What made you choose the dealership you did?

[CarpeNivem]

When I bought my CMax, I didn't go to a dealership at all. I used an auto broker service. Specifically, I used H.M.Brown & Associates, because I had used them before, years ago, with my last car. Things went so smoothly with them last time, I didn't even think of calling anyone else this time. If you're curious, here's how they work. I can honestly say that I like their business SO MUCH that I recently applied for a job there, and I was hired! Yay! :)

 

But I'm really not here to ask you to buy a car from them! ...because, duh, that would be silly. Everyone here already has an awesome new car! (...of course, if you wanted another one... haha, jk. ;))

 

No, what I'm really asking is... Why did you choose the dealer that you did? Have you ever heard of an auto broker? What, in your opinion, makes for a good car-buying experience? Or, if you had a bad experience, why?

 

I want to learn what other people like and don't like, so I can learn how to be the kind of person that people enjoy working with, and coming back to. Like I said, for me, H.M.Brown is the kind of company worth coming back to, but what about other people? What do you like?

 

Also, what made you choose a CMax in the first place? What makes you choose any car? How flexible were you on colors, options, stuff like that? I know that I, for example, am generally not very flexible. I always want very specific things. Is that just me, or are most people like that too?

 

Seriously, I'm just trying to learn. I'm brand new to this business. Here's your chance to shape me into the type of salesman you wish more people were.

 

Thank you, so much, for any help and/or advice!

[Tom]

I chose the dealer that is closest to my home for future service convenience.  I also belong to a credit union that has an auto buying service, as does AAA, which I also belong to. I went to the dealer armed with purchase amounts through these services for negotiating purposes.  All worked out quite well.  

[jdbob]

I live in the middle of nowhere. The dealer in Bend was the closest (3 hours away) that had a C-Max to test drive (a hybrid, not an Energi). There were dealers a bit further away that had Energis but no public transportation to get there to pick up the car (I wasn't trading in my current truck). They arranged to get my Energi from a dealer up in Washington State.

 

Taking my first trip to the dealer in June (1 year after I bought it) to have an oil change and the 3 recalls done.

[Jpcovert1]

I used the Costco auto program. Invoice minus $450 and all of the factory incentives. In my case, that was $2,00 cash back and 0% 60 month financing. Picked up my Ruby Red SEL a week ago.

[salsaguy]

Thanks for confirming I CAN indeed combine the Costco or AAA member discounted no hassle pricing along WITH the dealer incentives on top. We are about to do the same for our CMax as we just got a new card in the mail from Ford on the CMax. Wasn't sure if they only let you do one or the other.

 

As for answering the question of this forum topic...

We will have to use the dealer that participates is the AAA/Costco pricing, as not all of them do that.the problem is that there are only about 3 Ford dealerships that are relatively close by to us her in North Orange county (Los Angeles). You have to contact them that you ate a member and ate ready to buy and then they call you back with the dealer that is in that program that is closest to you.

 

I did the same when I bought my Passat using the AAA pricing approved dealer.

We will buy it from that special dealer but have to service it at the best dealer with the best reputation, which I'm worried about since I've read many horror stories about bad Ford service.I've had to deal bad service for my VW Passat in at least 4 dealers before I found a good one. Sad that service never lives up to the car experience.

.

My wife loved her Toyota service all these years experience and I know she won't feel the same way about the Ford experience after all these years. Most likely I will have to end up taking in her car for service to avoid getting yelled at by her on "why did you make me get a Ford??!!" ;)

she is a stickler for high quality customer service since that's indirectly what she does for her own job. If they mess up even a little she will go OFF of them.  :rant:   :rant2:  :redcard:

I don't want her to get gipped out on a crappy Prius with joke looks and 10 yr old looking tech inside and all the squeaks and rattles (tin can) and with limited (no) options on finding a Hybrid vehicle that gets at least 35 mpg  AND that's not a sedan/car AND sits high up on the seat (like her current SUV) as the CMax does...we don't have much else to look at...so I'm hoping we love the car buying experience bit ALSO love the service experience when it comes around to it.

Don't want to be one of the unlucky ones....but with tks car out seems like always a roll of the dice.  :(

 

 

 

I used the Costco auto program. Invoice minus $450 and all of the factory incentives. In my case, that was $2,00 cash back and 0% 60 month financing. Picked up my Ruby Red SEL a week ago.

Edited May 13, 2014 by salsaguy

[salsaguy]

Just curious, what happened when you test drove the hybrid but then saw the severely limited trunk/back cargo area in the Energi, once they actully had one for you to see? Did you freak out or did you know up front there was no space back there due to the battery hump (mountain) ;)

We would love an Energi if there was no hump.it's a deal breaker for us for sure, as it is for many folks.

 

I live in the middle of nowhere. The dealer in Bend was the closest (3 hours away) that had a C-Max to test drive (a hybrid, not an Energi). There were dealers a bit further away that had Energis but no public transportation to get there to pick up the car (I wasn't trading in my current truck). They arranged to get my Energi from a dealer up in Washington State.

 

Taking my first trip to the dealer in June (1 year after I bought it) to have an oil change and the 3 recalls done.

Edited May 13, 2014 by salsaguy

[timwil56]

I chose my dealership because a few years ago, they gave me the best price when I was sending out inquiries via the internet. I returned because my experience with this dealership has been excellent. I purchased my Energi for true invoice minus the incentives, without any haggling. It's a smaller family run shop, that's been around since the mid 50's with an emphasis on customer service. I drive out of my way to use their service, parts and Quick Lube departments. Just like my barber or laundry soap, when I find something I like, I stick with them.

[jdbob]

Just curious, what happened when you test drove the hybrid but then saw the severely limited trunk/back cargo area in the Energi, once they actully had one for you to see? Did you freak out or did you know up front there was no space back there due to the battery hump (mountain) ;)

We would love an Energi if there was no hump.it's a deal breaker for us for sure, as it is for many folks.

 

I didn't see the Energi until I picked up the car a few days after my test ride. I had seen pictures so there weren't any surprises. Normally all I have back there is a duffle-bag and a wooden box for holding shopping bags. When I go on vacation I replace the box with a suitcase. So far it hasn't been a problem but I can see how it could be for many people. It has enough range in EV mode for my trips around town so it goes months without running the gas engine.

[HPRifleman]

I am an engineer and find hybrid technology fascinating. It's such a departure from the last 100 years of mass-produced automobile propulsion. I had done lots of research on hybrids (10 years worth) and the C-Max when it was announced. I decided my next car would be a hybrid and I would buy into the technology.

 

In autumn of 2012 I was ready to buy and went to the dealer 2 miles from my house. They didn't have any on the lot but said they would get one in about a month. I left my contact information but they never called me back. I went back over the winter and they still didn't have any C-Max that I could even sit in. Plus they made no attempt to follow up on my visits despite my leaving my contact information. That was enough to tell me they weren't interested in my sales business.

 

Last spring I drove by a Ford dealership in an adjoining town and saw a C-Max on the lot. They actually had three in stock. None had the exact features I wanted but at least I could sit in one and take measurements of the cargo area. I came back a few days later for a test drive.

 

Because of the research (including this forum) I knew exactly which options I wanted and the dealer searched around and found a car in Wisconsin that they could get for me. By the time I came back to buy, that car was gone so I decided to special order since I was not in a hurry. Because I was ordering, I decided to try the Blue Candy color since that was not a common color.

 

I purchased using X-plan. While I have heard that a good negotiator can get down to the same price, the X-plan eliminated the haggling part of the process. I signed the forms, wrote a check, and waited for my car to come in. The dealer kept me informed throughout the order process and the car was delivered within the stated time frame.

 

Overall a positive experience dealing with a type of business that, for decades, has had a poor reputation by the general public.

[bro1999]

My C-Max buying experience was the smoothest car buying experience in my life...helped that I never set foot in the dealership! Got an out of state quote for a leftover '13, and the lease offer was just too good to pass up. Made the down payment over the phone, and the dealership had it delivered directly to my driveway the next day. Final paperwork was signed in the C-Max, and that was it!

 

There is Ford dealership 2 miles from my house, but they didn't have any 2013s left, which is why I ended up looking out of state.

Edited May 13, 2014 by bro1999

[anilruia]

salsaguy, in my experience, I was able to combine factory incentives with Costco pricing, but not the dealer incentives.

[kostby]

I understand the sales process from both sides, having spent many years in consultive business-to-business technology sales, and as a consumer, purchasing homes, cars, and big-ticket items.

 

When both selling and buying parties achieve a positive outcome, everybody has the opportunity to win.

The satisfied buyer gets to enjoy the desired item at a fair price, and the satisfied seller moves inventory, achieves sales objectives, and hopefully, by meeting the immediate as well as the longer-term expectations of the buyer, turns that buyer into a satisfied long-term client for the company, thus gaining word-of-mouth referrals, leading to more satisfied buyers who become clients, and the cycle continues… EVEN IN THE AGE OF THE INTERNET!

 

Unfortunately, a major purchase, especially car-buying, is often a lose-lose proposition for both sides because of one or more of the following:

 

1) Failure of either party to fully understand all aspects of the buying/selling process.

Buyers who are not prepared to pay a fair price. 

Sellers who aren't prepared to accept a fair price.

Salespeople who lack confidence in their own company and/or don't understand what they're selling well enough to explain to a prospect why they and their product are a good choice for the buyer.

The objective of any business is to STAY IN BUSINESS. Businesses that don't make any money go out of business, and do a disservice to their customers.

 

2) Failure of either party to have collected all the information they need to complete the decision-making process leading to a sale.

For the car buyer: proof of insurance, FICO credit score, selecting vehicles that match available resources (money) and having a fair target out-the-door price in mind.

For the car seller: Knowing the key selling features of the product, other options available if none of the products in stock meets the customer's requirement, and having at least one or more EXPERTS available who CAN demo and explain how all the features/technology work

 

3) Unrealistic expectations by either party

For the buyer: expecting to 'steal' the product - buy it far far below true dealer cost, where no successful business can sustain itself.

For the seller: expecting every prospect who walks in to be financially qualified, knowing exactly what they want to buy, have all the decision-making authority needed, AND ready to make a decision on-the-spot.

 

4) Lack of integrity e.g. "lying" by either party during the sales process and during completion of the actual paperwork.

 

and, over the months and years of product ownership:

 

5) Failure to live up to the reasonable long-term expectations of either party.

If the wheels fall off during the first month, that's not meeting any customer's reasonable expectations. 

If the wheels fall off after 15 years of hard use, it's no longer the dealer's problem!

 

#5 is where Ford and some C-MAX early adopters will be for quite a while: The 'wait-and-see' phase.

 

=====

 

Shopping (and especially car-shopping) is a sport for me. I truly enjoy it! I don't need a paid consultant. I'm retired. I had the time, the computer, and last winter was horrible, so I did three months of online research, first looking at Prius v, C-MAX, Escape, Fusion, Focus, Subaru CrossTrek, and several other hybrid and non-hybrid vehicles, new and used, while eventually downloading more than 100 C-MAX Monroney stickers from dealers in Indiana and adjoining states online before I prepared a list of the half-dozen C-MAXes equipped with at least the minimum options I was willing to pay for, in colors both my wife and I could live with (neither of us wanted black). Then I ranked the cars from best (lowest, in this case) price to highest, and closest dealer to farthest.

 

We didn't NEED to buy any car that day, or at all. That took all the pressure off of us.  I confirmed via the internet that the closest dealer with stock still had the first vehicle on my list, and that it would be available for a test drive later that day.

 

We test-drove it, made a low, but fair, cash purchase offer, got a counter-offer $250 below my offer, and went to lunch to talk it over. During lunch, we confirmed with our insurance agent (by providing the vehicle VIN number) exactly how much annual insurance rates would change (increased less than $15 a month, going from a 2003 Pontiac Vibe to a 2013 Ford C-MAX). 

 

And we drove away in our brand new White Platinum 2013 C-MAX SE that same afternoon.

 

The dealership, Bill Estes Ford in Brownsburg, Indiana EARNS outstanding marks on Dealerrater.com and everyone we met was extremely customer-focused. It wasn't just lip service. They are a modern, well-equipped, volume dealership in a newly-constructed facility in a western suburb of Indianapolis. They were very busy on the day we visited. Observing the positive energy of the dealership for a few moments while sitting and waiting to speak to our salesperson was an education in how to achieve high customer satisfactions ratings. Every employee treats everyone (visitor, co-worker, lot-boy) they encounter with courtesy and respect, giving each prospect an opportunity to become part of something exciting: to become valued clients of a great car dealership for life!

 

We've since received a hand-written thank-you note from Brian Brickler, our salesperson, and follow-up phone calls the next day, the next week, and after four weeks.

It's a great start to transforming us into valued clients who will enthusiastically provide referrals for both our vehicle, Brian, our salesperson, and the dealership.

And it doesn't hurt that our C-MAX has met or exceeded all our expectations so far.

Edited May 13, 2014 by kostby

[MadManMoon]

I wanted to combine Costco member pricing and X-Plan, so my main criterion was finding a dealer that would honor both.  My local Ford dealer has an exceptional service department, but the worst sales department I've ever seen, so even if they WERE a Costco-participating dealer, they would not have earned my business.

[fordfan82]

Our Ford dealership has an excellent service and sales department. That's what won my wife and I over. Remember it was a rainy Monday afternoon and I said let's go to Roy O'brien Ford. As soon as we walked in we were greeted. Our salesman didn't pressure us and that's a big no no with us if he would have done that.

[ApolloBeachRetiree]

Price, price and price.

[TopherTheME]

I chose my dealer because they gave me $1500 more on my trade in than anyone else would.

[mtb9153]

When buying my 2013 Platinum SEL CMax I chose Frontier Ford because they are down to earth and low pressure salesmen.  I was treated like one of the family and still get preferred treatment.  My salesman gets me all parts at his cost from the parts counter.  Plus my family has bought several cars from them over the years.

[salsaguy]

You could check this site to see if the dealer you are dealing with now or planning to deal with is any good

http://www.dealerrater.com/

if you had a bad experience in the past be sure to put in your comments so others dont deal with the same bogus stuff as you did

[CarpeNivem]

;) Or, don't bother with salsaguy's website, and just call me right from the start, because I'm going to be awesome. You'll see. You'll all see!

 

Really though, I'm just trying to learn how to be the kind of dealer that customers say good things about. Thanks everyone for your (continued?) input!

[Adrian_L]

I spent a month researching prices online among the various Ford dealers in the greater Vancouver area.  Ironically, the cheapest internet price for the SEL I wanted was about a mile from my house.  Key West Ford.

 

Long story short-----their website price turned out to be $500 MORE than their Craigslist ad price that I had printed out but left on my office desk.  The craigslist ad even included the VIN number of the car I am driving today.

 

So because I neglected to bring the Craigslist AD with me I paid $500 more.  I brought this up a day or two later, this is what I was told:

 

1.  Oh....that was a typo.  We have removed the Craigslist ad--it was for a different car with less options.  (they conceded when I faxed them my copy) 

 

2.  Sorry you bought your car on March 1.  The Craigslist ad expired the day before.  (Really?  So why was the February website price still valid on March 1?   Odd)

 

3.  Our sales manager paid you too much for your trade in.  It has an oil leak.  (You have a garage.  Check out the damn car before you pay)

 

4.  C'mon.  You got a great deal already. 

 

You can imagine how I felt when I got an email from Key West informing me that they "like to build 'relationships' on a foundation of trust".  These guys are beyond sleazy.

Edited May 16, 2014 by Adrian_L

[HotPotato]

Bought mine from Perry Ford because I wanted to buy local and they said they'd honor Costco pricing. For whatever reason, they turned what should have been a 2-hour transaction into a 2-day ordeal, perhaps to wear me down.They said they'd do Costco pricing, but then the sales manager's numbers didn't actually match that pricing; I had to call him on it.  They lowballed me on the trade because it would be hard to sell; in fact they sold it for a huge markup before they'd even had time to vacuum it. The F&I guy sold me a prepaid maintenance package on false pretenses -- charging me for 5k mi service intervals when the car has 10k service intervals -- and after months of the runaround, I gave up on getting the promised refund. The F&I guy also told me my bank's prearranged financing didn't go through so I'd have to finance through the dealer instead, when in fact a call to the bank quickly determined that to be false. My sales agent herself was nice, and the service department is not bad (though they tend to ignore anything on my list that they'd rather not deal with), but in general...talk about a stealership.

[DaveofDurham]

We bought ours at University Ford in Durham NC.  We wanted to buy local.  Their price was as good as anyone within 100 miles of Durham and they got us the car we wanted by dealer trade in 3 or 4 days.  Our salesperson was fantastic.  He knew a lot about Ford hybrids in general and the C-Max in particular, and when we asked a question that he did not know the answer to he said he didn't know the answer and would find out - and in an hour or two he had the answer!  He has been great to visit with when I have brought the car in for service and the service department has been excellent too.  The finance department was easy to work with, no pressure and no problem that we financed through our credit union and had no interest in purchasing extended warranty.

[kostby]

Bought mine from Perry Ford ...

 

The F&I guy sold me a prepaid maintenance package on false pretenses -- charging me for 5k mi service intervals when the car has 10k service intervals -- and after months of the runaround, I gave up on getting the promised refund. 

 

The F&I guy also told me my bank's prearranged financing didn't go through so I'd have to finance through the dealer instead, when in fact a call to the bank quickly determined that to be false.

 

...talk about a stealership.

 

That F&I guy apparently continues to get away with it simply because 'after months of the runaround' good honest people like you simply give up, and he pockets the profit, directly or indirectly.

 

It's just amazing that new-car outlets like that can still employ such sleaze-bags and survive in the age of the internet.

I would think the manufacturer could bring pressure on them to either clean up their act or shut them down.

Unless they're a Ford company-owned store.

 

 

In early 2004, I had my checkbook out, pen in hand, filling in the amount, and ready to sign the check for a Pontiac Vibe GT, when a scumbag F&I guy tried to pull that 'stuff', suddenly adding $500 to the out-the-door price for items that were not part of my signed offer to buy.

 

My family and I walked out, right past the owner and the sales manager. 

They chased me to the parking lot.

We got in my car and drove off.

 

The sales manager called me on my cellphone before I reached home, to offer me the car at the actual agreed upon out-the-door price offer that I'd signed, removing the F&I guy's attempt at padding the total cost.

 

I still refused to buy it.

 

I calmly explained that if I got in bed with snakes, that made me a snake too, and I simply refused to ever get in bed with snakes!

 

He had nothing else to say.

[kostby]

Interesting quote from Elon Musk, founder of Tesla, about why they choose to sell their cars without traditional dealerships:

 

Why would you want to replicate the dealer experience? That just seems like a bad thing.

… Really the main reasons for not going with the traditional dealer network is I don’t know anyone who’s had a good experience going to car dealers. I didn’t have a good experience. I had a terrible experience. It always seemed like they were trying to rip me off — and they did rip me off.

Why would we do that to our customers?

Source http://recode.net/2014/05/15/elon-musk-on-the-flawed-premise-of-tesla-and-the-false-promise-of-fuel-cells/

[Adrian_L]

Did anybody get a Costco rebate when they bought their C-Max?  A reputable Ford dealership (Brown Bros in Vancouver) told us straight up that "The mark-up on the C-Max is so slight there's no way you'll get a Costco rebate".  It turned out they were correct but when I asked at other dealerships I usually got the "I'm sure we can work something out."  BS.  I got the strong impression that some dealerships like to play dumb in order to get customers onto the lot.