From the category archives:

Car Dealer Confessions

Toyota Suspends Sales of 8 Models

01.26.2010

Toyota halted sales of eight new models today. This news comes on the heels of the Toyota recall announcement for 2.3 million cars and trucks due to an accelerator problem. The New Toyota models affected by this halt:

Rav4
Corolla
Matrix
Avalon
Camry
Highlander
Tundra
Sequoia

Toyota cars and trucks unaffected by the news:

Lexus
Scion
Prius
Tacoma
Sienna
Venza
Solara
Yaris
4Runer
FJ Cruiser
Land Cruiser
Select Camry models
Camry hybrids

Toyota Group Vice-President Bob Carter said, [...]

Car Dealer Confessions…Digging Out.

11.22.2008

Thanks to Paul Rushing for contributing his personal accounts of the retail car business.
It’s all about the Benjamins…
The used car business is about money, just like all businesses are, and sometimes there are casualties. Customers, dealers and even salespeople lose.
I entered the business in 1990 fresh out of the Army and I thought it was [...]

The Best Used Car Advice…Avoid The Scream

08.23.2008

Car Dealer Confessions: The Scream
Guest blog post by Jason Lancaster of AccurateAutoAdvice.com.
Thereâ€™s a sales trick known as â€œthe screamâ€ thatâ€™s quite popular in the car business, and for good reason â€“ it works. Not quite dishonest (but not quite honest) and not quite lying (but not quite telling the truth), the scream can best be [...]

“Switch Them To Used”

07.19.2007

Part 5 of Car Dealer Confessionsâ€¦By Tug Pullman.
I’ve given you an honest look at the inner-workings of a car dealership and may have painted a slanted picture of the people in the industry. Do they deserve a bad rap? Definitely up for debate. So, I thought in this weekâ€™s installment I’d (try to) explain the [...]

“Get The Deposit, Head!”

07.09.2007

Part 4 of Car Dealer Confessions…By Tug Pullman.Â
Most new car dealerships have a very similar infrastructure. The Salesperson greets the customers, shows themÂ the vehicles, takes them for a test drive and begins the paperwork. WhenÂ the time comesÂ to discuss price and payments, the Salesperson must go to the Desk Manager.Â
The Desk Managerâ€™s sole function is to [...]

Another Late Night at the Car Dealership

06.14.2007

Part 3 of Car Dealer Confessionsâ€¦by Tug Pullman.
Saturdays are the big days at a new or used car dealership. This is the day which makes or breaks your entire week. It’s not uncommon for a car salesperson to sell three or four cars on a Saturday.
At this particular dealership, they had a lovely invention entitled [...]

Rookie Car Salesman…On The Point.

05.31.2007

PartÂ 2 of Car Dealer Confessions…by Tug Pullman.Â
When my intensive car dealership training commenced (about 2 days), I was paired with a veteran used car sales person whom they introduced as my â€œMentorâ€.
This gentleman enjoyed two hobbies: chewing tobacco and collecting the business cards of Sales People who either quit or wereÂ fired. His first action as [...]

Car Dealer Confessions

05.25.2007

Want to knowÂ what goes on behind the scenes in a car dealership? What if you knew their tactics?
What if you were one step ahead and took them out of their game? Traditional car dealership salespeople are trained to follow a specific route. If you know their route – now you’re in control.
Discover traditional car dealership [...]