North Carolina MINI Car Dealers

You are dealing probably with Hendricks which is to day the least, one of the worst experiences you can have . In any case, even if you are dealing with others like Flow, etc they will tell you that there is no negotiation. Don't torture yourself they can either take your offer or you can buy other great cars that are out there. Go to truecar.com and build the car with the specs you are looking for. It will show you based on actual sales that you should be getting at least $1,200 off MSRP. The $400 administrative fee or prep fee is outrageous and around the area most dealers charge $199 to $299. Bank Fees and Tag and Title fees would be extra but also compare to other dealers. Also, probably don't need the S, a Base Mini would be fine since you are not looking at racing around! Good Luck, keep us posted!

My opinion and experience is you always get best deals when you are respectful of the dealer and not act like a bully. So best way to get the deal you want is to do your homework. Get TMV from Edmunds and these forums give you a good idea. In this economy no car how ever hot is in a seller position. So I would start at least $1000 off MSRP. If you don't need a car right away then that would be great. You can go to your favorite dealer and give them what you are willing to pay to buy the car that day and have them call you if they can match your price if they are not interested that day. Also look at alternate cars such as Scion, Soul etc if you are not 100% locked down as intrinsically that gives you a leverage. Good luck. If you don't need power I would skip S.

Dear MINIs, I am planning to buy a MINI in NC over this weekend. I have done some research on MINI. It looks like it is very hard to negotiate with the dealors, at least in NC. Up to now, I only got $500 off MSRP. I was also told to pay $400 dealer administrative fee. The market varies acroos areas? My friend said, I should act like a bully to talk with the dealer:) Also I was wondering about the difference between a MINI Cooper Base and a Cooper S. Do I really need the S? As a girl, I am not a fan of car racing:) I would love to hear your suggestion. I am still a little hesitant. This will be my first new car. So it is a big decision to me, definitely. Hope everyone enjoys the Mini trip!

Custom ordered a MCS at the end of Oct. supposed to take delivery next week!! No credit app. $500 deposit......Flow MINI Winston-Salem, NC :)

No problem... glad to help and inspire. I've gotten some good advice and help here, so I'm trying to give back. I'm obviously a bit of a miniac even without having one yet. Once I have mine, I'll be able to provide more concrete info. and experience. But I know I'm going to love it as most people here seem to. Having a car you actuallly like to drive makes a big difference, I think. If you're in North Carolina, you should check the dealers nearby. There's one in Winston-Salem, NC, that has a good website... like the Memphis dealer, it has "real" pictures and info. It's www.flowmini.com. In terms of seeing how their prices are, find a car on there you like, then go to www.miniusa.com and build the same car and see how the prices align. Then you can see if they are raising the price at all. It might be hard to determine exactly because many dealers install little extras like floor mats, chrome tail pipe covers, aux. input jacks for MP3 players, etc. You could definitely deal with the dealer here in Memphis and then pick it up, but i would suggest seeing the Mini in person and driving one if you haven't. There are so many custom options on the Minis that each one is different, so you need to make sure you know what you like -- i.e., what color dash you want, whether you want sport seats or regular seats, all the color combinations that are available. (FYI, I think the sport seats are a great improvement over the standard seats. And I think the mult-function steering wheel is great.) The only two colors that are "free" are chilli red and pepper white. All of the other colors are $450. When you order, you can select whatever color combination you want; this doesn't add any time to the order. The biggest time issue is shipping the cars from England and then to the dealer, but I think they dock in South Carolina, so it should be quick to you. The avg. wait is 6-8 weeks after an order is placed. The other reason to order is you can customize the car exactly to your liking. If you buy from the lot, most dealers order a mix of colors. I ordered the pure silver with black roof, but there are so many great color combinations that I'm still unsure if I made the right choice! I feel that I would get tired of the red quickly. The green is nice, too, esp. with a white roof. I usually don't like white, but Mini's Pepper White with a black roof is pretty cool. I think having a contrast roof is key, but there is an all Space Blue Metallic S on the Memphis lot that is pretty sweet. However, mine's already in the works and I'm sure I'll like it once it is here. The pure silver definitely doesn't show dirt as much. And I can always change to another color in the future! Don't worry about the salesmen!! They are making money. These guys will not sell a car without making some money. Check what this poster wrote: martijnh, "MINI Cooper: Prices Paid & Buying Experience" #459, 22 Aug 2006 12:38 pm As far as I know you have to go through a salesperson. That's their job and they are getting paid something. In fact, they probably have a quota they are trying to make so they want customers. Just find one you like. Although I've only dealt with the dealer in Memphis, I think, generally, the Mini "culture" tries to promote a fun, friendly experience, not like "typical" car salesman, although based on posts from West Coasters, that may not be true there. The only thing Mini dealers won't do, is barter on the MSRP like other car dealers. They can sell their cars for MSRP and do. As for the premium gas thing... I know the S requires it, but I'm unsure about the Cooper. I've heard all different theories. Some say you can swap between regular and premium, others say only premium. I'm going to see if I can find more about that and also ask the dealer and get their input. So, go to the Winston-Salem or Charlotte dealer and drive one or two or three. Check out all the different options they have. I'm an automatic guy, but actually ordered a 5-speed because they are fun to drive. And most of all, don't feel pressured to buy one on the spot. Mini's are lesss of a commodity than other cars. They are specialty cars and the dealers know this. If you don't find the Mini you want on the lot, ask them what is "incoming" and see if it fits with what you want. Dealers can lookup what cars they have on order, and also what cars are already being shipped and are unspoken for -- this is a piece of info. I learned form the Memphis dealer - some cars are shipped but not allocated to a particular dealer until they hit U.S. shores, so dealers can put a request in for these cars. I test drove about 3 or 4 at the Memphis dealer. They were patient and then helped me place my order for the one I wanted. Good luck!