Why do all the car dealerships insist on taking my keys and registration when I am out looking at new cars? I know its probably some sort of sales tactic to get you to buy a car after being trapped there for hours... but come on! :furious:

And why can't I get a trade-in number over the phone even after they have gone over the car? I don't want to sit around the dealership for hours while they play little games with the managers. I just want some simple numbers!

I don't enjoy hanging around in the parking lot for 3 hours while they try to bore me into buying a car... Is it just up here in Alaska? I never had these issues when I was in the states.

The only place that doesn't do it to me is Honda and I'm sure it's just because I know someone there.

Does anyone here work at Subaru or know someone who would be good to talk to that can actually be helpful and not just force me to wait and wait.... and wait.... and wait....???

first off, before going to any dealership, especially if you just walk in at Conti Subaru, you should check with someone here first. It's ALWAYS best to go in as a referral than joe blow off the street. If you need a good salesman, then we usually recommend Greg Scott. Call and ask for him, then schedule an appointment.

check in our vendor forum, the akic salesmen are listed in the posts with the cars for sale. pretty sure you'll be impressed by these guys.


linky
http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1271430

where did you go exactly?

Why do all the car dealerships insist on taking my keys and registration when I am out looking at new cars? I know its probably some sort of sales tactic to get you to buy a car after being trapped there for hours... but come on! :furious:

And why can't I get a trade-in number over the phone even after they have gone over the car? I don't want to sit around the dealership for hours while they play little games with the managers. I just want some simple numbers...I have felt the same way, most times I have dealt with a car dealer. It has come to the point that I never trade cars in anymore. I just sell my existing car, and then go to the dealership to negotiate for a new one. Selling my own car is a hassle, but still less trouble than what you are talking about. My pet peeve is when the salesman talks for hours about what the monthly payments will be, then basically refuses to tell me what the actual price is...

I guess that is the way the game is played. And I don't think it is just Alaska. The only way I have found to avoid the game, is to refuse to play. Do your homework, negotiate on the phone so you don't have to do the waiting thing, be prepared to use a different dealer if needed. But a trade-in makes everything more complicated...

Conti treated me fairly and professionally when I bought my wrx. The salesman I worked with no longer works there.

i guess i'm a sick individual because i love car shopping and i love dealing with salesman at the dealers. maybe because i'm in sales, but i love slapping them around and beating them at their own game. i go in with a lot of research and knowing approx the dealer invoice/cost for the vehicle i'm looking for (you can easily look this up on edmunds.com or like website). the more education and research you have, the better. as for trade in, it's pretty simple. just go into several dealers and ask them what they would give you to buy the vehicle from you. Affordable is great for this. what a dealer is willing to pay you cash WITHOUT trading it in for another car is the actual market price for your car. I've purchased 8 vehicles on my own now since 1998. I've only been screwed on one vehicle, but that was because i didn't do my homework and was young, stubborn, and paid the price later.

plus, if you are looking for a car, let me know, PM me because I still know a few folks in the car business. ;) obviously, at Conti Subie, i got you covered, but i also have good friends at AK Sales and Lithia Chevy.

I used to go to random dealerships all the time everywhere I have lived and its all the same. Every dealer has at least one of those guys who cant make the numbers, so s/he has to come up with games. The "oops, we lost your keys" aproach is by far the most annoying.

I'm in sales at the dealership here in fairbanks, and I have to agree with you guys on hating the games that dealerships play. A lot of times its not the salesman that are spear heading this approach, but the men "upstairs". I think that doing your research before you come in to a dealership is always a good idea. Invoice is easy to google these days. ;) I think on a subaru as long as you aren't paying a dealer mark up or a "document fee" then you're getting a pretty square deal. Of course on occasion there are better deals out there. (I bought my wrx at $500 over invoice in 03). The gap between invoice and msrp on most of them is pretty minimal compared to other car brands. If you're buying an impreza that has about $800-$1,000 dollars difference in invoice and msrp then the dealership isn't gouging you at all. Its reasonable in america to expect at least that much profit on a $20,000 sale so that the dealership will still be there to change your oil in a year, the salesman can feed his kids, etc.


As far as the trade in stuff goes I agree with hope. Its good to ask other dealerships what they would buy your car off the street for, because that is the real price you'll be getting for your car, and it won't always be the price they would show you for a trade in. Affordable is a great way to go for that, and in most cases a dealership will match there number for you.

If you guys have any questions feel free to ask away.




JP



BTW, we have a white sti, and a blue sti coming in both with gold wheels. :p

BTW, we have a white sti, and a blue sti coming in both with gold wheels. :p

Damn... I knew me being the only 07 STi on gold rims was not going to last forever... at least its not anchorage haha


I've never had any dealership nightmares... wonder why lol

ya, and if anyone wants me to go car shopping, just ask. ;) i love car shopping... like i said, i'm a sick individual.

but yes, usually the salesman has NOTHING to do with the price. It's the sales managers or people in finance. unless you go to the fleet dept (which my good friend at AK Sales is in), expect to deal with that back and forth run around from the commission sales floor. My family and I have bought 6 vehicles since 1995 from Richard Dixon over there. He's a square guy, will tell you exactly the price for trade and for the car. it's all a numbers game, especially when it comes to a trade. they want to make you feel like you are getting alot on your trade, but then mark the car price up to help offset that. negotiate the car price first, then start on the trade. ;) also, going in pre-approved is like going in with cash. unless they can get you in on special financing, then go in there with the dollar amount already set of how much you want to spend. don't let them screw you around with the whole, "monthly payment" crap.

like i said, i am always willing to go car shopping if you need reinforcements. most of my good friends always had me go so i could "do my thing" and they wouldn't have to deal with it. :D

i figured alaskajack would've chimed in by now...

I would take hope shopping with me for cars. :lol: It really is a numbers game, but you have to play a little bit or else the dealership can get a bit ugly too. Its a very fine line between the two. I don't know how it works at continental, but I'm sure they are pretty decent guys. The way we do it up here is that I only go to the manager once. (usually just to get payments) and I'm allowed to "pencil" a bit at my desk, but then after that I just bring you in to the managers desk and we show you everything we're doing. Including the invoice if we need to. Nothings a secret these days. No back and forth up here.


BTW, I really wish everyone would follow the scion model of pure pricing. Its a way better idea of how to sell a car.




JP

I used to sell cars in Fairbanks. If I knew what the real price of the car was, I could not rip people off. I am too honest I guess. Anyways, the nightmare that consumers sometimes go through with dealerships happened at the one I worked at. Customer would ask for a certain car, I would talk to manager, and manager would tell me to try and sell them something they totally didn't want. I don't know, but when someone says 'no Taurus'' and the manager gives me a stock number to a Sable, there is just something wrong.

or do the VIP program pricing... it completely took ALL the fun out of car buying for me. :( i suppose it's good, but for someone like myself, i thrive on the finance games. :D this time, it literally took only 20 mins to sign the pwk. we'd already filled out the docs for Subaru Financial for their better rates. *sigh* i was kinda bummed i didn't get to do "my thing."

when i bought the LGT, it was before Mav worked at Conti. I will say I trully enjoyed the experience. I got out of my car, spoke to the salesman for 10 mins. told him what i was looking for, got the run down on which LGT was losing them money daily, and gave him my card. told him to call me or have the finance guy call me later that day. back and forth with the finance guy via trade, car price, extended warranty, etc. i LOVED it (because i'm sick like that). the finance guy ended up being good buddies with my friend, Richard, at AK Sales so he was quite straight with me. I like that. I want to see straight numbers, cost of vehicle, actual CASH price of my trade, etc. he didn't try and hide anything from me because he understood that i was a numbers person and also knew "the game."

I walked away from their initial 2 offers, and after a few hours, they called me back to give me $1000 more than Affordable or Park N Sell was willing to give me on my trade and came down another $1000 on the car. I also got the extended warranty just over cost (that I later cancelled... like it would even cover me now). All in all, they did a great job with my car sale and i encouraged Phil to apply there once we got his work docs squared away. Pretty much hired him on the spot. again, the service i received from everyone there was top notch. i have been to just about every dealership in anchorage, fbx, kenai/soldotna, etc. there are a few i would NEVER purchase anything but mudflaps from, and others like Conti, my guy at AK Sales, and my guy at Lithia Chevy taht i would gladly buy from or refer my mother to without hesitation.