Stories from the Sales Frontlines

driver100

. I think they should teach personal finances in high school along family education and english.

That is an excellent idea. I was watching a program about credit card companies and they offer out of work insurance. They usually give it to you for free for 30 days so a lot of people will take it....but they don't really understand it, and they have to cancel it to stop.
It is very expensive insurance.....it costs $1 for every $100 you put on your card. It keeps accumulating every month. And here's the amazing part.....you think if you are out of work they will pay off your entire credit card amount....No, they will pay off the minimum payment every month...so you are really stuck with the total amount still.
I agree, you have to be armed and knowledgeable to stay out of trouble these days.

I still like those stories about the people who only care about the monthly payments as well. Those are classics.

driver100

That's 10 CDN, which is only $9.65 USD

A few months ago it was $7.20 USD :sick:

boomchek

I still like those stories about the people who only care about the monthly payments as well. Those are classics.

Believe it or not, in our store, those make up about 75% of clients.

houdini1

I still like those stories about the people who only care about the monthly payments as well. Those are classics.

Yes, that sounds crazy to most of us....now. But I can remember when I was just starting out, making some money, and not able to keep a job because of always getting a better one. I had no money saved but I knew I would be able to make enough in the future because the future looked very good. I just hope it works out for the youngsters buying cars on credit now.

I made more money buying and selling houses in the 70's than I did in my day job. We would live in a house for 2 or 3 years, sell it at a nice profit and buy a bigger more expensive house and repeat the process. I can still remember the looks on the faces of some of my co workers who told me I was crazy back then and there was no way you could make money so easy.

jmonroe

I remember those Coke machines!

I remember those machines too and I can remember the first time Son # 1 saw one of those machines. He couldn't stop playing with it. He wanted to pull the pop bottles out for everyone in the place that had it.

I also remember buying cigarettes for 35 cents a pack.

When I was in the Navy they were 18 cents a pack state side and I was told that was highway robbery by sailors that were at sea. They were 10 cents out in the blue. I remember one old salt saying, "these things can kill ya and it won't even cost you that much", and that was before we knew what we know now.

jmonroe

lrguy44

Richard, Tezzy is 100% correct. On top of it the room will be cold with thin blankets. I have been using a CPAP for 3 years and now cannot sleep without it. If you need one, ckeck out the Fisher-Pickel Thermostat. It has a heated reservoir and will not drown you.
Good luck with the smoking. I managed to do it the hard way a few years ago, but life is so much better without it.

lrguy44

Fez - in Nam they were 10 cents a pack.

fezo

Well, maybe that means i should think of the 35 cent cigarettes as having a 25 cent "safe on a college campus" tax on them. It was worth it!

I have great respect for those that went to Nam. What some people did to returning vets was disgraceful.

I remember hanging out in my dorm room with a bunch of guys when they were picking the draft lottery numbers for our year. I came out at 101. That year they went up to 95. I almost felt gypped. I'd have been 4F anyway.

My year in grad school the guy next door was a Vietnam vet. He had GI bill money for college plus his mom had passed and back then Social Security would pick up college for surviving children so he had money to spare which was a rarity there. He did spend a fair amount on grass....

cdnpinhead

A guy came and adjusted the machine so it would cost 50 cents for a pack and our owner told him that people wouldn't pay that much.

The pop machine was a real oldie. The top opened up and you slid the bottles along a track intil you got to a "gate" where you pulled the bottle straight up.

Anyone remember those?

Absolutely!

In fact, when I moved to Texas in the early '60s the pop machines were set up to take pennies -- some cost 0.07 & the expensive ones were 0.08.

Before we moved to TX, I lived in CO & remember seeing cigarette machines that charged 0.35 per pack. I was a kid then & wondered why people who dug for coal weren't allowed to use the machine -- didn't know minors from miners back then.

fezo

Didn't mean to blow up the page but now I can't get in to edit it....

greanpea68

Any ideas on how they are getting out of this one? Just a guess, but I suppose seals aren't covered for some reason????

No idea at all.... seals are warranteed on Nissans... I have sene them on the warranty screen... Did they try to insist you/son left his window open? It might not made much on warranty and they wanted to charge extra? I had a tech chasing a leak for 2 hours and the warranty only paid 1/2 hour time...... that is the only thing I can come up with. that sounds strange for BMW... That is when you want the resist all (you call expensive wax job.... but it does come with a warranty for mildew and would replace all the carpet and fabric that was ruined by the water damage.... but something tells me it wasn't a pool in there)

GP

greanpea68

You’re on the wrong side of the counter so you will take the hit for this.

LOL.... Nope I won't take any hits on it. We are a "full disclosure dealer" everyone is made well aware of what they are missing when they don't take a warranty.... (alledgedly ) But what I have found is that most people know when it happens. They will say they should have, or they wished they did.

Good to see your still here buddy

greanpea68

BTW, are you behaving yourself in the booze and fast women departments?


Too be coninued......


GP

explorerx4

i tried to send you an email from work but it was rejected saying your mailbox is full?

driver100

No idea at all.... seals are warranteed on Nissans... I have sene them on the warranty screen... Did they try to insist you/son left his window open? It

They think the water is coming through the seal around the windshield. I think they think of seals like brake pads, this is normal wear and tear. But, I am impressed if Nissan would fix the seal without a fight.
By the way, a lot of water comes through, the floor gets soaking wet. I think it would not be unreasonable to replace the carpets. Actually have to bail the water out.

They replaced the seal, charged $300, but it is still leaking, so that wasn't even the problem.

driver100

Believe it or not, in our store, those make up about 75% of clients.

I wanted to ask what percentage of people only want to know the monthly payment, but I thought that would be putting too much pressure on you trying to calculate a figure. But, I am blown away by that figure. I like to mentally calculate my monthly payment. I know how much the car is going to cost, then I divide by the number of months, and add on about 10% per month - probably on the high side to build in a safety margin. I do it in my mind, just to know if I am in the range. I also like to know how much money I can afford to spend.....but the monthly payment is a small factor in the buying process.

I agree, financial matters should be taught in school.

explorerx4

if you know how to work the system, you can get a much better deal on the escape than the numbers you posted.
it is a 10 year old design, but nobody is forced to buy one, and they are still selling well. there must be a reason for it.

imidazol97

>saying your mailbox is full?

You may have to send it from the Carspace mail. I don't know if outside mail is allowed to come into the accounts.

tallman1

Outside mail can be sent to your carspace mailbox.

Kirstie_H

I killed it, fezo. I believe that you can put photos in your carspace album, then link from there, and carspace auto-resizes images so they won't send the forums pages haywire.

fezo

Thanks! I realized what happened once it was too late....

imidazol97

Fezo, check your email in your profile for a help message on posting.

oldfarmer50

Since 2008 I've purchased 3 vehicles and spent my last $900 just to have stories to tell here. Poor graphicguy has endured countless hours of "shopping with the girls" to bring us a few too. jmonroe, snake, richard all did their part.

With the exception of boomcheck none of you sales people have told us much of anything. lately. Come on guys, throw us a bone.

Isell, how about a grinder story?
joel nobody with credit problems try to by a Lincoln?
greanpea, now that you're in service, tell us about the outrageous demands people make.

I'd ask for my dues back but jipster already spent the money.

fezo

Thanks. I got the message!

jipster

I'd ask for my dues back but jipster already spent the money.

You got that right.

I'd break out some of my old Kirby vacuum cleaner sales stories, but I'm told they suck. :sick:

sterlingdog

To be honest with you, I really don't know the answer. I just wanted to stoke the fire to keep the discussion going. :P

Richard

sterlingdog

Yes, I have heard that the sleep study isn't the most enjoyable experience in the world. The feeling of being watched is a bit unnerving. My doctor says that I can take one of my sleeping pills if I like. After all, I'm to go in at 9 PM! As Tidester can testify, I never go to bed early. I keep him company on the night shift. I was also told that I could watch TV. That often helps put to me to sleep.

Thanks to all of the guys here for the many tips on how to give up smoking. Shamefully, I do enjoy the habit. Still, I must make a real effort this time. I quit cold turkey for a year back in the '70's. I missed it every day. I shouldn't have started again.

Richard

explorerx4

i just sent another one as a test.

qbrozen

I bought a $1500 190E from an up-and-coming curbstoner over the weekend... but not much of a story there. Drove it, bought it.

Went to see another car this morning (an actual lot, but private and very small). Luckily, it wasn't too far from my workplace or I would have been very angry about having wasted my time. The car that I saw was SO different from the detailed description on craigslist that I felt the need to ask if they had another '89 325i sitting somewhere in the back. They didn't.

Apparently, "extremely clean with a straight and shiny body" means a car with over 50% of its clearcoat peeled off. "Like new" interior means a cracked dash. Hey, I didn't know that was a factory option! And, finally, "very well maintained" means it is completely missing its airbox and air intake tubes. Ad even claims they drove it 60 miles and it drove perfectly. Huh. I had to point out that the car won't even start without its airbox, which includes the MAF sensor, so how they drove it is beyond me.

sterlingdog

Like you, we have bought, renovated, and sold our homes for years. IIRC, this is our 15th house. Our friends used to joke and say, "What is their address this week?" Our last house was 3200 sq. ft. purchased for $180k from a desperate seller with $30k in renovations. We sold it 3 years later for $295k. Having it well staged also helped. Just as with cars, there is money to be made with houses.

Richard

fezo

I thought you were away from this sort of thing with the baby coming!

richard - to me the sleep lab is no big deal. I've doine it a couple of times and definitely prefer with TV to not.

sterlingdog

"I think they should teach personal finances in high school along with family education and english."

They do teach personal finances in high school under a course entitled Consumer Economics. The sad news is that the course is an elective, and it is usually taken by your lower achieving students. I have always felt that the course should be a requirement for all students.

BTW, that would be "English", not "english". Sorry, Isell. That's my first one in months.

Richard

boomchek

Qbrozen: your story is a perfect example of why we almost never throw numbers over the phone in regards to an unseen trade in.

One person thinks they have a "like new mint condition" vehicle when in fact it's a bottom feeder rough example that may need a few grand in reconditioning.

90% of people who claim their vehicle is in perfect condition actually have vehicles that would qualify as "average" or "rough"

The ones that acutally do have vehicles in perfect shape don't brag about it. They rather bring it in and show it off.

houdini1

Good for you. From 1972 to 1980 we did the same thing with a total of 7 houses. Things really slowed down with real estate in our area then so I concentrated on my career.

Since I have now retired, I recently bought two more homes that I have high hopes for.

I still haven't done anything about that "utility car". Somehow I need to work it around so that it is my wife's idea. Then I can fail miserably in talking her out of it !

oldfarmer50

"...from an up-and-coming curbstoner..."

What do you consider a "curbstoner"?

1) A dealer who pretends to be a private seller to avoid offering a warranty.

2) A guy who fixes up and sells a number of cars each year but is not a dealer (not licensed)

3) A guy who sells cars as his own which in fact belong to a third party.

While I might buy a car from #2 I would be very hinky of #1 and #3. :lemon:

I assume the 190E was a MB. What year, miles, condition? I must admit a weakness for old beaters myself. I guess all those years of not being able to afford anything else made me a fan of vehicles that simply started and took you where you wanted to go without blowing up.

boomchek

Greenpea, welcome back.

If you want to stay in the car biz and do good, then it's a good idea to learn every aspect of dealership operations.

I love the auto industry in general and my goal is to learn as much as possible too. I'm happy my dealership promotes from within (many say they do, but few actually do it) as that gives everyone an opportunity to move up and around.

Enjoy it. We look forward to some stories from there!

oldfarmer50

"...thinks they have a "like new mint condition" vehicle when in fact it's a bottom feeder..."

I think you can attribute that to the memories people collect about their car. If they had a lot of fun times in it they tend to overlook the flaws. In fact those flaws become part of the "character" of the vehicle.

My wife may have a few wrinkles but I don't see them. Same with cars.

boomchek

Usually a curbstoner is someone who sells vehicles for a living but is doing so by pretending not to be a dealer, but rather a regular owner of the vehicle.

The problem is that these guys buy up trade ins that dealers don't want, and rather than actually inspecting them to make sure they pass safety tests, they clean them up and flip them quickly with minimal work. Some of the se cars may be unsafe, and some belong in the junkyard.

A used car dealer on the other hand that buys up these cars from big name dealers has to comply with state laws and regualtions, and if they misrepresented the vehicle, the consumer has some sort of a recourse.

With a curbstoner, the consumer has no recourse because chances are they won't be able to get a hold of them a couple days after buying a car from them.

boomchek

Are subjects supposed to be capitalized because they are names of some sorts, or just the word English?

sterlingdog

Good luck with those two houses. It is definitely a buyer's market. It will be the seller's turn in a year or so.

I'm happy to know that you learned the secret of a good marriage. It should always be the wife's idea.

Richard

boomchek

It is a buyer's market.

We jumped in and bought our first place 3 months ago. Our mortgage (with all fees and insurances) is actually less than what our rent was. And we have a newer, bigger, and better place than our rental apt we lived in.

oldfarmer50

"...pretending not to be a dealer..."

That's my #1 guy. In other words a crook. That type of seller is illegal here in NY and I bet a lot of other places too. :lemon:

I'd have to know a lot more than I do about checking out cars to buy from someone like that. I can't see how you could ever trust such a seller. It would seem that you were just buying trouble.

That kind of seller must irk you legit dealers. You have to play by the rules while the curbstoner undercuts your price.

oldfarmer50

"...It should always be the wife's idea..."

Yes, but if the wife is really smart she will make it seem like it was YOUR idea.

explorerx4

isn't this called 'plausible deniability '?

boomchek

Sometimes it irks us when used car buyers come on ourlot and say they saw the same car listed on (autotrader/craigslist/buysell/etc) for much less than ours.

I ask:

Did you see it in person?
Did you check if it has accident history?
Did it have a good inspection done?
Does it have warranty?
Is it a rebuilt?

So if we can't close them on the spot because they're still comparing our price and a curbstoner's price, they leave to check out the curbstoner's car but usually never come back to us to save face.

houdini1

Nah, I just don't think they are wired that way !

sterlingdog

It's easy. Just remember to capitalize ALL languages such as English, French, German, etc. Also, capitalize specific subjects such as Math 302 or Biology 101. If the subjects are general, simply write "math" or "biology". I'm seeing more and more of the "english" mistake. If it keeps going, it may become the rule. I hope not. Usage dictates the rules. The beauty of the American language is that it is forever changing. Thanks for asking.

To stay on topic: I am also seeing more and more people who don't use their turn signals. What are they thinking? Don't they realize that they could be rear ended?

Richard

explorerx4

better get used to other drivers not signaling their intentions.
up here in the northeast it is not uncommon, although very annoying.
are you still following you drive slower philosophy?

sterlingdog

I love stories like that one. Also, you get to deduct your interest this year. Won't that be nice?

Richard

sterlingdog

Yes, I am. You would be proud of me. I obey all speed zones. My wife can't believe how well I've done.

Richard