How To Find A Great Motorcycle Dealership

When you go riding every weekend with your motorcycle buddies do you feel like your current ride isn't good enough? Maybe your bike doesn't stand out like you want it to, and you're lost in a sea of look-alike motorcycles? Maybe you're thinking that the time has come for an upgrade?

While completely custom choppers will obviously stand out, even the choppers from the larger manufacturers stand out from the rest of the cruisers or sport bikes out there. If it's been a while since you've been in the market for a new ride, read on.

Big Boy Toys Cost Big Boy Bucks

As you know, getting a new chopper can be a sizable investment. You're going to drop some money into your new ride, either all up front or piece-by-piece as you go. You have probably been riding your current bike for a while now, so you may or may not have been looking around at the local dealers. I'll tell you right now, though - one of the most important things you can do to help you with the whole motorcycle-buying process is choosing the right shop to buy the bike from.

You want a shop that you can trust to help you pick the perfect bike for you. Also, you want a shop that is going to charge you a decent price. And, most importantly, you want a shop with a great selection of choppers and cruisers to choose from.

First off, be sure to ask your friends or other riders you see out on the road for suggestions. They will be able to tell you where they had good experiences.

Shop Around For Dealers As Well As For The Motorcycle Itself

Where do you go to look? The first thing to keep in mind is the importance of shopping around. Regardless of where you live, there is more than one motorcycle dealership out there and there are usually many more. Check into each of them. Walk in, see how friendly the salespeople are. Talk with some of the other customers and see how they feel about their experience. If you're not completely comfortable, walk out. You're the guy with the cash, after all.

Use The Internet To Find The Right Bike For You

If you're smart, you'll use the internet to research motorcycle prices. You can use this research to send bike price quote requests via e-mail to motorcycle dealerships within a reasonable distance and possibly score yourself a deal.

Once you have either cash or financing on hand, get a list of all the motorcycle dealerships within a reasonable radius - I usually go with dealerships within about a 500 mile radius.

Once you have the list, work it a bit and, by visiting the dealership websites, get a working e-mail address for each of the dealerships. E-mail the right people at the dealership to get a line of communication going. You probably want their Internet sales manager, or their general sales manager, or both. Send out an e-mail to each dealership's sales managers asking them if they'd like to make a deal ASAP. The dealerships that respond will be the ones you'll focus on.

Don't be stupid, don't be greedy. Dealerships aren't in the business of giving bikes away, and you'll be cutting your own foot off and get nowhere if you make outrageous demands.

The best way I've found to get a good deal is to say in your follow-up e-mail that you have no problem paying MSRP (or a little lower) on the bike itself, but you were wondering what else the motorcycle dealership could throw in on the deal. Make sure the e-mail states that you're talking to other dealerships - and name them. This puts the ball in the dealership's court and, hopefully, they'll come back with a decent bargain for you. It's not uncommon to get an extended warranty, free services, a good amount of credit on a gift card or even an expensive accessory or two like pipes or seats to be thrown in to get you to jump on a deal.

It may take a little effort to find the right shop, but when you count the cash you've saved with a little research, you will be glad that you spent the time.