Dealers Must Be Getting Deserate

Obviously demand is going to go down with gas prices. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand this. Who cares, though? It's not like people will start eating up trucks and SUVs again (maybe I'm overestimating the intelligence of the average American).

 

I think you are over estimating the intelligence of the average American.
Every SUV and large truck will be on the road for years and years. Finally
the large ones from the 1980s are rarely being seen now days. Those large
monsters lost a ton of value over the last year and the people who can least
afford it will be buying them. No long term thinking will be involved. Oooh a
used SUV for 4500! Look at what we can afford honey. It still looks rather new. I always wanted one of these. (Never considering the costs involved
with gas and maintaining the used vehicle).

And alas, a new 20 MPG monster is used for commuting to work and back
with one passenger sitting inside.

 

You know, I almost feel bad for working for a Toyota dealer, but then I snap back into reality and remember all the great comments we have from customers that use our service department. I think a lot of it is people's expectations when they drive up to service. If you expect to be treated like a king/queen, then get ready to be let down. If you expect to be greeted warmly and promptly, and get your vehicle into service quickly and given a reasonable amount of time to repair it, then you should not be dissapointed. I have worked at a Chevy and Dodge dealer in the past, and have literally hidden from customers that were in service because I knew they probably were not happy. I have been at this Toyota dealer for five years now, and love to see my customers while in service. I have sold many customers that never bought from us, but decided to use our service department because it was convenient, and fell in love with how we go out of our way to make sure our customers are happy. I also have many customers that will drive from an hour to two hours away to get their service done here, instead of at their local dealers. So are we one out of a million that really appreciates our customer? I sure hope not. But I have seen people that have bought and dealt with nothing but domestic vehicles come in with their fists up ready to fight (figuratively) when they come in because of what they have been through in the past.

As for the person quoting that Toyota dealers were 33 out of 34, it is actually 27 out of 37. Still not great, but definately not the worst.

Oh, and as far as benefits for buying and servicing locally, that really comes down to the relationship you have with the dealer. No dealer will say they will not fix your car if it is under warranty, but when an item quits working that just went out of warranty, or really isn't covered, is where you sometimes get that extra benefit. Dealers will sometimes go into their own pocket, or get stuff pushed through, to help out a good customer. For those customers that drove all over the state to save a $100, and bought a vehicle and hour away, they probably will not get that benefit.

Perception is reality, but reality is perception. We recently had a customer that told the owner of the store he would never buy another vehicle here because we were higher on the exact same vehicle he bought elsewhere. Being that we could pull up the vehicle we quoted, and find out what he bought and paid for it, we could show that customer that he actually paid more profit for a vehicle with less equipment than what he requested here. Because we could show him through true hard figures what had happened to him, he has now agreed to purchase all of his Toyota's here, and pay the same profit he paid to that dealer on all of them. Moral of the story is we see and hear what we want. Until proven differently, we have on blinders, believing what we want, and telling everyone of our experiences. Let people experience things for themselves without others opinions raining down on them, and they may have a completely different outlook on the same thing.

Ok, I'm done with my ranting...let's hear the critics.

 

Hmm.....I would have LOVED to purchase locally, but my local dealer has not accepted orders for new Prii since the first part of July. Then, later I found out they accepted an order from a friend of mine--(a repeat customer) after I inquired 3 times and was turned down each time. The next closest dealer, which is an hour away accepted my order with no deposit, but their monthly allocation is only 4. I was # 31 on their list at the end of July, so who knows how long that will take. I am holding out for a Touring. The next closest dealer--2 hours away--were sooooo arrogant and smug, would not accept an order unless I gave them $1000.00 non-refundable deposit. I would not buy from them for anything!!! They were so smug, even mocking me for sticking with the dealer that did not require a deposit. I am fortunate that I do not NEED a car, and I will bring my Prius into my local dealer for service. If they don't like it, they can blame themselves for not taking my order. It is not like I was giving them any time limit, just wanted a place in line. I cannot believe there are sales people crying about customers! Dealers do this to themselves when they allow their sales dept to act as if customers are there for them. It's the other way around kids!

 

We do not blame someone if they buy a Prius somewhere else quicker than what we can get. We really do not have that problem much though as we turn as many Prius' as we can get, and sometimes get more than we need (like now).

 

I do not understand why Toyota does not fill orders like other manufacturers. A buyer tells the dealer what options they want and the factory fulfills the request. It is more customer oriented, rather than having ridiculous waiting lists in one area of the country and a surplus somewhere else. Has anyone ever explained that practice to you Toyota employees out there? I know it's more complicated to do it that way for the manufacturer, but it seems there would be more satisfied customers and more repeat sales that way.

 

Different regions order their vehicles differently. Since we are in the Gulf States Region, we receive our allocations from them. These allocations are based off of what we sold and how many, and what options, colors, ect. that were sold. This is Toyota's way to help streamline many order processes and take a little less time than the other manufactures. You can do a true factory order like the domestics, and you will still wait 4-6 months like the domestics as well for that order to arrive.

Prii typically take a decent amount of time to arrive anyways, but that is largely based off how many batteries they can get to build the vehicles and orders. Many other vehicles can be had within a few weeks.

 

I see. I wish our region would order the way yours does. That way, I would know that it's ordered and I can expect it, even if it takes 4-6 months. It seems like I am just in a state of uncertainty with the information I have been given: "well, it could be 4-6 months" "well, that will be about 9-10 months." And they cannot quote me a price either. It just seems quite nebulous. Thanks for your response Tundra!
I guess I will have to "respect the process."

 

No, I'm really quite serious.

If I'm paying someone for a service, regardless of what it is, I fully expect to be treated with courtesy and professionalism. As I'm the one paying for the service, I'm not about to make any allowances for the service provider's business model. I'm paying them to do something for me as a professional. I'm not paying them for the privilege of doing business with them.

What's that name and corporate logo that dealers plaster all over their buildings, advertisements, and practically any other surface in their establishments? That branding links them all together for better or worse and whether they like it or not. That's just like McDonalds or any other corporation with wide spread name recognition.

If a dealer expects me to accept this, then they must also expect that I'll continue to vote with my wallet and complain loudly and profusely when I receive less than courteous and professional treatment or when they can't live up to the service commitments that have been established. Like I said at the start of this I'm paying for a service not a privilege; the dealer's business model is his problem, not mine.

 

Beacon Chevy/Olds said as much to me about my Intrigue. However, they were the only Olds dealer that fixed anything with only 1 trip. They replaced a light bulb once. After not wanting to touch the car one of their subcontractors called asking if they could schedule a service appointment. I'm not ashamed to say that I gave that poor woman a piece of my mind when I told her what I thought of the dealer. The dealer is now a vacant lot.

This demonstrated to me that GM's warranty was worthless and it cost them a customer.

I have NEVER gone to any dealer and had the car worked on at the appointed time. Waiting in the lounge didn't speed anything up. I understand that everyone can't be "next" but as far as I know my money is as green as the next person's. I don't believe any posters requested or expected preferential treatment in the Service Dept. but equal & fair treatment is expected.

IMO the manufacturers do have influence over their dealers but don't have the backbone or balls to use it.

There are good & bad employees at all positions everywhere. Unfortunately the good ones tend to be driven out. It's tough to stay clean when surrounded by slime.

 

Trust me, you don't want to be stuck in Gulf States Toyota region and trying to buy a vehicle from them. I tried that fruitlessly several times before I drove 500 miles to pick up the Tundra I wanted for several thousand less, out of Gulf States' region. Gulf States adds junk on that you probably don't want and their selection was awful. I ran into this same problem several times when negotiating on various vehicles.

Now perhaps it is different for the Prius, but I wouldn't hold my breath. For the other vehicles I have experience with they didn't do anything like a build. In fact their packages were more expensive and problematic than Toyota's own distributor. Getting the standard package without costly add ons wasn't even an option.

 

Don't blame GST, blame the dealers you were trying to work with. We can strip a vehicle down to just the factory options as long as we catch it before it gets to the distributor. If you were just looking for vehicles that were all ready on the lots, then most likely they were options like Extra Mile Packages and Vehicle Shield Packages that you may not have wanted on there. These packages have value, and many people request them. If you did not see value in them, then you should have asked your dealer to bring in a vehicle from the port without them. If they wouldn't do it, find a different dealer that will.

Of course if you are trying to get a vehicle that was in high demand (like when the Tundra first came out), then it would have been hard to find a dealer to work with you, but someone always will.

 

Try Carousel Toyota. One of the best.

 

No, it was definitely a GST problem as well as their dealers. GST was adding on the unwanted junk, making it their problem. I waited until the Tundra had been updated with what I wanted (2002) as I don't buy into fads. It was available at the time and I had absolutely no problem locating what I wanted for a very good price when I went out of GST's region. In ten years I never got anywhere with various GST dealers on three different vehicle purchases. It wasn't a single fluke but a longstanding pattern with all the GST dealers I had contacted. They were a lot prouder of their vehicles than those outside the region.

Sure individual dealers can be a problem, but with other manufacturers simply going a few miles down the road to the next dealer did the trick. With GST that failed miserably even when using a ~100 mile radius. My advice to those in the GST region is to look outside of it for a comparison before closing a deal.

 

actually, you're usually assigned a customer number when you buy and that along with your basic info and car info remains in the dealer's system.

in general, service profits exceed purchase profits over the life of the vehicle. and yes, customers who have been loyal will get better treatment- those who have purchased several vehicles at the dealership and have a long history will absolutely get better treatment than someone from out of town. you can thank the management types for that.

 

What a difference a few months makes. I bought mine at MSRP this summer. I bet I could have saved a few 1000's easy.

 

Maybe I wasn't as clear when I wrote my first message on this. All dealers can get a vehicle without any additional options from the distributor as long as they make changes to the order before it arrives at the distributor. GST cannot make a dealer have to put distributor installed stuff on their inventory if they do not want it.

Now if you want a wierd factory option equipped vehicle, then that is a different story. GST orders the vehicles from the manufacturer based on what items and colors have been selling well within the different regions. Like now, if you want a SR5 Tundra with Navigation and a Sunroof, you may have to wait a few months for a factory order placement, but this is no different than any other manufacturer.

 

tundradreams,

Such an order option was never offered by any GST dealer. Draw your own conclusions about multiple dealers' 100% failure on that front. They never got within $2,000 on price (~7.5%) of what they could get anyway so it wouldn't have mattered, as I would not have ordered for that sort of premium.

Ran into the same looking at Camry's before that and couldn't find Celica's before the Camry. GST's Toyota dealers had the happy, fat, and lazy approach to sales so they never made one to me. It was quite a contrast with Nissan and Honda.