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Comments
Yes we disclose to them that they are being taped. It eliminates a lot of he said she said stuff.
Government Actions
In June 2002, the Minnesota Attorney General stated that an agreement with Denny Hecker Automotive Group and Walden Automotive Inc., had been reached in regard to its practices concerning automobile service contracts. Under the agreement, Hecker will make an audio recording of the entire business transaction of the selling of any optional insurance or service products. Consumers will be informed of the recording and be able to decline being tape recorded. The attorney general's office and/or consumers can request copies of the transactions. Hecker will not inform customers that service contracts are required, nor that getting a service contract will help with financing or that the contract is included in the price of the vehicle. The agreement is not an admission of fact, or violation of the law for any purpose.
On July 2, 2004 a supplemental agreement was reached between the Attorney General and Denny Hecker Automotive Group. In the supplemental agreement the Attorney General's Office alleges the company had violated the provisions of the original agreement. The supplemental agreement is not an admission of fact or violation of law for any purpose. In addition to fulfilling the original agreement, the company shall pay the State of Minnesota $250,000.
Recently made famous again by the movie Cars.
Thanks for the link. I’ll have to rent the DVD now that you peeked my interest.
I remember riding in them and they rode pretty nice. I also remember my uncle saying that the Hudson rode so much better than the Nash’s (another car everyone remembers) my father and another uncle had back then. The link mentioned that Hudson and Nash merged at some point. It’s hard to believe a car company like that would eventually fold. :confuse:
I never knew they were considered racing machines. Now I’m wondering why he never challenged his relatives to a race around the block. :surprise:
jmonroe
'15 Genesis V8 with Ultimate Package and '18 Legacy Limited 6 cyl
I think the word cheap was used when buying cars.
Terrypm if you would read earlier posts you would see that I viewed the F&I tape and it was miscalculation by the customer not adding tax and title before calculating a payment. The customer then decided to become verbally abusive in a manner that was way more than the situation called for.
Course that wouldn't be a first.
It's easy enough to get into a misunderstanding. You guys do this all day long. For those of us buying it's something we only do occasionally and some of the rules change from one transaction to the next.
It's certainly best to figure out each piece of the puzzle, and this guy could have figured out the discrepancy, but it just takes one brain fart to go into "I'm getting ripped off" mode. I would guess this would be doubly true for the oldest new car on the lot and triply so with an Element.
Course that wouldn't be a first
Sir, I beg to differ. If I were a less loving person I would take that as a slur on my profession. But I am a man with a big heart. Have a wonderful day.
You can have them sign 47 forms in triplicate and selective memory loss still kicks in when the ether wears off.
Once had an F&I guy from Louisiana. He was a ragin cajun for sure. He would offer to 100% of our customers, a service contract. A couple came in and bought a used cavalier. Declined service contract. 1 month later something major went bad on their car. As a good will gesture we towed their car to our dealership for free to have it looked at and diagnosed. Tow was about 65 miles. Customer was understandably upset and was making a scene in our showroom. Our ragin cajun heard the commotion and came out. In an extremely loud voice he starts berating the customer. " You big dummy I TOLD you to buy a warranty. Whats wrong with you?" Then when the customer started to protest that he hadnt been offered a cvhance he dragged them into his office and showed them the tape! It was pretty funny.
I think sales and profit would go up with a taped process. The reason being is allot of people will say they offer 100% of the product to 100% of the people 100% of the time, but we don't. I have embarrassed myself before by pre-judging and not offering a Lojack system to a customer and come to find out he was buddy's with my Lojack Rep and had a coupon in his pocket to buy one for $200 off, and I never even offered it because I was being lazy and only pitched the warranty and did not go through my menu.
Now if you are being recorded you will do it 100% of the time because ya never know when Big Brother might review a delivery.
I forget, what does F&I stand for? Fighting & Insurrection?
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
I have personally seen it happen a lot. Anyone else see customers with calculators in F&I?
I've always done that. Carhag already said he reviewed the tape and the F&I guy did everything right. Customer probably thought he was buying a car for x and calculated his payments x/months. He should've done x + taxes + fees / months. Depending on where you live and the car you buy, the taxes and fees can be several thousand dollars.
Actually, when I was in F&I full time I had quite a few (usually engineers) who brought thier HPs in with them. Were they ever surprised when the calculator match my computer. You do sound anti dealer though. Every place I have worked quoted OTD payments. Now I work the deaql right in front of the customer - it sure makes it easier.
bitterbetter?Thanks to my trusty calculator I was able to figure out the interest rate when they just wanted to tell me payments. Once I stopped laughing at the rate (over 5% higher than what I got), I got a good rate.
Besides, they have to tell you what the rate is don't they? Or is that just in NY?
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
Wow...so had bad did you get taken???
I'm guessing about 23.56% :P
The ideal up drives onto the lot. What kind of car is he or she driving (newer, older, the same make that you sell)? The driver is male, female, or a couple? He is young, middle-aged, or older? Dressed in jeans and a tee-shirt, neat but casual, or business dress? And when you ask if you can be of service, he or she replies ?
The truth of the matter is that you can't tell who is the best till after you meet them and start talking to them.
The ideal up is one that lets you sell them a car, truck, SUV. One that is happy with your service and lets you make all the money on them and they are still happy giving you perfect CSI.
Plus they also send refferals to you.
After 3 years they come back to you and buy again because you kept in contact with them.
So what fees were they quoted for T&L? was that also included on the tape? or not?
A. made the mistake
B. made a scene to try and get a better deal
C all the above.
Don't be so quick to pin it on the dealer :mad:
No... according to carhag it was not clear. He stated there was a "misunderstanding" and the explanation given wasn't satisfactory to bf/gf. He also insinuated the F & I guy could be abrasive. If the customer was given a price it should have been made clear that the price didn't include tax & title. I don't think someone would drive as far as bf/gf did to make a scene and get a better deal.... which eliminates
Mack
I do it, but remember i am a number cruncher and will take any opportunity to run numbers. Also as an accountant I tend to cringe when I see that numbers are not checked. We are always checking each others work at work and I really expect that in any financial calculation.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
When I was on the sales floor the perfect up was an older couple driving a 4 year old Crown Vic, when they got out of the car the husband had the Title and his check book in his front pocket and a UAW ball cap on, and the wife double checked the center console to make sure she did not leave any kleenex in the car they have come to trade.
You already know they want another white one just like there driving, there A-plan, and he is paying cash. 45 minute deal tops.
That my friends is "The Perfect Up"
I ignore them all, I know my info is right and no matter what your spread sheet or calculator says thats not what determines what goes on the contract I will be signing.
For those who figure it right I applaud there effort.
You would be amazed at how many chowder heads think the way you figure a payment is to multiply the bottom line by the rate and divide it by the term Thats usually what I get from my TI 34 slingers
a 'chowder head' is what?
Not to be confused with Knuckle or Chuckle Head. Also a couple of my personal favorites.
As a disclaimer, this all depends on the make of vehicle that you're selling.
I like to scope their car as they pull up. I sell Nissans and if I see a late model Maxima pulling up, I'm typically going to want to meet those folks. If I see an out of state or local county plate, I like to meet those folks. Out of state folks, because we get a decent amount of business from folks driving into town to purchase a vehicle in GA. We tend to have some better deals.
I like old folks, older single women and mom and dad with kids. I try to avoid women with notepads in their hands.
It really does depend, sometimes I can just get a sixth sense about folks. I try to avoid people who are in workout gear. People driving Volvos or Mercedes are typically not my interest either.
Keep in mind, these are all general ideas. I never stick completely to them.
As far as what their first response is.... that really depends. You have to ask a few questions to get an idea from them. The worst response to "how can I be of service"...... Who wants to sell a car today?
Hope that helps a little bit. These may seem obvious, but it's something to work on.
-MOo
They did make a scene and eventually got a token couple of bills off. Still no reason for the blow up was there? Cept the presence of the F&I guy.
I'm surprised at Joel. Looks like he loves to sucker in old people. Hope I haven't misread this guy.
Old Farmer needs an update as to "F&I". It stands for "Fibs and Insults".
As to taping, I wonder how many F&I's forget to disclose this to customers?
As to laptops and spreadsheets, some may not care what mine says, but his had better match mine if a deal is to be had.
As to the bf and gf deal, it is obvious that they are Red Necks. The burst of emotion is a defense strategy to save face because they don't have the intellect to understand the deal. Though some F&I's are there because they couldn't cut it elsewhere in the corporate world, I believe in this case that the bf and gf are just clueless. As we say in the South---"Bless their hearts!"
Then again, at least for my last three cars, I didn't wander on the lot, I haggled over email and brought my own financing. I guess that's why I might not be a good up.
Some of these F&I stories remind me of my late father. He was a gentleman and a saint but he would get his back up in F&I if he thought someone was trying to pull a fast one. Funny thing is now that I know better I know he had no clue what he was doing. He negotiated only on payments, always bought the mop and glow and felt it necessary to walk out two-three times just to get a lower price without even researching what a price should be..
Bet you never owned a Hudson Hornet...
He knows the movie by heart and has quite the toy collection. I got him a racetrack last weekend while I was up there with some of the characters from the movie.
MaCK
Mackabee