Car Salesman are Worse than Telemarketers

[lavender]

 

[Siren]

Its called the ole bait and switch

 

[Never]

Used Car Salesmen?

Hey, I was a telemarketer once.. long ago. Don't dis us.

 

[MissTaken]

Telemarketers never have what you want and you can hang up on them!


I went to seven dealers that last time I bought a car. Single gal came hopping in and they couldn't help me for what I wanted to spend. Finally, went to a friend of a friend in tears and said, "If you can't do it, don't waste my time."

Next day...I had exactly what I wanted.

Wouldn't be easier to buy them on line?

I have looked at some of the so called on line auto sites, I would say I am a bit skittish about buying a vehicle on line. But who knows?

 

[Svedish_Chef]

You think thats bad... try selling one that you dont want to sell to salesman that fuck you round.

So what did you buy?

 

[lavender]

 

[Siren]

Well isnt that just like Lavy and Neva

 

[Never]

I didn't notice your spelling mistake, I noticed that you said salesman instead of salesperson.

 

[lavender]

 

[Never]

That does it.
I will now preface and end all mu comments to you with a smiley face.

Happiness will overwhelm your heart and you shall be moved to suddenly jump up and sing - much like in a ALW musical.

Sing for me! Sing!

 

[Svedish_Chef]

Oh fuck me.
God help us.

But i would like to hear lavy sing...

 

[Never]

Sure, I'll [deleted] you Chef.

Play your tamborine and dance for me my American blackjakk!!

Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

HeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeHeeeeeeee

 

[miles]

I love buying cars

Miles easy way to buy a car:

1. Know what you want, and go to edmunds.com to find out
what their actual cost is on the car and what a true fair price is.

2. NEVER, EVER go to a dealer to look at cars when they are open. Go early Sunday morning to look at the cars.

3. NEVER, EVER go into a car dealer without knowing how much you are going to pay before you walk in hte door. How do you do that?

4. Let's say you want to buy a Honda Accord, and know the exact model, options, etc. You've done your homework and know the car costs them $15,000 (invoice), but Edmunds.com says a fair price is $15,800. (Forget about sticker price - it means nothing.)

Every Honda dealer will have an email address, and will also have what they call the "Internet Sales Manager" (right). Send an email message to one and CC ALL THE OTHERS. Tell them what model you want, color, everything, and you know the Invoice on the car (you got it from Edmunds.com) is $15,000. Then say you will buy the car from whomever gives you the best price including EVERYTHING - what it will cost to drive the car off the lot.

You will get pretty quick replies. Tell the dealer who has the best price you will buy the car and have to know the drive out price. Make it clear if the prioce is different, you will leave. Period.

Don't go to the dealer to shop for cars. You buy a car once every few years. They sell cars ten times a day and know all the tricks and psychology to go with it.

Bottom line: know what the car costs them and base what you will pay on that - NOT the sticker price.

When you do it by phone or the Internet, you are in control. When you walk into a car dealer - they are in control.

This works - promise. And you dont have to dicker.

 

[fgarvb1]

just used car salesmen or salesperson does it really matter?

i give them hell! most of them won't get in a car with me to test drive it. heh hehee. the chickenshits.

when i get there i already know what the car or truck is worth, what the bank or what ever will loan on it. and i always remember
i don't have to have the damned thing!

If they don't want to give me the straight talk or try to give me the old i'll have to ok it with the boss or see if he will approve it bullshit, well! that's when i get cranked up on their ass!

i'll tell them to go fuck themselves in a heartbeat! If they don't want to sell a car or a truck someone down the road will.

 

[Chuckus]

Ugh!!!!

I have dealt with these fuckskulls about 5 hours per day for the last week. I had everything taken care of at one place, or so I thought, and then boom. They tell me that we can't work at the interest rate I wanted.

So, what do I do? I go to the next car in line at another dealership and get that one, because they can take care of everything.

Then, after all is said and done, the first dealership calls back and I tell them it's a no-go now. So I get another call 10 minutes later, saying they can get the interest rate I initially wanted.

Argh!!!!! Why can't they just cut through the bullshit and to the chase IMMEDIATELY?

Now, I didn't get the car that was my first choice. But, I'll still be quite happy. Fucking salespeople!

I think I'm going to start doing car shopping online.

Well for what it is worth Lavy.......this is a simplistic version of how I do my car shopping.

1. I do my homework about the vehicle I am interested in. I in fact go to a dealership at NIGHT when no salesman are around and find one that I like. Write down all the tidbits about it that I can and then do some research about pricing, etc...

2. I call my local banker, whom I deal with quite often and send ALOT of business and have had all my loans with for the past 15 years or so..........(I usually go there and have a "backup" financing plan ready to go if need be........)

3. I walk in to the dealership. Ask for the GM. If he won't talk to me, then I ask for the owner of the dealership. I usually can get one of them or both to talk to a potential customer. After I go in to talk with the GM/Owner I ask them one simple question...."Do you want to sell a car today?" and the usual response is "Yes" and to that I say......"Let me show you a car I am interested in and YOU tell me YOUR best price in 15 minutes or I am leaving and taking MY business elsewhere"..........if they ask about trade-in, financing or the whatever.......my response is "That makes no difference to me, I can and will pay cash for this car and also has no impact on the price of a car in the first place, so be sure and get me YOUR best price or I am walking within 15 minutes after showing you which car I am interested in"

4. Show them the car I am interested in. Give them 15 minutes. At the 16th minute, I walk out and before I do (that is IF I have to........) I barge into his/her office and tell them "Sorry you took too long, I am off to XXX Dealership now....." and walk TO my car. If they follow, I might listen or say "What's the price?"

5. At the time of price information, IF I feel it is NOT where I think it needs to be, I say "I know you can do better than that.....go take another 15 minutes and think about it, at the end of 15 minutes I am walking"

Then it is in their court to come up with a better price. Usually I find that at the end of 15 minutes the first time, the price is usually/has been very close to where I think it needs to be. Some of the GM's/Owner's understand that you ARE NOT there to play games and in fact I tell them that..........I don't and will not deal with any salesman and their trickery of "Will you buy the car IF the payment is XYZ".

When it comes to making the deal of actually financing the car, I already have in hand what my financing rate is, and see if they can do better (and I tell them that I already have the cash) and so sometimes they get a good rate, if there rate IS not as good as the rate I already have I might tell them where I got it and that I think "they can get better".

Car salesman can be a pain in the ass, but only if YOU play their game...........you can even play the same scenario described above on your average salesman and it should work.........just remember that there are plenty of car dealers wanting YOUR business and IF you play their GAME, they win. Give em 15-30 minutes tops..........and then walk. End of story.

(I have not read any of the other posts other than your first post Lavendar............. )

 

[Thumper]

I have slightly

low opinions of telemarketers (sorry Never, actually not the person just the whole idea) and door to door salespeople. Car salesmen (most all are men) are just life support sysyems for white shoes and plaid pants.

If I want something I will go find it. Which means I am not likely to be interested in a vacuum cleaner simply because you are now at my door. If my Hoover goes balls up, I will go get another one. I am not going to just sit here and suffocate in a pile of dust bunnies while waiting for a vacuum cleaner salesman. Same with telemarketers. I don't need to be sold anything. I know what I want and need, I do not need your help.

You can throw the whole advertising group in too.

They actually think I am going to buy a beer based on watching some stupid "Bud bowl"?

I buy strictly on price. If Coke is cheaper I buy Coke...if not I buy Pepsi. Most of the time I buy store brand.

Big K mixes just fine with my Jack.

 

[Chuckus]

Re: I love buying cars

Miles easy way to buy a car:

1. Know what you want, and go to edmunds.com to find out
what their actual cost is on the car and what a true fair price is.

2. NEVER, EVER go to a dealer to look at cars when they are open. Go early Sunday morning to look at the cars.

3. NEVER, EVER go into a car dealer without knowing how much you are going to pay before you walk in hte door. How do you do that?

4. Let's say you want to buy a Honda Accord, and know the exact model, options, etc. You've done your homework and know the car costs them $15,000 (invoice), but Edmunds.com says a fair price is $15,800. (Forget about sticker price - it means nothing.)

Every Honda dealer will have an email address, and will also have what they call the "Internet Sales Manager" (right). Send an email message to one and CC ALL THE OTHERS. Tell them what model you want, color, everything, and you know the Invoice on the car (you got it from Edmunds.com) is $15,000. Then say you will buy the car from whomever gives you the best price including EVERYTHING - what it will cost to drive the car off the lot.

You will get pretty quick replies. Tell the dealer who has the best price you will buy the car and have to know the drive out price. Make it clear if the prioce is different, you will leave. Period.

Don't go to the dealer to shop for cars. You buy a car once every few years. They sell cars ten times a day and know all the tricks and psychology to go with it.

Bottom line: know what the car costs them and base what you will pay on that - NOT the sticker price.

When you do it by phone or the Internet, you are in control. When you walk into a car dealer - they are in control.

This works - promise. And you dont have to dicker.

Heya Miles, damn we think alike..........I do check the ACTUAL price at several places and edmunds.com is a great place to look at.........and like I say "Just don't play their game, make them play yours" is the way I work it. Plain and simple.

Very similar tactics we share and I would and will say I have been pretty successful with mine.

The last car I got (current Honda Accord) I was in the dealership a total of 30 Minutes from walking in the door to OWNING my car. With the price I wanted to pay for it AND the financing I wanted (not the financing deal THEY wanted me to have!!!)

 

[Thumper]

TEST RIDE!

Show up at the dealership with a helmet and fire extinguisher...

Ask if you can test drive their sport models.

 

[miles]

Thump

ROFLMAO!

 

[Cheyenne]

I'm probably rare- a woman who loves car shopping. I buy not only my own cars but I help other friends and relatives who don't enjoy the process.

I do much as Miles does- start with Edmunds and price the exact car I want. Then I pick a dealer and go in with all of my records, giving them a written list of exactly what I want. I ask them to price it. I refuse to pay more than the cost per Edmunds. No advertising fees, no set up charges, nothing. And I won't let the dealer put their name on the back of my car- no free advertising, either. The dealer's profit is the holdback on the car and any special promotion the manufacturer may be running for the dealers to get volume on the model I want. They have no carry costs to cover, since I'm ordering it to be built to specification and it will never sit on their lot.

I've been using this method for over 20 years. It works. And it can be fun. I like getting the sales people flustered. I like getting their managers flustered even more. I've been given every excuse you can imagine as to why they can't do what I'm asking. But they do it in the end. Or I walk out and go to another dealer who can.

Bonus points: do this late in the day on a Saturday at the end of a month. They really really want their sales numbers and they want to get out of there to go home. Make them feel the time pressure of selling to you.

 

[Dynamite]

Whenever I go car shopping, I take my dad. He used to be a car salesman, so he knows all the ins and outs. Stick to your guns. Start even lower than where you are willing to stop. Get lots of quotes from other dealers. Take them to the one you want to deal w/ then show them the other quotes. They work on commish so they'll jump through hoops if you ask them to.

 

[Cheyenne]

Stick to your guns. Start even lower than where you are willing to stop. Get lots of quotes from other dealers. Take them to the one you want to deal w/ then show them the other quotes.

Sticking to your guns and starting lower than where you are willing to stop seem to be contradictory, you can't really do both.

Getting lots of quotes from other dealers is time consuming. Go in armed with the knowledge that is readily available on the internet for free (I used to have to buy the published copies of Edmunds years ago.) You'll save time AND money.

 

[miles]

Don't know about you guys, but I hate shopping. Going from one dealer to the next waiting for their "best price" is a good way to waste your time and get pissed off.

Even if you know you will buy the car for x dollars, the minute you set foot on their premises you are at a disadvantage. Their job is to squeeze every last cent out of the sale while your job is to buy the car with as little money as possible, and they are experts at it. If you like playing mind games, dickering, mistrusting the salesman, and getting hammered, have at it. Good car salesmen relish tough negotiators, because in the end, they will make you think you got a great deal, when instead you really got hosed. A car salesman's definition of a good deal is when the customer thinks they got a good deal!

 

[Cheyenne]

Even if you know you will buy the car for x dollars, the minute you set foot on their premises you are at a disadvantage. Their job is to squeeze every last cent out of the sale while your job is to buy the car with as little money as possible, and they are experts at it. If you like playing mind games, dickering, mistrusting the salesman, and getting hammered, have at it. Good car salesmen relish tough negotiators, because in the end, they will make you think you got a great deal, when instead you really got hosed. A car salesman's definition of a good deal is when the customer thinks they got a good deal!

I'm never at a disadvantage if I go in knowing what I will pay for a car before I open the door to the dealer. Did you read my description of exactly what I pay for, and what I don't? In your example of a car with a $15,000 cost per Edmunds and a "fair price" of $15,800, I'd have paid only the $15,000. THAT is what I consider a fair price to be. My fair price is lower than Edmunds suggested fair price. I've had dealers point that out to me, too. My standard answer is that I don't care, I'm cheap. They have a 2 or 3 % holdback built in to that cost, and that is the amount of profit I consider to be fair. No more.

The latest car I bought for someone was actually a mini-van. The manager insisted the people had to pay that bogus advertising charge dealers try to add to every sale. I insisted they didn't, and they wouldn't. I had him explaining profit margins to me (that was hilarious)- detailing what he had to pay the salesmen, etc. My answer was still that I didn't care. He either sold the van at the cost per Edmunds, or we left to go buy a van elsewhere. We bought the van at the price I said we would. It was a Saturday, late in the month. Negotiating is fun when you hold the upper hand. My view is that if I'm the one doing the buying, I'm in a much better spot than the guy trying to sell to me. I don't care how much experience he has selling cars, he has never sold to ME before. I can walk out that door anytime I want to. Usually, I don't have to. It's all in the attitude going in. Appear timid or that you don't know what you're doing and you're dead. Go in knowing every detail down to the code numbers of the options you want to order and you're home free.

 

[morninggirl5]

My car buying is even simpler. Fall in love with a car. Call friend's hubby, tell him which one I want and then sit and listen as he buys the car.


He does all the negotiating, finding a fair price, etc. The poor salesman never did figure out his relationship to me.