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Smart Shopper Documentation Fees
667 messages, Last post on Sep 18, 2009 at 3:24 PM
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Replying to: socala4 (Mar 23, 2006 8:40 am) ====================== You didn't print that with a straight face, did you.? .. are you sure that's not some comedy skit off Saturday Night Live ..l.o.l.. Living in area where there is many different languages ... a salesperson will either understand the customer - or not ... they'll either get with somebody that speaks the language or they'll get those famous last words from the SM/GM: .. "go find yourself a buying customer" ... that will be the end of that and no time wasted. Terry.
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Replying to: dino001 (Mar 23, 2006 9:10 am) Don't ya love the way this guy put's words in your mouth ..l.o.l.... Terry 
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Replying to: rroyce10 (Mar 23, 2006 2:32 pm) Whether you like it or not, car dealers are subject to the same issues and constraints of other sellers, and your efforts to dominate and control the customer are very easy to overcome. Fortunately, dealers are highly predictable in their efforts to use aggressive tactics, but a tactic understood is not a tactic at all.
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Replying to: socala4 (Mar 23, 2006 2:40 pm) People are people .. if you treat someone with respect, you get respect back .... and good communication is 90% of it (on both sides.!) ... your "theories" of blinking your left eye on Thursdays and stuttering on Tuesdays went out with the Edsel. Terry 
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Replying to: rroyce10 (Mar 23, 2006 2:54 pm) Well, thanks for giving me all of the credit, but actually,I learned this from professional negotiators. People will find references and links to their work on several of my posts. I'd say that the Corolla provides a better analogy. Like the Corolla, dealer gimmicks have been with us for a long time, you can expect that they'll be with us for a long time to come, and they act predictably just about every single time. (And of course, they're cheap.) The package might look a bit different from time to time, but at its heart, the concept remains the same. And thankfully, your arguments here provide a good dress rehearsal for what the customer can expect to hear at the dealership. |
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Replying to: rroyce10 (Mar 23, 2006 2:39 pm) That was all I wanted to say...
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Replying to: dino001 (Mar 24, 2006 7:14 am)
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Replying to: british_rover (Mar 24, 2006 8:06 am) You see - I still speak an accent - and will do to the end of my life. Even if you and all the saleguys on this Forum swear that it's not the case, I know it puts me immediately into at least some disadvantage, as salesguy will likely assume I stepped off the boat yesterday. It's inevitable. This was my comment regarding that insight: Dino has a point, people (not just salespeople) will judge you by a combination of factors, including your accent, manner of speech, etc. That's why behavior is important during negotiation -- the response that you get will be based, in large part, by what you communicate through your body language, expressions and how you act. I essentially agreed with Dino, but added my position that I don't believe that it has to necessarily work to one's disadvantage. But he's absolutely right that it does create a difference, in part because it's human nature to make assumptions about others within less than a minute after we've first met them. Terry wants to deflect and pretend that sales tactics don't exist and that every customer is regarded in the same way. But anyone who has bought a car knows that this is simply nonsense. This forum is driven by the fact that many consumers are confused by the car buying process, and that they often feel ripped off. Do you honestly think that a couple of posts on this board from salespeople trying to convince us that they're angels is going to change this justifiable perception? |
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I read all posts spanning years. Is this not about documentation fees, lol? Anyway, I tell the dealers this fee is a deal breaker. Either they live with it or they do not make an offer to sell the vehicle. There is always the next dealer who will not charge. If we all did this then the dealers would stop charging. It is pure profit and they are not goint to make it on me. The issue here is control. Most car salespeople are told to take control over the purchaser. You must take the control back and not pay the silly documentation fee. Years ago dealers tried to charge for paint protection and undercoating. Consumers eventually began to say "no" and like someone mentioned earlier, the dealers came-up with a new gimmick: documentation fees. I live in Maryland where they do not make the fee mandatory. Virginia is a few miles away and all the dealers charge, but somehow change their minds when you tell them "no." The salesperson in many cases is being pressured by a manager to make a deal. You are in control and there really is no pressure. Take everything and bite a little from holdback and they still make money. There are all kinds of hidden fees they profit from, as well.
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Replying to: msiseng (Apr 06, 2006 7:23 pm) I don't have a problem paying a doc fee, nor do I want to spend part of my negotiation time arguing over it. I always try to find out what the dealer's doc fee amount is before I actually go in to negotiate, and then just look at this as part of the car. In other words, if I have decided I am spending $20,000 on a certain car, and the dealer's doc fee is $299, then I offer $19,700 for the car, plus the doc fee. I guess my point is that I won't walk over a doc fee, but I will walk if the total price is more than I want to pay. For the last car I bought, I played dumb when I was talking to the salesman over the phone setting up our appointment. I said something to the effect of "I haven't bought a car in a while, what are the current fees associated?". He proceeded to tell me, "Tax is 3%, new tag and title is $69, and our doc fee is $399." This allowed me to work the $399 into my calculations at home before ever going to the dealership. I was able to structure my price around it, and didn't waste any time haggling over the doc fee. The key is to find out what the dealer's doc fee is before you do your calculations so they don't try to blind side you with it in the finance office. |
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Smart Shopper Documentation Fees
