Beware of Waldorf Sales Mgrs - Toyota

Originally Posted by Kain99

Did this tread just take an incredible left turn????

How'd you like his last edit:

"But, he couldn't pull down the mirror and tell me how fabulous I look because I don't use them since the severe house fire I was in burned 20% of my face and I still have more surgery before they can fix the scarring."

Must be Green Hornet's newest MPD...

[Tigerlily]

Originally Posted by Kain99

Did this tread just take an incredible left turn????

That's what I'm thinking

[The_Twisted_Ear (Premo)]

This was my third purchase from Sheehy of Waldorf (Southern Maryland doesn't have a Nissan Dealer).

If it wasn’t for my super Service Representative – I would have not bought my new 2007 Nissan at Sheehy. However, as with the last purchase – Car Preparation is simply non-existent (at least for me). I won’t go into my other Nissan purchase but will with this one.

I realize I should have gone through the car before taking delivery but just wanted to get home. There were scuffmarks on the driver’s side and coffee drips on the passenger side. Both removed with a wet towel when I got home. Lets just leave it at those two items (there were others).

Sheehy simply has no idea how to “prep” a car! As we are pulling into our driveway – we realize we didn’t have the floor mats or trunk mat (part of the sticker price at $150). I called Sheehy – get the apology and told they will have my mats when I return. We run up the next day (60 miles round trip). They can’t find mats so they give me a “we owe you slip” and tell me to take it down to parts. Why should I have to go to parts and place the order? Anyway – we go down to parts and place the order. On the way home I realize that the “we owe you slip” didn’t list the trunk mat. I call – told to come back tomorrow and they will have everything (from another Nissan). Get up and all they have are the floor mats – and they will order the trunk mat (yuppa – get another “we owe you slip.”) That is not what they told me! I refused to accept just the floor mats and left a message at the front desk that I wanted my $150 back and that the partial order won’t work. Yea, another 60 miles round trip. On the way home we pick up a set of floor mats at WalMart. We drive another 60 miles to pick up the check and they refuse. We worked out 4 oil changes (they had me by my ) – they flat refused to refund any money. They simply wore us out. This will be the last Sheehy automobile regardless of their service department!

Just thought I'd share my experience...

Forgot to mention - this was the first time I didn't get a "after sale" questionnaire from Nissan. Hmmmm - could it be they knew I was pissed and made darn sure I didn't get a follow-up letter that would affect their satisfaction rating?

[bcp (Premo)]

Originally Posted by Patch Tuesday

P.S: you really should just go ahead and get rid of that bubble house you bought to relieve all the frustration you've got from constantly being broke...

lets see.
how long will the average car last? hint at 30 k the best you can hope for is maybe 6 years if you run it into the ground. then you have to buy a new one and the old one is of no value at all.

now, how long will the average house last? well over 100 years if you take care of it.

so, lets say in 1970 you bought a house, and every month you made that 150 dollar payment. It would have been paid off in 2000 or before and you would now be living only with the expense of the taxes. Hmmmm, just about in time for retirement. cool.

Maybe with some of that saved income, you can afford to replace the car too?

of course, had you rented all that time while your friends purchased, you would now be paying a much higher rent, while they took off on their third cruise of the year, afforded because they have no house payment.

so, even if that house bought in 1970 was worth LESS (and thats not a possible event ) you would still be living rent free. and if you didnt plan on the home doing anything for you but provide a rent free dwelling during retirement, who really cares if you made millions on it?
in fact, since your payment stayed the same over all those years, you could have put more into investments that worked for you.

renting is for those starting out and fools.

[OldHillcrestGuy]

Originally Posted by elliottsroost

Okay, so we have all heard the horror stories about car sales manager's and how they can infuriate their customers. But how many are willing to infuriate a customer who comes from THREE generations of Toyota owners, two purchased by her parents, two purchased by herself and two purchased by her daughters? And of the six, four were purchased at Toyota of Waldorf.

Last week (Friday) I went to Toyota of Waldorf looking for a convertible Camry Solara. They had the SLE model which had several scratches and would need a visit to the body shop prior to releasing the car to me in order to remove/repair the scratches. I had purchased a Solara Coupe last December 2006 from Waldorf Toyota and could not have been happier with the sales manager John Link, but I was informed that Mr. Link no longer worked at Toyota of Waldorf. So I worked with the current sales staff ---the beginning of the nightmare. I was informed that my 11 month old vehicle was in "fair" condition and only worth $16,000, and my husband's 2001 Silverado was in "fair" condition and was worth $7,000. Needless to say I was insulted and infuriated that they actually had the audacity to present an offer of $16,000 on a car that I had purchased from them 11 months prior for $24,000+. When I asked them what was fair about the car, they offered no details. I requested a list of items that made it "fair" so I could bring it back to them for warranty work and bring it to "excellent" condition. Again---no response. Then, to my utter disbelief, and to add insult to injury, the sales manager, Wilson, had the nerve to inform me that, "well you only paid $500 over invoice when you purchased your car last year." Now, I ask you, what right did he have pulling my old sales data and using it at that very moment? If I had purchased the car at another dealer, he would NOT have had access to that information. So what was his point? Perhaps he was trying to make me feel small because I had received a good deal on my car 11 months prior and they were going to gouge the hell out of me now! At least that is the way I felt. Needless to say, I left the dealership, furious and insulted and will NEVER go back to Toyota of Waldorf :to purchase another vehicle.

Well, on Saturday, I was in Lexington Park and wanted to see what they had to say about my car--I know, a glutton for punishment. Imagine my complete relief when I saw the smiling face of Mr. John Link sitting behind the desk at Southern Maryland Toyota! My old friendly and honest sales manager! Well, we talked about the trade in of my vehicles and the purchase of a convertible Solara and I must say, he washed away the uglyness that was left on me by Toyota of Waldorf. Not only did he and I agree on "EXCELLENT" condition of my 11 month old car, but he offered thousands more than Waldorf had offered, and the same with the Silverado--he offered several thousand more! And finally, he found the vehicle I wanted, right color, right interior and $500 over invoice! YIPPEEE.....I couldn't be happier and I owe my holiday happiness to Mr. John Link of Southern Maryland Toyota! So, if you have similar horror stories and want to be treated with respect and equitably, please go see Mr. Link at Southern Maryland Toyota in Lexington Park! He is NOT your typical Toyota of Waldorf sales manager.

Just a closing note, when one of the sales manager's at Toyota of Waldorf is the owner's grandson, we all know that he did not work his way up in the company, and his young age is a detriment to his skills working with the public. Because he was instrumental in escalating a bad situation into a worse one when he jumped up from the sales desk and started shaking the "BLACK BOOK" in my face and telling me "I am the one who said your vehicle was worth $16,000 and I actually gave you an additionall $500!" Of a total of three sales manager's on duty not ONE cared enough, or perhaps they were not experienced enough to try to defuse the situation. It is still unbelieveable to me that they let a 2nd generation customer walk out their doors with not so much as an apology!

I could not have been happier yesterday, as I drove into Toyota of Waldorf to cancel my previous extended warranty and give my Toyota of Waldorf license plate holder back the sales manager's at the desk!

Anyone out there with similar experiences, please post.

Thanks for the info, I bought my Highlander at Waldorf 2 and half years ago, I suppose Mr. Link was there then and found them to be fair to work with. I had gone online and checked CARMAX in Laurel (Laurel Toyota) and knew exactly what I was going to pay and also checked what I thought was a good trade in on my Subaru. When the salesman approached me and I told him what I was interested in, I told him your not going to make me go to Laurel to get my new car are you. He said I hope not, I had the Carmax printout with me. Well when it came down to talking time, they tried to go low end on my trade but I knew what I wanted for trade and also said Im not paying anymore for this car then what Carmax was selling it for. After a couple of trips back and forth to his Sales Manager (maybe Mr. Link) I got what I wanted, took a heck of a long time got there at 430pm didnot leave there till almost 11pm on a Saturday night, and I didnt finance anything, but took one heck of a long time.
About this time next year Im looking to replace my current truck with a Tacoma, after your experience I think Ill go to Lexington Park and deal.
Thanks for the info.

[sparkyaclown]

Originally Posted by itsbob

So, since you know so much about buying and selling cars, and how a car dealership is supposed to make money to stay in business.. how much should they have given you for your one year old car.. and how much would you be willing to pay for that same car a used, one year old car, who'd original sticker price was 24,000.. I can't imagine paying more than 18.. and if they gave you 16, they ONLY make 2K on the deal.. NOT a lot of profit..

It sounds to me like they were fair, and you were just being hardheaded..

This is the reason I call on the original poster. Far as I know you lose a few thousand in value the second you take ownership and drive off the lot (at least thats what I've always been told). So you lost 8k on a car that had been driven a year? That's not really unreasonable no matter the condition. You truly don't usually come out of the red on a new vehicle purchase until it is about 3 years old Used is used, whether fair or excellent condition the differences are minor. They have to sell that year old car, which given the fact that it is only a year old I think that would make it harder. I wouldn't buy a year old trade-in, I'd be questioning the real reason for trading it in after a year. I'd be skeptical of "The previous owner decided they wanted a convertible instead" regardless if it was in fact true or not. I would probably assume there is something truly wrong with the vehicle that may not be immediately apparent. Also only a fool would believe the dealership made a whole $500 on the new car, I bet your not the only one to get $500 over invoice. Do you honestly think they turn over enough inventory that they could stay in business by only making $500 in profit off of a car sale? In the event that this poster is being truthful, believe me when I say you paid for the actual price difference between what your trade-in was actually worth and what they offered you for it. It was cleverly disguised in the price of the new vehicle you purchased.

[dave1959]

Originally Posted by elliottsroost

Again......the key to a successful car deal is the sales man.....unfortunately if you have a bad experience with the sales man.......you equate it to the entire dealership. As with any profession, good sales men are hard to come by, just as any good government employee, a good nurse, a good carpenter, a good builder, a good doctor, etc. That is why when you have a good one, you pass it on. Thanks for reading the post.

I have to disagree....The key to a successful car deal (or any other deal) is an educated consumer.

[GreenHornet]

Originally Posted by vraiblonde

It's not uncommon for sales reps and business owners to come on here pretending to be a satisfied customer. My suspicions about this person are based on two things:

Why are they trading in a car they just bought last year? And why are they buying a convertible with winter coming on? Oh, and a third thing is that if they're such great customers of Mr. Link, why wouldn't he have informed them when he moved to a different dealership? Most sales reps do that.

For all I know, this story is the truth and exactly as it happened. But it could also be a fraud, intended to slam a competitor. So take posts like this with a grain of salt.

This is true....

Look at me... I love my new hair restoration and I'm not just a client, I'm the owner.

I sold cars a very, very long time ago. Rule number one. Never trade a car in, always try and sell it outright prior to going car shopping. Yes it's a pain, but the extra money you get towards your trade only comes from the MSRP of the vehicle you are looking at. Even at 500 over invoice the dealer is still making alot of money, even at 1 dollar over invoice the dealer makes a very nice profit. It's called holdback. Holdback on some models is in the thousands.....

[Cletus_Vandam]

Originally Posted by vraiblonde

It's not uncommon for sales reps and business owners to come on here pretending to be a satisfied customer. My suspicions about this person are based on two things:

Why are they trading in a car they just bought last year? And why are they buying a convertible with winter coming on? Oh, and a third thing is that if they're such great customers of Mr. Link, why wouldn't he have informed them when he moved to a different dealership? Most sales reps do that.

For all I know, this story is the truth and exactly as it happened. But it could also be a fraud, intended to slam a competitor. So take posts like this with a grain of salt.

...don't you run this whole forum thing? Why not just pull this person's IP or emaill address and see if it is an MDP or Mr. Link...

:fearsettinginonMr.Link???:

[elliottsroost]

Originally Posted by GreenHornet

This is true....

Look at me... I love my new hair restoration and I'm not just a client, I'm the owner.

I sold cars a very, very long time ago. Rule number one. Never trade a car in, always try and sell it outright prior to going car shopping. Yes it's a pain, but the extra money you get towards your trade only comes from the MSRP of the vehicle you are looking at. Even at 500 over invoice the dealer is still making alot of money, even at 1 dollar over invoice the dealer makes a very nice profit. It's called holdback. Holdback on some models is in the thousands.....

I read about the holdback and on this vehicle it was stated as about $550. Question for you, please. If the dealer at one dealership finds the car that you want at another dealership and they do an exchange; who gets the holdback? Thanks