Car Shopping: Part 2

A few days ago I went to a subaru dealership.

I parked and looked at several of the vehicles.  There were no salespeople around.  I went to the front office and was approached by a younger kid in a tie.  I told him what I was interested in and we went out and looked at the cars.  I made it clear I was not buying a vehicle that day.

He was definitely a salesperson.  He was telling me all about the model, the features and made sure not to use words such as "basic" or anything denoting my choice was bad.  He also didn't try to sell me a different model, with I did appreciate.

After some more talking and adjusting of the vehicle, he offered to let me test drive it alone.  I let him know I would need to get an estimate on price cost of the car.  He said they'd have to check my credit.  I told him, they don't need to check my credit to get me a price quote.  They can quote varying interest rates with the same numbers I give them and give me a quote.  He said, "Well, I might have to check with my boss on that one."  I told him, "Great.  I'll talk to your boss too."  I then explained that I like to think things through with concrete information and without it, I would not be getting a car from the dealership.  After all was said and done, I took the car for a test drive.

I went back and he asked me how things went.  I told him I really liked the vehicle and I'd like to see the numbers.  Long story short, he had to go back to his boss 3-4 times to get one quote.  Not three like he promised, but one.  However on the quote he had a special quote if I bought the car today only I'd get a special deal.

I was very honest and told him I was originally interested in the car, but that "one day only" deal turned me off.  Yes, it was in my price range but I needed to check the insurance and compare it with the other dealership where I went.  He was very nice but I could see he was defeated.  He told me, "If you leave today, statistically you're not likely to buy a car here."  I then said, "If somebody works with me and I can trust them, I'm more likely to return and buy a car from them if it's the vehicle I settle on."  I reiterated, I wasn't going to buy a car today anyway.  I was just looking.

He then went back to his boss and shared the news.  His boss came over to me and asked what he needed to do for me to buy the car today.

I told him nothing.  I need time to look at more vehicles and settle on the one I wanted.  He didn't like that.  I told him I am not impulsive and I need time to check things out.

His face got redder.

He offered to let me take the car home tonight and try it out.  I told him that wouldn't work for me because I wouldn't use it tonight.

We discussed having me return next week to try the car overnight to see how I feel about it.  I agreed to that.  I may not return though.  He then gave me his card to remember who he is.  I walked away and asked him to thank the original salesman for me.  He said he would.