Dealer deceptive sales practices

Costco has a (I'm assuming) similar program to Sam's Club.
Depending on your membership type- Gold, Business, etc.. the dealer is supposed to sell you the car at invoice + destination + $200 or invoice + destination + $250. The catch is- unscrupulous dealerships add on fees (holdback, advertising, transportation, +,+,+) and that's OK as far as Costco is concerned. I called Costco on that point and they said the dealer can add on fees and accessories.
Point is- there's no reason to waste time visiting dealerships. Press the dealer for a "Out the Door" price- IN WRITING- before you even consider visiting their dealership. If you can, get it in writing from your salesperson and the sales manager.
If they won't put it in writing- they're not legit and they're wasting your time.

 

That's happened to me a couple times. I'll ask them over the phone if they can match or beat a price, and they say yes. I tell them I'm not going in unless they guarantee it. Then when I go in, the manager tries to sell at a high price . Its like Wth, I told you I wouldn't come in, let alone buy at a high price, did you really think I was gonna take the bait?

Dealers will say anything to get you in. This is bc there ARE people who would take the bait based on impulsiveness and not knowing how much less they possibly could have paid.

 

You're right. I tried Costco thinking they would give me a good deal. I even tried a car buying agency (wasn't serious, just curious what they can find). Well, pretty much it was cheaper for me to go in and haggle
I know it's dirty work, but in my case, it gave me the best results...I must've been in contact with like 10 or 11 different Toyota dealers.

 

I do not wish to defend car dealers in general, but a dealer who offers a lousy trade-in price is not "cheating" or "defrauding" anyone.

 

Buying a car is a voluntary process. Trading in your car so you don't have strangers coming to your home at night or not showing up at all is also voluntary. People pay $7.00 a gallon for bottled tap water but think the dealer is a scumbag for making a profit?

Does anyone that works for a profit based company think selling your services or product at cost or less is a good idea? Why is its expected of a car dealer?

Stop blaming your car dealer for a lack of negotiating skills or being unmotivated to sell your trade on your own.

 

Deceptive it may well be, but cheating or defrauding it is not. While we are on the topic, what salesmanship or advertising is *not* deceptive ? We all have to read the small print, and think about the sale's angles. The dealer is not going to spoon feed you.

You think the coupon offering a discount on the new car price says *anything* about finance rates, dealer add-ons or mark-ups, or trade-in value ? And please, scrap the "fair" deal demand. No such thing exists, there is only a deal both parties agree to.

Last week I called a handyman who advertised a week of work (40 hours) for $1200. He then clarified that he works with a helper who counts towards the 40 hours, so 5 work-days is actually 2.5 days. My time was wasted, but since he made it clear what the game was before I agreed to terms I do not hold him in ill-repute. I'll just add feedback to his page (on Angie's list) clarifying for others how he bills.

 

That is not why I think they are scum bags. I am all for a dealer making a profit. I am against the lies and selling on fear to make a profit. I am also against their tactics of sending you to 3 different departments for some more paper work. Each department has something new to sell you. They also play games to keep you in the dealer as long as possible so you break down and buy extra things you do not need.

I personally did not fall for any of these things but when I read the forums the majority of the people do. They buy GAP insurance, extended service contracts, pre paid maintenance, Teflon coating, rust proofing, nitrogen in the tires, ect. ect….

 

If you do not like the game, leave.

Or play your own. Walk into the dealer 45 minutes before they want to close and go home.

I find the salesmen add-on pitches a trivial matter. I wait until the person opens their mouth to give a pitch, and then smile and shake my head. End of story. The car I bought a few months ago was a bit different. The finance guy looked at me and said "I imagine you are not interested in an extended warranty?" I agreed, and that was the end of it. Well, not quite. I told him I was surprised by his sales approach, and was told he could give the PITA pitch on demand. We both had a chuckle, then I wrote the check. Total time with that fellow was way under 5 minutes.

 

I do not buy cars that way. I use Cosco to give me cost and kick backs along with dealers that will offer the lowest priced. Then I send emails to all the dealers of the car I am looking for asking how much lower they will go then that price. The one with the lowest price wins. Then I am stuck dealing with the idiots.

When I bought my Prius I had to drive 50 miles with a 7:00pm appointment to pick up the car. The dealer closed at 9:00pm. I did not get out until 10:10pm. I was not going to start the process all over with another dealer.

 

For whatever reason the dealers selling Japanese cars do this more than others -- I also ran into this at most GM dealers.

Car buyers don't do the small amount of homework necessary -- and don't understand the profit that can be built into not only the car but the financing/ trade/ dealer added trim and the insurance programs.

One dealer had added trim to every car they had -- and on popular vehicles - like the Land Cruiser they added all kinds of stuff .. to the tune of 5k!

One dealer was giving a bigger discount and they telling my the interest rate was 1.25% ... Toyota was offering 0%.

 

Exactly what they were hoping for ....


REV

 

Funny you do not view your conduct as a deceptive business practice since it smacks of dealing with Costco in poor faith, in the sense that you use Costco services (for free, yes?) with no intention to buy the car through them.

Admission: I've done similar price shopping strategies, I'm only really saying you apply a double standard.

 

Agreed .... when did people become so spineless that they can't stand up and walk the hell out of a dealership that treats them badly ??

Dealers get ONE chance with me, and I make it damn clear when I walk in that if it takes any more than an hour to do the negotiating, I'm gone, and they also know that I'm going to be buying a car TODAY, and that my next stop an hour from now is the dealership in the next town over. I absolutely refuse to do the back and forth dance 5 different times, and I tell them that right up front. If they ask for my keys or registration to do an assessment of my trade-in car ... I won't speak to them until they're returned. None of this ... 'we can't find your keys right now' ... or 'the used car guy went to lunch and must have taken your keys' BS. I actually told one dealership that if I didn't have my keys and registration back in 2 minutes, that I was calling the police. It was amazing how quickly they were found.

Is the dealer in charge with this transaction .... or are YOU ???

Regarding Cosco and AAA and all the other pseudo-buying-services ... who needs them ? I can do my own research and negotiate my own deal.

REV

 

So you must hate Best Buy, Sears and the rest? I'm offered an extended warranty on stuff all of the time and I just say no. When you go to the bank, does one person handle every need you have? Usually not, one person takes your money, another takes your loan app, another tries to sell you their brokerage services an so on.

A free enterprise economy is based on job creation, profit and participants spending their income generated from the profit on more goods and services and the cycle goes on and on.

 

Part of the dealers being refered by Costco or Sams is to increase the amount of customers coming to them, in exchange for offering a discount. To list yourbusiness with a discount club and then refuse to provide the advertised discount is deceptive. I would never do any business with them in the future.

 

The initial post (20% off) is a known method clued "low-balling". The general description of this method is here: Topsham Toyota, Maine
and from there you can read customer experience. I agree – every dealership is an independent business and is run according to General Manager's instructions and moral values.

 

It is not free. You have to pay $50 a month to Costco for their services. One of their many services is help you get the best price on a new car. There is not an agreement that you have to buy it from anyone that they recommend..

 

That is a perfect example of what many of these scum bag dealer do. Another tactic is they want a credit and or drivers license as a good faith agreement when negotiating a price. After they get it, they will not give it back until you buy the car. I always tell the dealers are the ones with the bad reputations. Give me your person license and credit card as a good faith agreement.