carlos9827

iTrader: (2)

How was your dealer experience when you bought your 3G TL? If it wasn't too good....do you think you were disciminated against because of your age? I searched ofr similar threads, but this one will focus specifically on how younger TL owners were treated when they went to buy their car.

Here is my story

When I bought my TL back in 2005, I was 18 years old (one week away from 19th bday) I had pretty good credit considering my age, I remember walking into the Acura dealership and the sales girl was pretty nice at first, then they ran my credit and told me that I should be looking at Civics and NOT at a TL. I was like are u being serious right now?? They pretty much said it was too much car for me I knew I would qualify because I had 2 previous auto loans, one of them for 35k and always made my payments on time, I had good debt to income ratio, an my credit score was pretty good. Since they said they could not get me done, I drove straight to a different Acura Dealership and drove off the lot with my brand new 05 NBP TL w/Nav that night . Of course drove over to the first Acura dealership the next day to show them my new car, and with a really bitter tone the sales girl said, "Oh you bought your TL" I said of course I did!

vi3tboi

same thing happened to me, i was 19 when i bought my 06 wdp tl/navi.. i walked into the dealership and no one wanted to help me, they looked at me as if i didnt have the money to buy a car... after standing around for about half hour i decided to look for a guy that would actaully help me and ended up buying it straight out with a certified check and cash paid in full.. i then looked at the other salesmans that didnt bother to help and gave them a big smile

scottDOTb

I bought my car when I was 26 but whenever I make a business transaction like that I usually dress a little bummy. When I went into the dealership the only person that helped me was this cute girl. Everyone else just watched me as I was looking at cars, no so much as a, can I help you? The girl came over right away after she had come out of the back of the office. Must be my sexiness.

EL Cubano

word when i walked in to the acura dealership, dude walked up to me and said " used cars are over there", i guess it was the way i dressed, i basically rolled out of bed and went staright to the dealer lol.

msala524

iTrader: (3)

same here, I was between an IS 350 and the TL-S. The guy at the IS dealership kept telling me to bring my parents with me. I told him to f-off he just lost a good deal. When I went to acura it took me 20 mins to get the hovering salesmen to notice i was interested. I bought the car the same day!!

o4Komodo

iTrader: (2)

I bought my car from a used car dealership and the salesperson who approached me was awesome.
However, nearly every actual dealership I go to... no one attends to me. I visited Honda, Acura, Toyota, Nissan, Lexus and Infiniti... and none even bothered to look at me. Even when I approached a salesperson to talk about a car [even though I was just about to purchase the TL from the used dealer] they brushed me off and didn't take me to seriously and gave me false info.
However, just recently I went to an Acura dealership in Kitchener and they attended me to my every need. When the salesperson approached me I had inquired about the 4G TL and he put me on the waiting list to check it out when it comes.

jkrn2003

I'm 23 and bought my car 5 months ago. It wasn't a problem for me. I was dressed in business casual because I went after work.
maybe it's because people say I look older than 23.

tl_rox

OK guys, i know this thread is for the 18-22 years of age...but i'm 32 and i look like i'm in my early 20's (from what people say)...but i get this all the time from sales people. I just like the faces they make when you end up buying the item from another sales person (or another dealership) haha!

smsTL

iTrader: (1)

I bought my car from GMC dealer last year (very good deal couldn't pass it up). I went with my cousin who is around 27 years old at the time. The sales person came out of his office before we even walked inside and start talking to my cousin to see what he need. My cousin told him "he is the one who is looking for car not me" and suddenly the salesperson lost his interest and end up saying "are you sure?" The guy lost all the hopes assuming that even if i want to buy it i will not have enough credit. He was actually asking for my parents. I told him to do the credit check but he told me he would but he will get back to me next day for credit check because they were closing at the time BUT he charged me $300 service fee in advance and said that if i am approved he will give me the money back.

So next day he calls me with good news and when i went to pick up the car and he said "you are a successful person, aren't you?" I gave him a BIG Grin and drove off...


HOWEVER, it did not end there. police stopped my twice within two weeks for no damn reason. 1. the officer thought i stole the car because it wasn't in the system. 2. stops me and said "I thought you were someone else" "didn't I stop you yesterday" "is that your car" I reply all his questions and he took all my license, insurance, and registration to his car and comes back after 20min and said "I am sorry, I thought you were someone else". i said OK whatever.

NOW, when went to Acura dealer for warranty repair for HFL system. First they told me they would give me loaner need one then about half hour later one of the service women comes and tell me that "because you are too young we will not give you the loaner, its against our policy" I said ok whatever. But then when I went to get recall done the guy at the service gave me loaner anyway.

BTW, I am 22. I have a lot things under my name and never late payments, never got a ticket (other than the ones I got by mistake, which i fight it off), never an accident. Clean record

smsTL

iTrader: (1)

^^^ I forgot add. Even here (Acurazine) members makes comments about your age so thats why i don't show my real age...

and sorry for bursting out all the complains in one response. Still love ya all

ray-ban

I visited 4 dealerships. Nissan, Audi, Lexus and Acura.

I was in cargo pants and a t-shirt, nothing business about me there. At the Nissan dealership, I hovered the lot and the showroom for 15 mins sitting in cars and reading pamphlets. Never approached, or asked "can I help you". I left without hesitation.

off to Audi

Same deal. Not even a hello by the receptionist or any salespersons who walked by me with nothing to do. I asked where the A5 was, and he pointed. Thats all. Wow, I bolted.

off to Lexus

Boy, I walk in and I got treated like gold. I was there just to browse, is what I told the guy. Said I'm more of an Acura guy but the IS is something I needed to compare it too because it was an alternate choice for me should I not be able to get the TL I wanted (color combo and package). This guy gave me a groundschool on the car, took me for a drive, and offered drinks. I thought I was in a business class loung over at Emirates or something.

off to Acura

Walk in the door with tearaways and a tshirt. Instantly greeted by the receptionist, followed by a greeting from a salesman. I got great service, even though I left with nothing, and came back about 4 or 5 times, he always helped me and took time out of his day to assist. One of the 5 times i visited, he came in on his day off just to take me for a test drive. I was sold. 08 NBP TL w/ Navi that very day.

Went back to Lexus to thank them for their supreme service. Needless to say my dad gave them HIS business because of the dealing. Everyones a winner there.

No matter what you're dressed like, you should never be snubbed by salespersons like I was at Audi and Nissan. Wether or not I look like I'm 16 or not is irrelevant. What's relevant is that I was there with the intention of purchasing a new car and it's their job to find that out and make sure its THEIRS im buying.

Anyways, the right dealership got my business, the right salesman got his commission, and the right car got a new owner

ifirahse

iTrader: (6)

Took my car in for service a while back to santa monica acura. While I was there I went and browsed the other nearby dealerships.

Infiniti-Approached by a salesman immediately, we got to talking about the FX.

BMW-I went in and out of every car in the showroom, not one salesman approached me.

Lexus-I'll never forget this one. I was approached by the most good-looking saleswoman I've ever seen. We talked about the IS-F for 20 minutes before I left. Damn she was fine.

Mercedes-Snubbed, of course.

Granted, I'm 17, but I do look a little older....closer to 20-21, but I doubt it would make a difference anyways.

The one thing I hate when taking my car in for service is the look I get when the service advisors see my car and then look at me. Trying to blame every single problem on my mods before I have to bitchslap them back to reality.

TheWanderer316

iTrader: (7)

When i was in the search of a car, i went to a few dealerships.
First i went to a dodge dealership to check out the Charger. I went in with my brother, nobody came up to us, just passed by us, until about 15 minutes later when we had to ask for help. We told them I was interested in the Charger, and the guy was a complete prick. We told him we wanted to check it out, so he grabbed his jacket and brought us to the base model, not the SRT which was right next to it. I sat in it while the guy was standing there with a horrible look. When we asked questions he answered them in a snotty way. and when we asked to see the SRT, he made comments that we couldn't afford it, so we just left. But oh well.

NEXT we went to the Chevy dealership to check out the Tahoe.
Guy was very nice, came right up to us, and took us for a test drive in no time. Was very close to getting that truck for some reason.

Then I went to the Acura dealer with my mother. Didn't wait too long for the salesman to come up, I told him i was interested in the Type S and he was like, "No, you don't want that version, you want the base." I was pretty stunned he actually said that. But we went for a test drive in the TL and just fell in love with it. Overall, i somewhat wish i could have gone for a test drive in that Charger to get a feel for it, maybe would have gotten it, if it wasnt for the salesman. Well, thats my story.

crazyasiantl

iTrader: (7)

Everytime i take my car in for service at Fresno Acura the advisors are great and see me as a loyal customer, not some punk-ass kid. As i wait for my car ill walk through the dealership and look at cars and get approached within two minutes. They ask if im in the market for anything at the time and if im interested in driving anything. Even four of they guys know me by name now. overall im very satisfied with my dealer experience.

carlos9827

iTrader: (2)

BMW dealerships are the worse! No offense to anyone but unless you are wearing a suit and tie they will ignore you. In July of 2007 I went to local BMW dealership looking for an X5 (pre-owned), they did not have what I was looking for but I also wanted to check out the 335i. I was completely ignored I think because I was young, when they ran my credit this time (now that I was 21) my credit was excellent over 700 fico and I remember the salesman got all excited, "lets get this done man....". I laughed to myself because before they saw my credit they didn't want to help me but afterwards when they were certain I would be approved, then it was all about me I understand that if they don't sell cars they don't make any money, but there are some salesman out there who REALLY do care about their customers and will go the extra mile for them (like the salesman someone above mentioned who came in on his day off) those are the true salesmans that deserve our business and not the ones who just want it easy.

Went to Nissan last week for an oil change on my 03 Maxima and to check out the new Maxima. I specifically was looking for an 09 Maxima 3.5SV with Sport Package, but I didn't see one there and the salesman there didn't really show interest in selling me the car anyway(and I wasn't going to buy it anyway), he should have been nice to me so if I did decie on buying oneI would have went back to him. Oh well

95oRANGEcRUSH

I think it is ridiculous that given the situation of the auto industry dealers are not climbing over every person who walks thru their doors. Every person, no matter color, race or gender, is a possible sale. How moronic of them!!

Agent0r

I purchased my 05 in March. From Honda dealership about 60km from home. Only had 40000km on it and was $29k (sounds like alot to the Americans on here but was quite cheap compared to everything else in BC on autotrader).

Salesman came out right away after he saw me looking at the car. Let me go for a test drive and I told him I wanted the car. He was real good with me and when he brought up dealer financing or if I have already worked it out with my bank, I told him I was going to buy the car straight up. He looked at me like I was a drug dealer and said I wasn't old enough to do that haha. (I've been working up north as an electrician so money is pretty good up there).

Wrote them a cheque, they didn't even check any of my finances and let me take the car that day. I think it was 2nd cheque I'd ever really written and had forgot to sign it so 2 days later I get a call saying I need to come in to sign it.

To this day me and everyone I tell that to is amazed they just let me write a cheque and take the car home without doing any checks on my finances.

KzooTL

Yeah i suppose it just depends on the dealer and the buyer. If you act like a punk then i can imagine the salesman will treat you like one.

Personally i didn't have any problems from the salesman i bought my car from, was very helpful and the only thing we haggled about was the price. He wasn't even surprised when i gave him a cashiers check for 24k, but the lady at the bank was when she gave it to me ^_^

shooter

Couldn't have said any better than this .... customers are customers, no matter how they dress or how young they look .... treat them with the same respect as you would like to be treated ...

modificata3

I've had good and bad w/ all sorts of dealers, BMW, lexus, acura, mercedes, etc. It just depends on the management and how they train their people to do business. I'll walk as soon as someone treats me poorly though and let them know they blew it.

With my current acura tl-s I went through 3 dealerships. The final one, treated me super nice. Sat down, did the work, walked out and have no malice towards them...the other two I'll never go to for a long time bc they tried to treat me like some naive kid.

Mem04TL

I always have the wrost experience every time i go to the Acura dealer here, and there is only one, so there no where else for me to go. I ended up buying my TL out of town.

I purchased my TL back in March. I was 19 then just turn 20 last month. And before then, not one salesperson would look at me or even come up to me. After waiting and looking around for 30 minutes, i went and asked for help. The salesperson and I started talking, and after awhile asked me how i was going to pay for it. I said i will, and he told i will need my parents help. I told him, no i dont and he ran my credit. I know i have good credit because i never been late on any payment. After that he started treating me better but i told him, i will need to think things over and left. Then a week later i bought my TL somewhere else.

Just this week, i was told by the Acura dealership that its not possible to program the switchblade to an 04.
To these day, i still get no help when i go to the dealership, they just look at me and walk away.

ABP_04TL

iTrader: (2)

good shit... i actually was 20 when i bought my abp... no hassle of any kind, just walked in said i want ur 6spd TL and we were doin the paper work in less then 45mins

jackasswhy

every dealer has been nice to me except bmw .

Mem04TL

Also BMW was extreme nice to me when i went up there. As soon as i stepped on the lot, someone came up to me. Even offered to let me test drive the car. They did not look at my age.

ZeteffectTL

I actually just bought my car a week ago (2005 TL NBP). Even though I'm not 22 I am only 5 months past .
I went to the dealership in the most casual clothes possible and wore an old ragged baseball cap to finish off the look and it didn't seem like a prob to the salesperson waiting for me at the desk. He greeted me and I told him I was looking for a used Acura and 1 hour later I was the owner of a sick TL. The salesperson's attitude wasn't negative at all and in fact he actually kept encouraging me to buy an 08 instead since my credit was great.
Overall it was a great experience which resulted in the acquisition of a great brand car.

Babnik

Try to look at it from a salesman's perspective. They get teens coming in all the time pretending like they will buy a car but they can't afford to, they just want a free test drive.

If I was a car salesman I would ignore young people too. Sure every once in a blue moon an 18 year old would come in who actually can afford to buy a car, but the time spent dealing with the hundreds of teenagers who can't afford to buy anything would outweigh those one in a hundred teenagers who actually could afford it.

smsTL

iTrader: (1)

understood. But they will never find out which customer will buy until they help them. Its not like they are so busy helping so many customers. They should never ignore any customers regardless of their age. That is just bad customer service. Young customers will not stay young for rest of their lives so they will remember the bad experience and the outcome will not be so much positive for dealers.

I personally don't care. I love when people hate. It makes feel special.

Blazing GT

It's funny how i got my TL. Dealers discriminate against age alot.

I was turning 18 and parents asked me what car I liked and i automatically said G35 coupe. I always liked the TL but didnt think I would really get one. Walked into a used car lot with my girl and we were looking at a Red G35 coupe. To be specific this place was called Kings Auto. I told him i was interested in it, he looked at me and said how old i was and said 17. He laughed and said don't bother looking at it.

The funniest thing happened when i walked into another store and turned to the right. It was love at first sight. The dealers treated me awesome, and gave me all the help I wanted. Being so satisfied I said I will be right back. Within 45 minutes I came in with my fam. and got a TL , boy was I happy that day.

YeuEmMaiMai

when I got my CLS 2+ years ago, the salesmen ignored me.................that's OK walked to front desk and some very nice lady came over and I asked her if I could test drive the two that they had. needless to say they missed out the sale and I got a very nice 02 CLS to drive for 5K under KBB at the time..........

it just dosen't happen to young people, it happens to us older people as well

ifirahse

iTrader: (6)

Jw, how many of you young guys had your parents get you the car vs. paying for it yourself?

Blazing GT

Parents co-sign to help me establish some credit (basically put me on the loan) and I made the monthly payments on the car. It was only 360 not bad eh

Parents with 800+ credit scores FTMFW

smsTL

iTrader: (1)

Independent...and work very hard...

csmeance

not going to reveal my age, but from my experience if you wear shorts and a polo and a watch to a dealership, you'll get better service than a t-shirt and board shorts
Best:
1. Acura
2. Mercedes Benz

I have gotten so-so service at:
1. BMW - waited for 15 minutes looking at a car then I went over to guy and he helped me out pretty nicely.
2. Cadillac, I was looking at cars outside for a good half hour before I had to go inside and get someone
3. Honda - no help until I went inside for it
4. VW - no help until I asked for it

Worst service:
1. GM used cars - no help at all, then when asked laughed at, then when I showed them proof of funds "pimp" I got a pushy salesmen.

vi3tboi

paid in full on my own

modificata3

Paid in full on my own...sad day to see that leave my back account! But hey, no regrets!

carlos9827

iTrader: (2)

Parents co-signed for my Maxima back in 04, then a year and few months later I financed TL on my own. Parents have never made a single car payment for me They actually raised my rent since "I could afford a TL"

Mem04TL

Paying for it myself

CSWBiggs

hahaha...I know what you mean...I walked in dressed ok..no biz suit...just a nice button up shirt and slacks...even than i got the stink eye...one guy came up and helped me out...and 5 mins in...i pulled him aside away from everyone...flashed $20k in Benjamins cash....and said look "I'm serious about buyin this car today...now are you gonna be the one to help me roll outta this dealership today?" and from that point on...no questions asked...and I got some BS about my credit...you have great..."baby" credit...i walked in with a 780...but no big ticket items...aka house,auto loan...nada...so they we're hesitant...but I did come home with my car...so =P

jtkoo7

I had differing experiences when I looked for my car. I was 23 at the time. Went to a bmw dealership and they came over to me. Went to the first acura dealership and they did as well. I went to another acura dealership and the guy said almost nothing to me. We went for a test drive and he said almost nothing. I was so weirded out by the end of it I didn't even consider getting a car from the place. I went to several other dealerships and was ignored. Finally I gave up, I had my parents take me to a lexus dealership that had a tl. The parents apparently negated my age and that's how I got my tl.

I didn't even need them for the loan.

And yeah it was really funny to be driving around in an acura with a lexus dealer plate on the front of it, hahaha. oh well..

carlos9827

iTrader: (2)

yeah I know exactly what you mean my cousin is in the same boat, finally he's got some high limit credit cards now, but he was also at a 770 or something like that with no big ticket items....