Bogus Dealer Statements

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(PA @ Sep 6 2006, 12:04 PM) [snapback]315194[/snapback]</div>

I want one of those!

 

When I asked my salesman where the nav update DVD would go he pointed to the CD player on the dash.

 

I had the Honda dealer tell me about how bad the Prius was because of all the recalls and how the battery would die after 5 years. After that, he told me they wanted at least $2000 over MSRP for a Honda Fit and said that I should buy an Accord because it would be cheaper. :lol:
Not going back to that dealer.

 

Well just yesterday a dealer told me that these cars each cost Toyota $40,000 to make in 2000 and they sold them for $20,000 loosing over $20,000 a car. Guess they will make that up with volume

 

'Because it's a Hybrid and there're high voltage electrical wires everywhere, you need to come to the dealer to have the oil changed by a hybrid certified tech, nobody changes the oil themselves on a hybrid".

 

"The little key that detaches from the FOB is what you give the valet to park your car so he can't open your trunk."

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ScottY @ Sep 6 2006, 09:46 AM) [snapback]315143[/snapback]</div>

I looked at the HCH and got some BS from the Honda sales manager. A couple of things sounded pretty far fetched but I never checked to see if they were true. Like:

"If you get in a wreck and the fire department has to cut you out of the car, they have waste time disconnecting the batteries on the Prius because the high voltage is always hot. The Civic cuts the power right at the batteries when the ignition switch is turned off." This may be true - I just thought it was wierd to use it as a selling point.

The HCH is not a bad car at all. It has a few pluses over the Prius that makes up for some of the minuses.

As for my Toyota dealer: I was very happy with Roseville Toyota though they didn't have to work very hard to sell me the car. My salesman was really nothing more than an order taker. The glaring line of BS came from the finance manager (as if he's an expert). He told us that we could not install any aftermarket electrical accessories on the car. Of course there was one exception - The LoJack system he wanted to sell us.

Aside from that, Roseville Toyota was very good about the information they gave us at delivery. They have a covered delivery area surrounded by red carpet where a customer service rep (not the salesman, but a very attractive team of young ladies) show you around the car. The rep that took us on our tour was very thorough. I guess they assume most people aren't going to leave their owners manual on the back of the toilet to get intimately familiar with it. She went over all of the SKS features, how to turn the system on (including the accessory mode), the tire pressure reset, what the "key" button did, what the "B" really does, etc. And she answered every question about the car my wife and I had (granted I was asking her technical questions about how the guts of the car worked).

Days after delivery we were invited to a new owners reception. We were not able to attend so they invited again - we happen to be going tonight. I am sure they will spend most of their time telling us how to get our cars serviced at their facility, etc. But they said they would answer any further questions we had about our car since delivery... and they are going to have food.

This was the first time I purchased a car from one of these high volume automall dealers. I was impressed. Way different than when I bought my Chrysler last year from a small town old time dealer (I really like that car too, but the dealer was nothing special at all).

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(withersea @ Sep 6 2006, 02:57 PM) [snapback]315095[/snapback]</div>

That's the same one my dealer told me. Fairytales go a long distance

 

What I don't get is where this stuff comes from. Now I understand that the Honda guy is going to lie through his teeth about Toyota, but Toyota has training and information and books about the Prius to inform the sales and other people who are not technicians. Prius New Car Features should be at every dealership ? I don’t think some of the sales people don't care and I think they are afraid to say “I don’t know let’s look that up “. I guess I am too compulsive for my own good.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ScottY @ Sep 6 2006, 07:46 AM) [snapback]315143[/snapback]</div>

1. Open Prius door
2. Sit down in driver's seat
3. Latch safety belt in place
4. Place foot on brake
5. Press Power button
6. Put car into gear (R or D)

Yeah, sounds like 6 steps to me! :lol: :lol:


My salesguys actually were pretty well-informed about the Prius. The one who went through the whole rundown of what this or that does, etc. on the car, really knew his stuff and was very knowledgeable about the Prius~I was impressed. I arrived fully prepared to show them what to do, based on what I'd gleaned here on PC. He even helped me program the Homelink before I left so I didn't have to use the VHS-sized garage door opener to get into my condo complex when I got home.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(NASA guy @ Sep 6 2006, 02:26 AM) [snapback]315043[/snapback]</div>

 

Actually I never shopped around form my Prius. The basic understanding that I gave to all the dealers was that I didn’t want to wait for one. Only thing that made me mad which I’ve reported here was that the Berkeley Toyota had a Package #7 that had nearly 50 miles on it but insisted that ‘Toyota is upgrading all current Package #7’s to #8’s†and that I’d be charged for leather being put in from a local shop. Totally won’t go back there and advise everyone else not to go there either.

 

After the 1000 km service I drove home (100 km). Next morning before starting the engine I checked the oil level and found it 1/4" above the full mark.
Took the car to the local Toyota dealer (a different Toyota dealer and one that is not Prius qualified) and told the mechanic that the sump had been over filled with oil during the service. After discussing the Prius (he knew nothing about it) he checked the oil and it was 1/4" above the full mark.
He said it was not over full because once the engine runs the oil is distributed around the engine. To prove his point, he started the engine and ran it for about a minute (while it warmed up). He turned it off and showed me the dipstick with the oil level on full. "There," he said, "it is has not been over filled."
At my insistence he drained some oil out so that it was 1/4" below full.

 

Went to test drive the Civic Hybrid. Dealer told us:

1. Honda mandated a $1500 markup on all Civic's (hybrid or otherwise) due to high demand [yeah, right]
2. The Prius is being discontinued in 2009 and you won't be able to get parts for your 2006 Prius because of it. [Right. The most popular hybrid to date. Uh huh]
3. Yes, the Civic Hybrid rear seat doesn't fold down. But that's O.K. neither does the Prius' back seat. [Then I showed him the Prius Brochure with the seat folded down. He said it was a 'cutaway' to show detail. uh huh]

The first Toyota Dealer we went to told us:

1. You will get better than the EPA mileage if you use Premium gas [hello? the manual says otherwise]
2. Jiffy Lube charges $15 extra to change the oil on hybrid vehicles, so it's actually cheaper to bring it back to the dealer for service. [One phone call disproved that lie]
3. The dealer is the only one who knows just how much oil is needed for the Prius, so it should come back to the dealer. [No kidding. Is this a guarded family secret like Bush's Baked Beans?]
4. Toyota is shipping only three colors of Prius' to Maryland: Silver, White and Silver Pine Mica. [Yeah, that's how I got a Barcelona Red. Go figure]

Still, it's not as bad as running into one of the local rednecks and having them tell ME lies about MY car. Ya know that them cars are supposed to be plugged in at least once in a while to keep the battery from goin' stale [Wth?!?!?!?]

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(M Smith @ Sep 6 2006, 08:49 PM) [snapback]315536[/snapback]</div>

Ha! GM does even better. They conceal their $1500 markup by just posting it as a profit loss, rather than charging the consumer directly. Of course, it's not all that difficult figuring how or why. That money is used for advertising.

Think about how much Toyota spends on advertising Prius... practically nothing!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(M Smith @ Sep 6 2006, 08:49 PM) [snapback]315536[/snapback]</div>

1. 
   
   The dealer I visited in Sacramento added $2900 to the sticker. Go figure.
   
   
   My Prius got it's first oil change at Jlube for the same price as everyone else. These cars are everywhere - silly to think they wouldn't know how to do it or would have to charge extra.
   
   
   It's those japanese dip sticks that confuse those jiffy lube guys.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(john1701a @ Sep 6 2006, 10:02 PM) [snapback]315540[/snapback]</div>

I just thought it was rather balls-ey that it was listed right on the windows sticker as "Additional Dealer Markup". No hiding it at Honda of Annapolis. :lol:

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(PA @ Sep 6 2006, 09:04 AM) [snapback]315194[/snapback]</div>

In their defense, I gotta say, it does SEEM that is what it does, if you don't LOOK at the climate screen...auto kicks the a/c into high gear if you normally keep it a little high. AND, if you normally (as I do) keep it on flow from outside (as opposed to recirc) and on "face AND feet," instead of just "face." If you have not spent a lot of time with a Pri, I can see how that might be the impression...it took me more than 1k miles to figure it out myself.

Since my only contact with the salesperson was AFTER he confirmed he had a car for me to buy within the next few days, he didn't have a whole lot of opportunity to misinform me. But, thinking back on his post-sale "walk-through," I can't think of any misinformation he doled out. That is not to say he knew it all...but he didn't tell me anything flat-out wrong, and DID tell me some stuff (like the bottom drawer, hidey holes in the hatch, and the sunglass holder B) ) that I might not have otherwise found out for a LONG time, so he got extra points! (Freeman Toyota in Santa Rosa, CA, for those keeping track!)

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ScottY @ Sep 6 2006, 09:46 AM) [snapback]315143[/snapback]</div>

1. Open Door
2. Get In
3. Sit Down
4. Put on Seatbelt
5. Put hands on Wheel
6. Start car.

That's six steps, right?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cid404 @ Sep 7 2006, 02:40 PM) [snapback]315842[/snapback]</div>

You could probably break 'Put on seat belt' into multiple steps, and you forgot to close the door and to put your foot on the brake pedal! With a little bit of thought, I'm sure we can make this a 12 Step program.