I remember the dream my parents used to experience when they would entertain the idea of a new car purchase. “Car salesmen are not to be trusted,” my mother would declare.
A few years ago I purchased a Scion xB, a boxy little car that I grew fond of. Last year I had to sell the car to raise money to finish the full length documentary on the faltering economy. As things have improved financially I thought it was a good time to find a replacement, plus, as written about here, I found the government Cash for Clunkers program to be one of the best deals of my lifetime.
Last month I visited a local Nissan dealership because I had seen pictures of the new Cube and thought it fit the same sort of design code as the Scion. I test drove one and really enjoyed the experience. At that time I was in the mode of moving and working and did not have the time, energy or cash to start the process. I left some information with the dealer, and told them I would return.
I stayed in touch with the dealer over the past few weeks. Financing was secured, I would be able to trade in my old Jeep for a 4500 voucher from the government and everything was in place. Whenever I spoke to the dealer I would make clear that I was interested in the LS model of the Cube, which is not the top end model, but it had features I really liked, such as a keyless ignition system.
This past weekend I called again to make sure everything was on track. At that time I was told it had been more than 30 days since the financing package was secured and they would have to re-submit everything, but I was assured there would be no issue. I asked about colors of the LS model they had in stock, and again, I was assured any color I wanted would be available as long as I stopped in and left a deposit. Again, no problem.
While I was out that day I stopped in at another Nissan dealership and looked at a Cube. A very nice, professional salesman engaged me in conversation and when I told him how I already had everything in place with another dealer, he said he could beat any deal they had made. We sat in an LS, he showed me all the great features and while the price break would not be significant, 100 dollars, this dealership seemed intent on good service.
So I filled out all the paperwork, again, and left a deposit. Now I was in the position to play dealer against dealer. Yesterday I called dealer one, again told they had a LS on the lot and if I stopped in and picked out a color, left a deposit, everything would be in place for a Friday purchase. I thought I should go in, since this was the first dealer I had worked with and they seemed intent on winning my business. I made sure, on the phone, that we were talking about the LS with the keyless ignition. I was assured.
We drove to the dealer. When we arrived a classic sleazy salesman dragged us onto the lot where he showed a completely stripped down model, nothing special about the car at all. Then he showed a couple of others, ending finally with the LS. I looked on the price and it was about 2500 more than I had been financed for and I asked what that meant. In classic scummy salesman technique, he said we could go talk to the finance guy and see if we could swing it.
My mind was whirling, but I knew, after many conversations with the finance guy, that all along we had talked about the LS, and that this must just be a misunderstanding. Financing guy said that I had been approved for enough money and that with the Cash for Clunkers money in place, I could indeed afford the more expensive car. I argued that all along we had been talking about the same car, but for less money, and that the payment was affordable, until they added the extra 2500 dollars.
At that point I was steamed. I saw the game being played for exactly what it was. Classic bait and switch. In fact, in the office of sleazy salesman, I told him as much and he assured me that this was in no way bait and switch. I was livid and explained that for weeks we had been talking about an LS, the financing was written for an LS, the phone calls had all centered around an LS. When I got to the lot, we were no longer talking about the LS. Bait, meet switch.
I walked out to my car, angry and betrayed. I called the other dealership, the one that I had left a deposit on a car a week earlier. The one where the nice salesman had sat in the car with me, showed me keyless ignition, and promised the beat the other dealers price. I told them I was being bait and switched. I spoke with the finance guy, then the same salesman we had liked so much. He assured me that the LS I had left a deposit on was still available, same price, everything was fine.
I went back to sleazy salesman office and told him how disgusting his game was. I got in the car and started to drive home and called the “good” dealership one more time to lock in the LS and end these games. When I spoke with the salesman again, all I wanted to hear was “keyless ignition” because that was the feature that had lured me to the LS in the first place. He assured me that this was the car we were talking about and he put me on hold to check to make sure one would be available.
When he got back on the phone, he said, “I made a mistake, the car we were talking about does not have the keyless ignition.” I believe steam began to come out of my ears. Same bait, same switch. Same scummy car sales practices. Before I could even begin to discuss this sad state of sales gamesmanship, I hung up the phone in disgust.
Nissan? You seem to have some nice cars. My only question is, really? Is this the sort of scam you want to promote? Are the sad techniques really the sort of games you want to play, in 2009? My father, his ashes rolling around in the San Francisco bay somewhere, must be smiling and nodding and thinking, “thank the good lord sweet jesus I never have to walk through those doors again.”
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