CONSIDERATE Salespeople & CONSIDERATE Buyers

andyman73 · December 2004

About 8 or 9 years ago, I was at Rahal Toyota/Lexus/Mercedes with my grandfather. We were there to pick up a couple of Tacomas for Dealer Exchange. While grandpa was in the office dealing with the papers I was on the floor looking at a beautiful SL600 convertible, black on black. An older gentle man came up to me an said I could have it for 90K cash OTD, sticker was 120K plus. His attitude was quite pleasant and had no assuming aire to it. We talked a few minutes, and he found that I knew what the car was and such.

I asked him why he even gave me the time of day, his answer....in this day and age with kids(remember he was of the silver hair generation) being pop stars or tv/movies, you never know when one of them may be in your dealership looking at your cars. Said those that don't recognize that won't make the sales.

I guess he made those sales. He saw the change coming, and when they "moved his cheese", he adapted and overcame.

Just my own 2 pfennigs worth

audia8q · December 2004

Hope everyone has a safe and fun night tonight.

Happy New Year!!!!

isellhondas · January 2005

That's a lot of writing for a post that's going to be quickly deleted!

cadillacmike · January 2005

Just wondering how you can predict the longevity of a post...

isellhondas · January 2005

Although, when you write a lenghty post without breaking it into paragraphs it makes it very difficult to read.

It's against the rules to post names of salespeople in these forums and you have done that seveal times. That will get your posts deleted.

cadillacmike · January 2005

Ed Morse Cadillac in Tampa FL.



I have bought 3 (all used - I can't afford a new Cadillac) cars from the same salesman. He's a patient chap and the entire dealership is not into the pressure cooker atmoshpere that a lot of the import dealers are. They do have their pricing in mind, but so did I all three times. Who I also liked was the sales manager(s). They were both down to earth, ran carfax reports on cars for me as well as GM vehicle histories and summaries - for many cars, several of which were not even on their lot!!!



1st car (5 yrs ago - a 1995 Fleetwood Brougham with 70,000 miles) I had been looking for either a Fleetwood or a Roadmaster, had seen a few but hadn't found "the one". Finally two showed up at Ed Morse at the same time. One had a "fake convertible top" (on a car that had a factory padded roof - what WERE they thinking?), and some "vouge" wheels It was the same color as my LeSabre though, so I considered it. For about 10 seconds until I saw the black one, with factory chrome wheels and no fake top (it had the factory padded top, which is fine by me).

We test drove it - I went with the salesman, my wife was still at work. We nearly ran it out of gas on a back road but we made to a gas station. Fortunately I didn't burn out the fuel pump. I liked it (it reminded me of my old black 1970 Fleetwood Brougham). So I went to work with them on price. It took about 2 days, which they needed to fix what "grandpa" (the 1st owner) did to the right side when he must have nearly torn the mirror off coming out of his garage. I worked about 2800 off with trade and the car price itself (my LeSabre was 8 years old with 175,000 miles on it). The F&I guy sold me a GMPP, not a bad thing, but the car didn't start acting up until it had about 120,000 miles - I guess I should be happy about that!



The salesman went to another Cadillac dealership, where I ran into him because our car club meets there. I told him THREE YEARS AGO that I was looking for a late model 1999 or later ElDorado with a convertible top conversion (a real convertible).

It took three years, but this past August, (he was back at Ed Morse now) he finally got one in on trade (for an $$$XLR) and he called me. He probably could have called a half dozen others but he didn't, even though, he knew that I would be going over the car with a fine tooth comb. I knew that the dealership could have sold that car in three days without doing ANY additional repairs or servicing which this guy knew that I would demand. So I thank him for that.

And man were there some service items that needed taking care of! First, my wife didn't like the vouge wheels & tires, and neither did I. The sales mgr agreed to switch them out for brand new factory chrome wheels for the correct year along with 4 new michelins (with whitewalls!). I agreed, the vouges probably cost more but were 4 years old, while the vouge tires were nearly new, but were just too unnappealing to us. I also noticed the remote trunk release was not working, they troubleshot that for me. When we opened the trunk, it was VERY dank, bad trunk seal, they ended up replacing the entire trunk lining and spare tire jack kit, etc. The car didn't have the Bose stereo, so the salesman got me the 12 disk trunk CD changer installed for a mere $30.00 (that was the only cash I laid out on this car). I got the parts guy to sell me the changer for over two hundred less than "retail". They replaced the battery with a new ACDELCO unit and had the inside door panel inserts replaced (they were loose).

This all had an impact on the price (i.e., I was not able to squeeze it as low as I could have otherwise), but they could have sold this car to anyone for more than what I ended up paying for it without doing any of the above. The F&I guy tried to sucker me on rates, quoting too high then coming down in 2 minutes when I told him I had that rate beat, so I called USAA and beat his "new better" rate by another 0.5%, but he wasn't unpleasant about it. I was just not in to mood to use dealer financing when USAA came up with better rates anyway. I ended up rejecting a toilet paper quality non-GM "warranty".



Then after my wife CRASHES the Eldorado (with a motorcycle, no structural damage, but $11,000.00 in new hood, bumper, fender, airbags, windshield, etc., etc., etc.) later, SHE WON'T DRIVE THE CAR! She's driving my Fleetwood (into the ground 60-80 miles per day), so I say "sweetie, lets get you another car, say a late model DeVille or maybe a Seville". "Too big" she says, so we look for a Catera, not a good idea the parts and service folks tell me, but I'm not listening; she "fits" a Catera better than a CTS (we test drove both) but I give up after 2 months being unable to find one with the options I wanted and the right color, not to mention some ludicrisly priced "internet" vehicles.

So we decide maybe a CTS would be OK. Good choice. Now back to the search. Finally find a few; more reports, carfaxes, test drives, the salesman is patient. New years eve, I had him and the sales mgr there until 7:30pm, when we all agreed, that none of the cars we were looking at that night really fit our needs. Three days later, I finally settle on 1 of 3 choices 1 with an 2 without NAV system all with 3K-9K miles.

We were originally NOT wanting the NAV system, but then the salesman tells me the new 2005s can play DVD movies. I told him (while sitting in the saales mgr's office negotioaing over a car without NAV) to tell that to my wife (who was out sitting in our Eldorado). She agrees on the one with NAV system, which I price down, in 30 seconds, almost 2,000 LOWER than the one without the NAV system (about 6,000 more miles on this one, but still less than 10K miles on it.). End of deal, I already had the bank financing wrapped up. I told them, it didn't need any work except for a front plate bracket, and that I'd be back in the morning to sign.

Signing took about 5 minutes the next day and my wife has one of the baddest rides around with a effective 5.5 year, 91,000 mile bumper to bumper warranty. My only misgiving was I didn't want another black car, and if I did, then I would have opted for the two tone lt.dk grey interior, not the silly "lt neutral", but then again the "used car factory" didn't have one in stock, and she's ok with the black color and prefers the silly neutral interior. I'm not going to clean it for her!



So kudos to the relaxed folks at Ed Morse Cadillac in Tampa for being real people.



Now I'm done car buying for I hope at least 6 years - unless the used car factory comes up with a 1992 Brougham with the 5.7 litre engine, leather seats, d'Elegance package and factory CD player (and guess what - I saw one in the club's monthly mag today oh oh)...

cadillacmike · January 2005

BTW, I know about the "no person's names rule" but I thought that I saw other posts with names allowed in this forum. It must have been one of the other forums, and not this one. Anyway I reposted with no names, a few extra paragraph breaks and some grammatical corrections.

audia8q · January 2005

is Ed Morse an AutoNation store?

isellhondas · January 2005

They get shills here once in awhile promoting themselves by telling the world got great their salesperson was.

cadillacmike · January 2005

And I'm not a shill, just an American who can appreciate good technical engineering over the years when I see it.

And Ed Morse isn't perfect either, their $500 doc fee is somthing that takes patience and a firm resolve to deal with and their service labor rates are sky high. (I guess they think all their customers have money growing on trees.) Their salesman however was and is a regular guy (who's wife is recovering from cancer btw) who has the patience to put up with an "engineer type" (as per your own description) like me who is pretty exacting and not overly tolerant of illogical behaviour in others.

And lastly, I don't work for Cadillac, GM or any part of the auto industry. I could tell you about my work, but that's TOP SECRET and (you know the rest of that punch line...)

pat · January 2005

Let me make a note to help clarify a couple of things I just read ...

Yeah, you might see salesfolks names posted in some places - usually that means that the host just hasn't seen that message yet.

If you read the "Rules of the Road" linked at the top of these pages, you'll see exactly what is allowed and not allowed when posting about dealerships - posting names of salespersons is off-limits. It doesn't matter what forum you are in; this is true in all of our forums.

If you have reason to think a host has missed an inappropriate message - which is always possible, we have a lot to read in a short period of time - just drop the host an email and it will be handled very quickly.

pricecutter · April 2005

The Ballad of the Lonely Car Buyer

Some would say
Price Doesnt Matter.
You really like the car
Then cut out the chatter.

On the other hand, I
Think its quite fair
To get the best price
The market will bear.

After all, our host (Edmunds)
Exists to Provide Cost
Without its help, we might
All be lost.

So, get the best deal,
Wherever you go,
And dont be ashamed to
Show them you know.

The difference between invoice
And Manufacturers Price.
Dont worry at all if they
Think youre not nice.

Alls fair in love and car buying
If you dont watch your wallet,
You may end up crying.

Cause you had to rush over
To draw from your bank.
And now you lack money
To fill up your tank.

boomchek · May 2005

hi everyone, after a 4 month absence i'm back. good to see some familiar names in here

gr8smile1966 · May 2005

Just wanted to let prospective Honda buyers know that Brewster Honda in Brewster New York was committed to making my 05 Honda CR-V SE purchase a pleasant experience.... and the internet salesman was very accomodating, coming in on his day off to close the deal personally. The car was in perfect condition and the salesman and the rest of the Brewster Honda staff were friendly and professional.

Kudos to Brewster Honda

for making my CR-V purchase experience so pleasant!!

Jeers to ~~Lia Honda in Albany~~ :mad: for a horrible customer service experience... you need refresher training on how to treat a customer properly....

gr8smile

Kirstie_H · May 2005

Welcome back, boomchek. Glad to see you here too.

gr8smile1966, congratulations, and glad you had a great experience. Thanks for also sharing details in our CR-V pricing discussion. Hopefully some of our other members who are Honda shopping will benefit.

purplebug · May 2005

I did it, I orderd my purple baby!!!! Had to have a cigarette and a smoke afterwards, but it was well worth it. Didn't do much negotiation as the final OTD was well withing my range. There were a few riduclous charges in the contract, but hey, let them have cake and ice cream. This also may be a pipe dream as we did not talk financing. I said that I would do it through Chrysler, so I got some nice rebates. Do not know if financing will be this easy,(did the ordering after banks were closed). But I am real comfortable around financing contracts so am not worried. Worse comes to worse, do it through somebody else.

I think that I was a nice customer, asked questions, he (saelsperson) was waiting for me to sign, I replied "still reading". He laughed, but was patient with me. Nice guy. Big up to Bigelow Motors in Belleville, NJ.

You guys had me so worried, I didn't see any of those weird charges that you all mentioned. Maybe it will be different from the financing, but I already checked with NJ DMV on fees and found that they did not screw me. Now the true wait begins.

Thank you all for the advice!!!

bryan · May 2005

Cigarette and a smoke afterwards--that must have been something to see!

Congrats on your new ride--hope you enjoy many many happy miles.

danf1 · May 2005

People had you scared about mysterious fees that only one in a hundred dealers actually charge. It sounds like you found a good reputable dealership with honest personnel. That is the norm in this business, even though most people will tell you otherwise. Congratulations and I hope you like your car as much as you should.

hondalady17 · April 2006

Hello ladypilot, this is Geri Sweet and I want to thank you for the compliment! However, I have no idea who you are and am dying of curiosity to figure it out! Keep in touch with me if you can!

Sylvia · August 2006

You are replying to a post from 2002, so it is likely that you won't get a response.

sky23213 · August 2006

This is a helpful info though, since this is the dealership where I do all the service for my CR-V. It's not where I bought it, but it's so convenient ( on my way to work). Now aside from the buying dealer - Hopkins Honda, where I had great buying experience - I know of another reliable salesperson when it is time for my next Honda (maybe sometime next year).

danellh · September 2007

I just had a most positive buying experience. The dealer in my town used the ol' "Well, let me talk to my sales manager" routine and guilty ploys, "I have to feed my family." So I called a dealer three hours up the road. There were no high pressure sales tactics just good honest win-win negotiating. When I went to pick up the car I was out the door in 30 minutes with keys and insurance in hand.

On the three hour drive home, I experienced near excruciating pain in my right leg. The make of the seat aggravated the sciatic nerve after about 45 minutes. I phoned the dealer when I got home and told him what happened. They took the car back and refunded my money without a hassle. I'm making this too simple . . . they were GREAT to work with, placing organizational interest, product image, customer satisfaction and their reputation above personal gain.

I'm sending a personal check for $100 to the sales person and another one to the sales manager to say thank you. I don't honestly know right now if I want to purchase another car so far from home but if anyone is going to help me find a car that will work for me I believe Kendall in Eugene, Oregon will. They have my loyalty. Check them out for yourself, you will be glad you did. I have a friend who purchased her car from them and she too speaks very highly of the sales and service.

tidester · September 2007

Wow! I am impressed.

tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper

mikefm58 · September 2007

"I have to feed my family."

That is so pathetic. I had a sales person use that on me once. I told him I'd get him an empty tin can and a sign so he could go hang out on the street corner.

jipster · September 2007

I believe you... but that's a hard story to believe. First time I've read of a dealership taking a car back due to uncomfortable seats. Glad it worked out for you.

british_rover · September 2007

I know a Land Rover dealer who took a Range Rover back because the people couldn't stand the heating elements in the windshield.

jipster · October 2007

I would think on a Range Rover that would end up costing the dealership about 5-10k, as they could no longer sell it new??? They must have been "special" customers.

british_rover · October 2007

They just unwound the deal. The paperwork was never sent to the office or the state, the lien was never registered and the car was never registered.

I think the car had less then 100 miles on it so it didn't really matter.

Range Rovers rarely come with less then 35 miles on the odo anyway.

driveright · December 2007

I just purchased a lightly-used Mazda 3 for my son. The initial contact and purchase were done through the internet sales manager. I am very happy with the entire process, and highly recommend them.

tidester · December 2007

Consider writing up a review in Dealer Ratings and Reviews!

tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper

oldfarmer50 · January 2008

This week I went to a dealer for a test drive of a car I had been interested in. I knew from sitting in this model that wit a sunroof there was not enough headroom for me to drive comfortably. As it turned out this dealer didn't have any without the sunroof.
I thanked him for his time and gave my phone number in case he got one in that I could drive.

Friday when I came home from work there was a message on my machine saying "Your car is in you can come over Saturday or Monday".

It seems they had "borrowed" from another dealer just so I could try it out.

How's that for considerate?

madmanmoo · February 2008

Agreed, that's a salesman who is interested in earning your business.

Slip him a twenty the next time you're in.

-moo

obyone · April 2008

Did you end up buying from that considerate salesperson?

I know, I know 3 months later with a question. Trying to kick start a dead topic.

oldfarmer50 · April 2008

"...Did you buy from that considerate salesperson?..."

As a matter of fact yes I did. I didn't buy the car they "borrowed", however. It wasn't the color my wife wanted. So in the end they "borrowed" another one.

obyone · April 2008

Now that's interesting. I never heard of borrowing a "demo".

Was there some type of relationship between the dealers to loan each other demos on request?

mitzij · April 2008

I believe you... but that's a hard story to believe. First time I've read of a dealership taking a car back due to uncomfortable seats. Glad it worked out for you.

How about for 'wrong color'?
We had a lady come in last summer. She knew the color she wanted-granite grey. She'd seen a car on another lot that color and wanted to order an Equinox. We order the car, get it in, deliver it-no problem.

Well, no problem until she sees her new car in the sunlight. It was dark and overcast the evening she picked it up. In the sun, this lovely grey color has a brownish sheen to it from a certain angle. She hated it. Refused to drive it anymore and parked it at our dealership. We had to call a GM engineer in to check the paint color-it was right. She ordered granite grey and that's what she got.
Five months later, she's got a new Equinox. In red.

jipster · April 2008

So your dealership took the car back? Hadn't been titled yet?

oldfarmer50 · April 2008

"...I never heard of borrowing a "demo"..."

Me either. Don't know how they did it. Perhaps they were lying about how they got it. It seemed like a nice gesture at the time though.

mitzij · April 2008

I think it actually had been titled. She had it all of two or three days, then parked it on our lot. It went through as a GM buyback.

joel0622 · April 2008

Me either. Don't know how they did it. Perhaps they were lying about how they got it. It seemed like a nice gesture at the time though.

We get cars "on a look" all the time from dealers we have a good relationship with. Gives them a chance to move a demo but they know we won't commit to putting it on our floor plan till it is sold.

joel0622 · April 2008

It went through as a GM buyback.

Ya if it was a buy back then it had to have been titled.

obyone · April 2008

Must've been a special customer. In all my dealings over the years with GM I found them to be the most resistant to buybacks of all the manufacturers. Now for them to bend over and do it on a "color" basis is most interesting.

CONSIDERATE Salespeople & CONSIDERATE Buyers

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CONSIDERATE Salespeople &amp; CONSIDERATE Buyers

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CONSIDERATE Salespeople & CONSIDERATE Buyers