Dealers not doing GM any favors?
 

I have had and many others on here have posted about the insane dealer experiences they have had. Im just wondering what other peoples thoughts are on this one to see if they are in line with mine. I will preface this comment with this statement: "there are great dealers and salesmen out there and you know what? They are making a killing because the guy down the street is a D-Bag!"
So, in these tough times it appears to me that the dealers are scrambling trying to stay a float by getting every penny they can on the new Camaro but dont know jack about it. Well,,, this just puts a terrible taste in the mouth of the consumer [which by the way, needs you less than you need them because there are other guys out there to buy from] and compromised future sales.
I run 3 field offices for a fortune 500 business so I know a little about business but it just seems like a hell of a catch 22 for the General. The dealerships are trying to stay a float by making every cent they can and the factory is trying to get cars out there. Opposing forces as it is,,,, now get a dealer like the ones I have dealt with as well as others and you have a bit of a perfect storm.
I just feel that the dealers on not helping out the factory and the general consumer is on a completely different page as the dealer,,,, however the factory and the consumer seem closer.
A very odd environment to be in.
The bottom line is that all of us as Americans have a vested interest in seeing the General live on and live strong. Just how do we get everyone on the same sheet of music here? :iono:

Plenty of dealers to choose from. If you dont like one, go on to the next. The good dealers will get the business, the bad ones wont. Maybe they will weed themselves out. The strong will survive. Good luck.

No offense to anyone who is a car dealer on this forum..... (SORRY CAMARO SCOTTY) but....

;)

I live in Socal. Many of the salespeople that I've known here make minimum wage, plus commissions. Many of them work part time at the dealerships on nights and weekends, when they have foot traffic. For a lot of them it is a second job.

Since car sales are so bad right now, most of them aren't making crap. Most of the good salespeople have moved to other industries, leaving the poor and mediocore ones. The turn rate is also really high.

So, most customers who deal with them have bad experiences.

That's why I try to bypass the salespeople and work with the salesmanager, GM, or fleet manager. They are getting paid a decent wage, *SHOULD* have experience, and training.

The car sales model is seriously broken. The only dealers that do well are the ones that are making good use of the internet, and paying people better wages to stick around.

Yup....and pass the word. I doubt that any dealer wants to get flamed on the internet these days. If they do, they will hear about it eventually from someone and probably change their ways (or at least tell everyone that they corrected the problem).

Uh, let's not forget this is still a car that's a month away from production. My dealer put msrp in writing. I ordered the 21" wheels and he put in writing that I keep the stock wheels. It's not the dealers keeping the abl secret. In the words of blur, find a differet dealer.

i agree
 

I cancelled my order and went to a different dealer. One that has good customer service and i am dealing directly with the GM.

Actually, people generally report better experiences with GM dealers than most foreign ones.

I lied when I said I don't read every thread......;)

ok guys (sorry Scotty& bobby) but most Dealership Sales personal dont know the Tail pipe from the headlights. I deal with 4 of the local dealerships around here almost every day, trying to get shows set up & what have you. sometimes I sww a vehicle that catches my eye & I go look at it, Normally its a 4th gen Camaro or a newer style corvette.

With the 4th gen Camaros they normally try to tell me its a 03 model & of course I have to laugh. they of course they get mad at me for laughing at thier lack of know what.

I have talk & talked to the owners & GMs about training these guys on the newer cars that way they dont scare buyers away. but so far no luck.

I have bought three Saturns in the past 8 years and still have them all. The Saturn dealerships was knowledegable and fair. Too bad they may be on the way out. Great cars and great dealerships.

Cover you ears Scott....err eyes!!! :wave:

Where I live all the dealers are asking $1000 to $5000 over MSRP. I toled 2 of the sales managers that this is a bad call in these hard times. I told them there was no way I would pay over MSRP. I went out of town to order. I am #11 out of 13 and they now have a waiting list. The last time I went to one of the local dealers they only had 5 orders. Looks like the the dealer selling at MSRP will end up making more to me. Plus at least one dealerships has no chance of ever selling me a car again.