Leica M7 purchasing questions

I have been searching for a M7 for the past couple of weeks. I was

going to get a loaner to assure that I am going to be comfortable

going to RF manual Focus from SLR.

 

My dilemma. I am traveling and I walk into a Leica authorized dealer.

Sitting on the counter is a brand new M7 selling for $1750.00. I am

geussing something is amiss. But if this is real I will be kicking

myself if I don't snag it. Any feedback on the M7 in terms of

production problems or serial numbers which may have been problematic

in early production?

 

In other words any reason I should not race out and pick this up at

what would appear to be a healthy discount?

 

Please advise..

Is this in the US? Is the dealer an authorized Leica dealer? Is it a demo, or a customer return, or really new, unsold, with full Leica USA Passport? If so it is the deal of the century as $1750 is well below dealer net even including all incentives.

Chris

 

If you are a virgin RF user---LOL!

 

Jerry

The M7, I am told is selling extremely well. I suspect that your s

is either a gray market M7, a demo or perhaps a return. Make

sure you get the three year passport warranty form before you

buy. Otherwise beware.

Jay, I've not seen the sheets, but if the standard Leica dealer discounts apply, regular net is about $1597 in the US, for a black body .73 viewfinder M7.

 

It could be a "do-able" deal. Could be its a return being sold "opened" at hefty discount. Could be the shop just wants to get their money out of it (ie, $1600 investment buys a lot of Canon PS's). Could be lots of things, but as always.. buyer beware, and get the 3yr passport.

Charles wrote:

Jay, I've not seen the sheets, but if the standard Leica dealer discounts apply, regular net is about $1597 in the US, for a black body .73 viewfinder M7.

 

It could be a "do-able" deal. Could be its a return being sold "opened" at hefty discount. Could be the shop just wants to get their money out of it (ie, $1600 investment buys a lot of Canon PS's). Could be lots of things, but as always.. buyer beware, and get the 3yr passport.

 

 

Charles,

 

Unless there was a special purchase deal offered to dealers (I am not aware of any), I can say that the regular net is no where near the $1600 that you mentioned. Working for a dealer, I say that we wish we could get a 30 point margin on hard goods (even Leica).

 

This price sounds fishy to me. I would ask the dealer more questions...

 

Chip

This is in the US, and I plan on going over tommorrow to get more details. Assuming the worse case that this is a working customer return I would still assume that at this number given Leica's rep for durability etc it should not matter,

Ok I guess I missed the point of Jerry's comment. Is is passe to be a try Rf???

Chris

 

No it isn't passe! I activly use both. I suggest that you arrange to rent a Leica M* and see if you like RF. If all you have used are

SLRs, you MAY not like RF. I love both. (and 6x6 TLRs).

 

Jerry

$600. off the USA dealer retail price? If the margins on a new Leica M7

were that high, even Target would be selling them. It sounds like the store

has mixed up the M6TTL price less the current $200 rebate, with the

M7 price. Or something is amiss.

 

IF the dealer is an authorized Leica store ( just call Leica and ask them)

and the Passport card is in the box ( which should be silver-grey), and the

store has a 10 day return policy, Then ask if they also have a .85 version

and buy both of them !!!

This is getting fishier by the day. I can't wait for the denouement !!

I don't live in the US. Leica authorized dealers and distributers in Asia offer only the factory one-year guarantee, so the price in the US reflects the insurance premium. I swapped e-mails with Stephan, the Leica product mgr, when he was in the region verifying my country's distributer status. Prices are quite below what I see in most discussions. He offered an M7 .72 for about $1,575. I'm in no hurry and want the .58, anyway. The lenses are also much less. Buy the US for the insurance package, especially for bodies. Lenses, go with an authorized Leica dealer in your favorite non-US country of residence.

 

Owen

Ok I thought I would update the details as I had a opportunity to do as everyone had suggested. The body was a used return from an apparently well heeled photographer. Everything was with the package and the shop did not try to mislead me on the used nature. Obviously the warranty was not valid. I passed on this due many to the fact that I was going to get wacked on the sales tax. Due to the tremendously high rate I was looking at a saving of only $175.00 over a new unit. Looks like I will be dealing with B&H as usual.

 

Thanks for all the feedback. Can anyone recommend a website where I might be able to rent a Leica. No one in my area offer rentals on these.

 

Thanks again...

Chip, Jay... Maybe things have changed, but Leica (USA) traditionally offers dealers a 1/3 discount from "published list" on wholegoods. It used to be that Leica's dealer "discount" (or list to net ratio) was the lowest of the major manufacterers, with the likes of Canon, Nikon, Minolta etc offering more substancial margins between LIST and net. I say used to be, as I've not seen the price lists for a few years.

Its not that dealers actually get those margins mind you, since the Canon's and Nikons etc are sold at consumer discount, whereas Leica is sold at full "published list" prices by the vast majority of USA dealers. The latter is more or less due to the slower inventory turnover of Leica products in general. It also used to be (and I'm sure it still is) that the MAP price of Leica USA products was the same as "published list" price, meaning dealers could not advertise prices lower than the list price and maintain their dealerships. Over the counter discounts can sometimes be had when a dealer wants to reduce inventory, or tie the sale of one item to the sale of additional profitable items (ie, we'll sell you the camera at a discount if you buy both lenses at stanard price).

 

I've still got a friend or two who are Leica dealerships. I'll give a jingle to them on Monday.