Has anyone had this kind of experience with a car dealer?

[Initech]

I am in the market for a new car. Mine is getting up there in years and miles, not to mention starting to show a lot of old car problems, and I would like to trade it in before it hits 100K miles on it or I will start losing money on it.

So last Saturday I went to the auto mall and I was looking at cars. I have a pretty set budget and I've been looking at a lot of cars that fall within that budget. I go to the Kia dealer to look at the Optima, they were fine. I went to the Hyundai dealer to look at the Sonata, they were fine. I went to a Volkswagen dealer, they were fine.

Then I get to the Ford dealer. I ask to see the car in question, which was the 2020 Fusion Titanium. They didn't have any Titaniums in stock. Fine, I am only there to look. Anyway, the dealer shows me an SE Hybrid and takes me on a test drive which had most of the features of the Titanium, save for the upholstery and sunroof. I mentioned that I liked the car and the way it handles, but I really wanted to see the Titanium model. We get back to the dealer, he has me go inside so he can get my information.

Now here's where it goes south. The dealer starts asking me all these questions. Then he disappears and goes back into the back room. And the supervisor comes out and says "Congratulations!!!". I'm like "WTF????". They were practically drawing up the papers and trying to sell me the car, despite that I never once expressed interest in buying the particular car that I was test driving. It wasn't the color I wanted, it wasn't the trim I wanted. It wasn't anything that I had asked for. Not only that, they were trying to aggressively push this car on me. I repeatedly had to tell them "I'm not here to buy, I'm just looking". And they could tell I was getting increasingly mad at them as this whole exchange was going on.

Needless to say, I left that dealership furious. Hell it's two days later and I'm still mad. I am tempted to write negative reviews of my experience on Yelp and elsewhere but I'm really wondering what's the point. I've also found out later that particular dealer has been known to be toxic.

[Kali]

1. kind of

and then they keep bothering you for MONTHS after, too.

[Initech]

4. Thank god for caller ID!

And the ability to block numbers!

[handmade34]

2. yup

hate shopping for cars because of the salesman... I let myself be pressured once... never again

[Initech]

5. Yeah most of the dealers I have been to in the last couple of weeks were fine.

I like shopping for cars when the time comes. I've looked at Toyota, Subaru, Nissan, Volkswagen, Hyundai, Mazda, Honda, Chevrolet, Kia... I got to sit in cars, test drive them, ask questions, check inventory to get what I really want. That was great.

Then I got to the Ford dealer and their aggressiveness pretty much ruined the whole experience for me.

[katmondoo]

3. Yes, with a Chystler dealer in Florida.

Women especially have to be careful and should go with a guy.

[Initech]

8. Yeah I can imagine that sucks.

[kimbutgar]

10. I usually am the one that negotiates when we buy a new car

Last car my husband and I brought the salesmen kept deferring to my husband finally my husband said “ it’s my wife who does the dealing I just do what she tells me”. The salesmen’s face fell tothe floor in embarrassment. After that he only dealt with me. About a week earlier I went to another dealership looking at cars and the guy told me I should come back with my husband. I never went back to that dealership ever again. They are so patronizing and jerks to women. I wish more women would sell cars.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

24. Years ago I was shopping for a car, and I was interested in one

that had a manual transmission, which I had experience with. So I'm test-driving it with the salesman, and he says "You shift pretty good, for a girl."

That was the end of that potential sale.

[Ohiogal]

52. Oh, ugh!

[lordsummerisle]

56. Many years ago I was test driving a manual shift truck

and I didn't engage the shift properly for a moment. The owner, who was in the passenger seat, said, "yeah, I can't drive a stick either." That ended that sale.

[mr_lebowski]

6. Pretty close, yeah ... I always check all the reviews before I go to a dealer

Carguru's is a decent site, usually has some reviews for every dealer, and it has the new car stock
... so find a dealer w/the car you want first. Check the reviews. If it's an uncommon model (as I suspect the titanium is) you may be kinda 'stuck' but at least you can go in somewhat prepared from what you see in the reviews wrt what they're like to do business with.

And fight them on their stupid add-ons they automatically charge through the roof for. Negotiate it down at least 50% (I start at like 25%).

I prefer to deal with smaller used car places that don't have that crap the bigger dealers try to sell you and advertise the honest price myself.

Make sure a 2020 model is actually different than a 2019 and see if you really 'care' about those changes. A 2019 Fusion Titanium even w/low miles is likely considerably cheaper than a brand new one.

Also TTBOMK, Fusion is discontinued, if you care about that sort of thing.

I test drove a 2020 Honda Insight the other day ... Hybrid, like 50mpg ... real nice vehicle, looks like a gas engine car, has all the cool safety and entertainment features. Basically a Civic Hybrid.

[Initech]

7. I am usually pretty specific when it comes to buying things.

Cars, computers, things like that. I usually know what I want going in. I know the cars and the trims. I can usually vary on color as long as it's like black / gray / silver. I did look at the Honda Accord Hybrid and I loved that car, it's currently in my top 3 along with the Subaru Legacy and the Toyota Camry. And then my #4 pick is a tie between the Sonata and Optima, though I have yet to drive an Optima.

I know that the Fusion is being discontinued and I saw a few dealers that were looking to unload for decent deals, which is why I was interested. But that experience left a very bad taste in my mouth.

[mr_lebowski]

11. You and me both ... I've never even bought 'a computer' other than a lappie ...

Been building my own since the 1990's. I pick every component with great care

And of course I spend like 2 months researching laptops before I get one.

Optima's are real nice ... I did drive a gas and hybrid 2020 recently. Trouble is I'm real tall, and that car with a sunroof even w/seat in lowest spot I can feel my hair on the headliner ... no bueno. And I want a sunroof.

Cars I'm lusting after ATM are 2015-16 Hyundai Genesis (SUCH a nice car and they're a really good deal for what you get, lots of em around in cherry condition with <40K miles) OOOOOOR a 2020 Kia Forte GT with GT2 package. Has same issue as Optima but I like it enough I might overlook it and just tilt the seatback one notch back. Fast, fun, cool ride. But there's very few GT2 package ones around, and that's the only way I want.

My right knee bangs against the keyless start button on the Accords when I'm in optimal position ... DRAG. Otherwise I quite like them. Esp. the 2.0T Touring ... flipping sweet ride, and hella fast.

I like Silver/Grey/White and the occasional Blue if it's a certain shade. Black is a PITA although I like the look.

[Initech]

13. Yeah I build my own PCs as well!

I just rebuilt my HTPC with a Ryzen 2600 and a 5600XT, it's pretty sweet! I'll never buy one off the shelf ever again after building my own as long as I have.

I really liked the Optima when I saw it in the showroom, and they had this gorgeous looking '19 black Turbo and they were looking to unload it for $5K off MSRP. I would like to go back and take a second look.

I loved the Genesis when I saw it at the LA Auto Show, but the MSRP was a bit too rich for my blood, even slightly used. And Carmax had an '18 Kia Stinger which would have been my #1 choice, and it fell in my price range, but they sold it. So back to the drawing board.

[mr_lebowski]

26. Mines a Ryzen 3600x and Vega 56 ... so, pretty darn similar ...

Gigabyte x570 board, 2x8GB PC3600 14-14-14-31 RAM, WD Black m.2 nVME (and a bunch of other drives of various sorts) ...

You can get '15 and '16 Genesis with 30K miles for like $19-22K now depending on trim.

Stinger is badass, esp. the GT but it's too loud (even the 2.0T trim) inside for a daily driver (for my taste). If you care about that sort of thing, make sure you drive one on the freeway for a bit if you go that route

[Initech]

27. Yeah I was originally looking at the Stinger vs the Volkswagen Arteon.

Literally every review that I read said that the Stinger was the superior car. Like every single one. I'd love to drive one for sure!

[a kennedy]

43. My brother and SIL bought their last two cars from car guru......

love the experience they got, will always buy from them.

[mitch96]

9. From my experience all car sales people and dealers SUCK...

I even had one try to not return my keys after my tradein eval... I got "crazy" and started running around the dealership telling all the customers what was happining!! The salesman THREW my keys out the door and said to never return.. I said "gladly".. what assholes!!
I if I have to buy I try to do a non dealer "deal" if not I use a buyer broker. They usually get me a few hundred less than the best I can negotiate and the best part is I don't have to deal with the assholes.
YMMV
m

[csziggy]

12. This is why I do most of my car shopping online

I check out reviews and unless I am going for a new car, do all of it from web sites (Cars.com and Carvana have been good for me). The last two cars I bought were from a friend who sells used cars. The two previous I bought after he had been unable to find what I was looking for in months and I found the perfect cars online for good prices.

My friend knows I will not put up with a hard sales tactic so he just shows me the available cars in the range I am looking for and lets me make my choice.

I have walked out of previous car dealers when they got pushy - or in the case of one dealer, first time in told me to check with my husband, and on my second try, totally ignored me.

[Initech]

14. That's why I love going to auto shows.

Because I can look as long as I want without actually having to deal with the dealers. Only bad thing is you can't really test drive.

[csziggy]

15. I'm just not into cars that much

They are just tools for me. My big problem is that I figure out my exact needs and select the model that fits best, then try to find that model.

My worst vehicle shopping experience was when looking for a 3/4 ton truck. I'd had a GMC Suburban 2500 that was perfect and drove it to death, over 400,000 miles and seventeen years before the engine block cracked. It was not easy finding another 3/4 ton truck - which I had to have to pull my trailer with two mares and two foals (or sometimes four horses). None of the dealers had any, none was willing to order a new one, and there were no used ones to be had. Six months it took to find one online that was not loaded with DVD players in the backseat or other crap I didn't need for a working truck.

In between I'd had a Ford diesel F-250 pickup with a topper and I hated it. The diesel didn't like sitting, the Ford place sucked at routine maintenance, and the closest diesel repair shop worth a damn was 40 miles away. Plus, too much of what I needed to haul didn't get enough protection with just a topper.

That 1999 GMC Suburban 2500 will likely be the last truck I will ever buy. We're no longer showing and breeding horses so we're not putting the miles on it. It only has 170,000 miles now at 20 years of age. I figure in about 20 years I will no longer be driving and that truck should last that long.

[onethatcares]

29. mine is a 98 Chev 2500

purchased 20 years ago while I was doing construction. Minimal computerage, but it's not that good on gas. I have 201446 on it as I type this.

Cost 12K when I bought it. best I can get selling it is $1000.00 and it's not been hit hard on any body panel. Thinking I'll just drive it until it dies totally.

[csziggy]

30. Yep, same frame and maybe same engine as my Suburban

13 miles per gallon whether totally empty or hauling a full load, so absolutely no fuel economy in the beast.

Our other two vehicles are a 2014 Prius V and a 2019 Honda Fit - both get just under 40 mpg, so we use them most of the time. They are easier to park and very efficient.

[onethatcares]

32. you hit it.

13 mpg, 5.7 vortech (350 c.i. throttlebody).

Great for hauling dirt, manure, lumber and all that stuff. Can't imagine using a Lincoln pickup to do what I do with mine. Can't imagine a payment on a 50K truck either.

wife just bought a 2020 Elantra. That's the sunday go out to breakfast vehicle.

[csziggy]

36. Oh, I went for the big engine - 454

My original Suburban had 4 barrel carburetor, this one is injector, about the only difference. The disadvantage of the Suburban is you can't really haul manure in it. But we used to have a politician's wagon for that - it spread manure far & wide.

I just got the little Honda Fit and love it. One major advantage - it is small enough my husband is not comfortable driving it so he's not going to take it from me.

[doc03]

16. I have been looking at small SUVs recently. I drove a

Honda CRV they offered me $2000 off the sticker and $12000 trade for my car. A few days later I went to another dealer and test drove an Escape they offered me what they called a hell of a deal. They said $1500 and $9500 for my car, I told them what their competitor offered me. They said there was no way they could do that. The next day I get a call saying they would match that. They come up with $3000 more than what they claimed was one hell of a deal. I crossed them off my list.

[csziggy]

37. The CRVs are pretty nice

A friend sells used Hondas and his wife, daughter, son, and sister in law all have CRVs he found for them. I thought about one, but my husband has a Prius V which is about the same size. I went for a Honda Fit, just a bit smaller - went in for a used one, but they were selling 2019s with such a good deal, the difference in price was only about $3000. The new has 2 years free servicing, 3 year full warranty, and a power train warranty for as long as I own the car. The used one, no warranty. No brainer - I've got a 2019 in my drive right now.

The Fit gets as good gas mileage as the Prius V without all the hybrid technology. It will work as a run into town car until electric cars are more practical and reasonably priced.

[doc03]

41. I was considering a hybrid until the

state of Ohio tacked a $100 a year tax on them. Does that make sense if you have traditional gas engine that gets 40 mpg there is no tax but you get a hybrid that get 40 mpg you are taxed $100? The thing I like about a Honda
you have 4 trim packages and no damn list of options.
Most other vehicles you have a dozen damn packages to pick from you may like one thing and are forced to buy a dozen other things you don't want . I have priced the Escape and the Equinox and for the same equipment as the Honda they run $5000 more. Another thing the Honda is built right here in Ohio or Indiana. The others come from Mexico, Korea, China, Japan and Canada.

[csziggy]

42. We had an older Prius - 2006 - and had to replace the battery lack

Over $5000 from Toyota for a new pack or $3500 for a refurbished pack from a local garage. We went with the refurbished. It lasted a year. They replaced it under warranty but we had to pay $350 labor. Second pack lasted a year, same deal. Third time around when the pack went bad it fried the computer. More than the car was worth to fix it, but the mechanic offered $500. We figured he could get parts cheap and didn't have to pay for the labor so we let him have it.

The 2006 Prius was a good little car and we got a lot of miles out of it, but no way I was putting that much into what was by then a 13 year old car. For the same money we bought a used Honda Pilot. OK car, terrible mileage but it got us through a few months and we gave it to my brother in law who desperately needed something that could haul stuff as he refurbishes his house.

[doc03]

44. Wow the battery is like replacing an engine nt

[csziggy]

45. Yeah, that battery pack is

There are two sets of batteries - one, a basic starter battery, much like in a regular gasoline car. Then there is the battery pack, a set of six or so cells. What happens is that one of the cells will go bad and various companies will "refurbish" them, testing and replacing any bad cells. Problem is, as they age more cells will go bad, sometimes catastrophically as ours did, destroying other components.

While I do like the Prius, the technology is still new and not many mechanics outside of a Toyota dealer can work on them and have access to all the technology and replacement parts needed. This makes ownership expensive in more than just the initial cost.

[doc03]

46. Interesting I have always heard those stories but figured it

was just bs rumors.

[csziggy]

48. That's what I thought until it happened to me

Though I would have bought another Prius V given the chance. Too bad Toyota stopped making them. That got me looking at alternatives. Honda is making some hybrids, but not in the Fit and I don't think in the CRV. Instead they are going to the larger SUVs for hybrids as well as the sedans.

I don't like a sedan - I carry stuff more than I carry people so a hatchback, like the original Prius, or a small SUV is more useful for me. For a big SUV I have my old Suburban - anything bigger than that will need a moving crew so I'll just hire them and their truck!

[doc03]

49. Honda is making a hybrid CRV this year nt

[csziggy]

50. I read that, but they are not known to the dealers yet

I asked my friend who sells cars for Honda - he had not heard of any being distributed. I'd considered waiting, but this Fit is the first new car I have bought in decades. Usually, I buy a three to five year old vehicle and drive it to death. Maybe by the time my husband's Prius V dies, Honda's hybrid CRV will be out long enough to find a used one.

[hunter]

17. I bought a new car once when I was young and full of myself. I won't do that again.

I've got some mechanical skills and enough tools that $1000 cars don't scare me.

For me replacing a starter or fixing some similar problem is a lot less annoying than buying a new or "gently used" car from a dealer might be.

I know some people like to haggle for good deals but I hate it.

I also like to drive cars that express my disdain for our car culture.

If someone dings my car door in a parking lot it's likely I'll never notice.

[Phentex]

18. almost but not that far...

and like the others have said, some places are worse than others. I did want to test drive a vehicle and they asked for my license. Fine. I get that. But then he scanned it, walked away and it was huge on a computer that he just left up for the whole showroom to see. It took me asking another salesperson to change the screen. Left me waiting 10 minutes or so. We test drove the vehicle, talked a lot about the car and I liked it ok but was just looking. Once back in the showroom, he left me again only to reappear and start the song and dance of here's what the manager said I could offer today only blah blah blah and I just walked toward the door. He was still blathering (I realize it's part of their job) but I just smiled and waved. And left.

I test drove 12 cars. It was quite an experience.

[mitch96]

31. "here's what the manager said I could offer today"

This is the new normal.. The person you talk to is not the one making the deal..The "manager" in the back room does the deal..
Want to freak 'em out? follow the salesperson into the "back room" and try to talk to the manager making the deal.. It's like your trying to assassinate the prez.. GET OUT YOU CANT BE HERE THIS IS PRIVATE!!!!!! Great fun
The walking out ploy works very well. Even if you like the deal walking out might just get you some add ons.. I got a trailer hitch and HD mats on a walk out. They called me about ½ later to sweeten the deal..
Also if you don't want the sales man to bother you on a look around , just tell him your brother in law is a buyer broker in another state and you just need to look and test drive..
They just walk away!! I love fucken with their heads..... Do unto others as they do unto you...
m

[ProfessorGAC]

34. That's Not New

That happened to my wife & I in 1982 & in 1988.
I told them both I didn’t do business with anyone who sets price based upon the mood they’re in.

[abqtommy]

19. When I was young and dumb I bought 2 cars from dealers. I learned from those mistakes and now

purchase vehicles from private parties. In 2018 my son and I bought a 2003 Chrysler Town and
Country for $1,500.00 dollars and this is probably the best all-round/reliable vehicle I've ever owned. But as the do-it yourself doctor kit advises, suture yourself.

[Corgigal]

20. That's the old school way of pushing a car.

Get you a drink, step out, and it wouldn’t surprise me if they were listening.

Do yourself a favor, never go into the office until you have your figures. Walk to your car, make sure they have your phone number and leave.

I can’t believe they are still doing this old stuff.

One last thing, I’m looking for a car for my son. I think this might be the one. I love the two tone, wow.

[Initech]

21. Yeah it was insane.

I am not someone who does well under pressure but I definitely let them know I was dissatisfied with the service I was getting.

I do like that Seltos, I saw it at the auto show and it looked nice. The only thing is I'm more of a sedan guy and that's generally what I am usually used to driving the most. I would love to get a small truck like a Tacoma or Colorado or Ranger but I don't think I would have a whole lot of use for a truck either.

[Corgigal]

22. Well, when you decide.

Let’s us know

No inside to the office. They can do it all outside. Walk, they will call you back.

[The Figment]

23. Any time I go car shopping I wear my Dale Earnhardt pit crew jacket

It's black with "GMGoodwrench" in big letters across the back and all his sponsor patches all over,that and a grubby STP ball cap,gray hair and a biker style goatee and the salesman are running away...FAST!!

Works every time,the trick is to make the salesman think you know more about l cars and trucks than their service manager...even if you don't!

[Ahpook]

25. That is typical

It is aggressive and off putting, but that is what the snakes do.

I got you all beat And give me a break. I was 20 and my girlfriend at the time was the same age and just as naive.

I went into a dealership with 8k in cash and an older Toyota Corolla for trade. I was looking at a used car with a 20k sticker. A salesman comes out and has the regular bullshit talk.We test drive and he asks if I like the car and if I have an offer. I told him what I had to offer knowing it would be rejected. It got weird after that!

He said give me the 8k and he will go talk to his manager for a straight up trade with the Toyota. We wait in his office for 30 minutes until the finance manager walks by asking what is going on. It is obvious what happened! He took off with the cash.

Not only did he take off with my money, we found later he had parked a few cars off the lot and stolen the keys to those cars. It was an insane evening!

In the end we got the car I wanted for the price that was offered Mr. Ron Dew... I hope that 8k served you well, idiot.

[Bayard]

28. Don't kid a kidder

I'm in kind of a version of sales, I guess, but I hate someone trying to, "sell", me. Don't follow me around a store, a car lot, or anything else. I'll let you know if I have a question.

I was married to my first husband for 30 years, and I always bought the vehicles. If a salesman headed towards him, he always said, go talk to her. I'm not a real chatty person anyway, so stone-faced always suited me well. Walk around, and if they insist on asking questions or pointing something out, don't say anything more than, hmmm, or snort.

The ex used to joke about me making grown men cry, and how many free gifts I'd get thrown in on a deal.

[Aristus]

33. Sales-training courses for car salesmen always emphasize "Get The Sale TODAY!"

There's no room for customer base-building, establishing a relationship with people who will talk to their friends, or even the pragmatic 'don't sell them a car today, sell them five cars over the next twenty years'.

Just GET. THE. SALE. TODAY.

[Initech]

39. I think they were trying to take advantage of me.

But trying to trick me into buying a car the way that they did, that was pretty damn low.

[Harker]

35. Did it come with True Coat?

That's usually extra, ya know.

[aikoaiko]

38. I had something like that happen and I went to another dealer to buy the same car.

[NurseJackie]

40. One word: Carmax

It's the only place we'll ever go. Three purchases, great deals, treated with respect.

[DFW]

47. Ah, yes, buying a new car. An experience I try not to put myself through if it can be avoided

Being "avoided" to me means, until the death of your car does you part.

But all cars fall apart sooner or later. Back in 1986, mine did, and I looked for a new one. There were 3 dealers right next to each other here in Germany, and I didn't really need one in the USA. So I went first to the Audi dealership. They had a model exactly the right size. I asked to look at the trunk. It was in competition with my back trousers pocket to see which was smaller. No thanks.

Next over, across the street was Mercedes. I went in there. They had a model small enough for me, all the right features, etc. "We can have it for you in 18 months!" EIGHTEEN MONTHS? I was thinking more like two months. No thanks.

Next and last was BMW. I had heard they were really only for people who wanted to race around the autobahn at 200 KPH, but what the hell, I got nowhere with the other two, so no harm in asking, right? No way of asking, either. It was starting to rain, and since I was on foot, I was a bit soggy looking by the time I got there. There were maybe ten salesmen in the big show room, and they took one look at me and wouldn't even say "guten Tag."

Frustrated, I left, and had some stuff to do at the local bank. The guy there asked me which model I had decided on. I told him my three strikes. He said the BMW dealership had their account at his branch, and he was sure they would be very upset to hear how I was treated. I said maybe not, since if all ten salesmen treated me the same way, it had to be company policy to not speak to people they assumed were incapable of buying one of their cars. He asked if it was OK if he called the owner and told them what happened. I said go ahead.

So he did, and the owner's daughter (and general manager) was furious, said if I wasn't thoroughly disgusted, would I please come back and ask for her. So, I did. She was very nice, and appalled at how I was treated, (or not treated, as the case was). It turns out that they had a model with low RPMs that was environmentally friendly, the only BMW with a catalytic converter standard (lead-free was still optional here then), and cost $15,000 new (Reagan and his high interest rates were still making the dollar insanely favorable against the DM in those days. So I ordered one on the spot. She said later that within 6 months, she had fired every salesman that had been in the showroom the day I showed up. "How the hell are we to sell cars if my salesmen won't even say hi to walk-in customers?" Good question.

[sandensea]

51. No. I suppose I've been lucky - but I've heard similar 'sneaky car dealer' anecdotes.

Life imitating art again.

[lunasun]

53. Definitely write that review to help others

Definitely write that review to help othersAlso try to pick up a copy of a book called don’t get taken every time
it’s about the inside world of car dealers
https://www.amazon.com/Dont-Get-Taken-Every-Time/dp/0143038885

I have never bought a new car before or after reading it , but the book was fascinating for showing the culture and the different ways they use to pressure people and of course rip them off

It was so good when I was reading it I missed my subway stop coming home from work !
I recommended it to a Relative of mine and they claimed it saved them lots of money just because they knew what was going to come up on the showroom floor 16 different ways to get them to buy before leaving and pay the most $$
Read the reviews

[SCantiGOP]

54. Standard heavy pressure sales techniques

In polite language, they are basically trying to convey the message “You are a complete moron and are making a huge mistake if you do not make this purchase. Are you too stupid to realize that?”

It must work more often than we realize.

[Ohiogal]

55. Last time my husband and I shopped for a car

(we always buy a car one or two years old, never brand new)

We had it narrowed down to several models, two of them being a Ford Focus and a Toyota Corolla.

The Ford salesman was a good old boy who only talked to my husband, as if I wasn’t there, even though we both test-drove the Focus. That kind of pissed me off. We left that dealership saying we still had a couple other cars to look at. We got the usual “well, don’t wait too long, this one won’t last” line.

A few days later, the guy called us on the phone, and my husband talked to him. He asked him what other cars we had looked at. My husband said we had looked at a Corolla ( we hadn’t, yet, but this guy was starting to get on his nerves). So the sales guy starts going into this speech about how you aren’t patriotic if you don’t buy American. That did it, my hubby hung up on him, we went to look at the Corolla, and bought it that same day. That was in 2007 and I am still driving it.

[captain queeg]

57. I hate the auto dealer experience

I guess as I get older and have bought a few new cars I got tougher. Last one I bought, in 2015, I read upon a few models, filtered by my past experiences and prejudices. I believe it’s important not to get hung up on a specific model. I decided Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, and the equivalent Hyundai model that I can’t think of right now all filled the bill. I wrote all the dealers of those cars on my area (email, no phone) and told them what I was looking for and give me your best firm price. Anyone who wrote back with any shucking and jiving never heard from me again. I’d done my research and had a pretty good idea of what the dealer cost was. One Honda person wrote back with a good price, better than I’d expected. I went down and test drove it, the only question I had is if there was another color. Bought it and drove it home the same day. I think she was surprised and relieved because it was pretty painless for both of us.

[ms liberty]

58. "Hey, remember the time that Toyota dealer held us hostage for three hours?"

That's how my husband and I refer to our experience. We usually name the dealership when it comes up IRL conversation.

[captain queeg]

59. One thing I've learned, never give them your keys

If you have a trade in they’ll ask for the keys so they can check out your car. Then good luck getting them back

[Xolodno]

60. My last two cars were from....

Carmax and Hertz Car Sales. The price is the price, end of story.

I got my Sebring Convertible from Carmax with about 20k miles....finally donated it at 300k. Took that thing with the top down everywhere....and I got the Dermatologist bills removing pre-cancerous moles to prove it. I knew I wanted that car because I had it for a week in Hawaii while vacation.

Next car, Mazda 2, I'll have it paid off in a few months. Little over 100k miles. But the gas mileage....OMG! Again, I tested this car via a rental agency, not by choice, just wanted a simple car for our road trip. Held all our luggage and gas was a minor expense. So, when the time came, I got one.

Funny, we were the only customers in the office at Hertz and I joked around about how it sure beats being stuck for four hours....and one guy goes "only four...when I used to hard sell at a dealer I'd kept them anywhere from 6 to 8 hours...one of the reasons why I got out of it".

New cars at a dealership just don't make any sense to me. It's like buying a timeshare at full retail from the developer....when you can go on ebay and pick it up for a shit load less minus the "extra benefits" which are useless.

[LibinMo]

61. I ordered my Fiesta SEL on Ford's website

Before they hit the market. I was able to order it equipped exactly as I wanted. For instance top radio stereo speaker system but NO Sirius radio. Ford had some great discounts for ordering in advance. I don't know if that's still being done.

Next I phoned our bank & got approval for financing. It took a month or so for the car to arrive at my local dealership. When it did we took the paper work in and took possession of the car. The visit lasted under 30 minutes. It was a pleasant experience compared to earlier buys. The dealership even financed the car at the same bank with a 1% lower interest rate.

This was in 2011. It has been a great little car. That's the only way I'll ever buy another.