c'mon what about ll the kickbacks from DC for selling x number of vehicles??? Is that a myth? Do the dealers or do they not get anything for selling the auto's??? I and many believe that DC pays you to move product, and then on top of that you put " gravy " any extra money you could get from the over invoice price. Then add in all the extra mony you rake in for selling extended waranties and shake on a little for selling the etched glass hoop ti do.....

 

It's funny that Geico 266 mentions the fact that a lot of salesmen are 3 steps away from jail. Headline news in the town about 20 miles from home that I bought 2 03's from reads, John #%&*%$# gets sentenced to 2 yrs in prison for income tax evasion while managing 2 local strip clubs. This was the saleman that I bought my truck from Also had to argue about every single issue with the service manager before repairs would be made. The final straw was the last time the truck was in for a leaking crankshaft seal, it was dropped off the rack which caused body damage. Once the body shop of my choice made repairs they had a heck of a time getting payment. I finally had to call the dealer and tell them I was ****** and was coming to pay the service manager a visit at 4:30 PM if it wasn't resolved because the body shop was threating to put a mechanics lien against my vehicle for non payment. I finally had enough of this and sold the 03 and bought a 95 CTD and couldn't be happier.I would never buy another Dodge from Warner Robins Ga simply because of the idiot service manager.

 

Now you are telling me I'm stupid. There is another round of written complaints to the owner, DC, ect. Now I demand 3% under invoice, free oil changes for me and my neighbors, all incentives to me, free undercoating, free spray on bedliner, running boards, brush guard. extended warranty.

Now I have 10 bums from the mission carrying signs, and I called the local news.

 

Mikmaze,
You are right if we hit our quota we get paid. If not we get nothing. Good stores should hit their quota. Jim

 

the whole process is screwed from the get-go!!!. the salesman's job is to get the most money from you! it is up to the customer/consumer to be informed and not to be intiminated!! ( most of the time they know more about the product than the salesman!) it is a love/hate relationship. i have negoitated 10 deals on new vehicles over my lifetime. i enjoy it more each time-just to hear the crap that come out of saleman's mouth's,etc. the lies, the ignorance, the lack of knowledge,etc- it is basically hilarious! it makes me what to go out and negoitate a deal tomorrow!! i am wound up!!

 

Geico your killin me Some one had to really step in your corn flakes out there. Jim

 

A bad check for $10,000? The satisfaction of selling me a truck? A bottle of mouth wash?

In addition, I now will be sending you a bill for my time. I am buying this truck for my company and it is OUR COMPANY POLICY to charge the dealership $250 setup fee and $300 an hour for negotiation and travel time. If you don't pay it I'll slap a lein on your vehicles and stop all your sales for 30 days.

And I havn't even gotten started yet.

 

Geico, I believe your check for 10k would be good. I doubt you would ever write a bad one.Jim

 

The dealer I have bought from is easy to do business with and they get things done.
Simple...500 over invoice, factory order, it comes in, I write a check...and no doc fees or any extra crap like that.
I have had great work from the service department until this year when a know it all diesel tech crushed my AC condensor with his knees and said he changed my fuel filter as it was the cause of the rough running...it was Friday afternoon and he was in a hurry to get done and go home.
I see the invoice, theres two charges for a fuel filter...two different prices and over 200 labor for changing to the in tank pump that is a tsb.
Service manager tries to say its normal charges.
I go see the owner...friend of mine...56 vehicles bought in the past 20 yrs by me and who knows how many friends too. I do not look for a bird dog fee, just a good deal.
The invoice was quashed and I am getting a new AC condensor whenever I want it.

Theres a lot a dealer can do and some they cannot...or they go broke.

As long I am reasonable...and so are they, we can do business.

I do have to say that the dealer that this 04 truck came from is a sheister.
Three trucks were bought with a former business there and one additional consigned.
They ript me off on the consignment and never even called me...just sent a check for 3K less then what I was told.
Then they put an engine/injector pump and injectors on my 04 VIN for the 03 truck warranty and DC is checking into it...what a cluster.

Bodyshops are something else I have learned about this year. Friend owns one...I get hit, I have it towed to him. He messes it up, lies through his teeth and I am out another 3K for his screw ups.
Life is too short for me to waste money on lawyers or court so I chalk it up and move on...to a better place. I am not keen on being around losers like the ones I encountered this year.

I will buy my trucks from where I would normally have bought from now on.

I cannot imagine the grief a service manager goes through. LOL

Scotty

 

Are going to tell me that you think the dealership deserves to make $10,000+ on one sale.

I have not read any posts before I posted, now I will go back and read this thread.

 

I'm a little reluctant to weigh in on this heated issue, but here goes.

I'll start by saying that I own a 10 bay auto repair shop that has a large customer base and were working on our best Sales month ever for the Third month straight(the weathers been colder than normal so far this winter).

At our shop we have a pretty casual attitude, we realize that we can't fix every car and we can't fix every problem. We're honest with our customer about that so we dont waste our time or theirs. Most people appreciate that from us.

I can also tell you that we get alot of business because of local dealerships.

We have a target customer, It's not a do it yourselfer (like most people on this site) or a price based shopper at all. Our target customer is someone who has money and sees value in their own time and our services. Auto repair is a hugely complicated business. I honestly feel that being a Doctor would be far easier than being a service technician, You get to work on two models that never change. At least the cars don't ***** and moan at us(yet).

Ok, I got off track. If your not willing to let us profit from you, GO SOMEWHERE ELSE!!!!!! Plain and simple, we are not a charity, we're a family owned business that depends on profits to feed our families. I'm all for shopping for a bargain but there is line that can be found on any item thats sold anywhere, go below it and theres no point in making the sale. I had a guy tell me today" Sears says they can put shocks and tires on for $" I told him "If you think thats a better deal go for it" There will be another customer in that won't try to beat us down on our price next. The people that shop only by price are not customers we want, No thank you! Stay at PEP Boys, or Sears, or Wal-mart. Can you believe people would chosse to have Wal-mart service their car? To each his own I guess.

I'm sure I paid way to much for my truck compared to Geico but I feel that I was treated fairly by my local dealer that I buy all my D/C parts from. I even talked to the owner directly. I did the same thing with my wifes Chevy, that we bought from a dealer that I by all my GM parts from. Give me a fair price is all I ask. Businesses have to be allowed to make money off of you.

The businesses that fold under the high pressure tactics of consumers are the ones that will be gone or change names every year. Can you go to Sears for service and talk to the same person two years from now? No chance!

Before anyone rips me or thinks I'm just some rich guy who doesn't know the real value of money I'll tell you what I can about myself. I started working as an oil change tech when I was fifteen and have been working ever since. Nobody has handed me anything, but I was lucky enough to work for some people who had good customer service skills and taught me well. I'll be 38 next week and feel these principles have taken car of me so far. Money is important, but it's not the most important thing. Some people enjoy shopping but I don't. I enjoy buying cool things! My time is important too. No matter what I'm buying, I don't want to pay full price, just give me a fair price so I can go home and enjoy my new toys and relax with my family.

I'm not saying that all car dealerships are good, but most are filled with hard working people like you and me. Many are just poorly managed in a few crucial areas, IMO. Service Manager and Servcie Writer are some of the most important posistions at any car dealership. Most car dealers don't want to pay good salaries to these type people so they wind up with old shoes salesman trying sell services in a highly technical field. (no offense to any of you AL Bundy types out there).

My own brother is a buyer for a large corporation and can beat people up pretty good on price. Of course we are talking about a large corp paying some other large corp hundreds of thousand of dollars if not millions over the course of his deals. A couple of years ago he was buying a Honda motorcycle and knew exactly what he wanted. There were no options on something like this so every bike no matter the dealer was identical. He did his research and went out on a Saturday morning to make his purchase. He went to the biggest dealer around, about a 5 miles from his house,This place has been around for 35 years, and got their lowest, best price. He then called on his cell phone, another dealer 20 miles away and asked them if they could beat the price. The guy told him that he had already got a great price from the first dealer and he could do better only by $100. My brother goes back into the first dealer and tells him he can buy it for $100 less at the place down the road. They let him walk over a $100. So he drove to the other dealer and bought the bike for the lower price. When he's getting ready to leave, the girl in the finance office of the small dealer tells him "just so you know, we didn't make any money on this deal at all, but we needed to sell it for financial reasons" My brother was so proud of himself. I told him I would have never done that in a million years. He says thats becuase I'm just spoiled. I tell him that the dealership probably did'nt make more than a couple hundred bucks on a $9000 motorcylce. Why do you think the larger more sucessful dealership let him walk away. He thinks they're just greedy. I say, they're just smarter business people.

These are just my opinions, Price is only a part of the deal. Merry Christmas to all!

 

Bluebill,
That is certainly not what I am saying.
Gatf4,
Great article. We are a small town dealership that has been here for a long time. Most of our customers know us well and live on the same roads and towns as us. Our csi rating is one of the highest in the country. Most of our customers are repeat as they have been taken care of better here than enywhere else.
Scotty,
Glad to hear your story. You have a dealership a lot like us and appreciate what you have there. I would expect that your business is highly valued.
Jim

 

I had a good experience with one local SALES team here in VA Beach. They searched for what I wanted didn't pressure into things I didn't want.
The service dept is another story I have three friends who own Dodge vehicles and not one time for any of us have we experienced good things at any of the 5 local dealerships (we all assumed maybe it was just the individual dealer) I wanna know just exactly what it takes to get a 5 star rating??????cuz it's not customer service. After the last go around (VP and LP $3k) where they forgot to hook back up the rt battery and left the wire hanging and sparking in front of my radiator, then when I called about it they said bring it in and we'll hook it up for you (edit). Follow up was a paid survey company. I calmly explained every step that had been taken and the girl asked if it would be alright if the dealership management contacted me. I said absolutely since they wouldn't answer my calls and gave her work# , house#, cell# and wife's cell# ............2 months and still haven't heard from them.
Yup that's customer service

 

I think the 5 star can be had pretty easily. We call our service customers back personnaly. I don't want a paid company from another state calling me. I have heard some that can barely speak English. Management must be afraid of something. Myself I look at problems a bit different than most. If you never have a problem then all dealers are the same. If you do have a problem it gives us a chance to show that it can be different. Here is your dealers chance to go above and beyond and try to re-earn your business. Shame on them. Jim

 

This is my biggest complaint! I wouldn't have a problem making my contribution to the salesman's salary and the dealership's bottom line if I actually received a service. I have never been to a dealership where the salesmen knew as much about the cars on his lot as I did. I am not 'in the industry', I just like cars and I pay attention. I would think if I spent 40 hours a week at a dealership I would at least pick up a brochure or two, if nothing else maybe while I was on the can

The only other group that is more incompetent than car salesman are Realtors (don't even get me started )

At this point I wish car makers would set up 'distibution centers' to handle the post sale paperwork and delivery, but move the actual sale online.