[clutchcargo777]

Originally Posted by extremeatheist

If you come down and say "I want to test drive this car" I can't make you come inside. I do have to get your Id though.
I'll take you for a test drive.
I have to have the floor manager speak with you before you leave or I will be charged 50 bucks.
If you don't come inside at all, I get nothing.
On the off chance you (general you) did call the next day, you'd have to speak to me and you'd still have to come in an physically sign and initial the credit app.
I'd much rather get everything done the same day than to make 2 trips.
You can set your terms right there inside the dealership, and if you don't like them, you can negotiate or walk out.

Here's why it's a bad idea to test drive first. You get your hopes up. If you are not 100% on your credit score, budget, and what you can afford exactly, you can easily find out you can't afford the car you really like.
If your credit is fine, and your income is adequate, by all means, test drive first.
I don't get why you'd want to drive all the way home, then have to drive all the way back in the next day.

Don't forget folks, OP has been in this industry for almost a week. He knows his sh*t.

How dare you offer advice.

[off topic, personal/rude]

[EA]

Hey, that's what I'm trained to do.
No one has offered advice on selling cars, only buying.

[clutchcargo777]

Fair enough

[MadManofBethesda]

Originally Posted by extremeatheist

I've had several people, publicly, and privately ask for this thread so here it is. The first version may have been too detailed. The mod pulled it and gave me the body of the post with which to redo it sans the sensitive information.

Originally Posted by NLVgal

Much better. Best of luck.

Yeah, but all of the previous detailed info, including the name of the dealership and the photo of the commission sheet, is still in the taxi thread where this all was first discussed. You may want to ask Observer if you can modify or delete those posts as well.

[EA]

The picture is down already. I deleted it off photobucket.

[NLVgal]

Originally Posted by extremeatheist

The picture is down already. I deleted it off photobucket.

Delete the post, too.

(BTW, it was me who reported your original car sales thread to Observer53 and asked her to take it down for you. Others may have also.)

It's understandable to want to share your experiences since you are excited about this opportunity, but there are plenty of asswipes on the internet who will use the information against you if you have the temerity to disagree with them on some unrelated thread. Not to mention professional jealousy, should a co-worker be a poster here.

[Golfinnova]

Originally Posted by Raiderman

I agree with the first 2. The last I strongly disagree with. I made it a point to never know the rates, and I was running the desk for the most part. The thing that sours many guests is overpromising and underdelivering. I would base everything on "average" interest rates, telling them that flat out. Only if I had their bureau in front of me would I then be able to be more accurate. But for the most part, I was within $10/mo on payments. Interest rate on a car purchase doesn't have as much impact as people may think. It's not like a mortgage. 1 point on a $30K car is going to affect the payment less than $10/mo.

I just quoted them the rule of thumb - $20/mo for every $1000 you borrow on a 5 year note. You won't be that far off. But, and you'll find this to be true if you haven't seen it already, if you know the buy rate, you're going to be inclined to quote it to a guest, and it's going to be much harder for F&I to get a bump in payment if they don't qualify for any reason. Let F&I do their job. They are there to run a profit center as well. Sales, F&I, parts, and service.. all important profit centers.

I certainly respect that and while the rule of thumb usually works out, it still leaves the chance of the dealership losing out completely on F&I. When asking the qualifying questions, it is not at all improper for the OP to ask the prospective buyer if they have secured financing prior to sale and if so with whom. When I sold Acura's, HFSC was offering 1.99% that very few banks could match.

With that said, every dealership will have different rules but in my training I was taught the more informed you are as a seller in all phases, the more money you make per deal. Some people are quite happy making mini-deals while some swing for the fences on every deal.

[Raiderman]

Originally Posted by Golfinnova

I certainly respect that and while the rule of thumb usually works out, it still leaves the chance of the dealership losing out completely on F&I. When asking the qualifying questions, it is not at all improper for the OP to ask the prospective buyer if they have secured financing prior to sale and if so with whom. When I sold Acura's, HFSC was offering 1.99% that very few banks could match.

With that said, every dealership will have different rules but in my training I was taught the more informed you are as a seller in all phases, the more money you make per deal. Some people are quite happy making mini-deals while some swing for the fences on every deal.

Understood. I have seen many salespeople get hung up on rate, though. If a manufacturer is offering a subsidized rate, then absolutely. But when the salespeople start trying to do F&Is job, that's when it can be a problem. Especially when a buy rate is, for instance, 5.29, there are many salespeople who will be more than happy to quote that, thus hamstringing F&Is ability to make PRU. That's all I was referring to. And it makes it even more difficult when the person qualifies for 7.29 due to their tier, and the salesperson has already said there is a 5.29% rate. I've seen deals blow up over things like that. And I've also bought down the rate if there was enough gross in the deal. Either way, it's no bueno.

[Golfinnova]

Originally Posted by Raiderman

Understood. I have seen many salespeople get hung up on rate, though. If a manufacturer is offering a subsidized rate, then absolutely. But when the salespeople start trying to do F&Is job, that's when it can be a problem. Especially when a buy rate is, for instance, 5.29, there are many salespeople who will be more than happy to quote that, thus hamstringing F&Is ability to make PRU. That's all I was referring to. And it makes it even more difficult when the person qualifies for 7.29 due to their tier, and the salesperson has already said there is a 5.29% rate. I've seen deals blow up over things like that. And I've also bought down the rate if there was enough gross in the deal. Either way, it's no bueno.

Agreed, I've seen what you describe verbatim. It's all good

[EA]

Today was my first day on the sales floor. Had one sale right out of the gate. I am shadowing the sales consultant. He landed a wealthy woman and her son. They came in an Escalade and wanted to look at Challengers. Groovy. Went right inside and started on paperwork. Turns out she makes 240k a year, 800 credit score, 1.1% interest immediately approved.
SWEET. Her son, the one who wants the car, is 18 and has a 750 credit score with no job. NICE.

So we pull out a Challenger R/T and take him for a test. He loves it. Then his mom pushes him to look at the used ones. No big deal. They find the one they want but HATE the stripes on the side. They will not sign the deal without seeing the car without the stripes. After a lot of back and forth, they agreed to pull off one stripe and make sure there's no outline left. There wasn't. Finally they sign.
During the ordeal, they offered her 500 of if she removed the stripes herself. She declined. Time to sign and she's wondering where that 500 is. She was ready to walk. They gave her the 500 anyway. It was pretty smooth after that. I get 50 for watching. Salesman made some, but not as much as he should have. Was a lot of work getting those stripes off. The rest of the day was dreadfully dead. It was busier Mon-Thurs, way busier. Something must have been going on this weekend, or they are just waiting for tax checks.
Hopefully I'm ready to sell on my own by the time tax checks start rolling in.