Buying a new car
I bought a 2008 Kia Rondo last weekend, at a Kia dealership in Westchester County, NY. I have to say, it was a decidedly old world and (at times) slimy experience. I started off by e-mailing their “Internet Sales” person, who e-mailed me a form-like letter asking if I wanted the V4 or V6, what color I was interested in, etc.
Here I thought, naively, that I could really get most of this done over e-mail. I responded with my selections, and a few questions about financing. I got a call back and was told to come into the dealership on Saturday afternoon. I arrive Saturday afternoon to find out that the women I was e-mailing was not, as she said, going to meet me there. Instead I was corralled at the door by a salesman who turned out to be brand new to the dealership.
Not a huge problem, I thought, since I knew exactly what I wanted. A 2008 Kia Rondo, with V6 and 3rd row seating. I had no trade-in, and financing was easy. Now, like anyone else going in for a purchase as large as a new car, I naturally wanted a discount.
I started off with an opener: “How about giving me a good price for the car, since I’m a good guy, I’m putting a huge chunk down, I’m no credit risk, etc”.
“Sure” I was told. Then I waited as Mr. New Guy hemmed and hawed with his finance manager. He comes back and shows me his new math, where not only did I not get a discount, but I ended up paying $100 MORE for the car than I would have originally!
Hrm.
After more gnashing of teeth and considering walking out, I ended up going for it. “Great!” he says, his senior sales manager says, the finance guy says. Now they’ve got me. And they had no intention of letting me go anytime soon.
3 1/2 hours later, after numerous delays for little to no reason, after filling out several forms, and really just ready to go, I’m told by the senior sales manager, “so are you ready to fill out the forms now?” Hrm… what have I been filling out for the last 2 hours? Practice forms?
So I go into the back room, which is ostensibly where the “real” deals are done, and go through the paperwork. Extended warranties are talked about, financing, etc. I finally, gasping for air, get out of the dealership 4 1/2 hours after arriving. I did get to drive home in my new Kia, though.
I arranged an appointment to come back to the dealership Tuesday to have my car alarm installed. I tell everyone at the dealership that I am coming at 11, and must leave at 12:30 at the latest. More antics ensue on Tuesday… I show up early (10:45), but don’t end up getting my car until 1:15. I’m just glad I didn’t have a meeting I couldn’t reschedule.
It was explained to me, after I got my car almost an hour after I needed to be leaving, that the car was held up so much because it was getting inspected. Never mind that it was inspected on Saturday, I’m told. That was “just a temporary inspection”.
I now have a great Kia at home, which I really love. I just had to rant a bit about buying a new car from a dealership. While I was enduring the Saturday marathon, a guy who was decidedly more experienced in buying and selling cars came in, and haggled with a salesman for 3 full hours over a trade-in. He ended up dissatisfied and left without doing a deal.
I guess that is the real lesson here, that you really have to be willing to walk away whenever you feel uncomfortable. Had I used that measuring stick, I would have left as soon as I showed up. The guys at the dealership weren’t completely crooked, but they weren’t up to anything good. I used to play pool quite a bit, and these guys reminded me of the gamblers at the pool hall. Every person who walks in the door is just a mark, just a game. Not a person.
I tweeted while in the dealership that this is a decidedly old-world experience. Watching guys fill out forms photocopied many times over, writing in barely legible cursive, makes me sick. These are the guys handling your car insurance and registration, who need to write 20+ digit numbers without transposing any of them. The whole experience needed an upgrade.
