Planet 9

Okay. I searched the internet and found a used Cayman I would be interested in but the dealership is 1100 miles away. Could my local dealer arrange to have that vehicle transported down to Florida or should I forget the local dealer and contact the other dealer on my own or should I just hop a plane to inspect and drive the vehicle? However....

I have a low mileage 2007 CPO BMW 328i sedan to trade for the down payment. I would hate to have to drive it 1000 miles....

Thanks for any ideas and suggestions.

I think that you will find that a dealer will do what ever they have to do in order to get a deal done. However, if you get the car transported to your location you will loose some of your bargaining power because they will want to recoup some of their expense for the transportation charges.

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You have probably seen this in the FAQ Planet Porsche - FAQ: Questions & Answers The last sentence is very important.

I have done this many times without a hiccup. First of all, if you want to trade in, driving is the way to do it. I always deal with the 'new' car first. When the price is negotiated, then throw the trade. Send detailed pictures, descriptions, etc. and negotiate a trade-in amount subject to inspecting your car. Dealers don't like it, but I wouldn't drive 1K miles without a firm deal as you're in a much more vulnerable position (obvious reasons). They always say they need to see the car, and they will before signing anything (of course), but there's nothing wrong negotiating first, subject to inspection.

You should think of the maximum mileage you want to drive before even starting to search for a car. My personal max is 700, so I can do it leisurely in a couple of days and not having to drive at night.

When buying a car without a trade, I don't have a problem buying blindly but it has to be from a franchised dealer selling the brand or car I'm buying. That's why I usually don't bother with private sales farther away than the 700 miles I'm willing to drive home. Good luck.

I know anytime you want the dealer to help you, you lose leverage. Thanks.

What you are telling me is it's worth the plane ride to go there and check it out. Thanks.

My Cayman was shipped by truck from a dealership in Colorado to Ca. for my purchase. They were still kind of hard to get at the time I bought. All was well except a very small scratch on the bumper which the dealer took care of.

Sorry I forgot to mention there was no additional cost to the negotiated price.

Thanks. 1100 miles is much more than I would want to drive. Yet the options on the used Cayman are perfect and not easy to find. It is a Porsche franchised dealership.

Sounds like the way to proceed is to fly there, check out the car, negotiate a price, then mention the BMW and show photos, negotiate an offer on the BMW subject to inspection, fly back, drive up with the BMW, drive back with the Cayman.

So, you bought the vehicle without having visited the dealership. I take it you had no trade.

Being a Porsche dealer, I'd personally do it over the phone and save the hassle/money to fly there, but that's just me. Just talk directly with the sales manager, and have him personally go thru the car with a fine comb, take high-res pictures of the entire car, including under the bumpers (for curb/parking-lot/driveway scrapes), every wheel for wheel/tire rash, sides of seats where seats might be scuffed from shoes, seat cushions from the top (for wear), stone chips in front, etc. Ask him to run a service history, and to hook up the car to the PIWIS and check for mechanical overrev (if manual). Tell the guy you don't expect a perfect car, but want to know all details. I always ask the manager to personally go over the car to avoid pointing fingers to somebody else. And be just as thorough with your car as well. I bet you 100 to 1 you wouldn't have any problems, but it's your call. Good luck.

The deal was the dealer did a search for the car with the right options for me since I did not want what they had. An Arctic Silver was at the dealership in Co. I told him I was apprehensive to say the least to buy a car I have not seen, inspected or ultimately driven. He said they need stock anyway so they would bring the car to Ca. If it met all my requirements and passed my inspection ( I am really anal for perfection) then we could proceed with the deal. The financial aspect was already discussed on their in house stock. I did not want black which they had with the same option package. It all worked out except for the small scratch on the back bumper which they took car of.

Sorry once again, I forgot to mention I traded in my 05 Boxster. Which I purchased from the same dealer.

Your trade-in might be worth a WHOLE LOT LESS than what you are expecting to get. When I traded in my 2006 330i, I found out the hard way.

Truly appreciate you taking the time to provide me with such a comprehensive response! Thank you!

That's what I was thinking but it would be a stretch to expect a dealer near me to get me a vehicle 1100 miles away.

KBB and Edmunds seem to be in fantasyland regarding trade-in prices. They indicate I should get around $25k for my loaded 2007 328i on a trade.

I plugged in my car's mileage, condition and options on a BMW dealer's Black Book page and it gave me a range of $17.5k to $21k, which while shocking, is unfortunately more realistic. I would be fortunate to be able to squeeze out $20k; $18.5k to $19k is more likely. This gives me pause. I got the car as a CPO last October for $29.5k. Add tax to that purchase and I would be taking around a $13k hit in only 7 months..... so I really have to think it over.