Are the old days gone when you got a bit of discount for buying in cash ? Not that long ago dealers would knock a couple of grand off if buying for cash. Am I wasting my time when I start looking in the New Year trying that avenue. Would be looking at a car of approx €35k.
My experience over the last 2 months looking for a 2-3yo used car across the country suggests very little (if any) discount for a cash buy (no trade-in or finance). 1-2% max, and that's by visiting the dealership and 'negotiating'.
Last car I purchased was 7 years ago, and got approx. 9% discount back then. Different times I know!
I suspect the climate will be different in 12-18 months when many PCP/finance customers go to renew, and are met with 5-10% rates as opposed to 0%. That coupled with the price of new cars increasing by 15-20% since 2019/20 is bound to have a ripple effect on the whole car industry, but the cash buyer is unlikely to benefit from this in the short term.
However, the car finance 'bubble' might extend another cycle of 3-4 years, but if ECB rates stay 2.5% or higher, and depreciation of cars normalise, people renewing PCP/finance in 2023-25 will be stung when they go to renew in 2026.
For example: Car is 3yo. My estimate is a customer will be able to continue paying the same monthly amount for a new equivalent car in 2023 even though (i) PCP rates go from 0 to 6.9%, and (ii) new price of their car has increased by 18% since Jan 2020. This is because they can trade in their current car to the dealer (or sell privately) at an elevated price as depreciation has been low over the last 3 years. However, in Jan 2026 when the cycle starts again, if (i) PCP rates stay at the 6.9%, (ii) new car price stays the same, and (iii) depreciation normalises, the buyer will be left paying substantially more on a monthly basis.
I can provide excel of calculation detail from example above but not sure how to attach.