Peter Vardy - Vauxhall.

smk77

Just come home from having an interesting experience at a Peter Vardy garage.

Basically, they're advertising a brand new Vauxhall Corsa 1.2 SXi for £7995 after swappage and partners. I qualify for both so not a bad price for a brand new car.

Before visiting the showroom (about 20 miles away) I went to a local Vauxhall dealership who gave me a quote including the swappage and discounts. He wrote a complete breakdown of the price and after all discounts it came to £10,728 (inc metallic paint which is an extra £370) When I mentioned the Vardy price the salesman told me to go along there and get them to provide a breakdown of the price like he had done and then to come back.

At Vardy's I explained that I'd like get the price of the car with a PCP. The salesman said that he'd like to take us for a test drive first. I explained that we didn't have much time and that I'd like to just get an idea of the monthly cost. The salesman said he'd speak to his manager and then came back saying that his manager was going to get a price but again mentioned the test drive. Then, the manager appeared and told me that they sell cars by giving the customer a test drive first. I explained that wasn't the way that I buy cars. I told him that we've identified 6 cars and now were in the process of working out which ones we could afford (after considering list price and finance deals) and then we'd go for test drives that tick the boxes. The managers response was "well, in that case this isn't the place for you". He then went on a rant about providing the right "customer experience" and that he didn't want to talk about prices before making sure that the car was right for us. To me, all that means is that he wanted us to fall in love with the car so that they could then work on a monthly payment that suited our budget.

Given the response and confrontational nature I can only assume that he was trying to hide something. Exactly what the local Vauxhall dealer I went to suggested...

hartcjhart

or he thought you may be a time waster,come in work out prices for an hour,then drive the car and not like it

smk77

hartcjhart wrote: »

or he thought you may be a time waster,come in work out prices for an hour,then drive the car and not like it

Rather than the type of time waster who takes a car for a test drive without any intention of buying? And since when does it take an hour to give a PCP quote based on my deposit and repayment terms? They could do that in the time it takes for me to get into a car and put my seatbelt on.

Why go for a test drive in a car you can't afford? Oh, because they'll make sure you can afford it by lengthening the repayment time and increasing the APR or reducing the repayment time leaving a higher final payment. It's amazing how cheap and appealing they can make cars. The Ford garage gave use quotes (without a test drive) ranging from £59 a month to £168 a month on a brand new fiesta. In fact, they were more than happy to.

Pound

smk77 wrote: »

Given the response and confrontational nature I can only assume that he was trying to hide something. Exactly what the local Vauxhall dealer I went to suggested...

A dishonest car salesman? Shocker!

Equaliser123

hartcjhart wrote: »

or he thought you may be a time waster,come in work out prices for an hour,then drive the car and not like it

Why offer a test drive if a time waster?

smk77

Pound wrote: »

A dishonest car salesman? Shocker!

True. What amazes me is that he clearly didn't want to entertain the idea of a sale because I wasn't going to play by their rules. I was not wasting his time either - we would have bought at that price. However, I wouldn't have bought if the price was wrong regardless of the test drive because I'm not going to have mislead.

I also can't believe the way that he was so keen for me to write and complain. Clearly he wasn't bothered because he knew that the company wouldn't have been bothered either. In fact, they'd probably have given him a bonus for getting rid of a customer who wouldn't have rolled over and let them rip him off.

pinkshoes

I would have just gone for the test drive and driven it like a loony, until he insisted you go back to the showroom to talk numbers instead!

kazzah60

I bought my car online- really !
brand new Ford Fiesta from Ford Online - no test drive, no pushy salesman, great deal
delivered to my door
Fab experience !

pstuart

Controlled stage selling - if it doesn't go by the numbers they get confused and are taught to vent on the customer so they are positive and ready for the next 'mark'.

kevin26

Hi

Peter Vardy wouldnt have ripped you off, the price is the price you seen on the web for 7998 inc partners and swappage. Which for a new car is pretty amazing.

How do you know if you want to buy a car if you dont know what it drives like? you might of hated it.

And no they wouldnt have ripped you off on the finance as its one of the lowest in the industry.

Ive worked in a few garages and know first hand that most will try and rip you off in one way or another, not peter though.

We sell cars at a loss sometimes just to get your business.

You proved this as you got a quote from another dealer for over £2000 more.

paddyrg

The sales process - a test drive is all about getting you to 'own' the car. You will enjoy the car, the salesman will ask you questions that reinforce your love of the car, and you will start to take 'ownership'. Then when you come to doing the figures, you will act consistently with your previous 'ownership', so when the financing costs are all worked out (and you have a credit premium) they can use your 'ownership' to get you across the financing costs hurdle.