Dealer Story (sad to think how often something like this happens)

The only mistake I see in this letter, is you don't mention the name of a competent contract lawyer. That's the only way to get an arrogant dealership like this to take notice. They don't care if you're dissatisfied with your car-buying experience, as long as they can separate you from your money. They do, however, care about being sued. If you're in the US, you might also file a complaint with the BBB, and the Attorney General's office, depending on the state.

Eric Lucas

Yes, it was a mistake not to walk out.

But it was a six month wait for this car to come in and there was no telling (at the time) how long it would be until the same vehicle (color/package) could be found. After an identical vehicle was found (sched to arrive the following week!), Deal #2 became tenable.

~ ROCK8

I'm glad your friends got the deal they wanted, and I hope that you got a good deal on your Volvo.

I felt constrained in deciding which forums to post this story in, because it's not really about a vehicle type or a particular marque. It's about human nature. (We could go so far as to extrapolate this out in an examination of fundamental problems with capitalism .)

Because of this experience, I've found myself reevaluating how I treat others in lots of situations, nothing to do with cars.

~ ROCK8

So, you not only signed a valid, legally binding contract, but exchanged money and received the vehicle, thus completing the contract. You then left the dealer with the vehicle (or the paperwork for it), which the LEGALLY belonged to you.

You then went and purchased ANOTHER vehicle from another dealer and now you want dealer #1 to take the first car BACK?

Not sure which state you're in, but I have a feeling that you're gonna wind up owning TWO cars (and deserve to).

Chuck

After which a second deal was made for the dealer to take the vehicle back. It no longer legally belongs to him, though a court is likely to find different (almost certainly mistakenly.)

I think you misread the description above.

Only for trusting a dealer, who already cheated once, a second time, and not getting written confirmation about taking the vehicle back.

"Cheat me once, shame on you! Cheat me twice, shame on me..."

Leon

A nice pair of stories, with some lessons worth learning. Thanks.

Tim Herbst

And owning two RX-8's would be a bad thing? Ha!

Actually, deposits for both vehicles were fully refundable. After the GM and Owner declared a position that they didn't want the car back, a quick trip to the other dealership got the deposit for the second RX back (a mere $100).

Agreed. Smart conventional business sense says to get everything in writing, signed and stamped. But silly me, I like to live on the edge and *trust* people.

I am reminded of that old zen story where a monk is sitting in a tent and someone breaks in to take an oil lamp. The monk's response is to offer the visitor a robe too.

Along with my new RX-8, I still have my '87 RX-7. Tomorrow I am going back to the dealership to sell them my car. Here's an idea...

Maybe I should just *give* it to them, and tell them to Pay It Forward.

~ ROCK8

Give it to me! I'll 'pay it forward' in a year or two when I get better of finacially :-)

Ha. Well, the dealership offered me a whopping $100 for my -7. Here's another idea...

I can scrounge up six more RX-7s, go back to this dealership and offer to trade in all seven sports cars for another MP3 player!

~ ROCK8

Or.... I'll give you $101 if you deliver to Oklahoma.... and include a nice detail job with it :-) Or you could try selling it through a owners club, maybe someone would like it as a project or parts car?

Approximately 8/14/03 06:09, Alex Devlin uttered for posterity:

Racers. Particularly the cheaper models which tend to need less weight reduction than the luxo's.

Or rotary specific salvage yards. A local rotary only specialty shop will probably know of some.

Speaking of parts, I've long wanted to have a 13B rotor sitting on my desk...

But so long as this -7 is roadworthy, I'd rather that someone had it out on the road enjoying it. If I had space to store it, I wouldn't be thinking of selling it at all. As hot as the new RX-8s are, the

My plan right now is to sell it on consignment. There's a guy who runs a small lot by our neighborhood. He shares my passion for Rotary Rockets. I trust he will help find a good owner for it. Til it gets sold, I'll be able to savor many fond memories when I drive by it.

~ ROCK8

There's an excellent rotary shop way across town. That happens to be the place I bought this -7 back in '99 (to replace my '86 RX-7). If things don't work out with my friend on consignment, then maybe I'll bring it back to its old home.

~ ROCK8

Approximately 8/14/03 14:38, ROCK8 uttered for posterity:

Ya could either drop the engine in a Miata, or better yet, make it into a Rotus.

If a rotary-powered Lotus7 is called a Rotus, then a 13B dropped into a Miata might make it a "Miankel".

~ ROCK8

Just because a solution is effective doesn't necessarily mean that it is preferable.

As a parallel, consider the options available to parents in disciplining their children. One way to get children to "act right" is to physically beat them when they are "acting wrong". Very effective. And just one act of violence yields a steep learning curve. Further violence is not even needed. For future "misbehavior", the mere threat of violence will typically be very effective.

So too with car dealers and legal action, and threats of legal action. Yes, I agree that these are tested and reliable solutions. But the cost is steep, and I see that to far outweigh the benefit. I wouldn't want a child to choose to act properly out of fear of punishment. Nor do I want a car dealer to uphold their agreements out of fear of legal retribution. I much prefer to appeal to their internal sense of what is proper.

I've stopped short of communicating that they did anything "wrong" (I won't pass my value judgements on to them). After going over the letter, the dealership owner flat out told me to my face, "We did it right." I don't see the point in arguing that the sky is blue when they maintain that it is green. Nor do I want to have them "spanked" to the point that they conform to the blue sky point of view. I drafted that letter to communicate clearly my perspective on the actual "color of the sky". That letter along with my other acts of protest ('pro-' being positive) may help them to reevaluate their business standards.

But if I resort to negative tactics, then that sets up a cycle where everyone may get motivated to "Pay-It-Backwards". In the long run, I hurt myself.

~ ROCK8

I consider my stance to be hardline. I have been consistent in maintaining the key points in the issues I've raised.

Thanks for the advice. I will weigh each option before deciding what to do next. As it stands now, I'm confident that this can be handled without the help of any lawyers.

~ ROCK8

Ok, wrong words. I mean hard nosed.

I had a car dealership (Borman Ford in Las Cruces) check my credit without my permission. I got the BBB after them and slapped them with a $10,000 fine. They tried to cheat and i made sure it bit them in the ass.

Not all lawyers are bad you know (just expensive). I would say go with the BBB first. How much are the addons going to raise your payment anyways? SHouldn't be too much.

FWIW, I live in Las Cruces. Glad to hear you're doing your civic duty to the most customer unfriendly-after-the-sale place I've ever been in.