Warning! Long, random, stream of consciousness dissertation about a car buying experience. Read at your own risk!
The Tomato is safely tucked away in the garage at our current home in the mountains. It was supposed to be a black, slightly used 1997 Tacoma, then a white, slightly used Tacoma. And then, after reading this thread: http://www.bt3central.com/showthread.php?t=40341 I started thinking about a new vehicle. I found one on the Internet at a dealer in California, only to learn after calling the dealer that it had sold months ago. Lesson number one: dealer inventories on the Internet are unreliable. Then I found two at a dealer over the hill in Nevada. Just what we wanted in the way of equipment, and some kind of red color that we were not clear about based on the web ad.
So, after catching **** from LOML after I dragged her to see a used truck last weekend that had sold the day before, we headed over to this dealer on a Saturday morning. Lesson number 2: do not shop at a dealer on the weekends. Too busy, too boisterous, and the "I have to talk to the manager" ritual takes longer than it should.
I had called ahead and talked with the "Internet Sales Manager", a nice young man who ended up being cannon fodder in the negotiations. I had also done my home work - Edmunds, Kelly Blue Book, a dealer who was willing to sell me a 2009 Tacoma at $200 under invoice. During the phone call, I made it clear that we intended to buy a car that day and that we had a backup, which we did in the form of a used vehicle my wife had made an appointment to see, I didn't want to waste the salesman's time, and I was willing to pay the invoice price less the cash back incentive.
Like talking to a brick. When we arrived, the first thing he wanted to do is have me drive the vehicle. The first thing I wanted to do is negotiate the price, since my wife had already test driven the used truck and was very happy with it. I know what I want, I'm ready to pay cash, and I want to wrap this up. I don't all in love with cars. Airplanes I can't possibly afford, yes, but not cars. So we head out to see the truck and right away I know we have a problem in the form of stuff that the dealer has added. Retail price on the sticker - $1995. We both point this out to the salesman and suggest we'd like it removed. His response is that sometimes the managers will just throw it in.
After the test drive, the negotiations start. I tell the salesman what we're willing to offer - basically the invoice price plus their fees for documentation and registration. Nothing for the mud flaps, wheel rim dressing, door guards and other stuff they've tacked on. Their initial counter is to take $400 off the retail price including the add-ons. I explained that they'd already taken an hour more than I had planned on spending with them and we had another vehicle we were going to see. At that point, we got up to leave and the price started coming down, fast.
Over the next 30 minutes, they sent several "managers" out to explain that our offer left them with no profit, that they could not make a sale with no profit, etc. I rejected a counter-offer that was $400 above my offer price and got up again. They asked if I would split the difference and I agreed, but when they came back and said the higher-ups would not agree, that was it! We left the building and were getting in our car when they came running out. I was beyond reason at that point because as much as I had tried to lay the groundwork and avoid the scene, they'd decided to play their game.
Bottom line: They accepted our offer if I agreed not to thrash them on the factory survey. I sold my soul for about $150 and agreed to write a glowing report on the factory survey. The salesman was actually pretty pleasant, but I was ready to drill one of the "managers".
I know they made a reasonable profit on this car. Not nearly as much as they might have made from an uninformed buyer who would fall in love with the vehicle, but enough. We're also pretty certain they were having trouble unloading the last two '08s because the color is absolutely hideous in my opinion - any vehicle that's bright red should have a sign on the back that says, "Ticket Me". I'm not willing to gloat about beating them at their game because it happens to be a game I hate, but apparently they do respect people who stand their ground enough to offer them jobs, which I declined. It's also the only time in my entire life that I've been complimented on my negotiating skills, which is an area where I usually either say yes or no - I know what I can live with and I have no patience for dickering.
We're happy with our purchase. It has enough power for our needs but it sips fuel compared with the V6s and I think I can beat the EPA numbers because I don't have a heavy foot. I hate the color but it's a car, not a piece of art. However, I have been told in no uncertain terms by my wife that if I go the dealer route to buy the next vehicle, it will probably end in divorce. So next time it's Autobytel or nothing.
The Tomato is safely tucked away in the garage at our current home in the mountains. It was supposed to be a black, slightly used 1997 Tacoma, then a white, slightly used Tacoma. And then, after reading this thread: http://www.bt3central.com/showthread.php?t=40341 I started thinking about a new vehicle. I found one on the Internet at a dealer in California, only to learn after calling the dealer that it had sold months ago. Lesson number one: dealer inventories on the Internet are unreliable. Then I found two at a dealer over the hill in Nevada. Just what we wanted in the way of equipment, and some kind of red color that we were not clear about based on the web ad.
So, after catching **** from LOML after I dragged her to see a used truck last weekend that had sold the day before, we headed over to this dealer on a Saturday morning. Lesson number 2: do not shop at a dealer on the weekends. Too busy, too boisterous, and the "I have to talk to the manager" ritual takes longer than it should.
I had called ahead and talked with the "Internet Sales Manager", a nice young man who ended up being cannon fodder in the negotiations. I had also done my home work - Edmunds, Kelly Blue Book, a dealer who was willing to sell me a 2009 Tacoma at $200 under invoice. During the phone call, I made it clear that we intended to buy a car that day and that we had a backup, which we did in the form of a used vehicle my wife had made an appointment to see, I didn't want to waste the salesman's time, and I was willing to pay the invoice price less the cash back incentive.
Like talking to a brick. When we arrived, the first thing he wanted to do is have me drive the vehicle. The first thing I wanted to do is negotiate the price, since my wife had already test driven the used truck and was very happy with it. I know what I want, I'm ready to pay cash, and I want to wrap this up. I don't all in love with cars. Airplanes I can't possibly afford, yes, but not cars. So we head out to see the truck and right away I know we have a problem in the form of stuff that the dealer has added. Retail price on the sticker - $1995. We both point this out to the salesman and suggest we'd like it removed. His response is that sometimes the managers will just throw it in.
After the test drive, the negotiations start. I tell the salesman what we're willing to offer - basically the invoice price plus their fees for documentation and registration. Nothing for the mud flaps, wheel rim dressing, door guards and other stuff they've tacked on. Their initial counter is to take $400 off the retail price including the add-ons. I explained that they'd already taken an hour more than I had planned on spending with them and we had another vehicle we were going to see. At that point, we got up to leave and the price started coming down, fast.
Over the next 30 minutes, they sent several "managers" out to explain that our offer left them with no profit, that they could not make a sale with no profit, etc. I rejected a counter-offer that was $400 above my offer price and got up again. They asked if I would split the difference and I agreed, but when they came back and said the higher-ups would not agree, that was it! We left the building and were getting in our car when they came running out. I was beyond reason at that point because as much as I had tried to lay the groundwork and avoid the scene, they'd decided to play their game.
Bottom line: They accepted our offer if I agreed not to thrash them on the factory survey. I sold my soul for about $150 and agreed to write a glowing report on the factory survey. The salesman was actually pretty pleasant, but I was ready to drill one of the "managers".
I know they made a reasonable profit on this car. Not nearly as much as they might have made from an uninformed buyer who would fall in love with the vehicle, but enough. We're also pretty certain they were having trouble unloading the last two '08s because the color is absolutely hideous in my opinion - any vehicle that's bright red should have a sign on the back that says, "Ticket Me". I'm not willing to gloat about beating them at their game because it happens to be a game I hate, but apparently they do respect people who stand their ground enough to offer them jobs, which I declined. It's also the only time in my entire life that I've been complimented on my negotiating skills, which is an area where I usually either say yes or no - I know what I can live with and I have no patience for dickering.
We're happy with our purchase. It has enough power for our needs but it sips fuel compared with the V6s and I think I can beat the EPA numbers because I don't have a heavy foot. I hate the color but it's a car, not a piece of art. However, I have been told in no uncertain terms by my wife that if I go the dealer route to buy the next vehicle, it will probably end in divorce. So next time it's Autobytel or nothing.
!
. 
LCHIEN
Loring in Katy, TX USA
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