Avoid Schaller Acura in CT...
07-22-2002, 03:49 PM
#1
Pro
Thread Starter
Join Date: May 2001
Age: 60
Posts: 500
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Avoid Schaller Acura in CT...
I hate this dealership.
First up, last year when I acquired my 2002 TL/S, the Sales Manager at Schaller plays all sorts of old-style dealer games with hidden fees, last minute changes, and revisions of my offer and figures, and lost the deal over $200.
That's right - $200.
I was pissed as all hell at his tactics, but calmer heads prevailed, and I simply walked away and did a fax blast that afternoon.
Literally within 15 minutes, I had three other CT Acura dealers more than happy to accept my deal as is, I bought my car at Greenwich Acura - they were OUTSTANDING.
Now my father-in-law wants to get a used TL.
Schaller has a 2000 that looks good priced at $24,900.
My father-in-law wants to put CASH on the table, and get around $6,000 for his trade - a sweet 1991 Legend L 5-speed in perfect condition with only 80K on it. The car has an awesome $1,200 tire and wheel package he just put on last year, with new Blizzaks on the stock wheels. Dealer serviced, all records - as clean as a car gets.
The Kelley Blue Book and Edmunds dealer trade-in value (the LOWEST figures for this car), come in around $5,900 with a typical resale of between $8-9K. We wanted to get around $6,000 for the car given its exceptional condition.
Schaller checks the car out and has the gaul to come back and tell him his car is only worth $3,000, but gee, they'll make him a special deal and offer him $4,000 for it. BAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!
Now the fun part.
After I explain that the wheel package alone is worth $1,200 and any college kid off the street would be thrilled to pay $6,000 for the car off the lot, the sales guy tells us that:
"The wheel and tire package doesn't add to the trade in value, custom modifications aren't worth anything because we're not reselling the car, we're just shipping it to an auction."
Ok, after some back and forth - I come up with this:
If the wheels "aren't worth anything and don't add to the trade in value", we'll take their deal and the piss poor trade-in offer, but we're taking the custom wheels and putting the stock tires and wheels back on the car.
Then they start back peddling and tell me that the deal is "already written up with two sets oif wheels", and gee they can't change that.
Excuse me? If the wheels "aren't worth anything", then the trade in value they gave us assumes that the wheels are worth ZERO.
If they're not even going to offer something close to Kelley Blue Book on the car even with the $1,200 custom wheels, what do they expect?
What a bunch of jackasses!
Once again I walk.
I write the Service Manager and tell him he's just lost all my business. Sorry, won't be spending my dollars at a dealerhip I can't do business in an honest manner with.
Then I talk to the General Manager - he's as bad as the Sales Manager and again tries to turn the tables on me and claims "I'm changing the deal"
What "deal"?? You mean the final offer I made to the Sales Manager that he wrote all over and bumped up by over $1,000??
I've bought six cars in the past ten years from Saab, Chrysler, and other Acura dealers, and this is by far the worst dealership I've ever dealt with.
Stay FAR away from this dealership folks.... better to find a dealer that will work with you in an honest and reputable manner.
First up, last year when I acquired my 2002 TL/S, the Sales Manager at Schaller plays all sorts of old-style dealer games with hidden fees, last minute changes, and revisions of my offer and figures, and lost the deal over $200.
That's right - $200.
I was pissed as all hell at his tactics, but calmer heads prevailed, and I simply walked away and did a fax blast that afternoon.
Literally within 15 minutes, I had three other CT Acura dealers more than happy to accept my deal as is, I bought my car at Greenwich Acura - they were OUTSTANDING.
Now my father-in-law wants to get a used TL.
Schaller has a 2000 that looks good priced at $24,900.
My father-in-law wants to put CASH on the table, and get around $6,000 for his trade - a sweet 1991 Legend L 5-speed in perfect condition with only 80K on it. The car has an awesome $1,200 tire and wheel package he just put on last year, with new Blizzaks on the stock wheels. Dealer serviced, all records - as clean as a car gets.
The Kelley Blue Book and Edmunds dealer trade-in value (the LOWEST figures for this car), come in around $5,900 with a typical resale of between $8-9K. We wanted to get around $6,000 for the car given its exceptional condition.
Schaller checks the car out and has the gaul to come back and tell him his car is only worth $3,000, but gee, they'll make him a special deal and offer him $4,000 for it. BAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!
Now the fun part.
After I explain that the wheel package alone is worth $1,200 and any college kid off the street would be thrilled to pay $6,000 for the car off the lot, the sales guy tells us that:
"The wheel and tire package doesn't add to the trade in value, custom modifications aren't worth anything because we're not reselling the car, we're just shipping it to an auction."
Ok, after some back and forth - I come up with this:
If the wheels "aren't worth anything and don't add to the trade in value", we'll take their deal and the piss poor trade-in offer, but we're taking the custom wheels and putting the stock tires and wheels back on the car.
Then they start back peddling and tell me that the deal is "already written up with two sets oif wheels", and gee they can't change that.
Excuse me? If the wheels "aren't worth anything", then the trade in value they gave us assumes that the wheels are worth ZERO.
If they're not even going to offer something close to Kelley Blue Book on the car even with the $1,200 custom wheels, what do they expect?
What a bunch of jackasses!
Once again I walk.
I write the Service Manager and tell him he's just lost all my business. Sorry, won't be spending my dollars at a dealerhip I can't do business in an honest manner with.
Then I talk to the General Manager - he's as bad as the Sales Manager and again tries to turn the tables on me and claims "I'm changing the deal"
What "deal"?? You mean the final offer I made to the Sales Manager that he wrote all over and bumped up by over $1,000??
I've bought six cars in the past ten years from Saab, Chrysler, and other Acura dealers, and this is by far the worst dealership I've ever dealt with.
Stay FAR away from this dealership folks.... better to find a dealer that will work with you in an honest and reputable manner.
07-23-2002, 10:54 AM
#2
Cruisin'
Join Date: Apr 2002
Age: 49
Posts: 24
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Hey Xorg, Just out of interest. What was your total landed cost at Greenwich Acura? I live in Greenwich and have tended to avoid them just cause I always get the sense that in Greenwich all the dealers charge top dollar. Devan Acura in Norwalk was great to me a couple of months ago.
I test Drove both a 2003 TL and TLS and they just let me take both of them out by myself. Very nice guys indeed.
JCG
I test Drove both a 2003 TL and TLS and they just let me take both of them out by myself. Very nice guys indeed.
JCG
07-23-2002, 12:28 PM
#3
Pro
Thread Starter
Join Date: May 2001
Age: 60
Posts: 500
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Surprisingly, it's just the opposite, I've found that the prices at dealerships get higher the more you move away from the shoreline.
Greenwich Acura beat out Schaller, Avon, Milford, and Antonilli when I got my 2002 TL/S, and the Sales Manager there (Rick), was simply outstanding - everything he put down on paper matched my figures to the penny, no games, no hidden fees, etc.
I think one reason why you can do better with these dealerships is that they're used to working with executives and smart people who don't like to play games - make a fair and honest deal, and they'll take it every time.
Get away from the shoreline, and you start to run into the sleazebags who play games and use old-style dealer tactics.
Greenwich Acura beat out Schaller, Avon, Milford, and Antonilli when I got my 2002 TL/S, and the Sales Manager there (Rick), was simply outstanding - everything he put down on paper matched my figures to the penny, no games, no hidden fees, etc.
I think one reason why you can do better with these dealerships is that they're used to working with executives and smart people who don't like to play games - make a fair and honest deal, and they'll take it every time.
Get away from the shoreline, and you start to run into the sleazebags who play games and use old-style dealer tactics.
07-23-2002, 02:40 PM
#4
Three Wheelin'
Join Date: Dec 2001
Age: 58
Posts: 1,765
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
im very surprised that you had a good experience there ( greenwich acura ) when i was looking for a NsX ....they were the place to go ... they did not leave such a great impression on me and even thou i had a deposit there on one of there cars .... it was there sales tactics that turned me off and i wound up buyin my car out in long island.
07-23-2002, 07:47 PM
#5
Pro
Thread Starter
Join Date: May 2001
Age: 60
Posts: 500
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
So today we take a trip out to Acura of Avon - what a difference!
The dealer and Sales Manager were a pleasure to work with, listened, no hard sell, no games, no hidden fees, and treated us as valued customers.
My father-in-law ended up getting a 1998 *RL* in great condition w/ Nav for $4,000 LESS than Schaller wanted for the 2000 TL w/o Nav.
They had no issue with the trade in and us keeping the custom wheels, offered free first service, and and even free repair of the car's first scratch or ding.
This is the way a dealership should treat its customers!
The dealer and Sales Manager were a pleasure to work with, listened, no hard sell, no games, no hidden fees, and treated us as valued customers.
My father-in-law ended up getting a 1998 *RL* in great condition w/ Nav for $4,000 LESS than Schaller wanted for the 2000 TL w/o Nav.
They had no issue with the trade in and us keeping the custom wheels, offered free first service, and and even free repair of the car's first scratch or ding.
This is the way a dealership should treat its customers!
07-23-2002, 07:48 PM
#6
Pro
Thread Starter
Join Date: May 2001
Age: 60
Posts: 500
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
NsX, all I can say is that I dealt directly with Greenwich's Sales Manager, and no games whatsoever.
He simply looked over my offer, his calculations matched mine to the penny, deal was done.
I was in and out of the delaership with my new TL/S in less than 20 minutes!
He simply looked over my offer, his calculations matched mine to the penny, deal was done.
I was in and out of the delaership with my new TL/S in less than 20 minutes!
07-23-2002, 09:59 PM
#7
WayTooManyAcuras
Hey Xorg,
I must admit that I have been happy with Schaller's service department, esp when the tranny died they were pretty good about it, not even bringing up the fact that I had mods on the car.
As far as purchasing goes, that's a different story. Next year, if I get a TL-S (2004), I am going to fax attack. I purchased 2 TL's there (99 TL Nav, 02 TL-S Nav) and did not get a great deal on either one. On the TL-S, since I got it the week that it came out, I really did not expect a great deal, but theycharged me full price on the kit, spoiler and wheel where other guys got them thrown in or at a deep discount by their dealers.
If the replacement tranny holds up 'till next March, I'll be looking at the 04TLs, the G35 and the new SAAB (so far).
At any rate, it is not a given that if I stay with Acura, that I get the car there. For service, that is a different story. Like I said, Brian has always been fair with me, through both cars.
:-jon
I must admit that I have been happy with Schaller's service department, esp when the tranny died they were pretty good about it, not even bringing up the fact that I had mods on the car.
As far as purchasing goes, that's a different story. Next year, if I get a TL-S (2004), I am going to fax attack. I purchased 2 TL's there (99 TL Nav, 02 TL-S Nav) and did not get a great deal on either one. On the TL-S, since I got it the week that it came out, I really did not expect a great deal, but theycharged me full price on the kit, spoiler and wheel where other guys got them thrown in or at a deep discount by their dealers.
If the replacement tranny holds up 'till next March, I'll be looking at the 04TLs, the G35 and the new SAAB (so far).
At any rate, it is not a given that if I stay with Acura, that I get the car there. For service, that is a different story. Like I said, Brian has always been fair with me, through both cars.
:-jon
Trending Topics
07-24-2002, 05:49 PM
#8
Banned
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Western MA
Posts: 2,157
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
You CT guys should check out Acura of Avon. There's where I bought mine and I've been very happy with both the sales and service departments. Granted, they're no PAA 
, but only half the distance for me....
, but only half the distance for me....
07-24-2002, 06:29 PM
#9
Pro
Thread Starter
Join Date: May 2001
Age: 60
Posts: 500
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
No argument there - Brian in Schaller's Service Department is great, and I let Art Schaller know that in my compliant letter to him (which he has yet to respond to after two days.)
But the Sales and General Manager are both old slimy school dealers who wouldn't know a live customer if they saw one, and they treat people like crap and as if they're doing you a favor by allowing you a buy a car from them.
We picked up the RL at Acura of Avon today, and I agree, TOTALLY different. Like night and day compared to Schaller, and enjoyed every minute there.
But the Sales and General Manager are both old slimy school dealers who wouldn't know a live customer if they saw one, and they treat people like crap and as if they're doing you a favor by allowing you a buy a car from them.
We picked up the RL at Acura of Avon today, and I agree, TOTALLY different. Like night and day compared to Schaller, and enjoyed every minute there.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Oakes
Wash & Wax
10
10-12-2015 11:17 AM
