Looking for a new dealer.... (Dealer Transcript)

[GreySteele06]

So heres my deal: I am currently deployed with the Army in the 12th month of a 15 month tour. I sold my truck before i left as sitting them in the pacific NW for 15 months is ill advised and my nice 4x4 was getting 12MPG... (thank goodness i sold it then as i wouldnt get crap for it now.... As far as the Camaro goes timing couldnt be better right? Getting back in February... give me 10 days work then a nice long leave and show up ready to go in March with a new camaro delivered to the dealer waiting on me. Perfect timing right?

So I have a deposit down at a small friendly dealer in outide of Tacoma, WA... Problem is too small. I was #5 and they are allocated 4. so i recieved a very nice referal to another dealer in town... look them up and they have a website, as all of them do, that even has a chat room where you can talk to a salesman (or woman as it could be). Perfect for me as am deployed, dont want to be charged 30cents a minute if im just looking for some quick information. The information that is very important to me at this point is Price... and ALLOCATION as I have NO car currently and dont want to have to rent one for very long until it comes in. So the fun with this chat room is I can now post the transcript for yall to see some of the fun interactions with Salesmen:

(I have taken the names out, out of courtesy)


Me:
Do you have any information on the 2010 Camaro... your allocation/ how many orders you currently have in?


Welcome Me! Your request has been directed to the Internet Sales Department department. Please wait for our operator to answer your call.



Call accepted by operator Dealer. Currently in room: Dealer.

Dealer:
Hi Me, how are you??
Dealer:
Before moving forward, could I have your name please, I like to create a more personal experience for my customers
Me:
My name is Me
Dealer:
Thank you. We are accepting orders as we speak - pretty big deal today as a matter of fact
Dealer:
We have three orders in today and can take as many sold orders as we want
Me:
yah its nice to do buisiness in person however its not quite an option now as im out of the country
Me:
how many total sold orders do you have in?
Dealer:
I completely understand. Are you in "the sandbox"
Dealer:
We have three sold orders in because of our pricing.
Me:
ha, yah you could call it that.. middle of baghdad
Me:
what pricing are yall offering?
Dealer:
Thank you for your service
Dealer:
We are offering $0 over MSRP
Dealer:
For our online customers
Me:
would yall honor the chevy military discount if they put on on it?
Dealer:
Of course we would, but that is not going to happen for a year or so.
Dealer:
We don't even have it on the Traverse yet and those are rolling into the dealerships now
Me:
i see, do yall know your current allocation?
Dealer:
We can pre-order as many as we want. They won't be built until Feb/March 2009
Dealer:
Allocation only counts for cars that are meant for stock. Allocation is for Corvettes. We can order as many as we want that are sold order
Me:
chevy did release there projected allocations through Q3 O9 for camaros though...
Dealer:
You asked me and I am telling you, we don't have allocations, we have sold orders that we are placing into the system
Dealer:
If I had a customer that wants 30, we could sell 30
Dealer:
The reason they are doing a 5 month pre-order is so they can have all the parts and materials they need. If they started building and decided to start letting dealers order, their would not be anything promised to the customer for customization
Me:
Ok what is the # that is for yalls delership at chevylaunch.com
Dealer:
I believe that is confidential
Me:
how would that be confidential?
Dealer:
Because the information contained in that website is for dealer use
Dealer:
I am all about giving the customer what they want and can provide any information on that website
Me:
and it shows the projected # of cars to each dealership, based on chevy sales and mustang registrations in the area
Dealer:
Thank you for your time. If you would like to order a vehicle I can email you information. Do you have any other questions for me?
Me:
wow are you serious?
Dealer:
I am curious why our allocation is important to you?
Me:
because i return in Febuary, and sold my truck before i came over here
Dealer:
And if you pre-order a car - you will have it in March
Me:
that really depends on how many preorder cars.... the plant can only produce so many at a time
Dealer:
I agree - well I have 3 in as of today
Me:
and they are distributed to dealerships based on an allocation plan
Dealer:
Do you have any other questions I can answer?
Dealer:
I saw one in Dallas... very nice car!
Me:
more cars go to bigger dealerships
Dealer:
The one in Dallas was an RS, Black w/ Black
Me:
yes, what is your allocation.... The problem is if you are allocated very few cars it would not matter how many orders you put in....
Dealer:
Looking at GMLaunch right now and it says initially 9,
Dealer:
So we have 6 more
Me:
thats what i was looking for, have they stated when that allocation is disbursed through, timeframe?
Dealer:
Production starts in February in Canada
Me:
so i dont beleive in march you will have 9 cars show up... it would most likely be 1 in march, 2 the next and so forth....
Me:
just wondering when the 9 was through? Q3 or something like that?
Dealer:
It's hard to say. I have a customer in my office now, was there anything else I can do for you?
Me:
wow you really want to get rid of me dont you? that will do it....
Dealer:
I don't really know how to assist you.
Dealer:
You have your own speculations and my answers don't mean anything to you
Dealer:
I am very very good at what I do, and if you had questions about the car, I could help you, but you are asking me questions that I am not sure how to answer accurately, standing behind the answer 200% which is how I do business
Me:
just looking for some information, nice to find out everything you can when you are looking at a $30,000 car, i will call another salesman if i have any other questions, thank you for your time
Dealer:
Thank you as well - Have a great day!
Dealer:
I can answer product questions, but nobody will know the production dates quite yet.
Dealer:
Thank you again for your servic
Me:
Febuary 16th is production date.... if you need more information go to www.camaro5.com and look at the forums.... especially the ordering and allocation part.... thanks
Dealer:
I know that.. but are they going to build all of them that day.
Dealer:
I am on Camaro5.com
Me:
and now you want to get smart with a customer? im done here.
Dealer:
Have a nice day



My favorite part: "Allocations are for Corvettes".... Seriously?.... It takes all kinds....

So i may call the dealership and ask for a different salesman.... anyone have any other recomendations for a dealership in the pacific NW or Northern Colorado preferably with High allocations and low order (same thing we all want)?

[avol2]

Did you get ahold of Parkland Chevy?
Tracy was My Salesman... I was very happy with the process.. so far..

I talked to Gilchrist yesterday the guy I talked to was totally clueless.
I talked to Bruce Titus, but they told me 5-10k Markup..
That's why I got it at Parkland, I am glad I didnt have to drive to Friendly's in Puyallup.

My husband has taken his Silverado to PArkland Chevy for years and loves the service department, and I as a Boy Scout Volunteer was able to get some stuff donated a few years ago for the local pinewood derby.. so with that being said... They support the community, and take care of other dealers messes... (with the truck) and Puyallup Chevy (gone now).

[BFreedman]

I am sorry that you were dissatisfied with my service. As I said, I have no problem pre-selling a car. I just can not guarantee a build date to keep your time without a vehicle to a minimum. When I make a deal, I stand behind it 100%. You asked for our ChevyLaunch number and I couldn't give that out because that is dealer information, you became irritated. I had a customer come into my office and wait as I kept the conversation going, you became irrate.

I would love to do business with you, as I stated, I can not guarantee a car will be available when you come home, however, I will give you great service if you give me a fair chance to earn it.

I learned at an early age to underpromise and overdeliver - in this case, I would rather look like the bad guy, then look like the good guy now and the bad guy in June, if you did not have your vehicle.

Please accept my apology.

[Eighty-Six Z]

All he was asking was how many cars have been allocated to your dealership. Why could you not answer that question? It's on Chevy's webpage.

[trm0002]

Originally Posted by BFreedman

I am sorry that you were dissatisfied with my service. As I said, I have no problem pre-selling a car. I just can not guarantee a build date to keep your time without a vehicle to a minimum. When I make a deal, I stand behind it 100%. You asked for our ChevyLaunch number and I couldn't give that out because that is dealer information, you became irritated. I had a customer come into my office and wait as I kept the conversation going, you became irrate.

I would love to do business with you, as I stated, I can not guarantee a car will be available when you come home, however, I will give you great service if you give me a fair chance to earn it.

I learned at an early age to underpromise and overdeliver - in this case, I would rather look like the bad guy, then look like the good guy now and the bad guy in June, if you did not have your vehicle.

Please accept my apology.

Well, color me impressed; nice though out apology. You should have given him the allocation number right off the bat though. I knew it 5 minutes after my dealer knew it; they couldn't call me fast enough...

[avol2]

Originally Posted by BFreedman

I am sorry that you were dissatisfied with my service. As I said, I have no problem pre-selling a car. I just can not guarantee a build date to keep your time without a vehicle to a minimum. When I make a deal, I stand behind it 100%. You asked for our ChevyLaunch number and I couldn't give that out because that is dealer information, you became irritated. I had a customer come into my office and wait as I kept the conversation going, you became irrate.

I would love to do business with you, as I stated, I can not guarantee a car will be available when you come home, however, I will give you great service if you give me a fair chance to earn it.

I learned at an early age to underpromise and overdeliver - in this case, I would rather look like the bad guy, then look like the good guy now and the bad guy in June, if you did not have your vehicle.

Please accept my apology.

Kudos to you the salesman.... 1 for not fibbing to him about a promised delivery dates.. SINCE no one really knows when they will be delivered.. and 2 for stepping up and apologizing!...

I did order my carmaro from your store yesterday, and I really dont think anyone locally will get the same service that I know Parkland Chevy has to offer. I stand by my earlier recommendation to the author to contact Parkland Chevy.

Talking via phone or in person is so much easier, and words just get read worng so often on internet forums and even in chats. maybe it was just a misunderstanding on both parties side...

Good luck with your search, but in Tacoma Parkland Chevy was the only dealer that wanted to take my preorder.

JC

[avol2]

He did tell him they had 9 allocations... and sold 3 .. I'm not sure how many of the salemsan know the Camaro stuff yet.. but I had told him to talk to Tracy (the salesman that helped me)..

[trm0002]

Originally Posted by avol2

He did tell him they had 9 allocations... and sold 3 .. I'm not sure how many of the salemsan know the Camaro stuff yet.. but I had told him to talk to Tracy (the salesman that helped me)..

Yes, but after he pulled some teeth. It's not like it's some big secret nor is it a question that didn't DESERVE an answer right off the bat.

[rayhawk]

In all fairness, I think you have to give the dealer a bit of a break. It would be guessing for him to tell you that you will have your camaro by a certain date. I understand your situation but cut the guy some slack, he is trying not to mislead you.

[trm0002]

Originally Posted by rayhawk

In all fairness, I think you have to give the dealer a bit of a break. It would be guessing for him to tell you that you will have your camaro by a certain date. I understand your situation but cut the guy some slack, he is trying not to mislead you.

Agreed that the dealer did the right thing by NOT guaranteeing a delivery date; however, IMO, it would have been much easier for all involved had he simply said, "We're getting 9 of which 3 are already sold. Unfortunately, no dealer, including us, can even begin to estimate a delivery date because of all the intangibles involved with launching a new car. All I can tell you is production is scheduled to start Feb 16th. However, if you listened to the CZ28 podcast, it sounded as if that was a guaranteed LATEST date so it could be sooner."

What's so wrong with being totally honest upfront?

[boot879]

Salesman seems like an up and up guy/gal. Seems to me things got mixed up a little.

[Pushing_Tin]

He didn't seem out of line to me, he spent a lot of time answering your questions. Can you imagine dealing with cyber tire kickers all day long? You might be a tad impatient too.

Just sayin.

[playhard67]

Kudos to the salesman - BFreedman for showing up on this site and also for trying not to mislead GreySteele06.

However a BIG question I have is - Aren't you in the Internet sales department?? Why do you have a customer coming into your office?? Your Internet Customer should be your TOP priority.

[boot879]

Originally Posted by playhard67

Kudos to the salesman - BFreedman for showing up on this site and also for trying not to mislead GreySteele06.

However a BIG question I have is - Aren't you in the Internet sales department?? Why do you have a customer coming into your office?? Your Internet Customer should be your TOP priority.

lol... my guess is the "internet sales department" is just - HEY YOU... YOUR GOOD WITH COMPUTERS RIGHT... YOU HAVE COMPUTER DUTY!

[GreySteele06]

#1 This was in no way ment to flame the particular dealership in question. You will notice there was no identifying information in my post about the dealer. He posted showing his information with a very nice apology... cant fault him for that. Thank you.

#2 I Understand that chat is not a preferable medium for doing buisiness... however for some quick information i tried it... probably wont do that again.

#3 This is to show how some interactions with dealers go... I know i probably have more total information about the car than he does, almost all members that sit down and actually read these boards do, i like to be a very informed consumer. The information that i do not have and is not available on these boards are what i was asking for: Allocation to that particular dealership (which is apparently a secret) and timeframe that that allocation is expected over. Two things an informed dealer should have for a new release car. Now I understand if he does not have that in front of him. The correct answer if that is the case is "I do not know currently, but if you give me your contact information i will get back to you". DEFINATELY NOT "I'm busy, is there anything else?"

#4 Yes you can take down 30 orders.... they will not see them for quite awhile though if your initial allocation is 9. That is how an allocation plan works.

#5 As a customer i expect Two things Honesty and respect. I will not fault them for honesty, I do not belive in his mind he was telling me anything he believes untrue. However, maybe needs to bone up on allocation plans: if you preorder does not mean you will see it in march.

#6 Get the information from your dealer and draw your own conclusion... They do not need to put it together for you... As far as i can tell this allocation goes through september although this has never been verified by anything.... just hearsay. So ask your dealer if he knows....might get some information through proper channels.

SO: March through september = 6 Months 9 car allocation gives your 1.5 cars per month making #4 arriving in MAY? maybe..... all i want is the information and this like pulling teeth? The answer is not "Im busy, your wasting my time" as im obviously a serious buyer, going to be giving someone thousands of dollars for brokering a deal.

BLUF: Respect the consumer. We are in a free market and they will just go talk to someone else.


Edit: BLUF means Bottom Line Up Front

[playhard67]

lol...that's what I'm figuring too...or, the sales person who is not standing next to the front entrance door is the sales person who gets the computer inquiries.

[trm0002]

Originally Posted by playhard67

Kudos to the salesman - BFreedman for showing up on this site and also for trying not to mislead GreySteele06.

However a BIG question I have is - Aren't you in the Internet sales department?? Why do you have a customer coming into your office?? Your Internet Customer should be your TOP priority.

Yes and no. I originally contacted Paddock through the internet sales department. Would have been kind of hard to write up the "sale", give my salesman the deposit, and get a receipt through the internet, don't you think? I had to physically go and sit down with him a few months ago to write everything up. Would I have cared if he answered an email or a chat while I was there? Probably not, but he did "ignore" that while I was there and yes, I should have been his top priority.

[FenwickHockey65]

Originally Posted by BFreedman

I am sorry that you were dissatisfied with my service. As I said, I have no problem pre-selling a car. I just can not guarantee a build date to keep your time without a vehicle to a minimum. When I make a deal, I stand behind it 100%. You asked for our ChevyLaunch number and I couldn't give that out because that is dealer information, you became irritated. I had a customer come into my office and wait as I kept the conversation going, you became irrate.

I would love to do business with you, as I stated, I can not guarantee a car will be available when you come home, however, I will give you great service if you give me a fair chance to earn it.

I learned at an early age to underpromise and overdeliver - in this case, I would rather look like the bad guy, then look like the good guy now and the bad guy in June, if you did not have your vehicle.

Please accept my apology.

If I were GreySteele06, I think I'd give this guy another shot. It's not very often that a salesman will take the time to write out an apology.

[GreySteele06]

when did i ask for a guaranteed delivery date? Allocation and Timeframe of allocation....

[trm0002]

Originally Posted by GreySteele06

when did i ask for a guaranteed delivery date? Allocation and Timeframe of allocation....

Doesn't "timeframe of allocation" lend itself to "when would the car be available?"

[GreySteele06]

Originally Posted by trm0002

Doesn't "timeframe of allocation" lend itself to "when would the car be available?"

Yes If you put it into the nice little formula in the above post you can infer the approximate time that the car would be available. allocation # (9 cars) over 6 months? 3 months? that is something that has yet to be answered on this board....All of these allocation #s that we are hearing are for the first how many months?

Hell i may be able to get 30 cars by march if I preorder.....

[boot879]

Seems to me people are getting too worried about the "allocation number". My guess is GM will build as many of these cars as you want to buy... as fast as they can build them. Heck... buying a Camaro in Ohio might get your car faster than Florida... just because Ohio is closer to Canada. :-)

[FenwickHockey65]

Originally Posted by boot879

Seems to me people are getting too worried about the "allocation number". My guess is GM will build as many of these cars as you want to buy... as fast as they can build them. Heck... buying a Camaro in Ohio might get your car faster than Florida... just because Ohio is closer to Canada. :-)

I hope so.

Where in Cincinnati are you from?

[jiffy_jeremy]

What's the basic math on this?

Approx 4000 dealers, each with an average of 10 allocations ?

4000 * 10 = 40,000 cars for the first allotment?

Does this sound even close?

[playhard67]

Originally Posted by trm0002

Yes and no. I originally contacted Paddock through the internet sales department. Would have been kind of hard to write up the "sale", give my salesman the deposit, and get a receipt through the internet, don't you think? I had to physically go and sit down with him a few months ago to write everything up. Would I have cared if he answered an email or a chat while I was there? Probably not, but he did "ignore" that while I was there and yes, I should have been his top priority.

Not true, back in '92 I bought a new car by contacting dealers via fax, getting quotes, etc. (that was before Al Gore's Internet really took off). The first time I stepped foot into that dealership was to pickup my car. Now, I guess when you pick up the car, you could be meeting with a sales person.