buying a new sled. Can I negotiate price

[Ak Steve]

I'm buying a new sled, in hopes that maybe winter will arrive before April. I've never bought a brand new one. Is there any hay to be made trying to negotiate price or is that a waste of time and effort?
Thanks.

[LongShadow]

With the lack of snow in many areas it might be a great time to find a deal on a new machine.

I have found that it pays to shop around the entire state. Of course there are more logistics involved if you end up buying out of town and you'll have to factor in the time, travel or shipping costs as opposed to buying locally.

Use competition to your benefit when you can. If you're not absolutely set on one make or model you'll increase your chances of buying at a better price. Also, you should be able to find even better deals on non-current models if it suits your needs.

Get prices from several dealerships and counter with a reasonable offer. What's the worst thing they can say? No? They may counter offer you but if they don't give you price you're satisfied with, shop it some more.

[Erik in AK]

Bear in mind that the margins for the dealership are thin on new machines (around 15%), but yea, you can negotiate. Most dealers won't budge much on a current year machine, espcially on the most popular models.

The best deals are always on previous year hold-overs. You get a break on the OTD price plus (usually) extras like extended warranty or in-store credit for accessories etc. Assuming the 2013/14 model you are interested in doesn't have any glaring bugs, now would be a good time to make a deal. Which brings up another advantage to buying a hold-over: There's been a year or two's feedback (online reviews) on the machine in question so you have a more complete picture of strengths and short-comings.

[Jimw]

THere is some wiggle room on prices but not much. ^^^^ as stated above do your home work and get some prices from other dealers, have the dealer discount add on's. storage bags, cover, jug or two of oil and the like. Happy hunting!!!

[avidflyer]

most of the dealers are sitting on a large inventory of sleds they cant sell. Keep in mind when you go in to beat the dealer up on price that they are paying big interest payments on the inventory and as stated above, the mark up on the sleds is very little. Dealers dont make money on sleds, they make money on parts on accessories. If you want the dealer to be around much longer, you can't beat them up too much on price. I know a local dealer that cant sell a sled 2500 below his cost... keep in mind that said dealer would then have to sell a minimum of 8k in parts to make up the 2500 he would have lost on the sale. The manufactures have pretty much priced themselves out of the market and that is not the fault of the dealers. I know many many dealers who have told Arctic cat to come pick up the sleds and closed the doors. It is tough to justify the cost of a new sled on poor snow years. Keep in mind that there are a whole lot of 2012 and 2013 sleds out there that guys only have a couple hundred miles on due to repeated bad snow years so they are not too motivated to go out and buy a new sled every year like they normally do.. this puts an even bigger hurt on the dealers.

With all that said, cash talks so if you walk in with a wad of cash, most dealers will work with you a bit.

[cwoods]

End of October I tried doing some shopping around and flashing cash to get the best price. My experience was they would not budge on machine price but where I did get a little room on generosity was accessories thrown in with the purchase...but that was before we knew about the snow conditions in the end of December. I tend to agree you will be hard pressed to get them to budge f any at all, my experience was the lowest price is all the competitors will match.

[Ak Steve]

I brought my new sno go home yesterday. I did find a little wiggle room in the price, about $400 on an $8,000 sled, and 15% off the accessories. I've been riding junk for years. Feels good to have have a machine with 0.7 miles on it....for now....

[Jimw]

Congrats now bring the snow on

[cod]

I brought my new sno go home yesterday. I did find a little wiggle room in the price, about $400 on an $8,000 sled, and 15% off the accessories. I've been riding junk for years. Feels good to have have a machine with 0.7 miles on it....for now....

Well, C'mon Man! What did u get? Pics or it didn't happen.

[Ak Steve]

I got the 155 voyageur. My son and I rode out to our place at Shell Lake a couple days ago. I think its the right sled for my needs. Lightweight, good deep snow performance, easy on the trail, fan cooled, and the price sure is right. I don't like the running boards; I'll look at some of those aftermarket cutouts. And the half turn clips on the side panels. Whoever at Polaris decided to use them instead of rubber straps needs a punch in the head. Honestly, I don't know why they didn't make a flip up hood. Now we just need some new snow. Or maybe we just need winter.

[DRIFTER_016]

When I bought my new sled a few years ago I got them to throw in some extras.
Included in the deal was a hitch, oil and filter for my first oil change, a spare set of plugs, spare belt and a cover for the sled.