Okay are any car dealers reputable?

Question

Do any try to give you a fair deal when you buy a car or are they out to get all they can out of your pocket? I know you should reseach all you can before buying. How about service departments- are we at their mercy? Is there a way to check on prices other than getting a second opinion?

Answer 1

Heck no! About four years ago me and my second ex bought a car off a lot in Florida. Turns out it was an old flood car out of Ohio and we started having trouble with it as soon as we got home. That dang ole Toyota jumped out of park that very night and crunched into the side of our trailer. Another time the horn started blowing around 4 in the morning and wouldnt stop. I took off the batery cable till morning. i drove that dang crate all the way back to town with the horn ablowing and then that crook dealer said they aren't gonna fix it. Things like this went on for about 3 weeks. Lights dim, check engine lights on, dieing all the time. Then I got laid off and decided i didnt have anything better to do so I painted a big lemon on each side of that black car and used an old dominoes delivery sign that lights up and ties to the roof and painted "Metro Hool Motors sold me a lemon" on it. I would drive that car around town all day. sometimes i would park it at the mall and reconnect the horn and let it blow till the battery died. One day a lawyer called me said they were going to get a bond on me if i didnt stop but i said i didnt give a ####. 2 days later that lawyer called and said they would give me back my money. I connected the wires to the horn and drove it back to that dealer blowing like crazy and left it out front locked until they gave me a check.

Answer 2

Great Question, I have purchased several vehicles throughout the years. I can relay two stories to you, my first one was with Mercedes Benz-
I purchased a new SL500 and after 3 years it was out of warranty, it only had 30,000miles the engine started having internal problems overheating ET, the dealer could not figure it out but kept charging me a 1000. in repairs every time I would take it in, I wrote mercedes benz about the problem and sent them all my reciepts and they sent me a letter saying they had no control over Mercedes Dealership as they were independent. I finally took it to a independent benz mechanic who fixed it and it ran perfect, I even had him write me a letter saying the dealership had ripped me off changing wrong parts.

My second story is with Honda MotorCorp, I purchased a vehicle for my Office Manager (I am a physician). I went to a Honda Dealership purchased a 26,000. accord great car- and the dealership registered the wrong vehicle (they made an error with the VIN number) well I found out when I wanted to sell the car a few years later, I could not get a title even though I had paid off Honda Motor Financial. When I went to DMV I was told I was not the legal owner and the dealership would need to fix the problem, when I called Honda MotorCorp they told me the dealer would need to fix the problem. The dealership would not even call me back, I finally had to go to the Attorney General in my state who assigned a detective to my case who had my problem fixed within days. I was shocked how the dealership did not care, the general manager never responded to my many calls or letters.

The detective that handled the case told me that unfortionately most dealerships don't care about the consumer once the vehicle is sold to the consumer. I have decided no more new vehicles, every single vehicle I have purchased new has always lost 50% or more of its value within 3 years. I buy used cars exclusively now.

In 1999 I did buy a Jaguar XJR, and I still own it, I just want to point out that some dealerships are great the experience and service has always been excellent, but the truth is I paid 80,000 for it and it runs great, but with the current value is about 10-12grand I just cannot make myself sell it, it looks brand new. So I use it everyday, good luck to you.

Answer 3

Nope, never met a reputable dealer or a salesman before. They are all out to seperate you from your wallet at all costs. They won't lose one second of sleep even if you end up in a financial crisis by buying a car you really can't afford. They'll be busy high-fiving each other in the back office.

I have a friend who is an ex-sleezeball salesman and he often laughs about a woman he took for like $5000 more than she should've paid.

The best you could do is research and try to minimize the dealer from stealing from you.

Answer 4

if you are a quality person most sales people will treat you with respect and will want you to have a good deal so that you are happy and come back. unfortunatly alot of people are roaches that dont pay thier bills and wont get approved by most banks without making the dealer pay huge fees. then i as a sales person have to get huge down payments and inflate the price of the car just to get the deal done . ironically on thes deals i make the least amount of money and it requires the most work. and the funny thing is these are the people that usually think we ripped them off . thats because instead of building their credit back up and getting a better deal next time these people will blame the sales person for puting them in a hole. so if you arent a roach yes i would love to give you a fair deal.

Answer 5

I love some of the answers you got so far, put a big smile on my face,. I been selling cars for 30 years and now retired.

your on the right track when you mention research and there is no excuse why the consumer should not get valid value, the problem is when you surf for a question you get a thousand answers and the average consumer gets totally confused jumping from one site to another.

I have a website about buying cars and the average visit is from 1 min to 5 min, I offer free advice and know you wont have learned a thing unless you were on board for about 15 to 20 minutes.
http://www.usedcartips.org/

Answer 6

The best you can do is research dealers before you go there. as for used car dealers, stay away from shady neighborhoods. even if they're selling a Ferrari in perfect condition, don't buy it if it's in Camden. Go to a place you feel comfortable in. If you think that anything isn't what you expect it to be, leave, no matter how much you want that car they have.

Answer 7

There's no such thing as a reputable car dealer. That is a contradiction in and of it self. All you can do to protect yourself is research, research, research! Talk to people about where they've bought their cars, find out what they think about those places, and try checking with the Better Business Bureau. Never hurts.

Answer 8

Car dealers are in business to make money. Enough said.
The Federal trade commission says prices have to be given to you if you request it. Ask for a price list. They have to give you something, but they know how to work the system too. Call the BBB (Better business bureau) http://www.bbb.org/ and see if any complaints have been filed against them.

Answer 9

I have not found one yet. I was just at the dealership today having to have something done that is under warranty. If I did not have that warrany, I would absolutely, positively NOT being going there for service. Funny because when I was there today, I was thinking the same thing; we are at their mercy and they know it. They over-charge AND are very rude.

cool list Stuart

Answer 10

Crooks one and all. My own uncle is a car dealer and I won't even buy from him! This goes for most any commissioned salesman, but car dealers are the worst.