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I did a shop today where I was supposed to test drive a certain model SUV, and the salesperson basically wouldn't let me look at the model that I wanted (was assigned). He said that if I still wanted to look at that one after he had showed me all the other has to offer that he would let me look at that one. So we went to the smaller, cheaper SUV, and not the one I asked for, and he showed me all of the features and whatnot. By the time we got to the end, I just wanted to go, so I test drove a different model than assigned.

Basically, I got the impression the salesperson didn't think I could afford the model I has asked for, so he wanted to show me something he did think I could afford. I should have insisted that I be shown what I asked for, but I didn't.

What would you have done?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/22/2015 12:45AM by Sunshine11.

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Your instructions should offer some insight.

If they were clear that you needed that particular model, then you should have insisted. If the instructions are ambiguous, or if the salesperson still refused then write it up as it went down. Your report should be extremely clear as to why you didn't test the designated model. I would consider sending a separate email to the scheduler in addition to the report. They can help it get through editing if they see you had no other choice.

Good luck.

Happily shopping Rhode Island and nearby Massachusetts and Connecticut

One thing the instructions say is to be vague after saying the model and let the salesperson lead and show you the features and to let the salesperson ask you questions.

I did email the scheduler. So I guess I will see how this shakes out.

Even being vague there are certain features only available on the higher end models. If he asked and I told him those features were important to me he would have shown me the correct vehicle. End of discussion. I have just flat out refused when they tried to steer me to something else.

Equal rights for others does not mean fewer rights for you. It's not pie.
"I prefer someone who burns the flag and then wraps themselves up in the Constitution over someone who burns the Constitution and then wraps themselves up in the flag." -Molly Ivins
Never try to teach a pig to sing. It's a waste of your time and it really annoys the pig.

I was having this issue with Audi this week. I was shopping their flagship car with a bunch of add ons the salesperson was trying to force me to justify. It turned into.. No. I want an A8 thank you. Yes, with the 4.0L engine. No, I do not care that you sell more 3.0L engines thanks. No, we will keep talking about the 4.0L. No you may not remove the luxury package because I want it...

It was a pita, but I forced her to shop me the car I 'wanted'.

Sometimes you have to get a little forceful. No, I'm sorry, I'm really not interested in that Ford Focus I came to look at a Mustang. I'm sure there's another Ford dealer around that will be glad to sell me one.

There are reasons that a body stays in motion
At the moment only demons come to mind

Thanks, everyone. Lesson learned. I am really regretting not just saying, "No. I want to see the vehicle I asked for, thanks." Not only is my shop jeopardized, but it demonstrates that what I want doesn't matter to the salesperson.

I'm in my 50's and I generally keep a car for 250-300k miles. When I have to shop a higher end model, I mention how long a keep a car and that, "Since this will likely be the last car I buy, I want it fully loaded. I want to treat myself." I had your situation happen at a Nissan shop. I had my checkbook in my pocket. I pulled it out and said, "I'm prepared to write a check today." I never said for how much. Fortunately the model I wanted they only had with black leather interiors and I was insisting on tan leather.

.
Have PV-500 & willing to travel.
"Answers are easy. It's asking the right questions which is hard." (The Fourth Doctor, The Face of Evil, 1977)

"Somedays you're the pigeon, somedays you're the statue.” J. Andrew Taylor

"I have never met a man so ignorant that I couldn't learn something from him." Galileo Galilei

OP if its intellishop don't expect payment. At leas t other than time and gas to the dealership you are not out anything.

Shopping Western NY, Northeast and Central PA, and parts of Ohio and West Virginia. Have car will travel anywhere if the monies right.

I don't get this post at all. YOU are the shopper. It's your money. You get to buy the vehicle you choose. How can younot insist on what you want to see? You need more seasoning me thinks.

sail2sunset
Delray Beach FL

As a general "rule", car salespeople are supposed to show the "customer" the least expensive vehicle that is comparable to the one they request, since most people have "champagne taste on a beer budget". Then the customer can bump themselves into a more expensive model, not the salesperson. Why complain that they are messing up your shop? You're wasting the time they could be spending on a real customer, trying to make yourself some money. Think about it.

@Mermaid 33 wrote:

Why complain that they are messing up your shop? You're wasting the time they could be spending on a real customer, trying to make yourself some money. Think about it.

That is the one part of car shops that I am not fond of. I know that they are working on commission and need the sale to make money. I'm taking up the time they could be spending with a real customer. So far, at least I've been able to say really good things about all of them. So even if they don't get a sale, they get some positive feedback which probably helps their self-esteem and their standing with the boss.

EXACTLY

I don't have any problem with shopping for the owner or manufacturer....they do need to know what's going on in their stores. It's the 3rd party shops that are robbing the salespeople. When XYZ manufacturer requires a shop of one of THEIR dealerships plus 2 or 3 comparable brands, THEY will get the benefit of that information. The 3 comp dealerships just got used and their time & resources wasted. That kind of shop is of ZERO benefit to the comp dealerships.

I usually choose to do my car dealer shops before lunchtime. There's always more salespeople than customers on the sales floor, so I don't feel bad about 'wasting' a salesperson's time.

Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product. Eleanor Roosevelt

I have done a few car shops and never had an issue seeing the car I wanted to see, I guess it is just how I present myself.

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