Stories from the Sales Frontlines

cdn_tch

...If you believe that the oil companies can dial prices up & down at will - ...

Oil companies have a certain amount of freedom to set prices, and they used the crude oil runup last year to exaggerate the gas pump pricing. The comments by the oil companies that they were just passing along the higher cost of crude could of been believable if during that same time the same oil companies were not setting record profits. Those record profits had to come from somewhere. :lemon: :sick:

lrguy44

Maybe they are proud of where they bought the car. All we do is license frames and nobody complains but when I worked elsewhere a customer would occasionally asked for the sticker to be removed. No problem.

explorerx4

there are 2 MKZ's listed for 33.490. too bad you can't get the UAW incentive on it.
last month is was worth over 14k. i doubt many took advantage, since it is assembled by non UAW in mexico. :P

explorerx4

about selling cars for a living

car salesperson nightmare

snakeweasel

Forget that deal, if you want a Lincoln go here.

houdini1

You conveniently snapped two shots in a incredibly volatile market, from time where oil was up from its lows,

I didn't use snapshots, but you did. I used the entire year from 2007 to 2008 then 2009 up until the present.

If you want to ignore the valid points that were made and go off on some wild tangent that is entirely up to you. We need investors like you.

snakeweasel

Nope there is a $160.00 state imposed limit on doc fees.

Of course there might be a $40K charge for pin striping.

If you want I can swing by there tomorrow to see if I can buy it, its only a few miles out of my way.

explorerx4

heck, i will go first class to Naperville and buy a couple of them if they let me!

roadburner

I was surprised to pay an extra $250 for a Monster Cable $80, when a no name for $20 would do about the same, plus connectors and a few other parts. The Geek Squad did a good job, they were polite and neat, and I did expect to pay for some extras, but not an additional $250 with taxes etc. I think it is a new way to run up your bill, and at that stage you don't have much choice in the matter.

driver(or any fellow Smart Shoppers), please shoot me a PM before you get roped into buying overpriced accessories. I bought my Pioneer Kuro and a cheapie Samsung BD player at BB and the salesperson didn't try to sell me anything except an extended warranty- which I bought after getting him to cut the price 50%. There are some excellent online sources for cables and surge suppressors and I can point you in the right direction.

snakeweasel

http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=296097

imidazol97

I'm confused. Was the cable $250 or $80 when a $20 cable would work?

Sounds to me like you paid a document fee after the fact!

fezo

Yes, but they are really excellent pinstripes......

Hey, explorer - where is it in Connecticut you are again? I'm sure we passed right by you on the weekend. Never made it to Tim Horton's...

explorerx4

funny thing is, i was not around last saturday. i assume that is when you drove through.
early that day, i drove to Worcester Mass to see the new england high school rowing finals.
after that, i drove back to farmington, and an hour later got back in the car and drove up to the Riverside 'T' stop in Mass on my way to the red sox game.
got home about 12:30 am sunday.
just another 400 mile day.

fezo

Gee, and I was through Worcester on Saturday....

Heckuva weekend there. Of course we went NJ to NH and back so we weren't lacking for miles.

I keep looking at taht area right at the CT-MA border along 84. Beautiful little area. While Connecticut isn't a cheap state compared to NJ it is! Been poking on realtor.com and what no doubt look like pricey houses to anyone else look downright reasonable when used to the prices here!

jimbres

Maybe they are proud of where they bought the car.

Do you think so? Has this ever generated sales for you?

In my area, the dealer license plate frames are typically black with white lettering & show the name of the store, its phone number and/or its web address. IMO, any car looks better when you replace this with a plain black frame or simply go frameless.

As I said earlier, I've never encountered resistance from any salesman when I've asked that my new car be kept free of advertising. I just don't understand why most buyers tolerate this stuff.

fezo

I'm no fan of dealer frames or stick on names. I just take them off but that's me.

I'm actually a little hesitant to take the dealer stick on ad on my Celica but that's because the car's 10 years old and I figure the paint won't be the same color anymore.

explorerx4

depends in CT where you are thinking of buying.
we are not fairfield county.
highest listed home in town on realtor dot com

explorerx4

i am sure he bought some new cars

no cars here, but an ok place

fezo

So, you putting in a bid?

You can certainly find nuuty priced real estate almost anywhere...

driver100

please shoot me a PM before you get roped into buying overpriced accessories. I

I will definitely check with you 1st, in the future. You used to buy a TV, take it home, plug it in and you were set. Now you need the right cable box, the right cables, hook ups for DVD etc.

I'll run it by you before I do this again.....though the TV is fantastic.

driver100

I'm confused. Was the cable $250 or $80 when a $20 cable would work?

I paid $80 for a cable that could have cost $20. On Marketplace they showed how Best Buy tries to sell you the brand Monster, and they are 4X the price of the no-name cables that do exactly the same.

When they have finished it's too late, and they don't ask. They install what they carry in the Geek Squad truck, and I am sure it isn't the no-name brand.

I think this is a new game retailers have figured out. It is billing for the extras and making you pay, before you can even figure out what they are doing. Great TV though, but it was a bit of a scam.

roadburner

I'll run it by you before I do this again.....though the TV is fantastic.

Well, that's what really matters. In any event, I've set up more than a few home theaters for friends and I get a real kick out putting together a really great system for much less than most people expect.

oldfarmer50

"...why do customers allow dealers to festoon their new car with ugly badges..."

I wonder that myself. I'll let the dealer put the licence plate frame on because I can remove it when I want. I would never let them put some permanent decal on the metal.

I remember my father's cars had dealer bling which was mounted by drilling holes in the trunk lid. Ouch!

oldfarmer50

"...if you want a Lincoln go here..."

I notice they had the payment calculator set for 84 months. What's the monthly payment on an $8 car for that term? LOL

imidazol97

>On Marketplace they showed how Best Buy

I don't buy anything at Best Buy because of the past business attitudes and practices. Bought two TVs at HH Gregg, cheaper and and the purchase process was friendlier with a salesperson over 18 unlike Best Buy.

snakeweasel

What's the monthly payment on an $8 car for that term? LOL

Well with an 8% sales tax, the maximum doc fee of $160.00 and title for $78.00 I figure just under $4/month.

driver100

salesperson over 18 unlike Best Buy.

That is a problem, and the kid didn't really know too much either. I think it was the best price for a TV of that quality. Future Shop said Samsung held the patents for 52 inch TV screens, Best Buy said it was Sharp, so even they don't know what they are talking about.

I like to buy where the people ask questions like how will you be using the TV? Instead they show you the basic models, but then they say that will be obsolete, so you should get this newest model for $4500. But, does the average person need all the devices and performance that the TV at double the price has. Like a program that shows great pieces of art on your screen all lit up....when the TV is not in use. And the tracking is better so in a fast sport you can follow better - he says for golf the lower price one is fine, for hockey the faster tracking helps. I just want to watch the news and a sports championship once in awhile.......

dtezla

I'm out of the car business now, but when I was selling I did 8 years at Volvo, 2 years for Subaru & short stints for Chevy/Caddillac/Honda/Lexus. I had a passion for People - not cars. I enjoyed helping people purchase something exciting to them. Even when people have a passion for cars, they are often passionate about different aspects of the car.

dtezla

In my experience, most people honestly don't care if there is a license plate frame or sticker on the car. I'm actually the exact opposite from you - When I bought my wifes Scion, I had a nice experience & actually asked the salesperson to put the dealers license frame on. I wanted people to know where it came from & hopefully get more customers to go there. Even though I was in the business at the time (at a different dealership), I wanted people to know where a good experience was.

Story time... when I worked for a Subaru dealership, there was a long-term employee (technician) there that was looking to purchase a Baja. The owner of the dealership had a decent policy for purchasing new cars (invoice - any incentives). It was a small store & the owner was basically the general manager & appraiser as well. The tech got a trade value for his Subaru trade directly from the owner but was unhappy since it seemed considerably less than what he thought it was worth...especially considering that he had personally maintained it & purchased it at that dealership. So he went to a competing dealership (anonymously) and had them do an appraisal & work a deal on the Baja. It turned out that they gave him a deal (as a regular customer) that was close to $2000 better than what he'd been offered by his own store. He told the owner this, but the owner refused to match the deal. He ended up buying the car at the competing dealership & had their sticker & license plate frame on it. The biggest slap in the face of the owner was the fact they ended up dealer trading the car to the other dealership just to sell it back to their own employee!

Needless to say, he refused to remove the other company advertisement off his new Baja. Surprisingly - he still works there 3+ years later.

roadburner

I don't buy anything at Best Buy because of the past business attitudes and practices. Bought two TVs at HH Gregg, cheaper and and the purchase process was friendlier with a salesperson over 18 unlike Best Buy.

I've bought some electronics from HH Gregg as well. That said, I bought my TV at a Best Buy that had a Magnolia store. The Magnolia sales folk seem to know their stuff- and they had the set I had always wanted-and never thought I could afford-for 50% off MSRP. The Best Buy delivery guys-not Geek Squad- were first rate as well. The thing is, I'm not tied to any one store; I bought my Denon AVR and Klipsch speakers at local stores, while my speaker cables were obtained online from Blue Jeans Cable. My Hsu Research sub and Tripp Lite power center were also online purchases. The interconnects came from Best Buy, HH Gregg, and Rat Shack.
OBLIGATORY AUTO COMMENT:
I brought everything but the TV home in my X3, MS3, or Wrangler. The Wrangler wound up carrying the sub home, and at 82 lbs. it was not a simple task...

jimbres

In my experience, most people honestly don't care if there is a license plate frame or sticker on the car.

I'm sure you're right - most late-model cars seem to have some form of dealer ID plastered on their rear ends - but it seems illogical to me to agonize over the make, model & color of one's new car, only to stop caring at the very end of the process.

Story time...

Great story - thanks!

boomchek

It's not a big deal to most customers, and if they don't like it they can ask not to have a frame put on, or they can remove it themselves.

I personally don't like dealer name decals, especially if they're applied in a sloppy manner and look crooked, or on a weird spot of the car.

jipster

Two grand less than invoice on a Baja? They must suck or something?

A good grease monkey ( ) is hard to come by these days, I can see why the owner didn't fire him.

Personally, lisence plate frames look a lot better than without. But, don't be putting any stickers on my new paint. :surprise:

lrguy44

What may be a big deal to you or me may not be to others

verdugo

Additionally, their stock prices stayed about the same, even as oil doubled in price. Oil is currently about the same price now as it was at the start of 2009 but gas prices have increased by 60%.

Why would anyone invest in something that defies logic?

You're comparing apples to oranges.

Following your logic, somebody would be stupid to buy Exxon stock when they could just buy oil.

However, you should be comparing how Exxon has done in relation to the rest of the stock market. Now you're comparing apples to apples, and Exxon is doing much better than the market.

Pretty simple really. I think you need to recheck your logic :P

To bring it back on topic, cards need gas which comes from oil. :shades:

verdugo

Apparently your knowledge is rather limited in this area.

But I do know a thing or two about feeding trolls, so I'm going to stop now. :shades:

oldfarmer50

"...I figure just under $4/month..."

Yikes! Monthly payments which are half the MSRP for 84 months? What kind of a clip joint are you steering us to? I'll pass on that crummy deal! :mad:

oldfarmer50

"...most people honestly don't care if there is a licence plate frame or a sticker on the car..."

On the other hand maybe they do and just aren't telling you. Ever have a deal go sour when you did everything right but it just never happened? It could have been some quirky little thing that turned the buyer off.

I once interviewed for a professional position in a hospital. I thought everything went really well but I did not get the offer. Much later I found out that the interviewer had taken great exception to my use of the term "professional lingo" in discussing the need to explain things to patients in language they could understand.

For some reason this woman considered the slang word "lingo" to be a racist remark and was upset but never said a word.

Maybe every car sale that falls through is due to peoples' intense dislike of licence plate frames. That's why sales is not for the faint of heart.

snakeweasel

Yikes! Monthly payments which are half the MSRP for 84 months?

Yes but you have to remember that with an $8 car the maximum doc fee allowed is 20 times the price of the car, and title and license is almost 10 times the cost of the car.

I'll pass on that crummy deal!

So you will pass on a 4 year old car with 13K on it that will cost you $4/month for 84 months. OK

driver100

So you will pass on a 4 year old car with 13K on it that will cost you $4/month for 84 months. OK

Well, a lot of people won't pay those exhorbitant doc fees!

jmonroe

OBLIGATORY AUTO COMMENT:

I have one of those too:

Son #1 is at the track again today (third time) with his Altima. He’s been bumped up to Group 2 since his second run on Mothers Day. He’s running at Beaver Run even though they have a Corvair Club there today. He managed to talk the lead instructor into allowing a group to run today between the Corvair runnings if he could find 3 other guys to run in the group (he does have a way with words and is a pretty good organizer).

This is his third time out there and like I said before his first time there, he put on new Hawk pads and rotors. He burnt up the pads after his runs on Mothers Day so he just put on new Hawks again last night and because of brake fade after his Mothers Day runs he also replaced the brake fluid with some high tech stuff they ordered for some of the guys that run at that track. The way I look at it, those pads must not be too good or he’s on the brake more than the throttle, although he says he has some great run times. I think his watch needs new batteries or maybe he should be buying pads by the case. :confuse:

He just called and asked if I wanted to come up there and watch. I can’t do that because I’m about to be dragged to the nursery to LOOK at some stuff (by you know who). Then I have to cut the grass, and then, I MIGHT have enough time to wax the Genny.

jmonroe

driver100

and then, I MIGHT have enough time to wax the Genny.

It is amazing that the paint has survived all that wax.

roadburner

The way I look at it, those pads must not be too good or he’s on the brake more than the throttle, although he says he has some great run times. I think his watch needs new batteries or maybe he should be buying pads by the case.

It might be his technique but it's also possible that the brakes are a little on the small side for track duty. Insufficient cooling may also be a factor.

jmonroe

It is amazing that the paint has survived all that wax.

Why is that so "amazing"? That's the purpose of waxing; it makes the paint last and nice and shiny too. Boy, do you have a lot to learn. No wonder you came to a car site.

jmonroe

jmonroe

It might be his technique but it's also possible that the brakes are a little on the small side for track duty. Insufficient cooling may also be a factor.

As far as his technique goes, I was thinking the same thing. I told him to have the instructor watch his foot-work a little more closely but he's convinced that's not the problem because they tell him he's doing pretty good otherwise they wouldn't have moved him up to Group 2 so quick. He thinks it's the car. So now he's looking into buying a used BMW or G35 because he feels he can't become as good as he wants to be until he has rear wheel drive. I told you he's a car geek.

jmonroe

madmanmoo

I would 100% agree that he would be happier in a rear wheel drive vehicle. The brakes are Nissan's fault. They have had a history of brakes that fail to meet any expectations. If he is putting any duress on them, they will wear out quickly.

driver100

Boy, do you have a lot to learn. No wonder you came to a car site.

My 2008 BMW Cabriolet which is 20 months old has never been waxed*. It goes to the DIY carwash about twice a month, whether it needs it or not! :P

*It could use a good waxing, it's just that that is low on my list of things to do. :P

jmonroe

The brakes are Nissan's fault. They have had a history of brakes that fail to meet any expectations.

If that's the case, he shouldn't be looking at G35's unless they have a better brake system.

Thanks for the info, I tell him what you said.

jmonroe

cu503

mine is a RWD, 53K, origional brakes all around, I bought all new, still sitting on the shelf, lots of life left, but them i do not autocross... yet!
Dave

jmonroe

*It could use a good waxing, it's just that that is low on my list of things to do.

Don't complain to me, I'm not coming up there and doing it. When it looks like a POS, it'll move up on your list and you might make some time then. :sick:

jmonroe