Guess that is why they are referred to as "Stealerships..."
The General Manager of Clarke Motors Dodge Dealership here in Winchester
Va. lives within sight of my house (I refuse to refer to him as a
neighbor as that denotes a certain friendliness ) and I wouldn't go
there on a bet just because *HE* is such a sleazy bastard in REAL LIFE.
I don't trust him for being a decent person, much less if $$ were involved.
And since SHI* rolls downhill that if he is this way it will be a reflection
of the whole operation.
We got a decent deal on both our vehicles at Fair Oaks Dodge in Farifax
Va. We took advantage of the 0 percent financing deals and paid my Dakota
off in 3 years, will have my wife's Durango paid off in another 2 years.
We did a lot of cost comparisons and went to different dealerships and
found out an old friend worked at Fair Oaks so we got treated right. I
ordered my truck from the factory, bought my wifes Durango off the lot.
Because of that friend we had our asses kissed by the staff there and had
a decent experience with them in all respects EXCEPT for the service
department. They gave my wife a free loaner during the maintenance and
even upgraded her to a minivan/suv because of her mobility issues and
didn't charge her for the upgrade even though they were supposed to.
We took the trucks in when required at the proper intervals for the warranty.
I changed my own oil more frequently than the service intervals so I had to
endure working on the trucks after the service idiots did.
I had to replace the drain plug on my BOTH vehicles because the TRAINED
APES changing the oil at this shop kept tightening them with an impact
wrench and rounding off the edges of the plug. I complained but it didn't
do any good. To get the plug off my wifes Durango I had to take a cutoff
wheel and make 2 flat sides off the bolt just to get a pair of vise grips
on it and then hammer on the grips to get the plug loose.
If I had been thinking I should have taken pictures of the whole mess but
I have been known to 'not think clearly' when I get pissed at stupid
people who do stupid things.
I work on my own vehicles, do my own maintenance and diagnostics when I
can for the simple reason is that I'll know it is done right and not by
some loser. There are good mechanics at service centers but it is always
my luck that I never get them to work on my vehicles.
I do believe that these are going to be the LAST new vehicles that my wife
and I buy and will run them into the ground. She will put about 40K per
year on her Durango now that she commutes 130 miles a day in her part of
the carpool. (but only for another 5 years till she has her 30 years in
the Fed Govt) I now put maybe 100 miles a week on mine as I work from
home. My shop is almost completed and except for the stuff that I will
need diagnostic tools for I'll do all my own work and keep them running.
Sometimes even buying the diagnostic tools can be cheaper than the labor
involved to do the work once you find out what it is.
We have a garage to park them in and salt/rust is a concern but we can keep
that at bay by taking care of them I can even powerwash the undersides
when it is on the lift. If I have to go back to work in an office i'll find
me a commuter vehicle and keep the Dakota in the garage as I always need a
truck for some reason and it tows my 16 foot trailer and 4000lb 'trailer queen
4x4' beautifully.
I think I am done with Stealerships...
On Fri, 3 Feb 2006, Mike Sykes wrote:
>
>>> You make another outstanding point Andy...why do the car dealerships have
>>> to
> be such con artists? <<
>
> Now we're in my area of expertise. I've been in the car "business" for
> several years and here's my take on the whole topic.... sh*t rolls downhill.
> Dealerships are franchises. Much like your local Burger King or Rally's, the
> local dealership has to set it's prices according to local demand in order to
> make any money. There's a lot of shady stuff that goes on at dealerships...
> they have to conform to Corporate guidelines to an extent, but it stops
> there. You know someone who's been "blown off the lot"? Meaning, quoted such
> an outrageous monthly payment on a POS that they don't buy.... happens all
> the time. They do it because they have some other sucker who's willing to pa
> more for the same POS. Dealerships know what they can take you for. Do you
> think that you could only get a 9% interest rate? They probably got you
> approved for 4%, but they only told you about the 9% because they get a
> kick-back from that particular Bank. Nobody pays full sticker.... ever. If
> you do, consider yourself f*cked over.
> On to service departments. If they can't give you a COMPUTER PRINTED QUOTE up
> front, run away. If they don't VOLUNTEER WARRANTY INFO up front, run away.
> Get the name of the district factory rep and don't be afraid to drop that
> name. The only real good thing about dealerships is that if you bitch enough,
> you'll get free stuff. Service Departments get a bonus based on customer
> feedback. If you are stull under your 3/36, you may get a survey by mail.
> Dealerships get a bonus based on this survey. If you are under 3/36 still,
> then dealerships will kiss your ass just in case you might get a survey. Your
> name is submitted everytime you go in for service, warranty or not, so an oil
> change may result in a survey in your mailbox.... something to keep in mind.
> It is your right to know exactly what they did to your vehicle. Ask. If they
> don't tell you, they're probably doing something shady...
>
> They dealership I just stopped working for f*cked people on a regular basis.
> Sales and Service. If you had enough money and bought enough vehicles you got
> what you wanted... Joe Schmoe Customer got screwed daily. Rich people got
> great deals, average Joe got blown off the lot. Don't be a victim... avoid
> Grafton Dodge in Yorktown Va... also, if you think you're gettin' f*cked,
> shoot an e-mail to me or the DML and we'll help you out.
>
> Thanks for reading my Novel..... =)
>
> -miggity
> 2000 CC FR R/T
> MP PCM, K&N FIPK, 4.56 gears, M1 2bbl, Hughes 52mm, GSM headers and exhaust.
>
> 14.88@92.5 mph w/PCM and K&N only.
>
>
-- Miles D. Oliver www.mmoliver.org
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