|
Following my last post, I went to see the '91 740 turbo wagon. 175K (kilometers), re-done red paint, black leather, 7 passenger, auto.
Before actually driving the 5+5 hour commute, I called up the used car dealer. Both times he cut me short saying that he had another customer waiting to close a deal. OK that's fine. I tried to get his verbal seal of approval that this one would meet my expectations after trying to tell him exactly what I was looking for, but the conversations were always cut short. I asked him if he had an indoor area in case it got dark, he said yes. I also asked him if he had a lift in the garage so I can inspect the car for leaks/rust/etc, he said yes. All in all, I decided to take the trip yesterday and took the day off work. I told him I would arrrive 3-4 pm, he said he would be there for 3.
I finally got there, was greated by a very polite and nice man (not the owner). He showed me the car. Unfortunately the indoor area was pretty much painted black and pretty light limited, so we took advantage of the last hour of daylight and took it out the back.
- The paint was refinished but it had some chips -ok
- The paint job was somewhat faded but still decent.
- OBD codes showed 2-3-3 (not clear).
- A/C was inoperable (R12 unconverted system) - owner had said it worked.
- Leather was pretty average - he had said it was "exceptional"
- I asked about the paint, he said it was repainted in '99 - is that still considered "refinished"?
- The shifter had a broken/missing bushing (play)
- After driving it, the rear calipers had the cronic stuck pistons
- brake pedal was pretty low (maybe needed fronts as well)
- suspension all original
- broken hatch interior plastic
- needed one new wiper arm
- front squirt did not work
- one cracked headlight
- one cracked taillight
The nice man's cell phone rang. It was the owner. He asked to speak to me. he said "I will be there in 10 minutes. Are you happy with the car?" I said it needed some work. He paused and said ok then hung up.
He arrived at the shop 1 hour later. Geez. He comes up to me and says "I need to be somewhere, just tell me one thing, does this car interest you or not?" (so much for the welcoming) "It's not what I expected" I said. "Then don't buy it", and he turns around and walks into his office. This is after he told me they close at 6-7 pm and it was now 4pm.
After 5 minutes the nice helper comes out again. I said, ok lets put it on the lift. The nice helper went into the garage and came out with a floor jack. "You don't have a lift?" I said, "no it's not a garage here" he said. Wow I was really getting pissed off at this point. I drove 5 hours and cannot even see under the car for the typical rear cranks seal and tranny bushing leaks, after the owner said he had a lift. Does a floor jack constitute as a lift?
The helper dissapears inside and comes out after another 10 minutes. He says "the boss would like to know if you are interested in the car or not".
I explained to him how pissed off I was with him and for what reasons, and the fact that he had no interest to give me the time of day at all unless I wanted the car.
I made him an offer 1000$ less that the quoted price to pay for the required items (I would do the work myself). He went in, came back out with a midpoint off. I handed him the key and turned away.
Am I difficult or was there no consideration and respect for the customer here?
I understand that an older car would need some stuff... if he was more honest over the phone given my commute and was more welcoming and took the time to listen to me when I was there I might have actually bought it. His loss, and maybe mine too.
BTW the final offered price was 5500 CAN$.
Greg Mustang
Ottawa - Canada
|
