I think I'm going to be sick.

[jimf5]

Hi all
Speaking of dealerships one of the ones in Las Vegas is doing a bait and switch.
Was looking at a Mohave and talked to a sales person and asked him to send some numbers and more info, as live 40 miles away. I got nothing Called and the next person and asked them to see if it was available and it was sold. There was three Mohave's which has $64oo discounts on the web page and a few days later I called on one and it too was gone, now at 3 weeks later all 3 are still listed on their site and they keep sending me
E-Mails for trucks they do not have
jim
in Pahrump

Sponsored

 

[DirkG]

That is...a truly unfortunate manifestation of a screwed-up market.

Personally, I don't think "the market" has anything to do with it. In my experience dealers have ALWAYS marked up hot selling cars whatever they thought they could get for them. I call it, "Because we can" money. SOMEONE will want the newest, hottest thing on the market and WILL pay it. It's skimming the cream off the top.

Same happens at Mecums auctions. People that attend have money and auction house want the cream on top.

I think to some extent, you're both right.

The post-pandemic chip shortage / supply issues are very real. Low supply yet steady demand has definitely changed the automotive landscape. The used car market continues to explode. We just purchased a "new to us" CPO 2019 Acura MDX Advance with only 15K miles and it's like brand new. This was a $58K vehicle just a few years ago and we picked it up for $41K. It still looks and smells new. The improved quality and longevity of cars and trucks across the board lends to a healthy used car market.

Used cars especially are lightning rods for dealer manipulation. There is no corporate threshold telling the dealer what the vehicle can and cannot sell for. And when the dealer only gets 1/4 of its normal allocation from its big brother corporate partner, it does things like add "market adjustment" to the new cars to get you to buy a used vehicle instead.

That being said, the markups indeed are nothing new. The post-pandemic mechanism causing these markups is new, but the unscrupulous acts by the dealer to squeeze every dime out of the consumer is par for the course. I recall inexpensive Mazda Miatas being marked up $15K when they first came out. Today it's the Ford Maverick. And say what you want about people dumb enough to buy these vehicles; eventually they're going to sell the vehicle and right or wrong, they're going to want to recoup some of that markup (this was the first run! launch edition! etc.). In the aggregate, markups raise prices for all of us.

Ultimately I believe this is the last hoorah for car dealerships as the new generation of buyers prefer online shopping and straight forward pricing. I've said before that car sales men and women are dinosaurs. They rank #2 just behind Congress (#1) and ahead of telemarketers (#3) as the most hated professionals in our country. Nobody trusts them and while unfortunately we're stuck with Congress, car sales people are dispensable.

 

[PyrPatriot]

18,995 for a lift and tires. It just hurts thinking about it.

I posted a thread in 2019 on my dealership doing the same thing

 

[PyrPatriot]

Hi all
Speaking of dealerships one of the ones in Las Vegas is doing a bait and switch.
Was looking at a Mohave and talked to a sales person and asked him to send some numbers and more info, as live 40 miles away. I got nothing Called and the next person and asked them to see if it was available and it was sold. There was three Mohave's which has $64oo discounts on the web page and a few days later I called on one and it too was gone, now at 3 weeks later all 3 are still listed on their site and they keep sending me
E-Mails for trucks they do not have
jim
in Pahrump

Sue them for false advertising?

 

[dcmdon]

Nitrogen filling costs continue to be the most ludicrous of dealer tactics. How is it not common knowledge to reject these fees?!?!

I worked in sales at a "good" car dealership. We didn't do that stuff.

But it works. They expect to have to remove them. But then the customer feels like they got something. So they dont' negotiate as hard on price.

 

[TheGrendel]

I worked in sales at a "good" car dealership. We didn't do that stuff.

But it works. They expect to have to remove them. But then the customer feels like they got something. So they dont' negotiate as hard on price.

yep, these are intended to be mini-battles for the "tough" negotiators. Americans in general do not like to negotiate in comparison to other cultures. stealerships know it.

 

[Hootbro]

yep, these are intended to be mini-battles for the "tough" negotiators. Americans in general do not like to negotiate in comparison to other cultures. stealerships know it.

New car buying for most is a once every 4-6 year thing. Dealerships and their sales people are doing it everyday as their job that controls most of the deal. Not hard to understand why most either get screwed and/or have a negative view of the industry. Kind of why non-negotiable places like CarMax are popular with buyers who know they are paying high market upfront because it comes without all the f*ck-f*ck games traditional dealerships like to play.

 

[dcmdon]

New car buying for most is a once every 4-6 year thing. Dealerships and their sales people are doing it everyday as their job that controls most of the deal. Not hard to understand why most either get screwed and/or have a negative view of the industry. Kind of why non-negotiable places like CarMax are popular with buyers who know they are paying high market upfront because it comes without all the f*ck-f*ck games traditional dealerships like to play.

Like I said above, I did sales (and F&I) at a car dealer.

And I STILL dreaded the buying process this time. Normally I would walk into the dealer drop some lingo tell them that I had worked in the business and they immediately stop the act and we can have an honest negotiation.

When I started looking about a year ago, every dealer I went to wanted to do all the BS song and dance. Short supplies gave them the confidence to pull all the standard crap even with a savvy buyer.

So I put off the purchase. In the mean time I discovered this forum, then I discovered Gupton motors.

7% off invoice. No negotiating. No crap. They show me the out the door price. If I like it, I click on a button in the email and leave a deposit.

They order the truck.

3 months later I fly down, they pick me up at the airport and the paperwork matches the email they sent me before I ordered TO THE PENNY. No crap. No stress. A great deal.

It was such a wonderful experience. ZERO anxiety or stress. Super easy. Totally professional transaction.

 

[DirkG]

I STILL dreaded the buying process this time. Normally I would walk into the dealer drop some lingo tell them that I had worked in the business and they immediately stop the act and we can have an honest negotiation.

When I started looking about a year ago, every dealer I went to wanted to do all the BS song and dance. Short supplies gave them the confidence to pull all the standard crap even with a savvy buyer.

So I put off the purchase. In the mean time I discovered this forum, then I discovered Gupton motors.

7% off invoice. No negotiating. No crap. They show me the out the door price. If I like it, I click on a button in the email and leave a deposit.

They order the truck.

3 months later I fly down, they pick me up at the airport and the paperwork matches the email they sent me before I ordered TO THE PENNY. No crap. No stress. A great deal.

It was such a wonderful experience. ZERO anxiety or stress. Super easy. Totally professional transaction.

This is the way. Don, you were in automotive sales and you still hated the circus. Kudos to Gupton. I don't own a Tesla, but have mad respect for their business model and delivery service. They can deliver your car straight to your door. Documents are e-signed online. No hassles.

When we were briefly looking at the Wrangler 4XE for my wife, we pulled up at a local dealership so she could see the differences and similarities with my Gladiator in person. There was a salesman standing in the parking lot smoking a cigarette waiting for us to get out of the car. We got out, he threw the cigarette on the ground, stomped it out, and stuck out his smoking hand. I wanted to show him a calendar that it wasn't 1985 anymore. Wow.

 

[abe57]

. There was a salesman standing in the parking lot smoking a cigarette waiting for us to get out of the car. We got out, he threw the cigarette on the ground, stomped it out, and stuck out his smoking hand. I wanted to show him a calendar that it wasn't 1985 anymore. Wow.

I don't get it ? Whats the problem here ? And yes I do smoke . It's not like he pulled his finger out of his ass and shake hands ....

 

[Hootbro]

I don't get it ? Whats the problem here ? And yes I do smoke . It's not like he pulled his finger out of his ass and shake hands ....

Many non smokers look at smokers like a walking dirty ashtrays warranted or not. I say this being a non smoker but grew up in a family of smokers. Once I moved out on my own and eventually came around smokers again, they have an odor and smell about them whether they realize it or not.

Simple fact is the public at large has pushed smoking out of public places and when non smokers encounter smokers, there is a put off about it.

 

[dcmdon]

I don't get it ? Whats the problem here ? And yes I do smoke . It's not like he pulled his finger out of his ass and shake hands ....

Its vile. His hand stinks like cigarette smoke. If I shake his hand, which I'm normally happy to do, I'm not a covid fearing freak, my hand will stink like cigarettes for hours until I wash it.

I say this as a non-smoker with two parents who smoked heavily when I grew up.

I was pulled into the principal's office in intermediate school and accused of smoking because my mom smoked while she hung up my clean laundry in the basement.

Or maybe it was because on cold mornings when she smoked in the car, I wasn't allowed to roll down a window until the car warmed up.

Its revolting to me. It makes me want to gag. I would rather smell the shit on your finger than cigarette smoke.

That description of the salesman also brought back memories of the car dealership I worked at in the 90s. The corner smoking guy stomping out his cig when an "up" rolled onto the lot was old school even back then.

Simple fact is the public at large has pushed smoking out of public places and when non smokers encounter smokers, there is a put off about it.

Well said.

Though back when I was younger, I learned quick that smokers were more fun to party with. ha.

 

[Hootbro]

Though back when I was younger, I learned quick that smokers were more fun to party with. ha.

Good rule of thumb in my single days chasing women was "if she smokes, she blows".

 

[dcmdon]

Good rule of thumb in my single days chasing women was "if she smokes, she blows".

Yup, girls who smoked were more fun. Though I didn't enjoy kissing them. Yech.

 

[sharpsicle]

Many non smokers look at smokers like a walking dirty ashtrays warranted or not. I say this being a non smoker but grew up in a family of smokers. Once I moved out on my own and eventually came around smokers again, they have an odor and smell about them whether they realize it or not.

Simple fact is the public at large has pushed smoking out of public places and when non smokers encounter smokers, there is a put off about it.

Better not tell people what they're touching when they go to gas up. Those pump handles are way worse than the hand of a smoker.

Seriously, we touch all sorts of nasty stuff daily with our hands. I don't like smokers either, but we need to keep some perspective here and not act like the hand of someone who smokes is radioactive. Wash your hands regularly, regardless of who does or doesn't smoke.

Sponsored