My best and most unexpected Dealership Experience was at A Porsche Center here. I was there with my little Son to watch at the bright green and orange cars with the huge Spoilers after we have been for our Grocery Saturday shopping. We just passed by and stopped to watch. - We watched outside, have been invited inside, my Son got a Toy Car and Stickers, I got a Coffee and nice conversation. We spend roughly one hour there, my son was driving on the passenger seat into the workshop with a Mechanic in a GT3 RS. The first thing we said to the guy that invited us to come inside was, that we are fine and just wanted to look at the cool cars - and that it is a dream we can`t afford yet. Still we got that nicely treated. - The only car Poster in my Sons room since that day is a green 991 GT3 RS.
When I was 24 I walked into Audi Wolverhampton after being at work with the intention of buying a brand new S3. It’s not the most expensive car in the world but at £35-£40k it’s certainly not cheap. I have never felt so uncomfortable in a showroom in my life. I actually felt like I had to beg to be shown around a car! It wasn’t long before I told them to forget it and I walked away. 12 months later I returned to the service department with my Sepang Blue S3 that I had bought through an online broker for £5k cheaper. I should have thanked the miserable twats for saving me £5k
I had this exact experience in Audi Cheshire Oaks. Absolute joke of a dealership and nobody could give a toss about anyone that walks through the doors. Terrible company and Id never buy from them because of it.
A couple years ago I walked into a small independent dealership with a Ferrari in the window. Being 18 at the time had no intention to buy the car, had a look around it and thought it was beautiful. Salesmen walked over, me thinking he was going to tell me to sod off started walking away. He said to me “would you like to look inside and have a sit in it?” I said “no no I can’t afford this car”, he replied “maybe not now but in a few years time”. One of the best experiences with a dealer I’ve had. Then went to trade centre a few months later and was continuously hustled.
Reminds me of a Porsche commercial several years back. A young boy goes into a dealership. Sits in a car. Asks for the salesman's card. Walks away and says see you in 30 years
Exact same happened to me!! Went to a Ferrari garage down south whilst on holiday was VERY young, there was an F40 in the window and I assumed they were going to tell me to get lost, they insisted I had a look around the car, didn't sit in it but they were insistent even though I quite obviously was not there to purchase. Will never forget that day.
My rule with dealers is 'if you lie to me, I'm out' - My most memorable experience of this is at a particularly adrenaline charged dealership where I'd been sitting down for 5 minutes waiting to speak to a salesperson. First words out of his mouth were "First thing you need to know, we don't negotiate on price". I asked him why I'd spent the last 5 minutes listening to the person at the desk next to me negotiate on price and walked out after telling him I don't like being lied to.
Sandown Mercedes-Remote computer says no experience, then leave you stood in the showroom for ages to collect said car. Did they get a shock when I told them about my experience. Mercedes dealers have gone down the plug whole
@ Peace Be The Journey: That is the true reason cars are becoming ever more expensive year after year secondary to increased regulations of all kind. So that we cannot afford to OWN cars anymore but instead have to share some subcompact, appliance electric cars or drive a bicycle right away!
I was in a Citroen dealer this week and watched a lady at the service counter, probably paying a service bill for £100. The staff brought a box of mini-model cars round and offered the child in her pushchair a model car, the child was only 2-3 years old, but a nice touch I thought.
I've only been to a Citroen dealer once, about 4 years ago. Penton Citroen in Poole. I was trying to get some valve stem seals for an old Talbot van. They got them in from france very quickly and treated me well, can't fault them. I spent days trying to track those parts down online, couldn't find the right ones anywhere except possibly DeLorean of all places. The franchise running the nearby Peugeot dealer on the other hand is useless. Despite being the official replacement dealers for Talbot, I couldn't get a thing from them. If it's over 10 years old, they don't want to know.
I genuinely hope that in a few years James gets signed for Top Gear. He's got a bit of Clarkson, Hammond and May in him. May mainly because of the shirts actually.
@@KartsAgainstHumanity Mike always had a strong whiff of car dealer about him which put me off. I only watch the old episodes now - the Porsche Boxster tip tronic episode being a favourite.
@@danwilliamson1991 Brewer said that telling your car dealers things like 'I like this car!' put off car dealers in one of his recent videos. The heck is wrong with that off-brand Steve Sutcliffe imposter...
Good video, I booked a road test at a Mercedes dealership. I turned up 20 minutes early, clean shaved and smartly dressed ( about 40 years old). I drove there in my beaten up Seat Cordoba, which I drove for 18 months whilst saving up for a nice car. I spoke to the lady at the reception desk, she went over and told the sales man I was booked with that I had arrived. The sales man sat alone at his desk looked at me then looked away. At no point did he come over and introduce himself to me. I took a seat in the show room and waited over 45 minutes. The reception lady apologised. I had saved up over the 18 months to pay cash for the car. I left and bought a new Audi...sorry to add another rant.
I remember back in the day, Quentin Wilson advising car buyers to dress down before visiting a car dealership to discourage salesmen from thinking you were well off.
I don't understand the people that dress like shit and are shocked when they are treated like shit in return Wowee you wore a cheap t shirt and jeans and you got treated like a commoner? Shocker!!! Put a nice shirt on at least
@@PoloDaBear to some a suit looks like shit, to others it's a t-shirt or baggy jeans. In the end of the day, what matters is that you're clean and polite.
@@PoloDaBear I'd agree. I'm pushing on, now, and can remember a time when people in general were much poorer, much thinner, tattoo free and considerably better dressed.
I brought my first Ferrari 5 years ago from a USA dealership in Edison, NJ. I walked in and was greeted with enthusiasm that lasted the entire visit…2hrs. I repeated this scenario 2 more times with the same salesman over a 6 week period. Each time he made me feel like the most important person he has ever met. On the final visit(3rd), I took my daughter with me and again his professionalism and attention to what my daughter’s concerns floored me. She said to me, “Dad, he gets it. He wants to know where am I going on my first drive. I say closed the deal with him.” All inquires coming to me regarding Ferrari ownership are referred to him. My family and friends only deal with him from multiple states. If he moves, we will follow.
Jay, I just wanted to stop for a second and tell you something. You are great, I love your channel, your honest/informative videos, and your positivity. Don’t listen to any of the haters, or negative comments, or the jealous people. What you do is great, period. Wishing you success and many more views. Have a great day.
I agree with you. As a car dealer for some 40 years and having been with most of the brands and large dealer groups I would have to agree with you. But there are dreadful customers also who come into dealers and franchises with a very poor attitude also and try to treat the staff poorly also so there is definitely another side of your argument. Dealer staff are not there to be abused by customers either just as a Doctors Surgery will not put up with an abusive patient , dealers will not tolerate abusive customers. Looking after customers who are genuine is not difficult and dealers need to remember that it's about people and money. Civility costs nothing on both sides and looking after good customers is always a pleasure and never a chore.
We bought a new BMW i3 a couple of years back. When we went to collect it it was in the handover area, polished within an inch of its life with a bunch of flowers for my wife. When we came to drive it away we realised it was only half charged and we had 50 miles to drive home. It made it. Just.
Nonsense, Alfa's only break down, because the're driven by owners who don't care for the intricate engineering that requires proper maintenance at all times. When looked after, Alfa's are very reliable cars that will provide much more joy than your average brand, while servicing costs remain totally acceptable.
@@peterdejong5456 Untrue nowadays. I went into an Alfa dealership in Newcastle to enquire about the price of a replacement clutch and flywheel and was shot square in the head with the figure of £3370. After going outside and looking for where the Ferrari badges were I politely declined. Few weeks later the extremely flimsy door handle snapped. They don't sell the door handle as its own part so wanted to replace the entire door card at a cost of £652. Over six HUNDRED quid for a plastic door handle?! The amount they charge for certain things is just incredible. I've had a Bluetooth unit fail at a dealer cost of £1200, the gearknob came apart in my hand, backlights on the dash work intermittently it's just really not the best built car in the world but why do I keep it? Because I just like the thing, but I'd never say they were reliable or cheap to run after £8,000 has been spent via the warranty and myself on servicing and repair in less than 18 months. My credentials are in my profile picture haha
Was visiting a friend in Manchester 2 years ago and being car geeks we visited the Ferrari, and McLaren/Rolls dealerships, we wore jeans and trainers and to be honest they all made us feel welcome, we explained we had no intention of buying but they said go ahead and sit in the cars etc.
This is great, i remember being 21 years old graduated buying a smart roaster coupe as i lived in the city, the cars were sold through the Mercedes garage as at the time there was no Smart branding there. I remember going in for a service and being treated like a tramp and was told by the front desk " you have to wait to the side sir as there are people behind you who are more loyal customers and have a higher grade car" That triggered me then and i ranted about how they should not judge a customer as in the future i could buy any car in this place, i am just starting my journey. This is why i would never buy a Mercedes and would hand it back if it was free. Yes i did make it and have a Tesla model S for the office and a Porsche 911 classic Targa 1982 to kill me on weekends. cough i have a dacia logan for the heavy lifting, dogs, supermarket leave anywhere car.
That's annoyed me to no end where ever I take my Mii, just because it's a small cheap car doesn't mean you can't treat both the owner and car with a little respect.
Some years ago I've bought a Smart at a big Mercedes Dealership as well. Mediocre sales experience to say the least. Was having it serviced there several times but I was never 100% satisfied. Something was always off. Until they totally fucked up and I decided to never go there again. I sometimes wonder how these people stay in business ...
I can definitely relate to this. We live in North Essex and a couple of years ago my wife was on the hunt for a BMW 4 series convertible. She did the obvious and popped along a local BMW dealership. They were awful, in as far as they treated her like she had no business having any knowledge of cars (lady with fair hair in her mid thirties.) Little did they know she is an advanced police driver and knows a lot about motors. Suffice it to say she promptly left. She ended up buying a car from a BMW dealer in the Lake District (Lloyd BMW.) It was a great experience. They even put us (including our two young daughters) up in a very nice hotel the night before handover. People will take their business to wherever they feel valued and appreciated, and we certainly got that from the dealer up north. They went above and beyond to secure a sale; that's how it should be done.
Lloyd South Lakes are simply superb, I have had many dealings with them (and others in the group) and it's 10/10 all the way. Little wonder they were BMW's leading Dealer Group for so many years.
I honestly can't praise Steve at High Peak Autos enough (didn't get to see Matt as he was out). He was very thorough and a pleasure to buy a car from when me and my dad went a fortnight ago. We traded in my dad's SLK for a very nice Polo BlueGT and after the test drive he offered 500 pounds more than his original offer because of the condition of dads car; I've never seen anything like that and it reassured us that this was a fantastic place to buy a car from.
I went to Audi Birmingham last weekend to find out more about a TTRS. They didn't have one for me to look at, but their customer service was excellent. I dealt with Lauren and she was very courteous, giving me time and alternatives to look at, and explained all of the finance options with great care. Bravo! I would definitely recommend Audi Birmingham.
Everyone who works in car sales spends too much time worrying about volume targets, finance penetration, add on sales, KPI’s, managing customers expectations, preparation standards, paperwork, and pressure from managers, to provide a good level of service. I worked for Mercedes and I tried to provide a high standard of service, however, the management completely destroyed this with perpetually increasing the monthly targets. You are on a spreadsheet for absolutely everything, and if you have a blip, you are having a review/final warning. The problem is management, and they think applying pressure on sales staff will yield better results. It doesn’t do anything other than make the job intolerable. I don’t think I know anyone in sales who can genuinely say they like it. I have worked in various industries but volume car sales is a pretty toxic place to be.
So so true, a quiet few days and you get scrutinised and your performance dissected. Then the pressure increases and you start chasing the deal, up selling miracle polishes and then you lose the relaxed atmosphere, you are aware of management expectations and struggle to find the balance of giving any enquiry the relaxed no pressure attention it deserves
I think lots of industries are like this, I'm a Refrigeration engineer and we have daft targets and what not too. It is the way of the world. Doing something as quickly and cheaply as possible instead of properly
Totally agree. 20 years in but, hopefully only a couple off retirement. Would have left years back but you get kinda “type cast” when looking at other jobs. Was great when I started but over the years, the old school natural salesperson has gone or been squeezed until he has to become a “process robot”. I’ve seen managers order salesmen to run after a customer that has decided to leave, just because the salesman hasn’t referred the customer to him. It’s customary for customers to have extras totalling £2000 added to the first offer. So they come in to view a £7000 car and the first price they are given is 9k!!! And this is a supposed winning “sales process”!! Sales staff are over worked. Targets rise in my dealership, nothing is earned until you sell 8 cars. Basic salary is actually less than minimum wage and dealerships flood the floor with young hopefuls who are promised a co car and 50 grand a year!! Reality soon kicks in as there aren’t enough deals to go around and commission is low and then morale drops. This gets passed on to the customer in terms of a desperation to qualify them and any hint of “just test driving today” sends the message that the customer has to be got rid of ASAP! Luckily for me, I’m desperately clingy on to my old school approach and have previous customers. But, it’s No wonder customers are nervous!!
@@kenwheeler1525 absolutely spot on.....I got battered once for letting someone leave as they had not been second faced by a manager. Was told it was not my decision to let them walk.....wtf! Also agree with the product push.....customer has 8k, have stretched themselves and then first presentation has £2400 of extras on top hopefully hidden in the pcp quote......look we hit your monthly target so let’s have a deal. Then having to get creative about how to broach the fact they are expecting 8 but it’s over 10k. Nothing worse than cash no bits!!
you'll find no matter the industry 99% of the problems comes from fucking management. Most of them are absolute trash. Completely disconnected from whats going on. Only thing theyre obsessing over is their bottom line. They give no fucks about anything else.
My Dad bought an XJ6L from the dealer a couple of months after this experience. Even though Appleyards had a dealership much nearer home, my Dad would only deal with the Leeds dealership. Respect gains respect.
I own three motorbikes, and only owned one car a pass me down Citroen Xantia as a birthday pressie form my dad, even though I passed my test eons ago. But now in my mid fifties cold wet rides, and waring many Kg's of kit, even to pop to the shops are becoming a pain, so I am looking to but a car. Even though most of his reviews are outside my budget I can still take something away. Informative and entertaining. Top chap. Clarkson take note !!!
That's a huge privilege. That would be impossible in America. Even if they tried building it today everything is so spread out for most of the country we would need a car. The automobile is as important as food, clothing, and shelter here. Living in the city either means being poor or rich and most don't have good public transportation. I'm sure there are exceptions to what I said bit certainly the case for the majority of us.
@@baronvonjo1929I’m a Brit. My wife & I lived in Florida 2021-23. In Britain, both of us have owned cars continuously since our early / mid-20s. I was a motorcyclist until 23yo & still am, but only hobby riding for pleasure. In Florida, it became immediately apparent that managing without a car was not going to be practicable. We’d thought we could walk to the local store. We could, but the round trip was around five miles. If as I suspect, the authorities are conniving with WEF / UN / WHO & climate alarmists to make private car ownership all but impossible, we’re going to see a humanitarian crisis.
@@baronvonjo1929 You're not wrong. There are places people live where running a bus would make no economic sense. Cars, even if they are EV fridges on wheels, are king. I wish American public transit was better as at the very least I would not have to worry about some idiot denting my precious car haha.
I had the exact same experience buying a house. 15 minutes to view a house that is going to take 20+ years to pay for and the rest of my life to live in!
@@thevirtualeconomy I get your point (and yes we had a second viewing - which was also limited to 15 minutes). At the same time that this was happening I was selling my flat (half the size) via purple bricks so I did the showing, people spent on average around an hour as I wasn’t pressure selling.
I've bought a 700k house with multiple 15 minute viewings. Crazy considering I bought a Porsche Boxster S after five hour long viewings from a private buyer. He was great. He wasn't in a rush and knew I was making a careful choice / it was potentially going to a good home.
i kind of like the rolex example because every rolex dealership i've been in has been horrible. they honestly are awful to their customers with their 'waiting lists' and crude snobbery.
When will dealers start to understand that bad experiences lose them business?! Keep up the great work James. Your whinging is actually invaluable and extremely well balanced consumer advice.
My uncle owned Ford’s and Hyundai’s all his life a decided to treat himself to a Merc when he retired. The dealer’s first words were “these are very expensive cars sir, you do realise that?”. He immediately walked out and into the Lexus dealership who were fantastic. The salesman said he picked up half his sales from the rudeness of Mercedes. It’s the same with motorbikes. I went into a BMW dealer on £1000 rust heap and despite saying I wasn’t buying the guy sent me out on a £18k bike. Ten years later where did I buy my first brand new motorbike, yup, same place. A deal that was ten years in the making!
spent 9 years living in Germany and all dealers there made you feel special from Opel to Mercedes then moved back to the uk with a brand new Merc went into the dealership for a service and they looked at me as if i had just taken a dump on their new floor, never set foot in the place again, first thing they should do is get rid of receptionists.
“Farmers and builders” absolutely spot on!! I’ve been treated like crap in Range Rover a few times even though I drove into the place in one!! Looking to buy another new one I popped in in my farm work gear, the sales rep looked me up and down and decided for me that, “I couldn’t afford one”.
My experience with Lexus Coventry was awful, wasn't Lexus like at all !! Too many business people, not enough car people. Just wanted to take my money and wash me away. I'm sticking to £2k hidden gems and a kit car in the garage in future
Interesting, Lexus win all the awards and based on my experience with Bristol they definitely deserve them all. However, every company has some rubbish employees, people having a bad day or people who simply just don't understand specific customers. Not surprising that even in companies known for the best customer service, it can be rubbish. Would be interesting to know if Coventry is still like that.
🤣Rolex. ‘I want a Submariner & have the money...’ ‘Yeah well buy some cheaper Rolex’s and build your relationship with us & you may be lucky.’ ‘Ok. Bye!’
"Dealers need to work very, very hard to justify their existence." Here in the States, many dealerships are protected by state laws that require cars to be sold at a dealership. The continued justification for these laws is that the dealers prevent monopoly control of the car supply and act as an advocate for the buyer. (HA!) Tesla, Rivian, and others are challenging this model with various levels of success in different jurisdictions, but dealers are doing little to practically justify their cut. This has never been more evident than now, when dealers are playing bridge troll with the scarce product supply and trying to extract exorbitant markups from even ho-hum vehicles.
We recently bought a 2012 SLK55 AMG from Parkway specialist cars in Mansfield. First time we had bought a car unseen and I don’t mine admitting we were very nervous! Well we needn’t have been the car was exactly as described and the sales experience from the first phone call to delivery and afterwards was superb. Great communication and a pleasure to deal with. They answered all my queries and delivered a great experience. Just need the sun to come out now so we can enjoy some roof down motoring.
I've only ever bought cars privately until a few years ago then we bought a cheap Honda civic from superbargincars in Romford. The guy who owns that is amazing. Really friendly helpful guy and I wouldn't hesitate to buy another car from him. I pretty much do all the work on the car myself but Last year i took that car to Honda in Romford to have the valves adjusted as that was a job I didn't fancy doing myself. Even though it was a cheap job that I think cost me £100 the car was returned to me fully washed, waxed and cleaned inside and the staff dealt with me like I was there to buy a new car or something. Highly recommended.
I used to get my car serviced by the same honda specialist every time because they collected the car serviced it washed it and valeted it before delivering it back. Or if I went in because I needed the car that day they always had a nice courtesy car waiting. And one time there was a mishap on the curtesy car and they took me to work and collected me later it was awesome. And because they were a specialist, not a main dealer I got great service rates as well.
Thank you for addressing this topic. It is so very difficult to find good car dealers. I've had horrible experiences at numerous dealers. The number of dealers that have been positive experiences, I can count on one hand.
His comment near the end really is the reason. If the first thing they do is lie to you, it will be nothing but lies from then on. I've seen multi-million dollar contracts fall through due to someone lying. I've seen CEOs fired because they lied. Nobody likes being lied to in any sort of business transaction, even for something as routine as a used car.
Hi Jay, I couldn’t agree with you more about dealers! To the point where I don’t even want to change my car because of all the negative experiences I have had. I think about it but then think I can’t be bothered it’s not worth the hassle. Keep up the good work, great channel 👍
@@Watty101 I know it is absolutely crazy how customers are treated, I’m sure £60,000 in anyone’s book is a lot of money so you would like a bit of the special treatment. However in saying that my brother just bought a new Bmw 530d from the dealer, he viewed the car on a Thursday and picked it up Saturday and could not have been happier. So I think it is luck of the draw really, but from my experience I’d say 90% of the dealers are pretty poor. All the best Seb👍
When I had company cars, I would get to choose another one every three years , I remember driving past a Audi dealership, so popped in as had 30 mins spare, asked to speak to a sales guy, was told under no circumstances could I , without a prior appointment. So I went next door to a BMW dealer , and thats what I had next... Literally they pushed a dead cert sale out the door..madness.
My first new bought car was an Opel. Why? because when i was a 13 year old kid and the Calibra came out i went to our local Dealer and asked them for a brochure of the car. Not only gave they me the brochure, they also gave me some stickers, a cap and a football with Opel-logos on it. I felt very well treated and I didn't forget that. I didn't even look at any other Opel dealer.
Opel makes really underrated cars. In the UK we have plenty of ancient Vauxhall (Opel) Astras and Corsas, 15+ years old and still on the road. The latest Insignia is an excellent car.
just to share my own thoughts: for me the best two main dealers in the 'luxury' or 'supercar' space are HWM Aston Martin of Walton on Thames, and Meridian Modena of Lyndhurst, New Forest, Hampshire. They both get it right - a long standing presence in the community, a great and measured way of marketing their cars in a classy way, lovely showroom, non pressured sales, good aftersales and a willingness to try and put things right, and keen to forge long lasting relationships with clients.
Another shout out to Meridian Modena. Picked my car up after a service and was shown around their new service centre and the goodies they had in storage. Even the little things like a Christmas card helps maintain a relationship. I'm sure Damian from thecarguys could give a few examples of good and bad.
Ford dealer in Cambridge, part of a large chain of dealers of various marques. I go in with my parents (both 60+) to buy a new Ford Focus. The customer advisor attempts to explain in an extremely patronising tone how APRs work to my Mum, who worked in Barclays Bank for years, before computers, so had strong mental arithmetic. We were done, and they walked out and went and bought a Civic from the friendly dealer down the road.
I recently bought my first performance car (megane rs 250) initially I was on the hunt for a focus ST but the dealer I was at treated me and my potential part ex like dirt. Rubbing a dirty rag over the paintwork giving me the bullshit before I had even set foot in the car I was thinking of buying. It was an amazing car great condition but the attitude of the dealer lost them the sale.
The whole motor trade seems suffer with transparency from dealers. Every time buying a car it feels like somewhere along they way we are getting ripped off.
I recently visited (phoned in advance) an independent dealer to look at a 997.2 C4S and when I arrived they said I could only test drive the car if they *knew for sure* I'd buy it afterwards. I walked away.
I’m sure the wording would have been something like, “if the figures are correct and the car drives as it should, would we get your business today?” I’m sure that they aren’t in the business of doing test drives but more likely in the business of selling cars?
@@kenwheeler1525 I wish that was their wording - it wasn't. Besides, if they/I *knew for sure* I'd buy the car afterwards, then why would I (or anyone) need a test drive? Dealers are in the business of convincing customers to buy a car from them. On this instance, they failed.
So true. Nowadays people go to the dealers, look, testdrive, and buy online or where it is cheapest. So it is up to the dealers to create the atmosphere and experience where you want to be, spend time, and buy. Unfortunately there is a long way to go .
Many years ago, my girlfriend at the time (now my wife!) had her eye on a new car (a special edition Toyota Carina, so that gives you an idea how long ago it was) & went to a well known local Toyota dealership to see what deal they could do & get a trade in value on her current car. When she told her father what they'd offered, he wasn't particularly impressed so went along to the same dealer the next day with her car & was offered a better trade in + deal. When he asked why the previous day, they'd offered a worse deal to his daughter on the same car, the salesman didn't know where to look & couldn't offer an answer. After chewing his ear for a few minutes, as her father walked out their parting shot was 'you'll not get this car anywhere else!'. Well she did & got a better deal on it at a dealership in the next town, where we've since bought I think our last 8 cars. As for the first place, they're no longer a franchised Toyota dealer & just sell used motors.
The industry is changing to an agency model, and manufacturers would prefer to sell direct to customers than have to go through dealers. Anyway, dealerships are a cold, intimidating place for some. I know, I worked at a few. I haven't met anyone who really enjoyed working at a dealership or a customer who thinks that the dealership experience was the highlight of their car ownership. For me it's about the car and my experiences with it, not at the dealer.
I vividly remember going with my friend to do some shopping when I was in the market for a used car (I was 26 at the time and so was she; both dressed casually). We had some time to kill and I suggested going to the Audi dealership down the road. We walked in; had a look round; were roundly ignored and eventually decided to leave. I was really disappointed; I'd been considering buying an RS4 but they made it abundantly clear that they weren't interested. There was a Porsche dealership next door; we thought we'd try there; we walked in and they couldn't have been nicer, answered all my questions and offered me a test drive. Long story short: I went back a few months later and bought a 911. I asked the salesman (who was the guy who'd seen us first time round) whether he'd thought I was a timewaster at the time. He simply replied "I've learned not to pre-judge anyone; I remember getting a bunch of lads in a knackered BMW 3-series turn up once and ask to see a 911 Turbo; I gave them the same treatment I gave you. Turned out once of them was [someone who became a Premiership footballer], and he bought two..."
I have to say Porsche Bolton have been brilliant - always extremely helpful and willing to chat through options (and I’m a pain) and not pushy. Recently sent a personalised brochure for a new order - it made my week.
Can I just say that the guys a Rusty Cars are very good. When the door fell off my Nissan Bluebird, (which I recently purchased from them), they got the Cavalier door to fit in no time.
Good/bad experience with Aston Martin - A few years ago when my Dad had purchased a V8 Vantage from Aston, he had dropped it in for service a couple days before an international flight. The day before the flight (A Sunday, so keep in mind all dealers are closed) he realized he left his passport in the glove compartment of his car. He drove to the dealer in hopes that someone was around, but unfortunately no one was. So, he called the service manager who drove an hour and a half from his home on a Sunday to open the service department for him to grab his passport. However, the salesman who sold him the car, didn't even respond to his voicemail when we left him a message about his problem.
Reminds me of a story told to me and my Dad about a farmer who went to buy a Rolls Royce with two carrier bags full of cash (yes it was that long ago) and was told "they weren't a typical Rolls customer" - farmer walked and bought his dream car elsewhere and took it to aforementioned dealer to prove what numpties they were (Pretty Women moment....)
@Pollywog Sure. But there's no room for people that think they get to tell everyone else they're wrong as if it's a matter of fact, when it's actually just their own personal opinion, without being challenged. And make no mistake - your claim that it didn't happen is just that - an opinion - not a fact.
@Pollywog Neither. What exactly would I possibly be butthurt about? It's not like I was the one trying to pass their opinion off as fact then got called out on it. That looks a lot like projection.
My parents who are not particularly car people recently bought their first used car online (Cazoo) and had an outstanding service. Their local dealer had poorly prepared cars, low stock turnover (and therefore the car they wanted didn't ever show up - just a regular hatch) and no offer of arranging local delivery. The price couldn't be beaten at the time either and the car turned up exactly as described in practically as-new condition. I don't think they'll ever need to return to a dealer to purchase a car ever again.
Hi , I’ve just watched your video on car dealers, which is excellent. Before selling it on I along with my partner had medium side used car dealership in Hampshire, I agree with all you said. I am 63 years old and have owned too many cars personally to list them. In a nutshell I’ve had 3 big and small block Corvettes, a TransAm , numerous BMW’s (M3, 840i) Jags, various Mercs, Maserati Merak SS, Lotus’s and some weird beasts like a V6 Ford Anglia. I’m known to most locally as a keen petrol head, spending much of my time at Goodwood (which is local). The most common questions I am asked are- What are the best or most memorable cars you’ve had.? and what new car dealer (if any) would you use? I answer these easily now I’m retired as , -Memorable and easily most fun and rewarding car I’ve owned was my new Fiesta XR2 in 1986. Best and pure value for money (super performance , low running costs, reliable, looks beastie and now rising value) is my current 20,000 mile 2005 Vauxhall Monaro 6.0 VXR; it puts a smile on your face every time you drive it, even after 11 years of ownership. Only main dealer I rate is Yeomans Citroen in Fareham Hampshire (where we got my wife’s last 3 cars). Petrolhead manager is Ollie Nurse. Great guy and knowledgeable team behind him. Regards Paul Huckle
Marshals are diabolical. I had an 8 year old BMW I bought a year earlier from a small secondhand dealer, £14,000. I go to Marshall’s BMW to buy a brand new BMW, they offered me £7,000 trade in? I called the small dealer where I bought the car originally and he offered me £9,500 cash without seeing it. I went and bought a Jaguar.
Always been treated really well at the local Jag dealership, and my Jag is 15 years old. Having said that, I've had very poor experiences at some dealerships. I can see both sides of this. I've worked in sales and some people are utter pains to deal with so I can understand why some sales people are just about the deal, the best ones manage to avoid that fate tho and they have always been a pleasure to deal with.
“I have one of these myself” They’re like a psycho ex contacting you 24/7 before you purchase the car but go cold on you after the sale has gone through. Suddenly whenever you get through to them to sort out some issues it’s their day off 😂
Car sales execs, particularly at main dealer franchises often have their CRM (Customer Relationship Management) profiles used as a performance indicator, if a sales person gets a customer on their book, then the CRM software reminds them to call that customer at regular intervals and the calls must be logged on the software. If an exec isn't following up on their calls, they will find themselves on the receiving end of an earbashing from the Dealer Principle. The best thing I would advise anyone to do if you're just looking to browse at a main dealer - don't give them ANY genuine contact details! Give an old mobile number or change a digit or whatever, because you will get borderline harassed by that dealership until the end of time otherwise!
I get you on the bad dealer experiences. I've bought many of cars from dealers and dont think I've ever had a truly good experience. I've now started buying private.
I guess it depends where you are, as always. Me and a friend were on holiday in Ft. Lauderdale years ago, and walked into a Lamborghini showroom in T-shirts and shorts, and the salesman dived over asking if we'd like to test drive anything. We were in our mid 20s, and just laughed, explaining we were on holiday. The salesman said he'd never judge a potential client on looks, as he'd had guys dressed like us come in and buy/trade cars just because they'd seen one the same colour on the strip! "You just never know here!", he said!
@@MrMairu555 Same. I've been to dealers all over the eastern seaboard and have never had any experience even remotely similar to what Jay is describing. I won't claim all dealers in the US are perfect or even decent, but the prolific nature of the issue really sounds like more of a regional issue.
@@NoGoodHandlesComingToMind It's very much a UK problem, Jason. I've saved hard the last few years, and have a wedge of cash burning a hole in my pocket, and a million mile shitbox Ford with a dented rear door and rear quarter, courtesy of a drunk driver. I drove to my local Porsche dealer looking to buy a used 718 Cayman they have in stock, and was virtually laughed out of the showroom, despite being ready to buy it outright! Needless to say, I walked. It happens a lot here. I've been treated much better several times in the US, in both car and motorcycle dealerships.
I don't know how dealers work in the U.K by here in Murica 🦅, dealerships rip you off massively and it's really hard to haggle for pricing , that's why online car companies like Carvana , where you buy online are taking off in Murica 🦅
As an employee of WeBuyAnyCar I often tear my hair out when people tell me how they’ve looked after the car and put new parts on it etc when I can only deal with black and white facts (I.e service etc). They don’t care about the backstory, just purely the car’s condition. I often get cars in I know has been looked after but maybe shows it’s age. It’s worth far less than what a newer car that has never been looked after maybe has been.
While that is true, that it is valued at less than a newer car; it's not necessarily "worth" less, if well looked-after. In reality, a well-looked after car with a good, knowledgable owner who has taken care of it is worth a LOT compared to a newer car which has only ever been taken to a car was or for an annual service. Cars are not accurately statistically valued, they differ so vastly in condition, usually thanks to the owners care (or lack of). Doesn't affect its resale value, or an actuarial figure spat out from a spreadsheet, that is undoubtedly true; but when buying used, one will be much better than the other, and it won't always be the newer one. Same reason a 'full service history' is often pretty worthless if that's all the car has ever been given, and no real care or attention to resolve issues before they become problems.
My wife and myself bought a new lexus NX 300 from a lexus dealer in australia and the dealership treated us so well they are a wonderful very good dealership. The vehicle is a great vehicle with wonderful built quality.
It would be funny if it was a farmer that walked into the Lamborghini dealership, as a lot of farmers drive Lamborghinis as a daily driver on their fields.
I went to a car hyper quantity dealer in Northamptonshire, I’d called before heading over asking to see & drive a certain vehicle, upon arrival I was told someone would go & bring the car around after 40 minutes of waiting I was told they couldn’t actually find it 😡 never ever using a facility like that again 😐
I last bought a car in 2019 it wasn‘t a great experience with many problems afterwards. I‘m still glad that I bought it. Car buying isn‘t a concern to me anymore there just aren‘t any new cars out there that catch my interest. So I‘ll maintain and keep the cars I‘ve already got.
Had a great experience with a Mercedes dealer. I was looking at a new car, that I had no hope of affording. However, the salesperson, because it was quite spent quite a long time showing me the car in detail. His argument was, even though I couldn’t afford it right now. When I could, I’d be more likely to come back to him to buy it, if I’d had a good look and been able to make a decision.
I went to Carshop in October and from the moment i spoke to a salesman I knew he was more incentivised on selling their services rather than a car for my budget. I ran outta there as quickly as I could. I don't know how people buy from these kids of businesses.
Thanks for the rant. You're absolutely right. I know, because I work at a place like that (not in the UK though and I'll not mention a name anyway). Lots of transitions going on in the business of course. Real store to virtual store. Fossil fuel to electrical. They all seem a bit at a loss as to what to do and the public has indeed realized they don't need cars as bad as they thought they did. Car sharing, Uber, subscription cars. There are still people who care about cars and customers in your local dealership: that's the underpaid, undervalued guy or girl wrenching on it. Unfortunately, they don't make good salespeople because they're too honest.
Nevermind that it's a very mass-market luxury good, they make something like 1/2 million a year. Huge margins, I'm sure the execs are laughing at everyone overpaying....
Depends what it is. If you want something generic like a datejust or an air king, even some of the less popular submariner combinations, you won't have a problem picking them up. If you're after something like a Daytona or a sky dweller then there's going to be a waiting list and priority on that waiting list will always go to people with a purchase history at that dealer. It makes sense in a way because you're going to have a guaranteed sale to someone who has bought from you before (Rolex collectors are like that) for reference I was also a jeweller for 10 years prior to being in car sales so I have a bit of background on this as well. Bugger all else mind you, but cars and watches I know!
I just bought a Mazda 6 Touring 2021 From Mazda of Orange In Orange County, California. Orange County used to have a good reputation. The dealership was ripping me off left and right. I am a single woman who went alone and they took complete advantage of the fact. My experience has never been WORSE.
My story initially started out bad but ended up going well. Went to a Lexus dealership that was about a mile from my house. Test drove the NX and ES. Liked the ES at the time. Asked the dealer for pricing, they wanted me (young looking guy) to do a credit app to see if I could afford the car before they even gave me pricing. I asked for it, but they said “this is a Lexus, our cars just sell at the price. The price you see is what you pay” so on and so forth. I left and was pissed, because I thought they were looking at my age and saw that I wasn’t able to afford it or wasn’t interested. Next day, I went with my parents. Same dealer, but this time I asked to see a different salesperson that friends had used in the past. Dad told me to drive the RX 350, which I was hesitant about because it was out of my price range. Regardless, I drove that one and liked it over the previous ones I drove. We were actually able to get pricing, which was surprising since drive out pricing (with taxes) was within my price range. We still wanted them to go down a bit, but they said they couldn’t go so much as $1K down. So we wanted to see what other dealerships would offer and kept in mind where we wanted to be. Went to another dealer a few days later and got a great deal with $1,100 below the lowest offer at the previous dealer. Worked out and I got my RX!
True in theory. But in practice the odds of winning the Euromillions lottery jackpot are 1 in 140 million. To put this into context the odds of been struck by lightening is 1 in 10 million. You could win, but you won’t.
100% correct . My son just bought a 10 K secondhand Toyota from a car supermarket . He was very happy with the staff, the pre sales checks and the car itself. As you say, he largely works from home a d uses his car sparingly on the weekends . He is also sales resistant and turned down the many useless add ons that he was offered . I suggest that dealers are rapidly becoming dinosaurs with the exception of high end brands and dealers that you described and monthly MRR ( monthly recurring revenue) is the business model that car manufacturers will be adopting or already done so . You hit the nail on the head and this needed to be said. Thanks .
Having worked in this world with a couple of Main Dealers, you assessment of the huge pressure put on salesmen is right on the money. Once upon a time, the person behind the desk had the time to be able to spend hours on end with you, talking you through every little thing you could wish for. They'd know the car inside and out, and they'd guide you through all the options and choices. Over the years, I saw how successive Sales Managers came in and the staff were put under ever greater pressure. It does nothing but ruin the calm welcoming feel of the showroom, and rob the sales team of the breathing space to know the product and to have some enthusiasm for what they're selling.
Great rant as always Jay! I dislike car dealers also. They are only after one thing and give nothing to a car enthusiast or a normal car buyer. In fact, I started my TH-cam channel 4 years ago to showcase dealership experiences I have had to help share with others.......I cant ever remember having a fantastic experience anywhere which is a big sign of the times 😬
Working in a dealership myself (sales) I was ready to be all defensive. But then I hear from my own customers about their experiences at competitive dealers and I am always amazed by what some dealerships think they can get away with. I also had a completely useless colleague who failed over and over again to give service so sometimes a customer can draw a very short straw from a overall good dealership. The service department where I work are also completely terrible and I wouldn’t recommend them to anyone....so you are pretty spot on Jay and that’s sad.
Had 2 very different experiences over last 6 months. Porsche 981 Spyder from Uber Gt was an exceptional process, both car and Dealer were exemplary. Unfortunately had dreadful recent experience from “reputable “ Porsche specialist with Amg GTC roadster. Travelled over 2 hours to just outside London and the owner kept us waiting outside his premises for 20 minutes before finally producing finance documents on the doorstep, with final numbers equating to £4000 more than he’d quoted in correspondence. Managed to get that number down.His excuse was that he’d only quoted me roughly! I couldn’t eject my partner from the passenger seat, so very reluctantly did the deal. Foolish I know. The car is perfect but was the worst experience in 30 years of car buying. It is, and always has been, a lottery.
Me: Watching channel having never spent more than £2k on a car or been into a dealership in years. Just an imposter passing through, nothing to see here. 😅
@@thomas316 I'm 48, exclusively had motorcycles until I was 27 (sometimes four at once) but have only ever owned 4 cars - none of them anything special, the current one since 2006. I don't even know why I watch this channel haha
I've worked for main dealer franchises and independents of varying degrees of repute over the years, and what I've noticed generally speaking is that main dealer people couldn't care less about cars. I've never met a "petrol head" or even a car enthusiast in the loosest sense working in car sales (different story in garages and body shops, you do get enthusiasts in those environments I've found). No, if you go to work for a main dealer as a junior sales exec, they don't care in the slightest if you like or even care about cars, what they really want (without explicitly saying it) are people who love and are obsessed with making money, as they are generally going to be the people who get on board with selling finance packages, gap Insurance, extended warranties and all the other "VAPS" (value adding products) because it is there where main dealers are making their REAL money, new cars in and of themselves aren't hugely profitable if you just go in and buy one for cash, so it's all about the VAPS. Now conversely, the independents I've worked for seem to have a higher proportion of people working in them who actually appreciate cars, however their business models are very much about wringing as much profit from the sale of the car as possible (VAPS not being as big of a factor, although still very much there) so what you find with those types of businesses is that they will cut corners on things like prepping cars and doing the absolute bare minimum to scrape them through an MOT. So yeah, I would absolutely agree that dealers are potentially killing the car and because you don't have people with a passion for cars selling cars (for the most part) then there is no passing on of that passion and everyone will just buy "something to get from a to b" without a care in the world for what it is. Furthermore (and probably finally for now because I could rant on this all day as well!) The PCP model isn't helping. Someone will go and pick up a dreary, basic "get from a to b" type car, three years later the dealer is on the phone offering them "the unbeatable deal" to get them into the newer model of the same car for the same/a reduced monthly payment, and people are falling for it left, right and centre because who doesn't like the sound of "newer car for less or the same money"? The reason this is detrimental to the industry is, in my opinion anyway, that the biggest players in this type of market are the likes of Peugeot and Citroen (although ford do a healthy shift on PCP as well) and these aren't really cars for people who enjoy driving or like cars, they're really more cars for people who need a car, so buyers get stuck in what is referred to in the trade as the "change cycle" and may never see the light of another brand (or even model from the same company!) So they get complacent and never feel the need to change or try something different.
My best and most unexpected Dealership Experience was at A Porsche Center here. I was there with my little Son to watch at the bright green and orange cars with the huge Spoilers after we have been for our Grocery Saturday shopping. We just passed by and stopped to watch. - We watched outside, have been invited inside, my Son got a Toy Car and Stickers, I got a Coffee and nice conversation. We spend roughly one hour there, my son was driving on the passenger seat into the workshop with a Mechanic in a GT3 RS. The first thing we said to the guy that invited us to come inside was, that we are fine and just wanted to look at the cool cars - and that it is a dream we can`t afford yet. Still we got that nicely treated. - The only car Poster in my Sons room since that day is a green 991 GT3 RS.
Lovely, really nice to hear something so heartwarming :-)
And say in 20 years if your Son gets flushed and decides to buy a car I think I know what franchise he will head for......
Smashing service and great to hear the lads in that dealership aren’t only interested in margins 👍
Had this experience at Porsche Leeds with my daughter!
@J Tudor specially on kids, since their brain is so fresh. small toys & nice treatment from a brand can last forever in the memory
When I was 24 I walked into Audi Wolverhampton after being at work with the intention of buying a brand new S3. It’s not the most expensive car in the world but at £35-£40k it’s certainly not cheap. I have never felt so uncomfortable in a showroom in my life. I actually felt like I had to beg to be shown around a car! It wasn’t long before I told them to forget it and I walked away. 12 months later I returned to the service department with my Sepang Blue S3 that I had bought through an online broker for £5k cheaper. I should have thanked the miserable twats for saving me £5k
Same experience here. Dealer for sales was naff, didn’t give me the time of day. Then after sales and servicing just as bad!
I’m in Birmingham now & had an awful experience at BMC motors just off junc 2 of the M42
I had this exact experience in Audi Cheshire Oaks. Absolute joke of a dealership and nobody could give a toss about anyone that walks through the doors. Terrible company and Id never buy from them because of it.
A couple years ago I walked into a small independent dealership with a Ferrari in the window. Being 18 at the time had no intention to buy the car, had a look around it and thought it was beautiful. Salesmen walked over, me thinking he was going to tell me to sod off started walking away. He said to me “would you like to look inside and have a sit in it?” I said “no no I can’t afford this car”, he replied “maybe not now but in a few years time”. One of the best experiences with a dealer I’ve had. Then went to trade centre a few months later and was continuously hustled.
Reminds me of a Porsche commercial several years back. A young boy goes into a dealership. Sits in a car. Asks for the salesman's card. Walks away and says see you in 30 years
Exact same happened to me!! Went to a Ferrari garage down south whilst on holiday was VERY young, there was an F40 in the window and I assumed they were going to tell me to get lost, they insisted I had a look around the car, didn't sit in it but they were insistent even though I quite obviously was not there to purchase. Will never forget that day.
That sounds unusual for Ferrari. Maybe their dealers are nicer than corporate
Now that's how you inspire the youth. Marketing at its finest
Dealers should all read this...great point
My rule with dealers is 'if you lie to me, I'm out' - My most memorable experience of this is at a particularly adrenaline charged dealership where I'd been sitting down for 5 minutes waiting to speak to a salesperson. First words out of his mouth were "First thing you need to know, we don't negotiate on price". I asked him why I'd spent the last 5 minutes listening to the person at the desk next to me negotiate on price and walked out after telling him I don't like being lied to.
This guy speaks from experience. Some people won't like it but he says it how it is!
Agreed!
Sandown Mercedes-Remote computer says no experience, then leave you stood in the showroom for ages to collect said car. Did they get a shock when I told them about my experience. Mercedes dealers have gone down the plug whole
A quote from the powers that be / government's puppet masters - You'll own nothing and you'll be happy" .
@@brucky1890 Explain with decent grammar, because its hard to understand otherwise.
@ Peace Be The Journey: That is the true reason cars are becoming ever more expensive year after year secondary to increased regulations of all kind. So that we cannot afford to OWN cars anymore but instead have to share some subcompact, appliance electric cars or drive a bicycle right away!
I was in a Citroen dealer this week and watched a lady at the service counter, probably paying a service bill for £100. The staff brought a box of mini-model cars round and offered the child in her pushchair a model car, the child was only 2-3 years old, but a nice touch I thought.
I've only been to a Citroen dealer once, about 4 years ago. Penton Citroen in Poole. I was trying to get some valve stem seals for an old Talbot van. They got them in from france very quickly and treated me well, can't fault them. I spent days trying to track those parts down online, couldn't find the right ones anywhere except possibly DeLorean of all places.
The franchise running the nearby Peugeot dealer on the other hand is useless. Despite being the official replacement dealers for Talbot, I couldn't get a thing from them. If it's over 10 years old, they don't want to know.
Grand Tour drops the "Conversation Street" section from the show, but we have JayEmms rants instead. Balance has been restored.
I genuinely hope that in a few years James gets signed for Top Gear. He's got a bit of Clarkson, Hammond and May in him. May mainly because of the shirts actually.
@@hexgraphica Also reminds me of Mike brewer slightly but actually good. Edd China carried Wheeler dealers.
@@KartsAgainstHumanity Mike always had a strong whiff of car dealer about him which put me off. I only watch the old episodes now - the Porsche Boxster tip tronic episode being a favourite.
@@hexgraphica your
@@danwilliamson1991 Brewer said that telling your car dealers things like 'I like this car!' put off car dealers in one of his recent videos.
The heck is wrong with that off-brand Steve Sutcliffe imposter...
Good video, I booked a road test at a Mercedes dealership. I turned up 20 minutes early, clean shaved and smartly dressed ( about 40 years old). I drove there in my beaten up Seat Cordoba, which I drove for 18 months whilst saving up for a nice car. I spoke to the lady at the reception desk, she went over and told the sales man I was booked with that I had arrived. The sales man sat alone at his desk looked at me then looked away. At no point did he come over and introduce himself to me. I took a seat in the show room and waited over 45 minutes. The reception lady apologised. I had saved up over the 18 months to pay cash for the car. I left and bought a new Audi...sorry to add another rant.
My God how horrible some people are.
I worked in a Porsche Centre local to me at the end of 2019. I can confirm that not a single person who bought a car while I was there, wore a suit.
Track suit bottoms or jeans lol.
I remember back in the day, Quentin Wilson advising car buyers to dress down before visiting a car dealership to discourage salesmen from thinking you were well off.
I don't understand the people that dress like shit and are shocked when they are treated like shit in return
Wowee you wore a cheap t shirt and jeans and you got treated like a commoner? Shocker!!!
Put a nice shirt on at least
@@PoloDaBear to some a suit looks like shit, to others it's a t-shirt or baggy jeans. In the end of the day, what matters is that you're clean and polite.
@@PoloDaBear I'd agree. I'm pushing on, now, and can remember a time when people in general were much poorer, much thinner, tattoo free and considerably better dressed.
I brought my first Ferrari 5 years ago from a USA dealership in Edison, NJ. I walked in and was greeted with enthusiasm that lasted the entire visit…2hrs. I repeated this scenario 2 more times with the same salesman over a 6 week period. Each time he made me feel like the most important person he has ever met. On the final visit(3rd), I took my daughter with me and again his professionalism and attention to what my daughter’s concerns floored me. She said to me, “Dad, he gets it. He wants to know where am I going on my first drive. I say closed the deal with him.” All inquires coming to me regarding Ferrari ownership are referred to him. My family and friends only deal with him from multiple states. If he moves, we will follow.
Nice, really. I admire your reciprocity.
Jay, I just wanted to stop for a second and tell you something.
You are great, I love your channel, your honest/informative videos, and your positivity. Don’t listen to any of the haters, or negative comments, or the jealous people. What you do is great, period.
Wishing you success and many more views. Have a great day.
Thanks David, very kind
Completely agree - Stumbled across him on day, and have enjoyed all videos I have seen so far. Top chap. Whish I had some of his mates though 😉
Now that’s a dealer that’s gonna have lifelong & entire families as repeat customers
I agree with you. As a car dealer for some 40 years and having been with most of the brands and large dealer groups I would have to agree with you. But there are dreadful customers also who come into dealers and franchises with a very poor attitude also and try to treat the staff poorly also so there is definitely another side of your argument. Dealer staff are not there to be abused by customers either just as a Doctors Surgery will not put up with an abusive patient , dealers will not tolerate abusive customers.
Looking after customers who are genuine is not difficult and dealers need to remember that it's about people and money. Civility costs nothing on both sides and looking after good customers is always a pleasure and never a chore.
man, you speak in such a clear and interesting way, that I could be listen to you talking about anything for the whole day..
#thanks Tomas
We bought a new BMW i3 a couple of years back. When we went to collect it it was in the handover area, polished within an inch of its life with a bunch of flowers for my wife. When we came to drive it away we realised it was only half charged and we had 50 miles to drive home. It made it. Just.
The bunch of flowers thing is so cringe. Totally phoney.
If I owned an Alfa I would love to get a sincere hug from the desk person every time I pop in with an issue
A hug and a quick cry on their shoulder.
@@nathant8951 on a weekly basis no less.
@@MatsGarage optimistic...
Nonsense, Alfa's only break down, because the're driven by owners who don't care for the intricate engineering that requires proper maintenance at all times. When looked after, Alfa's are very reliable cars that will provide much more joy than your average brand, while servicing costs remain totally acceptable.
@@peterdejong5456 Untrue nowadays. I went into an Alfa dealership in Newcastle to enquire about the price of a replacement clutch and flywheel and was shot square in the head with the figure of £3370. After going outside and looking for where the Ferrari badges were I politely declined. Few weeks later the extremely flimsy door handle snapped. They don't sell the door handle as its own part so wanted to replace the entire door card at a cost of £652. Over six HUNDRED quid for a plastic door handle?! The amount they charge for certain things is just incredible. I've had a Bluetooth unit fail at a dealer cost of £1200, the gearknob came apart in my hand, backlights on the dash work intermittently it's just really not the best built car in the world but why do I keep it? Because I just like the thing, but I'd never say they were reliable or cheap to run after £8,000 has been spent via the warranty and myself on servicing and repair in less than 18 months. My credentials are in my profile picture haha
Was visiting a friend in Manchester 2 years ago and being car geeks we visited the Ferrari, and McLaren/Rolls dealerships, we wore jeans and trainers and to be honest they all made us feel welcome, we explained we had no intention of buying but they said go ahead and sit in the cars etc.
This is great, i remember being 21 years old graduated buying a smart roaster coupe as i lived in the city, the cars were sold through the Mercedes garage as at the time there was no Smart branding there. I remember going in for a service and being treated like a tramp and was told by the front desk " you have to wait to the side sir as there are people behind you who are more loyal customers and have a higher grade car" That triggered me then and i ranted about how they should not judge a customer as in the future i could buy any car in this place, i am just starting my journey. This is why i would never buy a Mercedes and would hand it back if it was free. Yes i did make it and have a Tesla model S for the office and a Porsche 911 classic Targa 1982 to kill me on weekends. cough i have a dacia logan for the heavy lifting, dogs, supermarket leave anywhere car.
That's another important thing- just because someone turns up in a Dacia doesn't mean they don't have a Porsche parked at home.
That's annoyed me to no end where ever I take my Mii, just because it's a small cheap car doesn't mean you can't treat both the owner and car with a little respect.
Good for you. 👍
Some years ago I've bought a Smart at a big Mercedes Dealership as well. Mediocre sales experience to say the least. Was having it serviced there several times but I was never 100% satisfied. Something was always off. Until they totally fucked up and I decided to never go there again. I sometimes wonder how these people stay in business ...
I've always categorised car dealers the same as estate agents.
And used car dealers are like cowboy builders usually.
My take on all purchases: When the company/owner/salesperson expects me to thank them for being in their establishment, I walk away..
Welcome to the majority of luxury retailers, lots of them think you should fall on your knees and worship at their altar of conspicuous consumption...
Sounds like BMW and Apple in my experience
Keep your car purchases strictly online then....
I can definitely relate to this. We live in North Essex and a couple of years ago my wife was on the hunt for a BMW 4 series convertible. She did the obvious and popped along a local BMW dealership. They were awful, in as far as they treated her like she had no business having any knowledge of cars (lady with fair hair in her mid thirties.) Little did they know she is an advanced police driver and knows a lot about motors. Suffice it to say she promptly left.
She ended up buying a car from a BMW dealer in the Lake District (Lloyd BMW.) It was a great experience. They even put us (including our two young daughters) up in a very nice hotel the night before handover.
People will take their business to wherever they feel valued and appreciated, and we certainly got that from the dealer up north. They went above and beyond to secure a sale; that's how it should be done.
I'd rather haggle an extra £500 off than get a free hotel stay and faux courtesy. Maybe that's why I'll never be appreciated as a BMW customer.
One way or another you paid for that hotel break.
@@andypaul999 of course we did. However, I have no complaints in the way we were treated as customers, which was a refreshing change.
I'd agree about Lloyd. I bought a used Range Rover Sport from their Rippon dealership, 300 miles away from my home. Excellent customer service.
Lloyd South Lakes are simply superb, I have had many dealings with them (and others in the group) and it's 10/10 all the way. Little wonder they were BMW's leading Dealer Group for so many years.
I honestly can't praise Steve at High Peak Autos enough (didn't get to see Matt as he was out). He was very thorough and a pleasure to buy a car from when me and my dad went a fortnight ago. We traded in my dad's SLK for a very nice Polo BlueGT and after the test drive he offered 500 pounds more than his original offer because of the condition of dads car; I've never seen anything like that and it reassured us that this was a fantastic place to buy a car from.
Every car dealer in Test Drive Unlimited has been the best experience I have ever had.
Now if only something like that was real. 🤔
Brilliant!
A beautiful lady dropping the keys to a new car in my hand as a little jingle plays in the background would be quite memorable haha
I live in America and the part about farmers and builders is so true here as well
The backbone of any country. That and houses are massively overpriced. 😄
I went to Audi Birmingham last weekend to find out more about a TTRS. They didn't have one for me to look at, but their customer service was excellent. I dealt with Lauren and she was very courteous, giving me time and alternatives to look at, and explained all of the finance options with great care. Bravo! I would definitely recommend Audi Birmingham.
I had a similar experience with Audi in Tamworth. Its a shame all the Audis in or near West London are crap
Everyone who works in car sales spends too much time worrying about volume targets, finance penetration, add on sales, KPI’s, managing customers expectations, preparation standards, paperwork, and pressure from managers, to provide a good level of service. I worked for Mercedes and I tried to provide a high standard of service, however, the management completely destroyed this with perpetually increasing the monthly targets. You are on a spreadsheet for absolutely everything, and if you have a blip, you are having a review/final warning. The problem is management, and they think applying pressure on sales staff will yield better results. It doesn’t do anything other than make the job intolerable. I don’t think I know anyone in sales who can genuinely say they like it. I have worked in various industries but volume car sales is a pretty toxic place to be.
So so true, a quiet few days and you get scrutinised and your performance dissected. Then the pressure increases and you start chasing the deal, up selling miracle polishes and then you lose the relaxed atmosphere, you are aware of management expectations and struggle to find the balance of giving any enquiry the relaxed no pressure attention it deserves
I think lots of industries are like this, I'm a Refrigeration engineer and we have daft targets and what not too. It is the way of the world. Doing something as quickly and cheaply as possible instead of properly
Totally agree. 20 years in but, hopefully only a couple off retirement. Would have left years back but you get kinda “type cast” when looking at other jobs. Was great when I started but over the years, the old school natural salesperson has gone or been squeezed until he has to become a “process robot”. I’ve seen managers order salesmen to run after a customer that has decided to leave, just because the salesman hasn’t referred the customer to him. It’s customary for customers to have extras totalling £2000 added to the first offer. So they come in to view a £7000 car and the first price they are given is 9k!!! And this is a supposed winning “sales process”!! Sales staff are over worked. Targets rise in my dealership, nothing is earned until you sell 8 cars. Basic salary is actually less than minimum wage and dealerships flood the floor with young hopefuls who are promised a co car and 50 grand a year!! Reality soon kicks in as there aren’t enough deals to go around and commission is low and then morale drops. This gets passed on to the customer in terms of a desperation to qualify them and any hint of “just test driving today” sends the message that the customer has to be got rid of ASAP! Luckily for me, I’m desperately clingy on to my old school approach and have previous customers. But, it’s No wonder customers are nervous!!
@@kenwheeler1525 absolutely spot on.....I got battered once for letting someone leave as they had not been second faced by a manager. Was told it was not my decision to let them walk.....wtf! Also agree with the product push.....customer has 8k, have stretched themselves and then first presentation has £2400 of extras on top hopefully hidden in the pcp quote......look we hit your monthly target so let’s have a deal. Then having to get creative about how to broach the fact they are expecting 8 but it’s over 10k. Nothing worse than cash no bits!!
you'll find no matter the industry 99% of the problems comes from fucking management. Most of them are absolute trash. Completely disconnected from whats going on. Only thing theyre obsessing over is their bottom line. They give no fucks about anything else.
My Dad bought an XJ6L from the dealer a couple of months after this experience. Even though Appleyards had a dealership much nearer home, my Dad would only deal with the Leeds dealership. Respect gains respect.
I haven't owned a car in a decade, and use public transportation for 98% of the time, but this is the only car-channel I still watch.
I own three motorbikes, and only owned one car a pass me down Citroen Xantia as a birthday pressie form my dad, even though I passed my test eons ago.
But now in my mid fifties cold wet rides, and waring many Kg's of kit, even to pop to the shops are becoming a pain, so I am looking to but a car. Even though most of his reviews are outside my budget I can still take something away. Informative and entertaining. Top chap. Clarkson take note !!!
@@andrewtaylor3330 Clarkson hasn't been a journalist for decades, if he ever was one.
That's a huge privilege. That would be impossible in America. Even if they tried building it today everything is so spread out for most of the country we would need a car. The automobile is as important as food, clothing, and shelter here. Living in the city either means being poor or rich and most don't have good public transportation.
I'm sure there are exceptions to what I said bit certainly the case for the majority of us.
@@baronvonjo1929I’m a Brit. My wife & I lived in Florida 2021-23. In Britain, both of us have owned cars continuously since our early / mid-20s. I was a motorcyclist until 23yo & still am, but only hobby riding for pleasure.
In Florida, it became immediately apparent that managing without a car was not going to be practicable. We’d thought we could walk to the local store. We could, but the round trip was around five miles.
If as I suspect, the authorities are conniving with WEF / UN / WHO & climate alarmists to make private car ownership all but impossible, we’re going to see a humanitarian crisis.
@@baronvonjo1929 You're not wrong. There are places people live where running a bus would make no economic sense. Cars, even if they are EV fridges on wheels, are king.
I wish American public transit was better as at the very least I would not have to worry about some idiot denting my precious car haha.
I had the exact same experience buying a house. 15 minutes to view a house that is going to take 20+ years to pay for and the rest of my life to live in!
Have you heard of a second viewing?
@@thevirtualeconomy One good viewing should be enough🙄
@@thevirtualeconomy I get your point (and yes we had a second viewing - which was also limited to 15 minutes). At the same time that this was happening I was selling my flat (half the size) via purple bricks so I did the showing, people spent on average around an hour as I wasn’t pressure selling.
I've bought a 700k house with multiple 15 minute viewings. Crazy considering I bought a Porsche Boxster S after five hour long viewings from a private buyer. He was great. He wasn't in a rush and knew I was making a careful choice / it was potentially going to a good home.
@Pollywog You don't care that much you replied? 😄
i kind of like the rolex example because every rolex dealership i've been in has been horrible. they honestly are awful to their customers with their 'waiting lists' and crude snobbery.
Rolex sells more Omegas than anyone else.
You could just stop buying overpriced jewellery that makes you look like a 90s gangsta lol
I prefer the Spanish beach rolex experience myself...
Half pissed, in the sun...
And able to haggle...
@@theCinator Gotta get the likes on the gram or bore people at parties :D
Florence sensed you were getting upset and came to calm you down!
When will dealers start to understand that bad experiences lose them business?! Keep up the great work James. Your whinging is actually invaluable and extremely well balanced consumer advice.
My uncle owned Ford’s and Hyundai’s all his life a decided to treat himself to a Merc when he retired. The dealer’s first words were “these are very expensive cars sir, you do realise that?”. He immediately walked out and into the Lexus dealership who were fantastic. The salesman said he picked up half his sales from the rudeness of Mercedes.
It’s the same with motorbikes. I went into a BMW dealer on £1000 rust heap and despite saying I wasn’t buying the guy sent me out on a £18k bike. Ten years later where did I buy my first brand new motorbike, yup, same place. A deal that was ten years in the making!
Also had very good experience with the Lexus dealer (here in Perth, Australia).
@@richardstuart325 yeah, I get the impression Lexus are very prescriptive about how their dealers treat customers. Good stuff.
spent 9 years living in Germany and all dealers there made you feel special from Opel to Mercedes then moved back to the uk with a brand new Merc went into the dealership for a service and they looked at me as if i had just taken a dump on their new floor, never set foot in the place again, first thing they should do is get rid of receptionists.
Oh so that's how Mercedes treat everyone, I thought they just took a disliking to me and my 16 year old Merc.
Just poured myself a nice coffee to have with a bacon bun and jayemm uploads a rant, today is a good day
Enjoy
Any sauce on the bacon roll?
@@sparky4878 brown, naturally
@@elloello_erm I'm from Hull, must be a hull thing lol
@@elloello_erm bacon butty oop ere lad 😁
“Farmers and builders” absolutely spot on!! I’ve been treated like crap in Range Rover a few times even though I drove into the place in one!! Looking to buy another new one I popped in in my farm work gear, the sales rep looked me up and down and decided for me that, “I couldn’t afford one”.
Whereas if you'd turned up with your dog IN your handbag, now THERE's a real Range Rover customer!!
My experience with Lexus Coventry was awful, wasn't Lexus like at all !! Too many business people, not enough car people. Just wanted to take my money and wash me away. I'm sticking to £2k hidden gems and a kit car in the garage in future
Interesting, Lexus win all the awards and based on my experience with Bristol they definitely deserve them all. However, every company has some rubbish employees, people having a bad day or people who simply just don't understand specific customers. Not surprising that even in companies known for the best customer service, it can be rubbish. Would be interesting to know if Coventry is still like that.
🤣Rolex.
‘I want a Submariner & have the money...’
‘Yeah well buy some cheaper Rolex’s and build your relationship with us & you may be lucky.’
‘Ok. Bye!’
"No-date Sub?!" [AD Laughter] .. "There's a waiting list. Maybe we'll call you in 18 months"
Walk in with a Patek Phillipe on your wrist, laugh, then walk out.
Buy em online
This is the Porsche experience.
Walk into a Lange dealer with a hoodie and sneakers and they show you a $30,000 watch like you're royalty
"Dealers need to work very, very hard to justify their existence." Here in the States, many dealerships are protected by state laws that require cars to be sold at a dealership. The continued justification for these laws is that the dealers prevent monopoly control of the car supply and act as an advocate for the buyer. (HA!) Tesla, Rivian, and others are challenging this model with various levels of success in different jurisdictions, but dealers are doing little to practically justify their cut. This has never been more evident than now, when dealers are playing bridge troll with the scarce product supply and trying to extract exorbitant markups from even ho-hum vehicles.
We recently bought a 2012 SLK55 AMG from Parkway specialist cars in Mansfield. First time we had bought a car unseen and I don’t mine admitting we were very nervous! Well we needn’t have been the car was exactly as described and the sales experience from the first phone call to delivery and afterwards was superb. Great communication and a pleasure to deal with. They answered all my queries and delivered a great experience. Just need the sun to come out now so we can enjoy some roof down motoring.
I've only ever bought cars privately until a few years ago then we bought a cheap Honda civic from superbargincars in Romford. The guy who owns that is amazing. Really friendly helpful guy and I wouldn't hesitate to buy another car from him. I pretty much do all the work on the car myself but Last year i took that car to Honda in Romford to have the valves adjusted as that was a job I didn't fancy doing myself. Even though it was a cheap job that I think cost me £100 the car was returned to me fully washed, waxed and cleaned inside and the staff dealt with me like I was there to buy a new car or something. Highly recommended.
My friend also speaks well of Honda in Romford but for their motorcycle branch. Easy servicing and treat you like a person
Somehow it just chimes that that's what you might expect from Honda. Funny how brand awareness works.
I used to get my car serviced by the same honda specialist every time because they collected the car serviced it washed it and valeted it before delivering it back. Or if I went in because I needed the car that day they always had a nice courtesy car waiting. And one time there was a mishap on the curtesy car and they took me to work and collected me later it was awesome. And because they were a specialist, not a main dealer I got great service rates as well.
Thank you for addressing this topic. It is so very difficult to find good car dealers. I've had horrible experiences at numerous dealers. The number of dealers that have been positive experiences, I can count on one hand.
His comment near the end really is the reason. If the first thing they do is lie to you, it will be nothing but lies from then on.
I've seen multi-million dollar contracts fall through due to someone lying. I've seen CEOs fired because they lied.
Nobody likes being lied to in any sort of business transaction, even for something as routine as a used car.
Hi Jay, I couldn’t agree with you more about dealers! To the point where I don’t even want to change my car because of all the negative experiences I have had. I think about it but then think I can’t be bothered it’s not worth the hassle. Keep up the good work, great channel 👍
Same for me too. I walked into my local BMW dealership recently, ready to spend £60k on a new car and they couldn’t have been less interested.
@@Watty101 I know it is absolutely crazy how customers are treated, I’m sure £60,000 in anyone’s book is a lot of money so you would like a bit of the special treatment. However in saying that my brother just bought a new Bmw 530d from the dealer, he viewed the car on a Thursday and picked it up Saturday and could not have been happier. So I think it is luck of the draw really, but from my experience I’d say 90% of the dealers are pretty poor. All the best Seb👍
When I had company cars, I would get to choose another one every three years , I remember driving past a Audi dealership, so popped in as had 30 mins spare, asked to speak to a sales guy, was told under no circumstances could I , without a prior appointment. So I went next door to a BMW dealer , and thats what I had next... Literally they pushed a dead cert sale out the door..madness.
My first new bought car was an Opel. Why? because when i was a 13 year old kid and the Calibra came out i went to our local Dealer and asked them for a brochure of the car. Not only gave they me the brochure, they also gave me some stickers, a cap and a football with Opel-logos on it. I felt very well treated and I didn't forget that. I didn't even look at any other Opel dealer.
Opel makes really underrated cars. In the UK we have plenty of ancient Vauxhall (Opel) Astras and Corsas, 15+ years old and still on the road. The latest Insignia is an excellent car.
just to share my own thoughts: for me the best two main dealers in the 'luxury' or 'supercar' space are HWM Aston Martin of Walton on Thames, and Meridian Modena of Lyndhurst, New Forest, Hampshire. They both get it right - a long standing presence in the community, a great and measured way of marketing their cars in a classy way, lovely showroom, non pressured sales, good aftersales and a willingness to try and put things right, and keen to forge long lasting relationships with clients.
How would you know? You drive a 25 year old Reliant van.
Another shout out to Meridian Modena. Picked my car up after a service and was shown around their new service centre and the goodies they had in storage. Even the little things like a Christmas card helps maintain a relationship. I'm sure Damian from thecarguys could give a few examples of good and bad.
We use the Brystone BMW service centre for a 13 year old Mini on the same estate. I can't help leering at the Ferraris though.
@@ThePhilGrimm Are they any good? Looking for a decent local BMW independent.
@@panoctopus We've never had cause to complain in the six years we've used them.
@@ThePhilGrimm That's good to know, thanks!
Ford dealer in Cambridge, part of a large chain of dealers of various marques. I go in with my parents (both 60+) to buy a new Ford Focus. The customer advisor attempts to explain in an extremely patronising tone how APRs work to my Mum, who worked in Barclays Bank for years, before computers, so had strong mental arithmetic. We were done, and they walked out and went and bought a Civic from the friendly dealer down the road.
I recently bought my first performance car (megane rs 250) initially I was on the hunt for a focus ST but the dealer I was at treated me and my potential part ex like dirt. Rubbing a dirty rag over the paintwork giving me the bullshit before I had even set foot in the car I was thinking of buying. It was an amazing car great condition but the attitude of the dealer lost them the sale.
Arguments during warranty issues is the biggest problem. To save a penny they lose the next pound
Methinks they need to roll out the old 80's Salesman training videos again that randomly land in the recommendeds
The whole motor trade seems suffer with transparency from dealers. Every time buying a car it feels like somewhere along they way we are getting ripped off.
I recently visited (phoned in advance) an independent dealer to look at a 997.2 C4S and when I arrived they said I could only test drive the car if they *knew for sure* I'd buy it afterwards. I walked away.
Makes sense to test drive it then...
I’m sure the wording would have been something like, “if the figures are correct and the car drives as it should, would we get your business today?” I’m sure that they aren’t in the business of doing test drives but more likely in the business of selling cars?
@@kenwheeler1525 I wish that was their wording - it wasn't. Besides, if they/I *knew for sure* I'd buy the car afterwards, then why would I (or anyone) need a test drive? Dealers are in the business of convincing customers to buy a car from them. On this instance, they failed.
Wtf
@@kenwheeler1525 I’m sure that pushy bullshit wouldn’t wash with anyone with a brain.
So true. Nowadays people go to the dealers, look, testdrive, and buy online or where it is cheapest. So it is up to the dealers to create the atmosphere and experience where you want to be, spend time, and buy. Unfortunately there is a long way to go .
Many years ago, my girlfriend at the time (now my wife!) had her eye on a new car (a special edition Toyota Carina, so that gives you an idea how long ago it was) & went to a well known local Toyota dealership to see what deal they could do & get a trade in value on her current car. When she told her father what they'd offered, he wasn't particularly impressed so went along to the same dealer the next day with her car & was offered a better trade in + deal. When he asked why the previous day, they'd offered a worse deal to his daughter on the same car, the salesman didn't know where to look & couldn't offer an answer. After chewing his ear for a few minutes, as her father walked out their parting shot was 'you'll not get this car anywhere else!'. Well she did & got a better deal on it at a dealership in the next town, where we've since bought I think our last 8 cars.
As for the first place, they're no longer a franchised Toyota dealer & just sell used motors.
The industry is changing to an agency model, and manufacturers would prefer to sell direct to customers than have to go through dealers. Anyway, dealerships are a cold, intimidating place for some. I know, I worked at a few. I haven't met anyone who really enjoyed working at a dealership or a customer who thinks that the dealership experience was the highlight of their car ownership. For me it's about the car and my experiences with it, not at the dealer.
I vividly remember going with my friend to do some shopping when I was in the market for a used car (I was 26 at the time and so was she; both dressed casually). We had some time to kill and I suggested going to the Audi dealership down the road. We walked in; had a look round; were roundly ignored and eventually decided to leave. I was really disappointed; I'd been considering buying an RS4 but they made it abundantly clear that they weren't interested. There was a Porsche dealership next door; we thought we'd try there; we walked in and they couldn't have been nicer, answered all my questions and offered me a test drive.
Long story short: I went back a few months later and bought a 911. I asked the salesman (who was the guy who'd seen us first time round) whether he'd thought I was a timewaster at the time. He simply replied "I've learned not to pre-judge anyone; I remember getting a bunch of lads in a knackered BMW 3-series turn up once and ask to see a 911 Turbo; I gave them the same treatment I gave you. Turned out once of them was [someone who became a Premiership footballer], and he bought two..."
I have to say Porsche Bolton have been brilliant - always extremely helpful and willing to chat through options (and I’m a pain) and not pushy. Recently sent a personalised brochure for a new order - it made my week.
Finding nice people these days are hard to find out governments are putting everyone against each other
But then again, you can't shake a stick without running into a Hot dad... at least we've got that.
Can I just say that the guys a Rusty Cars are very good.
When the door fell off my Nissan Bluebird, (which I recently purchased from them), they got the Cavalier door to fit in no time.
Are you being serious? That's got to be a wind up!
@@worthlessdollar1 I need to point out that they were previously called 'Trusty Cars', but someone pinched the 'T'.
Good/bad experience with Aston Martin - A few years ago when my Dad had purchased a V8 Vantage from Aston, he had dropped it in for service a couple days before an international flight. The day before the flight (A Sunday, so keep in mind all dealers are closed) he realized he left his passport in the glove compartment of his car. He drove to the dealer in hopes that someone was around, but unfortunately no one was. So, he called the service manager who drove an hour and a half from his home on a Sunday to open the service department for him to grab his passport. However, the salesman who sold him the car, didn't even respond to his voicemail when we left him a message about his problem.
Reminds me of a story told to me and my Dad about a farmer who went to buy a Rolls Royce with two carrier bags full of cash (yes it was that long ago) and was told "they weren't a typical Rolls customer" - farmer walked and bought his dream car elsewhere and took it to aforementioned dealer to prove what numpties they were (Pretty Women moment....)
@Pollywog Oh, so you've always been everywhere, all at the same time, so it can't possibly have happened without your infinite knowledge? Sure thing.
@Pollywog So true stories are always be repeated verbatim?
@Pollywog Sure. But there's no room for people that think they get to tell everyone else they're wrong as if it's a matter of fact, when it's actually just their own personal opinion, without being challenged. And make no mistake - your claim that it didn't happen is just that - an opinion - not a fact.
@Pollywog Neither. What exactly would I possibly be butthurt about? It's not like I was the one trying to pass their opinion off as fact then got called out on it. That looks a lot like projection.
@Pollywog You're wrong again, fool. I'm beginning to wonder if you've ever been right about anything.
My parents who are not particularly car people recently bought their first used car online (Cazoo) and had an outstanding service. Their local dealer had poorly prepared cars, low stock turnover (and therefore the car they wanted didn't ever show up - just a regular hatch) and no offer of arranging local delivery. The price couldn't be beaten at the time either and the car turned up exactly as described in practically as-new condition. I don't think they'll ever need to return to a dealer to purchase a car ever again.
At the end of approximately 72% of your sentences in this video, I vividly imagined you adding *cough* McLaren *cough*
Hi ,
I’ve just watched your video on car dealers, which is excellent. Before selling it on I along with my partner had medium side used car dealership in Hampshire, I agree with all you said.
I am 63 years old and have owned too many cars personally to list them. In a nutshell I’ve had 3 big and small block Corvettes, a TransAm , numerous BMW’s (M3, 840i) Jags, various Mercs, Maserati Merak SS, Lotus’s and some weird beasts like a V6 Ford Anglia.
I’m known to most locally as a keen petrol head, spending much of my time at Goodwood (which is local). The most common questions I am asked are- What are the best or most memorable cars you’ve had.? and what new car dealer (if any) would you use?
I answer these easily now I’m retired as ,
-Memorable and easily most fun and rewarding car I’ve owned was my new Fiesta XR2 in 1986.
Best and pure value for money (super performance , low running costs, reliable, looks beastie and now rising value) is my current 20,000 mile 2005 Vauxhall Monaro 6.0 VXR; it puts a smile on your face every time you drive it, even after 11 years of ownership.
Only main dealer I rate is Yeomans Citroen in Fareham Hampshire (where we got my wife’s last 3 cars). Petrolhead manager is Ollie Nurse. Great guy and knowledgeable team behind him.
Regards
Paul Huckle
I bought my last new car in 1981. I was treated so badly that I vowed I would never set foot in a dealership again, and I haven't.
The dealers are very grateful you have stoped away!!
@@wakeywakefield4785 spelling on point lad
@@wakeywakefield4785 That is not very nice is it? Oh, and your spelling!!!
@Ashley Cook yep, Pontiac Gran Prix
@@wakeywakefield4785 i doubt it, I've made, and spent, millions since then. They didn't get a penny of it.
Marshals are diabolical. I had an 8 year old BMW I bought a year earlier from a small secondhand dealer, £14,000. I go to Marshall’s BMW to buy a brand new BMW, they offered me £7,000 trade in? I called the small dealer where I bought the car originally and he offered me £9,500 cash without seeing it. I went and bought a Jaguar.
Thanks for your RANT. And yes. LEXUS has an excellent buying/servicing experience. from Melb VIC Aussie. ps. I also like cats.
People all over the world should stand up to end car stealerships permanently. We should only buy directly from the auto manufacturer.
I'm thinking of the Curb Your Enthusiasm episode at the BMW dealers. Complimentary Bavarian Licorice that gives you diarrhea 👀
Always been treated really well at the local Jag dealership, and my Jag is 15 years old. Having said that, I've had very poor experiences at some dealerships.
I can see both sides of this. I've worked in sales and some people are utter pains to deal with so I can understand why some sales people are just about the deal, the best ones manage to avoid that fate tho and they have always been a pleasure to deal with.
“I have one of these myself”
They’re like a psycho ex contacting you 24/7 before you purchase the car but go cold on you after the sale has gone through. Suddenly whenever you get through to them to sort out some issues it’s their day off 😂
Car sales execs, particularly at main dealer franchises often have their CRM (Customer Relationship Management) profiles used as a performance indicator, if a sales person gets a customer on their book, then the CRM software reminds them to call that customer at regular intervals and the calls must be logged on the software. If an exec isn't following up on their calls, they will find themselves on the receiving end of an earbashing from the Dealer Principle.
The best thing I would advise anyone to do if you're just looking to browse at a main dealer - don't give them ANY genuine contact details! Give an old mobile number or change a digit or whatever, because you will get borderline harassed by that dealership until the end of time otherwise!
I get you on the bad dealer experiences. I've bought many of cars from dealers and dont think I've ever had a truly good experience.
I've now started buying private.
Sadly, this is the same in the US. It really is a coin toss if a dealership will treat you like an inconvenience or part of their brand family
I guess it depends where you are, as always. Me and a friend were on holiday in Ft. Lauderdale years ago, and walked into a Lamborghini showroom in T-shirts and shorts, and the salesman dived over asking if we'd like to test drive anything. We were in our mid 20s, and just laughed, explaining we were on holiday. The salesman said he'd never judge a potential client on looks, as he'd had guys dressed like us come in and buy/trade cars just because they'd seen one the same colour on the strip! "You just never know here!", he said!
@@MrMairu555 Same. I've been to dealers all over the eastern seaboard and have never had any experience even remotely similar to what Jay is describing. I won't claim all dealers in the US are perfect or even decent, but the prolific nature of the issue really sounds like more of a regional issue.
@@NoGoodHandlesComingToMind It's very much a UK problem, Jason. I've saved hard the last few years, and have a wedge of cash burning a hole in my pocket, and a million mile shitbox Ford with a dented rear door and rear quarter, courtesy of a drunk driver. I drove to my local Porsche dealer looking to buy a used 718 Cayman they have in stock, and was virtually laughed out of the showroom, despite being ready to buy it outright! Needless to say, I walked. It happens a lot here. I've been treated much better several times in the US, in both car and motorcycle dealerships.
I don't know how dealers work in the U.K by here in Murica 🦅, dealerships rip you off massively and it's really hard to haggle for pricing , that's why online car companies like Carvana , where you buy online are taking off in Murica 🦅
As an employee of WeBuyAnyCar I often tear my hair out when people tell me how they’ve looked after the car and put new parts on it etc when I can only deal with black and white facts (I.e service etc). They don’t care about the backstory, just purely the car’s condition.
I often get cars in I know has been looked after but maybe shows it’s age. It’s worth far less than what a newer car that has never been looked after maybe has been.
While that is true, that it is valued at less than a newer car; it's not necessarily "worth" less, if well looked-after. In reality, a well-looked after car with a good, knowledgable owner who has taken care of it is worth a LOT compared to a newer car which has only ever been taken to a car was or for an annual service. Cars are not accurately statistically valued, they differ so vastly in condition, usually thanks to the owners care (or lack of).
Doesn't affect its resale value, or an actuarial figure spat out from a spreadsheet, that is undoubtedly true; but when buying used, one will be much better than the other, and it won't always be the newer one.
Same reason a 'full service history' is often pretty worthless if that's all the car has ever been given, and no real care or attention to resolve issues before they become problems.
My wife and myself bought a new lexus NX 300 from a lexus dealer in australia and the dealership treated us so well they are a wonderful very good dealership. The vehicle is a great vehicle with wonderful built quality.
I agree with you santill.
Love listening to this guys rants. He should do a regular rant once a week.
Pro tip:
Browse a dealer lot on their day off or on holidays. You can look at all of the cars on the lot for as long as you’d like.
It would be funny if it was a farmer that walked into the Lamborghini dealership, as a lot of farmers drive Lamborghinis as a daily driver on their fields.
Well, Ferruccio Lamborghini did start out making tractors, so I'm sure that farmers have an affinity with the brand.
I went to a car hyper quantity dealer in Northamptonshire, I’d called before heading over asking to see & drive a certain vehicle, upon arrival I was told someone would go & bring the car around after 40 minutes of waiting I was told they couldn’t actually find it 😡 never ever using a facility like that again 😐
I last bought a car in 2019 it wasn‘t a great experience with many problems afterwards.
I‘m still glad that I bought it.
Car buying isn‘t a concern to me anymore there just aren‘t any new cars out there that catch my interest.
So I‘ll maintain and keep the cars I‘ve already got.
Can I take a guess on what you got? 😂😂
@@FriedPlacentaBurger well it‘s quite obvious I guess 😂
BUT the car itself never had a single problem it was more a dealership problem.
Had a great experience with a Mercedes dealer. I was looking at a new car, that I had no hope of affording. However, the salesperson, because it was quite spent quite a long time showing me the car in detail. His argument was, even though I couldn’t afford it right now. When I could, I’d be more likely to come back to him to buy it, if I’d had a good look and been able to make a decision.
I went to Carshop in October and from the moment i spoke to a salesman I knew he was more incentivised on selling their services rather than a car for my budget. I ran outta there as quickly as I could. I don't know how people buy from these kids of businesses.
Avoid carshop like the PLAGUE!!
Thanks for the rant.
You're absolutely right.
I know, because I work at a place like that (not in the UK though and I'll not mention a name anyway).
Lots of transitions going on in the business of course. Real store to virtual store. Fossil fuel to electrical. They all seem a bit at a loss as to what to do and the public has indeed realized they don't need cars as bad as they thought they did. Car sharing, Uber, subscription cars.
There are still people who care about cars and customers in your local dealership: that's the underpaid, undervalued guy or girl wrenching on it.
Unfortunately, they don't make good salespeople because they're too honest.
The irony with the Rolex comparison is that Rolex in particular treats you exactly like that if you don't have a purchase history at that AD lol
Nevermind that it's a very mass-market luxury good, they make something like 1/2 million a year. Huge margins, I'm sure the execs are laughing at everyone overpaying....
You cant actually buy a Rolex anymore from a AD , unless you have a long history with them. Laugh out loud, I tried for a year , no luck !
And that’s exactly why I don’t have one. I fancied one on a whim, but it’s impossible for people like me to buy one brand new from an AD.
@@martindivall5301 There like porsche if you want a sports stainless steel you,d have to buy some awful bi metal ladies watch.
Depends what it is. If you want something generic like a datejust or an air king, even some of the less popular submariner combinations, you won't have a problem picking them up. If you're after something like a Daytona or a sky dweller then there's going to be a waiting list and priority on that waiting list will always go to people with a purchase history at that dealer. It makes sense in a way because you're going to have a guaranteed sale to someone who has bought from you before (Rolex collectors are like that) for reference I was also a jeweller for 10 years prior to being in car sales so I have a bit of background on this as well. Bugger all else mind you, but cars and watches I know!
I just bought a
Mazda 6 Touring 2021
From Mazda of Orange
In Orange County, California.
Orange County used to have a good reputation.
The dealership was ripping me off left and right.
I am a single woman who went alone and they took complete advantage of the fact.
My experience has never been WORSE.
We struggle repairing the cars even at a main dealer because they're too complicated
My story initially started out bad but ended up going well.
Went to a Lexus dealership that was about a mile from my house. Test drove the NX and ES. Liked the ES at the time. Asked the dealer for pricing, they wanted me (young looking guy) to do a credit app to see if I could afford the car before they even gave me pricing. I asked for it, but they said “this is a Lexus, our cars just sell at the price. The price you see is what you pay” so on and so forth. I left and was pissed, because I thought they were looking at my age and saw that I wasn’t able to afford it or wasn’t interested.
Next day, I went with my parents. Same dealer, but this time I asked to see a different salesperson that friends had used in the past. Dad told me to drive the RX 350, which I was hesitant about because it was out of my price range. Regardless, I drove that one and liked it over the previous ones I drove.
We were actually able to get pricing, which was surprising since drive out pricing (with taxes) was within my price range. We still wanted them to go down a bit, but they said they couldn’t go so much as $1K down. So we wanted to see what other dealerships would offer and kept in mind where we wanted to be. Went to another dealer a few days later and got a great deal with $1,100 below the lowest offer at the previous dealer. Worked out and I got my RX!
What a lot of dealers don't realise is you may not be able to afford a certain car at that moment but you could win the lottery the next day !
True in theory. But in practice the odds of winning the Euromillions lottery jackpot are 1 in 140 million. To put this into context the odds of been struck by lightening is 1 in 10 million.
You could win, but you won’t.
@@notmenotme614 it's a metaphor, most people get an inheritance from a family member at some point
100% correct . My son just bought a 10 K secondhand Toyota from a car supermarket . He was very happy with the staff, the pre sales checks and the car itself. As you say, he largely works from home a d uses his car sparingly on the weekends . He is also sales resistant and turned down the many useless add ons that he was offered . I suggest that dealers are rapidly becoming dinosaurs with the exception of high end brands and dealers that you described and monthly MRR ( monthly recurring revenue) is the business model that car manufacturers will be adopting or already done so . You hit the nail on the head and this needed to be said. Thanks .
Has anyone in this comment section had any experience visiting Gravelwood Car Sales? Just don't know what Tony is like outside of TH-cam.
Having worked in this world with a couple of Main Dealers, you assessment of the huge pressure put on salesmen is right on the money. Once upon a time, the person behind the desk had the time to be able to spend hours on end with you, talking you through every little thing you could wish for. They'd know the car inside and out, and they'd guide you through all the options and choices. Over the years, I saw how successive Sales Managers came in and the staff were put under ever greater pressure. It does nothing but ruin the calm welcoming feel of the showroom, and rob the sales team of the breathing space to know the product and to have some enthusiasm for what they're selling.
Another interesting video. I really enjoy your office based videos giving your opinions on a topic. As always though, Florence steals the show!
Great rant as always Jay! I dislike car dealers also. They are only after one thing and give nothing to a car enthusiast or a normal car buyer. In fact, I started my TH-cam channel 4 years ago to showcase dealership experiences I have had to help share with others.......I cant ever remember having a fantastic experience anywhere which is a big sign of the times 😬
Many of us yearned for the good-old-times that was killed off by the cyber space.
Working in a dealership myself (sales) I was ready to be all defensive. But then I hear from my own customers about their experiences at competitive dealers and I am always amazed by what some dealerships think they can get away with. I also had a completely useless colleague who failed over and over again to give service so sometimes a customer can draw a very short straw from a overall good dealership. The service department where I work are also completely terrible and I wouldn’t recommend them to anyone....so you are pretty spot on Jay and that’s sad.
3rd most expensive thing. The wife is pricey to maintain
A wise man indeed 🤣
You should’ve part exchanged her 😅
Had 2 very different experiences over last 6 months. Porsche 981 Spyder from Uber Gt was an exceptional process, both car and Dealer were exemplary. Unfortunately had dreadful recent experience from “reputable “ Porsche specialist with Amg GTC roadster. Travelled over 2 hours to just outside London and the owner kept us waiting outside his premises for 20 minutes before finally producing finance documents on the doorstep, with final numbers equating to £4000 more than he’d quoted in correspondence. Managed to get that number down.His excuse was that he’d only quoted me roughly! I couldn’t eject my partner from the passenger seat, so very reluctantly did the deal. Foolish I know. The car is perfect but was the worst experience in 30 years of car buying. It is, and always has been, a lottery.
Me: Watching channel having never spent more than £2k on a car or been into a dealership in years. Just an imposter passing through, nothing to see here. 😅
Said in best car stealership salesnake voice: *_"There's nothing for you here. Move along, peasant"_*
@@TonyRule I've a good job in banking, I just love a good deal on a car. 😉 Also, much as I like cars, if it's not raining I prefer motorcycles.
@@thomas316 I'm 48, exclusively had motorcycles until I was 27 (sometimes four at once) but have only ever owned 4 cars - none of them anything special, the current one since 2006. I don't even know why I watch this channel haha
I've worked for main dealer franchises and independents of varying degrees of repute over the years, and what I've noticed generally speaking is that main dealer people couldn't care less about cars. I've never met a "petrol head" or even a car enthusiast in the loosest sense working in car sales (different story in garages and body shops, you do get enthusiasts in those environments I've found). No, if you go to work for a main dealer as a junior sales exec, they don't care in the slightest if you like or even care about cars, what they really want (without explicitly saying it) are people who love and are obsessed with making money, as they are generally going to be the people who get on board with selling finance packages, gap Insurance, extended warranties and all the other "VAPS" (value adding products) because it is there where main dealers are making their REAL money, new cars in and of themselves aren't hugely profitable if you just go in and buy one for cash, so it's all about the VAPS.
Now conversely, the independents I've worked for seem to have a higher proportion of people working in them who actually appreciate cars, however their business models are very much about wringing as much profit from the sale of the car as possible (VAPS not being as big of a factor, although still very much there) so what you find with those types of businesses is that they will cut corners on things like prepping cars and doing the absolute bare minimum to scrape them through an MOT.
So yeah, I would absolutely agree that dealers are potentially killing the car and because you don't have people with a passion for cars selling cars (for the most part) then there is no passing on of that passion and everyone will just buy "something to get from a to b" without a care in the world for what it is.
Furthermore (and probably finally for now because I could rant on this all day as well!) The PCP model isn't helping. Someone will go and pick up a dreary, basic "get from a to b" type car, three years later the dealer is on the phone offering them "the unbeatable deal" to get them into the newer model of the same car for the same/a reduced monthly payment, and people are falling for it left, right and centre because who doesn't like the sound of "newer car for less or the same money"? The reason this is detrimental to the industry is, in my opinion anyway, that the biggest players in this type of market are the likes of Peugeot and Citroen (although ford do a healthy shift on PCP as well) and these aren't really cars for people who enjoy driving or like cars, they're really more cars for people who need a car, so buyers get stuck in what is referred to in the trade as the "change cycle" and may never see the light of another brand (or even model from the same company!) So they get complacent and never feel the need to change or try something different.