What is the difference between the ex-factory price and the manufacturer's suggested retail price?
2 Answers
The differences between the ex-factory price and the manufacturer's suggested retail price are as follows: 1. The manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) refers to the official listed price. Generally, dealers will provide floating quotations based on this price when selling. Additionally, the MSRP serves as an important basis for calculating the purchase tax. It is a reference price for buyers and represents a non-binding quotation displayed by the seller, intended only for reference. 2. The ex-factory price is the actual price of the vehicle itself, simply put, the real price of the car excluding any additional fees. Typically, the ex-factory price does not include expenses such as purchase tax, license plate registration, insurance, etc. The purchase tax is a tax levied by tax authorities on the purchase of certain goods and properties within the scope of the tax system.
The Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) and the bare car price might sound similar, but they're worlds apart. When I first started working in the automotive industry, many customers got confused. The MSRP is the retail price suggested by the manufacturer, like the price tag you see in a store—it's the initial price you encounter. The bare car price, on the other hand, refers to the price of the car itself, excluding all sorts of additional fees such as shipping costs, purchase tax, and decoration fees. Simply put, the bare car price is the base price, while the MSRP includes the suggested profit margin. When buying a car, don't focus too much on the MSRP—salespeople often start negotiations from this point, and the actual transaction price can usually be negotiated down by several thousand yuan. The bare car price can serve as a negotiation baseline, helping you avoid hidden charges. I recommend checking the ratio between the official MSRP and the bare car price before purchasing, and comparing prices across several dealerships to avoid getting ripped off. I remember one customer who didn't pay attention and signed the contract directly, ending up overpaying by tens of thousands in taxes—what a huge loss.
