Queen of Idiots
I bought a car yesterday. Wasn't the kind of car that I spent weeks researching. I Internet-searched all about Honda CR-Vs, Toyota RAV4s and Nissan Xterras, but I bought a 2001 Grand Cherokee Laredo. Now, I like the car, but I'm now just realizing what happened yesterday when I bought it at the dealership.
I have a certain payment range and I told the salesman that. Maybe that was the wrong thing to do. When the saleman couldn't find anything that would fit my budget, his boss (or whatever) asked if I'd seen the Jeep. No, it was just being finished up with detailing. So, they brought it out and I test drove it. Something wrong with the brakes. The salesman tried to tell me that it was because it had just gone through washing and detailing. I should have run right then. He finally agreed that it was more than that. Turns out it's a brake rotor which they promise to fix on Monday. I didn't get that in writing so we'll see what happens on Monday.
None of the cars on the lot had prices on them that I noticed. And since I stupidly told the salesman that I hadn't researched Jeeps, he started out negotiations at $19,995. Well, I have no clue about what 2001 Jeeps cost. Anyway, a $20,000 car is way out of my budget range, so the dance starts, only I don't know it. I haven't bought a car in 18 years so I didn't recognize what was going on. He keeps going away and coming back with a slightly lower figure, asking me can I give him some flexibility in my payment range. I go up $5.00. Then he disappears and the big guns start coming in one by one, and I tell you, I don't remember what happened next, but finally they come back, triumphant, that they got the car price down to what I can afford, knowing all along that this is basically what this vehicle should be selling for in the first place. After 4 hours, I was really tired and by the time I got the business office, I signed papers bleary-eyed. At 6am, this morning I woke up and realized that I had been bamboozled. I paid more than the Kelley Blue Book value. I'm figuring I should have paid about $1000 less for this car, if the Blue Book value is the starting place for negotiations.
I feel so stupid. Never buy a car alone. And I hate it that these salesmen stood behind a "family-owned" business that believes in honoring the customer. Well, if this is honoring, just shoot me.
I emailed the dealership at 6:30 this morning with my discontent. We'll see what happens. I've never in my life bought a car and then spent the next morning crying, instead of being elated. And it's not that I don't like what I bought; it's what I went through to buy it. I literally feel like I've been pummeled. And the fact that I overpaid makes it even worse. Why is buying a car such a tortuous process? Maybe this is buyer's remorse but I just feel really sad. The dealership's mission statement pays homage to honesty and integrity, but I guess you can intrepret those words any way you want. I don't think the salesmen set out to swindle me; they were just trying to get the best deal for the dealership. I don't believe, however, that it was the best deal for me.
I have a certain payment range and I told the salesman that. Maybe that was the wrong thing to do. When the saleman couldn't find anything that would fit my budget, his boss (or whatever) asked if I'd seen the Jeep. No, it was just being finished up with detailing. So, they brought it out and I test drove it. Something wrong with the brakes. The salesman tried to tell me that it was because it had just gone through washing and detailing. I should have run right then. He finally agreed that it was more than that. Turns out it's a brake rotor which they promise to fix on Monday. I didn't get that in writing so we'll see what happens on Monday.
None of the cars on the lot had prices on them that I noticed. And since I stupidly told the salesman that I hadn't researched Jeeps, he started out negotiations at $19,995. Well, I have no clue about what 2001 Jeeps cost. Anyway, a $20,000 car is way out of my budget range, so the dance starts, only I don't know it. I haven't bought a car in 18 years so I didn't recognize what was going on. He keeps going away and coming back with a slightly lower figure, asking me can I give him some flexibility in my payment range. I go up $5.00. Then he disappears and the big guns start coming in one by one, and I tell you, I don't remember what happened next, but finally they come back, triumphant, that they got the car price down to what I can afford, knowing all along that this is basically what this vehicle should be selling for in the first place. After 4 hours, I was really tired and by the time I got the business office, I signed papers bleary-eyed. At 6am, this morning I woke up and realized that I had been bamboozled. I paid more than the Kelley Blue Book value. I'm figuring I should have paid about $1000 less for this car, if the Blue Book value is the starting place for negotiations.
I feel so stupid. Never buy a car alone. And I hate it that these salesmen stood behind a "family-owned" business that believes in honoring the customer. Well, if this is honoring, just shoot me.
I emailed the dealership at 6:30 this morning with my discontent. We'll see what happens. I've never in my life bought a car and then spent the next morning crying, instead of being elated. And it's not that I don't like what I bought; it's what I went through to buy it. I literally feel like I've been pummeled. And the fact that I overpaid makes it even worse. Why is buying a car such a tortuous process? Maybe this is buyer's remorse but I just feel really sad. The dealership's mission statement pays homage to honesty and integrity, but I guess you can intrepret those words any way you want. I don't think the salesmen set out to swindle me; they were just trying to get the best deal for the dealership. I don't believe, however, that it was the best deal for me.
Comments