A dealership with integrity and good customer service is like a unicorn, good luck finding one.
Horrible experience...
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Originally Posted By: cpayne5
Originally Posted By: Yagenta13
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Plus, my '05 Accord has only 58,000 miles and is immaculate. I can just wait for whatever deal pops up...maybe a Passat TDI
Is Volkswagen listening?
Buying our Passat was a breeze. We approached a dealer, told them the car we wanted, when we wanted it (for tax purposes), and for what price. They said, "OK, we'll order it so that it will arrive when you want it".
When we went to pick it up, they were great. They stayed after closing to accommodate our schedule. They didn't try to push any of the extras. At the "closing", the guy read one pitch on extended warranties that he claimed VW forced him to read. When he was done, he simply turned over the paper and went on to the next item in the stack. No pressure, no extra sales pitch. We were in the paper-signing room for only about 10 minutes.
It was a very enjoyable car purchase. This was Sharrett VW in Hagerstown, Maryland. I'm sure there are good dealers and bad dealers for every manufacturer.
+1. I've heard of bad vw dealers but ours was great. To test drive they just threw us the keys and let us go have fun. Super simple buying process.
If vw would only sell mt passat tdi wagons.
Originally Posted By: Yagenta13
...
Plus, my '05 Accord has only 58,000 miles and is immaculate. I can just wait for whatever deal pops up...maybe a Passat TDI
Buying our Passat was a breeze. We approached a dealer, told them the car we wanted, when we wanted it (for tax purposes), and for what price. They said, "OK, we'll order it so that it will arrive when you want it".
When we went to pick it up, they were great. They stayed after closing to accommodate our schedule. They didn't try to push any of the extras. At the "closing", the guy read one pitch on extended warranties that he claimed VW forced him to read. When he was done, he simply turned over the paper and went on to the next item in the stack. No pressure, no extra sales pitch. We were in the paper-signing room for only about 10 minutes.
It was a very enjoyable car purchase. This was Sharrett VW in Hagerstown, Maryland. I'm sure there are good dealers and bad dealers for every manufacturer.
+1. I've heard of bad vw dealers but ours was great. To test drive they just threw us the keys and let us go have fun. Super simple buying process.
If vw would only sell mt passat tdi wagons.
Originally Posted By: Cold_Canuk
A dealership with integrity and good customer service is like a unicorn, good luck finding one.
I can name 3 - 2 where we bought our Fords and 1 where I bought my Infiniti. Both sales and service departments are very good to deal with.
Case in point with the wife's Escape - took it to the dealer for it's annual inspection. They called me and found it had a leaky flex pipe (not unusual as it's 10 years old/130k and the exhaust is starting to rust). Service guy said he could offer 2 options: 1) They could fix it with OEM parts for $500 and have it done the next day. 2) They could call the local exhaust shop and see if they could get it in that day at a cost of about $100 or so. Needless to say we went with option #2.
On that same car at that same dealer I went in looking for the PCV elbow which had cracked. The parts guy looked it up and said "you can only get the whole pipe assembly". I asked what that cost. He did some figuring and said the best I can do is $30-something. I said OK. Looking on line it seems that pipe is about a $50 part.
The place she bought the car from was good too but is out of the way since we moved.
Good dealers are out there but hard to find. And when you do find a good one it's best to patronize them so they will stay in business.
A dealership with integrity and good customer service is like a unicorn, good luck finding one.
I can name 3 - 2 where we bought our Fords and 1 where I bought my Infiniti. Both sales and service departments are very good to deal with.
Case in point with the wife's Escape - took it to the dealer for it's annual inspection. They called me and found it had a leaky flex pipe (not unusual as it's 10 years old/130k and the exhaust is starting to rust). Service guy said he could offer 2 options: 1) They could fix it with OEM parts for $500 and have it done the next day. 2) They could call the local exhaust shop and see if they could get it in that day at a cost of about $100 or so. Needless to say we went with option #2.
On that same car at that same dealer I went in looking for the PCV elbow which had cracked. The parts guy looked it up and said "you can only get the whole pipe assembly". I asked what that cost. He did some figuring and said the best I can do is $30-something. I said OK. Looking on line it seems that pipe is about a $50 part.
The place she bought the car from was good too but is out of the way since we moved.
Good dealers are out there but hard to find. And when you do find a good one it's best to patronize them so they will stay in business.
Our family has purchased an 05 Matrix, 97 Camry, 01 Camry, 07 Camry and a 12 Camry all from the same dealer and sales lady. Except for the 12 Camry since she left the dealer to start a family. Her brother took over her accounts though.
The 12 Camry is almost 2 yrs old and my dad bought it when they first came out. They took $2500 off sticker I believe. $12400 out the door after trade in of the 07 Camry(6.25% sales tax included). The GM/sales mgr never even came in. The salesman handled everything. I think this place is the exception since most Honda/Toyota/(insert auto manufacturer here) dealers are not pleasant to work with. My dad has looked at other cars but the poor dealer experience kept bringing him back to this place. www.metrotoyota.com
The 12 Camry is almost 2 yrs old and my dad bought it when they first came out. They took $2500 off sticker I believe. $12400 out the door after trade in of the 07 Camry(6.25% sales tax included). The GM/sales mgr never even came in. The salesman handled everything. I think this place is the exception since most Honda/Toyota/(insert auto manufacturer here) dealers are not pleasant to work with. My dad has looked at other cars but the poor dealer experience kept bringing him back to this place. www.metrotoyota.com
A coworker had a similar experience with Adams Toyota in Lee's Summit. What I find odd is my grandparents traded there the last 4 times with them and never had a problem. I'm pretty sure they weren't dupped in anyway.. grandma isn't one they would want to mess with. The coworker went to Jay Wolfe and got what they wanted. I think my grandparents tried to trade there but couldn't get a deal... thing's that make you go hmmm...
Many years ago, I went to Vandergriff Chevrolet.
Various TV ads and an ad in the StarTelegram indicated that an HHR LS was $14,000.
It's in stock, in the color I want, and meets the ad criteria.
First contract they bring me is $1000 higher than sticker price + TTL, destination, needless dealer markup...etc...
Nope....nope, nope. Unacceptable.
Then they went full on bait and ... well hook. There was no switch. The HHR is the only thing that remained constant.
They had the sales manager come out and try to explain to me that the price was for "well qualified customers" and my credit scores did not meet the criteria. The qualification must be a perfect 850. I am well above the US median score. I've managed my credit well.
They jockeyed the numbers around but they kept adding on to the back-end. At one point it had gone up several hundred over the original sales contract. I was insulted. Like I'm not going to bother reading what I am signing.
Then they brought out the bigguns. A pretty big fake chested blonde in an impossibly tight shirt. Sorry sweetheart. You are attractive, but not attractive enough for me to throw away an extra $4,000. I want to pay the advertised price plus the legal and appropriate taxes, title and licensing fees.
And that was that. I walked. Ignored the, "please come back in so we can discuss your sale..." calls
Various TV ads and an ad in the StarTelegram indicated that an HHR LS was $14,000.
It's in stock, in the color I want, and meets the ad criteria.
First contract they bring me is $1000 higher than sticker price + TTL, destination, needless dealer markup...etc...
Nope....nope, nope. Unacceptable.
Then they went full on bait and ... well hook. There was no switch. The HHR is the only thing that remained constant.
They had the sales manager come out and try to explain to me that the price was for "well qualified customers" and my credit scores did not meet the criteria. The qualification must be a perfect 850. I am well above the US median score. I've managed my credit well.
They jockeyed the numbers around but they kept adding on to the back-end. At one point it had gone up several hundred over the original sales contract. I was insulted. Like I'm not going to bother reading what I am signing.
Then they brought out the bigguns. A pretty big fake chested blonde in an impossibly tight shirt. Sorry sweetheart. You are attractive, but not attractive enough for me to throw away an extra $4,000. I want to pay the advertised price plus the legal and appropriate taxes, title and licensing fees.
And that was that. I walked. Ignored the, "please come back in so we can discuss your sale..." calls
Originally Posted By: rshaw125
Why bother with an attorney? Whenever I attempt a deal at a dealership I am ready to walk at anytime. If they actually do what they say I am pleasantly surprised.
This is my approach too. But even so, sometimes they waste my time. They have nothing better to do, while I do.
Why bother with an attorney? Whenever I attempt a deal at a dealership I am ready to walk at anytime. If they actually do what they say I am pleasantly surprised.
This is my approach too. But even so, sometimes they waste my time. They have nothing better to do, while I do.
Can't fault you for holding on to the Accord, but I have a bias. With only 58k it should last you a long long time. Currently at 121k mine drives like new and has needed minimal maintenance. I, too, get the itch for something new but it passes. I'm happy sticking with the Honda for the long haul. It's paid off, insurance is low, and it still drives great and gets good gas mileage.
Out of curiosity, why were you switching to Toyota, and for what vehicle?
Out of curiosity, why were you switching to Toyota, and for what vehicle?
I love the Accord also. The V6 is incredible but really too much for my simple commute. It's almost a shame to use it that way. I was looking at the Camry because of the gas mileage primarily. It was a good time to shop around and since I didn't "need" a new car, I could simply walk away if need be.
The reason I didn't just walk away(since it seems so many are curious) is because when people constantly just let these kinds of people get away with things like this, it just gets worse for everyone. This wasn't a simple case of not getting the right numbers. What I wrote was a short summary. It got much worse. I wouldn't have felt right simply letting them do what they did and I wouldn't have kept the car from them if it were free. My beliefs, my choice. If that doesn't make sense then there isn't much else I can explain.
And BITOG isn't brutal- that's laughable. It's a message board. It's the internet. Yeah, bruuuutal. Just like anywhere else there are haters, bystanders, very intelligent contributors, lurkers etc etc. And now I will indeed move on since most threads degrade into uselessness and flaming after too long anyway. Thanks for all the comments. If there is a major update I will post it but otherwise I'm on to other things.
The reason I didn't just walk away(since it seems so many are curious) is because when people constantly just let these kinds of people get away with things like this, it just gets worse for everyone. This wasn't a simple case of not getting the right numbers. What I wrote was a short summary. It got much worse. I wouldn't have felt right simply letting them do what they did and I wouldn't have kept the car from them if it were free. My beliefs, my choice. If that doesn't make sense then there isn't much else I can explain.
And BITOG isn't brutal- that's laughable. It's a message board. It's the internet. Yeah, bruuuutal. Just like anywhere else there are haters, bystanders, very intelligent contributors, lurkers etc etc. And now I will indeed move on since most threads degrade into uselessness and flaming after too long anyway. Thanks for all the comments. If there is a major update I will post it but otherwise I'm on to other things.
Originally Posted By: Yagenta13
And BITOG isn't brutal- that's laughable. It's a message board. It's the internet. Yeah, bruuuutal. Just like anywhere else there are haters, bystanders, very intelligent contributors, lurkers etc etc. And now I will indeed move on since most threads degrade into uselessness and flaming after too long anyway. Thanks for all the comments. If there is a major update I will post it but otherwise I'm on to other things.
Hey, regardless of anything else, thank you for sharing your experience with this dealership. Next year I'm going to be in market for a brand that one of their stores sells, and your experience with their Toyota dealer will help me decide. Granted it's not the same store, or brand, but you never know what the overall way the family of dealerships is going to be run.
BC.
And BITOG isn't brutal- that's laughable. It's a message board. It's the internet. Yeah, bruuuutal. Just like anywhere else there are haters, bystanders, very intelligent contributors, lurkers etc etc. And now I will indeed move on since most threads degrade into uselessness and flaming after too long anyway. Thanks for all the comments. If there is a major update I will post it but otherwise I'm on to other things.
Hey, regardless of anything else, thank you for sharing your experience with this dealership. Next year I'm going to be in market for a brand that one of their stores sells, and your experience with their Toyota dealer will help me decide. Granted it's not the same store, or brand, but you never know what the overall way the family of dealerships is going to be run.
BC.
Originally Posted By: antiqueshell
As soon as the GM came into the office I would have started recording every word that came out of his forked tongue mouth.
It was great that you snapped a photo of the original contract as well .
I would have kept leading them on regarding the extra 135$ and just kept stalling them...for a long time...
You would have won after a couple of more hours.
But this kind of [censored] is why $tealerships have the horrible reputation they have. With a few exceptions they all deserve it.
Me too. They really blew a sale for $135 bucks? DUUUUMB.
As soon as the GM came into the office I would have started recording every word that came out of his forked tongue mouth.
It was great that you snapped a photo of the original contract as well .
I would have kept leading them on regarding the extra 135$ and just kept stalling them...for a long time...
You would have won after a couple of more hours.
But this kind of [censored] is why $tealerships have the horrible reputation they have. With a few exceptions they all deserve it.
Me too. They really blew a sale for $135 bucks? DUUUUMB.
I enjoyed this post and the comments. Negotiations and contracts are interesting to me. One party negotiates from a position of strength, the other from a position of weakness. The position of weakness is not a bad position unless that person/party does not realize it.
As I see it, a buyer (for most anything) is always in the position of strength. If you arrive at a dealership with a running vehicle, you can leave in the same. If you can't deal or don't like any of the negotiation to include wasting time, unprofessional conduct, it's time to drive away.
I have had a good experience the last few cars I have bought. In this case, I would have left once it starting turning sour.
I think Toyota of North America or whatever they call themselves would find this deal troubling.
As I see it, a buyer (for most anything) is always in the position of strength. If you arrive at a dealership with a running vehicle, you can leave in the same. If you can't deal or don't like any of the negotiation to include wasting time, unprofessional conduct, it's time to drive away.
I have had a good experience the last few cars I have bought. In this case, I would have left once it starting turning sour.
I think Toyota of North America or whatever they call themselves would find this deal troubling.
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