The dreaded task of buying my first new car was staring me in the face. I set
aside my fears of dealerships and car salespeople; it was no place to be timid,
uninformed or susceptible to pressure.
After giving myself a pep talk, I headed to my local Jeep dealership. As I
pulled into the dealer's lot, it felt like every eye was focused hungrily on me
and my car. I parked in one of the empty spaces in front of their showroom,
took a deep breath and embarked on my journey to purchase a new Jeep.
As soon as I stepped from my car, the smell of new blood attracted "Thresher,"
a young salesman with four years of car-sales experience. I told him I was
looking for a 4X4 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo or a 4X4 Jeep Cherokee Sport.
Thresher proceeded to give me his best kindergarten-level explanation of the
differences between the two Cherokees. I started to take some notes, only to
find Thresher taking my notes and pencil away from me to note the differences
his way. (Apparently the information was too complex for me to even make my own
notes.)
With the shark nipping at my heels, I surveyed the lot for Jeeps that fit my
criteria. Unsure that I wanted to part with my money that day, my main focus
was to find out which model of Jeep I should purchase. Rather than answering my
questions, I became the subject of his questioning.
After being interrogated for my personal information (name, address, where I
work, etc.), Thresher convinced me it was time to jump behind the wheel and
take one for a spin. I chose the Jeep Cherokee Sport, the lower-end version of
the Cherokees.
I know it's hard to believe, but Thresher then encouraged me to test out their
luxury Jeep, the Laredo, which was priced at almost $10,000 more than the
Cherokee Sport I'd just driven.
I must admit that the Grand Cherokee Laredo won my heart. I envisioned it as
the perfect vehicle for all the upcoming family road trips. Unfortunately, my
excitement was very visible. Thresher sensed this and tried to bait me with a
"great deal" -- $4,000 down and payments of $300 per month. I declined.
Honestly I expected a chance to negotiate, and I expressed this naivete to the
young shark. Despite the puzzled look on his face, I asked for the invoice to
the car as a starting point. Still treating me like a kindergartner, I was told
the invoice price on the car was not information the customer can ever see.
Thresher then received a phone call and out swam "Hammerhead."
Hammerhead, an even slicker young salesman, appeared to have a sharper edge
than Thresher. Thresher tried all of his tricks to no avail, so I was passed
off to another salesperson. Though Thresher assured me Hammerhead was up to
speed, I preferred to wait for Thresher. My wish was not granted, and
Hammerhead led me to the dealing table. He was armed with only a blank form, a
pen and the confidence that he could convince me to buy the Jeep today. He
started to fill in the spaces on the form, even though I was unsure of whether
or not I wanted to hand over my savings yet.
Hammerhead then asked if I was going to use the trade-in for the down payment.
I told him I wanted their valuation of my car before I made that decision.
At that point, some suckerfish came up to me and tried to suck my car keys away
so they could evaluate my trade-in. I refused to hand him the keys but
indicated I would let him into my car. (I learned previously they wanted to
keep the keys during the negotiation so I would not be able to get up and drive
away before they were ready for me to leave.) Their reaction definitely made me
feel that most people just hand over their keys.
When we reached the car, I found my Acura Legend surrounded by five men peering
in the windows, with their tentacles all over the body of my car. I unlocked
the driver's side door, and they piled in. With the inspection of the trade-in
complete, the "experts" calculated the trade-in value for my Acura.
The form that Hammerhead had been filling out contained basic customer
information along with new and trade-in car information. The bottom half of the
form had four quadrants: monthly payment, trade-in, down payment and additional
accessories. It was at this point that I learned their assessed trade-in value
of my car: $5,500 was written on the form. Hammerhead had no comments on the
trade-in, even after I indicated my astonishment. The form that Hammerhead was
working on had the following information about purchasing the Jeep:
Sale Price $33,320
Discount ($800)
Total + fees* $32,520
Trade-in $5,500
Cash Down $10,000
* Fees are a $45 doc fee, 7.75% sales tax, and a 2.3% license fee.
Hammerhead was ready to sell me the car under the above terms. I still had not
given up on my notion of negotiating; again I asked to see a copy of the
invoice on this Jeep. Hammerhead got up and came back with his manager,
"Tiger," who made it clear that he was going to assist me from this point on.
Tiger was both the sales manager and the keeper of the invoice. In his late
60s, Tiger appeared to have been in the car-sales business for many long years.
After moving me to another table for no apparent reason, Tiger produced the
forbidden invoice. Apparently the invoice price never would be misrepresented
because not only was Tiger's integrity on the line, but he explained that the
dealers' five-star rating (whatever that is) also would be in jeopardy.
The following is the deal Tiger worked from the invoice:
Total Original Invoice $29,598
New Car Prep Fee** $ 100
Profit $ 500
Total + fees* $30,198
* Fees are a $45 doc fee, 7.75% sales tax, and a 2.3% license fee.
** This fee was hand stamped on the bottom of the invoice. This fee was to
detail the new car.
Tiger claimed this was the best price he could offer -- the "fleet price." But
upon my inquiring into a factory rebate or discount, Tiger found there might be
a $600 to $1,000 possible rebate. Unfortunately, the $750 retail-lease rebate
offered by obtaining a lease through Chrysler or Bank of America was not
applicable toward a purchase.
Sensing my hesitation, Tiger claimed he would not lose a deal over $100. So he
offered to beat "the best price he could offer" and knock off an additional
$100 if I bought the Jeep right away. To sweeten the deal, Tiger insisted on
having the Jeep prepared for me with gas and a detail.
Tired from all the circling sharks and the fishy deals, I rose to make my exit.
Tiger swam off quickly and rotated out "Great White," the night sales manager.
Great White, a middle-aged man with dollar signs in his pupils, made the
presumption that I would return later that night, so just for tonight he took
his turn at beating "the best price" with a new and improved quote:
Total + fees* from above $30,698
Less: one time discount - today only ($ 100)
Total (today only) + fees* $30,598
* Fees are a $45 doc fee, 7.75% sales tax, and a 2.3% license fee.
In the sales team's final attempt to close the deal, Great White offered to let
me take the Jeep for the weekend. With Tiger and Great White both blocking the
exit -- not allowing me to leave without walking around them -- I felt like I
was escaping with my life.
Free from the sharks and their predatory maneuvers after three long hours, I
decided to search the Internet for auto information, possibly to get a better
deal and to eliminate some of the hassle of the dealer's lot. I started at CarPrices.com to receive a free
price quote. By filling out one simple form with my name, phone, e-mail and the
exact car on which I needed a quote, I received an e-mail and a phone call the
following morning from a dealer in San Diego. Mary, in the Internet Sales and
Leasing Department at Baker Jeep, confirmed the information she had received
and asked a few other specific questions about the Jeep.
The quote she returned was as follows:
Total Original Invoice: $29,602
Less ($ 250)
Total + fees* $29,352
* Fees are a $45 doc fee, 7.75% sales tax, and a 2.3% license fee.
When I asked Mary if they had any rebates or discounts, she let me know there
was a $750 rebate that she already took into consideration when she gave me the
above quote. Mary said if I wanted to proceed with the purchase decision, I
needed to fill out a credit application, and she would make arrangements to
have the Jeep delivered to my house. The paperwork could be completed at the
time of delivery.
This whole experience took a fraction of the time it took me to physically go
to the dealer, and I got a hassle-free price quote to boot. On top of this, I
received a quote that was $1,246 less than the "best price" I was able to work
with the four sharks at the dealership. After treading water in the shark tank,
CarPrices.com is the only route I'll take for car buying.
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