A little snide, there. I said nothing about germs (I think the single worst marketing thing of the last 20 years is the idea that "germs are bad").

The car was getting FAR more attention at the show than it would on the lot, and I really don't think it was an unreasonable question for me to ask.

 

I think most people would expect a discount.

You could be quite right that the dealer could clean it up after the Auto Show and return it to the lot and sell it to someone being none the wiser that it ever appeared on the Auto Show floor.

But that's really not the point. This buyer DOES KNOW that it was on the floor at the auto show, and does know that it has been exposed to a condensed amount of public scrutiny...much more than you are going to get with a single vehicle sitting in a dealership lot.

Beyond that? If I'm buying a vehicle, I'm going to take every chance to leverage for things in my advantage. Including getting a discount for buying a vehicle involved in the harsh environment of an Auto Show.

Even if my true feelings is that minimal to no damage has been done, I'm going to voice my concern, and try to get a discount.

Then it's up to the dealer. They can say no, and risk losing the sale, or they can give up a modest and fair amount of their profit and keep the sale, without the work of returning the vehicle to the lot, and having it detailed at their expense.

I wouldn't expect the dealership to give away their entire profit margin. But I would expect them to offer the buyer a discount for what is a vehicle that has gone through a specific and different pre-ownership experience.

 

I sold Nissan for 8 years in the 90's. Anytime we had a car in a car show like this - Nissan would offer a $500-$1000 dealer incentive to sell it when the show was over. In a sense a hidden rebate. I would say almost all auto-manufacturers are the same.

 

if you can wait, just get the one off the production line. 500-1000 discount is not nearly enough for a near 19k car anyway.