► The current seller’s market – which I reckon is going to be with us for some time at least – has turned many aspects of the used car market on their head. One is that dealer asking prices are now pretty-much fixed, rather than a starting point for negotiation.
It is, of course, taking time for punters to change the habits of a lifetime, and most traders are still encountering buyers who find a refusal to negotiate hard to understand. But wise dealers are standing their ground. Given the level of auction prices at present, there’s rarely much room for manoeuvre anyway, and at the end of the day if Buyer A refuses to pay your price, Buyer B won’t be far behind.
The other big difference, and this is one that could REALLY turn things upside down, is that whereas a ‘no part exchange’ customer has always been seen as
