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Stories from the Sales Frontlines
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Glad you are enjoying your car again. Remember, the Audi's had UA too many years ago, nothing was ever found. I believe they thought it was happening because the gas and brake pedals were closer than normal, and were at the same level.
It is possible there are lots of people accelerating by accident and this is a convenient excuse to blame it on the car.. When we stay in Florida every day a car goes through a store, or runs over people walking along, because of people hitting the gas pedal accidentally.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
I do believe that they'll make some nice money on the Tahoe.....I'd bet they'll net $2,500-$3,000, maybe more. But, that's not my concern at this point.
It's a risk on their end, too. There are dealers that still have '09s on the lot loaded up like mine, that they're offering $9K off. That puts them at about $42K-$43K for a new one identical to mine. The new ones, even the 2010s, haven't changed at all....except for a few trim pieces.
nycarguy's picture of his Dad's new Tahoe looks nearly identical to mine, except for the color.
Still, that's a far cry for $25K-$26K for mine (what I estimate it will sell for), that shows well....and still has power train warranty left. There's no reconditioning the Acura dealer has to do. they can probably make even more money by offering an "extended warranty" for those who are skittish about it, and make even more.
I still say they'll put it on one of their lots (they have a lease resale company, in addition to the Acura store, a Kia store, a Honda store and a couple of Hyundai stores). They won't take it to auction (which is what I'm assuming the $20,500- $21K number is).
Mr. Costco was a stroke to be sure as I stated before.
Wanting to drive the Tahoe again bears that out. You should heve told him " It's going to drive the same way it did before"
A lot of strokes out there.
A "tempest in a teapot" methinks!
Just curious, why don't you have the patience? You do this all day, every day.
I would have reacted the same way you did to the Costco guy. He had his chance and certainly should have known there was a good chance you would trade it in. Did you take just a tiny bit of satisfaction in telling him it was gone?
2013 LX 570 2016 LS 460
mako - good move on the Avalon.
I got 32.4 going and 30.9 coming back
Wow. Must have been a heck of a Hamfest.
Always trust your gut in situations like that. You can't put your finger on it because it was a combination of a bunch of insignificant things that your subconcious added up to make more than was obvious on the surface.
IMO a gut feeling is just as important as getting input from any of your other senses.
That was an interesting story, articulately expressed.
He admitted that he had been looking for a month and that he had walked out of several stores that "wouldn't deal".
He liked the car and we got along well. I showed him the Inspection Report and Car Fax. It was a NICE one owner, well cared for Civic that we had spent almost a thousand dollars on fixing every little thing that it needed.
He even said he thouight the price was fair before offering 1000.00 less OUT THE DOOR! I love these OTD offers like we have any control over sales tax and license.
So after deducting that, his offer was almost 2000.00 less than our sale tag.
Before he walked, I told him " You're going to lose this car"
He smirked at me and said " Oh well, if it's meant to be, it's meant to be".
Two hours later I sold this nice Civic to a lady who just loved it.
Then the guy calls me..." I told my daughter about it and she really want's it, can you sharpen your pencil"
I resisted the urge to tell him that I was the person who had sold the car!
I love it!
I love it when someone outsmarts themself.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
houdini, fezo, snake, verdugo, stick, jay, tall, et al. thanks. That was pretty much, blow by blow. I don't know if it's too much detail, or not.
My daughter, who has lived her entire life within 5 miles of the ocean, somehow forgot about the combination of tides and storms and drove her car into what she figured was a puddle but was more like a temporary expansion of the bay. I suspect she killed it (especially since she tells me water got into the cabin - a fair amount of it). If so I'll likely take the insurance money (which won't be much; it was a miled up 99 Camry - Richard - I hope you appreciate the use of a semicolon.) and get something newer for the Mrs. and let her have the Accord. She'll have to finally learn a stick but that's fine.
Surely you jest. (apologies to Maynard G. Krebs)
This falls into the "does a cat have an orifice with which to relieve itself?" category.
Plus which, there's that "to be continued" thing. I really miss that guy -- sad that we had to miss him longer than we needed to.
I'll bet you'll really enjoy the TL.
I certainly like my TSX.
Good story -- thanks!
You made the right choice trading in the Tahoe. Like you said, you don't know if the guy is stroke or if he's got the dough. The tax benefit plus the added piece of mind knowing that "his wife doesn't want him to get something that big in case she has to drive it..." and then you've got to list it in the paper & sell it yourself is worth the extra money.
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2025 Camry SE AWD
I still laugh about the story one of the salespeople told about the guy who negotiated with a green pea on a hot selling car (a Mazda, if memory serves). The green pea inked a deal that was over $1000 less than the going market price for that model. The sales manager was going to honor the deal but prior to delivery the buyer calls up and tells the SM that he's talked with some "expert" friends and he's decided that the dealer is screwing him over; he wants an even better price or the deal is off. Needless to say, the SM gladly agreed to ashcan the sales contract. After shopping the price a bit the shrewd buyer returned expecting the
SM to honor the original deal- and became irate when the SM refused.
Poetic justice.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
Richard
Richard
I drove some club members in my convertible yesterday for the St. Patrick's Day Parade. My car was waxed, polished, and detailed to the hilt. I had so many nice compliments on it. During the parade, my wife and her friends waved from the curb. She shouted, "You look good in that car!" I shouted back, "You still can't drive it!" That little response cost me dinner out last night.
Richard
2013 LX 570 2016 LS 460
With regular car keys, I always have them in my hand already after I pull my cars into the garage, and place the keys on the counter in my kitchen. I think they're going to get some wash duty. We'll see how durable the FOBs are as they go through the spin cycle.
I'm a creature of habit, I suppose. I've never seen an issue with putting the key in the switch and turning it to start any car.
But, the G 37 had push button start/FOB, too. So, I guess this is something I better get used to as it looks like car companies are falling in love with push button start.
I'm sure that the car companies made some sort of spreadsheet showing the cost of cutting car keys with little transponders in them with lock cylinders on the sterring column (which don't need batteries, BTW), and the cost of key FOBs with small PCBs in them. I'm sure they saved a few pennies going the key FOB route, especially since they no longer have to install a key tumbler into the steering column. Voila! It's now a luxury feature.
But then where would I put my watch? (yes I carry a pocket watch)
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Guess it's time to read the owner's manual. :shades:
Richard, if you (I) make an error, admit it and move along. Denial doesn't equate to remedy.
GG, tell me about the good stuff inside the TL. Do you like the stereo? Does it have USB for playing Mp3s without Ipod like Avalon as batteries go dead? Are you going to pinstripe it? Rear shade? Rain sensors? I like Hondas storage places all over and assume TL has the same. I'm always looking for places to store small hi value items.
2013 Mustang GT, 2001 GMC Yukon Denali
Well done.
Randy
Why would you suggest such a thing?? Ugh!
2025 Ram 1500 Laramie 4x4 / 2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic
Stereo....I'm trying to wrap my arms around. Somewhat familiar with it as I have the Nav in my Accord, also. The one in the TL performs better and has many more "features". The "lane selection" (shows what lane you should be in for route/exit/planning) is a very nice upgrade over the one in the Accord. Plus, the stereo is quite a bit better as it plays in surround mode....even discrete surround if you have DVD-Audio disks (which I use in my home system). It plays just about everything....I plug in my iphone to play music. The steering wheel buttons control everything on my iphone....calls (via Blue Tooth), music and playlist selections. It also charges my iphone when plugged in.
Voice recognition (which I use a lot) has improved dramatically. The one in the TL hasn't been wrong once since I've used it (what? a couple of days?).
I know people will spend a ton of money for aftermarket stereos (with debatable results). I personally can't see where I could make a significant improvement by doing that, though. It's certainly the best car stereo I've ever heard.
I can also load a bunch of songs onto a USB drive, and it plays those. It will even stream the music from my Iphone via blue tooth, without having a physical connection to the iphone. In short, pretty impressive.
To my knowledge, it won't play DVD movies, and I'm glad for that. One of my biggest pet peeves when driving is to see a DVD playing in someone's vehicle. There are quite enough distractions (and safety concerns) on the highway without having someone trying to drive and watch a movie/text/try to dial their phone etc in a moving vehicle. I believe watching movies in a any motor vehicle, moving or stationary should be outlawed in every state. I know in some car stereos, there exists the capability to watch movies while parked. Those are hacked to allow it while moving.
Even in my Tahoe, it had a rear seat DVD player. Never used it in the nearly 4 years I owned it.
I've heard all of the excuses...well, while I'm driving I want my wife, my significant other, my kids, my passenger, etc to be able to watch a movie. That doesn't hold water for me. I think any police officer who sees a movie being played in a moving vehicle should issue a ticket. The fine for that ticket should be $1,000 first offense, $2,500 for the 2nd and $6,000 the 3rd. If they still don't get the picture, an automatic one year license revocation after that.
Rant over.
Rear shade? I've got one of those folding reflective cardboard "thingies" I can put in the rear window when parked in the sun. Usually I use that for the front windshield, though. And, I don't use that very often....only when I park my cars at the airport for an extended period of time. In the summer, I just roll all of my windows down and my cars cool pretty quickly.
Rain sensors? Not sure what those are. I have interval wipers that speed up or slow down depending on how fast I'm going and how much rain there is.
Pinstrip, tint, wheels? No! I like it the way it is. If I didn't, I wouldn't have bought it.
I think I've got like 60 miles on it now. Furthest I've taken it is across the OH River to meet some friends for dinner Saturday night at a Northern KY area called "newport". So, I'm not even close to understanding everything the car can do (other than perform quite well, in dry and wet.
I've only seen one other current gen TL on the road around me. And, I only saw it once (a white one). As I said, these aren't the most popular cars out on the market right now....at least not around me.
My son is warming up to the Accord as his job prospects upon graduating from college are looking pretty slim. So, hopefully that will continue as I'm car buying satiated for the time being.
now, that's funny right there....I don't care who you are..... :P
I have had the push botton start for about 2 1/2 years now. I thought it was a bit of a gimmick until I got in the RAV4 rental car.
Compare, putting your key straight in and pressing a button...all in one motion, to poking around behind the steering column and then turning your wrist, and bringing your arm around the steering wheel.
I am not saying it is a big deal, but it sure is smoother and easier, especially when you are trying to find the key slot behind the steering wheel when it is dark, and if it isn't lit up. :mad:
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
So your ipod/iphone charges in the port? Great. I have that bluetooth thing, but I told the dealer to skip over it as I don't talk and drive. Maybe I'll get them to make that work. I can barely call home on my cell phone as I can never find the call list and use recent calls for a menu.
Rear shade is nice. Sitting at a light I had a lady that seemed to be staring into my rear view mirror. I hit the shade switch...then she really glared as the panel went up and blocked her view. I have rain sensing wipers. They scare you the first time they come on by themselves. However while passing an 18 wheeler in the rain they speed up just the right amount then settle back down after passing. Nice hands free device.
Sounds like you got what I really wanted to get. All cars nowadays have ample HP so I judge a car by its stereo and overall looks. Next year I think a TL will be on my list. You made the TL stereo sound like a winner.
2013 Mustang GT, 2001 GMC Yukon Denali
The JBL stereo in the Avalon is no slouch either. I loved it in my '06. As for rain-sensing wipers, probably one of my favorite features in my '09 Genesis. That is gonna be a tough feature not to have on any future car for me.
2025 Ram 1500 Laramie 4x4 / 2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic
Thanks for sharing the details, and congrats on the car!
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2015 Kia Soul, 2021 Subaru Forester (kirstie_h), 2024 GMC Sierra 1500 (mr. kirstie_h)
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driver....you could very well be right about the key FOB. However, it still reminds me of a step backwards. Going to car shows seeing some of the "old" models, the ones with "push button start" from what? 1930s? Maybe the 1940s? I keep thinking, hey we're going backwards.
I understand that's a simplistic view, as the new key FOBs have all sorts of security involved, as well as many more features than those "old" systems. Still, I'm OK with using a key.
Now, what I'd really like is to have the windshield/windows that "tint darker" the brighter the day is (I think like those glasses they advertise). Now, that is something I could use.
Anyway, mako, just a guess, but if you're serious about getting rid of the Avalon (which I think is a very fine car, BTW), you should look at the Base TL with the tech package. The one I've got (AWD) has a stiffer suspension and larger wheels/tires. Some people don't like the ride that it offers. Personally, I find it perfect ride/handling. Coming from an Avalon, you'd probably like the FWD TL, though. It will handle better than the Avalon, and while not as cushy, will ride closely comparatively, too.
tjc....funny you mention features. All these cars (Genesis, Avalon, BMW 3, TL, etc) are technical wonders. As driver states, maybe I'll really like the key FOB in the pocket, push button lock/start deal. We'll see.
I know the Benz C series used a FOB, but you actually had to insert it into a slot and twist it (like a key). That was pretty slick. Audi was the same deal...put the FOB into a slot and "push" to start.
Maybe if I had a car that could "sense" when it was raining and turn on automatically, I'd really like that feature. But, it would be just my luck I'd go through a car wash and they'd turn on, while being ripped away by the car wash equipment.
It's going to take me a little while to absorb and understand everything on my car. I'm still amazed that whenever I get in and a call comes through on my phone, the phone number shows up on the car's screen. Now I know who's calling me (and if I really want to answer).
Mike...premium fuel it is. I'm going to miss just pulling up to the pump and not choosing the cheapest grade. On the other hand, the TL's mileage should be world's better than what I got on the Tahoe. I used to cringe everytime I figured the MPG on the Tahoe....especially if I hadn't been doing any interstate driving on that particular tank.
Although it might be aggravating to pay 10% more for gasoline when you first pull up to the pump....consider this, you are probably getting close to 10% better gas mileage by using premium fuel, not to mention much better performance from a more refined engine. If you spend $2000 a year on gas, then an extra $200 to get those advantages shouldn't be a deal breaker.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
GG, the new key fob is taken from you when you go in for service, it is inserted into the big computer which is hooked up to at Acura headquarters, and they know your cars complete history and probably more about you than you know. They have all your data on file, so you don't have to look around for hours to get your ownership or original invoice out of the glove box.
The old key won't do all that. Just hope you don't lose it though, that costs more than a simple key to replace, and the corner store won't cut you one for 50 cents :sick:
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
I experience it all the time from car sales to selling stuff on craigslist or ebay.
You have people saying they'll come in, or wanting to hold items for them while they contemplate on life, yet they wouldn't even bother to give a courtesy call if they decided on buying something else. Then they get huffy if you sell your stuff to someone else as if the world is supposed to stop for them while they take their time.
Anyways you snooze you lose Mr. Costco. You should direct him to the Acura dealer where you traded your Tahoe and ask for a bird-dog from the dealer for doing so if a deal is struck :P
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
The dealer will never sell that Tahoe for such little profit especially since it just arrived.
If they paid $21400 for it, they'll need to add an inspection and oil change ($100-$500), PAC (non comissionable cost added to net cost) $500-$1000, and then mark it up. So the Tahoe might actually stand them $22000-$22900.
They probably won't let it go for less than $24900 until it becomes an old age unit.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX