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The Truth About European Delivery Programs
In 1959, William Lederer and Eugene Burdick wrote The Ugly American. The novel was celebrated by self-loathing intellectuals, who agreed with disdainful Europeans that Americans are far too stupid and arrogant to play any "useful" role in world politics. Yeah, well, screw that. If you're a latter day pistonhead willing to represent in the Eurozone, I suggest you do your bit to grace the Olde Worlde with American wit, intelligence, insight and humility. Buy your next ferrin' car via a European delivery program.

The process is simple enough. Head down to your local franchised new car dealer, check book and passport in hand. Tell the shysters you'd like to buy car "X" with your choice of options. Oh, and you want to pick it up at the factory or at "select pickup locations across Europe." Then watch the smile disappear from your salesman's face.

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The Truth About European Delivery Programs



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daytonavioletdaytonaviolet - 6/28/2007 12:32:39 PM
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Interesting article, Interesting writing style.

I haven't done the Euro Delivery yet, but intend to, since everyone I've talked to about it has loved it!

Actually salesmen and the dealer do still get paid for European delivery, but I appreciate that the author could care less about people making a living.

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mscottc1mscottc1 - 6/28/2007 12:50:51 PM
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Salespersons and dealers DO get paid on Euro Deliveries, however usually not nearly as much. Especially at dealers who pay on holdbacks-- most manufacturers do not pay dealers any holdback on ED cars, so whatever profit they can make over the ED invoice is all there is- it's a lot of extra paperwork and time-intensive stuff for the salesperson and other dealer staff, so I can see how they might be frustrated versus selling a car from the lot.

Personally, I think it's a great way to go if you're going to keep the car for a long long time & want the memories to go along with the car from the get-go. If you're a leasing person or like to trade every couple of years, it is a terrible way to go & can end up costing more.

Nice to see extra awareness being raised of both sides of the issue!!


IamEvilHomerIamEvilHomer - 6/28/2007 5:34:07 PM
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ED cars are the same as picking it up from the dealer

As an Audi dealer we love ED
1. we get extra allocation (5% discount or more but we get an extra car)
2. Most ED customers become brand missionaries
3. This writer is an idiot


IamEvilHomerIamEvilHomer - 6/28/2007 5:37:11 PM
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with audi you pay the VAT up front but it is refuneded if you drop of the car within 90 days of factory pick up. The factory takes care of your hotel and 15 days of licence and insurance. I wish more people did this. There is even 50 or so places you can drop off your car when your vacation is over.




jeffy210jeffy210 - 6/28/2007 2:44:17 PM
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ED cars are identical to the American Spec version cars you get over here. The only difference is you pick it up over in Europe and then drop it off when you are done with it.

My ex picked up her 330i in Germany and it was a complete American Spec version, which mean limited to 132mph :( She drove it over there for about a year and a half before returning it stateside.

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PPowerPPower - 6/28/2007 2:42:57 PM
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The loathing of the sales person is amazing. It is not the money that is the issue because salespeople aren't paid from holdback. Big deal. What is a pain is the drawn out process over three months getting a deal done and not getting paid on the deal until the customer takes posession of the car from the US dealer months later. Oh, and you better not need to trade in a car, or it will be a royal pain in the rear. BTW, you could have ordered a V70R from the US dealer and still received the $6k off.

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NeverfollowNeverfollow - 6/28/2007 3:19:29 PM
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Euro delivery programs usually require a customer to do a lot of planning and check writing long before they even take delivery of a car, a process they are very unfamiliar and uncomfortable with. Most people do not realize that you have to pay for the entire car and all US taxes along with the 19% EU VAT tax for before you leave. The dealer then gives you a voucher to take with you to go pick it up with. When you are finished with your trip, it usually takes a month for the car to arrive back at the US dealership, long after you've returned, so one is going to need alternative transportation till it arrives. The 19% VAT tax will be refunded after the vehicle arrives back in the states provided the vehicle did not stay in EU for over 90 days.

You cannot finance or lease a car conventionally if you intend to take EU delivery. One would need to use something like a home equity loan or some of other form of security loan if you wish to finance it.

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supermotosupermoto - 6/28/2007 4:04:33 PM
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Neverfollow, BMW ED certainly does not work like that. There is no VAT. You can absolutely do a conventional lease or financing, the only difference is the retail price is lower (since it is considered a used car instead of new). You save about 7% which is pretty substantial and pays for the vacation and perhaps more depending on the car. Some people even fly to Germany, pick up the car, and drop it off right away to get this savings. It is sweet because the dealer HAS to do it. So for a hot car like the 335i coupe (for example) that a high-volume dealer may not discount whatsoever, they MUST discount a ED car. I will do ED for every BMW I buy from now on. Other companies have ED programs that are not so great. Porsche has you pay for the honor of ED, rather than giving you a huge discount.

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mstangpny07mstangpny07 - 6/28/2007 11:01:13 PMView My AgentSpace
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I've heard great things about BMW ED, you get a discount, and the discount makes for a virtually free trip to europe, and plus you drive your own car, not a rental.

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boidzboidz - 6/28/2007 11:46:29 PM
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I bought a 330cic via BMW ED and it is exactly as supermoto says. It's ridiculously easy, and contrary to neverfollow, you CAN use financing and/or leasing. (Funny how people who have never done this are the "experts" on it!) It's simple: you pay a down payment (in my case $500) and BMW schedules the build date which gets the VIN assigned. That's enough to satisfy the leasing or finance company & they issue the payment!

The salesperson & dealer did get compensated at a slightly lower commission. And the dealership also benefits because it is an "extra" car for them, it is not included in their allocation, and they never put out a cent for the car.

I will do it again in a heartbeat!!

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NeverfollowNeverfollow - 6/29/2007 8:08:42 PM
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I am quoting right from Audi's internal dealer document.


EnnNorakEnnNorak - 6/29/2007 12:20:37 AM
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If ED really is 7% cheaper as some here suggest, then I suggest you work out the best price you think you can purchase the car for at home (exclusive of taxes) and then knock 7% off that as your only offer to the dealer (exclusive of any import duties and taxes in your home jurisdiction). I personally don't like driving in some parts of Europe (e.g. Paris) and don't want the personal administrative headaches that come with ED. You may also get ripped off on insurance while driving in Europe for any length of time. There is also the risk of having to deal with shipping damage when you get home.

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wasclywabbitwasclywabbit - 6/29/2007 12:26:42 PM
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It's pretty interesting how much misinformation gets reported here by "experts". I did a Euro delivery of a BMW last year and I also happened to be the salesperson on the deal so I have experience from both sides of the transaction. I did not have to pay VAT and I was able to lease the vehicle as well.

BMW's lease program was far better than any other lender and they pay the second lease payment for you....sort of. The lease finance rate that you pay on a Euro delivery is slightly higher than a domestic delivery which offsets the "free" payment somewhat. I'm sure that BMW does this because as a general rule that payment would come due while you are in Europe enjoying your new car.

From the dealer's perspective it is true that they don't get holdback on the transaction but it doesn't affect their allocation either. Typicaly most dealers do not discount below the Euro delivery discount rate from sticker, although some will a little bit. We did not. Once the deal was funded we were paid our commission and did not have to wait until the car arrived. The amount of paperwork that we had to do over and above was not a big deal, typically only taking about a half an hour to complete.

From a consumer's perspective the down side is that you have to pay for the car or sign the finance/lease contracts 2 weeks prior to picking up the car. (With Mercedes it was a month). Additionally once you drop off your car there is the long wait until you see it again and typically you will have a payment due in the interim. It took 6 weeks for me to get my car but people who live on the east coast will generally have a shorter wait. Contrary to what was said by one poster you will not automatically get a "new" car if your is damaged during transportation. The amount of damage will determine whether they repair it or replace it.

All in all I loved the Euro delivery program and would not hesitate to do it again even though I no longer sell BMW anf Mercedes Benz. Hopefully though if I go back the Swiss border guards have forgotten about the photo radar I triggered last time I was there. :-)

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