Some unscrupulous people will go to any means to own a ”classic” car.

A customer changed her mind about buying a new car. The sales manager said her trade-in was already sold. The case ended up in front of a jury.

Cleveland’s Fox News affiliate reports that a jury convicted the former sales manager at a local Chrysler dealership on theft charges after he refused to return a customer’s trade-in after she backed out of a deal.
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I spent my day in a session with a large assortment of retail auto industry types today. I had the pleasure of sitting with an attractive young lady who has a reputation for being a fearsome service sales person. She thought that the above options should be added to the bottom of a standard repair order.

This could be fitting for just about any sales industry!

This is a “how to” with a unique approach to getting exactly the deal and car you want, to not only avoid all the things we have grown to hate about visiting a car dealership, AND actually enjoy the process. What a concept!

As car buyers, here is just some of the negative junk that we have all experienced:

Rude and indifferent treatment by salesmen that are dressed like pimps (don’t you ever wonder what their house or car looks like?), being ripped off on trade-ins and new purchase, the tons of wasted time it takes to transact a deal, the agony of being handed off to a “closer”, and if you are a woman just coming onto the dealership premises by yourself, being asked, “is your husband with you?” as if you don’t have a brain in your head.
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The voice was muffled, but the words were audible and ringing with authority: “Back out of there slowly and keep your hands in sight.” At the moment of that command, I was headfirst down the driver’s side well, with a flashlight in my mouth, my hands desperately trying to re-join the linkage of the accelerator pedal to the carburetor rod, and my legs sticking out above the driver’s seat. From the viewpoint of a passing California Highway Patrolman, the image of a bright red convertible parked by the side of the highway with a pair of legs waving like semaphore flags, may possibly have created at least a degree of suspicion.

It was 10:00 on a moonlit summer night, and I was on my way back from San Luis Obisbo to my home in Santa Barbara. The top was off on my custom built ’28 Bugatti Type 55, and the throaty exhaust of the modified Porsche engine in third gear was like a massage to my soul as we cruised under the bright light of a full moon through the pass on Highway 154 alongside the lake and stream, and eventually over the incredible historic bridge just south of Lake Cachuma. Just as I roared across the bridge, I felt a pop under my foot and the Bugatti instantly decelerated. I braked to a stop in a wide spot off the road and turned off the motor. With the help of a flashlight, I could see that the accelerator pedal had pulled loose, and since there were no doors on this coupe, I had to dive headfirst to the bottom of the well to repair the damage.
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From the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia comes a the bizarre story of the car exporting business gone bad. A Lithuanian ex-pat who exports American cars to his home country has been charged with the murder of his two salesmen.

Apparently the man was in financial trouble. When his salesmen, fellow countrymen, asked for a raise he lost his mind and put an end to their sales career. Oh yeah, and their lives!

And you thought Tony Soprano was the only one who had human resources issues!

Source: IHT via Jalopnik

It’s been many years since I’ve worked in this end of Toronto. It seems the community have welcomed me in the nicest of ways. Monday, I was treated to a killer smoked meat sammich, complete with pepperettes and pickles. Yesterday, yet another customer sent pizza. What a nice treat, to find that people appreciate being looked after. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen food arriving at a dealership, courtesy of customers.
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Regular readers of The Garage are going to think I’ve lost my mind. I’ve moved around so much since we created this little project that it has to confuse folks. Let’s see. Within the last 18 months there has been Nissan, Mazda, Nissan again, Infiniti and now….Mitsubishi.
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When most people are buying or selling a used car, they always want to know what the book value of that car is. The blue book is in reality the Kelley Blue Book and has been reporting the market value of used car for 80 years now. From it’s beginnings in a car dealership in 1926, KBB has grown to include a comprehensive online resource that includes motorcycles, rv’s and watercraft. KBB also provides information on financing and insurance.

Kelley Blue Book press release after the break

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