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View Poll Results: Have you ever dropped a car because of a poor sales experience?
Yes 253 53.60%
No 219 46.40%
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Old 10th April 2019, 10:35   #31
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

Reminds me of my experience with a Tata Motors dealership. The entire experience is shared here (Tata Zest : Official Review).

In my case, the dealership wasn't only shoddy in terms of being ready for a TD, but the car was also not well kept. How would a buyer get confidence on the brand if the TD car gives up midway! All this, when the brand is infamous for its presales and postsales experiences!

For me, if an OEM does not have control over the happenings in its dealerships/service centres, then it's not worth the trust and money of a customer.
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Old 10th April 2019, 10:39   #32
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

Partially agree with the opening post. I would clarify one distinction. If you believe the service experience has a good reputation and the car is good then I wouldn't reject an offering because of sales experience. Just as you have to live with a car for many years, you also have to live with service for at least the warranty years if not longer.

In my experience, companies with great sales experience don't necessarily have a great service team but more often than not, if the overall sales experience is bad then the service is rarely better - it points to something more systemic.

PS: Actually I just voted on remembering my own bike purchase last year. I was carefully (finally) considering between the Kawasaki Z800 and Street Triple S. Although I did pick the Striple on individual merits, the entire dealership attitude at Kawasaki did put me off in a big way from picking it, particularly when you contrast it to Shaman Triumph's eagerness. I simply cannot plonk 10 lakh down on a bike when they one absolutely refuses to give a meaningful test ride. And that played its part in swinging the decision away from Kawasaki.

Last edited by Axe77 : 10th April 2019 at 10:43.
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Old 10th April 2019, 10:49   #33
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

I definitely would look at sales experience before buying the car. Happened to me last year. I was in market for a premium car.

1. Contacted Mercedes dealer (both of them in Pune). They said they would provide me a test drive. Followed it up with them couple of times , both of them just gave promises of test drives, nothing in actual. I used to get call from Mercedes call center and everytime take my details and used to tell me somebody from dealership will contact you.

2. BMW and Audi : Contacted them and both of them were very responsive. Offered "N" number of testdrive at mutally agreeable time and place. I even had my parents sit in the car to test if they are OK with ingress and egress.

3. Volvo : Same experience as BMW and Audi.

Icing on the cake , couple of days after my purchase of Audi, Mercedes calls me up and asks about the test drives etc and my decision. I told them point blank I did not buy their car since I did not get a test drive.
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Old 10th April 2019, 11:07   #34
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

I prefer always to buy the product and not those few minutes with salesman. I am always clear on what I want in the car and from the car barring few things here and there. Take test drive, perform comparison and decide on the product. However, salesman can play a huge role, influence and can tilt the balance in a particular product / brand for general public. He can sell you a base or mid-variant of a sedan instead of buyer wanting to buy hatchback. They are equally important because most of the buyers would not go for in-depth details, read blogs, compare different cars technically, comparison test etc.
Other things remaining equal, sales person is very important to provide the experience and closing the deal.


For me, it is the product. 3rd Tata purchased about 1.5 yrs back. That should say it all
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Old 10th April 2019, 11:47   #35
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

Quote:
Originally Posted by H_Dogg72 View Post
Well. I would not bother about 12 rupees for one.
It's not the 12 rupees that mattered. It's their business ethics. I can imagine the cashier arguing with me, but not the SA, Service Manager and Showroom Manager!!

Quote:
Secondly, it's common dude, test drives on customer cars is nothing new.
I don't have to accept what is 'nothing new', do I? What guarantee do I have that if I book my motorcycle with them, that the won't abuse it before delivering it to me? We're talking about a dealer in a district headquarters of one of the biggest districts in TN! The fact that they haven't bothered to get a test ride motorcycle, that too the company's premium offering, is appalling!

Quote:
Part of India if you will.
Sorry mate, I won't. I may not have the power to change the system, but I have the power to walk away from what I think is unethical. If more people do that, we can go a long way in changing things!
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Old 10th April 2019, 11:51   #36
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

I usually follow the middle of the road approach to this, if i don't like the dealer attitude, i don't drop my decision to buy that car, i drop that dealer, but this is not before properly informing them that i was here to book the car but now i won't.

Happened when i wanted to book my Honda City, the dealer that we first went to kept us waiting for 15 minutes without anyone attending to us, immediately got out and booked the car with some other dealer.

Frankly from car dealer or any other business's sales team's point of view, the customer is the king and no matter how bad a day you have or whatever kind of person you are, you just cannot afford to treat the customer bad.
I have personally known a lot of people who have dropped their decisions because of dealer attitude and people in general just HATE to be treated bad, especially if they are excited and in a happy mood, wanting to spend lakhs of rupees in a product. It is a supremely stupid thing to do from seller's point of view, even if you are a rude person in general.

P.S : What happens in some other cases is, people are forced to consider other cars because of bad dealership attitude (a lot of people i know consider Marutis and Hyundais ONLY) which they did'nt know were any good and in the end they make a better decision, a friend wanted to buy a Baleno, ended up buying a Jazz and is very happy with his decision.

Last edited by Rocketscience : 10th April 2019 at 11:56.
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Old 10th April 2019, 12:29   #37
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

I'm never deterred by the dealership experience. Not that I have a lot of experience purchasing vehicles. I'm in the used-vehicle-buyers' boat with GTO.

However, I do my math before making a decision to see which product makes the most sense. I literally make an excel and give points/amount that they're worth to me before zero-ing down on the specific brand + model + variant + color + engine + transmission.

I even offer points for design even though my bigger focus is on the features. Something like the alloy wheels would be worth Rs. 4,000 to me while a factory-fit driver armrest is worth 7,000, even if it has a lower MRP.

Once, I've narrowed down the exact product I want to buy, I start reaching out to the dealerships in my area. If they're not offering a good deal/experience, then I call dealerships further away. I don't mind driving too far to buy a car as long as they have a service outlet nearby. (I once drove ~450X2 km to check out a used Tata Nano and rejected it.)

Then just walk in and close the deal. Most of my homework is done before I even reach out to the dealership. When I do, I have my exact requirements and a figure in my mind and that's all they have to deliver. Given my specific needs, I rarely go off track enough to make the dealership experience the heart of the matter.
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Old 10th April 2019, 12:47   #38
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

It will largely depend on one's buying cycle.

If one is buying their first car then surely they will drop the car based on initial engagement. One of my friends bought his first car, Dzire purely because it's a Maruti and wanted to play safe.

If someone is buying a second or third car they will be more open to try different dealers.

Word of mouth or general wisdom reinforces pre-set notions. If one has a below average or average experience at TATA or Ford, everyone will say we told you don't go to those brands.

If the same treatment is given out at Maruti or Hyundai, people will say it's one off let it go.

Not sure how Luxury car market fare. They have a completely different expectation so no clue on that segment.
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Old 10th April 2019, 13:01   #39
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

To some extent behavior of the SA does matter, look at it in this way if they don't appreciate your business chances are they wouldn't care for you when it comes to service too.

Personally i would look at it as a whole package, i for sure don't want to spend lot of money to keep suffering later on.
I have walked out of M.S dealership as the concerned sales guy was way too arrogant. Right in front of him i called the other dealership and inquired about offers available and finally chose the latter as they were very courteous and transparent that too on the phone itself.
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Old 10th April 2019, 13:39   #40
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

My first car was to be a Ritz/Swift Vdi. Back then there weren't as many showrooms and financing was not easy. Visited Maruti showroom checked both cars, asked for test drive. They didn't have one ready and promised me to send one home. I was just 4 months in my first job and when the sales advisor got to know, he was least interested in selling one to me. Dropped Swift, paid the booking amount to Ford Figo and did not regret once. After that I bought cars only what I liked, I did not had to drop any car because of bad sales.
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Old 10th April 2019, 13:43   #41
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

I always wonder that if the brand is treating me badly at the sale itself, when brands are normally at their best behavior, how bad will things get once I buy? And since keeping the car/bike running is an integral part of ownership that requires interacting with the brand, the sales/dealer experience does matter. Naturally, I wouldn't buy a lousy car/bike just because that brand might provide a good sales experience, but I wouldn't even be walking in to a lousy car/bike brand dealership to check it out in the first place, since I assume I'd have done my research and have realized that model is not for me.

One thing for me is an absolute must and that's a test drive/ride. I'll certainly never buy any car or bike without taking a test drive/ride first and I'm not going to go out of my way to get one. That is the bare minimum. So if a dealer can't provide a test drive (looking at you here Honda!), forget it.

Last edited by am1m : 10th April 2019 at 13:45.
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Old 10th April 2019, 14:14   #42
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

For me, I see a salesperson acts as a catalyst in making the well-informed purchase decision. Most of us enthusiasts (I can say, everyone) do their homework for weeks to months before even stepping into the showroom. For an average non-Maruti buyer, I feel the showroom experience matters the most.

Let me summarize my experience with different dealers in 2016-17.

Ford:
The showroom experience was rather poor as the salesperson pushed me to get Ecosport than Figo. Also, the test drive provided was rather a short one. I wanted to test the car on ORR but the salesperson didn't agree. I had even offered to fill some Diesel . I was more inclined towards petrol cars, so this didn't go further.

Nissan:
The experience was rather normal. Neither I nor the showroom wanted to go ahead with the deal. No one was interested. It was like I went there to get a cup of coffee.

Maruti Suzuki (now Arena):
The showroom experience was rather normal. Can compare it to the random Kirana store visit. Whichever showroom I went to, I can only remember the negotiations on how soon I can get my Swift. Period.

Nexa:
The showroom experience was good. The ambiance was great. In fact, I was one of the first persons to see Baleno RS in flesh much before the official launch. But, The salesperson had no clue about specs of RS. He even suggested me to go for 1.2P as it has a bigger engine . Rejected due to the price tag.

Volkswagen:
The experience was good but they wanted me to process the loan ASAP, the same day. I still remember the salesperson praising me on my driving style all through the test drive (Do I drive so well?, I don't think so, I am rather a sedate driver). Also one funny thing, I asked why Polo didn't have Parking Sensors and he said, VW knows which features to give and a Hatchback doesn't need parking sensors.

Hyundai:
I can say the experience was A+. The salesman was well informed, follow-ups were smooth, everything went so well till the date I test drove Skoda Rapid that made me cancel the booking for i20 (P) at the last minute before delivery in favor of Skoda Rapid (P). The salesperson was so professional in handling the entire thing so beautifully. I had even processed my loan for Rapid sitting in Hyundai Showroom.

Toyota:
The experience was TOP CLASS. The salesperson was well informed. He made me very comfortable like at home. The brochure that I got for platinum Etios was the proper booklet with hard paper pages (I still have it). I was so satisfied with the test drive of 1.5(P). But, my family was against getting Etios for obvious reasons (no offence to owners). If not, I would have got one.

Skoda:
The showroom experience was good apart from minor issues with followups. The salesperson is so proud of baby Octavia face on Rapid than everything else. So did I. I got the same variant for the test drive. I can say, my interest in the car made me seal the deal.


Cheers,
-Shouri
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Old 10th April 2019, 14:20   #43
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

I Voted Yes - but it wasn't for a car, rather a motorcycle.

Last year I was looking for an entry/mid level supersport/sport tourer and eventually the Yamaha R3, KTM RC390 and RR310 made it to my short-list.

Of these, I was in love with the RR310 purely because of it's brilliant looks. But, each TVS dealer experience in a 20 km vicinity was utterly disappointing, so much so, that I was scared of what the post-sale experience might be like with these guys.
Yamaha was a similar sob story in my vicinity, not as bad as TVS though.
KTM on the other hand were super responsive and tolerant, and 'coz I liked the RC a lot too, so eventually picked that up. So far, I have had a supportive and cordial post sale relationship with the nearest Service Centre and their technical staff are always available on phone for quick guidance or queries.

Last edited by roy_libran : 10th April 2019 at 14:23.
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Old 10th April 2019, 14:24   #44
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

I voted YES; allow me to explain: i will drop the car in that particular dealership and walk into another one. If it is a single dealer then i will think again but if i want that car i will go to another city if necessary.
I agree with GTO. A bad dealership experience does not mean a bad product; on the other hand, a good interaction with the dealer does not mean the product in question is excellent.
By the grace of the Chap Upstairs, i have been fortunate enough to be able to afford certain things in life such as a good car. Currently i can lay claim to a few of them from different manufacturers. Let me lay out a short sketch of each one:
1. Maruti Suzuki: been dealing with the same dealer since donkey's years now. The manager knows that i will not interact with the ever changing sales staff and so when i have to go there i call ahead and go sit with him direct. I have not had any sour experiences with them in the last 20 years although i have bought only 3 cars from them. The first was the 1st gen Swift 1.3P and the latest being the wife's Swift. In this case, i ended up in his office within 2 hours of the launch of the Z+ AMT model. Poor chap had no idea what i was talking about. He made a few calls and then came to realise that i was right. Took my booking and promised me the car in 7 business days. Got it on the 6th day!

2. Hyundai: they had one dealer when they started and i walked in to buy the i20 Asta O model without the sunroof. Absolute rubbish experience, sales staff did not know what i was asking for and their replies were hilarious. Finally i wade through them to reach the manager who knew what i wanted and promised me delivery within 2 weeks if i made 50% payment. I did so and got the car after 2 months! But that has not stopped me from buying more Hyundai cars. Now with multiple dealers i have zeroed down on one which has given me good service as well as a good sales experience. The latest acquisitions have been a Creta for me and another one for uncle.

3. Tata: was not associated with them during the early days but got terribly interested with the launch of the Hexa. At that time, the nearest dealer was 70km away. Called them and they came over the next day for a TD. Very impressed with the car and also with the sales staff. By the time i decided to pick one up, considerable time had passed and a new dealer started up in town and so picked it up from them although the interaction was absolute rubbish. For servicing i go to the other dealer though and i have no reason to complain so far.

4. Honda: went with a friend to check out the WRV, sales guy kept insisting we consider the City. Had to give him an earful before he stopped; then found out that they do not have any WRV for TD and was offered a TD in a customer car. Refused to do so but friend bought the car anyway as it fit his requirements.

5. Ford: There are 2 dealers and the interaction with both was nothing memorable. Bought the Endeavour from one simply because they gave me a better deal. Service has been better than the sales experience.

That about sums up my experience. If i want it i will buy it, interaction experience not withstanding but not from the same dealer.
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Old 10th April 2019, 14:43   #45
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Re: Had a bad sales experience at a dealer? Please do NOT eliminate the car model because of that!

Not a car but have skipped buying a motorbike because of the salesman.
Sidharth Lal from RE says that they are targetting the existing RE Classic 350 owners to upgrade to Interceptor 650. Having read this , I walked into the RE brand store in BTM Bangalore. I bought a classic 350 from them in 2010.

The youngster who was in charge of the store was a bit hesitant to discuss the details at first. I gave him the benefit of doubt as it was a Saturday and maybe he had too many customers. When I requested again for the details, his first reply was - " sir, I need to tell you that it will take at least 6 months of waiting period"

Me : " that is fine with me. I bought my classic after waiting for 10 months"

Sales Guy: "one more thing, I won't be able to give you a test ride today. You are wearing sandals"

Me: I understand that I'm wearing sandals ( chunky woodlands slippers). But I wasn't aware of this rule. I do ride my classic wearing the same slippers. Is there anyway I can get the TD as I don't have time to go home and come back"

Sales Guy: Sir, it's a Saturday and we want to prioritise our test drives for customers 'who are serious about riding'

I was seriously shocked at the way he spoke like that to a customer and the way he judged me. You can't judge how serious a person is about riding just by a mere sandal. Agree that proper riding gear is the way to go, but there are many customers who wouldn't have planned for this while leaving home.

Anyways, I lost my interest to upgrade and left.

Last edited by Lambydude : 10th April 2019 at 14:45.
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