My dealer did a great job for me although I knew more about the car than they did, as I was the first delivery for this area.
Even though I pointed them to this forum, they didn't spend much time here, so they lost a great opportunity to get some really good information. You are, at least, doing the "right" thing by hanging around here -- there are plenty of folks who are more than happy to share their experiences and although it will take a while to sift through all the information here, it has been invaluable to me as I watched other people go through the whole waiting, watching, and finally, taking delivery.
The good aspects:
- My dealer was happy to do MSRP, recognizing that this was a limited-availability vehicle.
- I dealt with one person through the entire process, which was excellent.
- I got to drive their demo LEAF for one entire day. That sold the car for me.
- The entire delivery process went very well. I got the phone call at 2pm, the car had arrived at the dealer overnight and they immediately detailed it to make it ready for me to take delivery. We went through all the paperwork methodically, which was important because it helped him ensure that nothing was missed. I picked it up that afternoon and the car wasn't on their lot more than 24 hours!
The bad:
- Add-ons that I didn't ask for were done to the car: pinstripe, etc., and he tried to get me to pay for it. I immediately kicked up on that and refused to pay, after which he found the "original" paperwork with the original price and options that we'd agreed on. I also made them remove the pinstripe and other stickers (dealer identification stickers, etc) that were on the car. I know he was doing the "salesman" thing but we had previously agreed on a price and options, and I expect you to stick to that agreement.
Suggestions:
- Make sure that you know if your customer is really paying cash or getting a loan, as the paperwork is different, and it surprised me as although I had taken a loan I expected to just write a check for the full amount, but it didn't go that way. Of course, it all depends on what arrangements you have with various financial institutions. Just make sure that your customer is fully aware of any dealer charges, doc fees, and loan arrangements well in advance so they don't get surprised.
All in all I had a good experience despite a few bobbles along the way. We were both keen to make this work and it was obvious that he was doing what he could to keep me happy so I can't fault him for that. My advice to you is: keep a line of communication open to your customer, let them know what to expect as soon as you can, and don't surprise them. The customer wants this to go smoothly; they're already nervous about putting down a big chunk of change -- make sure you earn it!
Hope this helps.
Cheers, Bert