USA destination charge increase May 1st

[Llarry]

Effective May 1st, 2024, BMW will increase its destination and handling charge from $995 to $1,175.

Wouldn't it be awesome if some honest automaker would fold the destination charge into the MSRP and avoid this BS?

On the other hand, kudos to BMWUSA for holding the line on this charge since 2014.

[mjj]

I feel good about BMW charges, given my two personal watercraft (Yamaha Waverunners) had a $2000 destination charge for both each machine

[BMWCCA1]

They used to call it "equalized freight".
When you pick up your new X5 in Spartanburg you pay the same destination charge as the guy who rolls into his LA dealership to buy one.

And I ddn't believe this is the first time this has changed since 2014. Seemed like more than that. So, I checked, and it's true. It was $695 in 2007. It was $875 in 2010, $895 in 2012, $925 in 2013, $950 in 2014. $995 probably effective later in 2014. Then nothing until now.

[hyde]

What is this charge actually for at this point?
It's getting out of hand, $500 doc fee, $950 Bank fee on lease, $1175 destination fee.. Reminds me of someone..

Key fee...

[BMWCCA1]

Originally Posted by hyde

What is this charge actually for at this point?
It's getting out of hand, $500 doc fee, $950 Bank fee on lease, $1175 destination fee..

Destination fee is to get the car to your dealership from either the POE or BMW Manufacturing. The other fees are not on the sticker and are either your dealer ripping you off or charges for the way you chose to finance your BMW (lease).

[wtwo3]

Destination fee is a legitimate fee assessed for freight charges that BMW has to pay to deliver cars. The fee is a standardized average to cover all variances in shipping costs - so everyone pays the same rate nationwide regardless of where you pick the car up from. I don't consider BMW raising this fee as a means to make more money - rather it's them adjusting to account for sustained, increased logistics costs. Think of it as a variance account.

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by wtwo3

Destination fee is a legitimate fee assessed for freight charges that BMW has to pay to deliver cars. The fee is a standardized average to cover all variances in shipping costs - so everyone pays the same rate nationwide regardless of where you pick the car up from. I don't consider BMW raising this fee as a means to make more money - rather it's them adjusting to account for sustained, increased logistics costs. Think of it as a variance account.

And yet, if BMW or some other make were to eliminate the destination charge -- or more properly incorporate it into the MSRP -- it seems to me that we could avoid this game of "available at your local dealer starting at $39,995" when the vehicle actually lists for more including destination and handling. And eliminate a bit of fine print designed to trap the unwary.

[wtwo3]

Originally Posted by Llarry

And yet, if BMW or some other make were to eliminate the destination charge -- or more properly incorporate it into the MSRP -- it seems to me that we could avoid this game of "available at your local dealer starting at $39,995" when the vehicle actually lists for more including destination and handling. And eliminate a bit of fine print designed to trap the unwary.

Well I think the reason for including it as a separate line item rather than baking it into the MSRP is because the automaker is indicating that the amount for the destination charge is at the mercy of market logistics rates. So if they raise the destination charge without raising the msrp they're essentially saying, "we're not raising the price of the car, but can't control what freight rates are in today's market". It offers them greater flexibility.

From the customer end - when you order something online, you typically pay shipping and handling and it's usually not baked into the price of the product. If people are "unwary" about this they're probably unwary about a lot of things that go into a car buying experience.

All this is to say - I personally don't care how they do it - include it within msrp or keep it as a separate line item. From my perspective it's just an accounting exercise for myself to include that (along with taxes) into the total cost of the car.

[Rcasa20]

Originally Posted by wtwo3

Well I think the reason for including it as a separate line item rather than baking it into the MSRP is because the automaker is indicating that the amount for the destination charge is at the mercy of market logistics rates. So if they raise the destination charge without raising the msrp they're essentially saying, "we're not raising the price of the car, but can't control what freight rates are in today's market". It offers them greater flexibility.

From the customer end - when you order something online, you typically pay shipping and handling and it's usually not baked into the price of the product. If people are "unwary" about this they're probably unwary about a lot of things that go into a car buying experience.

All this is to say - I personally don't care how they do it - include it within msrp or keep it as a separate line item. From my perspective it's just an accounting exercise for myself to include that (along with taxes) into the total cost of the car.

If they haven’t changed the fee since 2014 it certainly doesn’t seem like they are doing any adjustment for “market logistics rates.” Like another mentioned, I too wish they’d all just give us a price. Instead, each manufacturer charges different amounts and then within each manufacturer you have to figure out which dealer charges what for prep fees. So ridiculous.

[wtwo3]

Originally Posted by Rcasa20

If they haven’t changed the fee since 2014 it certainly doesn’t seem like they are doing any adjustment for “market logistics rates.” Like another mentioned, I too wish they’d all just give us a price. Instead, each manufacturer charges different amounts and then within each manufacturer you have to figure out which dealer charges what for prep fees. So ridiculous.

Right I'm saying having it separate gives them the flexibility to do so if they need to. The dealer charges have nothing to do with the automaker charges. I agree dealer fees are ridiculous. But I don't think destination charge is and it's incredibly easy to know what it is (it's listed everywhere... online, on the actual sticker itself, etc). I guess I don't see the big deal with destination charge. Not like taxes are included either.

[Windshieldfarmer]

There is no way BMW or any brand wants to add destination charges into MSRP, especially those potentially selling cars eligible for EV tax credits. For instance, Tesla’s Model X has an MSRP of $79,900which makes it eligible for a 7,500 direct to consumer tax credit since the price of the X is below $80,000. Destination fee is additional. It’s a fricken shell game. BMW is preparing to do the same as EV and battery production is relocated to the states. Not saying a destination fee of some type is not legitimate…but there is far more to the equation than is readily visible.

[thepianist1]

Originally Posted by hyde

What is this charge actually for at this point?
It's getting out of hand, $500 doc fee, $950 Bank fee on lease, $1175 destination fee.. Reminds me of someone..

Key fee...

Buy the car from Ohio, New York or California then register in your state. The doc fee is less than $250, half of what Maryland pays ($500).

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by Windshieldfarmer

Not saying a destination fee of some type is not legitimate…but there is far more to the equation than is readily visible.

I would maintain that the destination fee is NOT legitimate, since it is charged on every car. It's a bit like charging extra for tires. In my opinion, the destination fee should be folded into the list price for all vehicles and go away as a separate item. The one exception that occurs to me is the extra charge for air shipment on exotics -- if you want your German- or Italian-manufactured Belchfire GT in a few days rather than a few weeks, go ahead and charge the customer the extra thousands.