Need to vent - frustrated at prius seller

[fossilfuel]

I have owned my 06 loaded prius w/stickers for 2 years. I convinced my mother to get one too.

Found the perfect one on the internet w/stickers, called the guy, and told him i would be there tomorrow to buy it with money in hand. Told him not to sell to anyone else or let me know if he gets other offers. He agreed, was happy it took so fast and happy i was making it easy. We were both family men, talking about our kids, etc.

Of course, 1 hour before we meet, he tells me not to come to his house because he has an aggressive buyer who is willing to pay more. "Wait a second, I am first, we are committed, give me a chance at least to counter offer". Something didnt seem right here. I am now in shock...extremes high to lows. He wouldnt give me a chance and told me not to come by. I gave him a little guilt trip (subtle) letting him know how easy we'd make this, money in hand, we took 1/2 days off, we didnt commit to other priuses (that are now sold), etc. He felt bad but said he'd call me if it fell through with the new person.

well, 6 hours later, he called saying it was sold and apologizing (which was nice). But what just happened? What happened to this guys intergrity/character/trust/honesty....i couldnt have been more clear. I am kicking myself for trusting him and not going over first thing in the morning to buy it.

I have too high expectations for people, mostly prius drivers. I feel so let-down, so confused.....i cant believe this just happened. What happened to our prius demographic...its becoming too mainstream, to capitalistic/selfish

I know how competitive this prius market is now, but come one, at least honor your word and/or give me priority to give the final offer since I was the first to call.

Thanks for letting me vent. I hope the person that bought this prius reads this...she knew I was the other buyer and she just kept pushing this guy to sell it to her..

I have lost all faith in humanity....

Hopefully Karma gets him

Jason

[Sufferin' Prius Envy]

I'd bet he sold it to family or a friend - otherwise, there would be no reason I could think of for him not to let you in on a bidding war . . . unless you started talking politics or favorite sports teams with him.

[Captain Fantastic]

More money wins, hands down.

[Devil's Advocate]

Unfortunately in a tight market you should have gone out that night and given him a deposit, then he would have been obligated to hold the car.

Granted, you might think that his gentleman's agreement over the phone was enough but my father told me the best axiom when dealing with used car sales. He said that he would sell any car he was selling to the first buyer with cash in hand. (he buys and fixes up a lot of cars kind of for a hobby and a little extra cash)

Look at it from his perspective (and this has happened to me when selling cars MANY times, well several anyway) a lot of people say they are going to buy a car over the phone and that they will be over the next day, but many do not actually show up.

So my advice, have 5 hundy on hand and when you find that perfect car tell them you'll be there in an hour. (and hope someone doesn't show up with cash in that hour!)

[NorCal Rusty]

Sounds like you got the shaft on that deal. I had a car dealer change the price by $2k just 3 weeks ago. We drove 3 hours with his promise and email printed out with the price he quoted. Didn't matter. He tried to rip us and we drove off. I told him it was at least a nice day for a drive. I figured someone else wanted to pay the full mark up for a black package #6 with sunroof and heated seats, lumbar too. No class! There seems to be little honor left when it comes to money.

[mingoglia]

Kinda sucks. Sorry to hear this. If you have a verbal agreement I think he should have given you a reasonable time to pick up the vehicle. It sounds like you had a time agreed on and he should have kept it. Yeah, money talks... but.

[Sufferin' Prius Envy]

Originally Posted by mingoglia

Yeah, money talks... but.

. . . more money, family, friendship, or revenge talks louder.

[mingoglia]

Originally Posted by Sufferin' Prius Envy

. . . more money, family, friendship, or revenge talks louder.

Point certainly taken... unfortunately.

[ravenmaniac]

While the other buyer is doing this.....


You are more like this....

Sorry 'bout your luck bro'!!!

[Optimus]

I've had this type of thing happen to me more than once. I think it is often money-motivated.

The last time it happened to me, I drove 150 miles to look at a vehicle. I was within a few miles of the place but had trouble finding it. I had called the people not 20 minutes ago letting them know we were almost there. I called again to tell them we were a bit lost, and they told me not to bother coming because they just sold it.