, I thought my search was over.

[AamirAtl]

Originally Posted by BigRussia

Thanks for the advice fellas, I totally agree with all the comments.

Looks like I'll have to give up chasing this unicorn, the dealership has it listed with a 'Call for Pricing' so likely they're gauging interest and will put for much more than the owner was asking. Pretty bummed, I thought my search was over.

They may also end up sending to a dealer's auction. Most reputable franchise dealers do not want to take on the liability of selling vehicles with open recalls. Also I have seen they are partial to their brand. They mitigate this in two ways, sell as-is through their retail channel, which creates skepticism with the buyer (not good in an already shady used car sales business), or sell via a dealers auction. I saw two recently, one from a Lexus dealer in VA and another from an Infiniti dealer in GA.

Re you being bummed. I believe it will happen when it is meant to be. Good luck.

[///M Ryder]

Originally Posted by dparm

Agreed, I wouldn't tell them anything. That Porsche dealership may not be bound by the stop-sales.

Unfortunately this isn't the case. I tried to "in and out" my M3 through my Porsche dealer and the brakes were put on. The stop sell will hit all dealers....unless you find a mom and pop dealership on the side of the road. OP you might have a hard time finding a car unless you find a private party sale........Phil

[dparm]

Originally Posted by ///M Ryder

Unfortunately this isn't the case. I tried to "in and out" my M3 through my Porsche dealer and the brakes were put on. The stop sell will hit all dealers....unless you find a mom and pop dealership on the side of the road. OP you might have a hard time finding a car unless you find a private party sale........Phil

Sounds like a lot of dealers are just doing it as CYA. Some states may have laws regarding the sale of "unfixed" vehicles with a recall, too.

[///M Ryder]

Originally Posted by dparm

Sounds like a lot of dealers are just doing it as CYA. Some states may have laws regarding the sale of "unfixed" vehicles with a recall, too.

This could be....but what makes me think it's bigger is, no dealership wants to be sitting on mass numbers of E9X series car when the bags finally get fixed. So they must be following some law as opposed to the normal CYA. It will be a buyers frenzy because dealers will have to give them away due to the sheer number of units sitting on lots. The "stop sale" will have the private party market ramping up. E9X M car prices will see a major dip in value very soon. You can already see some of the effect on this forum.........Phil

[Flying Ace]

It's worth a shot to inquire about buying that car. It's unclear whether the stop sale is a directive vs just a suggestion from BMWNA. To date, no one has provide direct evidence that BMWNA said "do not sell". IMO, it's a liability decision each dealership makes. It's the same liability decision an indy dealership and even you make when you sell your M3.

Each dealership is a privately owned company. They make a lot of decisions themselves. I imagine the directive that came down from BMWNA is something like:

1. There may liability for selling a car with a safety defect and active recall
2. It is your discretion whether you want to sell it or not.
3. If you sell, we at BMWNA will not provide legal support. We at BMWNA will not be responsible for resulting lawsuits.
4. If you decide not to sell, we will compensate you for holding it in inventory with x, y, z...
5. Sell at your own risk. We recommend not selling it.

Basically, it's a liability for revenue trade off each dealership makes. I'm sure some dealerships lawyered up, got some lawyer to draft some legal disclaimer to provide to the consumer to try to sidestep some liability and to sell their inventory. Is the disclaimer sufficient to deflect legal risk? We'll find out when the first lawsuits come in as a result of this.

[OC ///M]

Originally Posted by Flying Ace

...It's unclear whether the stop sale is a directive vs just a suggestion from BMWNA. To date, no one has provide direct evidence that BMWNA said "do not sell"...

Based on my conversation with BMWNA, I believe it's a national directive. I spoke w/ them yesterday regarding my lease turn-in that is supposed to happen in August. They advised that buying the car outright from them was not an option (as it normally would be) at this time due to the recall. Only options are to turn the car in or re-lease.

[Haywood]

Originally Posted by OC ///M

Based on my conversation with BMWNA, I believe it's a national directive. I spoke w/ them yesterday regarding my lease turn-in that is supposed to happen in August. They advised that buying the car outright from them was not an option (as it normally would be) at this time due to the recall. Only options are to turn the car in or re-lease.

Yup. This is correct. Just went through the process in May and the only 2 options were lease turn in or an extension of the lease for 12 months. You cannot buy a leased vehicle with this airbag recall. I put all that stuff in the "Takata Recall" thread.

[STooK]

Originally Posted by OC ///M

Based on my conversation with BMWNA, I believe it's a national directive. I spoke w/ them yesterday regarding my lease turn-in that is supposed to happen in August. They advised that buying the car outright from them was not an option (as it normally would be) at this time due to the recall. Only options are to turn the car in or re-lease.

Jeez, sorry just looking at your previous cars and I'm surprised your current car isn't SSII.