what is it with some garages and being rude

[dugong]

  On 27/08/2014 at 19:05, Pete-M said:

I suspect it is. I went for a job interview a few years ago at one of the big car supermarket chains and the slimy fucker who interviewed me told me this was the process (I'd got through a couple of interviews to get to that stage) and that I'd be expected to bend rules to get the sale. 

 

I suspect the previous owner of my Jaaaag went Supermarket shopping as the HPI report on it is comical. Something like 10 HPI checks in two hours on one day. Nothing for a few years before, then a huge blitz of them.

Didn't someone who worked in sales on here go mental at you for pointing that one out?

[Mr_Bo11ox]

I thought this was going to be a rubbish thread, but its actually pretty amazing. Pete-M's description of flogging VW's sounds like sheer hell on earth, I think I would kill myself if I had to put up with that in order to feed/house myself.

 

As for this business of credit checking you before you've even got through the door, is there any way you could 'catch them in the act' at that? It sounds utterly illegal.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

  On 25/08/2014 at 17:49, The Reverend Bluejeans said:

All 26 y.o type smartarse wankers in tight fitting shirts/suits and spiky hair who think its some kind of honour to sell pseudo prestige shit on finance to braindead morons from a dealership where they have the banners outside "1 SERIES FROM £295 PER MONTH" so it looks like a branch of Carcraft.

 

Sheer poetry!!! Love it man.

[Cavcraft]

What would happen if you accidentally* cloned Reg Vardy's number plate and pulled into one of his garages?

[Doctormop]

You'd be in serious trouble with Inspector Blake back at the depot Butler!

 

(Sorry, couldn't resist)

[HH-R]

The insurance comparison websites credit check you too, I had Experian for a while around the time I was shopping round and it listed fookin hundreds of 'em checking.

[Jim Bell]

  On 27/08/2014 at 20:17, HH-R said:

The insurance comparison websites credit check you too, I had Experian for a while around the time I was shopping round and it listed fookin hundreds of 'em checking.

 

Well thats bad fucking news. As I do a quote most days. 

Explains why my credit is fucked.

 

I'm changing my quote name to Arnold Clark.

[myglaren]

  On 25/08/2014 at 17:03, Mr Lobster said:

The AC branch I worked at tended to restrict test drives to people who were actually genuine otherwise salesmen wasted a lot of time giving test drives to people who wanted just to try something out or who had no chance / ability to purchase the thing anyway and wouldn't have bee able to finance a cup of tea never mind a car.

 

Worked for Evans Halshaw for bit and the sales process was horrific - behind the showroom they had a dozen 'deal rooms' the idea being that the prospective customer had their car keys taken off them so that the p/x could be appraised whilst they were given the very hard sell and generally didn't get their keys back until they either gave up and bought something or very strongly requested their keys back.

 

Last time I bought from a dealership was a couple of years ago with our Mazda. They had a 'make offer' thing on their website and I made what I considered too be a very cheeky offer on the car. Couple of days later they range me and I explained that if the car was as described and I'm happy after a test drive then I'd buy it. When we went down to agree everything they did try the full paint protection / GAP / finance thing but no massive pressure and I told them I wasn't interested and they left it at that.  Made the process relatively painless.

 

 

Much against my advice my eldest daughter went to look at a C3 at our local EH, dragged me along for fun.

She was treated very well, shown the car and we then went off to see other cars she was interested in.

She decided on the EH C3, went back and they bent over backwards to accommodate her, gave her a good price for the Astra that she hated.

Called her up a couple of weeks later to see if she was happy with her purchase.

The salesman was very nice, polite and not pushy at all, spoke to her and not me which was very much appreciated as she was the customer and I just the spare part. (The others ignored her and spoke only to me )

 

Complete opposite of my expectations.

 

CarCraft can go and take a flying **** though.

[cort16]

2000 min trade in, 0 percent finance there's always a catch somewhere

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

  On 27/08/2014 at 11:59, martc said:

I went to our local Suzuki dealer in Hull a fortnight ago, Suzuki currently have a "we pay the VAT" deal i.e. 20% off new cars.

 

I asked for a quote for my car - they wouldn't give me one unless I said I would buy a new car. I replied that I didn't know if I could afford to buy a new one until I knew what my car was worth. Cue a boring circular argument.

 

Anyhow the head sales monkey turns up, I explain that I want a quote before deciding if I want to buy a car. He scuttles off and brings back an A5 sized black and white photocopy of a pre-reg. (or maybe even second hand) car at another branch, priced the same as the brand new ones on Suzuki's website - we'll give you a quote if you agree to buy this, today, sight unseen. I left.

The problem is, you get plenty of idiots who just want their car valued. I used to get a test drive and no pressure sales chat out of the way first before valuing a px - around 30 mins. That discouraged the idiots.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

  On 27/08/2014 at 19:49, Mr_Bo11ox said:

Sheer poetry!!! Love it man.

Thanks!

 

To be fair, Sytner Sheffield have proper sales bods who've been there for years. Pendragon is the kiss of career death however.

[Cavcraft]

That analogy (or whatever the posh expression is) of a BMW dealer is about as bang on as possible with a recent experience we had. The stereotypical shiny suit, gelled hair cocksure lad was giving us the usual spiel in a new 1 series my lad had considered. One of the things he mentioned was that BMW lost money in them but didn't mind as it attracted people to the brand lifestyle, or some such bollocks.

 

Anyhow, we decided against the car and he bought the new Corsa instead, and the Vauxhall salesman was completely different. No pressure, no noticeable bollocks spouted and he didn't try and push us into a three year 'pay end end price or start again' type deal.

I still want to see the BMW fella to tell him we didn't buy the car because we didn't want them losing money.

[cort16]

The problem with BMW and Audi is they could put a few turnips in a shiney suit, slick back it's leaves and they'd still sell shit loads of cars . Folk buy into the lifestyle bollocks and the cars sell themselves which leads to dealers being staffed by smug twats who don't give a shit if you buy it or not as they know someone else will be along in 10 minutes.

Ford , vauxhall, citroen and the line need to try a bit harder to sell you the car so they tend to treat their customers with a bit more respect .

[martc]

  On 28/08/2014 at 08:18, The Reverend Bluejeans said:

The problem is, you get plenty of idiots who just want their car valued. I used to get a test drive and no pressure sales chat out of the way first before valuing a px - around 30 mins. That discouraged the idiots.

But as mentioned previously - how do you sort the idiots from someone genuinely interested? You don't have an argument and then try and sell a car on the basis of a half A4 sized black and white photo.

 

And nowadays, what with the interweb and everything, most people should have an idea of the value of their car before they turn up so someone making the effort to bring it to the forecourt ought to be treat like a human being. And even if they are tyre kickers you've got someone in your grasp who could be persuaded to buy if looked after properly...

[hennabm]

  On 28/08/2014 at 10:10, cort16 said:

The problem with BMW and Audi is they could put a few turnips in a shiney suit, slick back it's leaves and they'd still sell shit loads of cars . Folk buy into the lifestyle bollocks and the cars sell themselves which leads to dealers being staffed by smug twats who don't give a shit if you buy it or not as they know someone else will be along in 10 minutes.

Ford , vauxhall, citroen and the line need to try a bit harder to sell you the car so they tend to treat their customers with a bit more respect .

As a new car buyer, I have found exactly the opposite.

The BMW dealer couldn't do enough for me and a test drive etc etc all led to a comfortable deal and I felt respected as a customer.

 

When I bought a new Fiat the dealer on two occasions (different staff, same dealership) were liars and/or incompetent.

God help anyone who buys a car from them.

 

Years ago I was looking for a 2nd hand Tipo and went to a dealer in Grangemouth where the sales t**t informed me down his nose that they sent that sort of car to auction.

I did remind him of what sort of car could he afford with his own cash rather than a company motor, in a rather loud voice in the showroom.

[Cavcraft]

Giving something back to the dealers not many people say their car is shit and only worth a third of what the average price is, and probably about 103% over value their own car. I am not greatly surprised dealers are a bit cagey over chop ins most of the time.

[carlo]

I am sure all this is one of the main reasons ebay is so popular for selling cars.  Despite the crooks and old nails that perpetuate the site, many people just can't face going into showrooms or onto dealer forecourts and go through the whole rigmarole that that entails.  Ebay removes all that for them, despite the sacrifice of virtually any comeback.  I am always amazed at the lack of cars on French ebay, perhaps they prefer the whole bargaining experience.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

I'm not sure whats going on with French eBay motors, it used to be much bigger than it is now.

[martybabes]

Why can't cars be sold for a definite price instead of having to fight with the salesman for a figure you can agree on?  

 

I mean to say, if the windscreen price is £25,000 then that's what it's for sale at.  Ditch all this bollox about 8% off and I'll throw in some mats and a tank of petrol and some Road Tax.  If I go to Sainsbury's for the weekly shop, I don't expect to see a box of corn flakes for £2.35 and then start to haggle with the checkout girl for a figure she'll be happy with for a cash sale.

 

And as for trade-ins - what's the big secret about the value of my car?   It's either worth something or it isn't - and the official secrets act doesn't kick in forcing you to commit to a purchase just to find out what someone SAYS it's worth.  

 

The whole system of new car purchases needs a kick up the collective arse.  Smart-arse sales personnel who are pushy/smarmy/rude/ignorant.  "Oh, I'll just need to run these figures passed my Manager" stuff is patently rubbish.  And discounts off the purchase price for buying a financing scheme are a minefield as well as a nightmare.  And I would imagine no-one really understands what they're signing (or have even read it anyway).

 

Second-hand shite - that's the future.  Caveat Emptor - you've only yourself to blame.  And you can always walk away.

 

Now, where's my tablets...

[Pete-M]

Problém with Glass's Guide is that it's a trade pricing indicator. The public aren't meant to see it at all because lots of them would moan incessantly about their trade in being valued at £1500 when that car might retail at £3000.

 

You already get the muppets with Parkers thinking that's even close to Glass's. It ain't. Parkers is miles out on most things.

[Cavcraft]

I expect the double price thing is because some people will pay the full screen price without haggling, and for those who like a deal the garage will over-value the part-exchange car a bit because the screen price is high to begin with. 

 

The 'have a word with my manager' bit is mostly rubbish, it's just a ploy to make you think you can have a deal on your terms, when really they're going to call the shots. A local car (main) dealer I had a job interview with a few years back told me you always asked the customer what they wanted as quite often the deal really suited the garage. You'd then look non-plussed and say you have to speak to the manager, which entailed 'coming into my office, telling me what the deal what and cracking a few jokes/chat about the weekend' and then return to the customer and add £100 to whatever they said so you didn't look too keen.

[DS20]

  On 28/08/2014 at 17:12, martybabes said:

Why can't cars be sold for a definite price instead of having to fight with the salesman for a figure you can agree on?  

 

I mean to say, if the windscreen price is £25,000 then that's what it's for sale at.  Ditch all this bollox about 8% off and I'll throw in some mats and a tank of petrol and some Road Tax.

 

 

Dacia are trying this very tactic (at least in the UK) - no bargaining at all, but low-ish prices to start with. I'll be interested to see if it works out for them - and also, if any other manufacturer might follow suit. In years past, I'd have put my money on Kia / Hyundai / Å koda trying this as a policy, but I reckon they've gone too upmarket for this sort of thing now.

[AnthonyG]

  On 28/08/2014 at 17:01, Mr_Bo11ox said:

I'm not sure whats going on with French eBay motors, it used to be much bigger than it is now.

Didn't the French authorities try and sack off Ebay, on the ground they weren't a proper auction house or something?

 

Probably at the instigation of whatever closed shop trade group represent l'auctioneers over there.

[Pillock]

I bought from Available Car. As these places go it was a really good experience - you could walk in, sit in every car and leave again without seeing a single salesman. All cars unlocked and you just get a Hello at the door from a greeter who gives you a stock list.

 

You can request a couple of test drives, I had three on a day they weren't busy. They do a quick chat about finance first but I don't think they credit checked me at this point, just made sure I wasn't a chancer I suppose. They only value your car if you ask them to.

 

No haggling, you pay screen price. Keeps it simple.

 

Their warranty is FUCKING SHIT though but that's a third party product and I should have known better.

 

I got £3700 when I sold that car, it's on a garage website for £5200. I couldn't care less that they're making a profit, it's what a garage does. I also know how many things on that car are close to death and it's more than £1500 worth....

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

  On 28/08/2014 at 11:28, martc said:

But as mentioned previously - how do you sort the idiots from someone genuinely interested? You don't have an argument and then try and sell a car on the basis of a half A4 sized black and white photo.

 

And nowadays, what with the interweb and everything, most people should have an idea of the value of their car before they turn up so someone making the effort to bring it to the forecourt ought to be treat like a human being. And even if they are tyre kickers you've got someone in your grasp who could be persuaded to buy if looked after properly...

A salesman should never, ever give a px price until they've test driven. It's called 'building desire', i.e carrot/stick, honey trap etc etc. Get them into a nice 320i after a 90'000 mile Passat - the 320i is sold. I always appraised px's myself and gave a realistic price. Can we retail it? Top private sale money or close. Is it a shitter? What it might make in an auction - in that case the old 'you'd be better off selling privately' line after giving them the bad news. The secret in sales is sincerity, to be yourself, don't bullshit and never ever promise something you can't deliver.

 

Timewasters - you can spot them very quickly. In sales, you develop a nose for it. Sundays is the worst day for them.

[fordperv]

Our local Citroën dealer was brilliant when mrs fordperv's grandad wanted a picasso, i went with him to view, we saw one that was 2 years old i popped in to ask about it, the older salesman got me the keys and said "knock yourself out, when your happy with what you've seen let's see if we can make a deal" he literally left us to our own devices, I noticed a broken plastic in the back, went back in to chat with the salesman explained that I wanted that replacing and I wanted it serviced also he threw paint protection in foc as well as dropping a generous amount off the price, the test drive was the only thing left, the salesman even advised a longer test drive with me swapping with grandad halfway around to make sure I was happy, safe to say I was more than happy for him to hand his cash over, hes had it 9 years it's still only done 30k

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

I should add - pay is absolutely piss poor. At Stratstone the normal commission on a used car sale was £60 and the most I ever earned was £160 on a £40'000 X6. This is on top of a £1000 pm basic and up uo £6000 pa new car bonus. Most months were £1400 after tax.

[AnthonyG]

I remember working a summer sales/general lackey job at Meirion Motors Ford at Aberystwyth in the summer of '96, and being amazed at the excitement a family was showing at a 1991 Mk5 Escort LX. Then one of the other sales guys said they drove a 13 year old Lada, anything European designed after 1982 would have wowed them.

 

Rural dealerships are the best for customer service, as the sales and service people often stay in the job a good long time, as an example the sales manager at Meirion Ford remembered selling the '81 Granada I had at the time new, and some customers had been buying with the firm since the 1960s. Sadly many of these dealers are now dying out due to demands on upgrading facilities to keep the franchise.

 

West Wales still has quite a few, the Cardigan Fiat dealer (B.V. Rees) is the longest standing in the UK, since 1970. Needless to say, this is only area I've seen multiple Stilos, Marea Weekends and other prime Turin chod, even a couple of the Croma MPVs. The Panda or 500 is probably the highest selling car after the Fiesta in the county.

[eddyramrod]

  On 28/08/2014 at 19:56, The Reverend Bluejeans said:

I should add - pay is absolutely piss poor.

In which case, I now have a free hand to be the most obnoxious turd on the streets of Barrow, because I can only dream of pay as high as you've cited.  But I won't, because low pay is no excuse whatsoever.  I'm still going to be nice.  To everyone, even the mannerless neighbour with the diesel Golf.

[Spiny Norman]

Best service I've ever had at a dealer was at the big BMW place in Glasgow city centre years ago.
I was wanting some piddly little service parts for my 2002 (this was long before the internet) and being dressed like I had a shitty old 20 year old BMW I'd just paid £350 for I was fully expecting to be shown the door, but they were far more helpful than Arnold Shark were 10 years later when I was asking about a set of new alloys for my year old Punto.