Funny Dealership Experiences for Buying 2016

Not directed at you but I've rarely met a sales person that was knowledgeable about the vehicles on their lot let alone try to talk about what sales value will be in 4 years or buying vs leasing issues.

 

I agree, most aren't pro's because the dealer has turned most into glorified customer service personnel that just regurgitate useless info, relative to what they now pay us, which isn't much to live on, which becomes less motivating to improve and invest in our future at the dealership. But with some of the attitudes I see today towards sale people, we'll soon go away and everyone will go online, then pull up to the dealership, sign in at a cube with their online build sheet, want list they did beforehand and finance info, fill out some final paperwork and either walk out to pickup their car or have the car delivered to their house weeks later.

Yes the internet has provided more and more accurate info for everyone, yet don't believe everything you read, and those sites, Edmunds, Kelly blue book, NADA do NOT buy cars or bikes, they are just guides, remember that. The dealer truly buys cars and bikes everyday and catch trends long before the "internet" group.

 

So what is it that sales people do for us?

My father was a sales manager at an exotic sport bike dealership. There, they helped customers get financing, insurance, and gear in one package. This is hard to do when purchasing exotic street bikes at 30k-60k. Very few customers ever walked into the shop to ask questions. They already knew the info. Most finance companies and insurance companies don't want an exotic street bike to their name so the sales people at this shop actually helped people find those companies. When looking to purchase a Toyota, I can do all that online.

 

I talked to two dealers in my area before I went with the one I ordered my truck from.. This was Sept 11 (the day after the new tacoma was released), I talked to the first two dealers, and both said "Sure!! We can get that ordered for you!! Come on in!"

I show up, see the person I talked to on the phone, they look at me like I've grown a second head, go talk to their manager, come back and say "We don't have any information at all on the 2016's.. they probably won't be here until at least February. Want a 2015?" So... why did you tell me that you could order me a 2016 when you don't even know they exist??

The 3rd dealer I talked to actually had a clue, but couldn't actually place the order until the 22nd. That, I can deal with.. and did!

 

the big issue with trade in, does your state offer a tax break on trade in or not. if it does, you have to take into account the tax break you get with a trade in vs selling it yourself. yes you make more money on the private sale, but unless the private sale covers the tax break and more, your just breaking even with more hassle.

example :

trade in value is 28k
payoff is : 18k
sales tax on difference : $500

no trade in sales tax : $1900

so I would have to sell it privately for $29,400 just to break even.

edit : how long do I hold out for 29,400 to break even. does the extra $1400 I need justify the hassle of doing the paperwork myself or letting the dealer do it in a few hours compared to me trying to sell privately for days/weeks if I cant get someone to pay for the price I am asking for.

 

Salespeople are great for a consumer who comes to the dealership with no idea what vehicle they want to buy and need somebody to help guide them through the decision making process of picking the right vehicle for them.

For informed consumers who already know what they want before they get to the dealership, the salesperson is, at best, a minor annoyance. In many of those cases the salesperson stands a great chance of screwing up the dealership's chance at making a sale because they usually make the mistake of assuming the informed consumer is an idiot and try to steer them away from what they came to buy and into what the salesperson will make the most money selling. I have walked away from at least a half dozen dealerships where I was ready to buy a vehicle they had on the lot because the salesperson treated me like I was an idiot.

A smart dealership would offer both paths to buying a car...an online order placement system for those who already know what they want and just want to spec it out for order without dealing with an annoying sales person who knows less about the vehicle than they do; and an in-person sales experience for people who want help deciding what to buy.

 

I don't expect them to give me retail, but a fair trade value. The 3k I mentioned was below what I have determined, through research of the wealth of information out there, would be fair trade.

I don't expect them not to make money, but I do expect a fair deal. I'm not caving just to line their pockets more. For instance, we just traded my wife's car, and the dealer listed it for 6.5K more than than gave us for it, and sold it in a week. But we had to beg, borrow and steal to get a somewhat low trade amount from them. Poor dealers!!!

Regarding your compensation with your chosen line of work, if you don't like it, change careers. You chose that career. Consumers shouldn't take the blame from salesmen as a result of trying to save as much money as possible. If your wife makes a flat rate per car, what does it matter what it's sold for?

 

Do you know for a fact they actually sold it for list price?

 

No I don't. And I won't speculate what they sold it for. However, my point is, with regards to my trade in, they will make a profit on it if they give me what I believe is a fair trade value. Maybe Toyota should say this about the Tacoma, "Highest resale value, but don't expect to get a good trade-in value!"

 

Trades are always dicey... it just adds one more level of complexity (another layer of the onion) to the numbers game. They love it because they have the potential to pad the deal and make some cash from your trade. But they could get stuck with a turd and end up just wholesale'ing the thing off to auction. Better to sell your vehicle privately if you can, to maximize profit.

 

They will make money on the truck listed in my profile. I only have 28,000 miles on it and it is in excellent condition. I'm visiting one more dealer this weekend, if they don't offer close to my magic number, then i'm listing it myself. I want to avoid that because of the headaches and tax issue if possible. If this dealer stays true to their price they quoted me on an OR, then I can take a little less than my magic number. Another reason is I don't have a spare vehicle to tote my fat ass around until I get a new one. So the private sale would have to happen a day or two of deliver of the new truck. So the buyer would have to be flexible with the date of sale.

 

The hard part for me is hearing how some people on here are paying invoice, while others (like I likely will be) are paying msrp or even more. I've never been anything but disappointed or even insulted by what I've been offered for a trade. 3k to 5k below what they'll sell it for, I can understand, but 10k below? You lost a sale.

It sucks when I go to look around and as soon as a salesman knows I'm not buying they could care less about talking to me. When the time comes, I will try to deal with the one salesman at my local dealer who consistently takes the time to answer my questions and shoot the shit and doesn't make me feel like I'm wasting his time (I've even had to remind him when another customer came in that he should probably ditch me for them). I respect him, and even tho he still won't likely get me much of a deal, I'd rather my money go towards his commission.

 

The problem is that you are in a disadvantage because you want a high demand vehicle and you have to rely on the dealer to concede to the demand or you're stuck with trying to find a buyer for your vehicle to give you what you believe is fair value. The dealer is in business to make money and if they see an opportunity to do so, they'll make money off of you. You have to be the one that is flexible. The dealer really doesn't "owe" you anything. If you don't like the option on the table, be ready to walk and wait until the right opportunity presents itself. Meanwhile it sounds like you have a perfectly good vehicle to tote your butt around in

 

I had one hell of an experience trying to order my 16! My local in town dealer had a whole bunch of one liners...

"The 2016, won't be out till end of the year at least."
"I can get you a great deal on a 15 today, there won't be any good deals on a 16 for YEARS!"
"The only difference between a 15 and a 16 is the grill is slightly different."
- I correct him telling him that its a new gen with a new engine and the like, and his response
"Yeah, but its just a different grill."

"Well, I am trying to order what you want, but they just aren't making the configuration you want right now, what's your plan B?"

"Our first 16 will be on the lot end of the week!"
"The long weekend messed up the shipping, the 16's will be on the lot ON the 15th of September!"

-The guy then called me on the 15th...
"Hey, I work for Ford now, can I interest you in a new f150 Eco-boost?"
"The F150 has a manual transmission, you just press the button to shift the gears!
-called the local dealer
"Yeah those won't be released until at LEAST the end of October!"

Finally called a dealer 45 min away...
"I WILL call you when we get one in"
Next day he calls
"Truck will be in next week"
He calls the following week at 2:30 on a Wednesday
"Truck is in!"

I drove up that night, test drove it (it had 78 miles on the OD when I got there), loved it, and ordered what I wanted! Still waiting on a build date though.

 

Is that an autocorrect mistake?

If not no wonder they fed you BS. You fed it to them.

 

Probably a mistype as the TRD indoor doesn't come out til '18 much less the outdoor. They have to waterproof the design still.

 

Yeah...that is good old autocorrect. My phone is the s6 active but it apparently hates even the word offroad.

 

As long as they waterproof the frame on the outdoor model, all will be good.

 

I prefer the outdoor model. The indoor model is such a bore

 

Quotes from the salesman at the local dealer today...

"The front bumper is designed to cause people to fly over the hood and roof if hit."

"The doors have been redisigned so they close with minimal effort, you had to really slam the old one." Says this as he tries to shut the door easily four time with no success.

And last but not least, "the regional distributor just told us we can't sell them for under msrp or give any discounts." I walked away and left at that point.