Stories from the Sales Frontlines

greanpea68

complained about them having to spend 2.5 hours at the dealership to complete paperwork and pick up their vehicle

Oh what a feeling? .... We have one F&I person at our store and when you get 3 or 4 deals on a Thursday night at 7PM and you are the last person putting your deal in you always know you aren't leaving till 11pm at night. Luckily we have Dish network

It's always tough situation for everyone. The customers just want to take delivery with out doing paper work, The managers are upset because they have been there sincee 8:15 in the morning, and I am worried about the customer flaking/leaving and bad CSI because they had to sit there that long.

Never a good time.

That is when I do what I call my shadow tricks for the customers.

GP

madmanmoo

Ugh,

Glad you got the sale, but I wish some folks would be a little bit more considerate.

Thanks for sharing!

-moo

greanpea68

I can't believe Frank still works there.

Remeber that he said he was on vacation.

Some guys in this business go on vacation and are never heard from again

GP

kyfdx

Are you a mystery shopper or something for Edmunds ?

No, but I'll bring that up at the next staff meeting!

Let's just say that I'm always in the market... :surprise:

psorter

"If I just walk away, then the dealer is guilty of auto theft of my car at the very least. Finally, how can I be sure that they would let me leave, depending on how desperate this dealership must be in the first place?"

Hmm, I would just tell the dealer I will call a towing company and have the car blocking me towed if it's not removed in 1 minute (on his penny), or just refuse to talk to him until the car is unblocked

greanpea68

(it was one of those risky closing techniques that thank goodness worked) Well he came back later on that night and bought ours. Yay for me!

In a situation like thatis when I say the better salesman gets the deal. You must have did everything right! We have mutiple stores also. We all do the same pricing structure so thats why I think this job comes down to sales skills.

nice job

GP

speterson1

It's always tough situation for everyone. The customers just want to take delivery with out doing paper work, The managers are upset because they have been there sincee 8:15 in the morning, and I am worried about the customer flaking/leaving and bad CSI because they had to sit there that long.

Never a good time.

That is when I do what I call my shadow tricks for the customers.

GP

Which now of course begs the question -- what are your shadow tricks? Like, do you do a dog, and an elephant, etc. etc. or is this a term for something more interesting?

Enqiring minds want to know.

greanpea68

In my experience, car salespeople don't get out to other dealers, all that much..


Thats one of the reasons I like to do swaps. Especialy to other dealers because I get a feel of how they operate and I can use that info to close deals.

GP

lrguy44

Let's just say that I'm always in the market..

Serious or just wasting salesmen's time on Saturday - our $ day

rockylee

I'm not so sure that your fiberglass and plastic cars of today could blow away the old cars of the 50's and 60's.

Well according to a article that MT, done a few years back the average car like the camry V6 would smoke the majority of Muscle Cars in all area's if we are comparing factory to factory stock.

My father had a red and white 1956 Crown Victoria with a V-8. That car sucked up everything on the road.

I'm sure it did in 1956 and probably some of the 60's. Really all those old cars were good for was squealing their non-grippy tires that you guys called rubber back then.

As to safety, it was like a Sherman Tank. I had rather drive it today than anything else on the road.

I'm sure you would as it would be a collectable. But to be a daily driver, I'll pass.

The bottom line is we have evolved and I've had this conversation with my pops before and had to prove to him what those cars really ran in 0-60, quarter mile times, top speed, and he agreed their is no contest with handling. As I said to him a freaken 2005 Pontiac GTO, could beat any factory car from the 50's and 60's. I further rubbed it in when a 4 door Cadillac, can do the same. :P

-Rocky

jmonroe

Would I do it, NO, you are now in a "gray" area of capturing a person...

...heavy duty kidnapping implications.

I've been pretty busy today, the employer actually wanted me to do something. :surprise: So I haven't had a chance to get back to this form till now.

Thanks for your response. I'm going to get that thought out of my head right now.

Too bad, I really liked my idea.

jmonroe

kyfdx

Pretty rainy and nasty on Saturday..

Just cruised one lot (to gauge TSX inventory)..

Stopped at VW to check out the GLI (he might have wasted an up, but I was only customer on a 300 car lot). Actually turned down a test-drive of the new R32, as I wasn't in the market for a coupe. He begged me.. Didn't tell him, but if it had been a stick, we would have had a nice ride..

Third stop was at the Porsche dealer. Believe me.. all they had was time.. Found out I could get $10K off MSRP on corporate/demo Cayman with about 6K miles.. Salesman was pretty uninterested, though.. Never even offered me a test drive. I've got his card.. I'll make sure I don't ask for him, if I go back.

It might be money day for salespeople, but the weekend is the only time I can look. I won't feel guilty about it. All of those cars are a possible purchase for me, at some point in time. Surely, you don't sell many Land Rovers on the customer's first visit?

wesleyg

you're idea is a richly rewarding response, I'd bet the guys involved would never try it again, unfortunately too risky.

madmanmoo

Kyfdx,

How many times do I need to tell you...... I AM YOUR PORSCHE MAN.

Strange that they had a corporate demo. I was under the impression that the Atlanta stores had a lock on those because PCNA HQ is so close to us. Maybe it was a manager demo or something. Did you visit Lexington or Blue Grass?

At any rate, I know you keep talking about a smoking deal on a Cayman. If you're serious, I'll keep an eye out for something spectacular for you and then you can have an awesome road trip back up to Kentucky. You know you want it!

And as Joel keeps telling us..... "Imports are superior."

-moo

kyfdx

One of them had PCNA stamped in big red letters right on the window sticker...

Actually, I'm closer to Cincinnati, than either of those dealerships..

They have three of them.. Two are Silver/Black, and one is Blue/Black.. All MSRP around $54K..

My wife disagrees with you, by the way..

madmanmoo

I'm glad to know that actually. For some reason I thought the dealers here were the only ones to reap the benefits of having HQ so close.

Wow, Ohio has a ton of dealerships. So it must have been Beechmont or Northland.

What does your wife disagree with me on?

-moo

qbrozen

wow. so $44k?
good god I'm glad I didn't see something like that. i'd be desperately trying to sell a kidney!

madmanmoo

With that MSRP, they must have been Cayman manuals with very little extra equipment. Still a very good deal on those, especially when they are titled new to you.

-moo

kyfdx

What does your wife disagree with me on?

You know you want it!

So.. there you go...

Q: On the cheapest one, $43, 760...

In case you didn't know, it is illegal to sell a kidney.. Don't ask me how I know..

jescue

How many times do I need to tell you...... I AM YOUR PORSCHE MAN.

Oh no :mad: I was selling them first.. :P

kyfdx

They had Preferred Package (PPA?)
That's heated seats, dimming mirrors, rain sensor.. wheel cap crests?
Oh, and Porsche crests embossed into the head rests.. :surprise:

Not much else.. The one had the 3M clear film (or something like it)... The entire front, about half-way up the hood and fenders, mirrors, etc...

Not sure I like it up that far, but probably a $500-$600 job, at least..

And... uh... manual? That's the only we like them..

sterlingdog

I'm sure you are right. We old timers just die a slow death when it comes to opinions. Besides, it is fun to give you young rascals a run for your money.

chikoo

It depends.....

16 year olds not good enough for supercars, but if they join the AirForce, they can fly at Mach 3? how so?

joel0622

You can't join the Air Force at 16, and by the time a pilot gets finished with flight school he is in his 20's

mchappell

Last time I checked, they don't let 16 yo's fly jets. My guess is you're looking at 23 at the youngest.

Not even a valid comparison. They probably go through at least 1000 hours of flight training before flying anything that fast.

If you put a 16 yo through 1000 hours of driver training, I have no problem with them driving a supercar.

snakeweasel

In my opinion there is a decent chance that the Court may in fact sustain the charge.

That begs the question, how long does the scenerio have to play out before the court substances the charge? To be honest keys can get lost and it might take a little bit of time to sort things out and find them so how long? 10 minutes? 15 Minutes? half an hour?

snakeweasel

In the Vegas movie, he had a Ford Explorer - same color/same trim.

I want the cars they drove home in in the Vegas movie. :shades:

snakeweasel

I'm not so sure that your fiberglass and plastic cars of today could blow away the old cars of the 50's and 60's.

In the 70's I had a 69 Boss Mustang with the (IIRC) 427 engine. Thing was fast for its day, but there are so many cars out there that can beat the snot out of it. IIRC that Boss did 0-60 in just under 6 seconds, now you have V6's coming close to that, there are V8 sedans that can do under 5 seconds.

lrguy44

Surely, you don't sell many Land Rovers on the customer's first visit?

We do sell some on first visit - but most serious buyers tha one gets on a saturday buy within 2-4 weeks. Looky Lous either never buy or it is a year or 3 later. Hardly worth spending time with now.

mackabee

My mom had one of those! Same color too. That's the car I learned to drive in. Very nice. I went to a Chevy Biscayne with three on the column after the Crown Vic.

Mackabee

mackabee

We should be so lucky!

isellhondas

Wow, from a Crown Vic to a Biscayne six.

That was quite a step down!

explorerx4

i don't post here much anymore, but since you brought up '56 fords...
my dad brought home a black '56 fairlane 4 door.
i got hooked when he opened the hood and i saw those thunderbird valve covers.
my mom was so proud she could just drive away when someone ran into the back of the car resulting in a dent in the bumper, and the other car had to be towed due to a smashed radiator.
3 fords in the garages and another in the driveway.

roadburner

If you put a 16 yo through 1000 hours of driver training, I have no problem with them driving a supercar.

Me either. The problem is, 99% of the kids in that age group don't think anything bad can happen to them, and thus they are willing/able to take risks most adults wouldn't even consider. I still marvel that myself and all of my friends survived our teen years without suffering at least one death or debilitating injury. Seriously.

isellhondas

Yeah, when I think about some of the things we used to do, it's a wonder we didn't get killed.

jmonroe

I bet he is a good accountant.

Oooooooo, I think betting is a sore subject with 'joel'.

However, if you could entice him, what do you want him to post for a week? With his track record you'll probably win. :shades: (I came within a nats eyelash of posting with him)

jmonroe

wesleyg

how long does the scenario have to play out?

There can be no definitive answer to that, each case would have to be judged on its own merits. Of course keys can get lost, the salesman who parked the auto can wander away etc. My point being that a Judge and/or jury would be undoubtedly using a standard of what is reasonable and prudent under the circumstances in this specific case. My personal feeling is that anything in excess of perhaps 10 minutes elapsing without moving that car is actionable. It would take some mighty extenuating circumstances to get out of hot water if the time went beyond that in my estimation.

snakeweasel

My personal feeling is that anything in excess of perhaps 10 minutes elapsing without moving that car is actionable.

My personal experience is that at times 10 minutes can be way to short. All it takes is for a porter to mistakenly park the car there then go to lunch with the keys in his pocket. Nothing sinister about it just unfortunante.

cdnpinhead

". . .cruised one lot (to gauge TSX inventory). . ."

Holy s*** batman, am I not the only poster who is interested in this car? I'm contemplating blowing off my RWD bias to achieve a number of other goals. I did some polite & unobtrusive (I hope) shopping a few weeks ago in MA on a business trip & figured out that the Acura people are ready & willing to deal. However, a red one with a manual and no nav wasn't immediately available. I guess the good news is that there are only four possible option situations, plus colours: with or without manual, with or without nav. Gotta love packaged stuff (well, not really).

Either way, what do you think of the TSX?

kyfdx

Well.. other than a small horsepower bump, it's been the same car for almost five years now...

But, I really like it.. It has a real genuine Honda manual transmission, and that's a good thing.. Fat 17" tires, sport seats, xenons, leather, etc, etc.. NIce, tight size..

And, the lease deals right now are almost too good to pass up.... assuming you skip the NAV.

jmonroe

Every Christmas I look forward to watching it.

Gee, someone else does that too.

Every Christmas we go over to my brother's house. There is a house full. His four kids/wife, my two sons with their families, always some friends and you know who accompanies me. Well, it's a riot to listen to the kids say the lines before they are said, word for word. The lines from cousin Eddy are their favorites. Son # 2's wife is the newest permanent adult member to this group (5 years) she just shakes her head and says, "what kind of a family did I join"? :surprise:

Its gotten to be a family tradition just like the holiday itself, even Mrs. jmonroe chimes in when prompted.

jmonroe

mackabee

Well it was from a 55 Crown Vic to a 59 Chevy Biscayne.

cdnpinhead

Wow, interesting stuff.

Low lease rates on a car I wouldn't mind driving while I wait for the diesels to get over here and develop (or not) on a couple of cars I'd prefer more.

Thanks.

tidester

Perfect tense and all that.

Excuse me, but where is the verb? :P

Oh, I thought we had dropped the grammar talk. <hint hint>

tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper

greanpea68

i don't post here much anymore, but since you brought up '56 fords...
my dad brought home a black '56 fairlane 4 door.

Thats dating yourself

gP

greanpea68

lol :P

jmonroe

Oh, I thought we had dropped the grammar talk.

It just seems to be like a bad penny, that ain't never gonna go away. :confuse:

jmonroe

lemko

My first car was sort of a cousin to the Vista Cruiser. My car was a 6-passenger 1968 Buick Special Deluxe station wagon, the Buick Sportwagon's little sister. The Sportwagon was the Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser's Buick counterpart.

jipster

wesleyq: My personal feeling is that anything in excess of perhaps 10 minutes elapsing without moving that car is actionable.

snake: My personal experience is that at times 10 minutes can be way to short

If you had read wesleyq next sentence you would have read the part where he talked about extenuating circumstnces. i.e your porter example.

So, good grief man... let it go.

joel0622

3 fords in the garages and another in the driveway

I thank you, my wife thanks you, my daughter thanks you, my soon to arrive grandson thanks you, my 2 dogs and a cat thanks you, my mortgage company thanks you, Middle Tn Electric thanks you, Bell South thanks you, Ford Credit thanks you, etc etc