Toyota Stalking, er...um, SPOTTING with Charlie™ (Tundra and Sequoia Edition)!

Good for her and glad the stealer-ship got dealt with. Seriously it's amazing what people deal with when it comes to dealers, and sometimes just left without words what some dealers try to pull. A lot of it is just researching out who's who when it comes to dealers, but yeah - they're their own worst enemies sometimes. I've found that "smaller-ish" dealers seem to be a bit more "honest", but you do pay a little more (deals are not "as good" as larger suburban areas). Thing is in smaller town areas, it seems they care a bit more about their reputation. However, I've also seen the opposite where they're just as slime ridden as others "cause there's no other options" unless you drive out of the way.

Tellin' ya - they're gonna drive the industry in the states to the "tesla" model cause people are just tired of dealing with the bs. Other than real estate (and don't get me started on that), there's no other place where you don't just show up and buy a new product at ±MSRP.

We'll see what happens...

 

Sounds like the average price in my area haha

 

That actually makes sense! My dad purchased the Tacoma that I currently drive at Peruzzi Toyota in Hatfield, Pennsylvania; It's been back there for service twice...

Once in 2009 right after we bought it, with just 595 miles on the clock, because the gearshift was acting weird and it would jump out of drive or something. Peruzzi couldn't "replicate the problem" and gave the truck back to use with the issue unsolved; My dad was so pissed that he peeled the "Peruzzi" sticker off the tailgate. He then brought it to Thompson Toyota, which is closer to where we live than Peruzzi; Thompson fixed the problem, and it was a brand new truck it was done under warranty.

By 2013, with about 31K on the clock, my tires looked a bit worn out; My dad bought me 16" custom wheels wrapped in new BFG rubber from TireRack, and his mechanic didn't have the proper tools to program the TPMS sensors. We brought it to Thompson, and they couldn't program it, so we ironically brought it back to Peruzzi for the first time in four years and they fixed it in an hour!

For the last 12 years, I haven't really had a problem with Peruzzi, but Thompson is closer to my house and I built up a relationship with them so that is where my truck always went for warranty or work or when my mechanic couldn't do it in a timely manner.

 

Thompson is the dealer that replaced my frame in November 2021; They were even kind enough to let me come visit my truck every day and take pictures!

That said, I have a trusted mechanic named Pete who used to be a Volvo technician and started up his own ship for the same reasons most us ordinary people hate dealerships; He encouraged by his boss at the Volvo dealer to perform unneeded and expensive work on customers' vehicles and he got sick of it. He is actually less than half a mile from Thompson Toyota! I am very satisfied with the customer service at Thompson, but I stopped bringing my truck there for anything but warranty work (i.e. Getting the frame replaced) because they are just too damn expensive!

However, I was recently at Peruzzi Toyota the day after Christmas and after comparing their prices to Thompson's prices, I have to say that Thompson is much friendlier than Peruzzi with its vehicle pricing.

Go figure, Peruzzi Toyota is a much bigger dealership than Thompson Toyota, located on a busy stretch of road in a mostly commercial area; Peruzzi also has more dealerships than Thompson.

Thompson has the Toyota dealer, a Lexus dealer, and a BMW dealer on the same stretch of road in Doylestown; They also have second Lexus dealer in Willow Grove, a state-of-the-art detail center in Doylestown, and two body shops. Doylestown also has the small town vibe while Hatfield is one long stretch of commercial hell...

 

Peruzzi has their Toyota dealer where we bought my truck, a Mitsubishi dealer, a Mazda dealer, a Nissan dealer, and possibly a GMC dealer; The Toyota dealer and the Mitsubishi dealer are both on Route 309, but I forget where the other ones are.

 

Want even more insanity?

Find an FJ Cruiser on a dealer's lot and look at the sticker!

 

Peruzzi had an FJ, but they don't even put the prices on the Monroney stickers anymore...

 

I have noticed that most dealers do not put those stickers on anymore for used cars (usually you can find it in the stock number - I know a Toyota dealership in Houston did that).

I did read an article from R&T (can't remember if I mentioned this here before), but basically it said the craziness will be through 2023, and to just hold on unless you have a true need to get something else right now. A person would probably find a lot better success private selling their vehicle in the current market. I sold an Edge while still having a loan on the vehicle and it was pretty dang seamless - wouldn't hesitate to do it again. However, I did just as much "work" as a used car lot - I paid for the CarFax report, I detailed the car, took appropriate pictures, paid for a "higher" listing option to put enough pictures and information, and got the proper legal paperwork for signing over while completing the financial part on my end. Got a solid 5K+ than I would have on a trade.

 

I'm satisfied with my truck; I want a house!

 

Even private sells a used corolla for $25000. What the hell.

 

Same truck; Don't know why it's still at the dealer, unless the owner dropped it off for service and then went out of town for the holidays...


January 2nd, 2022:

Doylestown, Pennsylvania

 

I just paid 44,000 for a used 2019 tundra 4x4 OR with 29,000 miles. Wonder if I paid too much

 

I don't think so. I'd been looking at 21s & 22s, however I got a pretty fair overview of the current market. Think you did good. I saw some CPO asking prices that were insane.

 

I paid ~41.5k for my 18 with 31k miles - pretty great deal in current market

 

January 7th, 2022:

Doylestown, Pennsylvania

 

your dad is so correct.

 

now, that might be a hasty generalization - I mean crux's dad wasn't out to screw him - otherwise his advice should be taken in opposite...

 

hell yeah! I had an '00 and it's still loggin' miles under my BIL's foot.

 

January 18th, 2022:

Warminster, Pennsylvania

 

January 29th, 2022:

Doylestown, Pennsylvania