For those of you who have been following my car shopping adventure, I am in the market to purchase a 2010 Altima V6 with the Premium, Sports and Tech Packages. My color combo preference is White Frost/Blond interior with no second choice. I was able to secure a good price for the vehicle from an acquaintance who works at a dealer, and decided to proceed with the transaction.
I knew from the beginning that my salesperson does not have the vehicle in his inventory, so he would have to dealer trade for it. Also, I knew one of the available cars in the region is at a dealer that is not willing to trade. Still, I proceeded with the transaction since my salesperson said his dealer look-up tool showed two other available units-- one at a dealer in Silicon Valley and one at a dealer in Sacramento. While I was unable to confirm the existence of the unit in Silicon Valley, I had gone in person to check out the unit in Sacramento.
As they say, there's Murphy's Law, and I think I was a victim. At around 9 this morning, I gave my salesperson the go-ahead to acquire the car. At around 11, he texts me to tell me that the one in Silicon Valley was already sold. Great. He then told me that he'll try to get the one in Sacramento, and if he is able to, he would have it delivered to my house.
I then checked the website of the dealer who had had the car in Sacramento, and strangely, the car was taken off the website. Not long after, my salesperson called and said that car was sold as well. Great, now there is only one unit left in the region. Of course, as expected, he tried to acquire that unit and the dealer would not trade it with him.
So at this point, my salesman is telling me that there isn't much else he can do. He told me at this point, if I really wanted the car, I need to go to the dealer who has the car. He also told me to consider going to a different dealer who has a better trade relationship-- as apparently, his dealer and the dealer with the car have had issues in the past.
At his suggestion, I tried a different dealer who had previously quoted me a good price on the vehicle. This dealer told me they'd get to work on it right away. Of course, about an hour later, I called back (as I had not heard back) and they said they were having trouble finding the vehicle, as the unit they were hoping to acquire had already been sold-- go figure.
So, it sounded like these guys were experiencing the same issues. Needless to say, I never heard back from this dealer.
At the end of the day, I am left without a vehicle. Maybe it is a blessing. But what I have learned from this experience is that dealer trades do not always work out as planned, and it is always best to work directly with a dealer who already has the vehicle on their lot.
Now, I am not sure what I am going to do about this. The dealer who is holding this car hostage is a small dealer, and I suspect volume isn't a concern to them. So, I might be out of luck until another unit shows up, which won't happen until at least February. But I am tempted to pull the trigger now, due to the sales tax deduction and the strong cashback incentives.
Thoughts?
I knew from the beginning that my salesperson does not have the vehicle in his inventory, so he would have to dealer trade for it. Also, I knew one of the available cars in the region is at a dealer that is not willing to trade. Still, I proceeded with the transaction since my salesperson said his dealer look-up tool showed two other available units-- one at a dealer in Silicon Valley and one at a dealer in Sacramento. While I was unable to confirm the existence of the unit in Silicon Valley, I had gone in person to check out the unit in Sacramento.
As they say, there's Murphy's Law, and I think I was a victim. At around 9 this morning, I gave my salesperson the go-ahead to acquire the car. At around 11, he texts me to tell me that the one in Silicon Valley was already sold. Great. He then told me that he'll try to get the one in Sacramento, and if he is able to, he would have it delivered to my house.
I then checked the website of the dealer who had had the car in Sacramento, and strangely, the car was taken off the website. Not long after, my salesperson called and said that car was sold as well. Great, now there is only one unit left in the region. Of course, as expected, he tried to acquire that unit and the dealer would not trade it with him.
So at this point, my salesman is telling me that there isn't much else he can do. He told me at this point, if I really wanted the car, I need to go to the dealer who has the car. He also told me to consider going to a different dealer who has a better trade relationship-- as apparently, his dealer and the dealer with the car have had issues in the past.
At his suggestion, I tried a different dealer who had previously quoted me a good price on the vehicle. This dealer told me they'd get to work on it right away. Of course, about an hour later, I called back (as I had not heard back) and they said they were having trouble finding the vehicle, as the unit they were hoping to acquire had already been sold-- go figure.
At the end of the day, I am left without a vehicle. Maybe it is a blessing. But what I have learned from this experience is that dealer trades do not always work out as planned, and it is always best to work directly with a dealer who already has the vehicle on their lot.
Now, I am not sure what I am going to do about this. The dealer who is holding this car hostage is a small dealer, and I suspect volume isn't a concern to them. So, I might be out of luck until another unit shows up, which won't happen until at least February. But I am tempted to pull the trigger now, due to the sales tax deduction and the strong cashback incentives.
Thoughts?
