Auto Salesmen and their antics

9 out of 10 is a STALL!!!!!!! Make the buyer think you are doing the best you can BUT the MANAGER just won't go for it, that the buyer will have to come up in their offer.

And it's not unusual, unless you cave, for the salesman to go back to the manager a couple of times.

It is also true that a lot of salesmen must get the manager's approval on the deal they make. So he could be trying hard for you but doesn't have the authority for final approval.

Do your homework BEFORE you go. Learn the value of the vehicle and the values of any options and what the general dealer pays for the vehicle so equipped. Consumer Reports is really good about providing this info on new cars every year. They tell you what the dealer's mark up is. That gives you an idea how much they can come down in price and still have a reasonable profit.

And if you can't get a reasonable deal... WALK....

My former father-in-law wanted a motor home. They wanted $47,000. He already figured the values and profits. He told them what he was offering. When they wouldn't meet his offer, he walked. He went back to that same dealer several times over the course of a couple of months (he was going to other dealers in the region at the same time). Every time his offer was rejected, he walked. One day he was sitting at home when the phone rang. It was the dealership. They accepted his offer and told him to come get it. The price for a brand new motor home... $26,000. Then they tried to get him with the payments. He pulled out cash. Really bummed them out.... but he got what he wanted. Used it twice for trips in the following 10 years before he died.

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1965 Ford Mustang fastback 2+2 A Code 289 C4 Trac-Lok Vintage Burgundy w/Black Standard Interior Vintage 40 Wheels 16X8" w/BF Goodrich Comp T/A Radial 225/50ZR16

Study up on psychology.... not to say that salespeople are psychologists, but they have training courses that lead them where they need to go. When it comes to cars, there are more cars sold with the little head doing more of the thinking than anything else. Next time you go into a store, look at the way the store is laid out.... psychology at work.....

A poor salesman will lie to you... a good salesman will let you think you made your own decision...

On Tue, 1 Feb 2005 22:50:45 -0800, "indi" wrote something wonderfully witty:

It is both. Nowadays most sales people aren't authorized to make a deal. There are one or two guys who run numbers and can approve any deal. I usually go in pre-armed with all the information I can find on the car, invoice price, rebates, incentives, and time on lot of the car/truck. I'll talk to the Sales Monkey and of course off to the podium he goes cut my deal. I always tell them to make it a one time good deal or best price, something like that anyways. When they come back and say I can buy the car for X, I'll compare that to my research. If they are close, we attempt to close the deal. If they aren't I thank them for their time and walk out. If they pull they old "what can we do to make you take the car today" I reply with you had your chance when you made your offer, you blew it. A couple of days later I'll go back and ask them to give me their best deal again and the process repeats. If the play the same again, I usually scratch them off my shopping list. There are an awful lot of dealers out there. I've ended up buying five vehicles one a year from the same location and the sales manager usually comes out an asks me what I am there to steal from them this time. He knows not to play the game with me.

exactly

No, it's not a stall tactic, it's a smoke break designed to take control of the customer. A standard "if I could, would ya" break, so we can tell you no because we know you're so emotionaly attached to the vehicle that your greed will overcome you when we need a bump for more gross. We do this even if you are willing to pay full pop. This is because we know how emotional buyers are.

Oh.. and to the buyers that think they "beat" the dealer, when you leave we always have your money. We can replace our product easily,we never loose.

"lose". Spelling lesson over.

And if a customer is paying less than the dealer wants.. I dunno if that's considered "beating the dealer", but it's definitely a lot better than paying MORE than you wanted to. And yes, dealers have the money and we have the car. What? Did you just want our money AND keep the car? Keep dreaming. God you sound like BeverlyOmasta or whatever the funk.

-Mike

>

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1965 Ford Mustang fastback 2+2 A Code 289 C4 Trac-Lok Vintage Burgundy w/Black Standard Interior Vintage 40 Wheels 16X8" w/BF Goodrich Comp T/A Radial 225/50ZR16

Hey the best advice I can give you is do your homework and don't be afraid to walk out if you have to. When I bought my '03 Gt Vert (new) I went in with a number in mind after doing my home work. The car stickered for 30K, After a lengthy negotiation a d the salesman making

3 trips to "Talk to his boss" we got to 25K. My number was 23. When then salsemen said thqt tat was impossible, I got up to leave (it was killing me, Ireally loved the sonic blu get vert!). It wasn't a ploy on my part, I was honest and told him I didn't think the car was worth 25K. Before I could get to the front door, the salesmen and his manager raced over and solld me the car for 23K

ZombyWoof wrote:

psychologists,

EXACTLY! The new car salesmen take classes on how to read the customer. (I've seen the class tapes) For example: If a customer has his arms crossed, it means he is stubborn and probably won't budge. If he will not make eye contact, he is uncomfortable. etc, etc.

The salesman usually have the edge. Know all your facts before entering the dealership.

Oh, the twisted genius! My head is spinning!

Here's a link for all to someone's personal story that describes the process, as well as the specific things dealers to do try to rip you off at every turn. I hope it's informative. I found it a good read.

Read 2a. "Sales Manager" on this specific topic.

Taking a loss on a vehicle for the hope of getting referrals and / or repeat business is getting beaten. I drive away with a smug grin, and YOUR money along with it.

On 2 Feb 2005 16:02:13 -0800, "mustangjoe" wrote something wonderfully witty:

True enough, you have got to walk the walk if they talk the talk. Just like they have their tricks, us buyers have ours. Last day of the month, last day of the quarter, shittest day of the year weather wise. But once you say your number, you gotta be willing to walk when they balk. I've had dealers call me back the next day after walking. I've also been thrown out a showroom or two. Cest La Vie.

I once got so angry with the let me talk to the boss process that I got up and went to the bosses office... Then when the dealer didn't want to service a warranty problem I blasted up to the service managers office. Both times were successful, but I still think I paid too much for the car. I found it helpful to go in right before closing, after I just ate dinner.. Not them....

Sean

rec.bicycles.marketplace

Why would you buy a new car anyway? They are all over priced, full of cheap plastic, very hard to work on, and go down in value every day you own them. Why not buy a classic that will retain or increase it's value and is easy to work on? And who wants to pay the government to sniff our tail pipes every two years anyway? And who wants to pay the crazy registration and insurance fees for a new car too? I'll keep my "66 Coupe, thank you.

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1965 Ford Mustang fastback 2+2 A Code 289 C4 Trac-Lok Vintage Burgundy w/Black Standard Interior Vintage 40 Wheels 16X8" w/BF Goodrich Comp T/A Radial 225/50ZR16

Alternately, one could always go through the fleet sales manager and completely avoid the haggling hassle altogether. It seems that most folks aren't aware that they can purchase individual cars at fleet pricing, provided they find a dealer that accepts the fleet account they will be using (which usually just involves making a couple of phone calls to see which of the dealers in your area do fleet sales, they're easy to find). Where do you get a fleet number? It's simple, really. Many banks, pretty much all credit unions, and lots of membership based organizations (I believe AAA and Costco are two common ones) will have a fleet number you can use for your purchase. I'm amazed at the number of people who will go through the normal rigamaroll of buying a car, even though they're a member of two or three different organizations that would have allowed them to use a fleet number for the purchase. I think it just doesn't occur to most people that they might already be a member of an organization that offers such a service.

Practically every car in my family has been bought using either a bank or AAA fleet number. The ones that weren't were bought by going to a fleet dealer, finding out the price of the fleet sale, and then going to another non-fleet dealer and telling them exactly what price it would be to buy through a competing fleet dealer. Many dealers can't come close to the fleet pricing, but in some cases you'll find one who will cut an amazing deal. We had a 1994 Jeep and a 1993 Corvette bought exactly that way, and the prices were low enough that there was never any wondering if a better deal could have been had somewhere else.

The quote from a dealer I once met was " Its not the deal you got, it's the deal you think you got" Martin

2002 GT 243 rwhp 285 rwtq

On 8 Feb 2005 09:37:34 -0800, "Martin" wrote something wonderfully witty:

It isn't the screwing you got, it is the screwing you thought you got. No matter how good you feel about the deal you just made, the dealer has made a better one.

I don't care too much about what kinda deal the dealer gets. If I have 2 dealers that both have the exact same style car... one dealer wants $1,000 more than the other.. then I'm saving $1,000 and I'm happy with that. Just a simple example. It is possible for both parties to "win" so to speak. Depends on what you consider "winning" to be. Now everybody please quit bickering.

-Mike

-- A happy kid behind the wheel of a 98 Mustang GT Cold air intake FRPP 3.73 gears Steeda Tri-Ax Shifter Flowmaster 40 Series mufflers (self-installed woohoo) Hi-speed fan switch

255/60R-15 rear tires Subframe connectors Aluminum adjustable clutch quadrant

So if one dealer is asking $11,000 over MSRP for a Mustang GT and another dealer is only asking $10,000 over MSRP, you buy the one for $10K over and feel happy?

Ok, that was a dumbass remark. Sorry, but I'm being blunt w/ that.

If it's freakin $10,000 over MSRP.. you think I'm gonna buy it? Hell no. You know what I meant. Jeez ;P.

-Mike

-- A happy kid behind the wheel of a 98 Mustang GT Cold air intake FRPP 3.73 gears Steeda Tri-Ax Shifter Flowmaster 40 Series mufflers (self-installed woohoo) Hi-speed fan switch

255/60R-15 rear tires Subframe connectors Aluminum adjustable clutch quadrant

resale on eBay).