[Ben M.]

So, in light of the issues I had last month with my Dodge Charger, the wife and I have been shopping used cars to try and find something a little more useful to us (she wants a 3rd row seat for the now-almost-adult sized kids and something that's useful on our long road trips). We looked at Ford Flex, that was a thumbs up from her. I also have been checking out various cars just to give her and I an idea how things are in the market locally and what's actually something she'd like to drive. I had inquired on a few other cars at a major name dealer and the sales lady scheduled me a time to show up and test drive last night.

Get a call about 2 hours before I'm scheduled to head there and she says the car went to auction and isn't there anymore. No biggie on my part, stuff happens and it was an older higher mileage car (2008, 200k miles) so dealerships don't tend to keep that stuff around much. I was mostly interested in getting the wife in it just to see what she thought of the general size and feel of the car and if continuing to look for one was something I should do. Then late last night she calls me again to let me know that the general manager had gone down to get the car from auction and I could come check it out tomorrow. I figured that was unusual but hey, maybe they just want a sale and figure if I buy it what's one more day or so sitting on the lot vs. just dumping it at auction? So I scheduled a time to come out today to see it.

This morning she sends me a text saying that the car is a little rough but it's here and ready for me to see it. I tell I understand that a 10 year old car can be a little rough around the edges and it's the nature of older cars. She says great, she'll see me later.

I fight rush hour traffic after work with the wife to get to the dealer, we arrive. The car is up front in the parking lot and I get introduced to the sales guy who is going to handle us. He goes to get the keys and the wife and I go to check it out. Outside it's beautiful and in great shape, no rust, etc. Inside it's a little worn out on the climate controls and has obviously not been detailed. The wife opens the doors and instantly says "smoker car" and she's not wrong, there were 5 packs of smokes in the center console and while it doesn't reek, it's definitely been smoked in and the ash tray has been used regularly. I figure this is what the sales lady meant by "rough" which is inconvenient but hardly any reason to turn down a car at the right price. Sales guy instantly says "yeah it's rough and needs work." I play it off as "oh? Well can I hear it run and drive it?" and of course he says sure! Gives me the key and tells me to start it. Key takes multiple insertions to turn the ignition and unlock the column, which I know is a problem with higher mileage older vintage GM cars so this doesn't surprise me one bit. Once I finagle it to unlock, I start to crank it and it just cranks and cranks and cranks. I stop it, give it a rest, start it again and crank crank crank. I look at the sales guy and say "this does run, right? Surely she'd have said the car if didn't run..." Sales guy said "yeah it runs but it needs work" and cranks it even longer and it finally does start. It starts and sputters and runs like it's got a major vacuum leak, piston slap, etc. Surges between 500-1000RPM and almost dies, smells like raw gas out the exhaust. I just kind of incredulously look at my wife who is MAD by this point. She asks why we aren't going for a test drive and I say there's no way this thing is getting out of the parking lot as poorly as it's running. The sales guy then turns to me and says "well what do you expect? It's a cheap old car for under blue book value!" I said "well I kind of expected to be told if it DIDN'T RUN" and he says "blue book is $9000 for this car and it's priced at $5000, you shouldn't be expecting much" and I'm just open mouthed in awe that this guy is suggesting that a car I saw advertised for $8000 and was told ran would suddenly be $5000 and a non-runner.

Am I wrong for being livid that I drove halfway across the county to test drive a car that was advertised as running only to find out it wasn't? And that the sales guy basically implied that I had too high of standards? They were really anxious for me to find "something else" on the lot after that and we did look at one other vehicle (which happened to be MUCH more) ultimately I didn't want to deal with any of them anymore. I *almost* suspect that they either knew this was the case on this car or deliberately made it run poorly to get me in the door to look at something else, but those kind of bait and switch stories are usually from decades ago or at the buy-here-pay-here lots, not from a major dealer.

The thing that makes me angriest was that my wife was SO mad about the entire experience and wanted to know what I was thinking taking her to look at a "piece of junk." So now I'm mad at the dealer and the wife is mad at me for wasting her time.

[Chief of the 60's]

You sound like you need to start dealing with "good" dealers.

[Ben M.]

I hear they exist. I'm sure they're a mythical creature at this point.

[Chief of the 60's]

Originally Posted by Ben M.

I hear they exist. I'm sure they're a mythical creature at this point.

Start with looking at Toyotas, Hyundais and Kias.

[68 461 Bird]

Originally Posted by Ben M.

I hear they exist. I'm sure they're a mythical creature at this point.

No such thing as an honest car dealer, they all think they are smarter than you are. All their ads have low monthly payments and a fast talking mumbo jumbo at the end where they say they are going to stick it to you.

Why would you put your wife and kids in a 200K mile car? I guess you dont consider vehicle history reports either?? I wouldn't want my wife and kids in a vehicle that has been in a wreck and slapped back together by a insurance company controlled "collision shop".

Do your research before you go see a car.

[68 461 Bird]

Originally Posted by Chief of the 60's

Start with looking at Toyotas, Hyundais and Kias.

I agree with Toyotas, they hold their value more than most brands.

[Ben M.]

Originally Posted by 68 461 Bird

Why would you put your wife and kids in a 200K mile car? I guess you dont consider vehicle history reports either?? I wouldn't want my wife and kids in a vehicle that has been in a wreck and slapped back together by a insurance company controlled "collision shop".

Do your research before you go see a car.

Nice assumptions there dude. The entire point of the exercise was to see if the wife liked the car at all, not to go buy THIS one in particular. There's much lower mileage vehicles out there, but when the wife wants X requirements and that doesn't translate into a dozen to pick from at the local dealer, sometime you require seeing the few that are there. I read vehicle reports, I check Carfax. I wouldn't put them in something unsafe, but thanks for considering me an idiot.

[ID67goat]

Yeah all dealers suck, have never experienced a good one. I am at the point now that I will only buy from private party...so that means no new cars for me. But if you are patient and willing to travel, you can usually find some used cars that are like new anyway.

[Fullsize455]

Originally Posted by Chief of the 60's

Start with looking at Toyotas, Hyundais and Kias.

You sound biased.

[Fullsize455]

Originally Posted by 68 461 Bird

No such thing as an honest car dealer, they all think they are smarter than you are. All their ads have low monthly payments and a fast talking mumbo jumbo at the end where they say they are going to stick it to you.

Why would you put your wife and kids in a 200K mile car? I guess you dont consider vehicle history reports either?? I wouldn't want my wife and kids in a vehicle that has been in a wreck and slapped back together by a insurance company controlled "collision shop".

Do your research before you go see a car.

Hilarious. I race and daily drive a nearly 300k mile car. My work van has 220k+. I've had other 200k+ cars. I would not hesitate to put anyone in any of those cars. Mileage has nothing to do with safety.

Vehicle history reports are hilariously pointless. At best they may tell you about major incidents that any halfway competent inspection of the vehicle itself will also reveal. At worst and most commonly they said nothing except a few changes of ownership, and they give you a false sense of security. Many, many, many things are not and cannot be reported to any agency that provides information for these reports.

For anyone with even a reasonable level of vehicle knowledge, nothing replaces a careful, close inspection of any vehicle you want to buy. Flood cars are very easy to spot. Poorly repaired accident cars are even easier to spot. People have this magical idea about inspection reports and they think that tells them everything they need to know. Hilarious! And totally unrealistic, of course.

For anyone with minimal knowledge but wants to be careful, have a competent mechanic you know and trust inspect the car carefully. That is worth WAY more than any vehicle history report could ever be. Poorly performed repairs, rust damage, flood damage, etc etc. are all things that a competent mechanic will find with an inspection.

"Do your research before you go see a car"? What would you have done differently here? Ask the dealer over the phone if he's a bold-faced liar? Expect a dealer to tell you the truth about a used vehicle they're selling?? LoL!!!

So let's say you get the VIN from said vehicle and go buy your own inspection report.. will that report tell you about the faulty IAC or who knows what other issue might be causing the hard starting or rough running? Will that inspection report tell you that the vehicle was smoked in? Or were you just in the mood to blame the party who didn't lie and try to BS their way into a sale of a piece of crap truck?

[coonhunter70]

I'd rather be waterboarded than deal with car salesmen!

[mgarblik]

Originally Posted by ID67goat

Yeah all dealers suck, have never experienced a good one. I am at the point now that I will only buy from private party...so that means no new cars for me. But if you are patient and willing to travel, you can usually find some used cars that are like new anyway.

If you are willing to put in the time and effort, and really screen the potential vehicles and owners, you can get a killer deal on a used car. That's what I have been doing for decades. No dealers. They have big overhead and need to make a handsome profit at your expense. My most recent example. My wife's 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee. I am in Dayton OH and bought the car in Ashville, NC. So travel is required. It was a 1 owner vehicle, the color she wanted, leather and loaded with every option you can imagine. Window sticker in glove box said $52,400.00. WOW! It was 2 years old, had just turned 13K miles and I drove it home for 22.5K. Four years later, it's still worth more than I paid for it. The great deals are out there, but you have to work for them.
Exact opposite situation with a Honda CRV I helped my daughter buy. She needed a replacement car right now. Bought it used from a dealer. It was in good shape and the people were nice but had to pay exact asking price, period. Honda's are so hot on the used car lots, no deals at all. They did agree to replace the wiper blades which had the rubber falling off them and that was it. So far it's been fine, but not a great deal by any stretch.

[Mr Anonymous]

Dodge Neon - best car ever.

[Chief of the 60's]

Originally Posted by Mr Anonymous

Dodge Neon - best car ever.

LOL! I would not say they were the best ever, but they were pretty good for what they were.

[Mr Anonymous]

The Garblik drives a Neon, don't let him fool you.

[694.1]

Funny story. An old friend once got a smokin' deal on a new but previously titled Fiat X-19. Seems a woman that "had issues" had gone to several dealers one day and "bought" 5-6 new cars. Most were papered that day. When the dealers realized that the sales were not really going to happen, they were stuck with previously titled but brand new cars!
He drove that thing for years...

[SRR]

Yeah it's amazing what info they leave out to bait you in. That is the problem with states that don't require inspections...Not to mention any vehicle they are willing to send to auction is usually a POS. My first stop when looking at a used car is under the hood. Your nose is a good guide here, smell the trans fluid: Dirty and stinky? Run don't walk. Oil black and low? Same deal. If they are not willing to let me see it on a lift? Bye!
Bought a 2000 Tundra out of Arkansas without seeing the truck in person because it was well under blue book. It looked great and was all stock. The salesman was very cooperative and sent me all the pics I asked for. What didn't show was all the cig. burns, BB holes in the windshield and the fact the truck was owned by a chain smoker. I had to let the truck sit in the garage for a week after a deep cleaning to get rid of the stink.

[Chief of the 60's]

A local scumbag Ford dealer ran a ad one time for a Tacoma. Well my dealership was in a small city where you knew all your competition very well. I had a guy stop by one time from a town about 25 miles away . He was checking out a Tacoma I had at the time. I asked if he wanted to go for a test drive. He said he couldn't because he had an appointment to look at another one in town. I asked him where because I knew I had the only one. When he told me that it was at the Ford dealer, I told him that there wasn't one there. I told him that I would call them to verify if it was there. So, I did and put the call on speaker. I called the Ford dealer and inquired about this advertised Tacoma. They said, yes, we have it, come on down. I said, you do? I then went on to say, are you sure because I'm coming from a long distance and would be pretty PO'd if I got there and someone said it was sold. The guy said, hold on a minute and I'll check. He came back and said, SORRY, WE JUST SOLD IT. The guy that stopped by my place was pissed. So pissed that he bought the one I had on the spot.

That Ford dealer ended up getting shut down by Ford and the IRS. He now has a large used car store.

[Chris65LeMans]

$5,000 for a 10 year old, 200,000 mile car that doesn’t run? At a dealer?

I call b.s. on that KBB value- unless it’s a Rolls Royce or something. I drive all of my cars until they are approaching 200,000 miles, and no (modern) car is worth anything at that point. Trucks and suvs can be different.

[Fullsize455]

Originally Posted by SRR

Yeah it's amazing what info they leave out to bait you in. That is the problem with states that don't require inspections...Not to mention any vehicle they are willing to send to auction is usually a POS. My first stop when looking at a used car is under the hood. Your nose is a good guide here, smell the trans fluid: Dirty and stinky? Run don't walk. Oil black and low? Same deal. If they are not willing to let me see it on a lift? Bye!
Bought a 2000 Tundra out of Arkansas without seeing the truck in person because it was well under blue book. It looked great and was all stock. The salesman was very cooperative and sent me all the pics I asked for. What didn't show was all the cig. burns, BB holes in the windshield and the fact the truck was owned by a chain smoker. I had to let the truck sit in the garage for a week after a deep cleaning to get rid of the stink.

It has nothing to do with whether or not the state does inspections. Government mandated babysitting does not magically make used car dealers honest.