Selden, I agree with you that good dealers need recognition. Once I am done with entire transaction and pick up the car, I will identify the dealer and also post prices and a review of my experience. I think it's the least I can do considering all the help and advice I have received. But I think it's premature to post it now because you just never know how it will all shake out in the end. Make sense?

 

I agree about waiting on posting a review of the dealer. I've had both good and bad experiences with our local Dealership. The most important part however is the service Dept because once the sale is done, you probably won't see the sales guy there ever again (turnover rate).

The SVC Dept at Shearer Honda In Rutland VT is top notch. Actually, one of the service guys used to work for the Sales dept and sold us our Ridgeline. They (service techs and Service Manager) have gone above and beyond for us in a few difficult situations. (one where we were two states away looking at completely replacing rear brakes on the Ridge - They worked with the honda dealer we were at and everyone took care of us. $0 and new parts.)

We went back to shearer to look at a Civic Si Sedan when we realized we needed another 4 dr and after dealing with the sales guy (and the one sales manager), we ended up with our Altima new from Nissan. The one sales manager made me feel like I was at Fred's used car Sales lot and the salesman wasn't much better. When it came to trading in the Altima for a more economical car, we decided to give our honda dealer one more try. Got a friendly sales guy (a little wet behind the ears but smart enough to know I was well educated On Hondas and he quickly dropped the "sales pitch") Told him our scenario, our past experiences with the Sales dept, and why we were trading in an altima... and that I didn't want to deal with "that sales manager" period. The other sales manager came out and remembered me from when I used to work across the street at staples. (sold him some stuff). Told them I wanted a fair deal where we both ended up happy. Took them a week but they agreed to the deal I put down. I'm happy with the experience and happy I have a FIT.

More importantly, I have a Service Department that has done right by me in the past that I trust.

Shearer Honda for me is a Dealership, Not your typical Stealership... (walked out of one of those in NJ without a prelude - "Planet Honda" - bought an Integra GS-R)


Back on topic... As for the car being trucked in vs being driven. Make sure the dealer puts on the bill of sale, the actual mileage upon delivery. Most dealers won't balk at a few hundred miles if something goes wrong @ warranty end + 5 miles, but a few will. This is when having the mileage stated upon deliver will help.

~SB

 

I'd like to emphasize where you take it for service, warranty or otherwise, has nothing to do with where you buy it. Go for the best price and get it serviced where you want.

Typically the dealers make their income on service, not sales. It's logical the best price may not be the same place where you get the best service experience.

 

My dealer was Frank Kent Honda in Ft. Worth. I would recommend them.

 

Thanks again to all. Getting the mileage on the bill of sale is a great idea that I had not thought of. I will give you guys a full report when the car gets here.

 

I got my deposit down but I have a sneaking feeling I am going to get jerked around with no car coming any time soon. Is there a way to find out about what shipments of Fits are coming from Japan by the end of the year?

 

The dealer should have access to this, I doubt anyone in the general public does.

 

OK, thanks.

 

Not to worry -- it's normal to feel a little paranoid at this point in the process. If the dealer has worked well with you up to this point, he's probably not going to spring any surprises.

 

Thank you. If it offers any hope, I was listening to some interviews with Chinese "citizens on the street" this afternoon, and they seemd just as clueless as the average American.

 

What did the dealer say? Did they give any kind of time frame?

Selden- wrong thread? LOL!

Dan

 

NOW I know what happened to that message! I was on two different forums simultaneously, and obviously something went wrong.

 

If you put a deposit surely you have a sales contract. Other than pressuring youto take all kinds of aftermarket stuff, including car warranties and wax jobs, and using their financial contracts, theres not much they can do. Even if the final price is vacant ('cause they don't know how much it is til it gets here'). That doesn't mean there won't be pressure especially to use their finances (they get a kick-back) if you go in with your financing from your credit union or bank you can minimizeit, at least to the point of getting theirs to beat yours. One word of advice: when you get quotes for financing ALWAYS get it in the monthly payment you will pay to compare. Interest can be calculated many ways despite what you hear. If you really want ask what the early payoff model is. Normal its calculated by paying off the interest in whats called 'rule of 72'. That means the first month of a 12 month loan (1 to 12 adds to 72) owes 12/72nds of the interest, the 2nd 11/72nds, and so on. So your payoff would be the 12th part of the original loan value per month plus the interest collected compared to your payments. The sooner you pay it off the more interest you owe.
Yeah, complicated but few ever worry about it. There are some shady loans out there that collect all interest before you ever pay a penny on the collateral.
And if you lease, ask about determining the condition of the vehicle as well as mileage and tires penalties at turn-in. Many have found themselves owing thousands at turn-in.
now, good luck you won't find any of these.

 

Yes, I do have a sales contract. However, it was like pulling teeth to get the dealer to fill it out completely BEFORE I signed it. It seemed they wanted me to sign it with only some of the stuff filled in. But eventually, I got everything in there (color, options, price, etc). There is no financing and I made it clear I am not taking any other options (like simonizing and extended warranty) so they are not going to make any extra money off me. (see below why this could be a problem for me)

They said they could get the car in a couple of days. But they would not give me a firm date or VIN, no matter how hard I tried. Dealer said they could locate the car I wanted without any problem but could not do it right on the spot. I was not happy with this but I decided to leave a deposit (on CC) and go through with the transaction. When I got back home, I did a locate via Edmunds (is that thing accurate?) and only found one Fit that meets my criteria within 500 miles radius.

The Fit seems to be selling for about MSRP in my area so my concern is that since I got them to agree to a price well below that, what's to stop them from stringing me along at this point? If they get the car in, they can probably sell it for MSRP and there is no firm delivery date on the sales contract. Maybe I should have gotten that in there. There is so much to watch for with these guys. It's amazing.

Maybe I am being paranoid.

 

Well, it's been a couple of days. They haven't called you yet? My guy said it would be in by Friday and sure enough, it was in that Friday. He had the thing located AT the table. I think you're right to feel uneasy about this one. I would have walked with so little to go on. Give them a call and see what's up. If theycan't give you a full answer on progress by at least Friday, I'd be asking for my deposit back. It will be clear at that point you are a very low priority.

Dan

 

They won't screw you on the sales contract, but I bet they're looking for a unit that matches this description at another dealer (I'm surprised this isn't automated, but oh well). If it was a regular shipment they would have told you "it's on the docks", or "it's on the truck."

Edmunds (and the rest) are only as accurate as the dealer salespeople that input the data. Even the dealers' website inventories aren't accurate. Hondas don't stay on the lots long enough to enter online most of the time.

Without a firm date the only question is how long you're willing to wait. You could spend your time shopping around other dealers... Don't wait more than 1 billing cycle, that's all you have to dispute the charge on your credit card.

It's ok to bug the dealer, call them daily. (ask for the sales manager though).

 

I'm 6' 1" and sad to say, the seats are actually fairly uncomfortable sometimes. I love the everything else about the car but the seats are actually a little off. I didn't think it was the bottom cushion being too short.. I just know that it's not fun for long drives or stop-and-go traffic.

 

I can't find a source, but during the Pentagon Papers affair, when the FBI was tapping Daniel Ellsberg's home phone line, one of the agents is supposed to have noted in his log, "Mrs. Ellsberg is paranoid; she thinks people are listening to her phone conversations."

You've covered all your bases; everything will work out.

 

Yeah, they said they could find it at another dealer so that is what I expected. I'm not sure if it's a question of automation or them just SAYING they needed the time to look for it just to get me to put the deposit down.

That's what I figured. I was kinda hoping there was one or two not showing up on Edmunds and that the dealer is actually interested in fulfilling their end of the contract.

Yeah, no way I'm letting this go past the CC billing cycle. If they can't find the car by next week, I'm pulling the plug on the deal. I can wait longer but what's the point of waiting for a car that never comes?



I spit out my coffee on that one.

 

Just as I figured, my deal dried up and I got my deposit back. I really don't think there was ever any deal to begin with and I just left a deposit on a phantom car. Oh well, at least I didn't get hosed for the money. From now on, if there is no VIN, there is no deposit. I see some more MT fit sports flowing into my area so I am going looking again.

Question:

What digit in the VIN will tell me if it is a 2009 or 2010?