Dealer Troubles

[whaap]

I wouldn't give it a second thought and I wouldn't condem a dealership because of one jerk.

[norsamerican]

if he is the service manager your going to have to deal with him in the future for all maintenance and warranty work..id burn that bridge (tell him to fack off) and find another dealership

[sevi21]

Originally Posted by shawnperolis

Yeah, I guess trying to do the right thing at your car dealer isn't worth the effort. Next time I'll be sure to treat everyone like shit.

Just remember not all dealerships are like that. But like you were saying, i would
never go back there... Not for service or anything man

[whtchocla7e]

The dealer should be reponsible to inspect the trade before they agree to buy it.
If they neglect to do so, it's their problem.

In your case they knew what they were doing. Now they want to recoup the money from putting the car back to stock out of your pocket. Don't fall for it. I wouldn't give them your springs or any other parts.

[russv]

Originally Posted by shawnperolis

haha true dat. I was just really upset that I made a special trip out there to do something nice for my salesman (they bought the car knowing it was lowered... It's not like it wasn't obvious, it was tucking tire and I even told them that it was on aftermarket springs) and instead of thanking me for doing something that I had no legal obligation to do, the service manager just started accusing me of ripping them off. Telling me that he "appraised the car with the aftermarket intake" when he didn't even pop the hood to know that it had one in the first place (I was there when he went over the car and appraised it and so was the salesman, who did back me up on that)

So I just grabbed my stock springs and left. The guy was like "wait, we need those" and I said "Well, you appraised the car without the stock springs." I felt like a bamf for such a clever comeback. hahahaha

You did the right thing by being honest and trying to help them out.

[shawnperolis]

Originally Posted by whtchocla7e

The dealer should be reponsible to inspect the trade before they agree to buy it.
If they neglect to do so, it's their problem.

In your case they knew what they were doing. Now they want to recoup the money from putting the car back to stock out of your pocket. Don't fall for it. I wouldn't give them your springs or any other parts.

I don't plan on it. I called that guy's manager this morning but didn't get through, left a message with his secretary and I'm hoping he calls me back. We'll see what he has to say. I'm not sure what to expect really, I'm just calling in to complain but if he does anything at all to try to make amends I might be able to let it slide and go back. Even an apology from the asshole who yelled at me would be fine.

Apparently the guy who chewed me out wasn't the Service Manager, he was the "Used Car Manager" so I don't know how nice the service department actually is. But I would recommend to never trade in a car at this dealer, because they have some seriously shady business practices.

[Saab2Frs]

If you already signed a contract for the FR-S and drove it off the lot, then they don't have a leg to stand on. When I bought my first Saab it was from the Saab/Hummer dealership I worked for. They serviced the car when it came in and quoted me a price that was $300 above what they paid for it, which is the typical employee discount. I signed the contract and drove it home. The next day my manager comes up to me and says I owe them another $1700 because they "forgot" to add in the service bill (the car needed new tires and some other stuff). I contacted my father, who is an attorney, because I didn't just have $1700 lying around. He said that I already signed the contract and there was nothing they could do.

Next time, after the contract is signed just show it to them, laugh in their face and walk away.

I hate to say it, but I don't think there are a lot of "good" car buying experiences out there.

I even had a bad experience when buying the FR-S. I went to Subaru first to look at the BRZ and I was going to buy one, but the dealership wouldn't let me test drive it without a deposit. Went to Toyota. The salesman said "How will you know if you want the car without a test drive." He got me the keys and we were off. The worse part about it came when dealing with the finance guy pushing all these extras on me. I wanted to tell him to shove it, but I was trying to be polite.

[shawnperolis]

Originally Posted by Saab2Frs

If you already signed a contract for the FR-S and drove it off the lot, then they don't have a leg to stand on. When I bought my first Saab it was from the Saab/Hummer dealership I worked for. They serviced the car when it came in and quoted me a price that was $300 above what they paid for it, which is the typical employee discount. I signed the contract and drove it home. The next day my manager comes up to me and says I owe them another $1700 because they "forgot" to add in the service bill (the car needed new tires and some other stuff). I contacted my father, who is an attorney, because I didn't just have $1700 lying around. He said that I already signed the contract and there was nothing they could do.

Next time, after the contract is signed just show it to them, laugh in their face and walk away.

I hate to say it, but I don't think there are a lot of "good" car buying experiences out there.

I even had a bad experience when buying the FR-S. I went to Subaru first to look at the BRZ and I was going to buy one, but the dealership wouldn't let me test drive it without a deposit. Went to Toyota. The salesman said "How will you know if you want the car without a test drive." He got me the keys and we were off. The worse part about it came when dealing with the finance guy pushing all these extras on me. I wanted to tell him to shove it, but I was trying to be polite.

Wow, that really sucks. At least I'm not alone in my awful dealer experience!

I guess dealers don't have to treat people honestly because they are going to stay in business no matter what.

[Saab2Frs]

Originally Posted by norsamerican

if he is the service manager your going to have to deal with him in the future for all maintenance and warranty work..id burn that bridge (tell him to fack off) and find another dealership

I like this. In a time when consumers are becoming smarter and well informed about their options, why is it some car dealerships refuse to do good business? They'll lose their own customer base if they continue to treat people like they don't matter.

[Mandy]

Originally Posted by Saab2Frs

I even had a bad experience when buying the FR-S. I went to Subaru first to look at the BRZ and I was going to buy one, but the dealership wouldn't let me test drive it without a deposit. Went to Toyota. The salesman said "How will you know if you want the car without a test drive." He got me the keys and we were off. The worse part about it came when dealing with the finance guy pushing all these extras on me. I wanted to tell him to shove it, but I was trying to be polite.

Same kind of thing happened to my brother. He was looking for a particular Camaro, already had numbers prepared and exact options/trim. Out of all of the Camaros at the dealer ship we went to, they didn't have a single one that matched his specifications (and he was open on color). Rather than work with him, they tried to push a more expensive model that he wasn't interested in, and at no point offered a test drive, despite the fact that he was willing to pay in full with cash.

Ironically, on the way home he pretty much forced me to go to the Toyota/Scion dealership, and the rest is history. I was treated so well there he ended up getting an FJ cruiser not too much later.

We stopped by a Subaru dealership one day, but they only had one, and it was 'returned'. As the story went, some guy who drove an R8 wasn't thrilled with it and traded it back in. Wasn't sure if I bought the story, and I couldn't wait for them to get one in.

[shawnperolis]

So I've got an update... The head honcho at the Don Joseph Toyota called me back. Instead of offering me an apology, he accused me cheating his used car manager. He said that they would have to spend 3,000 dollars to replace the springs and resonator tubing and that I was to be blame for falsifying the car to the appraiser. He also lied to me and said that the check engine light was on, and I had just spoken to my salesman 20 minutes before who told me nothing was wrong with the car and that he had literally just checked it out before I called.

After lying to me and accusing me of basically fraud (and never apologizing for his used car manager lying and doing the same thing) he had the NERVE to ask me to come and bring the springs back. I told him that I had simply called and expected and apology and that before this conversation I would have brought the springs back, but now I'm just going to throw them away.

p.s. 3k to replace a piece of plastic tubing and put stock springs back on a car? Does he think I'm an idiot?

[Mandy]

Originally Posted by shawnperolis

So I've got an update... The head honcho at the Don Joseph Toyota called me back. Instead of offering me an apology, he accused me cheating his used car manager. He said that they would have to spend 3,000 dollars to replace the springs and resonator tubing and that I was to be blame for falsifying the car to the appraiser. He also lied to me and said that the check engine light was on, and I had just spoken to my salesman 20 minutes before who told me nothing was wrong with the car and that he had literally just checked it out before I called.

After lying to me and accusing me of basically fraud (and never apologizing for his used car manager lying and doing the same thing) he had the NERVE to ask me to come and bring the springs back. I told him that I had simply called and expected and apology and that before this conversation I would have brought the springs back, but now I'm just going to throw them away.

p.s. 3k to replace a piece of plastic tubing and put stock springs back on a car? Does he think I'm an idiot?

Yup, sounds like the time to cut all strings with that dealership. I drive a little further to go to a Toyota/Scion dealership with better service, I would recommend you do the same, clearly they're not worth your business.

[Saab2Frs]

Originally Posted by Mandy

Same kind of thing happened to my brother. He was looking for a particular Camaro, already had numbers prepared and exact options/trim. Out of all of the Camaros at the dealer ship we went to, they didn't have a single one that matched his specifications (and he was open on color). Rather than work with him, they tried to push a more expensive model that he wasn't interested in, and at no point offered a test drive, despite the fact that he was willing to pay in full with cash.

Ironically, on the way home he pretty much forced me to go to the Toyota/Scion dealership, and the rest is history. I was treated so well there he ended up getting an FJ cruiser not too much later.

We stopped by a Subaru dealership one day, but they only had one, and it was 'returned'. As the story went, some guy who drove an R8 wasn't thrilled with it and traded it back in. Wasn't sure if I bought the story, and I couldn't wait for them to get one in.

Yeah, I dunno if I would buy a story about a guy who traded in his R8. If he had an R8 then I'm sure he could afford a BRZ on the side.

[Crackseed]

Sorry to hear about the experience man - I wish I could give everyone the experience I had buying my car and the continuing support I've been getting. This was my first car purchase ever [my prior cars were all second hand private deals] and it was the smoothest and most enjoyable event I could have asked for.

Granted, I did not trade in my car because at 100k+ miles they just were not willing to offer much on principle [and I understood that] but they didn't ever try to pull any fast moves on me and it was just a relaxed exchange from the moment I walked in.

But I definitely agree with everyone else that you really went above and beyond and shouldn't waste any more time fussing over the dealership if that's how they are going to treat a customer.