free website stats program Dealer Profit | Harley Davidson Forums

Dealer Profit

I

Ike 1

Member
Hi again folks,
I have a question concerning the "Frieght and Set Up" fees the dealer charges. Does anyone know if that is just added profit to the dealer or are those realistic costs the dealer has to pay? I mean the freight cost should be included in the dealers cost for the bike right? and Set Up? is there something special they do that would incur an additional cost? are there items the dealer has to add to the bike? or just pay the mechanic to check bolts and look it over (which they are there to do anyway and shouldn't be an extra charge for) I used to deliver Honda's and they are already assembled when they get there, just take them out of the crate.

Im told that all Harleys are test rode for 100 miles off the assembly line so there again, whats to set up?

Just asking, I believe the dealer should make a profit, just wondering what the justification is above 6k mark up especially on things that should be already included.

Thanks for setting me straight on this.

:small3d007:
 
Harleys do not arrive at the dealer 100% assembled so, yes, there is some setup performed at the dealership. They're also supposed to do a thorough inspection of the bike before it is wheeled out onto the floor. This certainly doesn't mean that those fees aren't negotiable, though!

I don't think the bikes are ridden at all at the factory since I bought mine from the dealer with about 40 miles on it. I'm sure that was all local test rides.
 
I believe that all business owners are entitled to a profit. I ran a Yamaha/BMW dealership in the 70's. At that time, the tag we hung on the bike was base price (tax/tag/title extra). Freight and set up were included. Then someone discovered they could add those charges and make more money. It is all negotiable.
Imagine the grocery store charging you for delivery, cutting and wrapping of your steak. It will probably happen some day. :bigsmiley28:
 
Last edited:
IMO, do your research. Took me about a year and a half to research what I wanted, then how much I was willing to pay. The dealerships in the Houston area just laughed at what I was willing to pay. Didn't really expect to buy at my price till the end of this year or even into 2011. But after sending out emails to the dealerships in Southeast Texas, Cowboys HD in Beaumont got in touch with me and I was able to buy my Road King the first of March for less than what I was willing to pay. So shop around. You'll find what you want at what you want to pay, and they still made money on the deal. But most important, I was happy.
 
Ike 1 said:
Im told that all Harleys are test rode for 100 miles off the assembly line so there again, whats to set up?
Click to expand...

Nothing to back it up with but...

I don't believe the bikes are ridden 100 miles because if nothing else it would just take too long and would eat up just too much time.

Freight charges are real and charged to the dealership. Whether you pay for them or the dealer absorbs them is another thing. But they are real and the MoCo charges them to the dealership. This makes for an even playing field for the dealerships. Being close to the factory will not give you a pricing advantage over the dealership that is 2K miles away.

As far as unpacking the bike and setting it up,, I bet the MoCo does not pay the dealership for each bike they set up. It is a cost that is factored into the MSRP. The MoCo probably allows 1.5 hours for each bike factored into MSRP. How much the dealership wants to charge is up to them.

How I see it. The $345 freight is a real charge the Moco charges to the dealership.
Setup charges are whatever the dealership can get away with. They of course have to pay the mechanic (say 2hrs @ $30/hr) to set up the bike, but what they get out of YOU is another story.
Real world, it probably costs the dealership $100 to prep a bike (lights, overhead, mechanic salary, insurance etc).
 
Can't speak with any authority on the subject of HD dealer costs, but I recall asking my brother in law , who at the time was a parts manager for a major north Jersey Ford dealer, what the scoop was on "dealer cost". He said that when a car dealer says they are giving you the car "at dealer cost", there is still a few thousand dollars of profit built into their "bottom line" that no salesman touches. So they can sell you that car "at cost" and still make a few thou. The advice given by previous posts is good...shop around. Don't be in a rush to buy. At the end of the month, everyone has to pay their bills and loans and you may find them more eager to deal with you.....
 
PDI is a real occurance...went to an open house at the local dealer, they had a demo display showing the uncrating of a "newly minted" machine. IT IS NOT like getting your bicycle in a cardboard carton w/ simple "--some assembly requried." instructions. Like Breeze said it is a "necessary evil" but the charge is negotiable...(really like his meat packing scenario...now that is scary)...:25:

http://www.hdtimeline.com/general_tips/29709-new_bike_setup.html
 
Ike 1 said:
Hi again folks,
I have a question concerning the "Frieght and Set Up" fees the dealer charges. Does anyone know if that is just added profit to the dealer or are those realistic costs the dealer has to pay? I mean the freight cost should be included in the dealers cost for the bike right? and Set Up? is there something special they do that would incur an additional cost? are there items the dealer has to add to the bike? or just pay the mechanic to check bolts and look it over (which they are there to do anyway and shouldn't be an extra charge for) I used to deliver Honda's and they are already assembled when they get there, just take them out of the crate.

Im told that all Harleys are test rode for 100 miles off the assembly line so there again, whats to set up?

Just asking, I believe the dealer should make a profit, just wondering what the justification is above 6k mark up especially on things that should be already included.

Thanks for setting me straight on this.

:small3d007:
Click to expand...
The engines all get a test run, some will get dyno time, new models will get put to test at Talladega test track, some go to the dessert for heat shed runs like the V Rod, others may be demo bikes with a few miles on them, H D has an indoor test facility also:s
 
All the touring bikes, York PA plant, are test driven on a dyno-style machine (both front and rear wheel spinning at 80mph and engine running, trans shifted, etc) when they come off the assembly line by senior plant personnel. Once passed, they are packed up for shipment to the dealer. Dealer uncrates, puts on windshiled, antennas, hooks up battery, check fluid levels, etc. They then conduct a Mandatory 10 mile ride on the bike...

The Setup fee is negotible....dealer here waived to sell the bike...
 
The Moco no longer does there own shipping it has been done by private contracting for a couple yrs now they felt it was cheeper to go private then to stay in house,so the cost is real , and as far as set up , bikes are in crates and yes some assembly required , like handle bars ,controls ,mirrors,and windshields on touring models ect, then there is shrink wrap on tins , then there is a Moco check list that has to be gone through, also a specfic dealer might have there own check list or thing they do to prep a bike ,like some dealers will install a pigtail for a battery tender as part as there setup ,then there is the cleaning that has to be done from the all the prep work that was done, So I think it would be more in the line of 3 hrs to get a bike ready for the floor or orderd bike.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top