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Autobytel.com - What has your experience been?

131 messages,  Last post on Feb 16, 2013 at 6:26 PM

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Messages Page 12 of 14

#110 of 131 the customers were a lot more by abtseller

Jun 05, 2002 (10:45 am)

pleasant back then also. Now a days, instead of a trendy smart shopper, most of them just want a number to beat their local dealer over the head with.
 
Sad, but true. And, with what the dealer has to pay for the leads, it is not cost effective to just "give them a number" you actually have to try and engage the customer in a conversation and try to sell them on the process first.
 
Ed

#111 of 131 Good point, Ed by suzzann

Jun 06, 2002 (5:40 am)

I used Autobytel to get a price and shopped it using another service. The dealer with Autobytel was straightforward and beat the price I had been originally quoted, but was in turn beaten by the next internet service I used.
 
I would have been disappointed if the dealer had tried to "engage" me in the process. All I wanted was a price on a particular car. He called me up, made his offer and I suppose, moved on to the next customer.

#112 of 131 he got you on the phone, by abtseller

Jun 06, 2002 (5:59 am)

which is fulfilling his part of the deal. Next.
 
Ed

#113 of 131 suzzann by masspector

Jun 06, 2002 (6:02 am)

Now you are going to make all the sales guys mad. How dare you want to use the internet and email to get a price and then use it to shop at not only another dealer, but (ghast) two other dealers. Just kidding.
 
Question: Did the ABT dealer call you for follow up to see when you were coming down to buy?

#114 of 131 ****SIGH**** by isellhondas

Jun 06, 2002 (7:46 am)

Never fails to amaze me...the pain, time and trouble some folks put themselves through in order to "save" a lousy buck....

#115 of 131 come on Isell by masspector

Jun 06, 2002 (8:14 am)

I totally respect your opinions on here, but spending a few minutes responding to an email or talking on the phone to a salesman is not a lot of pain, time , or trouble.
 
My perfect new car buying scenario (no trade in):
 
I decide the model and options I want.
 
Test drive the car and make sure it is the one I want.
 
I use the web or a service like ABT to solicit email itemized price quotes from several dealers. (with all fees included, OTD price)
 
I take the lowest quote and email back the others to see if they can beat it.
 
Repeat step above a few times until I think I am at the rock bottom price.
 
Print out my low price quote, setup an appt at that dealer and then go in and buy my car.
 
Now let me see 10 minutes times about 15 emails equals 150 minutes. One 10 minute phone call to set up appt. Time to purchase car. Total equals about 3 hours. And most of that time was from the comfort of my office or home.
 
I do not think 3 hours total to shop for a car is a lot of wasted time. Of course if I only saved $50 off my first email quote that I recieved back, I would agree with you. But that is rarely the case. The first quote will be high and I can work down from there, at least several hundred dollars, if not several thousand.
 
I think that this is the most efficient use of the sales guys time too. He finds your car, emails you a quote and is then off to the next one. If he has the best price he will get the deal, instead of spending hours with you on the showroom or phone to "engage" you. (No offense ABTseller).
 
This is just my humble opinion. I know you guys say this does not work. Of course I have never had a chance to use it because it is very rarely that you can get an email quote back from a dealer website or ABT. I know this from recent experience.

#116 of 131 Well... by isellhondas

Jun 06, 2002 (5:54 pm)

That *sigh* came after reading several humorous (to me) posts from some folks who are scared to death that they just *might* pay a little bit more than their neighbor did.
 
I accept that...to each his own...we are all different.
 
The dealers who didn't respond to your e-mail blast are smart not to. They have been down that road before.

#117 of 131 Isell by masspector

Jun 07, 2002 (5:12 am)

I am assuming you know your side of the business better than me, but "The dealers who didn't respond to your e-mail blast are smart not to. They have been down that road before." left a bad taste in my mouth and did not improve my opinion of car dealers as tricksters. So when I did go shopping, I had to use my same old advesarial tactics since I did not know which dealer was being honest and upfront and which were not. The non respose to my emails just confirmed to me as the buyer that dealers were still trying to play tricks and not provide me with an upfront rock bottm price. Dealers need to embrace this new medium and use it to its full potential. It can be a great cost saving tool if used properly. I am sure most dealers are from the old school however and are mostly afraid of this new technology. It is not going away, it will only grow. GM power buyer is a great example. I get to see exactly what a dealer has in stock and even see the window sticker. Awesome. And I do not have to bother a salesman. Now if we could just get a pop up window with all of the dealer fees so we would know what they are before we see the F&I guy. LOL.
 
Buyer's remorse is the worst in the computer business. Your neighbor will always get a better deal a few months down the road. Just the nature of the technology business. I wonder if people fret about that. Of course a lot of places give a low price gaurantee for at least 30 days. Has that ever been tried in the car business, Isell?

#118 of 131 Boys, Boys! by suzzann

Jun 07, 2002 (5:25 am)

Let's not get adversarial here too!
 
Had the Autobytel dealer been the lowest bid I would have bought from him. He was $300 higher than the dealer I bought from and found using another service. No, he didn't follow up with me, that was my responsibility if I wanted to buy from him. He was up front and honest and I respect that.
 
And, Isell, it was 300 lousy bucks I saved. The Autobytel dealer also beat the first Subaru dealer I visited by a wide margin. I see your posts all over the place about how people should just go to the dealer and buy a car. That works for you, not me. I don't care what my neighbor paid, I care what I paid. Add to that the lousy treatment I received when shopping and you've got a faithful internet shopper who used to just go to one dealer to buy a car. I saved time and money by not negotiating. The car dealers made the internet a safe haven for buying a car by their own actions, the internet wouldn't matter if you all knew how to treat people.

#119 of 131 how much would by abtseller

Jun 07, 2002 (5:51 am)

you be willing to pay for the convenience of never having to go into a car dealership to buy a car? What is your time worth to you? How cool would it be to get the new car you want delivered to your door with the paperwork in the glove box?
 
Or...
 
would you rather take the guys price and throw yourself into the "welcome to our dealership and meet all our managers, the F&I guy, etc" experience that everyone cries about here.
 
Is that worth $300?
 
Ed

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