My dealer is an idiot -- why GM is failing

[metalman]

I called 3 dealers. 2 said they didn't know but would call back in 10 minutes (neither ever called back). The 3rd dealer essentially told me to get lost.
Fortunately, I called a fourth dealer and ordered my car.
Hey dealers, which dealer do you think I will call first the next time I want a vehicle?

[RPO_Z28]

Dealer wants to sell his cars out of stock and get the highest dollar possible. That's his perogative, I guess.

[Marc NY]

Originally Posted by littlecammi

That dealer might not be an idiot. It may be a smart choice on their part not to take any preorders so they can order Camaros for stock and mark them up. And they certainly do want to sell cars; they just want to sell cars already on their lot that they can actually deliver now, or at least cars already in production for which they have current allocations.

Some salespeople prefer not to deal with early orders because the owner of the dealership doesn't want to lock you down to a firm price just yet.

It sounds to me like that dealership is wanting to see where the Camaro market is going to be before he commits to any price. I bet that dealer will be holding out for Big Bucks for any early SS ... I bet it will be at least $5-10 K over sticker.

[jeffny09]

cool dumb dealer

[CamaroScotty]

The "average" salesperson does not have much information on the Camaro - some aren't even allowed to use computers at some dealerships...

Don't hate the salesperson - the dealership should have someone making sure someone is up to speed with the information that IS available. The "required" training starts in April.

As an FYI - I'VE even had competing sales staff call me for info.....now THAT'S bold...But I give them credit, they WANT to have the answers and BE educated...so YES I helped them out.

[bkcamaro]

i use to work at a dealership and you would be surprise at how many sales men really dont know much about cars i was a detailer and when walking threw the show room some of the biggest crap i ever heard about cars came from some sale men at times i just wanted to slap some of them in the face

[stovt001]

Again, I'd like to remind anyone who may not be aware that dealers are NOT directly part of GM. They are independent companies or part of a larger dealer chain, but they only have franchises to sell GM products (which are awfully hard to revoke thanks to franchise laws) and their employees are NOT GM employees. Not directing this at anyone, but most people don't know how the relationship works. It is pretty complicated.

[StoutFiles]

That dealer might not be an idiot. It may be a smart choice on their part not to take any preorders so they can order Camaros for stock and mark them up. And they certainly do want to sell cars; they just want to sell cars already on their lot that they can actually deliver now, or at least cars already in production for which they have current allocations.

Yep...probably taking all their allocations, having them built to the best top V6 and V8 models, and then selling them for a good amount over MSRP. If you're guaranteed to sell X cars no matter what, would you sell them at MSRP or for more? I can see why they're doing it and short term it makes sense.

However, though, being dicks to customers and overcharging WILL hurt them in the long run...

[linkwpc]

Let us know what happens with Harbor Chevrolet!

[Adam]

They may have been doing it intentionally, but isn't that against the rules? Doesn't GM license dealers as long as they follow rules, like properly informing the customer?

I talked to 15 different places, 2/3 of which didn't even know anything about the camaro. Most of the other 5 had to toss me around to different people before I could get an answer. I think 2 had someone I talked to right away that knew anything.