Total Motorcycle Community Forums

Sorry if this question is a little lame. I purchased my last bike in 1981 so I am not familiar with the current "game". Few automobiles sell for anywhere near the "sticker" price these days. Can someone please clue me in about motorcycle "MSRP" vs. actuall selling price. I am in the market for a small/medium cruiser - 400 - 750cc range. Perhaps something like the Kawasaki Vulcan 500.

TIA,

Ken

Most bike shops don't want to dicker over the price unless it's a used unit. Why, I don't know... could be that the profit margin is less on bikes than on cars. Some shops might let you haggle a little bit but don't expect any honking great savings. You'll get a slightly better deal on non-current stock (ie: last year's models) because they need the floorspace to bring in the new units, but just how much of a deal depends upon your bargaining skills and their willingness to dicker. As an example, the local Honda dealer had an '04 Rune sitting in the showroom since late '03. They finally sold it two weeks ago for $28k, which was $4k below the MSRP.

Basically, if the bike is a new, current model you can expect very little leeway from the MSRP. If it's a new, non-current model they might be willing to haggle a bit just to get it out the door. If it's a used unit, they'll probably be more receptive to bargaining. Good luck!

Mike is right, there isn't a lot of margin to play with at the lower end of the price spectrum, especially on Kawasakis, they have their units priced about as low as you can go. I know of one dealer here that gave up on them because he just couldn't make enough selling under MSRP. He didn't have any other lines or recreational products to spread the risk on so he went out of business.

For the Kawasaki 500 Vulcan you might get 4 or 5% off. If it is the only one they have and people are stopping to inquire about it they may not even give you that, or will offer a free helmet or some accessory.

BTW, the Kawasaki Vulcan 500 is an excellent cruiser. Plenty of power there. Lots and lots of good reviews and voted best bang for the buck by Motorcycle Cruiser Mag.

Good luck.

My extended family has bought 3 bikes and 1 ATV from the same salesperson at our local dealership. She was willing to cut me $500 slack on the Bonneville last summer - we've been good to her, and she hopes we'll be back for more. (She's right - I've been drooling over a black V-Strom, if I had the $$$ it would be mine now...)

But as a general rule, it's like Gummi said.

I'll tell ya a story. My wife got a great deal on her new old stock 2003 Trophy last summer -- a two year old brand new unsold bike. A dealership had gone to the point of listing it on eBay to move it -- we were the high bidder but still below reserve. A few hours before the auction ended, they e-mailed us and said "let's do business." A day later it was ours, for $3K under list! This is the exception that proves the rule, don't expect it to happen. We were just extremely lucky (for once.)

(By the way, if you're in the northeast USA, I've got a small-medium cruiser for sale, see the TMW classifieds. I might dicker with ya.. )

Exellent ?, my man!
im thinking about the new vulcan 900 myself, it list for $7300. or the c50, wich is $550 less.
will kawa drop $550 to save a sale?
oh yea, the vulcan 500? great bike. my wife wants one.

In the hot season, the MSRP has more impact than it does in January or October.

You should buy in those times. January is best -- lowest sales of the year for a lot of dealers.

You should go to Cyclebuy.com, and look at what their cost is. ONce you get a serious offer out of them, you pull out their printout so that they see that you know what they have to sell for to make a decent profit. Watch their demeanor change. I did, and I had fun buying. I'm kind of sad it's over for a while.