j0nx

Hi, I am seriously considering buying an audi a4 with sport package, BT, ipod and heated seats from a local dealer but he is being what I think is very unreasonable. A little history: I have been looking for a while for this car and they are VERY hard to find because of the sport package and he promised he would contact me if/when one came in. He didn't. I happened to be checking their site and others in my area last week and low and behold I found one on his lot and he never contacted me about it like he promised. I have another dealer closer to me that swears he can order one for me with the same options for about $800 cheaper out the door but I am not that hip on ordering a vehicle and waiting 3-4 months only to get a car with problems or something that isn't right.

My reasons for thinking the dealer with the car in stock is unreasonable: I REALLY want the all season UHP contis on the car when I pick it up and he won't do it. He says that until I have signed off on the car that they can't or won't do it. I also want the exhaust tips installed as well upon delivery since the car does not come with them from the factory. Again, he won't do it until I buy the car. My response to him is that I am not buying the car unless they put the contis and tips on it upon delivery. I think he thinks I am going to welch out on him. They also said that they would give me $18k for my trade based on its VIN, mileage and condition. I told them the sale of their car was contingent on that trade allowance. The only thing I can think of is that the dealer plans to try and sceeze me when I get there somehow which is why he won't put the tires and tips on.

I told him I would put a $500 deposit down with my CC over the phone as long as it was refundable in case the car has any shimmy or drivability issues or mechanical problems and he just brushed it off because he wants a $1000 non-refundable deposit just to hold the car for me until next weekend since I am arranging for financing this week. This is the highest rated dealer in the area but I am getting a very bad feeling dealing with this guy because he is just not willing to put the car into a state where I would feel comfortable driving it off his lot. What are your thoughts?

Bargamon

you can negotiate "as promised items" regarding the tires and tips. You buy the car and he gives you a signed paper of the thngs that need to be done. Happens all the time.

For him to do it before you buy the car is not reasonable.

PUt a refundable $1000 deposit on the car. If you don't like it, you'll get it back.

Get your *** to the dealer and solidify the trade in. He is going off all you told him without seeing the car. If its everything you say why should they welch?

What you think is unreasonable is supply and demand. He has a car you want. You don't want to wait to order one.

He runs a for profit dealership. He is not being a jerk, he is just protecting his sale.

You don't have your financing together? If you have good credit it takes 10 min for him to arrange a loan for you. If you "need a week" you are sending out all kinds of red flags. From his perspective you want him to change the tires and tips BEFORE you put a dime in. Then a litmus test he wants you to put $1000 as a deposit. You balk. Then you tell him you need a week. If he has a buyer for the car and you can't commit he is out a sale for a while.

He should have called you when he got the stock in but thats not usually how it works. when you want it you ask them to locate one or you order. Its possible you have not shown the dealer that your really serious.

This guy sells cars to people who have the means to get it done and are prepared. When guys like you come along it usually does not get done. Im not saying you don't have the means to do it but are demonstrating all the traits of a difficult buyer to the dealer. He has the car you want so he gets to make the rules. Nothing personal, just the laws of supply an demand.

ksalno

Also, keep in mind there is a middle ground between custom ordering and buying from what is on the dealer's lot. I wanted to get my wife an A4 for Christmas. I walked into the dealership the week after Thanksgiving and told them what my parameters were in terms of must have packages and options, and gave them a few acceptable colors. They were able to locate a perfect match at a dealer in the region and swap cars with them. The car was at my dealer within 10 days.

I also did the tire swap to all-season Conti's but the dealer didn't do it until after I signed the contract and I wouldn't have expected him to. I don't know if they are still offering it but Audi Financing was offering to pay the first month's payment up to $750 when I bought the car in December. You may want to finance through them to get that deal.

av_audi

Can't the tires and exhaust tips be written into the purchase paperwork?

dafool

Yes. As Bargamon stated, you can negotiate "as promised terms". When I ordered my car, the dealer and I discussed the new car options, sale price, trade-in value of my Honda Accord, security deposit, etc. All the details were documented and 2 months later my car arrived.

PDong

The deposit for an Audi is going to be $1000, not $500, unless you've got some amazing history with the dealer personally. IE, I think Audi mandates $1000, for reference, VW's deposit is generally $500.

I would guess the salesman is not trying to be unreasonable, but has you pegged as an unlikely buyer. Dealer swaps/trades happen all the time, so they should be able to locate a vehicle within reason. $1000 goes to the principal, so it's not lost money.

j0nx

Well My problem with putting a non refund deposit down is that if the car has issues during a test drive then I walk away. It's a catch 22. I want those contis on when I leave that lot. End of story. And I already qualified for their financing but my own with a CU is a lower rate and since I just found out about the car on thursday night then this week is the earliest i can apply. Why would I want to pay $22 more a month with their financing? If he had told me about the car when it came in then I could have moved quicker. I think he is being unreasonable and he thinks I am going to balk. That's his problem, not mine.

j0nx

And he mentioned nothing about a first month's payment made for free. I also noticed that the price of these cars went up substantially after Jan 1st. Maybe it's just not in the cards for an Audi since it's too difficult to find one with SP and the dealers are so unreasonable. I'll sign a contract so they can put the contis on when i take delivery but if the car has any issues then I expect to walk away for no cost to myself. I don't see how that is unreasonable.

fireguy40

we had all the details written into our offer agreement. For example, the car had summer tires so i didn't test drive it on the day i arrived, instead we wrote into the offer agreement that the deal was dependent on a test drive first (w/ winters). Dealer had no problem with that. Also had them write in the trade-in value they offered and other stuff we wanted... again, no problem from the dealers perspective.

I think once you demonstrate your intent to purchase (secure financing and deposit) then things should go a lot smoother for you. If not then keep looking!

Good luck!

j0nx

He offered today to have the items ready for me upon taking delivery of the car and THEN they will install them that same day. I am still not happy with that as if there is a shimmy with the new tires afterward then I am stuck with the car dealing with return trips to fix the issue like with a previous car that I had, which was a nightmare that I vowed never to go through again. They would drive the car and say it was fine even though the steering wheel wobbled back and forth...

I think the guy that contacted me today was the manager and he sounded much more agreeable. At this point I don't know if I want to deal with these guys anymore and may just order a car from a local Audi dealer instead. It would be $800 cheaper anyway but would require the 3-4 month wait obviously. I just have this gut feeling that if I drive up to this dealer which is 25 miles from me then they will try to do something to lower my trade value or not have the parts like they said or something else which would be a waste of my time and gas because I would turn around and leave. Asking someone for a non-refundable deposit on a car sight unseen is never good business as far as I am concerned. If I am paying $36k for a car then I expect EVERYTHING to be perfect and if it isn't then I am walking and do NOT expect to lost my deposit from that.