I'm a car salesmen, Go ahead and ask me anything

[Ironhorse]

Originally Posted by habernac

gotta disagree on that, Tim. Most manufacturers have corrected for the difference between the US and Canadian currencies. Some have not. My father bought a Lexus in Las Vegas for more than $20,000 less than he would have in Canada, that is including taxes, duty and registering the vehicle in Alberta.

The problem is, when Lexus Canada makes a price correction, they automatically devalue all of the Lexus that were bought by customers right up until that point. Can't imagine those owners being too happy. It's a slippery slope...

[TimSJ]

I agree we are out of line with the US, however if you look at the price of that Lexus in Canada compared to Europe, Australia etc we are right in line with the rest of the world.

[MJK]

If you wanted too, could you sell a car at whatever your cost was? I guess I am talking about new cars here.

For example my buddy is a sales manager at Hyundai...if he really wanted to could he gear me up with a car at cost? Or is this something that is monitored by the manufacturer?

[TimSJ]

He can sell it to you for whatever he wants.

[Finner]

I have a 98 Acura 1.6 el premium edition.

Its a manual, has AC, new tires, power windows, locks and is in great condition.

Maybe one or two dings from door rash.

It has 92000 km on it, and has always been kept up to date on service. (ever 6000km)

Great condition, inside and out.

What would its trade in value be around?

[droopydrew19]

We bought a used GMC envoy last August and the dealer said that he would fix the headlight as part of the deal. Little did he know that this headlight assembly would cost upwards of $1300 (its a limited edition) He has tried to find aftermarket parts from recyclers / wreckers to no avail. I have been waiting 6 months now.

Can they sell a vehicle with no headlight? Isn't there something in the inspection report that forces him to get it fixed?

Is his verbal agreement binding? Perhaps some of the lawyers here can chime in on that as well.

What recourse do I have? I have thought about going to small claims court or I even have some media connections that may want to do a consumer report on used vehicles that could stick a camera in his face and scare him into saving face for his company. (He is the owner)

The crappy thing in all of this is that he was a great guy to deal with and was up front with everything. He wasn't your greasy salesman type.

Thanks

[Ironhorse]

Originally Posted by droopydrew19

Is his verbal agreement binding? Perhaps some of the lawyers here can chime in on that as well.

If it is verbal, you may be pooched. We bought a used SUV a few months ago, and I had the dealer put all the fixes in writing on the sales contract.

[TimSJ]

Originally Posted by Finner

I have a 98 Acura 1.6 el premium edition.

Its a manual, has AC, new tires, power windows, locks and is in great condition.

Maybe one or two dings from door rash.

It has 92000 km on it, and has always been kept up to date on service. (ever 6000km)

Great condition, inside and out.

What would its trade in value be around?

My guess would be in the 4,000-6000 range

[TimSJ]

Originally Posted by droopydrew19

We bought a used GMC envoy last August and the dealer said that he would fix the headlight as part of the deal. Little did he know that this headlight assembly would cost upwards of $1300 (its a limited edition) He has tried to find aftermarket parts from recyclers / wreckers to no avail. I have been waiting 6 months now.

Can they sell a vehicle with no headlight? Isn't there something in the inspection report that forces him to get it fixed?

Is his verbal agreement binding? Perhaps some of the lawyers here can chime in on that as well.

What recourse do I have? I have thought about going to small claims court or I even have some media connections that may want to do a consumer report on used vehicles that could stick a camera in his face and scare him into saving face for his company. (He is the owner)

The crappy thing in all of this is that he was a great guy to deal with and was up front with everything. He wasn't your greasy salesman type.

Thanks

Like Ironhorse said get anything that is supposed to be done to the car in writing. saves a lot of hassle and bad feelings on both sides.

My only real suggestion would to be sit down with the guy and lay it on the table give him a chance to make it right if he doesn't go after him

BTW we are all greasy salesmen types..lol

[jam26]

My girlfriend has a 2001 Hyundai Accent. She hit a pole with it in a parking lot, putting a sizeable dent in the front quarter. It's just cosmetic, but will cost $800ish to repair.
Will the resale value of the car decline by more than $800 due to a dent? Would we be better off repairing it before selling/trading it in or just selling as is?

[Cowperson]

Originally Posted by TimSJ

When you buy a new car there is no warranty on the tires except for defects. Manufacturers are not including Road Hazard or anything anymore. I would say that this is something that you shoudl take up with a goodyear rep.

If these are the OEM tires you are doing well to get 30k out of them . I am of the opinion that the original tires do not wear as well as replacement tires. With the V8 and a heavy car 30k imho is about right for a set of tires.

I have clients with cars that have to change rear tires at each oilchange and all 4 every second oil change.

Just to clarify, there are tens of thousands of Chrysler 300 C's out there with tires that Goodyear warranties to 100,000 km but Chrysler knows will pooch out at 30,000 km and Goodyear is going to honour a warranty?

I doubt Goodyear is replacing tens of thousands of sets of tires in these circumstances. You can always ask but it seems unlikely.

I think its about $2,400 to replace four tires so its not an insignificant issue.

Cowperson

[burn_baby_burn]

Originally Posted by TimSJ

I have clients with cars that have to change rear tires at each oilchange and all 4 every second oil change.

What kind of idiot would not see that the tires they are using are garbage if they had to change the tires every 5,000km? If that was the case for me, I would be changing my rear tires every 4 to 6 weeks. Not very economical. Especially when there are tires out there that you can get at least 80,000 - 100,000km of use. Most tire brands recommend that you rotate your tires every 10,000km. What tire brand are your clients using, that the entire life span of the tire is only half of the amount of time that other tires would need for the first rotation?

[habernac]

Originally Posted by Cowperson

Just to clarify, there are tens of thousands of Chrysler 300 C's out there with tires that Goodyear warranties to 100,000 km but Chrysler knows will pooch out at 30,000 km and Goodyear is going to honour a warranty?

I doubt Goodyear is replacing tens of thousands of sets of tires in these circumstances. You can always ask but it seems unlikely.

I think its about $2,400 to replace four tires so its not an insignificant issue.

Cowperson

quit buying those gas sucking pigs with Hemi's, Cow.

[I-Hate-Hulse]

What's the best technique / tactic / strategy for me to use in negotiating the lowest price on a car? Any tips or tricks to know? Assume it'll be a non domestic of some sort. Thanks!

[Cowperson]

Originally Posted by habernac

quit buying those gas sucking pigs with Hemi's, Cow.

Do I have to turn in my V-8 Hemi Durango as well?

As one college prof told our aghast, green-oriented class in the late 1970's after it was asked why he was driving a honking big, blue-spewing, magnificantly polluting Cadillac when it was such a menace to the planet:

"Because I can afford it. Hahahahaha."

One of those hilarious, "you had to be there," moments.

Interestingly, gasoline prices on an inflation adjusted basis, are roughly the same or cheaper today - early 2007 - as they were back then.

http://www.fintrend.com/inflation/im...tion_chart.htm

Cowperson

[trew]

Hi Tim,

Can you comment on the quality of recent model year Mercedes? I've read a lot of reports about how Mercedes quality is slipping ever since the Daimler Chrysler merger.

[DuffMan]

can I buy a vehicle with my Visa? and if so, what will I, the consumer, get a better deal with, cash? Visa? financing?

[Alpha_Q]

How much communication is there between different dealerships of the same make of car?

I recently purchased a Honda. Dealership A had the car I was looking for with spoiler and tinting, but they did not have one without a spoiler or tinting. Dealership B had the car without a spoiler or tinting.

I was trying to negotiate with A about them paying for either the tinting or the spoiler, the salesman suggested that I wait for them to receive the car I wanted. I told them the car was available elsewhere, and suggested that dealership A pay for the spoiler.

The salesman said he would phone me back. A couple hours later he phoned to say that financing of a vehicle fell through (what timing!), and they now had the car I was looking for.

Because the cost at each dealership was within a few dollars of each other, I went with the salesman who most reminded me of Gill from the Simpsons. In truth, he was honest about what he knew and did not know, and came across as very humble.

I would not be surprised to learn that Dealership A made arrangements to get a vehicle from Dealership B or elsewhere.

Thanks in advance for your reply.

[TimSJ]

We Dealer trade between dealers all of the time.. It woudl be impossible to have every combination available.

[TimSJ]

Originally Posted by burn_baby_burn

What kind of idiot would not see that the tires they are using are garbage if they had to change the tires every 5,000km? If that was the case for me, I would be changing my rear tires every 4 to 6 weeks. Not very economical. Especially when there are tires out there that you can get at least 80,000 - 100,000km of use. Most tire brands recommend that you rotate your tires every 10,000km. What tire brand are your clients using, that the entire life span of the tire is only half of the amount of time that other tires would need for the first rotation?

Oil changes on benz's are 15,000km's on average. plus i am talking about sticky z-rated tires on cars with 400+HP