Death to car dealerships.

"Mathias Rios" (Mars478) 01/16/2014 at 00:13 • Filed to: None

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It's such an archaic concept that screws over the customer repeatedly. Tesla is trying to make strides in this field but they're being shot down by corrupt local governments and mob-like dealership unions. I will never buy from a dealership.

/minirant

GhostZ > Mathias Rios 01/16/2014 at 00:16

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Dealerships are for stupid/uninformed people who would make mistakes that cost them money by acting on their own, just like some lawyers, insurance companies, consultant agencies, travel agencies, financial planners, career advisers, and many other careers we hate as well.

I think the travel agency is the closest thing to that, where nowadays, people are so easily informed about airfare rates, booking procedures, flight times, etc. thanks to the internet that there's no need to really go to a travel agency to book a flight anymore. Likewise, it's really easy to learn what proper market prices for cars should be, as well as find cars that are obviously broken or poor investments nowadays.

StoneCold > Mathias Rios 01/16/2014 at 00:22

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Just the whole 'haggle on a price' thing seems very out of place in this day and age for me.

Have a price without financing. Have a price with financing. Heck, stagger the price based on amount financed.

I hate-hate-hate the word 'wiggle room', so very much, even as a buyer.

Edit: I'm not totally against dealerships, but a lot of the practices I've run into bother me. They're supposed to protect us from manufacturers screwing us over, but when people need to go to the manufacturer to fix something the dealer screws us over on, something is wrong .

Zoom > Mathias Rios 01/16/2014 at 02:11

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What's archaic is your idea of dealerships.

Bricks > Mathias Rios 01/16/2014 at 07:25

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I know a lot of used car lots that are way more screwed up than dealerships. What usually gets people is accepting the "extras". There really isn't much haggling on new car prices. And in used cars it is usually what someone is willing to pay. I'm not a sales man and hate dealing with them, but really, everyone is trying to sell you on something everyday. If you're informed and know what you want you can't get screwed over. I think the biggest reason people feel like they get taken for a ride, is because they let their emotions make the decision or get the best of them. Instead of looking at it with logic and using your head. It's the "I gotta have it now" syndrome.

I like what Tesla is doing but by not having a dealership network it makes it very hard for the company and the customer to get the vehicle serviced when needed. Tesla has to take on a lot of extra costs with loaner vehicles, picking up of customer cars and finding facilities. The larger they get the harder I think this is going to be.

Mathias Rios > Zoom 01/16/2014 at 08:25

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Give me an example of one trait of a car dealership which is beneficial to the consumer. Do you by chance work at a car dealership?

Mathias Rios > Bricks 01/16/2014 at 08:27

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Tesla has a system in which a service rep comes to your home I believe... Extra payment but it is a high end service.

Bricks > Mathias Rios 01/16/2014 at 08:58

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I guess I was under the assumption that this service was included with the purchase of the vehicle. They do definitely come to your home to pick up the vehicle.

Zoom > Mathias Rios 01/16/2014 at 12:45

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Yep. And there is not one thing, not one single instance where a large volume manufacturer can exist and simultaneously supply customers with parts, service and tech without dealerships. Stand alone manufacturer service departments simply cannot exist without the traffic that comes from the sales department. There is too much overhead, too many special tools, too much expensive training and hours lost from it.

Tesla gets away with it currently because they are low volume and very expensive. They can afford to fly techs all over the country, tow vehicles hundreds of miles to service them, and provide customers carte blanche unlimited alternate transportation.

Unless you want affordable cars to triple in price, a local dealer provides instant service, parts, and tech access, as well as can provide an alternate set of wheels instantly to keep you moving. Your Tesla breaks, and it can be weeks before you see it again.

Dealers are also the manufacturer's eyes and ears to trending problems with product. Large volume manufacturers have processes in place for failure reporting, and have huge reserves of tech to handle even one or two failures happening anywhere in the country, while still retailing millions, not thousands of cars.

There really is no substitute for an honest local new car dealer.

Mathias Rios > Zoom 01/16/2014 at 14:06

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Here's the substitute, a manufacturer that buys out the dealerships and has it as a manufacturer sale point. The dealership model opens up a whole scope of crumminess. Tesla isn't THAT low volume, they're just providing good customer service from the get go.
Apple manages to do this with computers and it is incredibly successful. You can't deny that dealerships trying to prevent tesla from opening non dealership branches is corrupt and crooked.

Zoom > Mathias Rios 01/16/2014 at 14:39

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And it's the 60's all over again. You would seriously trust recent leadership of current manufacturers to run outlet stores?

Allowing and encouraging local ownership makes for more regionally friendly establishments. It is impossible for the manufacturer to localize trends without feet on the ground. People who are in control of their own destiny, not simply answering to a faceless form somewhere else. You are suggesting micromanagement at a nationwide level and at large levels it has proven to fail. Apple retail sales has rabid followers, that's why it succeeds. Ever visit an apple store for service? The one in my hometown, following a set of rules from somewhere on the west coast, sucks in every way.

There are many solid, measurable ways dealerships must exist in order to provide the massive logistics it takes to satisfy the legions of people who buy their product. If you don't like the sales department, understand it is sales people who drive manufacturing, good ones and bad. Sales people indirectly employ hundreds of thousands of design and manufacturing jobs in the US. It takes all kinds. And we are not robots. Find a good sales person, develop a relationship with him, and the world has no limits on what a dealership has to offer you. I have seen manufacturers step up to the plate for a good customer, well beyond new car warranty, based on services he had with the dealer, services no more expensive than at an independent. Sometimes at upwards of 200,000 miles.

Think about it. You find a trustworthy salesman, get a good deal. Spend some money on competetively priced service in their service department. And 10's of thousands of miles out of warranty, the manufacturer helps you with a repair. This happens, I've seen it. Because you trusted them, they reward you. Imo, this cannot happen with a factory run store, simply because there is not enough profit to be made to assist the customer on a local level if they need it. This being another benefit of trusting your local dealer.

Capitolism, not Socialism.