I recently purchased a 96 850R wagon from that dealer and was less than satisfied with my experience there. They didn't do anything blantantly illegal or anything like that, but here's a list. You may think I'm whining, but I feel dealers should be pushing for MY business, not making it feel like they are doing me a favour.

-I indicated I'd call them when I got my financing arranged, and told them EXACTLY which day I would be at the bank. They phoned me the day before (ok, no big deal, just a little annoying as I am someone who does as they say, so there was no worry of me not calling)
-Car came to me with slightly more than 3/4 of a tank of gas, NOT a full one,
-Wouldn't pick me up at the airport (a $30 cab ride), instead "called it even" for plating the car. (I figure if I'm forking out tens of thousands of dollars, the least they can do is eat the $45 plate charge AND the cab ride)
-The last words to me as I left were a story about some guy who offered them more for the car after I already had a deposit on it. They tried to make me feel like they were doing me a favour by selling it to me at the already agreed upon price.

In the end, I love my car, but will not deal with Carling Motors in Ottawa ever again. Whining? Yes, a little. I still don't think I'm expecting too much and I just thought others should know.

Thanks for reading my rant.

sgtsalamander
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1991 744T 415 000KM sold Sept 2003, Presently: 1989 744T 160000Km

You should have experienced the condescending manner in which Van Herpt Motors in Kingston treated my wife 13 years ago when we bought our 760T. I'd say that by comparison you were treated well. To Van Herpt's credit, they have been helpful on the odd occasion with info on my 850T.
Go to Blockbuster and rent the movie "Used Cars", good for a laugh and may put your ordeal into perspective.
Armie
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'94 850 154000kms '86 760GLE 272000kms 95 Silverado4x4

I don't think I have ever bought a used car and expected a full tank of gas or a free ride. Guess if you want the red carpet treatment you'll have to buy a brand new car!

Try buying from a private party sometime and see how much LESS you get. Some people have to have their arm twisted to do the smog check for you (which is required to be done by the seller in CA). And then all the driving around to get pre-purchase checks and documentation is your problem. But, I think you get a better deal if you shop around private parties.

Actually - it is not up to the seller to obtain a smog check or even safety a vehicle unless the seller specifies that it is included in the purchase price. All a seller of a used car needs to provide is the used vehicle information package, which is really yet another cash grab by the gov. as it only shows the current and possibly past owners and if there is a lien against the vehicle or not.

I've always gotten a better deal buying private, but I have never been treated like I was having a favour done for me by letting me buy the car. That is the way I felt after dealing with Carling Motors. I've bought 2 Volvos previous to this one privately, and I've been treated great. Sure, no free rides, but there were no questions about what came with the car when it was being sold. I got everything I expected. Maybe I've been lucky, I'm not sure.

If I was buying a 10 year old chevy cavalier off a used car lot, I would expect to be treated the way I was, but not buying a top model volvo from a dealer.

Anyway, thanks for all the input. I agree that I can't really expect all the "perks" that I did expect, but I really wish those little things were more common when buying anything, whether it's a car or any other expensive purchase. The places that do put that extra effort forth are the ones that make me want to come back. There are so many places to buy cars, the dealers have to make my experience memorable if they want me to deal with them again.

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1991 744T 415 000KM sold Sept 2003, Presently: 1989 744T 200000Km, 1996 850R Wagon 99000Km

Sorry, no sympathy from me. And I don't work in the business. You purchased a used car at nine years old. Providing it was fully Volvo certified, their end of the job is done. Your lucky you even got 3/4 of gas in my opinion.
Now if you were purchasing a brand new Volvo....I would expect the world from them. My two cents...
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'82 240DL Stock / Masters Class, '94 850 GLT Fully Loaded / Daily Driver, CVC / VCOA Member http://www.capcan.com/tonyg.htm

Well, I hope nobody here is offended, but I expect every trip to a car dealer to pretty much s***. I have dealt with several over the years, and none of them pleased me 100% of the time. As far as your itemized list, I can see that the saleman may have been anxious enough to call you about the final signing. They gave you 3/4 tank of gas - that's great at today's prices. It sounds like you bought remotely - yes a free ride from the airport (many dealers on ebay advertise they will do this) would have been nice, but was this advertised anywhere? A lot of dealers charge you for documentation, period. So, I would feel you got something there. It sounds as though you may have mentioned some of these items to them, which may have prompted the comment about other suitors of the vehicle. It is hard to know what is behind what you experienced. Sometimes management is just very tight with "perks", and I have noticed this can vary at a particular dealer over time. We don't know what bargaining, if any, there was over the car. Did you pay the asking price? I have whined after leaving the dealer's property - you aren't alone there. The pain will subside over time, and hopefully you have a dealer that is closer than a plane ride away to work with. Good luck with the car.

And car dealers wonder why they are not loved...

Klaus
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98 V70Rawd(108Kmi), 95 854T(88K mi), 75 164E(173K mi)

Hi!
I would have to agree that the "dealer experience" is usually less than satisfactory. My wife finally stopped taking her 95 850 wagon to our local dealer here in Calgary, Valentine Volvo. The final straw being being "stranded" twice due to an oil leak(oil return line) which wasn`t repaired properly. The car had to be towed in on our dime & service adviser told her that they would cover the tow bill if it was found to be their fault. They reluctantly conceded that the repair hadn`t been performed up to spec but then, to add insult to injury told my wife that she had to "expect" this sort of occurence because she was driving a high mileage Volvo. Say what!! Of course, the car is going to need repairs/ maintenance but we expect & demand that said repairs are done properly. At a shop rate of $100/hr one would expect nothing less!
My .02. Find a good indie!
Rich