Crazy salesman/car purchase story

[mirin_gains]

I've had 2 experiences with scion dealer, one was cool and let me test drive the car by myself. I went in to the dealer to look at the FRS when it was new and they only had automatics and the salesman said "u can take it for a test drive if you want, just leave the keys with the lady at the front desk when you come back" because they were almost closing. No pressure to buy there or anything.

Second time was a different dealer the salesman was a typical bad frs salesman. He didn't know much about the car, told me how tricky the clutch was and be careful. I dont really remember the test drive because he didn't let me push it and only took me on a highway during rush hour. After the test drive I was late to get home so I was in a hurry, the guy kept trying to show me videos of a stock frs drifting and was like look what it can do stock!! It wasn't a terrible experience but it was clear he was desperate for a sale, even though I stated I was there only to look

But I test drove a BRZ last weekend with my dad, the salesman was in the back seat lol. He knew a surprising amount about the car despite it being at a BMW dealer. We got back to the dealer and I thanked him and told him I have a couple more cars to look at, he brought the sales manager over to talk to me. And this was a younger guy but he had absolutely no idea what he was talking about. Told me "if youre looking for a car to drive year round this one would be best because of the AWD". Even if this car was AWD the ground clearance would be a limiting factor..but they gave me an info sheet for the car and in bold letters at top it said "BRZ RWD COUPE". I saw the original salesman awkwardly look at the manager and gave him a "you just fucked up my sale look..."

[mdm]

Originally Posted by Senoko

-Get the car because it has a black interior. Why? For when you pickup women and if they are on their period you won't get any stains.
-Tells me how many bitches I can pick up at boba/coffee shops if I get this car.
[..]
-I was torn between a white or red for the FR-S, he then went to explain why I should choose white and the theory behind women being attracted white things like iphones...

Was he 14 years old or what?

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by mdm

Was he 14 years old or what?

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL That was my very first thought as well!

[YXEBears]

@mirin_gains one thing I have noticed myself was echoed in your post, where you mention the BMW dealer's sales person knew more about the car than Subie/Yota salespeople. I personally think that if these cars were sold alongside 1/3 Series coupes, Porsches, and such they would actually SELL. Toyobaru sales just don't have a clue how to market a vehicle that doesn't fit the bulk of their target demographic...
It's fun having a car that's like a guarded secret society thing, but in the long run I think we know what happens to "niche" vehicles.

[Impureclient]

Originally Posted by Senoko

-Get the car because it has a black interior. Why? For when you pickup women and if they are on their period you won't get any stains.

So rude and they don't warm you about having a white dog at home before buying.

[themadscientist]

Originally Posted by mdm

Was he 14 years old or what?

The salesman might have had a bad experience early in life.

[imaguitar]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

Please tell me you've actually watched "The Californians" skit on SNL!!!

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by imaguitar

Please tell me you've actually watched "The Californians" skit on SNL!!!

Every one of them. Many twice.

[shelby01]

subscribed to this thread, this seems like a very interesting thread

[johl]

I have bought all of my new cars without test driving them. I do all my own research then when I have made my decision I will go into the nearest car yard and tell the salesman the car, colour, engine and trim level I want and ask if he has it or can get it. then let him know how much I'm willing to pay.

obviously they want to squeeze every penny out of customers but if you are realistic with your price and realise the margins they are making on that particular vehicle it makes the process easier for everyone.

the contract is signed and paid for usually within half an hour and everyone is happy. I get the car I want at the price I want and the salesman gets his commission for only 30 minutes of work.

I can see the frustration of dealing with tyre kickers and window shoppers all day so I try to be the type of customer that I would like to sell to if I were a salesman

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by johl

I can see the frustration of dealing with tyre kickers and window shoppers all day so I try to be the type of customer that I would like to sell to if I were a salesman

I tried that and no dice, it was like pulling teeth. I didn't even try to haggle I even said upfront "I'll put down a deposit and wait for it to get here, I'll pay MSRP" and I just got shrugs or excuses.



All my local salesmen imo seem to have a one item agenda: get them in a car today. "How about a TC?" "Oh I can give you a discount on our overpriced clear bra automatic car you don't want!" "Oh no, you can't have that car without leather, all our cars get leather seats (read: seat covers) installed! What a bargain for you! Why wouldn't you want overpriced fake leather seat (covers)?" "What you have a problem with this touchscreen head unit we're saying is worth $4k that you just found on Amazon for $499?"

Sorry, still bitter.

[saj]

It's true though, bitches love white cars.

[MrsJames]

Originally Posted by imaguitar

Hey man we're just nice people who have an unconditional love for In-N-Out, avocados, & surfing. Hahah

San Jose to Chicago holler!



My sales experience at Northside Toyota/Scion in Chicago was so incredibly bad, I stopped calling the dealer and started calling NA, and then the dealer stopped responding to NA.


demerits:

delivered car that was damaged
attempted fix - didn't fix
second attempt at fix - successful paint repair
hand car back to me missing wheel cap - claim that it is not their fault - car had 394 miles on it.


Honestly, the way I was treated has turned me off from the brand entirely. I am only here as I love the CAR - I despise the brand's treatment so much that once the lease is up, I am gone. I was told that I was not used to the car yet. That I had to learn the car.

I am not asking to be treated like royalty. Do not speak down to me more than three times....

[extrashaky]

Originally Posted by wbradley

Some people are just better or more determined to get the lowest possible price. Good for them. I just don't want to find out I payed more than most everybody else for the same thing. In a sense the Pure Price is supposed to prevent that.

LOL, no. Pure Price is not about leveling the playing field. It has the same purpose as the "no haggle pricing" at Carmax. It's an easy marketing ploy to pull more money out of the vast number of people who are uncomfortable with the traditional negotiation process. People are willing to pay more money (while believing the nonsense claims that the car is already advertised at the lowest price possible) in order to avoid the perceived stress and uncertainty of negotiating.

People are so afraid of getting screwed that they'll simply choose to believe a car dealer that says, "Just trust us. We won't screw you."

When I bought my car, the BRZ had a higher MSRP than the FR-S, yet Edmunds and KBB showed that the average price actually being paid was significantly less for the BRZ. That was because of Pure Price. People who didn't want to negotiate for a better price would just go into the Scion dealer and accept what they were fed. It made for weird conversations about how I was driving a "more expensive" version of the car that I actually paid less for.