k2kv

Well, after spending a great deal of time with my dealer, I've decided to upgrade my order from an S to a tt. I told my dealer I would upgrade my order but that I needed a greater discount. He won't budge. This particular dealer has what I consider to be an excellent reputation, and is 15 minutes from my house.

Believing that a greater discount could be obtained, I took a ride to another dealer and was offered an additional $5000 discount - far more than I was expecting! This dealer is substantial, but does not enjoy quite the reputation as the first.

I have approached the first dealer and told him that, out of respect to all the time he has spent with me, I would be willing to accept an additional $4000 discount (rather than $5k to meet the other dealer's offer). He tells me there is no profit in the deal, and he is rather upset at having "wasted" so much time with me. He is now speaking poorly of the discounting dealer, and is trying to convince me that his service techs are the best, receive regular monthly training that the reps of the second dealer simply do not.

If I decide to move my new order to the second dealer because of price, and it turns out that his service is, in fact, not a great as it could be, what options wil I have? I would be quite reluctant to "try" to bring my CT to the first dealer, since he is not a very happy camper at this moment. And I am definitely feeling pretty "guilty."

The first dealer is trying to convince me to stay with the original order for the S, that the tt is not a good snow car, very "torquey," etc. For the record, it is NOT like me to "pull out" and change loyalties because of price, but we're not talking $500 or a thousand bucks here, we're talking a difference of $5000 (plus 8.75% sales tax)!!

I told him I would think about it and get back to him in the morning. I would appreciate any thoughts or insight from experienced folks in this group.

Thanks in advance.

pdxjim

1) I would go with the lower priced dealer and take the truck to the closer dealer for service. Normally, after service you get contacted by Porsche to see how the service was, and dealers get "leaned upon" I think, if you are not satisfied by their performance.

2) Regarding the "torquey" nature of the TT, you will have PSM which controls the spin of the tires. I would guess that in the snow the performance (ie traction) would be similar to an S if both have PSM. I am itching to get my Scorpion-shod S in the snow.

tahoeblue

Take the $5K discount. That is substantial.

The first dealer will still love your business in the future when it comes time for service if you take it there.

In my experience with P, MB, and BMW, I have not perceived that any service dept cared where the car was originally purchased.

Enjoy that TT!

pdxjim

Forgot to mention that I had an S on order with my local dealer until I found an S on ebay that I ended up buying out of Texas. The service writer at my dealer has been doing a great job for me.

DanP

Buy the one with the best deal.

Either service dept. wants your business, you can be sure of that.

Bentley

You cannot deposit loyalty to a dealer into your bank account; but you can deposit $5,000.00 in it.

ltc

I think the first dealer already gave you the answer.

My favorite one is:
"he is rather upset at having "wasted" so much time with me"
Yup, he is the kind of salesman who I am sure will remember me when I come back for service or to buy another Porsche. I'm curious what the GM of the dealership would say if presented with this thread?

What exactly is his time worth or hourly rate? You would have had to have "wasted" an awful lot of his time to add up to $5K.

I agree with everyone else. When it comes in for service, he won't even remember and the service manager will care less. And trust me, the last thing he (or the dealership) wants is a very negative report when you are contacted after the purchase, and you will be contacted. Their scores, along with sales, determine their allocation of desirable models.

I'm lucky I guess. I have a very good relationship with the local Porsche dealer and have always been treated fairly. The negotiations are never harsh like yours and, as you said, it is worth $500-$1K difference in the end....but not $5K. I guess that's why when I go in for service, I end up staying a couple of extra hours just shooting the breeze.

Get the car you want at the price you feel is fair. Everything else comes second.

Cay

another number most are not aware is the customer bonus -

every dealer gets a customer care bonus from the PAG - a dealer in your area will get it by first deal, outside dealers by the 2nd order.

so far I heared its a value of 2000 bucks in germany - maybe in the us too

buttomline - pag dealers are interested to keep you in their customers stock

jhunt@huntinter

I think you will be dissapointed at how little "loyalty" your $5000 will buy from the service department. Go with the better price, that is just way too much of a swing in price.

Torags

The sales & service departments are separate profit centers.

The service department gets"vigs" when they give good service (& you give good surveys.) In some cases these surveys allow dealers to get bigger allotments, because they are a good dealerships. An improvement of the breed techinque.

There are criticisms of this method on a thread here, but it seems to work.

Personally, I bought a car 200 miles away and take it to a local service dealer who is first class, & glad to have my service business.

Take the discount. Any BS from your local service dept (which I doubt) - report them to PCNA.

k2kv

Wow - quite an overwhelming response! Thanks for all your common sense.

Actually, it WAS the GM with whom I had this conversation. He was calm and basically professional, and said both he and his salesman were upset, though he also said that, "admittedly his salesman is young and has to learn about these things."

He then related to me that another customer who purchased elsewhere had come to him and apologized, admitting that he had made a mistake, and that he should have purchased here in the first place, and after "begging" this dealer to treat him like one of his "regular" customers, (i.e., not having to wait at the end of the line for service, or something like that), he agreed to consider him a "regular."

Kind of gave me the feeling that he would not be too keen on taking care of problems for me, certainly not in the mood to fight for me if my elsewhere purchased Cayenne were to have problems.

What are your thoughts on this specific issue?

Thanks again in advance!

chris walrod

Spending (potentially) that kind of money at a car dealer and hear the words 'wasted and time' in the same sentence would BOIL my blood. All customers are supposed to be treated equally, which in the real world does not happen, but supposed to happen.

Chances are, you wont realize $5k worth of 'special' service at the original dealership post purchase. I have been promissed several things by dealerships pre-purchase, and later let down and extremely disappointed.

Go for price, thats what the dealers do on the flip side.

Good Luck!

k2kv

Yessiree,

This is indeed a GREAT place!

Thanks to all...

John Welch.

This dealer's 'reputation' doesn't seem to fit the GM's attitude...

OVRSTR

k2kv, I too was caught up between two dealers on Long Island. The original dealer I was dealing with serviced my 930, so I obviously went to him first. After getting my figures, I then went to the dealer closest to my house. The second dealer gave me a better deal by about $2500 walking in "cold" right off the street, not even knowing I had already been shopping. When I again apprached the original dealer, with whom I thought I had a relationship, the salesman basically told me I was full of sh*t that another dealer in the same basic area could be underselling him by that much. Needless to say, the second dealer got my order for my Cayenne and now services my 930. I have been very pleased with every aspect of their dealership. I'd really love to know what two dealerships your considering as I may really be able to help you with your decision! Michael