OOooooh...these car salesmen BOIL MY BLOOD!

And won't get any better with Hyundai anytime soon, saw a report that they have only a 25 day supply of vehicles.... And will cut back fleet sales by about 1/2 to leave more cars for retail...

 

I know which model I want, Prius III with solar moon roof package. I'm flexible on the exterior but firm that I do not want beige interior. To alleviate some of the frustration, I have been doing the email thing, as well. That way, when I get some of the ridiculous statements, I can laugh, and calmly respond.

Last week, a sales person told me that I would never find a III with solar, because it did not exist. I politely responded that if he came across one, to please contact me. He again told me that I was mistaken and I could only get solar on the IV...so I finally emailed him a link to Toyota's build and price page and asked him to let me know when he found my "non-existent" Prius. Magically, there are now two on the lot.

This week alone, two other dealership have told me that I need to get a IV if I want the solar roof. Both have sheepishly come back with odd excuses as to why they made such an erroneous claim. I'm not asking for a ridiculously low price, but I don't appreciate being lied to, so I will buy the next model up.

 

In this case then, it sometimes helps to let the car buying service know the dealership did not honor the price.

The post I read from you saying salesman #2 did not honor what you interpreted salesman #1 saying threw me off.

 

The only thing that is obvious is how outraged you are. NONE of these additional details were in any of your earlier posts. Logical deduction requires some amount of information.

 

I think they just aren't knowledgeable about the stuff they're selling. Perhaps they've only seen the ones that have personally sold. Here is one exchange I had:

Seemed like an honest mistake(they don't just sell Prius's), but I ended up going with a more knowledgeable dealer that was closer to me and was offering the same prices.

 

I'm (also) interested in a 2012 Prius Three with Solar Package. Test drove one last week, and when I started to look around online at dealer inventory it looks like that car is one of only TWO in that configuration in the entire Chgo metro area. Is that possible??!

Are those dealer website online inventory lists accurate?

Is there really some way I can see what their future inventory would be?

Thanks for any help!

 

The only Toyota dealer within 3 hours of me is selling Prii as quickly as they hit the lot. There is no logical reason for them to dicker on prices. I'm just amazed that they are sticking to MSRP instead of something higher.

 

Use the Internet and contact every single Internet/Fleet manager at every dealership in a 750 mile radius. Tell them the exact model you want and ask what colors they have and their prices. This will usually get you a " no-haggle" price. Then take the best price you get, via email, to the fleet manager at the closest dealer. Tell him you have no problem traveling to "wherever" to get your car, but you're giving a local guy a chance.

 

I have to second (or third, or whatever) the internet shopping recommendation.

When my brother in law bought a car recently, he told me in his internet inquiries, he got "two guys who wanted to be his friend, one who gave me a price," which was close to my experience.

dealer one:"please arrange a time to come in so we can discuss you car needs" or some such

dealer two: click on the link for our special prices (msrp!)

dealer three: we will get you the car you want for $500. under invoice (I bought it from them)

 

Couldn't have said it better myself. In my experience, 90% of problems with the car buying experience begin with the customer.

People that grind over a few bucks amaze me. If you added up the time you spent driving to 10 different dealerships and getting all worked up, you should have bought the one that was $100 more in the first place and been happy. By the time you get to dealership 10 you are such a twisted a$$hole that you ruin any chance of a positive experience before you walk in the door, and anything that goes wrong is immediately the dealer's fault.

Negativity breeds negativity.

An ipad costs less than $100 to make, but people don't mind spending $800 for a new one. Or $1500 for that new flat screen that cost $200 to make. But the skies will fall if a dealership makes a hundred bucks.

Next time go to the mac store and grind them down on the price of your new iphone and get it all out there, that way when you get to the dealer you can actually enjoy yourself.

Who knows, you might realize that the salesperson is human, and eats food and breathes oxygen just like you do!

 

Agree with most of what you said; but the base iPad costs $316 to make: Here's What iPad 3 Costs to Make (NASDAQ:AAPL, NASDAQ:QCOM, NASDAQ:BRCM, NASDAQ:TQNT, NYSE:STM, NASDAQ:CRUS, AMEX:LGL, NASDAQ:OVTI) | Wall St. Cheat Sheet

 

Ok, so they are only making 150% profit.

 

Try about 36%; the figure I found was based on the base unit that sells for $499. Not that you seem to care, but that is just the cost of building. None of the any other costs to bring to market and support afterwards.

 

yeah, because Apple's R&D team works for free

 

yeah, because a car dealership is a volunteer organization

 

36% is much better than the 6-7% built into new car prices. And your right, I don't care. Apple's stock didn't get to $610 per share because they don't make massive profits on the products they sell. But apple's profit isn't the argument and/or topic of conversation here...

 

Car salespeople are on the fast track to the unemployment lines along with salespeople from Best Buy ... and realtors .... and all the middlemen who have existed until now through a monopolized distribution mechanism and not value added expertise.

The internet is wiping them off our corners.

 

:rockon: :cheer2: Looking forward to their extinction.

 

I wanted to buy a 2012 Prius mod 3 with solar for $28,500, cash, OTD.
Went to my local dealer whom I'd been talking to a few times and said ok, I'm ready to buy (after days of research), got my checkbook. Lowest I could get from them was $29,648, OTD. Didn't take the deal. Thanked them, went home. Sent 16 emails to dealers within 150 miles and 30 minutes later had a deal for same car (exactly) for $29,046, OTD. Called them and put a deposit on car to hold. Picking up in a couple days. I was silly to think that I could have power being a cash buy. I would NOT have left my local dealer for $100-$150, but I will for $602 on a cash deal. They did the best they could and will sell that car to the guy behind me within 24-48 hours.

I wish them well, they're good people but the number is the number.

Relax, have fun.