Perimeter

Thanks for the update.
The Porsche Chandler Sales Team dreamed up this idea of denying anyone the choice and will build a spec "to sell"?
That's not a very endearing move towards their customers.

theunitedstates

I feel like it's really difficult nowadays to form a good relationship with dealers. The dealer I like is too small and gets a very small amount of GT car allocations. They did a great job accommodating me and I won't forget it - always will give them a chance to earn my business. Problem is, when they don't' have the car I want, I have to branch out...resulting in the typical games. In their defense, I move a decent amount, but would have no qualms about buying from the same dealer cross country if I liked my SA/the dealer.

I will likely try a lambo, ferrari, or mclaren for my next vehicle. Judging by the comments made throughout the forum, I'm sure I'll be playing the same games. That being said, it feels like mclaren and lambo dealers I have talked to honestly seem to really want to earn your business and start a relationship with no games. Ferrari I have yet to experience, but will say inquires have been met with...crickets. I guess I can't blame them, but I feel like even if I went in there, they likely say "buy this Lusso and we'll talk"...so back to square one.

vodavoda

The question is "How loyal is the nearest Porsche dealership to me?"

indianam3

By definition: "showing firm and constant support or allegiance to a person or institution"

My dealer is Bluegrass Porsche in Louisville, Ky.

I am loyal is the same way that I trust. I am a firm believer there is one superior definition to the word trust, it contains 2 parts (a) I trust your integrity and (b) I trust your competency. These are very different issues and in my opinion must be understood by friends, family, business partners, etc. My local dealer has been competent, they are MSRP and have the best service and customer communication skills of any dealer I have worked with. They also have been straight with me, I always know where I stand, zero exaggerations, mis-information or attempts to mislead me in any way.

So as in trust, I am loyal to them. In my definition of loyalty, as in trust, it means you get the benefit of the doubt from time to time on part (b), your competency. None of us are perfect. I have a very low tolerance for part (a) violator's.

Bluegrass is very customer oriented, and I feel works for and goes to bat for me when necessary. I have and continue to really enjoy doing business with them and my relationship with them.

sampelligrino

my purchasing experience buying a Ferrari as a first time buyer/new to the brand was flawless, smooth like butter. Don't really have much to say about it which is kind of weird... Brought my dad with me, walked in, specced the car exactly to my taste (which was so much fun - we couldn't stop laughing and smiling), paid deposit, left, got updates, car is inbound now. Was an amazing day and a good memory for us now, we were like two kids on Christmas morning

Granted the car is a 488 which is now a vintage model and replaced by the F8, but Ferrari themselves have said that they will make the new F8 available to order for anyone new to the brand. What that actually means in fine print no clue, but they seem to be trying to address the difficulties of getting the car you want so long as you have the means. Same with Lusso/Portofino FWIW. 812/limited series forget about it IMO. So I think the days of having to buy a used Cali or some used on the lot car simply to order any new Ferrari are gone for at least some models, others the games may certainly still be the case. Of course whether you want the cars Ferrari is currently making is up to you..

Now comparing that to my GT3 purchasing experience last year..... lmfao

theunitedstates

Sam - good to know, thanks for sharing. Looks like I need to show up at a Ferrari dealer and see how it goes.

sampelligrino

No worries, happy to share my positive experience as I also had the same exact assumption about Ferrari

Can't say that I've abandoned Porsche, love the 991 and always hope to have a 911 in the garage. And the GT cars are incredible. But the GT games, especially now in retrospect that I owned the GT3 and what I had to go through to get that car, I won't be doing that again. Glad I got to taste the forbidden fruit, next go around I will wait and watch the carousel go round and round lol. Look at how some .2 3RS are MSRP now, and the economy has still been doing well if you don't place a high value on time/getting your car earlier

Ironically someone who was very helpful to me was Tom Fazio at Cauley Ferrari in your home state Michigan. He reached out and offered quite a bit of help with my spec which was kind of him, even though he wasn't getting my business. He seems like a nice guy to just casually chat with for more info whenever you are ready/if interested

theunitedstates

Sam, funny you say that about GT cars as the GT3RS is my dream car. Now that I have checked the box, I highly doubt I will go through the hassle again to get the next one.

I will look up Cauley for sure and see what happens. I am actually starting to slowly embrace the idea of getting my first used supercar. I tend to put miles on my cars, so probably a better idea to buy used with a few miles on it in order to not get crushed on the trade-in!!

MS7044

While I am not bothered if a dealer wants ADM what does bother me is poor communication.

360MVA

In the last few years I have bought a lot of cars - RR, M5, Urus, 2 x 720s, several Ferrari's, Gwagon and most recently a 19' GT3. The buying experience with all but the Porsche dealer(s) was fantastic. There is zero chance I would be loyal to them however I only use my local dealers for the exotics. If they dont have something they will get it for me. They just work in a much more professional manner. The only exception was the Lusso for a Pista bit. Porsche sales people are weak as is the management. They are unprofessional and not accustomed to dealing with clientele who buy exotics. They have a mickey moue approach. They will try to stick you with every aftermarket BS service as if you have never purchased a car. It felt like buying an exclusive Toyota.

Anecdotal but par for the course. The Porsche sales person whom I had bought several cars from never reached out to me once to tell me they had an open allocation after I told him I was looking. When I showed up to see the car I purchased, I walked right by him to another SR and bought the car. He was visibly upset like I owed it to him. This would never happen with the other dealerships I deal with.

I want a speedster but likely wont get a call unless they mark it up so high that others pass. We shall see.

sampelligrino

Yep we are in the same boat. Amazing cars, but I'm not a fan of getting treated like that to spend my hard earned money, the car was/is not that good to me now that I owned it as brilliant as it was

Used especially in this stratosphere will definitely save you the big exotic depreciation you'll likely have to swallow buying a car like a Lambo/Ferrari/Mac of course, it's probably the way to go especially if the car will be driven. I just had to have my spec because it wasn't the standard build, but plan to flog the car and rack up the miles all the same. Hoping to do a multi-state road trip into Canada after the car arrives

Also spot on. I don't appreciate walking into a dealership and being told something different in regards to a GT allocation compared to another person who shows up 5 mins later, etc. Or hearing conflicting reports of MSRP or ADM etc from different RLers who contact the same SA when a lead pops up. Or changing the ADM, etc. Or flipping the script etc. Not honoring lists, etc.

If you are going to charge over, fine. IMO be transparent about it, be clear about it, be consistent about it, and above all else - if the customer is paying over then the customer service should also be "over." Just my experience/2 cents but, after paying over MSRP, I found I got a bit of the opposite..

I came away with the fact that Porsche does make brilliant cars, the GT stuff even more so. But the dealers and their antics, that's a big no no for me. Came across to me that they just have such a firm belief that the car is so good that customer service can go out the window because another buyer is waiting to take your place (which is true, but when we consummate a deal cmon bro)

If you have a good dealer/MSRP dealer or good working relationship with your dealer, you are a 918 VIP etc, that's awesome. Just didn't pan out for me that way, even going to dealers where I had purchase history

Decided to put my money where my mouth is and so far so good. There is something to be said about a pleasant buying experience, it makes a nice difference I am finding fingers crossed the experience continues to be great/fun

CAlexio

Thread should be "how loyal is your local dealer to its customers?".. the world is backwards where customer who is spending $ has to be concerned to be loyal to a business...

John Mclane

Spot on.
They act as they do us a favor in selling us cars. I asked the same SA twice about a couple of TT cabs and he didn't bother to return a call. Well, they were nearly 200k, chump change apparently. Did call me to offer RSs at internet published price.
I recall buying P-cars in 07-08. Quite different. Don't wish those days back, a lot of people got hurt but the stealerships didn't learn.
The market in the Chicago area is horrid. More likely I'll buy the next car over the phone from a FL or CA dealer. Trade in tax credit is the major hurdle.

joejenie

Understand but most of us would do the same if given the chance. Why deal with a customer when I can get the same money later without babysitting that customer for months.

Apex Ace

Precisely!