Confessions of a Car Salesman
June 28, 2006 7:59 PM Subscribe
Confessions of a Car Salesman: What really goes on in the back rooms of car dealerships across America? What does the car salesman do when he leaves you sitting in a sales office and goes to talk with his boss? These were the questions we, the editors at Edmunds.com, wanted to answer for our readers. ....[W]e hired Chandler Phillips, a veteran journalist, to go undercover by working at two new car dealerships in the Los Angeles area. First, he would work at a high-volume, high-pressure dealership selling Japanese cars. Then, he'd change over to a smaller car lot that sold domestic cars at "no haggle" prices. "
Excellent piece of journalism! See also an earlier thread on high-pressure sales (esp'lly this comment from a MeFi ex-carsalesman). (I know this is not AskMe, but) As someone who just purchased his first car(used) from a small local dealer, and who got thrown around and treated badly at bigger dealers who never returned calls, threw around impossible prices and in general behaved unprofessional; I was genuinely surprised and left wondering: if all (or atleast most) dealers are this bad, then where is the famed invisible hand of market? and why has it not thrown dealers with squeaky clean records and who take the slow-n-steady route to reputation and repeat-sales? Over a period of time, surely people would love to go to this dealer, isn't it? or am I missing something? My uninformed hunch tells me there is a big market for a good dealer who wants to do business the good ole way.
Excellent piece of journalism! See also an earlier thread on high-pressure sales (esp'lly this comment from a MeFi ex-carsalesman). (I know this is not AskMe, but) As someone who just purchased his first car(used) from a small local dealer, and who got thrown around and treated badly at bigger dealers who never returned calls, threw around impossible prices and in general behaved unprofessional; I was genuinely surprised and left wondering: if all (or atleast most) dealers are this bad, then where is the famed invisible hand of market? and why has it not thrown dealers with squeaky clean records and who take the slow-n-steady route to reputation and repeat-sales? Over a period of time, surely people would love to go to this dealer, isn't it? or am I missing something? My uninformed hunch tells me there is a big market for a good dealer who wants to do business the good ole way.
This post was deleted for the following reason: posted before
yea, I was trying to see, how I could split it up but didn't find any separate section for an extended description (unlike AskMe). I thought MeFi will somehow (?) take care of it. So, how do I split it?
(This is my first link to MeFi, so I regret the eye-sore, but maybe the admin can massage this post for me? Thx)
posted by forwebsites at 8:06 PM on June 28, 2006
(This is my first link to MeFi, so I regret the eye-sore, but maybe the admin can massage this post for me? Thx)
posted by forwebsites at 8:06 PM on June 28, 2006
Before this is deleted I'd just like to say that this book really opened my eyes regarding coercive mind control techniques used by car salesmen, cia interrogators, and other ilk. Highly recommended reading for those intrigued by dark force psychology.
posted by ducksauce at 8:07 PM on June 28, 2006
posted by ducksauce at 8:07 PM on June 28, 2006
oops!! double-fault in first serve. someone pls delete this faaast.
posted by forwebsites at 8:13 PM on June 28, 2006
posted by forwebsites at 8:13 PM on June 28, 2006
It's a double, sure, but I always loved this part of the article:
"Why do you want to work here?"posted by caddis at 8:18 PM on June 28, 2006
My first inclination was to say, hey, I'm a car freak. Always have been. I could explain cars, how they work, get people excited about the performance and the different features. But then I remembered my editor's advice.
I smiled at Dave, trying to convey the feeling that the answer was obvious.
"I want to make a lot of money," I said.
The effect on Dave was amazing. He smiled and relaxed, as if I had said the password to enter an exclusive club. If this had been a cartoon, dollar signs would have appeared in his eyes accompanied by a loud "Cha-ching!"
Always be prepared to walk out of the dealership immediately.
And when they do make an offer, take out your cellphone and call other dealerships right then and there. In front of them. If they ask you to leave, good.
That's the best advice I ever got.
And this post is waaaaay too long.
posted by bardic at 8:23 PM on June 28, 2006
And when they do make an offer, take out your cellphone and call other dealerships right then and there. In front of them. If they ask you to leave, good.
That's the best advice I ever got.
And this post is waaaaay too long.
posted by bardic at 8:23 PM on June 28, 2006
Excellent. Danke.
posted by oxford blue at 8:26 PM on June 28, 2006
posted by oxford blue at 8:26 PM on June 28, 2006
Seems to me this is the good ole way. The past honesty of salesmen is like the past fairness of the courts, quality of education, and obedience of children. Nostalgia is selective memory.
In my opinion there are four good ways to acquire cars, three of which are open to most of us. The best way is to get something expensive and wonderful straight from the factory, with warranties and maintenance contracts and all that jazz; it'll cost at least a quarter million, but if you can afford that, these are the best cars.
Next best way is to get it through work, a fleet or leased car. Many large employers allow their employees to salary-sacrifice for a car; this will work out cheaper than a loan, and will usually include everything, even fuel.
If this option isn't open to you, go with private sales. Something twenty years old in great condition that only one family has ever owned is ideal. Go looky-loo a lot, take along a mechanically inclined friend, wait 'til you find a car you'll love, and when you do, always insist on the right to pay a mechanic to check it out before you will buy. Also get that mechanic to give you a run-down on what's expensive to repair and what isn't; some things, and tyres are the best example, are pretty much consumables. The biggest problem with Grandma's Mercedes-Benz is that it will go through buckets of petrol. The older a car, the smaller and lighter it will need to be to have decent fuel economy.
About on a par with private sales, depending on your confidence in your ability to assess cars, is going to the auctions. Government and ex-fleet auctions are the best value; these cars have been on maintenance contracts and probably haven't had hard use. Police confiscated-property auctions are well worth a look; a lot of these cars are just short of illegal to drive, but good ones show up sometimes, and a new car that has been through confiscation is going to be much cheaper than it would at the dealer. Don't be afraid of damaged-vehicle auctions, as you can get, for instance, a car that will need $2000 worth of panelbeating work at $5000 less than you would have paid a secondhand dealer for it. If you're thinking of buying a car through auctions, go to several auctions without your wallet and instructions to yourself to put in no bids. This will give you an idea of market prices.
I wouldn't go to a dealer. If for some reason I had to, and I can't think of any clear reason why that might be, I'd shop around, take brochures, go for test drives, nod and smile and be non-committal as the salesmen offer massive discounts for agreeing to buy today, ask them for a pen to write down prices on the backs of their business cards, and I'd buy something that handled well, was dirt-cheap on the petrol, and had a long and generous warranty. If a second-hand car from a dealer doesn't break down inside of two years, you dodged a bullet - that's why you need the warranty.
posted by aeschenkarnos at 8:28 PM on June 28, 2006 [1 favorite]
In my opinion there are four good ways to acquire cars, three of which are open to most of us. The best way is to get something expensive and wonderful straight from the factory, with warranties and maintenance contracts and all that jazz; it'll cost at least a quarter million, but if you can afford that, these are the best cars.
Next best way is to get it through work, a fleet or leased car. Many large employers allow their employees to salary-sacrifice for a car; this will work out cheaper than a loan, and will usually include everything, even fuel.
If this option isn't open to you, go with private sales. Something twenty years old in great condition that only one family has ever owned is ideal. Go looky-loo a lot, take along a mechanically inclined friend, wait 'til you find a car you'll love, and when you do, always insist on the right to pay a mechanic to check it out before you will buy. Also get that mechanic to give you a run-down on what's expensive to repair and what isn't; some things, and tyres are the best example, are pretty much consumables. The biggest problem with Grandma's Mercedes-Benz is that it will go through buckets of petrol. The older a car, the smaller and lighter it will need to be to have decent fuel economy.
About on a par with private sales, depending on your confidence in your ability to assess cars, is going to the auctions. Government and ex-fleet auctions are the best value; these cars have been on maintenance contracts and probably haven't had hard use. Police confiscated-property auctions are well worth a look; a lot of these cars are just short of illegal to drive, but good ones show up sometimes, and a new car that has been through confiscation is going to be much cheaper than it would at the dealer. Don't be afraid of damaged-vehicle auctions, as you can get, for instance, a car that will need $2000 worth of panelbeating work at $5000 less than you would have paid a secondhand dealer for it. If you're thinking of buying a car through auctions, go to several auctions without your wallet and instructions to yourself to put in no bids. This will give you an idea of market prices.
I wouldn't go to a dealer. If for some reason I had to, and I can't think of any clear reason why that might be, I'd shop around, take brochures, go for test drives, nod and smile and be non-committal as the salesmen offer massive discounts for agreeing to buy today, ask them for a pen to write down prices on the backs of their business cards, and I'd buy something that handled well, was dirt-cheap on the petrol, and had a long and generous warranty. If a second-hand car from a dealer doesn't break down inside of two years, you dodged a bullet - that's why you need the warranty.
posted by aeschenkarnos at 8:28 PM on June 28, 2006 [1 favorite]
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posted by wilful at 8:00 PM on June 28, 2006