I was wondering if customers negotiate price of a car in Thailand, and, if so, is it similar to USA?  Also, I have been told by the locals that prices are cheapest at the Motor Shows... is it true??

There can be some good deals at the motor show but it will depend on brand and model if for example your looking at an EV forget it all Brands have huge waiting lists for cars in some cases 6-9 months waiting lists

The price is mostly fixed, you can negotiate the extras a bit.

As the previous poster pointed out correctly, it also depends on the availability, why should they give you anything if there is a month long waiting list anyway... if the model in which you are interested isn't in high demand and they have it ready to sell they might throw in more freebies, maybe even a discount.

 

I recently ordered a new car which has a long wait list. Some dealers didn't even want to give insurance or include registration fees. In the end I picked the dealer who did at least give the "standard" extras, first class insurance, registration fees, and some basic film.

You can absolutely negotiate. We got a 60,000 baht discount on our car (plus a bunch of extras). We then had to wait a couple of weeks for the dealership to get a hold of a car with the colour scheme we wanted.

a salesperson would have a 'margin' of what they can do with, usually they spend this on accessories they can get wholesale price on from windows tinting, floor mats to insurance, when shopping around you'd compare the value of these 'freebies' between dealership, as the amount is usually the same

 

if you feel you don't need those things and can source them to your liking better, you can negotiate for a cash discount

 

At the Motorshow the dealers have their people there are under pressure to meet target, both from the home dealership and the corporate car brand, and they're competing with colleagues from other dealership under the same roof

2 hours ago, FriendlyFarang said:

they might throw in more freebies,

once those free floormats are offered...i'm butter ...i sign.

I've had a PlayStation 4 listed on fb for about 2 months. It's just 4000 baht. About 2000 cheaper than all the other listings. 

I've had 32 ppl msg me about it. Mostly thais. All of them asking to discount it and asking for "details" which are all clearly detailed in the listing.

So what i learnt is that when thais buy things they seem to expect some kind of discount regardless. They don't seem to just buy stuff.

Look at the plethora or promotions everywhere you go in Thai society.

 

In 2018,  I went to the show in Bangkok thinking the same.  Although I made up my mind Toyota and knew prices and wanted to see other models. 

No one there seem to want to give much,  certainly not the same as home U. S.  All just said insurance and extras priced seem fixed. 

So I just continue to search in Pattaya area with different dealers,  finally one day unexpected one dealer wrote down 45,000 down from the listed price still with all the extra.  

I took that quote to the dealership Near my home which I also purchased a vehicle before and got it match. 

 

11 hours ago, Myran said:

You can absolutely negotiate. We got a 60,000 baht discount on our car (plus a bunch of extras). We then had to wait a couple of weeks for the dealership to get a hold of a car with the colour scheme we wanted.

Introduction of a new model or a facelift may have been scheduled to happen very soon. In that case such discounts are often given.

 

I asked a salesman - 'not even an umbrella?'

 

he told me he would buy me one.... 

Depends on make and model. Not all do negotiate. 

5 hours ago, sikishrory said:

I've had a PlayStation 4 listed on fb for about 2 months. It's just 4000 baht. About 2000 cheaper than all the other listings. 

I've had 32 ppl msg me about it. Mostly thais. All of them asking to discount it and asking for "details" which are all clearly detailed in the listing.

So what i learnt is that when thais buy things they seem to expect some kind of discount regardless. They don't seem to just buy stuff.

Look at the plethora or promotions everywhere you go in Thai society.

 

Pretty much the same in France plus alot of scammers.

5 hours ago, Xonax said:

Introduction of a new model or a facelift may have been scheduled to happen very soon. In that case such discounts are often given.

 

Not the case here. It was the brand new model of the year that had just been released.