What do you do with T.O.s'? "Turn-overs" at dealerships; not Toronto

[ccap41]

13 hours ago, oldshurst442 said:

If a guy enters my restaurant and asks me a million and one questions about what ingredients my hamburger bread has got because of allergies in the middle of a lunch rush and monopolizes the time of  my cashier for 10 minutes and my cashier cant serve the literally 20-30 REGULARS...and then he just orders a coke, then changes that to a diet coke...then yeah. A WASTE OF TIME!

But...PART OF THE BUSINESS!

And...GREAT SERVICE ON THE PART OF MY CASHIER! And you know what...THAT customer is now a...REGULAR!

And THAT happens in MY restaurant. ALL. THE. TIME!

I had cashiers roll their eyes in the past when that happened when customers do that. I dont let my cashiers roll their eyes. I tell them to smile! I tell them to kiss ass. And you know what? Not only do these customers come back to my restaurant and eventually become regulars...even if its only a once a week or once a month regular, but these customers tip the tip jar quite well!

And...comparing a 10 dollar meal to a 30 000 dollar transaction is ludacrous!

But...its funny how MY customers DEMAND all the ATTENTION required and ALL THE ASS KISSING done by my staff and  myself  for a lousy 20 bucks, even if they dont plop that amount today and if its only for tomorrow...but for 20 000 bucks...its called waste of your time...

And when I receive great service even if I'm not making a purchase that day, I recommend that place and/or person. I did it just a few months ago when looking at kitchen appliances the gf and I received remarkable service even though we told him up front we aren't quite ready but we need to know a ballpark number we're going to spend and what we want out of said appliances. The gentleman treated us incredibly well and when a friend of mine was shopping for a refrigerator I told him about the place we went and how helpful the guy was(Dean) and they went there and bought a refrigerator from them. People can be too short sighted to realize how far customer service can go even when a purchase isn't going to be made that day. 

13 hours ago, oldshurst442 said:

A hotdog or hamburger...

Hamburger, every time.  

[Robert Hall]

14 hours ago, oldshurst442 said:

 

I have customers who cant decide between a french fry or Onion ring. A hotdog or hamburger...

 

I'd rather have a cheeseburger...about the only time I want a hot dog is at a baseball game.   Not a big fan of onion rings.   How about poutine instead of plain french fries?    Mmmm...cheese curds..

[oldshurst442]

10 hours ago, ccap41 said:

And when I receive great service even if I'm not making a purchase that day, I recommend that place and/or person. I did it just a few months ago when looking at kitchen appliances the gf and I received remarkable service even though we told him up front we aren't quite ready but we need to know a ballpark number we're going to spend and what we want out of said appliances. The gentleman treated us incredibly well and when a friend of mine was shopping for a refrigerator I told him about the place we went and how helpful the guy was(Dean) and they went there and bought a refrigerator from them. People can be too short sighted to realize how far customer service can go even when a purchase isn't going to be made that day. 

Hamburger, every time.  

Dont get me wrong.

I could be a little bastard with some customers...but the ones that Im a bastard to are the ones that manipulate the situation to get free shyte from me.  LIE that they had a hair in their food.  Or try to be confusing and not clear when ordering so the order gets messed up so they could cause a scene to embarrass the staff and the establishment  to bully us to a free meal...

I could see that shte a mile away...and I guess that would be akin to tire kickers that truly waste salespeople times....

Or the ones that use a quote from one salesman  and then leave that dealership and go to another one and try to get another salesman to beat that quote...

Or the truly indecisive ones that have no clue what it is the need or want...

Or the ones that want to buy a Bentley Mulsanne with a Chevy Cavalier budget...(I  get those types in my restaurant....they order a shyte load of food, they want cheese on a burger and flip out on the 75 cents I charge for extra cheese...then they start eliminating stuff from their order because apparently Im too expensive and then they pay with a credit card...and sometimes that credit card dont work... ) But I take all that with a smile....because the other customers in the restaurant all listen to how I handle that and when I take it in like a champ, they realize how shyte that client was and how nice I was (my partner and my staff included) and then they come back to my restaurant instead of that McDonald's next to me...OK...sometimes they go to the McDonald's next to me...a Big Mac will ALWAYS be a Big Mac...) 

But the ones that want to ROB me trying to FOOL me dont fare too well with me...I do NOT hold back.

If we are at fault and there truly was a hair in their food, or we truly messed up their order, THAT is a different thing and we are very very sorry for it and we compensate for it...yes with a reimbursement of the complete meal AND we re-do whatever they want us to re-do...ONLY if we truly are at fault. 

But yeah...in the restaurant business, Id say there are MORE dipshytes in MY industry as  some try to take advantage of the old adage "The customer is always right".   I get those types almost on a weekly basis. Well...it used to be weekly. Now its more of a monthly thing. People know NOT to phoque around in MY restaurant. But they also know that our service is next to excellence!

9 hours ago, Cubical-aka-Moltar said:

I'd rather have a cheeseburger...about the only time I want a hot dog is at a baseball game.   Not a big fan of onion rings.   How about poutine instead of plain french fries?    Mmmm...cheese curds..

 

10 hours ago, ccap41 said:

Hamburger, every time.

I say yes to the poutine! But everytime I have one at the store, I dont feel like working right after. It stuffs you and it makes you lazy afterwards.  

A hotdog at a baseball game is AWESOME...sadly...Montreal does not have a baseball team anymore. (I do eat hotdogs sometimes at my kids games...but not last year as a coached last year. No time was had for eating. We spent are time...WINNING!!!! Thinking about doing the same this year. )  

Soon though...Montreal will get my beloved Expos back!!!

I usually go burger and fries or 2 hotdogs and a poutine  at a fast food joint. Depending really on my appetite.  I got no preference. 

I HATE onion rings. I HATE serving them too! 

We have McCains Frozen rings at our restaurant. They are good. I just never took to onion rings. 

 

[Robert Hall]

Working with a group of Canadians in the mid 00s in Denver I came to appreciate home made poutine,  Kokanee beer and Western Pizza. (they had outposts in Denver and Phoenix at one time).

[G. David Felt]

Wife and I worked in restaurants during college and I know how hard the work it. Good Service deserves a good tip. My wife and I always over tip for solid good service.

I agree with everyone here, as a customer, the service I get be it from a place to eat or a place to make a major purchase can make me spend more money if the end result is I want to come back. Even in the discovery phase, you always treat everyone as if they are buying right then and there. 

Listen to what they are telling you, ask the probing questions to get them to open up so the sales person can help you. Course I go in with a solid Idea of what I want or at least want to look at and so I value the sales persons time as much as my own.

No waste.  

[oldshurst442]

3 minutes ago, dfelt said:

Wife and I worked in restaurants during college and I know how hard the work it. Good Service deserves a good tip. My wife and I always over tip for solid good service.

I agree with everyone here, as a customer, the service I get be it from a place to eat or a place to make a major purchase can make me spend more money if the end result is I want to come back. Even in the discovery phase, you always treat everyone as if they are buying right then and there. 

Listen to what they are telling you, ask the probing questions to get them to open up so the sales person can help you. Course I go in with a solid Idea of what I want or at least want to look at and so I value the sales persons time as much as my own.

No waste.  

All what was said and done in this thread.

Yes. It all comes down to communication and respect, on both parties. 

[trinacriabob]

But we pretty much all agree that, when you're far, far from home, you're at a hotel/motel for work and/or pleasure, you wander over to the nearby auto dealership strip, and you TELL THEM ALL THAT, for them to pursue you is obnoxious, right?  They should just let you browse.

[trinacriabob]

This just in!  Last night, I went onto a used car lot prior to going to a fish fry type buffet.  They were coincidentally close to each other.  I had spotted a '94 to '96 Caprice Classic there.  The guy gladly showed me the car and it had the 4.3 liter "baby LT1" V8.  I turned the key and I immediately made it a point to note that there was an unusual growl, possibly in a manifold and/or an exhaust leak.  He nodded.  Everything else about it was nice.  Love that expanse of dashboard ... what an old school cruiser.  Overall, it was clean. The gauges are all analog, save the centered digital speedometer.

4.3 V8s, whether derivatives by Chevy or Olds, have always been great little small block units and, probably because of the way their intakes are configured, can run so quietly.  Or should.  I like these engines quite a bit.  So much space under that hood.  Funny that the alternator, power steering, and compressor are all vertically stacked to the left, with less pulley action on the right bank, like the air injection pump.  He told me that, with the shroud being the same, the 4.3 and 5.7 are identical in appearance in these units and a person needs to read the placards.

He actually started to talk to me about cars of the 70s, 80s, and 90s, and told me he had the Monte Carlo the first year they put the 4.3 liter Vortec V6 into this car (1985) and I told him I putted around in a rented bucket seat/console Monte Carlo with this very engine picked up at Newark Airport for about $175 a week and explored Manhattan, Bergen County (NJ), Westchester County, and Atlantic City while visiting a relative. 

He just gave me his card and let it go at that.  It was 20 minutes prior to closing on Good Friday, and the atmosphere at most places of business seems to have been very chill this weekend.

[FAPTurbo]

as soon as i'm approached at a dealership, i politely ask for the rep's card and say i'm looking. they wish me a nice day, and i go about my business, in the comfiest driver seat. 

if another approaches me, i just say i'm being helped by the guy's name on the card, and then I'm entirely left alone, free to massage my taint on the shift knob per my fetish. 

don't be weird with sales people...

Edited April 1, 2018 by FAPTurbo

[Scout]

I was recently at a dealership talking to a salesman about PHEV cars. Told him I was researching them for a possible future purchases to replace my wife's car. I was very clear (and polite) that I was not buying anything now and I just wanted to look around. He continued to follow me around and did the "I can get you into something today" routine. Again I told him I'm not buying anything today. He then proceeded to the what kind of monthly payment would you like. I told him again the car would be for my wife and she would determine the payment she is comfortable with when the time comes. He then wanted to know what she drove. I told him I just wanted to look around. I'm not interested in buying anything now, and when that time comes I'll let him know. His interest shifted to what I drove, most likely because I was the one there. I told him a truck as I strolled through the car area. Naturally his next question was what would you be looking for in a truck. And that's when he became a salesman that I will never buy anything from. Not because of the questions, but because of his know it all reaction when I answered him. 

 

More on this encounter when I have time to finish. 

[Scout]

Was unable to edit the previous so did some copy paste, and added on.

 

 

I was recently at a dealership talking to a salesman about PHEV cars. Told him I was researching them for a possible future purchases to replace my wife's car. I was very clear and polite that I was not buying anything now and I just wanted to look around. He continued to follow me around and did the "I can get you into something today" routine. Again I told him I'm not buying anything today. He then proceeded to the what kind of monthly payment would you like. I told him again the car would be for my wife and she would determine the payment she is comfortable with when the time comes. He then wanted to know what she drove. I told him I just wanted to look around. I'm not interested in buying anything now, and when that time comes I'll let him know. His interest shifted to what I drove, most likely because I was the one there. I told him a truck as I strolled through the car area. Naturally his next question was,what kind of truck do you drive, and what would you be looking for in a truck. And that's when he became a salesman that I will never buy anything from. Not because of the questions, but because of his know it all reaction when I answered him. 

 

Keep in mind I'm at a Ford dealer this whole time.  

I told him I'd be interested to know where PHEV pickup options are going.  His response, in a shocked condescending tone, "phev pickup, that's the dumbest thing I ever heard of!".  At this point I'm mearly tolerating the presence of this salesman, but I was curious to his reaction. So for some reason I asked him why.  In that same condescending know it all tone as earlier, "trucks are for work.  You cant work a PHEV.  And you don't buy a truck for gas mileage."   By now this salesman has more than confirmed that he is clueless.  So I decided to play his game.  I told him that I disagree and there are company's that are working on PHEV trucks that show a lot of promise.  Again with the arrogance he says O, how much can they haul.  I informed him that they could haul 2000 pounds.  He says, how much can they tow.  I told him about 5000 pounds.  Naturally (any one want to guess where he went from there before continuing to read this)  His response was, 5000 pounds, we have four cylinders that can do better, and only a 2000 payload.  He was in full on salesman mode at this point, touting the superiority of his product.  And as some of you may have guessed, I was done with him so there was no more being nice about the product around me out of politeness.  I decided to let him have it in a very matter of fact way.  Knowing Ford had nothing in the way of hybred trucks I asked him why do you put four cylinders in full size trucks. Well for efficiency he said proudly.  But I thought you said people don't buy trucks for efficiency.  Do you realize (I knew he didn't) That I can soon get a truck that can go 80 miles using no gas, then go as far as I want with the on board generator.  On top of that I has a higher payload than my current truck that has hauled anything and everything I have ever asked it to.  This guy didn't give up for some reason.  He then starts to tout the ecoboost ability's and towing.  I explained to him you could have eco, or, boost, but not both, and that I thought that naming that engine ecoboost was one of the dumbest things I ever heard of.  And furthermore the biggest completion being GM and Ram have V8'S that often get better fuel economy under load.  I could almost see his ears steaming at this point.  I went on to say that I origanly came on the lot to look at phev (the Fusion in my case) cars and SUV's.  And as I originally mentioned I was doing some research.  I went on, since I have been here I found out that you don't offer any kind of plug in hybred SUV, and the Fusion I wanted to check out has an almost unusable truck because of the battery.  I wasn't done, I then pointed out that the used volt sitting on the lot has more cargo space, and can go much further on electric alone than the Fusion.  And that there was no foreseeable future when the F-150 was going to offer the tech I was interested in.  So in doing my do diligence and researching what you have to offer it would seem that you are behind the curve when compared to the competition.  The sales man turned around and started to walk away in an obviously pissed  way.  

 

There was more to the conversation with him boasting about the ability of trucks, and me countering everything with logic, but this has already gone too long.  

As mentioned countless times in the past, many of us know ten times more about the vehicle we are looking at than the person trying to sell it to us.  So It comes off as very off putting when some idiot on a car lot talks down to us.   

 

Now for the record, this particular dealer is great, and I will buy from them again. But If this particular salesman approaches me I will find the owners, whom I have dealt with many times and let them know  that I would not piss on him if he was on fire.  

Take what you want from that experience, but remember, this is how some dealers get a bad name.  Not all dealers are bad, but sometimes the staff can sour what could have been a good experience.  The unfortunate part of that whole thing above is that if that was my first experience at that dealer I would have never gone back.  But it wasn't my first experience with them, and I know how far they have gone out of the way, and out of their pocket to help me in the past.  My concern is that idiot I dealt with that day will piss of other customers.  And on that note, that brings up a whole new topic for debate.

 

 

[trinacriabob]

I forgot to update this.

After 2 calls from the sales manager, to which I responded once to tell him that the original person I met with was just fine, I got a voice mail from the "Customer Care Manager," yet a third person, to see how I was coming along with my decision.  What decision???  The whole message was very scripted and she had one of those interesting gravelly voices of an older cocktail waitress in an off-Strip Vegas casino who had just gotten off a smoke break, so I hit the save button for the message.  I tried to call her back because I got such a kick out of her voice, but it went into a general message box so I didn't leave a message.  Then, the first salesman called me back and I had to (fictitiously) tell him that this would be an adjunct car to my primary sled and that I wasn't really on the bubble to purchase.  Hopefully, they got it.  But what a complete turn-off.

I guess the lesson is to wait until a person can snag the updated version of this compact car for $19.95 for a day from Enterprise or Budget to go somewhere within 100 miles of home, familiarize themselves with it at their leisure, and not have to deal with all these phone calls ... about 7 in total ... and from 3 different people.

Edited May 6, 2018 by trinacriabob

[ccap41]

I test drove a Hyundai Elantra GT a couple months ago as Hyundai was giving $40 amazon gift cards away with any test drive and the guy I dealt with was really cool and we just BS'd the whole time but I get a call 2-3 times a week since then from their manager or whoever asking me about it.. It's always while I'm working so I never answer but good lord.. They have to have called me no less than 10 times at this point. 

Edit: Probably more like a month and a half ago.. 

[trinacriabob]

The above indicates that there's no such thing as a free lunch.  I'm also wary of coupons and specials for LOFs "on the cheap," real cheap, at car dealerships.  If they're charging $19.99 for a LOF, "it's about something else."  Live and learn.  Pass.

[Scout]

2 hours ago, trinacriabob said:

The above indicates that there's no such thing as a free lunch.  I'm also wary of coupons and specials for LOFs "on the cheap," real cheap, at car dealerships.  If they're charging $19.99 for a LOF, "it's about something else."  Live and learn.  Pass.

Dealerships loose money on those if that's all you have done. I believe it's actually called loss leaders.  The hope is that they will find other work to do while inspecting the rest of the vehicle. Worn belts, brakes, ext ext.  Any other work that can be done that will be profitable.   I actually look for those coupons because I really can't do it myself any cheaper once I buy the materials. 

[trinacriabob]

12 hours ago, Scout said:

I believe it's actually called loss leaders.  The hope is that they will find other work to do while inspecting the rest of the vehicle. Worn belts, brakes, ext ext.  Any other work that can be done that will be profitable. 

Exactly.  Loss leader service.  Even loss leader cars.  When I was a teen, you'd see them advertise random new opera windowed Regals or Cutlasses that were priced super low, and of which they only had one or two, because they came with the base engine (a 6 when all others were V8s), crank windows, wheel covers, and no air conditioning.  I actually liked pawing these cars, lifting up the hood and seeing all the space, and how simple they were inside.  And, no, I'm not even minimally Scandinavian.

But, as for loss leader LOF, I don't mind if they find brake pads that are thin or belts that need attention.  What I mind is when they are lying and/or when they want to drum up work for something that barely needs attention, like a seal that keeps on going, because it's all labor and no parts.  I've stopped going to dealers with whom I've had a long run when it went this route AND I had also given them tune ups and trans fluid changes along the way.  I would much rather pay $35 or $40 for the LOF, not be upsold and pressured, than pay $27.95 and be lied to or feel pressured.  Then, if what they identify is outlandish, can you even trust them with your car going forward if you keep turning down that extra work?  In many cases, there's no visual connection between where you're supposed to wait and where the car is being worked on.

Edited May 8, 2018 by trinacriabob