THEY ARE NOT YOUR FRIEND!!
Unless you know them personally, still probably not getting the best deal!
I was recently talking to a buddy of mine about him buying a new vehicle. Since I have experience in being in automotive sales, he wanted me to give him some advise on what to expect.
After talking to him I felt like I should share my experience with as many people as I can . So here it goes..
1. Dealerships want the salesman to act like they are your friend.
They get training for this! People get nervous about large purchases that they put up a defense mechanism. If you get comfortable with the salesman you will end up feeling like he has your best interest in mind and a real nice guy when in actuality they are probably talking shit about you to their sales manager. ( not all but most)
2. They do not have any magical paint protectant.
I heard multiple times, to close a deal , that they would throw in this special wax that helps protect your paint better than anything you can buy at a store. BULLSHIT!! They just wash your car just like every other car that gets sold. They say that to make you feel like you are really getting the best deal possible and putting more of your money towards the value of the vehicle.
3. Door edge guards and pinstripping.
Whether you like it or not you will pay for it. When dealerships receive their new inventory vehicles , they get scheduled for the door edging and pinstripping. May take a few weeks to get around to doing it depending how large of new inventory that dealership has. They charge you around $300 for that. Costs them probably around $20 bucks a car. Sales is supposed to routinely add that to your bill because it is not on the MSRP. Even if you want that car that it has not been put on yet they will charge you without you knowing and its more money for the salesman. The key for them is to rattle off numbers such as tax, title, license, Doc and 300 for... Some salesman would make things up in hopes you wouldn't question it. QUESTION IT! Make sure the car has it on or you are just throwing money away.
I could continue with this but I think this is a good start.
I realize that this is sales and you do anything you can to make a deal to make a living. Car sales is a tough job. Long hours, a lot of people out just kicking tires and don't want you to even look or talk to them. Its a very cut throat environment and you have to have tough skin to survive that career. They ultimately do not care about you or your financial situation. They just want you to sign papers so they can receive their next paycheck.
I say these things in the experience I personally had working at 2 different dealerships. I made good money at times and some deals where INCREDIBLE but it came at the cost of seeing some people get raked over the coals because they had now clue and felt I had their best interest in mind. That got to me because I have a mother, sister,brother, wife and children. I take pride in trying to actually help people and being honest. But when the boss tells you to attack, you attack!
Please do your research when buying a vehicle and don't get scammed by shady people who will tell you whatever just to get you to test drive and fall in love.
Oh by the way, The second dealership I worked at was just so I could get employee pricing on a car. I had to take my certification tests to qualify for employee pricing and then quit. But they still made good money on my trade so it wasn't like i stuck it to them. I got paid to work there, made a few sales, got the car I wanted at the price I wanted. It worked out.