Monday, September 4, 2006
cars, cont.
I dutifully went on a car hunting expedition (admittedly half-heartedly), first stopping at a Nissan dealer which has been recommended by a friend, but they were closed (on Labor Day?!). Then I wandered the Suburu and Toyota lots where the cars looked like farmers' market vegetables at the end of a hot day (dusty and wilted) and way too many incomplete papers on the cars. Can you say car dealers are out to get you? A couple of no-name dealers (you know the kind: Jenny's Auto Mart - not a real name) had some cute cars but I assume one should steer clear of them unless you know they're okay. My last stop was at a big dealership with, they proudly say, five locations. The salesman showed me a few kind-of-okay cars, none ideal, and then he walked me to his desk to talk numbers even though I hadn't driven or chosen anything. He asked for my license and current registration saying he wanted to see what he could offer on trade-in (is that the way it's usually done?). When he tucked the photocopies into his desk calendar it kind of freaked me out and then he went off to do something unexplained (which I later learned was getting plates so we could test drive). When he came back I asked for the photocopy (it just occurred to me that I hope it was the only one). He seemed upset and asked what he'd done wrong; he looked puzzled when I said he was putting the cart (trading in my car) before the horse (me picking a car). His manager came over, wearing fewer pinkie rings but seeming more sleezy in that he grinned a lot and said gee he had just the car for me coming in later this week so he'll call me about it. Golly. Here's hoping next weekend will be better.
Permalink | 
| posted by jau at 6:06 PM
CGHill — at 9:27 PM, September 07, 2006:
| posted by jau at 6:06 PM
2 more:
CGHill — at 9:27 PM, September 07, 2006:
When I was shopping for a car a couple months ago, I put Carfax to work. It's $19.95 for a single report, or $24.95 for 30 days unlimited use. (I think I pulled 15 reports.) Needless to say, I bought something with a pristine CV.
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