True Story: Dream Car Disaster

When I was ready to purchase my first vehicle, I was full of excitement. I thought nothing could bring me down and the only challenge ahead of me was finding the car I would have for the next decade (or more if I was lucky). But I was wrong.

After reflecting on the situation, I recognize I played a significant role in the outcome. However, it’s clear that many of the issues I faced stemmed from misunderstandings that could have been avoided.

Let’s see how things happened and what could have gone differently.

Part One: Research

I started researching vehicles online that would fit my values and aesthetic, and after several hours, I found The One on a manufacturer’s website.

From there, I started scouring local dealership websites. I wanted to find somewhere close that had the specific vehicle model I was looking for with a few extra things: cloth seats and a sunroof.

After several more hours of not finding exactly what I wanted online, I began to call around hoping someone could help me. I eventually talked with a dealership that said they had my dream car with the sunroof and cloth seats. I was beyond excited and headed straight there.

Part Two: Dealership Visit

Once at the dealership, I met Jackson, filled out some paperwork, and headed to the lot. There it was, right in front of me, my new baby. The car I hadn’t stopped thinking about since the moment I saw it online.

It was perfect. Even better in person than I could have imagined. It was the right color, didn’t have many miles on it, and I could see the beams of light coming through the sunroof hitting the… leather seats? I guess it wasn’t so perfect after all.

Problem #1: The car I asked for wasn’t the car I was seeing.

I explained to Jackson there must have been a mistake. I was specifically looking for cloth seats, and we had even discussed it on the phone. He started explaining how leather seats were better because “they had heating options, were easier to clean, and came with automatic buttons so they’re more convenient to adjust.”

I didn’t care about any of that. I don’t like leather seats because they get hot in the sun and your skin sticks to them. That’s enough of a deal breaker for me to never own a vehicle with leather seats.

Problem #2: Jackson didn’t listen to me or understand my needs.

Part Three: Dream Car Disaster

After expressing my concerns again, Jackson told me due to the trim packages for this specific vehicle, I couldn’t get a sunroof and cloth seats. After all my research, I was a bit upset about this. I had clicked through so many options online and never noticed cloth seats and sunroofs weren’t an option together.

Problem #3: There was no online assistance, like a chat, to help me during my search.

I was crushed, but told Jackson I’d be willing to look around if there was anything else that met my criteria. At this point, I was still considering buying from them if they had something that fit my needs. I went through my non-negotiables, now listing all the things I knew were included with my dream car like the fuel type, fuel economy, and cargo space.

Instead of helping me, Jackson got pushy, saying I never told him cloth seats were something I wanted.

Problem #4: Jackson was pretty much calling me a liar, when I’m 99.9% sure we talked about this.  I wish there had been notes from our phone conversation he could have referenced.

Part Four: Leaving Empty Handed

I asked if I could have a few minutes to look around alone, but after the way I was treated, I knew I wasn’t going to spend my hard-earned money there.

Not only did they not have the car I had my heart set on, they also didn’t have the customer service I expected. I left feeling lost and defeated.

Despite filling out paperwork and providing all my information for the test drive, I never even received any follow-up calls from them. Not that I particularly wanted to hear from them, but I was surprised by this.

Problem #5: There was no follow-up to see how they could have done better. You’ll never get better if you only ask the customers who’ve had good experiences. You have to learn from the bad too.

The Impact of a Bad Experience

You hear all the time how one negative experience can turn a customer away. Even your most loyal customer will walk out the door never to been seen again if the situation is bad enough. On average, only nine people hear about our positive experiences, while an astounding 16 hear about the negative ones.

We all know someone who’s left a dealership because they didn’t have the vehicle they were looking for; that happens. But we also probably know someone who’s left empty-handed due to their experience; and this should never happen.

Although you can’t ensure every person who visits your dealership will make a purchase, you can guarantee everyone has a great experience and leaves with a positive story to share.

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