How not to buy a car

Posted byTime Traveler of LifePosted inUncategorizedTags:, ,

This is a tale of a customer’s experience purchasing two cars from the same dealership.  Both times the dealership won, but don’t they always?

“Gap Insurance” is now necessary to “protect” your investment.  Don’t forget, as soon as you drive your new car off the lot, it loses value.  Uh! The reason that your shiny new car loses value is two reasons!  You owe more than you paid because of how the interest is amortized,  and no matter how well you negotiated, you paid too much!  You used to buy Gap insurance from an agent outside the dealership, considerably cheaper, but that gap was closed.  It is only sold by the dealership, and guess what  It is up to them how much you pay!    

This is my husband and my story of dealing with the same dealership twice.  My husband was recovering from open-heart surgery (a new cow aorta valve and double by-pass).  We had been full time RVing for several years without a car, but it was really a lot of time and trouble for me to drive our 32 ft. RV in the hospital parking lot, and get it out again, every day.  During the hospital stay, I rented a car for about $600 a week. 

Before the surgery, there were numerous visits to Doctors and a Dental Surgeon because Shirl had to have his teeth pulled before the surgery.  I maneuvered in and out of the Surgeon’s lot very well, and the workers got a hoot out of seeing the Motorhome in the parking lot, taking up 3 or 4 spaces.  We were full-time RV’ers for 6 ½ years and never came close to an accident.  When one of us was the driver/pilot, the other rode “shotgun” to make sure someone didn’t run into us. 

It was getting old trying to sightsee.  Before we made reservations or paid for tickets, we looked the site up on Google to make sure we could get out of the parking lot.  Getting in was not usually a problem, but getting out could be tricky. 

When yet another salesperson called to see if they were ready to buy a car, I said yes.  I told them my terms! 1. qualify me ahead of time. 2. Get us in and out fast as my husband is a heart patient.  3. No money out of our pocket.  4. Not a dollar above the stated monthly payment we were willing to pay.  They agreed that they could do that. 

Off they went down the Yellow Brick Road to the dealership.  We were shown two cars, and gagging turned them down.  The third one was a Red Honda Fit. 

We fell in love with it. This dealership has a large sign that says that their “Certified Used Cars have an 18 point inspection, and are in great shape, had a manual, a jack, and a spare tire! 

We arrived at the dealership in North Phoenix at 10:00 am and were told it would not be long.  About every hour we cooled our heels, we were told they were very busy but would momentarily talk to the sales closer.  At around 5:00, I pulled one of the salesperson aside and said we were going home.  My husband was exhausted and needed to eat.  He assured me it would be only minutes.  A few minutes later, one of the workers appeared with some dinner.  It was nothing that the husband should be eating after his surgery. 

Why we didn’t leave is unknown to me to this day.  Shirl wanted me to have wheels, other than the Motorhome to drive! 

At 9:00 pm, after saying no to all the add-ons, we were finally allowed to sign the papers!  We still didn’t have a car to drive, as we were informed that we could come back in two days to pick up their car. I balked and told them they were going to deliver it or forget the whole deal.

We were both so tired and angry that we didn’t want to see or talk to the dealership EVER!  We didn’t get the manual, the jack, or the spare tire!  AND the salesperson brought out another set of papers just like the ones that they signed.  The figures were the same.  However, they changed the primary name on the title.  Now it was in my husbands’ name.  Nice!!!

We loved our Red Honda Fit and named it Red Rover.   Red Rover wrote several newsletter, while we were on the road. We tried many times to get the missing items and were given the “Royal Run Around.”  We NEVER got any of them.

Stay tuned to Chapter 2

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Published by Time Traveler of Life

Biography Creating worlds, characters, and wielding power like a madwoman, making my characters happy, sad, angry, and some of them with no redeeming qualities. I probably shouldn’t admit this, but I sometimes laugh out loud when I am writing a scene, and I have been known to cry when one of my favorites has to die. I am a left-handed Gemini, what do you expect? Reading bedtime stories to my two children until they fell asleep or until they just told me to go away, was fun. Making up wild stories for my grandchild, and creating Halloween costumes from Cowboys to a Dragon, was another favorite thing to do. I missed that so much when they were grown, that I started writing. My yearly newsletters frequently were drafted third-person by my Love Birds, Miranda our motorhome, and by Sir Fit the White Knight, our faithful Honda. Throughout the years, some of my creative talents centered around writing letters of complaint expressing my displeasure with services or products. One crucial, at least to my Son, was a note to our local school bus driver petitioning her to allow him back on the bus. He was kicked off for making an obscene gesture at his buddy. I reminded her that it was not directed at her, and that “obscenity can be in the eye of the beholder,” kids use that gesture as a greeting. He rode the bus until he graduated. I loved driving my English teacher crazy. Leaving a “continued next week” at the end of my five handwritten pages required each week. He was one of many people that suggested I “do something about my writing.” I graduated from the School of Hard Knocks at the top of my class. After 30 years, in the trenches as a Real Estate Professional, I have found that truth is stranger than fiction. My books are filled with characters I met in that profession. Their names were changed to protect the guilty. Others were from people we met traveling around the country in Miranda, our Motorhome. I am married nearly 60 years to the love of my life, Shirl, and partner-produced two exceptionally talented children, and one grandchild who is our pride and joy.

One thought on “How not to buy a car”

  1. Sorry, goodness I hope your husband is recovering well. It is too bad people just can’t be honest. Stay safe and hope your husband is in great shape soon. 🤗💕❤️Hugs to you both Joni

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