Car Shopping...

[GAAN]

I hate dealing with dealers, but they turn into their asshole selfs when I tell them I'm not looking at buying until next year. When I know what I'm buying, I'll be doing everything else online.

they get paid on commission

and

your telling them you want them to work for no pay

who is the asshole?

[1KDS]

Also once you find the right model just do it all by email or phone. Tell the local dealers what u want and let them compete for your business. Less time in car dealerships = more time on the bike =

+1
Friend of mine just bought a brand new car without going to any dealership once

[duccarlos]

Some dealers are moving them off commission. You can tell who those guys are because they're assholes from the get go.

[Monstermash]

I hate dealing with dealers, but they turn into their asshole selfs when I tell them I'm not looking at buying until next year. When I know what I'm buying, I'll be doing everything else online.

 No offense but did you ever consider you may be the problem? How would you like it if someone walked into your place of employment where you work on commission and told you they weren't planning on buying anything, they just wanted to waste your time for a few hours? I bet you'd be thrilled right?

 And not to mention that your not even going to buy from them why you are ready to buy. By your own admission you've stated you're going to buy online. What does that mean exactly? You're going to be one of those "send out 25 inquiries to different dealers and buy from the one who beats the others by $25" type of customers?

 You are the reason why most dealers are the way they are. You bag on them because you think they treat you like shit, but do you treat them any better?

+1
Friend of mine just bought a brand new car without going to any dealership once

 Again no offense, but that is the dumbest thing I've ever heard. You mean to tell me that they made a purchase where they spent many thousands of dollars and didn't even test drive the vehicle or go look at it to see if it was comfortable or how felt to sit inside?

 Thats just brilliant! 

[duccarlos]

Wrong side of the bed? So let's use your same logic. What you're telling us is that you're the idiot that walks into a dealer without doing any homework and takes the first "deal" he finds. When someone walks into a dealer, he is a potential customer regardless whether he is buying now or next year. Most people will remember either a good or bad experience. If I go to a store and you treat me like shit, then I'm not buying from you. Now, that does not mean I will not buy from that dealer, depends on the deal. And unlike what you people might or might not think of me, I am not an asshole in real life, I just play one on the interwebz. As soon as I walk into the dealer I set the proper timeline expectation.

[GAAN]

Some dealers are moving them off commission. You can tell who those guys are because they're assholes from the get go.

you would think there would be a market for car salesmen who werent raging pricks

[lethe]

you would think there would be a market for car salesmen who werent raging pricks

But what would you feel about the guy selling one of those?

A less-than-raging prick car salesman salesman sounds like a bad, bad man.

[duccarlos]

I've found that the guys in the "internet" departments are not that bad. You get to emailback and forth and they do get a sense that you've done your homework.

I still don't have a sense of what you're looking for.

[Popeye the Sailor]

 Again no offense, but that is the dumbest thing I've ever heard. You mean to tell me that they made a purchase where they spent many thousands of dollars and didn't even test drive the vehicle or go look at it to see if it was comfortable or how felt to sit inside?

 Thats just brilliant! 

I bought a house to live in having never slept in it.

And I've gone to a number of dealerships to buy cars-it's the exception, not the rule I get treated with any sort of respect. I don't buy from those guys. Sorry Tom-there's a long history of shady car salesmen-you current guys will have to work hard to overcome it.

[Monstermash]

I bought a house to live in having never slept in it.

And I've gone to a number of dealerships to buy cars-it's the exception, not the rule I get treated with any sort of respect. I don't buy from those guys. Sorry Tom-there's a long history of shady car salesmen-you current guys will have to work hard to overcome it.

 Fortunately I won't have to. My dealership was recently voted National Pre-owned Dealer of the year. We do about 85% of our business through repeat customers and referrals. FYI-The national average is about 11%. It just amazes me that people go into a dealership with a chip on their shoulder and expect the dealer to be happy to deal with them. Why is it ok to treat the salesperson your dealing with like shit and expect to be treated like a king?

Wrong side of the bed? So let's use your same logic. What you're telling us is that you're the idiot that walks into a dealer without doing any homework and takes the first "deal" he finds. When someone walks into a dealer, he is a potential customer regardless whether he is buying now or next year. Most people will remember either a good or bad experience. If I go to a store and you treat me like shit, then I'm not buying from you. Now, that does not mean I will not buy from that dealer, depends on the deal. And unlike what you people might or might not think of me, I am not an asshole in real life, I just play one on the interwebz. As soon as I walk into the dealer I set the proper timeline expectation.

 I have never taken the first deal I find. Thats not what you said. What you said was you told the dealer you weren't going to be buying until next year. So my question is what could you possibly gain from shopping now with the exception of feeling out the dealer which you also stated wouldn't matter because you would be buying it online. Next year the models will have changed and there's a very good possibility the sales person you spoke with won't be there anyway and the deal they offer won't be even close. If you're talking about new vehicles the programs change every month so what you may be offered now is not going to be the same when you come back 3 months from now.

 I have dealt with a lot of folks who have come in and stated they weren't buying for a while. Most of the time it's pure bullshit. They are just trying to lessen the pressure from the salesperson. They wrongly assume that telling him that they won't be in the market for a while will make him less inclined to try and make a deal. I have always treated those customers with respect but it's my job to try and get them to buy now while they are in the store. I find it very difficult to believe that you would visit a bunch of different dealerships to get a feeling for how you were going to be treated in 3-6 months from now. Why not just wait until you were ready to buy instead of wasting everyone's (including your) time? Please tell me whats the point of walking into a dealership if you're not interested in buying something. Do you walk into the supermarket and just browse? No, you go when you want to buy something.

 Additionally I find it amusing how everyone perceives car dealers/salespeople. To be honest, the customers are worse than the dealers will ever be. They will look you right in the eye and lie to you. I can't tell you how many times I've heard "the dealer down the street offered me $1000 more for my trade" only to call them and find out the customer is full of shit. What most customers don't know is how small the car business is. Because of the high turnover you end up knowing salepeople/managers from all over the place. Contrary to popular belief, we do talk to one another. It's very common to call another dealer to discuss trade values of their product. If I get a brand that we don't sell, I will absolutely call another dealer to see how hot the product is or to see if they may be interested in it.

[corey]

 
thanks for all the suggestions guys.
impreza is on the list for a test drive.
took the GTI out today, and absolutely loved it. more along the lines of the type of handling and acceleration i'm looking for. much less torque steer than the Cooper S as well, very sporty and fun to drive. love it in the "carbon steel" color, and the dual gate trans is good fun!

speaking of fords... i HAVE considered waiting for the 2012 focus to hit the markets... i'm intrigued by it for sure.


we all have different dealership experiences. some of us worked as salesmen as well. everyone's opinions are different, and it's a free country... so voice them as necessary, just be polite    


hey monstermash... got any used GTI's? 

[desmopr]

For me buying a car through a dealership is very stressful.  Opening the door in the parking lot and the stares of the salespeople do not give me a warm IZ_ feeling.  I feel like they want to squeeze as much cash out of me as possible.  The pushing of all the stupid extras like interior/exterior treatments, warranties, and such piss me off.  A transaction should be of benefit to both parties and I feel like they are always trying to rape me.  Maybe it's just me.  Last new car we bought was the best car transaction I've ever done.  Polite, and not pushy sales guy.  Followed up professionally and showed respect.  We bought the car couple of months after meeting him and test driving it.  

[muskrat]

good luck on your choice Corey. 

I personally love going to dealerships and getting the "pit" boss wanting to come meet me before I'm heading out.    The dealership I've purchased three cars in and have sent countless people to is a Benz dealer down the road.  I like their service and have tried their GMC dealer to see if it's the ownership that helps......and it does.  Those who have no repeat business will dye off one day - being in sales myself I know this all too well.  In the end I go to dealerships where average tenure for employees is higher, there's a reason for this. 

[1KDS]

Again no offense, but that is the dumbest thing I've ever heard. You mean to tell me that they made a purchase where they spent many thousands of dollars and didn't even test drive the vehicle or go look at it to see if it was comfortable or how felt to sit inside?

Absolutely he did, bought a new F-150, he's had three in the past, knew this one would be better than the older ones, picked his option level and had them duke it out.  The winning dealer showed up at his house with the new pickup, he signed, they drove away in the old one.  He couldn't be happier with the new one or the transaction.

[redxblack]

I don't want to paint all dealers with the same brush. My wife needs a new car and we're considering either certified preowned or new for the first time ever. The one Toyota dealer we went to was super helpful and we'll likely buy there once we've crunched all numbers. The other one heard "used", turfed us over to the budget trade in lot and the guy behind the desk was a total cartoon of sleazy used car dealer. We won't be back.

We're looking now to figure out exactly what we want and to weigh our options. We aren't planning on actually purchasing until the end of the year when the model end close outs happen. Going out of pocket on such an expense will likely result in 3 or 4 trips to the dealership in all before we drop $12-16k (we're buying a Corolla).