Best time to buy a new bike?

Shen2010

My wife is looking to buy her first decent bike (budget of £1000) early next year.

Is there a "best time" to make this purchase? Thinking after Christmas for example?

Thoughts please?

Shen

Anyone remember the Quines and Loons runs?

dhope

Shen2010 wrote:

My wife is looking to buy her first decent bike (budget of £1000) early next year.

Is there a "best time" to make this purchase? Thinking after Christmas for example?

Thoughts please?

Shen

Anyone remember the Quines and Loons runs?

There is no good time. You can always wait to find a better deal or a newer model.

Answer: now

alfablue

August/September to get reduced price 2010 models as 2011 bikes come out - supply may be limited though.

2011 models may be lower spec for same price, or higher price for same spec. Or may not (but that's what happened last year).

After xmas VAT goes up to 20% so that would seem to be a bad time!

holybinch

I'd say right now too.

rich_e

Yeah, best time is coming up soon.

But it's really only based on being able to find a 2010 model that has been reduced because 2011 ones have come in.

Saying that though, the trend over the last few years is that prices of new bikes have been rising each year. So when a new model comes out, it actually makes the older model look like its already got a bit of a discount, at least to a non-savvy shopper. If they didn't sell though, they could further drop the prices to proper sale prices.

tjwood

alfablue wrote:

After xmas VAT goes up to 20% so that would seem to be a bad time!

Depends on how busy your bike shop are, I would guess in the run up to Christmas they are less inclined to give good deals than in the post-Christmas pre-spring lull. Might outweigh the extra VAT (or it might not...).

alfablue

Yep, there are a lot of areas of speculation, probably best to buy now.

Aguila

Focus Cayo 105 now available at wiggle for under a grand, £500 off!

Cayos rock 8)

solsurf

September as the next years models come out and the end of summer is nigh

Christophe3967

The bike business generally appears to be doing pretty well, and the trend over the past few years has been for the next year's model to have lower specification finishing kit at the same price with the same frame etc. Add in the currency exchange factor and don't expect too many bargains by hanging on.

El Diego

+1 for the Cayo from Wiggle.

prawny

+2 for the cayo, I'm desperately trying to sell some stuff so I can afford the ultegra equipped one.

Headhuunter

Yeah I got a Focus Cayo with 105 in 2007 for about £700 or £800 (can't remember which). I bought late in the year when they were selling stuff off. Personally I would say that, unless you see something amazing now, wait a little longer until perhaps Sept, Oct. Now it's still summer and a lot of people will still be buying bikes. If you wait til the nights have drawn in and it's got a bit chilly, retailers will be more desperate to offload their 2010 stock.

CiB

Wouldn't the best time to buy a bike be now, when you want one and when the weather is at its best for cycling. I know there are some hardcore nutters here who do 3000 miles over the winter (see Stats table) but the here & now is where it's at surely. Or is it just me?

Headhuunter

CiB wrote:

Wouldn't the best time to buy a bike be now, when you want one and when the weather is at its best for cycling. I know there are some hardcore nutters here who do 3000 miles over the winter (see Stats table) but the here & now is where it's at surely. Or is it just me?

If you're desperate for a bike, here and now, then go for the spontaneous purchase, but if you want the best deal, do your research, look around....

CiB

Headhuunter wrote:

CiB wrote:

Wouldn't the best time to buy a bike be now, when you want one and when the weather is at its best for cycling. I know there are some hardcore nutters here who do 3000 miles over the winter (see Stats table) but the here & now is where it's at surely. Or is it just me?

If you're desperate for a bike, here and now, then go for the spontaneous purchase, but if you want the best deal, do your research, look around....

Why wait until the end of the summer tho? Is a couple of hundred pounds saved that much more important than having the bike available to use now in the good weather? Is the latest revised tone of grey on next year's Ultegra g/set that important that you miss out on the back end of the summer cycling? Year on year improvements in the mid-market for bikes aren't that substantial; not saying anyone should just march into Evans and buy the first yellow bike on display but how long does it take to do a bit of Googling & looking in your LBS outlets? Money for a bike is money; it's either spent or sitting in an account waiting to be spent. There's not much benfit clinging onto it on the off-chance that if you can get away with not spending as much as you originally planned there'll be some left over for buying cake or whatever.

It's pretty much August, that gives a couple of months before October is on us and summer was that brief spell of nice weather that happened not so long ago.

Headhuunter

CiB wrote:

Headhuunter wrote:

CiB wrote:

Wouldn't the best time to buy a bike be now, when you want one and when the weather is at its best for cycling. I know there are some hardcore nutters here who do 3000 miles over the winter (see Stats table) but the here & now is where it's at surely. Or is it just me?

If you're desperate for a bike, here and now, then go for the spontaneous purchase, but if you want the best deal, do your research, look around....

Why wait until the end of the summer tho? Is a couple of hundred pounds saved that much more important than having the bike available to use now in the good weather? Is the latest revised tone of grey on next year's Ultegra g/set that important that you miss out on the back end of the summer cycling? Year on year improvements in the mid-market for bikes aren't that substantial; not saying anyone should just march into Evans and buy the first yellow bike on display but how long does it take to do a bit of Googling & looking in your LBS outlets? Money for a bike is money; it's either spent or sitting in an account waiting to be spent. There's not much benfit clinging onto it on the off-chance that if you can get away with not spending as much as you originally planned there'll be some left over for buying cake or whatever.

It's pretty much August, that gives a couple of months before October is on us and summer was that brief spell of nice weather that happened not so long ago.

I suppose it's down to personal preference but I love shopping around and trying to pinpoint the best buy. For me that's part of the fun of splurging on something big. the build up to the final spend. I love to be able to say that I got something at half price and pride myself at never paying full retail price for anything, even if it means haggling in a shop! I'm not saying hold off to get next years models when they come in, I'm saying hold off so that 2010 models have dropped as low as they'll go.

Having said that, some of those Wiggle prices are already very good. However I notice that the Focus Cayo I got in 07 for I think £799 reduced from £999, now in 2010 is £999 reduced from something like £1500!! Shocking inflation!

prawny

Aye Focus aint as cheap as they used to be now they've built up a decent reputation.

rf6

Do it now! Bag a Cayo (that price is a bargain imo). Enjoy the summer on your bikes.

As Del Boy would say.... "you know it makes sense"

Gotte

I have no knowledge of this other than the local Decathlon always slash prices around the end of Jan. I reckon this is because by then Christmas is over and the New Year get healthy bubble has burst.