Edmunds.com - Confessions of an Auto Finance Manager

8 messages, Last post on Jan 02, 2009 at 9:40 AM

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What is this discussion about? Car Buying, Car Financing

Confessions of an Auto Finance Manager - In this four-part series, written by veteran auto finance manager Nick James, you will learn the F&I man's tricks and how to avoid them. When you're done, you'll be ready to safely navigate this crucial part of the car buying process, and the F&I man will never work his "magic" on you again. (more)

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#6 of 8 Re: The OTHER side of the F&I Manager's profits... [ProfitDrivers] by oldfarmer50 Jan 02, 2009 (5:20 am)
Replying to: ProfitDrivers (Jan 02, 2009 1:05 am) "...the products offered in the F&I office are legitimate with tremendous value..." Legitimate? Yes, anything that you want to try to sell is legitimate as long as you sell it by honest means. Tremendous value? I don't know about that one. Warranties might or might not be worth the peace of mind but for me they weren't. The glorified wax jobs for $800 are not worth a tenth of their price in my opinion. When I last bought the presentation was pretty low-key. The woman only tried a little bit of the 'ol scare tactics. She asked if I was planning on keeping my car for very long and when I answered "Yes" she told me that I "better protect it" with the mop & glo. She also pushed the extended warranty but not too hard. She was so nice about it that I didn't have the heart to turn her down cold. I pulled the old "I'll have to check with my wife" dodge. At delivery she only gave me a small scolding for not calling her back. Now if they had a bank stick-up artist or a porn star working in F&I I might have bought something. Replies to this message: ProfitDrivers (Jan 02, 2009 9:40 am)
#7 of 8 When my son bought his Mustang Convertible by euphonium Jan 02, 2009 (9:37 am)
from a Ford dealer in the University district. The F & I guy said they would not sell the car at that price unless he also bought the Extended Warranty. (They intimated it was the only part of the deal where the house was to make a profit.) So he bought the EW, the cost of which was added to the payment contract with Evergreen Bank. Remembering, the EW was a separate Insurance Contract, my son returned the Warranty and said to cancel it FLAT the next day. F & I said they could not cancel the EW because it was part of the payment contract. That's when they found out their customer was an insurance agent and knew they were bluffing. They rewrote the finance agreement while grumbling and who cares?
#8 of 8 Re: The OTHER side of the F&I Manager's profits... [oldfarmer50] by ProfitDrivers Jan 02, 2009 (9:40 am)
Replying to: oldfarmer50 (Jan 02, 2009 5:20 am) oldfarmer50, I must say that in my lifetime of experience, not all products and services being sold are legitimate. Particularly, I can remember a rather recent story of an investment advisor that swindled millions of dollars from clients. He fled the country and now resides in another North American country, unscathed! It's never good when someone feels that they purchased something that was not worth it's cost, whether it's $800, thousands, or millions. Typically we hear so many nasty stories, that I thought it important to inject a flavour of some positive ones. Maybe you didn't like the wax job for $800 but a senior couple who are meticulous about their vehicle and too old to upkeep it themselves may love the product. On the other hand, if you had a porn star F&I manager to visit at the dealership every 2 years or so to have the "mop & glo" reapplied at no additional cost, you may have enjoyed spending the $800. In every industry, there is something for everyone and in some cases, there may be nothing that fits at all. It's the good stories that support the value of the products offered in the F&I office. I hope you went back to the dealer that sold you the $800 mop & glo and gave them a chance to remedy your dissatisfaction!