Triumphrat

grebmrof · 12-25-2005

If this dealer has had their Triumph franchise jerked it's a shame if for no other reason than it was a great bargaining point with every other dealer in the country, otherwise they'd all want to charge list price or above it.

I don't think that Triumph could pull their franchise just for discounting bikes so steeply, that would be restraint of trade. I'm sure they found some other reasons to do it, it just so happens it makes all the other dealers happy if they are not in the picture.

vertwrks · 12-26-2005

iandel, no pianos.....

HiVel · 12-26-2005

I bought one (a T100 in May) bike from Bogarts in Bham and one (an S-3 in Oct) from Chattanooga -I paid a $600 dollar paperwork fee! on the T100 and vowed never to do any more biz at that place paying those kinds of ripoff fees. I tried to buy a new S 3 from Bogarts and went into buy the bike with a printed price quote (not specific to me)
of approx $9,100- when I tried to buy the bike a month after I got the price list
they told me there werent any white ones and it would be after the first of the year-I had to order it and the PRICE was NOW $10,700!!!! That is bait and switch and unethical business practice in my opinion.
I called the dealer in Chattanooga and they quoted me less than $9K out the door. He said he had four on the way and they would be there the next week! They were and I went and got an 06 white one just like I wanted and saved about $1,700
What would you do? This price disparity was not caused by anything more than greed and an arrogant salesman at Bogarts. They are a botique dealer and do not have a clue how to sell bikes to bikers. I will buy a Yamaha or Honda rather than be insulted by the rip off prices at Bogarts. I had a good experience with the folks in Chattanooga and hope they will remain Triumph dealers. I probably killed my chances of even getting my bikes serviced at Bogarts with this message but the truth needs to be told. If Triumph pulls that dealership they will probably have an anti trust lawsuit and they sure as hell will have lost me forever as a customer! Competition is the only thing that keeps these dealers honest and working to please !

dardoonk · 12-26-2005

I sounded to me that there were some other shenanigans going on and it wasn't only due to the cut rate pricing.. When I bought my America a couple of months ago, I compared prices but ended up paying more elsewhere because I felt more comfortable with the dealer near Atlanta than I did when I visited Chatta. I was patient and shopped around and bought at fair price from someone I was comfortable with. If Triumph US did pull their franchise, my guess it goes much deeper than their prcing strategy.

12-26-2005

I believe that you can't fix prices in your country (you can't here).

Whilst competition is good I don't believe discounting a boutique bike is the right way to go because it only disadvantages smaller dealers and those attempting to provide good service.

Better that they offer a package deal on clothing and accessories than cutting the bike price around.

Personally I don't believe that a product like a motorcycle should even be able to be sold without service facilities attached. It's not a supermarket product.

It's a complicated argument and easy to be selfish when there's money to be saved but...

... if you want the Triumph brand to be strong - then the dealers have to make a living. Don't we all want Triumph to be a strong brand?

Woody

PCRider · 12-26-2005

In Northern California (SF Bay area) all of the first shipment of t100s were already sold when I was ready to buy . I ended up going to a dealer a little farther North, Moto Meccanica in Santa Rosa and despite the fact that they are virtually guaranteed to sell all of the T100s they get in like they did last year I still got a fair deal (just a little more than the Southern California price that is always cheaper). I was also happy to see a bunch of old British Iron in their shop being worked on.

This is the kind of Dealer I think we want to see, a fair price that they can survive on plus a commitment to the machines. The Dealer in San Francisco ( Munroe Motors)who has been around forever and has a good reputation was a fair amount more expensive. If I lived in San Francisco I still might have ordered my bike from them for the local service etc . but since I live North of the City I will drive the extra distance due to the deal and great service I received not to mention a good vibe from the Mechanics.

HiVel · 12-27-2005

This is a good discussion and all points well taken. I too want my dealers to survive and do not mind paying a little (note I said a LITTLE) more to ensure that they do. The dealer in question here is also a BMW and Ducati dealer and has a really stiff pricing policy unless you are one of the favored buddies or friend of the group so to speak. FAIR PRICES are all anyone can ask. His prices are NOT even close to fair at least to me.The game is being played and now with Triumph of Chattanooga possibly out of the picture this could become a restraint of trade? I do not know as I am not a jailhouse lawyer but it ain't FAIR putting your competition out of business by whining to the manufacturer! I was once in a meeting (many years ago in another state-I used to work for a big Jap bike dealer)where motorcycle prices were fixed on a certain brand amongst a few dealers in a large 3 county area. IS THIS WHAT YOU WANT?? THINK ABOUT IT. THIS PROBABLY WILL NOT HAPPEN BUT ONE NEVER KNOWS. This was a secret meeting and highly illegal. Is Triumph trumping up charges because of the pricing by the Chattanooga people? They have to have due cause to can a dealer. Maybe they do. I dont know.
Maybe B****** will get FAIR and CONSISTENT PRICING and become a good dealer. I hope so. They need to get it together.

crockabull · 12-27-2005

The only dealer I have dealt with is PJ's in Albq.The only dealer within a 250 mile radius. Their pricing is fair as I have bought four bikes from them. Wether the prices are too much I can only compare to what everyone here quotes from their respective areas. My Bonnie america was $9999 including high sissy bar/luggage rack, bags, floor boards,windshield and light bar, chrome valve covers,battery cover, rear foot peg brackets and 36 inch TORs. The AI had been removed and the jets had been adjusted to suit the TOR,s.There was probably a couple of other items i cannot remember just now.All of the extras had been installed and that was the out the door price including TTT... It seemed pretty fair to me.
I don't mind paying the price if I am comfortable with it. Ours here in Albq. is an exceptionally good dealer as the work they have done for me has always been right the first time, pretty much, and the have always been up front with what it is going to cost. No suprises. everyone there rides and three of the guys race. PJ sponsers them.I think a lot of their income comes from their accessory sales and service. They WANT you to keep comming back so they treat you with dignity and respect.We are fortunate to have them. The previous Triumph dealer here, where I bought my first T-Bird in '97, was really bad and after my first service there, I never went back.

[ This message was edited by: crockabull on 2005-12-27 08:39 ]

larryshep · 12-27-2005

I would think that all dealers pay the same price for their bikes from Triumph and what they sell them for is their (the dealers) business. The dealer in Tn. must have had other problems...like service and/or warranty work issues.

KingBear · 12-27-2005

I called Southern PowerSports. For what it's worth, they say that they are still in the Triumph business.

Triumph, or anyone else for that matter, can't tell their dealers or distributors how much they have to charge for their product. That's called "price fixing" and it is illegal. They can, however, hold their dealers to a "MAP" (minimum advertised price). Any dealer can discount as much as they want, as long as they don't advertise a price below MAP. Even though a manufacturer can't legally pull a franchise simply because of discount pricing, they can always come up with another "reason" for doing so.

My local dealer quoted me MSRP for an '06 T100, plus another $1,200 or so in add-ons. Suddenly, Chattanooga doesn't seem like such a long drive from Washington D.C.