Blow Dog

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:<HR>Originally posted by Markus:
<B>how the 'french connection UK' can I commit to buying a car I've not sat in or driven![/quote]

LOL

brickboy

It's not just the attitude of dealers who look down their noses at people of the "wrong" appearance -- some just don't seem to want to sell cars at all.

When buying a Punto for the wife a few years ago, there was an interest free offer going on, pay half down and the rest over two years. We went to the local DC Cook together, found a salesman and told him we want to buy a Punto, metallic blue, 55SX, today. He then tells us the computer is down so they don't know if they've got one, and can we come back Monday.

When I suggest he spends 5 mins on the phone to call their depot or one of the 16 other DC Cook outlets in the UK, and see if theres one in stock, he goes to ask the sales manager, and he says they can't do that! So we f*cked off, went to Mangoletsi and bought one same day from there.

Why don't these people want to sell cars? Suffice to say that DC Cook is now in receivership and well on its way to going t*ts up. Doesn't surprise me at all.

vmax

I walked into a Scooby Garage to pick up a brochure on the new WRX. The guy said sure as long as you don't mind giving me your address and telephone number ( walking towards a filing cabinet full of brochures).

I said I don't really want to do that ( Do'nt fancy being stalked by a salesman over the phone trying to perusade me to buy before I have made my mind up).

So he said, Well I can't give you a brochure then. So I walked out brochureless.. and hit the web............ Banker !

chiark

Reg Vardy - after buying my wife's old car from them a couple of years ago, we wanted to upgrade it maybe to a Saxo VTR.

One mediocre test drive later, we asked for a cash deal against our car. Price on the window of the VTR was 9 grand.

Offered 2k for a P reg car we'd bought from him 2 years ago for 5k, then bumped the price up to 10k (+ warranty, + diamond brite, +metallic paint(as if we couldn't have it - the car was priced at 9k but that was excluding the paint!!!). On top of it, he worked out a finance deal over 5 years.

Complete turkey, complete tosser. Went to local Peugeot garage and was given the keys to a 106GTI which had been thrashed unfortunately. Went to local Renault garage and ordered a new clio there and then thanks to a stonking deal.

Reg Vardy - your salesmen should be taken out and shot.

ndouglass

After reading the topic about Good/Bad Dealers I've gotta tell you about something that happened to my friend a few years ago.

He lucky enough to own three companies and he's the sort of person who goes to work in Jeans & T-Shirt and mucks in with everyone else. A few years ago he was helping out on a job with some of his employees and on his way home decided to pop into a garage to look at some cars. He wanted to buy a Volvo S80 for his dad for christmas, pulled up in the white van at dealers. Got out with slightly dirty clothes and went into the showroom, was looking around and a salesman came up to him whilst he was looking at this S80. "Can I help you ?" he said, friend replies "I'm interested in this new Volvo S80" to which the saleman replied "Very nice car sir, have you had a look at our extensive used range outside?". My friend was livid, this jumped up little salesman was inferring he couldn't even afford the pertol of this S80, so he went home got washed & changed in to a suit. Went to his garage and got out his Ferrari 348 and drove back to the garage, walked in and the same salesman opened the door for him and greeted him with a huge grin and said "Good afternoon sir, how can we help you"
My friend said I'm interested in the new Volvo S80 and walked across to it, the door was opened for him and he got in. The Salesman said "Very nice car Sir, wise choice" this is when my friend got out and said "Do you recognise me?" the reply was no. This is when he had the fun & said "I was in here an hour ago and was standing at this same car and you looked at me as if I was a piece of crap on your shoe. You made a very Big Mistake as I wanted to buy one of these, infact I could buy everycar you have in this showroom if I wanted to, You should not judge someone by there appearance"

Needless to say as he left another salesman came across and tried to apologise and mate shunned him off and got in his car and smoked the tyres out of the garage.

Jerome

I know of a guy who owned a Ferrari 328 GTS about 10 years ago. He was also the jeans and t-shirt type. He had decided to buy a Porsche as an everyday car (rather than his wife's XR2) and went to the Porsche stand at the London motorshow. The stand wasn't open to public access, so he went to the "doorman" and asked to be let in. He was met with significant disdain and refused entry. He then got out his Ferrari keys, whereupon the doorman beamed a big smile and opened the gate. This guy responded that although he'd had 2 previous Porsches, he would not be buying another one because of this guys attitude.

Never judge a book by it's cover...

Jerome.

Blow Dog

Whilst a dealer was trying to prove to me how fast this Integrale Evo 2 was, he ended up stacking it into the back of another car in traffic in the middle of a test drive

Thing is, they all thought it was me coz I was sitting on the right.

Suffice to say, I didn't buy a car from him.

Cem

Markus

When I was looking at getting the scoob I was talking to a Subaru dealer and said that I'd heard a lot about the cars and knew a bit (thanks to scoobynet ) and I wanted to come down for a test sit and test drive. I said I wanted a test sit as I'm 6ft 4 and 15 stone, so I might not fit into the car, thus I'd not get a car less I sit in it, plus get partner and kids as well to see if they fit as well.
i also said I'd like test drive, to see if I acutally liked how the car drove.

Salesman basically said that I could not test drive or even <B>sit</B> in the car unless I agreed to buy it!
WHAT! I said, how stupid is that, how the 'french connection UK' can I commit to buying a car I've not sat in or driven!

Needless to say I did not go through that dealership, I phoned Graham at GDA who was more than happy to let me and the rest of the gang come down and sit/play in one of his cars.

Paul P

I have had bad dealings with my local Subaru dealer. It all started when I went in to ask about buying a scooby. They appeared stuck up and very arrogant and seemed to take pleasure in telling me that I would have to wait 6 months to get a new turbo. This was back in 1999. They wanted a non returnable deposit off me for a few hundred pounds and when I asked for a test drive in a used turbo they had in, they were very reluctant to do so!

Anyway come the evening of the test drive, the salesman got they keys and I was just about to open the drivers door after he blipped the alarm off, when he brushed past me and sat down at the wheel. I was gobsmacked. It got worse, my wife who was 8 months pregnant wanted to see if there was enough room in the car and both she and my daughter got in the back. I took my position on the passenger seat. The the salesman took the car out onto the road, then in a 30mph zone, accelerated the car really hard, overtook on double white lines and before we knew it, we were doing 80mph towards oncoming traffic. The salesman just said fast cars, these Subaru's. My wife was horrified, I couldn't believe that this blokes, in his late 40's/early 50's could be so stupid. After about 2 miles, he stopped the car, swapped places, then told me to drive back to the dealership as part of the test drive!!! As it was rush hour traffic, the car didn't even get over 40 mph on the way back. I tried to engage in conversation, I wasn't happy with the brakes on the 98 model on the car I was driving, they were very spongy, so I told him that I had heard that the brakes on the 99 model had been improved. His reply was there is nothing wrong with the brakes, they are not being replaced on the new model. At this point, after being verbally assaulted for asking a simple enough question, I just drove the car back in silence. Parked the car, got out and walked away.

In the next week, I contacted another dealer, they had a new turbo car in stock, I bought the car straight away and then made sure that I visited the salesman again telling him that I would be no longer needing his services or would be ordering a car from him. I made sure he saw me pulling away in a gleaming new Turbo, that made my day!!!

TKH

As the owner of 4 car dealerships i thought id jump on this thread as it seems to be very one sided

I agree with all of you who have had the misfortune to meet some of the mediocre sales people in the world but feel sure you would also agree its not isolated to the motor trade.

I also feel certain that if you think hard you can remember times when you have recieved exceptional service from dealership staff

all im saying is dont take all sales people on face value and asume they are all complacent villans.

Most good sales people in the industry today are highly trained motivated individuals who treat all customers as valid buyers whatever there dress code or manner of approach and each one succeeds or fails based on their own individual performance.

Thanks

Tim

brickboy

Tim, true ... after my DC Cook experience, the other dealer who we bought the car from bent over backward to help ... even threw in free mats ;-)

Boost II

iTrader: (1)

To give dealers some credit, I have been treated well by Subaru and BMW dealers in the past, looking for a new car at 24 and in jeans + T-shirt. Both were prepared to take a look around my 1984 Astra and value it at £500 px so they are not all snooty!

ndouglass

On a more positive note I've gotta say that when I bought my Scooby as a used car from a Mitsubish Dealer I had a great fun.

I went out to buy a lottery ticket one saturday and passed the local garage, I saw they had a WRX on their forecourt. I went over to have a look as I was contemplating buying one, I liked the look of it and asked a salesman if he could tell me a bit more about the motor. He said "I'm busy with this couple you'll have to get someone from inside" as he walked back to the couple buying a £5k mondeo. I found a young salesman called michael who said wait & I'll get the keys for you, we looked around the car and he said jump in and I'll take you for a spin. We went out on some wicked country roads he covered expertly, appears he also does rally cross
We swapped over 8 miles from garage and I drove back with a big grin, went into the garage & had a coffee and hammered out a great deal. He then said we've just got and Lancer EVO6 out back, gorgeous.. Fancy a spin
I had no intention of buying a one buy thought why not, we went out in this Demo car and WOW!!!! It was great & it was teh first time I've been with a salesman who I thought knows what he's doing both driving & technical ability.

Needless to say I bought the WRX along with my lottery tickets and had fun telling the girlfriend when I got home.

So not all salesman are bad I agree.

Neil

GM

Fair point TKH - so here's a balanced post (well fairly .... ).

One afternoon in 1987 I went out looking for a new car - it was going to be the first time I'd ever bought brand new. I had an elderly Alfa Sud (which I new wasn't worth much) to trade in but apart from that I was looking to make a cash purchase.

First mistake, walked into a Ford dealership (Cochranes in Edinburgh - no longer there, surprise, surprise)wearing jeans and a leather jacket to look at an XR2 (I said it was a mistake ). There were two salesmen and me in the showroom - no-one else at all - but they wouldn't give me a price on the Alfa "because it's raining and we'd get wet".

Twenty minutes later I walk into Arnold Clark Peugeot to look at a 205GTi. I looked at the car for at least 15 minutes before a salesman finally came over and deigned to speak to me. "Can I have a test drive?" "no, we don't have a demonstrator" "So what if I want to buy one?" "I can take an order" "Without me driving one?" &lt;shrugs shoulders&gt;.

Next day walk into Citroen garage to look at a Visa GTi (same drive train as the Pug but a grand cheaper). "Sorry, don't have one in stock - we'll give you a phone when we get one". I'm still waiting for the phone to ring!

End result - went to another Pug dealer, got a test drive, bought a car from him for cash. My 65 year old mother then bought another GTi from him cos she liked the seats (honest, that was the only reason!). A few years later I bought another Pug from him.

Jump forward to 1999 and I'm looking for a 2nd hand Impreza Sport. Walk into Nobles in Penicuik (still wearing scruffy jeans, just with a larger waistband )"Yes, we've got one here. Here are the keys, take it for a for a run for half an hour. I'll see you when you get back" In the end I didn't buy from them - the car I wanted was sold to someone else. But I never hesitated in going back to them last year when I wanted to change up to a Turbo.

So good service can be as much of an incentive to go back as bad service is a disincentive.

G

Beef

On the other hand, I've had some great service from dealers. I went Citygate Vauxhall in Chislehurst once aged about 17 with a couple of mates to have a look at the Corvettes and Cadillacs they import. The salesman couldn't spend enough time with us, letting us sit in the cars, play with things, deafen everyone with the stereo in the Caddy, drool over the V8's and generally let us enjoy ourselves.

Similarly, Whitehouse Chrysler in Ruxley let me have a sit-in and drool under the bonnet of the Viper GTS they had. Nice

McCarthy Toyota in Sidcup have also been quite helpful to me, simply giving me and my Dad the keys to a Starlet to go out and play in for a bit. Damn near bought one as a result of that.

But best of all has to be the Japanese Import Centre, down in Surrey. A mate and I went there recently to look at their twin-turbo Supra's, as I'm intending to buy one. I've met Tim (guy who seems to run it) before, at meets and during the summer when I bought some wheels off him. I was intending to have a look at their stock, and hopefully be allowed to drive one around the compound (pretty big - enough to get a bit of speed up ).

However, when I asked for a test drive of a modified one, he simply produces some trade plates, hands me and my mate the keys and asks us not to bend it. So I went and had a play with 350bhp of monster on the roads for about 20-30mins, unsupervised, loving every minute of it, and when I have the cash I shall definitely be paying them a visit. :

106rallye

There is a place near me called CarCare works which sells amazing cars Aston Martin Vantages Ferarris etc. and the salesman is brilliant in there, he is only too happy to show you arround the cars if its quiet and even some of the rarer cars they have there, even though it is obvious there is no way I could pay for the petrol for these cars! they are great in there and if I ever had a huge lottery win there is no doubt I would spend my cash there!!!

Robyn

Had good and bad

went to a honda garage to look at a sensible car the salesman gave me the keys and said its down the end! not a care

when I got the Subaru the saleman took my wife and I on a massive test drive I drove for at least 20 mins and so did my wife. His time was well spent as there was no way my wife was leaving the garage without the car. (made me very happy!)

Maddy

I find Honda and Subaru sales personnel very good , they are not bothered if your wearing overalls or a suit and spend plenty of time with you if required and if not they will leave you to just look around on your own.

But BMW salesman is a different story, they do look down at you if your wearing jeans and can be very snobby at times. I know this from past experince as i've been into their showroom wearing suit one time and jeans the other (what a difference it makes)

Me and a friend of mine were thinking of dressing up as as 'harry enfield' scousers , tracksuit / tash and wigs and walking into a BMW show room and give it at bit of Aye Aye Aye , calm down , you spill my pint talk to
see how those BMW snobs react.

This is just my past experience though from a few dealers recently.

Maddy - 'I'm no Snob'

MartinM

Dealers....

Bought a 328i from the local BMW dealer as a company car. Suggested they'd had a 'no hassle' sale, so could I have a go in a M3, purely for fun, please. No problem, sir...

Couple of weeks ago was thinking of a P1. Asked Subaru dealer if I could take their demonstrator out (X-plate, 21 miles on the clock). No problem, sir - you'll want an hour or so I expect. Here's the keys, hope you enjoy it...

Martin (Sir )
PS enjoyed them both, of course

Tim W

iTrader: (1)

During a Christmas break in 97/98, long before I was seriously thinking about replacing my last car ('90 Corrado 16V), I was bored one afternoon and went around a few dealerships to look at cars...

Somehow someone convinced me that I should look at a Subaru...'yeah right' I thought...

Went to look at a MY98 it one dealership, rang ahead to check they had one, got the salesmans name and said I was only wanting to look not take a drive...when I got there all the salesmen ignored me (this dealership was also selling Astons and Jags...) for a long time until I eventually decided as the only customer there it was time they noticed me suffice to say when they realised that I had rung them earlier they were a little more forthcoming, even more so when I started talking finace with them...anyhow I was a little unimpressed with thier attitude and service charges...

When I was back at work I called another local dealer ship, who had never seen me, anf tried to arrange a test drive for a weekend but they were booked up for months. But they then suggested that they would be more than happy to bring the car to me at work for a test drive...a 60 mile round trip from them!!! I couldn't beleive it, and mentioned that were they sure as I was 'only' 24 at the time...no problem sir...so the next day the sales manager turned up, at my office during lunch hour and imediately let me drive the car! We went for a 45 minute drive around the various roads near where I worked and once we got back talked about the finance deals that they could offer. They even remebered to bring along a copy of their service rates for the life of the car, along with typical prices for consumables!

Two weeks later I ordered the car, which arrived 7 months later, the week before my 25th birthday, and when I went to pic it up they even passed on a reduction in the finace deal that I'd signed up to !!!

Well done Walldonway, it's a shame I'm not a local anymore!