The joyless experience buying our 2010 Chevrolet Equinox

[klankymen]

^German efficienzy just kicked in, ja!

German/Japanese efficienzy to be exact.

 

[2Billion]

How hard can it be?

When my mother bought her car, she went to the dealership, said "I want this car, in this color, at this trim level. get me one". The boss of the dealership said "OK, I can get you one in 2-3 weeks." My mother fills out a few papers, name, address, bank account, etc, the stuff that's needed to put plates on the car and pay for it. Two weeks later a phone call "OK, your car is here." We drive to the dealership, the plates are on the car, my mother signs a paper, we drive away with the car. Done.

Same here, except in my case it was 2-3 days (well, the car got here the next day, but there was some checking with a certain discount program so I had to wait until after the weekend).

It's like they didn't want me to run over to the competing dealers and get something there instead. Perish the thought.

 

[Spectre]

How hard can it be?

When my mother bought her car, she went to the dealership, said "I want this car, in this color, at this trim level. get me one". The boss of the dealership said "OK, I can get you one in 2-3 weeks." My mother fills out a few papers, name, address, bank account, etc, the stuff that's needed to put plates on the car and pay for it. Two weeks later a phone call "OK, your car is here." We drive to the dealership, the plates are on the car, my mother signs a paper, we drive away with the car. Done.

Usually works that way here, too. Even with used cars; I bought my former XKR in a total of about 30 minutes at a Houston Audi dealer; most of that time was simply filling out the paperwork and waiting for the wire transfer to complete.

If you try to buy a domestic, though... good luck with that.

 

[WillDAQ]

Same here, except in my case it was 2-3 days

That's not quite the same, that's them getting the car from dealer stock.

For the European model your car is built to your spec once you've ordered it (unless there's the exact model floating around in the system), the 2-3 week wait is while the car is actually built in the factory and shipped to the dealers. Most dealers may have 2-3 of each model in different configurations as demo cars.

 

[prizrak]

Usually works that way here, too. Even with used cars; I bought my former XKR in a total of about 30 minutes at a Houston Audi dealer; most of that time was simply filling out the paperwork and waiting for the wire transfer to complete.

If you try to buy a domestic, though... good luck with that.

I had to wait quite a bit for my car. They were detailing it

 

[DanRoM]

Some dealers here are shit too. When I was looking for a new car, I walked into a local Ford dealership showroom. They had a nice-looking Focus in there, not locked, and it was parked near the area where all the salesmen desks and the coffee machine were located. I looked at that particular car for quite a long time, sat in it several times. In a nutshell, I was clearly interested in that car. I was there for at least 20 minutes. Not one of the salesmen bothered to set down his coffee and come over to try to sell me that or any other car.
Needless to say, another dealer got my money. At that other dealership, a salesman - in fact the guy in charge of corporate clients, and I definitely don't look like one - walked up on me after less than five minutes and was very friendly and helpful, offering special deals and stuff, organising a test drive in a reasonably similar car to what I intended to buy. He was also very helpful choosing the car specs (meaning he told me what I don't need).

 

[2Billion]

That's not quite the same, that's them getting the car from dealer stock.

For the European model your car is built to your spec once you've ordered it (unless there's the exact model floating around in the system), the 2-3 week wait is while the car is actually built in the factory and shipped to the dealers. Most dealers may have 2-3 of each model in different configurations as demo cars.

The perks of wanting a car that doesn't have that much model variation, I imagine, since there really wasn't any doubt it'd be found in the dealer stock somewhere.

 

[EyeMWing]

How hard can it be?

When my mother bought her car, she went to the dealership, said "I want this car, in this color, at this trim level. get me one". The boss of the dealership said "OK, I can get you one in 2-3 weeks." My mother fills out a few papers, name, address, bank account, etc, the stuff that's needed to put plates on the car and pay for it. Two weeks later a phone call "OK, your car is here." We drive to the dealership, the plates are on the car, my mother signs a paper, we drive away with the car. Done.

Some dealerships will fuck with you. I personally won't accept a car off a dealership lot if it's been driven any distance further than from the carrier to the parking space, and all those bullshit stickers and license plate frames they love to put on to advertise themselves are dealbreakers. Period. I almost bought a Chevy Cobalt, but the dealership wouldn't order me one because they had an "identical" car on the lot.

 

[nouseferaname90]

The guy we went through gave us a price on the phone. We went to the dealer, he told us to pick the color combo we wanted, and then the car we chose was prepped in a couple hours. 6 miles on the clock.

 

[jasonof2000]

Some dealerships will fuck with you. I personally won't accept a car off a dealership lot if it's been driven any distance further than from the carrier to the parking space, and all those bullshit stickers and license plate frames they love to put on to advertise themselves are dealbreakers. Period. I almost bought a Chevy Cobalt, but the dealership wouldn't order me one because they had an "identical" car on the lot.

I wanted (and got) a SVT Focus but all the dealerships in South Florida I was willing to drive to only had the top of the line Euro-Appearance pack models that had useless items I didn't want like traction control (that can't be turned off below 25 MPH) and engine block heaters. I wanted a silver or blue 5 door with just the upgraded stereo and maybe the HID headlights. My home town Ford dealer did a search and they found one in Tampa and made a deal with the Tampa Ford dealer there and sent someone to get it for me so I bought the car with 250 miles on the odometer.

Decals and chrome badges are also deal breakers for me, a license plate frame you can throw away as soon as you get home so I don't mind that.

 

[tigger]

Why am I not surprised at this article? Man walks into GM dealership, ready to buy that day. Knows what he wants. And yet, he still gets dicked around for no apparent reason.

Put in that situation I would leave just on principle, but then again, I know I'd get the same thing at any other dealership.

If you try to buy a domestic, though... good luck with that.

You tried to get a GTO right? When I was trying to order a Chevy pickup years ago the dealer either wanted A) to charge me 25% interest to finance or B) just wanted to get me into a truck that was on the lot, like this:

I almost bought a Chevy Cobalt, but the dealership wouldn't order me one because they had an "identical" car on the lot.

So I got fed up and bought a '94 Buick at an estate sale. Not sure whether I came out ahead on that whole ordeal. :lol:

 

[WellsieTRD]

While there are bad dealers everywhere and in every brand, it is absolutely amazing just how many terrible dealers there are (and that still remain) in the Former Big Three's lineup. Ford at least tried to police their dealers, but GM never did and Chrysler only did it halfassedly.

Meanwhile, over at Nissan and Toyota, if a dealer screws up, there's every chance that the hammer of god will come down on them..

This is true. Cannot speak for Nissan, but Toyota are ruthless when it comes to its dealer network and its not just its new car departments that feel the wrath if one section screws up, but the whole buisness including spare parts and service.

 

[Spectre]

This is true. Cannot speak for Nissan, but Toyota are ruthless when it comes to its dealer network and its not just its new car departments that feel the wrath if one section screws up, but the whole buisness including spare parts and service.

Because of how Toyota cranked up operations in the US through distributorships, there's less direct consequences for misbehavior with the Toyota dealer network... but unlike GM, there is still a good chance of nasty repercussions for gross misconduct.

Another difference between GM and Toyota's US dealer networks is that Toyota USA has been known to help customers who can't find what they want and can't find a dealer to order it for them. To the point of sending a regional manager over to a dealership to make them order or take delivery of the car the customer wants.

Nissan's even more direct about bringing dealers in line. When the 350Z was new, Nissan told their dealers to not add 'market adjustments' (i.e., jack the price way up because the car is new and popular) to the price. A number dealers in this area didn't pay attention and were asking for more than $50K for a Z. Word quickly got back to Nissan USA. They implemented what some people call the "No Zs For You!" tactic.

Those dealerships that were charging 'market adjustments' suddenly found themselves with only the initial one or two Zs they'd been given and the rest of their inventory allocation had suddenly been sent to a little dealership in Oklahoma that had been making a point of charging MSRP (plus tax, title, license, etc. - the unavoidable stuff) and no more. Worse, when customers called in to ask where they could get a Z, they weren't getting referred to the greedy local dealers; they were being told to contact the Oklahoma dealership and more importantly, why.

The local Nissan dealers who'd been doing 'market adjustments' got the message.... but they still didn't get any more Zs until the dealership in Oklahoma had sold through all the ones they had. Just to make sure the message was received.

I'm pretty sure it was because I haven't seen a single dealer around here trying the 'market adjustment' stupidity with the GT-R.

 

[flydiscovery]

Nissan's even more direct about bringing dealers in line. When the 350Z was new, Nissan told their dealers to not add 'market adjustments' (i.e., jack the price way up because the car is new and popular) to the price. A number dealers in this area didn't pay attention and were asking for more than $50K for a Z. Word quickly got back to Nissan USA. They implemented what some people call the "No Zs For You!" tactic.

Those dealerships that were charging 'market adjustments' suddenly found themselves with only the initial one or two Zs they'd been given and the rest of their inventory allocation had suddenly been sent to a little dealership in Oklahoma that had been making a point of charging MSRP (plus tax, title, license, etc. - the unavoidable stuff) and no more. Worse, when customers called in to ask where they could get a Z, they weren't getting referred to the greedy local dealers; they were being told to contact the Oklahoma dealership and more importantly, why.

The local Nissan dealers who'd been doing 'market adjustments' got the message.... but they still didn't get any more Zs until the dealership in Oklahoma had sold through all the ones they had. Just to make sure the message was received.

I'm pretty sure it was because I haven't seen a single dealer around here trying the 'market adjustment' stupidity with the GT-R.

That is seriously several layers of awesome.

 

[camelfarmer]

Bought my (used) car with cash in about 10 mins (not counting the test drive).

 

[CAPT_Howdy]

Now this makes no sense, in the good ole' US where competition is king and the customer comes first... and yet you've ended up with giant shit holes where the car dealerships should be...

I guess it's the difference compared to European practice where you order a car to your spec and have it delivered rather than taking whatever crap they've got on the forecourt.

It used to be that way in the US, too. I remember in 1978 when my brother special ordered a new Monte Carlo (1978 was the year that GM downsized the A bodied cars, so it was a model that was in demand). He ordered it with just the 5 liter V8, Rally Wheels, metallic paint, AM/FM radio and cloth interior. He ended up doing the same thing in 1982 when he bought a brand new Camaro Berlinetta. And as recently as 1989, the Oldsmobile dealer I worked at at the time special ordered a Delta 88 for a customer where the only options were Air Con, a driver's side airbag, and ABS.

Nowadays, with Americans who hate having to wait for anything, the practice seems to have fallen out of favor. And I'm sure the dealers don't like to do it because if the customer changes their mind, the dealer is left with a car that they may have difficulty selling. And if, say, a dealer has any 2009 models left on their lot, come January 1st, 2010, that dealer will have to pay sales tax on any unsold 2009 cars.

 

[stogie5150]

I had the same experience as the poor sap in the OP....when buying a 2006 Equinox. I got to the dealer at 9am, by the time they got the check from my Credit Union,that I had to hand deliver,and get my own insurance proof, I took delivery at 6:30 that NIGHT.

Now it had everything to do with me butt-raping him over the price, I made him match a local competitors ad, that ad was BELOW INVOICE before the rebate, so he was pretty pissed.

Now contrast that with Honda in 2004. I bought the only black, Civic coupe 5 speed manual in 5 states. Called the dealership, stated what I wanted and what I was willing to pay(invoice, no haggling), when I got there it was detailed, full of gas, and ready to go. Signed the papers, we were on our way home within an hour.

Guess which make I am NOT buying in the future? :lol:

 

[Dogbert]

Another difference between GM and Toyota's US dealer networks is that Toyota USA has been known to help customers who can't find what they want and can't find a dealer to order it for them. To the point of sending a regional manager over to a dealership to make them order or take delivery of the car the customer wants.

This. I didn't get to this point when I got my Scion, but the other dealership I had to go to ordered my bone-standard-no-extras from Japan for me.

 

[Jay]

Seriously, they need to get rid of all these idiots who are incapable of selling cars.

:lol: Now that is funny. No one, when graduating high school thinks "I want to have a job selling cars!" If you are quick witted, a good talker, and have no compunctions or conscience, selling cars is very easy and you can earn $100,000 a year doing it. I know of a car salesman nearly making 400k a year, and it is not at a high end, luxury car dealership.

I'm pretty sure it was because I haven't seen a single dealer around here trying the 'market adjustment' stupidity with the GT-R.

A few dealership have tried in this area, and you are right; we got calls from all over the US, and so far we sold several of them. Of that, one is local, the rest were sold out of state. Plus if a Nissan dealer wants to sell a GT-R, they have to pass some pretty rigorous standards. Your Customer Service Index percentage has to be impossibly high.

We got a red GT-R sitting in our showroom. Any takers? Only $83,000!

 

[Ezbok58a]

:lol: Now that is funny. No one, when graduating high school thinks "I want to have a job selling cars!" If you are quick witted, a good talker, and have no compunctions or conscience, selling cars is very easy and you can earn $100,000 a year doing it. I know of a car salesman nearly making 400k a year, and it is not at a high end, luxury car dealership.



A few dealership have tried in this area, and you are right; we got calls from all over the US, and so far we sold several of them. Of that, one is local, the rest were sold out of state. Plus if a Nissan dealer wants to sell a GT-R, they have to pass some pretty rigorous standards. Your Customer Service Index percentage has to be impossibly high.

We got a red GT-R sitting in our showroom. Any takers? Only $83,000!

I'll give you $40.00 for it... Final offer

Ford dealerships aren't too bad if you know where to go.

For example the one dealership we attempted to deal with (A major dealership chain) they dicked us around.

Yet I can go to my Ford dealer down the road right now (well not right now due to time) with a $500 deposit and they will sit down with me and write down what I want and what I want in it.

And when you do order a car through Ford, (I know GM doesn't do this) when the car arrives, the window sticker will say 'Specifically built for:' and then your name. That alone makes you feel special