[ycb]

I never go to the stealership here.. but stripped one of the locking bolts last year, so had to get a new one.. went to the dealership.. dressed as a Canadian (hoodie/hat/jeans etc.. )

Went up to the service desk.. asked for the bolt from the service lady.. nothing but attitude.. "pull your car into the bay, so I can see which one you need",

Pull the car in.. she see's in an M3.. attitude changes.. was nice.. touched my arm.. laughing/joking, and was more eager to help..

in the end.. she gave me the wrong one.. and since it was less than $50.. I couldn't get a refund.. LOL...

"Stealered"

[MightyMouseTech]

Originally Posted by Tim603

My friend was trying to buy a car so I told her I would talk to the salesman since I used to sell cars and know the ins and outs.

Salesman tried convincing me that the 2012 335i was a true twin turbo not a "twin scroll" (which I tried telling him) and told me I dont know what I was talking about...I start spewing off engine codes and he shut his mouth real quick lolz

- when they act like they know more than you when clearllyyyy its not the case

I have been a licensed tech for 15 years. I love calling them on their bullshit.

Although, every time I am picking up a new car, it is just "oh yah, you are a tech, here are the keys, have fun."

[catchm3ifyoucann]

Originally Posted by MightyMouseTech

I have been a licensed tech for 15 years. I love calling them on their bullshit.

Although, every time I am picking up a new car, it is just "oh yah, you are a tech, here are the keys, have fun."

They are probably telling all the staff, don't BS that guy. He will call you out and make you look like an idiot.

[Killramos]

I think it really depends on the salesman tbh. Some are great.

When I went in to look at the M235i i didn't make an appointment, wore jeans etc. I was also 22. I asked if they had one i could see, and told him i wanted to test drive it.

He just threw me the keys to their brand new never been driven "demo" i took it for a 30 minute spin and when i came back in I wrote him a check for that car ~4% less than MSRP. Picked it up 5 days later once their prep was done. Easy.

I am going to miss him.

[PackPride85]

To those saying appearance shouldn't matter: Go into a job interview dressed like a bum and let me know how that goes. It may not be fair even if you are over qualified, but appearances count. That's just how it is.

[Die ///M Rakete]

Originally Posted by catchm3ifyoucann

As titled says:

- Call me 3-7 times in one day.
- When you specify for the dealer to contact you via e-mail, and yet they are texting and calling you. Most likely would also use pigeons if they could too.
- Playing hard ball. The constant back and forth from salesman to business manager. While you wait to see if they accept your offer.
- When your salesman doesn't know anything about what he is selling.
- When salesmen proceed to ask you personal questions such as: what do you do for living, how much do you make, and etc.
- Salesmen who make assumptions.

Lets get this list going lol.

All these symptoms are telling. It appears to me that you might be suffering from this most unfortunate condition my friend

[catchm3ifyoucann]

Originally Posted by Die ///M Rakete

All these symptoms are telling. It appears to me that you might be suffering from this most unfortunate condition my friend

Maybe it's good to be a stroker because its saved me from some purchases that seemed good at the time

In all honesty though anyone who doesn't contact a couple dealerships to get pricing and to see they can work a deal on a vehicle they are interested in, is asking to get ripped off.

[spiceyxi]

Originally Posted by PackPride85

To those saying appearance shouldn't matter: Go into a job interview dressed like a bum and let me know how that goes. It may not be fair even if you are over qualified, but appearances count. That's just how it is.

It is more about dressing appropriately for the situation. However, their have been studies shown that dressing inappropriately on purpose can be seen as a sign of status. Personally, my philosophy on suits is they are either worn by the help, people that feel obligated to wear them or by people trying to create a perception of power. I am hoping I can go the rest of my days not having to wear a tie and keep the amount of slack & jackets down to an absolute minimum.

I have never had the issue of not being approached or helped by a sales person at any BMW dealership when I am in my weekend wear (shorts, t-shirt and flip flops), but maybe that is more of a regional thing (CentralCal & SoCal).

P.s. I hate the lack of parking at most dealerships

[ny325]

Service advisors try to upsell unnecessary repairs. I recently was told I needed a new set of tires. Cost was $1,300. I laughed, and the SA asked " what's so funny? " I told him I just bought a new set less than a year ago, and they only had around 5,000 on them. He turned red and then said what is the tech talking about? I no longer go to stealerships. I found a great independent shop, with former dealer BMW technicians that use to work at my dealership. Makes owning my BMW more enjoyable.

[Jbe0324]

Originally Posted by Bumbleb

You do know that legally the finance guy has to go over that stuff right? A lot of what they do is covering the dealerships ass having you sign that you are declining the coverages.

You know your stuff. You know the saying "buyers are liars". People lie to dealers all day long. Dealers have to earn an income to keep the doors open. Profit is not a dirty word. Apple rips off people all day long but people love their products.

[te37]

On the topic of looks:
I was at a major BMW stealership in Atlanta looking at a brand new M3. Now I have long hair and I'm 23, I have jeans and a tee shirt on nothing fancy we also drove up in a Scion Tc. Me and my girlfriend were looking at this car walking around it for about 7 minutes, when all of the sudden the doors unlock. I paused for a minute thinking someone from inside was letting me look inside the car. I go to open the door and I had some sales guy run outside yelling at me that the car was sold and I should step away. I just opened the door and looked inside, didn't act like I was going to get in or anything. Total disrespect I had never felt before. Later that week the check I had to buy that car I took and went to a mom and pop type dealer and bought an m3.
Nick

[MKSixer]

Originally Posted by catchm3ifyoucann

I find it so funny that these sales staff at luxury dealerships walk around like they own the place and like they could afford a car from that brand. When in reality the majority of them can't afford the base model of that brand.

This.

I was shopping in NYC with my wife and daughter a couple of years ago and they went into the LV store. Unless it is cars, boats or something interesting, I typically have zero interest in retail shopping and sat in the coffee shop reading Racecar Engineering. My daughter comes out after about 10 minutes and says, 'Dad, I can't get anyone to wait on me!' I stand up, walk in and ask for the manager. He shows up a moment later and I simply looked at him and took a very special AMX out of my wallet, placed it on the counter, said 'Stupid', and walked out. He chased me to the door apologizing profusely and asking what they could do to make it right. I said, 'Train your people to treat everyone with dignity and respect.'

I absolutely HATE when their ilk pull this crap and act as if they are superior to potential customers that can actually afford their wares.

[Nahlem]

Haha i like reading this and how much i can relate to that. But to be honest i was treated with nothing but respect when i came to my dealer in my home town the first time. I even got to test drive the M235i with M-Performance parts and everything the dealer told me this car was only for show they had it there for a once a year BMW M meeting they have in my town and it was due to ship back to the Capitol city so he arranged so i could test drive it even though he was strictly forbidden to do so .

This resulted it me buying my own M235i from him :-) Got a great deal he respected me a lot, Showed me other cars if i were to be interested in something else and explained as much as possible in the sales contract.

The only thing i have lacked from my dealer is the afterward contact with them i have asked them a lot of question even called and haven't gotten a response i guess they can't always answer but sometimes would be nice. And then i usually pop in at the dealer and they say "Oh yeah man sorry i forgot about that question you had".

I guess thats the negative part about them, But i would expect the respect from them.. Mostly cause

My father drives a I3 - MY2015
My mother drives a 120d - MY2013
My Sister drives a 420d grand coupe - MY2015
My Sisters husband drives the 320d grand coupe - MY2015
I Drive the M235i - MY2015

So we are in to deep at our sales men and everyone has bought from the same seller due to his service being awesome and all its just the contact afterwards i lack a little bit.

[StephanieDiane]

My husband and I look like we're in our early 20s. No one believes I'm 35 and a doctor. We went to the Chevy dealer (I know, I know, it was for him) and the sales guy wouldn't even let us look at the car until we had answered all his questions, most pertaining to our finances and job history (we gave his).
My husband was embarrassed and I was pissed. He asked how much we would put down, although we hadn't discussed anything about the car we wanted to see or price. We could have bought the car outright on the spot had we decided we wanted it, but we look like children....

What do you mean "how much can we put down?" I don't even know if I like the car; you haven't let me get near it yet.

[Viffermike]

I posted early in this string with one thing ... but I'm posting again because I'm one of those people who "boxes above his weight" regularly and has throughout his careers, and this thread seems to have devolved into a discussion about attitudes and profiling.

Background: I spent the first part of my working life as an arts journalist and music critic. Went to gallery and museum functions all the time, rubbing elbows and befriending many wealthy types, both old money and new -- on a very middle-class salary. I am now an advertising editor in luxury retail, so I deal with the same types (but a much broader cross section), and know many of the ins and outs of selling to them. I make more, but not that much more.

In a nutshell: If you're savvy and observant, you can tell who is well off and who isn't quite that way simply by watching them, no matter how they're dressed, what their skin color is, or whatever the heck else. The flip side of that is that the wealthy are often conniving, cheap, highly competitive, and have a superiority complex simply because they're wealthy. Sales persons at car dealerships rarely have the proper training to recognize or deal with either, and those that do figure it out constantly have to weigh one side with the other when serving a potential customer. It is not easy. Trust me on this.

As for the case of the Vuitton store in NYC, well, it's in NYC, which introduces several more levels of customer profiling to the equation. Think about it. It's very likely the LV staff was simply following a protocol. Like it or not and agree with it or not, a store like that in that city hedges its bets, and HAS to.

Yes, there are extremes. But the bottom line is that if a lot less consumers visited dealerships with an attitude, a lot less SAs would have to assume attitudes to match.

[RJ_]

TL;DR - Drove an hour, car wasn't there, insulting salesman, tried to hide damage that occurred after negotiating before I picked the car up, ran credit without permission.

Story:
My current car was a little over an hour away on a Chevy dealership's used car lot.

I was in contact with their internet sales manager multiple times over the course of a week. Set an appointment, had it confirmed the morning of, made the drive over there only to find out they drove the car that morning to a sister dealership on the other side of the state.

Salesman I had been contacting was nowhere to be found. Not a single person bothered to ask if I needed anything. I did really want this car though, so I tolerated more than I should have looking back.

Fast forward to negotiating. I was trading in a lease at the time, so we had to contact the original dealership. My uncle works for the dealership I got the car from. We make some phone calls. Of course, dickhead salesman starts making derogatory remarks to my face about how "they're a bunch of idiots" and "don't know what they're doing" despite being fully aware of my relationship to them.

This wasn't an isolated incident either. My father works for the bank that was doing my financing (salesman also knew this), albeit in a different department than personal loans. I didn't witness this, but I got a call from my dad about 5 minutes after dickhead called the bank. He wanted to know what this guy's deal was that he was being such an ass to the branch manager; swearing, again saying they don't know what they're doing, and then hanging up on them.

This was Monday. They tried playing hardball, but I had the bank on my side and knew what I was going to pay. Eventually I got the price I wanted.

Friday comes and I go to pick up the car. Hindsight 20/20, I should have looked over the car again. But we sign the paperwork and I go to drive off the lot. Turn the car on and it is making this awful, LOUD noise that was NOT there just a few days earlier. It was extremely noticeable, yet there was no mention of this. I checked it out in a lot across the street, determined it wasn't dire, and went on my way. I immediately notified them of the situation and of course they took no responsibility.

Zero professionalism, zero tact, and zero integrity. Cunts.

Inconvenient, but my car is awesome so it was totally worth it.

[catchm3ifyoucann]

Originally Posted by Viffermike

I posted early in this string with one thing ... but I'm posting again because I'm one of those people who "boxes above his weight" regularly and has throughout his careers, and this thread seems to have devolved into a discussion about attitudes and profiling.

Background: I spent the first part of my working life as an arts journalist and music critic. Went to gallery and museum functions all the time, rubbing elbows and befriending many wealthy types, both old money and new -- on a very middle-class salary. I am now an advertising editor in luxury retail, so I deal with the same types (but a much broader cross section), and know many of the ins and outs of selling to them. I make more, but not that much more.

In a nutshell: If you're savvy and observant, you can tell who is well off and who isn't quite that way simply by watching them, no matter how they're dressed, what their skin color is, or whatever the heck else. The flip side of that is that the wealthy are often conniving, cheap, highly competitive, and have a superiority complex simply because they're wealthy. Sales persons at car dealerships rarely have the proper training to recognize or deal with either, and those that do figure it out constantly have to weigh one side with the other when serving a potential customer. It is not easy. Trust me on this.

As for the case of the Vuitton store in NYC, well, it's in NYC, which introduces several more levels of customer profiling to the equation. Think about it. It's very likely the LV staff was simply following a protocol. Like it or not and agree with it or not, a store like that in that city hedges its bets, and HAS to.

Yes, there are extremes. But the bottom line is that if a lot less consumers visited dealerships with an attitude, a lot less SAs would have to assume attitudes to match.

on a complete side note. I was surprised by the upset today. 2-0!!! What the heck!?!

[Viffermike]

Originally Posted by catchm3ifyoucann

on a complete side note. I was surprised by the upset today. 2-0!!! What the heck!?!

It was a lot closer than the score indicated. Bayern dominated the game (typical Pep tactics), but Arsenal constantly counterattacked (becoming a typical Arsenal tactic, now that it has the speed and the midfield control and vision to do it). And Neuer was the keeper who blinked late. Great game to watch. If Man City hiccups like it did last year, Arsenal will win the BPL this year.

[TexasZed4MC]

I had a BMW parts counter person tell me once ...I quote...."They didn't make a 1988 M3, the first year M3's were built was 1995"...... So i proceed to tell him he need to walk outside and look at 1988 E30 M3!

[atomic]

Originally Posted by catchm3ifyoucann

So you are ok with sales staff stereotyping you based on your attire. Since you're ok with that they should also stereotype you based on your ethnicity?

With all due respect that mentality is idiotic, and will cause a dealership to loose sales. One of my good friends can have any car he desires. For instance the family stable is 650S, SLS Black Series, S600, M6, Ford Raptor, and a couple other toys (father is a billionaire). He is 21 years old, and he walks into a dealership and most of the time no one helps him out. I find it funny that he could have literally every car on the lot and most salesmen decide he is not worthy of their time..

I find it so funny that these sales staff at luxury dealerships walk around like they own the place and like they could afford a car from that brand. When in reality the majority of them can't afford the base model of that brand.

Hilarious you have a problem with them stereotyping on attire but then you are stereotyping the salesmen. My nephew is a Mercedes salesman. He bought a new Mercedes his first month working at the dealership getting employee pricing. He says the sales people that have been there for a while make six figures.

Think about all the low lease prices on BMWs. I bet a lot of people buying BMW make less than the sales people.

Also I am sure all sorts of stereotypes exist even ones about people who drive BMW cars. Not much you can do about that. I have never had an issue getting help at any dealership and I am certainly no billionaire. If you can't get service go to another dealer.

[ArcticRik]

Originally Posted by rjg

I refuse to be a rolling billboard if there's nothing in the relationship for me.

The Mercedes-Benz dealer in my area slaps these tacky, shield-shaped "VIP" badges on the rear of all their cars. They make me want to

Lmao sounds like Orlando to me....

[BeEmVe]

Originally Posted by PackPride85

To those saying appearance shouldn't matter: Go into a job interview dressed like a bum and let me know how that goes. It may not be fair even if you are over qualified, but appearances count. That's just how it is.

Apples and oranges and you know it.

But for your edification - the dealer wants something from you - your money. In the other case you want something from the company - a job.