Well, sdimbert, you pretty much have me there. I did a couple of years in book and music sales, but that’s retail sales, where the nefarious practices I hinted at above are strictly regulated.
And, to clarify, I didn’t sell cars. Specifically, I did the back-end of the used car end of it. That means I searched auto title histories, appraised cars, worked out the logistics of deliveries–and often delivered them myself, walked the trade-in through the mechanical check-ups and battled the parts and service departments in an attempt to prevent in-house parasitism, took care of the in-house paperwork, and I was a pretty hot detailer, too. I eventually parlayed that talent into a very nice little detailing business that I had a lot of fun with for a while.
But in my capacity as “used car bitch” I was all over that dealership, and probably saw more of it than most “grunts” do. I don’t doubt that other similar lines of work attract the same types of people. I do, however, believe that auto sales offers great leeway to people of questionable character who want to practice questionable behavior, and I personally will always carry a sense of distrust in the business in general.
And yes, it did suck, after a while. You can only race around at three times the speed limit in a car that costs five times your annual salary for so long before it starts to get a little stale.
Auto dealerships also engage in questionable advertising tactics on the fringes of false advertising.
The latest scam is to have a bold price on a vehicle saying something like, " $289/mo, no money down!". At the bottom of the page, in fine print, you’ll find “With your $2000 trade-in or equivalent”. Clearly, the intent here is to deceive.
The worst example of this was at Denny Andrews Ford here in Edmonton. I saw a nice Ford Windstar at what looked like a very attractive price. I scoured the ad for any hidden text, and couldn’t find any. After going over it several times, I cut out the ad and drove across the city to the dealership. When I enquired about the price, the salesman quoted me a figure that was $2000 higher. I pulled out the ad and demanded the price that was quoted there. He took the ad from me, walked over to a window and held it up to the light, and sure enough, you could barely make out “With your $2000 trade” in about 6 point type. The type was light yellow on a white background, and could not be seen at all in room light.
I asked to see their manager, and told him in no uncertain words that I would not buy a vehicle from them at any price now or in the future, and that I’d make sure I told all my friends about their advertising tactics.
not too long ago here in CA, some Toyata salesmen were convicted of laundering money, and others of bribing a federal agent. Toyota dealers are the most crooked.
As to “overstocked dealership”, that does happen, but my dad used to sell cars, They ahd a “overstocked” used car sale, and they were scouring the country for used cars in about a week, but still continueing the ad.
I wonder. Did those auto salesmen who hog-tied the owner and then sold cars at “WAY BELOW COST!!” ever get arrested. Or did the owner who was so crazy that he had that unbeleivable sale (“with prices soooo low I must be nuts!!”)ever get out of the mental hospital.
What gets me are the dealerships that say, “We were #1 in sales last year in our region, and we’d like to do it again.” So why the @!#?@! would I help them do that? Every time I’ve bought from a dealership (except once), I’ve gotten screwed.
So why do I go back? Because every time I’ve bought a used car from a private person I’ve gotten screwed. (To be fair, they didn’t know they were screwing me. It’s just that the car needed major repairs within a year of my buying it.)
–OK. You’re back to the creative advertising. How about this slogan: “If you can find us you can grind us!”
Outside of other car salesmen, how many members of the general public realize what the term “grind” means?
Sdimbert…You’re a wonderful person, but watch your wallet in a car dealership.
Consumer Reports likes to point out that we can all walk into Wal*Mart and buy the same brand of toothpaste for 99 cents. We can then all walk into a car dealership and drive out with the same make, model and even color of car for prices that can differ by $3,000 or more.
I remember one car salesman telling a lady that she’d get her two extra cylinders when she brought the car in for its scheduled maintenance (she wanted a 6, not a 4).
There really is a reason this group of people have collectively acquired a smarmy reputation.
Unlike a Wal*Mart or supermarket rep who may see you once a week, a car salesman will probably never see you again. He’s under a bunch of pressure to make his number. If he doesn’t make it off of you then the next person is fair game. Keep your BS antenna up and don’t be afraid to question anything you don’t understand.