Ask the Car People.SM


Stories from the Sales Frontlines

91781 messages,  Last post on May 21, 2013 at 10:06 PM

You are in the Smart Shopper Forum.

What is this discussion about? Car Buying

Messages Page 8875 of 9179

#88735 of 91781 Snow Day by houdini1

Feb 21, 2013 (8:08 am)

About 6 inches of snow so far this morning with more to come. The alarmist local weathermen are saying 10 to 15 inches and maybe more. Not real cold, low 20's, but windy. Just used the snow blower on the driveway, which had 10 to 12 inches on it already just because that is the way it works.
 
The snow is a pain in the butt, but it is beautiful. Driveway already needs to be cleared again. Nice to be retired so we will just hunker down, read, play on the computer, and listen (read) to you guys tell one whopper after another.
 
PS. We are having "thunder snow" right now and it is coming down about 2 or 3 inches an hour.

#88736 of 91781 Re: Car Show in Dayton [driver100] by richard64

Feb 21, 2013 (8:02 am)

Replying to: driver100 (Feb 20, 2013 2:14 pm)
There may be times when paying higher prices for event tickets are actually worth it. We are strong fans of Pavarotti (deceased now) and purchased tickets to a concert when he was on American tour. Dumb me. I decided to save big bucks by purchasing cheaper tickets. They placed us in seats that were so high that we didn't dare lean over. We had such an uneasy sense of falling. Also, even with our binoculars, he was a dot on the stage. Thank heavens they had a good sound system. At the end, we let most of the crowd exit before we started our descent. It was actually a little frightening. Since then, if I wish to go badly enough, I opt for the good seats.
 
Richard

#88737 of 91781 Re: Cruise Ship [verdugo] by richard64

Feb 21, 2013 (8:11 am)

Replying to: verdugo (Feb 20, 2013 2:57 pm)
I remember that as well. I never understood why the guys beat Jmonroe over the head for making a phone call to ask one question. After seeing a car on the lot at night, I used to call and get more specifics. It certainly never dawned on me that I shouldn't do that. I would never consider such calls as wasting a salesman's time. I would think that such calls would be appreciated because there is a potential customer on the phone.
 
Richard

#88738 of 91781 Re: "I WON'T LIKE THE JAGUAR XF!" [driver100] by richard64

Feb 21, 2013 (8:24 am)

Replying to: driver100 (Feb 20, 2013 4:28 pm)
"...could be someone who was in WWII."
 
I doubt that many WWII vets are buying any type of car now. If you entered the war at even age 18, you're pushing 90 years of age now. Could it be that some people just don't like them?
 
Richard

#88739 of 91781 Re: Snow Day [houdini1] by richard64

Feb 21, 2013 (8:37 am)

Replying to: houdini1 (Feb 21, 2013 8:08 am)
Be careful and stay warm.
 
Richard

#88740 of 91781 Re: "I WON'T LIKE THE JAGUAR XF!" [abacomike] by graphicguy

Feb 21, 2013 (9:21 am)

Replying to: abacomike (Feb 20, 2013 3:56 pm)
Mike....I tend to agree with you regarding test drives. While maybe we're the exeption and not the rule, if I've test driven something, that triggers a couple of things. First, if I like it, it's now on my list of cars I would buy, given the opportunity and the motivation (forget about need...there's not a person in this thread that's bought a car because they needed one ). If I had a positive experience at the dealership that offered the test drive, they'll be first on my list to visit when it comes time to buy.
 
A few years ago when I was in "buy mode", I was kind of interested in the newly released Taurus SHO (current gen). Went to the Ford store nearest me, and asked if they had any. They had 3 of them....one was a particular color I liked (pearl white). They asked how serious I was about it. I told them since I was standing in their showroom, I must be at least somewhat interested. And, that I was also interested in another color (burgundy) that I knew their competitor had on their lot (about 20 miles away).
 
Sales person said he had take a copy of my license and talk to his sales manager before offering a test drive. I was OK with that. Sales Manager comes out and asks for a downpayment before they could offer a test drive. Really?
 
I told him he wasn't going to sell too many cars if they needed a down payment just for a test drive. I told him I was on my way to his competitor to see if they'd let me test drive their SHO. He followed me out the door trying to explain about their policies, joy riders, how it's a $40K+ car, etc. I wasn't interested in the reasons/excuses at that point. Now, in fairness, this particular dealership has a reputation as being a little sleazy, at least in their sales tactics.
 
That's in stark contrast to my BMW or Audi experiences. They offered me the opportunity to take the car overnight, even for the weekend, before making a "buy" decision. All they needed was my proof of insurance and my driver's license. I even had a Cadillac dealer offer a CTS-V coupe for me to use overnight if I wanted (a $75K car).
  
Interestingly, I was watching CNET's Auto Show on TV last night (via ROKU). They stated that 20% of car sales are made without a test drive. Find that odd.
 
The company I work for has a few cars available for when we travel to Europe. They found it cheaper than renting cars when we travel there. One of them is a Jag XF....couple years old, maybe. Not a bad car. Kind of funky, with the "power" vents that open only when you start the car. It has a knob instead of a lever to shift with. It's the V8 version. It has plenty of pick up. It's a big car but not particularly roomy. Would I lay down $50K-$60K large on one? Nope....not even close. Maybe they're cheaper in Europe.

#88741 of 91781 Re: NEW 2014 E CLASS SEDAN [abacomike] by verdugo

Feb 21, 2013 (9:39 am)

Replying to: abacomike (Feb 16, 2013 9:12 am)
I guess, if I can buy the car for the pricing I want, I'll take it when it arrives at the dealership.
 
And so it starts
 
I say the MB dealership makes him an offer he can't resist and Mike will get another car.

#88742 of 91781 Re: The State of the State is .... Strong [mako1a] by verdugo

Feb 21, 2013 (9:40 am)

Replying to: mako1a (Feb 16, 2013 9:41 am)
Gas prices in Virginia have gone up 40 cents per gallon
  
That's because they were the lowest in the nation until the Governor
  
decided to discuss removing gas tax and raising sales tax thus
  
making moot, the low gas prices we had been getting.
 
That doesn't apply to California. We went from $3.65 a few weeks ago to $4.15 now.

#88743 of 91781 Re: "I WON'T LIKE THE JAGUAR XF!" [graphicguy] by abacomike

Feb 21, 2013 (9:45 am)

Replying to: graphicguy (Feb 21, 2013 9:21 am)
Mike....I tend to agree with you regarding test drives. While maybe we're the exeption and not the rule, if I've test driven something, that triggers a couple of things
 
You bring up an interesting statisic, graphicguy, that 20% car buyers buy/lease their car without taking a test drive. I am going to assume it was one of those companies that compliles surveys (of which I get three or four a year) regarding their choice of car. I remember one of the questions was, "...did you take a test drive of the car at the dealership while you were there, " OR "...were you offered a test drive at the dealership where you purchased your car...!"
 
I just find that statistic extremely troubling when considering the fact that when you plunk down 30 or 40 or even 50 thousand dollars on a new car, you would think you would be concerned about the ride and handling. It could be that the statistical data did not take into consideration that the buyer test drove the vehicle at another dealership so he/she did not need another test drive.
 
When I was in the business, during training I always INSISTED that each sales person gets the customer into the car they like prior to bringing them back to the showroom for negotiations. Many of my salespeople argued with me about that policy saying that some customers already drove the car at another dealership and know what they want. I always responded to them, "...unless a prospective buyer actually drives the car they are interested in buying or leasing, the emotional aspect of purchasing a new car is absent."
 
As an example - if a customer comes into the showroom and after looking on the new car inventory lot sees a car he/she likes but refuses to take a test drive in it, it is the salesperson's responsibility to get the key to that car, put the customer into the right front seat, and then drive the car off the lot, explaining features and benefits. Then, the salesperson was to pull over, get out of the car, and change seats with the customer. 95% of the time, there was no argument from the customer. The customer drove the car back to the dealership and once that happens, the customer has begun to take psychological ownership of that vehicle. If that is missing when the customer begins negotiations, the chances of selling that customer a car on that day have diminished 50%.
 
So, the test drive of the vehicle the customer likes is the single most important aspect of making a sale. The customer has gotten to "first base" with his true love - his new car!
 
I rest my case.

#88744 of 91781 Re: Cruise Ship [richard64] by graphicguy

Feb 21, 2013 (9:48 am)

Replying to: richard64 (Feb 21, 2013 8:11 am)
J...Richard...Mike...speaking of customer service, this was probably 3-4 years ago. I had travelled to Dallas for business. One evening, I was driving back to my hotel after leaving the office and passed a dealership called Sewell. I had posted a few times in the Infiniti forums when the G was on my shopping list. I remembered seeing one of the posters who said he worked at an Infiniti dealer in TX. His Edmunds name is "sewellgsm".
 
It was 6:30 p.m. on a weeknight. So, with nothing better to do, I decided to see if he was a "General Sales Manager" at this particular Infiniti dealership. I stopped by and walked in. I greet the receptionist and ask if I could speak with the general sales manager. A few minutes later, out comes "Bob" (not using real names here due to Edmunds rules). He introduces himself, and I do the same.
 
"You don't by any chance post on the Edmunds site, in their Infiniti threads do you?"
 
Indeed he did...same guy.
 
We chat for a moment, I tell him where I'm from and that I've been an Edmunds member since they were only known as "ED".
 
I tell him I'm only killing some time, but have had a passing interest in the G in the past. He brings over a sales person, introduces us, and tells him to take me for a test drive. Understand, there was NO ONE in the dealership at the time. And, making a sale to me was not in the cards.
 
Still, the sales person spent about 90 minutes with me....throughly explaining the car, it's every function, and a great test drive. When we got back to the dealership, the sales person even gave me a printout of VSP pricing to take with me. I'll say that Sewell's sales people are some of the best trained I've ever come across.
 
I left thoroughly impressed with the dealership and personnel. "SEWELLGSM" has moved on to their Cacillac dealership (right next store to Infiniti). He's still posting, only in the Cadillac threads these days. If I were anywhere near Dallas, Sewell would be at the very top of my list of dealerships to visit when in the market for a car.

Messages Page 8875 of 9179

To POST a message, please Sign In.

Advertisement

Browse by Category

Browse by Vehicle
   View All Vehicles

Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
View All Topics

Edmunds Community

Advertisement