Are brick and mortar dealerships just giving up?

I just bought my used truck from a brick and mortar Toyota dealership. I saw that you can just buy cars online now but I felt like dealing with a real human was still the way to go.

I gotta tell you though, I just received the WORST car buying experience of my life at a Toyota dealer. Just amazingly bad. The salesman was rude and condescending. After I bought the truck they didn’t even say thanks or nothing. When I had a problem I couldn’t reach my salesman for a week of phone calls and emails. I complained and the manager basically said, “I don’t know why Bill didn’t call you back but those are the breaks.” I drove two hours to buy this truck and I said I’d take it in less than 20 minutes. My test drive was one lap around the dealership. I did not negotiate or try to bargain. I paid asking price no questions. When I asked for a Toyota key chain they said “sure! They’re $15”.

I ran into a woman while my new truck was in the shop at home and she could not stop talking about how amazing her car buying experience from Carvana was. She just raved at the service she received.

Are Dealerships just throwing in the towel?

 

Try and have your vehicle serviced online...

 

I have my vehicle serviced by my regular mechanic. I can buy parts anywhere.

 

Not all of them are like that. Management is key. My local dealer feels like family when I get there. Everyone is friendly and helpful. Another dealer, actually closer to home for me, are a bunch of stuck up employees, everyone from sales, service through management. Both places have the same ownership, but are managed differently.

 

When I was searching for a tundra the 2 Toyota dealerships were the worst dealerships I visited..

 

Yeah, not all dealers are like that. I have made a life long friendship with my salesman. Seriously we just hangout and talk now, and if the owner is around when I’m there he always takes a few minutes to talk. By the way I’m nobody, they just treat people good.

 

My local dealership is good. Very small. Less than 100 cars on the lot. But they’re friendly and nice. Just not much to pick from. Their service department is decent enough also. But I visited three other Toyota dealers and two were so bad at customer service I politely walked away and said “no thank you”. The one I DID buy from was only because I just really liked this particular truck. But two days after I bought it and couldn’t reach anybody I started getting that sinking feeling in my gut. I really wanted to LOVE this purchase and the people who sold it to me. But just not the case. I do like my new truck though.

 

My local Toyota dealer plauds itself on being the #1 volume seller in MN. Hence, they let you roam the lot by yourself. Nor send anyone to you while you're on the sales floor. You're supposed to go ask for a salesman/woman when you're ready.

We walked out and crossed town to the smaller Toyota dealer.

 

Can we assume that your mechanic is a brick and mortar business?

My point, brick and mortar dealerships aren't going away but they do need to adjust to the changing market or suffer losses that may put some dealerships out of business. My local dealer is awesome, and they have adjusted to the changing marketplace in sales & service - I am very happy that they have kept up with the times.

 

That’s my point exactly. This is why I go to him. His job can’t be done via email or some iPhone app. He’s gruff and rough around the edges. But not rude or condescending. He calls me back. He thanks me for my business. He calls me when recalls pop up on my vehicles.

So why is it that the three dealerships I’ve visited couldn’t care less if I buy a truck from them or not?

 

Take pride in the fact that you are not the typical customer those 3 dealers are looking for.

 

We had a good experience with our local Toyota dealership. We have now bought 6 vehicles from them over the years. When i saw my truck on their website, my husband was out of town. So my son went with me just in case they didn't seriously think I really wanted 'that' truck. My son and my husband, via phone, did the negotiations and I got to drive it home a couple days later when my husband got back in town to sign all the papers. I really liked working with my salesman, Will. He totally got that even though my husband was buying it, it was going to be my primary vehicle. I had driven my Sequoia for 13 years so that helped him see the transition a little better. I am not very tech savvy, so he patiently showed me all the differences and updates since my last new Toyota in 2006. I think good customer service is not what it used to be, but it is still out there. May just have to look for it a bit.

 

My dealership treats me vary well sales guy treats my like a friend everyone has been vary friendly, on the other hand the other dealer I contacted weren’t interested in selling me a truck , I personally wouldn’t do business with anyone that didn’t treat me with respect.

 

Thats great! I’m jealous. That’s the experience I was looking for. I received service like this at our local Nissan dealer... I just didn’t like the truck.

 

Dealers are hit and miss. Some are great, others are garbage. It pays to shop around and get a few of them bidding against each other for your business. If they're flippant, they better have a DAMN good deal or they're out. Ain't got time to deal with some asshole when buying a vehicle.

I sold a vehicle to Carvana and it was an okay experience. They "forgot" to cut the check when the girl showed up to inspect the car, so I made her go back and get it before I would do any paperwork. After that, it took them quite a while to pay off the loan, so I had to make an extra monthly payment to make sure the loan was covered. But, after I called and asked about that, they ended out sending me a check for that payment to reimburse me. They did, however, give me the best price for my car. It took a few tries to get the best offer though.

 

We have a Lexus dealership near us that also wont approach you, unless you request assistance. I previously worked for a retail business, but in an I.T. role.
While working on the retail floor replacing a point of sale system, it was common for the sales staff to "jump" on the customers as the enter the show room.
Some folks absolutely hate that approach, as I also dont care for it and would rather shop alone until I actually need assistance.

What Ive found is that commission sales staff will "jump" on you to "Claim" you as their customer so they dont miss a sale that day or if you leave and return later.
I've also experienced at a local Ford dealership, the sales staff taking "their turn" as customers arrive on the lot.

Also - I always ask if the sales person is "commissioned" or not. The more seasoned sales staff understand my question, the newbies, they just look at me weird.

 

I worked commission sales for a lot of years. And I prefer commission sales associates. They will work for you and your satisfaction is paramount. In this case the salesman was on me the second I opened the door of my car. But he was rolled his eyes the second I asked for the keys to the car and said, “we close in half an hour.” Like who starts a sales pitch that way?

 

Purchase or lease from Lexus and you will wonder why anyone else is even in business.
Others are hit and miss. Alot of misses!

 

The dealer I went to for my Tundra and two previous Toyotas does everything in their power to make you feel like an honored guest. They're ridiculously friendly. I will say with my Tundra, it took a few minutes for the greeter to get a salesman to me, but I contribute that to showing up just after they opened and no one was really in place yet. Of course in this area there are two other major Toyota dealers that have high volume sales as well, so good customer service from all three is basically essential to staying in business.

 

This is where I bought my Tundra from and this is where I plan on going back to when we need another one.

 

I use USAA new car buying service with participating Toyota dealers. Done. No haggle, no games. I have never been disappointed in the final purchase price.

 

Costco also has a similar service which I have heard good things about.

 

seems like a nice lady and the staff appears to enjoy their work.

Cedar Park - isnt that part of the GST region? Reason I ask...

My previous Tundra a 2011 made its way to Ohio via the SET region and what I found was dealing with folks from SET Port in Jacksonville Fl was 1K times better than dealing with a couple of my local dealerships.
Im curious though, is it that same way with the GST region? Nicer folks in general at other GST controlled dealerships, like SET.

Since GST and SET are privately owned distributors of the Toyota Brand are they doing things that different? I just find it refreshing that someone at the SET port actually would take their
time to help me and go over and above to help me, even though im in Ohio.

Good observation would be - Wireless Charging Tray available from Sparks. SET region dealership that has stuff my local dealerships dont.
Try and mention the grab handle for the 2016 Tundra to my local shop and they will straight up tell you no, cant be done because of the air bag... LOL

 

Carvana, Vroom, are symptoms of the vehicle loan sub-prime markets, for the used markets anyway.

Home loans were the sub-prime bust of 10 years ago. (People who should NOT have been given a mortgage bought houses.) Same is happenning with the car loan market; repos are the hot market for a fat bottom line.

How does that effect my new car purchase? Dealerships used to make a TON of their profits on the used market. The used market is now REALLY competitive and that $$$ is drying up altogether.

I just found a gorgeous blacked out '15 LTD Tundra at a Ford dealership, they want $35K. CarMax 30 miles away has access to these trucks all day long at $25-31K. The stealerships will STILL steal from you. We know this to be true...but yes, it appears the days of fun and cool salespeople are almost gone.

 

You know, you make a GREAT point; where is the Lexus Tundra model?

 

Took my daughter 4Runner shopping last week. The local Toyota dealership was our first stop. I have bought 3 there before. The salesman was great but the manager was an ass.
They have crazy pricing in the windows (2017 pro for 43k online had a 53k window sticker) so I guess you think you are getting a good deal once they drop them. The one we looked at had 36k on the window but was online for 29k. They bumped it up to 30k the day before we arrived. (My guess is they saw the traffic the ad was getting)
Then they made a stupid lowball offer on her trade in. We ended up leaving and finding one at a Honda dealership. Got a great deal and 3k more for her trade in that Toyota offered.

 

Yes, Cedar Park, Texas.
As far as GST dealerships.. they’re still hit and miss just like everywhere else.
To be fair I mostly just visit dealerships for parts. However in the 6 years I’ve been here in Austin I haven’t found a parts guy that’s been willing to wheel/ deal with me quite like the guys from Toyota of Temecula back in California. I don’t ask for cost on parts but I simply don’t want to pay 30% markup. It’s like pulling teeth just to get msrp on parts.

 

Well of course, parts guys on commission wanna eat too!!!

 

What dealer was it? Maybe make the drive up to Downeast Toyota next time for a purchase. I’ve never personally purchased a vehicle through them but I know quite a few people who have and they’ve been nothing but pleased. I know I’m willing to travel a good distance for the right deal and service.

As for brick and mortar dealers going away.. I hope not! I honestly didn’t have a great experience purchasing my vehicle at Mossy but... they do have an awesome coffee maker, free donuts in the morning, pizza at lunch and as many cookies and bottled water as you’d like. When doing an oil change, I’ll walk in with $7.64 and walk out with lunch and a filter.

 

We had a similar Toyota vs Honda experience recently.

When I bought my Tundra, I regretted it for weeks afterwords. It was the first time I had ever been to this Toyota dealership, but they had a great buy on the truck. These freaking guys did all the BS I'd heard about, but never actually experienced. I talked to the sales person on the phone multiple times. We had a price on my FJ i was trading, and the truck. When i got there, the truck was suddenly more money. There was a carfax report of an accident (which I had looked at before and was ok with) that they slid in front of me and just asked me to sign, no explanation of what it was. Then we were much further off on price than we were originally. The sales dude and the sales manager and I talked for several awkward minutes. When it was all over I still got out for really close to what i wanted to be. But i was pissed for weeks after just based on the experience and how sleazy they were.

Then my wife bought a new Odyssey from a Honda dealership about a year later, and it was so incredibly smooth and easy, we were super skeptical of what was happening the whole time, lol. I cannot explain the difference in the two dealerships.

Not suggesting this is a manufacturer wide issue. We've been to good Toyota dealers too. But the Honda buy was fantastic.