Let me first say that I'm not a GM-hater, I actually like and "root" for American cars. Although we own a BMW and an Acura now, my wife and I have had Chevys and several Fords in our 35/34 years of life.

I'm just sick of getting burned by American car dealers, especially GMs.

I'm the "car guy" of the family and whenever someone wants a new car, friends and family come to me. The latest adventure was this past weekend for my Aunt Pam. She owns a 2002 Saturn Vue and wants to get something about the same size but newer.

After a long list of vehicles provided to her, it came down to the 2010 Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV4, Chevy Equinox, and Ford Edge. We ventured off to a very popular auto mall in SoCal.

I started with the CR-V to set the benchmark. We were greeted pleasantly by a blue-shirted Honda salesman who was educated on the CR-V and offered zero pressure. She loved the vehicle and the service from the salesman.

Onto next door Toyota. Typical slick salesman who occasionally looks over your shoulder for other sales opportunities. I was dumbfounded how non-chalant they were about the recall and basically dismissed it as a media-driven phenomenon. Pam couldn't stand the rear spare tire and the only way to rid of the rear tire on the hatch was to get a $32K 4x4 Sport with run-flat tires. No thanks.

Next was the Chevy dealership but I'll get to that in a sec. We ended with the Ford dealership where a short dumpy salesman greeted us as if he'd known us for 20 years. Cordial and friendly, but the professionalism wasn't too great...Pam liked the Edge, especially the deal they had going, but she's not sure about long-term Ford quality (as I advised her).

ONTO CHEVY. The 2010 Equinox was of interest because I read great things about it in print, but never saw it in person.

• We walk onto the lot where an older accent-rich gentleman yelled from his perch "can I help you?"
• I yelled back, "we're interested in the 2010 Equinox".
• In unison, all the salesmen yelled back (from their perches) "we don't have any, not until next week".
• I thought - it's half-way through the 2nd month of 2010, they don't have any? Okay.
• Then one yelled, "we have a demo".
• Okay. I yelled, "can we take a look?"

The salesman scooted over from his perch and walked us to the car about 20 yards away. It was a 2LT (top of the line is LTZ) with premium cloth and fairly loaded (no nav or RES). We got inside and it was beautiful. I'm a leather guy, but the premium cloth (below) is awesome. It blew the other SUVs away. The quality of the materials, the layout, the design was far above the others (including the CR-V, which shocked me).

• It was a V6 and Pam was primarily looking for the 2.4L Ecotec I-4, but she asked " can I drive it?" to get a feel for the switchgear, handling, etc.
• Salesman, "you want to drive it?"
• Pam, "yes, to get a feel for the vehicle...is this possible?"
• "Uh, you want the 4-cylinder, this is the V6" (by now we're getting the feeling like the salesman is treating this Chevy Equinox 2LT like we're asking to take a Corvette ZR1 out for a joyride).
• "Yes I know, but to get a feel for it...I like it."
• "Um, yeah, this is a different car than the I-4 model."
• We sat there and stared at him. "Okaayyy, um, can we get a brochure?"
• "No, we don't have brochures, you'll have to go online."
• "Do you at least have a card to give me?"
• "Here's my card."

OMG. I was sooo embarrassed I took my aunt there. We were both well-dressed, well-mannered, and my aunt was going to pay cash for this vehicle. I saw no reason not to take us seriously. I was astonished. Exceptional product, subpar delivery and service. I don't know how GM can compete with dealers like this. This is one of many that I've experienced as the "car guy" and I'm almost to the point of not recommending any GM vehicles in the future...

You cant lump ALL GM dealers as being the same. I have had worse treatment from our local BMW, Hyundai and Nissan dealers. I even had a worse experience from the Acura dealer in Milwuakee, they woulndt give me the time of day about the TL. I ended up driving a hour west to the (at the time) only other acura dealer and they bent over backwards for me. I have had great and pleasurable experiences though at our chevy dealer when i bought my full size truck many years back, as has my father when he bought its 2 caddys from the same dealer.

Cool story, bro.

Yup. Terrible service from the three out of the four Chevrolet dealers I went to. Even in the dead of the afternoon, two of them never greeted me or anyone I was with even though we were dressed professionally. It was like the dealership was deserted. The other one wasn't so bad, where I was greeted by some bored and eager salesmen, though unfortunately I was only asking for directions at that one so I can't really speculate.

I own a GM and I'm not buying from a GM dealership until further notice. To think those were the dealers that they kept around What kind of retarded training are they giving these people? It's more like they're training them to repel people instead of lure them.

edit: like said though it is hit or miss, depending on the individual dealer.

May I also suggest you go have a look at a Subaru Forrester, Hyundai Sante Fe and Tucson.

As a non-smartass response, I'd advise you heavily not to go to auto malls and expect great service. Go to a smaller dealer that has the car you want to look at in stock and you'll get the service you are looking for, generally.

I gave her a huge list of every SUV/crossover in her range with detailed pics and info. I think the 2010 Tuscon is sweet, but she wasn't interested in Hyundais. Those listed are the vehicles she narrowed her search down to.

My story is the latest in a long run of disappointing GM experiences. I've been the "car guy" for about 19 years in the family, so I've had horror stories from almost all manufacturers (and big/small dealerships). Honda/Acura dealerships, for example, are consistently pleasant, big or small. But on average, most GM dealers, especially Chevrolets, still think it's 1978.

There's a Chevy dealer on every other block, just go to another one. Shame she isn't interested in Hyundai's, too...good cars.

Also a shame she does not like the Forrester. I'd say try another dealer, but if she buys honda, then tell your story to GM Corporate.

I helped my inlaws lease a new accord this past weekend.

Went to at 3 so cal honda dealers and they ALL sucked.

We ended up at the same place I've taken other people which is the one So Cal honda dealer worth their weight in gold and of course had the deal made before even setting foot in the dealer.

Its a dealer oriented experience...not a brand name. Find another dealer.

IMO dealers don't want savvy customers. They don't care that you're clean cut and can pay cash. They would rather have someone with a 500 credit score so they can stick them with 12% for 7 years. Most cash buyers are "minis". They might make $100.

I can name a few bad Honda/Acura experiences myself. And on the flip side, my buddy leases a Chevy Silverado for his landscaping business and that dealership's customer service is impeccable... both sales and service departments. I have also had good experiences with Caddy dealers around here.

I agree with the masses... find another GM dealer.

It's not a GM problem, it's a dealer problem....you live in SoCal...there is a Chevy dealer in every town....go to another one. Problem solved.

Agree 100%. I don't think I'd step foot in an auto mall. Just not a good experience at all.

We had a fantastic little Chrysler dealership here where my parents bought a couple cars. Always a pleasant experience, the owner knew us by face and name, and always bent over backwards to help in any way.

The local Acura dealer here sucks (Bridgewater). They are more of a volume dealer. I go to another about 45 minutes away for everything. They are so nice and I've never had a problem. I'm really going to miss them when I move.

I've never been to a GM dealership, but I imagine it's probably very similar - some are good, some are bad. Just have to find the right ones.

+1 about finding another dealer. One other thing I would like to add is to reconsider the Ford. They are making great cars these days and their quality control is leaps and bounds better than 10 or even 5 years ago. Ford is turning themselves around big time.

Bingo. You hit the nail on the head with that one.

Coming from somebody who sold cars for about three months in another life, that is spot on the money.

Well in that case finance the car and then pay it off when the first payment due date comes around.

Yes.

My dad did this.

That is truly freaking unbelievable. What in the hell did that catfish of a salesman have to lose by letting you drive the premium model? If I was a sales manager I'd absolutely body-slam him into a dumpster for that. What, is a 2LT Equinox the Chevy SUV equivilant of a bloody Aston-Martin Vantage?

ABC. Always Be Closing. If you're in sales, especially of a moderately respected brand, never EVER deny a customer a closer look at your product.... even if its not what they're looking for. It gives you more face time for a sale, hopefully hooks an eager customer even more on the product, and gives you time to sell the overall package of product PLUS service.

I'm astounded by this story. With the numbers of sales crews being slashed in dealerships across the country, it amazes me that the dumbcrap you encountered still made that dealership's varsity squad.

Whatever dealership that was, I wouldn't shop there, buy there, or service there. Clearly badly run.

-Mirror

I have to disagree (slightly, at least in my case) about the salesman wanting unknowing customers. When I bought my Accord in 2004, I knew exactly what I was going to pay, with options, sales taxes, overhead, the salesman's commission, everything. I had a 50+ page binder full of notes, quotes, and car information. I was in and out of the dealer (after setting up the meeting with the salesman with a phone call) in 58 minutes. The salesman said he actually appreciated it more because I knew exactly what I wanted, the price I wanted to may, etc., and did not waste the salesman's time. He liked a high turnover and did not like explaining things to customers. He wanted another chance to sell another car, not to try to explain things to me.

You have to shop the dealers just as much as the cars. Especially with a high-volume seller like Chevy, Honda, Toyota, you need to try several dealers until you find one that is decent. Sucks, but thats the way it is....

You should also make the Gneneral Manager of the dealership aware of how you were treated. Believe me, they want to know about stuff like this...

Just FYI, there's a Honda dealer around me that puts $1700 ADM stickers on every car they sell new or used. That's not including the pin-striping/undercoating bullshit. I know for a fact that they deliberately falsify credit applications in order to sell cars.

That's enough to make me never go there. But I'm not blaming Honda for the dealer's douchebaggery.

this.

...is not a complete sentence.

Stories like this are why internet departments will eventually drive out the old school floor sales people.

When I bought my TL, I went through the internet department. I knew I wanted the Type S, and what color as well. The guy who handled the internet sales was the General Manager of the dealership, not some sales jockey. He quoted me a price, which was excellent, and no bullshit fees or anything else added. Didn't try to screw me on anything at all. All I did was show up, he let me take the car for a drive (alone even, he didn't tag along), I came back and signed a few papers and was out the door. Whole thing took about an hour.

I don't think I would buy a car the old fashioned way ever again.

i went the internet route too. but the majority of the people i know (young and old, internet-literate and not) still go the old fashioned route.

It really depends on the dealership and their employees, I've had poor experiences with some dealerships, a Honda one too. However, I recently revisited those same dealers with poor experiences because I was still in the market and I found out they no longer work there.

People who apply to be car salesmen are people who are more concerned about the money and don't really have a good background in sales. They just think they can settle in and sell a car as if anyone can do it. They're quite obviously mistaken.

read the equinox forums. many people do not get the claimed 32MPG with the 4 banger.

EPA numbers most of the time are a best-case scenario since manufacturers usually tune cars to maximize EPA, not real-world driving. Our 03 TL-S window sticker says 19/29 but with 85% freeway driving we usually get 25 mpg at best, and usually its more like 22/23

In college I sold cars, the first rule was know the prospects name, the second was get them behind the wheel to create "ether".


WTF with not letting you drive the car????

I bought my V at a small dealership in Michigan. Wonderful service I got there, too.

Any brand has good and bad dealers. Look at all the reports just on AZ about loser dealers....and dealers like mine, which were awesome enough to me that I will buy a fourth Acura from them when I get tired of the V (which I haven't yet).

Personally since the US government is heavily involved in telling GM what to do, I am not going near them. Dad used to buy GM pretty much exclusively but this time around he went with a Ford and has not regretted it in the least bit. He got a Taurus.

A lot of people got put off by GM doing what they did and that prolly has a lot to do with why Ford is picking up.......not to mention Honda and the other Jap cars

lol u must be doing something wrong as I get 32 in a 2002 CL type S on the highway and 21 in the city...........well above EPA ratings I get 24-26 mixed. car has 90K on original plugs.....

Yes, because every single car is built to the same exacting standards. No variance is to be expected

^lol nah man it's cause you put ur foot into the throttle and are wondering why joo haz no gaz milagez.......

that 19/29 was under the old testing methods. under the new testing methods (started 2008) it would be a few mpg lower

i believe the new numbers are 17 and 27 respectively........