Car Dealer Scams To Avoid - Buyer Beware: Here's what to watch out for the next time you're in the showroom.

Of the top 10 industries that received the most consumer complaints last year, three were auto related.

New-car dealers, used-car dealers and auto service and repair shops registered almost 54,000 complaints in North America, according to the Better Business Bureau. They were the No. 4, 7 and 10th-most complaint-ridden industries of 2009. It's enough to make anyone blanch at the thought of buying a new car.

"Difficult times lead to creativity," says Bill Gerhard, AAA's director of financial services. "People come up with sensational hooks to try and get you to the dealerships, and once they lure you in, the goal is to sell you something and generate as much profit for the dealership as they can."

(continued)
Read Article

91z4me - 4/5/2010 10:08:34 AM

0 Boost

Pretty basic stuff but something I am sure the general public doesn't know about.

Also what is all the hubbub about VIN etching? Manufacturers already put the VIN in numerous places on the vehicle. Why would you need to have that done by the dealer or yourself?

OBie - 4/5/2010 10:24:11 AM

0 Boost

Good article. Basic stuff, yes,but it's a good refresher for the memory.

kuvakas1 - 4/5/2010 12:15:31 PM

+3 Boost

The tone of these types of articles is always a concern to me. Is it really a surprise and an offense that the dealer intends to sell you something and make a profit?

The trick is to walk out if things get hairy and find a dealer you're comfortable with. The dealer actually deserves to make a profit if he's going to be around to provide service after the sale. There are plenty of honorable and easy-to-deal-with dealers out there. We vote with our feet...and going in hell-bent-for-leather is always a disaster for that buyer who frequently ends up with in a schlock house dealership because they are the only ones willing to put up with that treatment until they can get him in the finance office....then the pressure really starts.

I spent 25 years in the car business, as a general manager in 4 different dealership, 2 of them with volumes over 500 units a month. We worked hard to treat our clients with some dignity and make an honest dollar. The ones who were to most difficult to deal with were the ones who worked the hardest to buy the vehicle "under dealer invoice". Ironically, most of the time they would leave our place dissatisfied and end up in someone's hot box.

CarCrazedinCali - 4/5/2010 6:09:16 PM

0 Boost

THANKYOU KUVAKAS1! So true! I completely concur. I work hard for my clients and the dealership, and my surveys show that they love me and our dealership because we don't play games like those lots they must be referring to.

Dodgeyaussie - 4/6/2010 7:25:52 AM

-1 Boost

Blah Blah Blah all dealerships are evil...