How do car salesmen survive in the internet age?

[MagickMan]

$100k isn't really a big deal anymore, get a regular Carrera with nice options and you're pushing that number. My Carrera S was 109k, and the 12C Spider I'm waiting for was... a lot more than that.

 

[Auric]

Yep. Guaranteed he would have knocked that $100 off.

Should have then demanded $100 off agreed price for the insult... but quickly revealed it was a joke just to show him he was acting like an ass while avoiding further drama.

But really, the itemized price should be in writing before bothering to go. The only reasons to visit a dealer are 1) if test drive needed (in which case you do so sans saleperson), and 2) paperwork.

 

[Eos]

It's odd that sales people will not treat you as a serious buyer unless you're signing that day. Usually, buying a car is a big deal. In a lot of situations, people need to drive multiple cars to find the one they like. And if the test drives don't match previous findings from internet research, well, they will need to drive some more cars. I wonder if too many sales people want a laydown sale.

How about some understanding from the sales people? Maybe tens of thousands of dollars to them is nothing...

 

[Auric]

It's reasonable because they lack authority to complete a transaction and so are a buffer between the potential buyer and employees that actually do stuff.

 

[soccerballtux]

I don't think dealers really understand the whole idea of online shopping. All the dealers have web sites, with a button that says "get e price". When I was shoppinng for a new car this summer, not a single dealer (tried dozens) would give me a price online, they all said stop in and we will make a deal. Even after explaining that they were 100 miles away, and without a price, I wasn't driving that far.

Yet amost all the dealers I spoke to in person were more than willing to give me their best price, even after explaining that I just started looking, and wouldn't be buying that day.

there might be some collusion. Unwritten code, don't ever sell online. If they all abide by it, they all win.

 

[halik]

$100k isn't really a big deal anymore, get a regular Carrera with nice options and you're pushing that number. My Carrera S was 109k, and the 12C Spider I'm waiting for was... a lot more than that.

Not sure if your whether it's epeen

FFS
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=34149146&postcount=18

M5
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=34083494&postcount=49

Maserati
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=34214780&postcount=56

427 Cobra
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=34262259&postcount=107

is actually closer to this reality:
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=34135054&postcount=50

 

[MagickMan]

Not sure if your whether it's epeen

FFS
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=34149146&postcount=18

M5
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=34083494&postcount=49

Maserati
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=34214780&postcount=56

427 Cobra
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=34262259&postcount=107

is actually closer to this reality:
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=34135054&postcount=50

You think an "FFS" is a car model? Seriously? LOL! I was talking about a BRZ as a DD but decided against it, it doesn't drive as well as the hype indicated, and got a 991 Carerra S.

Yes, I have money. No, I didn't get it from a lucrative career, I was a HS teacher. It was inherited when my grandfather died ~5 years ago. Now I'm officially retired and like nice cars, that's just the way it is. Frankly, it's all sheer luck of the draw anyway, some people have good fortune with money and others don't.

 

[halik]

You think an "FFS" is a car model? Seriously? LOL! I was talking about a BRZ as a DD but decided against it, it doesn't drive as well as the hype indicated, and got a 991 Carerra S.

Yes, I have money. No, I didn't get it from a lucrative career, I was a HS teacher. It was inherited when my grandfather died ~5 years ago. Now I'm officially retired and like nice cars, that's just the way it is. Frankly, it's all sheer luck of the draw anyway, some people have good fortune with money and others don't.

Heh not sure what he scion/Subaru thing is actually called, (respectively). BRZ/FFS/FRS/?
So you have a 911S, order for mclaren, an M5, a Maserati and building a cobra replica?

I have no qualms with people making and/or inheriting money; I just think it's far more likely to be BS. I demand pics

 

[sontakke]

How do we know that is your hand? 🙂

 

[MagickMan]

How do we know that is your hand? 🙂

or his key? Could be his dad's. 😉


I do have a few crappy pics of my Carrera S when I picked it up.

 

[Slammy1]

What confuses me about the CL deals is how often the dealers will put a picture of the car with a significantly lower price on the window than they're asking then claim that they cannot go lower.

 

[halik]

How do we know that is your hand? 🙂

or his key? Could be his dad's. 😉

It looks a lot like my other hand. It can also be a loose key that I only keep around to impress the ladies...