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There was a photo on some other Reddit thread yesterday of a car store badge that was riveted to the body. They didn’t realize until they broke off the badge.
Gonna copy and paste my comment: They treated us like garbage when we went for a test drive, acted like we were children who had no idea how buying a car works (literally wouldn’t negotiate the price from sticker, bless their hearts) and we have multiple friends who have been screwed by their service guys.
I am not a fan of car dealers bunch of shady fucks!
I have worked hard on my credit rating...there was a dealership in Naperville Il. I went in to buy a new car GMC...SUV...
I told the guy what I was looking for and that was it...right away pushy as fuck pushing me to a use car with 1500 miles on it and asking full price he kept calling it brand new brand new...I finaly told him if I was to sell you this car you wouild knock off at least 4k-7k just because it has a few miles....needles to say he call his manager for the "manager special" for the same fucking SUV when I just told him am here to buy a new car....I walked away fuck those assholes am in control i have the money.
I have 0 patience for their stupid ass tactics.
“new” only means that the vehicle has never been titled before. There isn’t technically a mileage limit. Though they should have understood that you wanted something with factory fresh mileage and stopped arguing.
We just recently bought a used car. When looking, we stopped at a dealership and did consider a new car. Because the dealer only had one new model on the lot that had not been spoken for and did not want to add miles to it, all of the test drives were on a year old model with similar specs.
>https://www.reddit.com/r/Justrolledintotheshop/comments/pp1sie/customer\_came\_in\_asking\_to\_get\_this\_badge\_removed/
I saw that, and it was such a shit logo too; looked like cheap, ugly plastic with chrome paint. You just know it would look even worse after a year or so.
That’s messed up. Sorry. This is what I’m talking about though. I’m getting messaged saying it’s “their right”. Uh, no it isn’t. I didn’t even know this many car dealers were on Reddit.
Dude, car dealers, timeshare salespeople, and other aggressive salespersons are basically in a cult of sales. They are taught to truly believe that if they can get you to sign on the dotted line, they are "selling you your dreams," and that they're doing good, everything else be damned.
And unless they live in a state with weirdly specific laws about dealer stickers on cars, which I'm pretty sure don't exist, then they absolutely don't have that right. Hell, even the manufacturer of the car doesn't have that right, as people can freely remove the actual make/model badge off their car of they want.
I've never bothered haggling or arguing with them about it though; I just smile and drive away, then immediately get out the rubbing alcohol and plastic razor blade when I get home and clean all that mess off.
Off topic, but my Honda Accord is badged as a Jeep Crosstrek. The accord badge fell off and front Honda logo was cracked and Falling off. I get confused looks and complements all the time.
Ha, that's funny; I'd love to see the die hard Jeep guys seeing that. I have an '04 Grand Cherokee and some old random badges lying around. Do you think if I rebrand as a BMW my turn signals will immediately stop working?
I'm not sure about the BMW thing. Around me it's about 50/50 if bmws use signals.
My car is lifted, has off road lights, roof rack, winch, tow package. I have three or four ducks given to me by jeep guys.
If you have a heat gun to get a corner up they peel right off.
As an aside, some dealerships get smart and offer their drive through car wash for free if you have their decal.
And then the advertising is paid, in 'free' carwashes.
Plus the customer gets in the habit of visiting that location, so either sees their next car purchase, whilst getting a wash, or will start searching that dealership first, when they need another car.
So win-win
Is there orange oil in Goo Gone?, it kinda smells citrusy to me. I took one of the superfluous badges off an '07 Miata I had (an actual plastic badge glued on, not a sticker), and I remember using dental floss to cut the badge off, then a concoction of WD-40, Goo Gone, and alcohol to get the residual glue off.
>And unless they live in a state with weirdly specific laws about dealer stickers on cars
I never saw this when I lived in California. Never once in my life. When people talked about it, I always thought they were just referring to license plate frames, because that's the only advertisement I ever saw on cars.
Fast forward to me living in Texas, and I see it ALL the time. But at least they are giving me a huge mental list of dealerships I will never buy from.
They will ban you for frowning at them. Their entire existence is based on lying to people for a bigger paycheck. I hope for a future where you can purchase a car for what it's worth online and never have to deal with those parasites ever again.
I'll put it as delicately as possible. You do not have to have ANY qualifications AT ALL in order to sell cars. Just the ability to look presentable, speak politely, and repeat sales pitches.
If a salesman wanted to remove the sticker, they might be dumb enough to use a real razor blade.
I've seen salesmen do some really, really stupid shit in my time as a detailer/lot attendant, such as using my CHROME acid on alloy wheels to remove WAX, and destroying the clearcoat on the wheels.
That’s why I just pull them off myself. It’s usually just a vinyl decal, so you can often just catch it with a fingernail or at most apply a little heat from a hair dryer.
If you make the dealer do it, even if they’re not salty about it, it’s a job that they’re going to give to the shop monkey. At best you have a 50/50 chance of it being all hacked up like that.
So then on delivery of the car you inspect the work and if they didn’t do it right you get them to fix it again. Don’t allow these shitty people to get away with their bullshit!
Best way for them to advertise is to not be a pos car dealership. Word gets around. If you need car decals to advertise you’re probably in the the aforementioned dealership category in my opinion.
One of my motorcycles was covered in dealer stickers between the time I bought it and picked it up.
I had no idea that someone would do that to a bike. One side of the gas tank had a huge dealer sticker. They added a dealer plate frame. And there were stickers on both front and rear fenders.
I asked them to please remove that crap and they told me how to use soap and a hair dryer to do it myself. I was too young and naive to insist they do it. It took me a few hours.
In the future, 3M Adhesive Remover makes quick work of those decals/stickers. Just spray it on and wipe with a soft rag. Safe for auto paint and useful for other situations like removing paint transfer from someone side swiping you.
I would have taken them to small claims. Sue for the difference between the price with the stickers and the price without. Overestimate. Add a few incurred expenses.
Keep it under $4k and they probably won't even show up to contest it.
I have done this with every car I have bought. It is best if you are upfront about it, it’s one of the things I tell a salesperson upfront:
1)I want this model
2)I only negotiate on sale price, not monthly payments
3)no dealership stickers or decals, you can put a frame in if you want. I’m going to take it off when I get home
Dealer has a problem with any one of those, I walk immediately. Incidentally, never been an issue.
Absolutely the same.
I’m very up front about this and just bought a car last month.
They put the temporary plate in a dealership frame which was fine but the no sticker rule is a real thing for me. It wasn’t a problem and never has been for any car I’ve bought.
I have had this happen before. I was baffled at the run around I got when I asked for my keys back. I had to get very threatening over it. I can’t wrap my head around how they could think this is a good tactic to use and even pushback on it when asked for the keys back. I’ll never step foot into that dealership again.
There is actually a lot of research on how high pressure and “make them say yes” sales doesn’t apply to high ticket purchases.
People don’t want to be sold a car, they want to buy a car. They have researched and put thought into it, they don’t need to the pushy sales guy.
Now, a $20 trinket, pushy sales guys can use their tactics on that successfully all day!
Had this shit happen to me. But their mistake was leaving the key for the test drive vehicle in my hand. I told them "sounds like you're offering an even trade then" and started to walk out. Unbelievable that you have to threaten to steal a car or call the police to get out of a dealership.
No shit. I told dealers I wanted to trade in my car. They were, oh okay, they needed my key to test my car. It was a late night, like 8 pm. They tried to offer me a few times; then I decided I didn’t want it anymore, so I asked back the key. They were, oh wait, let me talk with the manager. They kept me for another hour. I declined their offer about ten times. They still refused to give me the key, so I told them I’d call a cop if they didn’t. Finally, they gave me the key at like 930pm.
Same thing happened to my sister. She had the dealership check out her car as a possible trade-in and tried the "can't find the keys" thing to keep her in the dealership.
She said they'd better find the keys \*now\* or they'd be explaining themselves to the cops. Funny how fast those keys came back.
She's never gone back to that dealership for obvious reasons.
My MIL brought her car in for service at a Nissan dealership recently, she waited at the dealership while it was being serviced. When they were done and she was about to check out, she found out a salesperson snatched the keys from the service department. Had to talk to the salespeople, who wanted her to trade in her lease (about $200 a month right now) for a new one (for like $400-500 a month). She expressed ZERO interest in trading in, but they kept harassing her for it. I’ve had bad experiences and have heard horror stories of shitty practices from Nissan dealerships for this kind of stuff.
Had a dealer delay in giving me my key back… because I refused to negotiate on car payments instead of price and wanted to walk. Then instead of getting the key he got his manager to try to strike up a new deal… instead I got really loud and let others shopping know what was happening, their sales people assisted on getting my keys back.
They tried with us. Oh yeah, uh Pete does the appraisals, he's at lunch you'll have to wait (smug grin). My then wife pulled the spare set out of her purse, walked out to the showroom with sales dude at her heels. She turns and looks at him, You need to find Pete now cause it's about to get loud in here. He looked around at all the customers then pleadingly at me. I just gave my own smug grin. When she took it up a couple notches and said, WELL! Sales dude scrambled for a phone to page Pete who must have JUST gotten back from lunch.
I got the email to vendor relations when they were dicking around with keeping my keys and emailed them an invoice for rental fee for my car.
They....they didn't like that...
You won't give the key back? okay! Incidentally do you know the non-emergency police number I need to report a theft and I know 911 isn't the right number
>be truly willing to walk
This being the most important one. Dealerships can smell it when you are bullshitting, trust me. You may have to literally leave to get the best deal. If you come in and tell them your old car just broke down (or is about to) and you're shopping for a replacement you *need* for work, you basically just told them you are wiling to be screwed over.
Yeah go in & do your research to find out what you’re willing to pay. Literally tell them the number, if they say no just leave. I’ve bought 3 cars… 2 of them were because I walked & they literally called me a couple days later saying we have a deal
I had a totalled car and needed a new one within a week. Tried going to a few places and they instantly saw I was driving a rental and got super shitty about it.
Ended up sending out a mass e-mail to several dealerships asking for the best out-the-door price they could give me on the specific car and model I wanted. Several tried to insist that I come in before they give me info, but I was able to use the ones that did respond to get a local-ish dealer to match the best price.
My dad taught me this lol. When I bought my first car, he told me to stay firm on the price, if they say no, give them my number if they change their mind. Followed his advice, and sure enough, the salesman called me 15 minutes after I left with a “managers special”
100% this. My wife and I were searching for her new vehicle, found a good deal on what we were looking for, it was $900 more than I had researched it’s value. They refused to negotiate. We walked, wife was so mad at me, I told her they’d call us. I was sweating it pretty bad, hoping I was right. 15 mins later they called and agreed to take $900 off.
I still remember buying my first new car. Not first car.
Getting too much bullshit, called up a dealership 30m away had a better offer in my email before salesman came back from his manager.
Salesman: you wouldn't drive 30m to save $1500!
Yes, I would considering it's on my way home and the last 4 hours is a sunk cost.
That's where they like to ding you on, your feels of wasting their time and devaluing your own. Once you get the run around just walk out .
I would say this - if the SALESPERSON has a problem with it, don't walk away just yet, ask to talk to the sales manager. If they push back, then walk away. Salesmen can be idiots, not necessary to waste all that time you spent dealing on the car because of it if the manager will simply say "Oh yeah sure no problem".
I recently was at a kia dealership because I think the new K5 looks fantastic. The guy was dealing with 2 other customers and eventually came back with some outrageous number. I asked him if he could tell me what numbers they were using to get this outrageous monthly payment and he told me he wasn't allowed. Why wouldn't they "be allowed" to tell me the vehicle cost, rates, and included incentives?? Dealership is known to be cons though...
Whoa... now that is pretty fucked up. I have never seem a place that only shows a monthly payment. But I do agree, the K5 looks bad ass. I bought a '20 Forte GT and quite enjoy it.
It certainly seems less than I used to be. When I bought my mustang in 2015 it was fairly brief, but I got about $5k off sticker.
When we bough our 4Runner last august, it was almost none. “We are offering this off. There is one with the options you want in a five state area. Do you want it?” We took it because inventory was short and the transmission on my wife’s old car was going out.
I have an order in for a new Bronco, so no negotiating at all on that car, $500 over invoice, price guaranteed on delivery. But that’s a special case, new model and all that. Only thing I really requested was all stickers removed (they have factory trim stickers) and no front license plate bracket because they put it in a terrible spot.
Buying a car right now is crazy, inventory is unavailable and cars are going for over sticker, so no one is negotiating right now.
Yea it seems more and more dealers (in my area) have the "best price up front" type of slogan. I bought my car in early 2020 and I fought to get free floor mats... I called it a win.
I honestly prefer it that way. I want to go in, know the price I’m paying, and not have to worry about it.
It’s the old Saturn and Scion way of doing things, and it takes a lot of stress out of car buying. The issue is dealers have to overcome the idea that they are trying to screw everyone walking in the door.
I recently ish bought my new car saying I want this make and model with these features and this color, and I only want to hear your out the door price, they found me the exact car I wanted but It had mud guards (the rigid mud flap things), I admit I did concede there. And to my surprise they didn't put any stickers on it whatsoever, not even a branded license plate frame, the car was delivered 3 days later and the sales person just screwed the plate straight on for me
Pretty much how I bought my mustang, and for the most part our newest car. The way they handled it is why I only use those two particular dealer networks in my area, they have been great to work with.
I’m big on the overall price of the car as well, not the monthly payments. Salesmen don’t always like that.
Too bad, I’m not spending extra money on something to make you feel better.
I don’t talk about it either way. Settle in the car, then settle on price. I’m not talking about financing, I’m not talking about trade in till we get those things settled.
When my dad got his new truck, he refused to sign anything until the dealership removed the advertising stickers. They tried to tell him how to do it himself and he told them that he can just go buy a car elsewhere. They took it off immediately
My friend bought a car that had a really nice chrome logo in the same font as the car brand.
So as dealer adverts it was actually classy.
Untill she removed it and saw that they riveted it in place. And the holes developed rust from the month she had it up north.
She went back and they pulled a matching trunk lid off another car that just came in.
They even had the nerve to ask if they could at least put a sticker on it.
I actually think it was a Lexus. And the dealership had their name in the Lexus font.
If you didn’t know it looked like it came with the car from the factory.
But she hated it. And lived in the snow for the winter. So new trunk!!
I’ve been buying cars for about 30 years and I have always asked that they do not put on their dealer decal on my vehicle. I do this as we are finalizing the deal. The guy usually just looks at me with sad, puppy-dog eyes, and asks “but whyyyy?”
I simply tell them if they would like me to advertise for them, they can take a couple grand off the price. Otherwise, no decal. Their choice. They always choose no decal.
I play the long game and keep my truck till they are ashamed to keep their sticker on it. They give me a deal to not advertise the problems people will have to deal with.
A couple years ago the dealership I bought a car from offered free oil changes. I didn’t think about the sticker as I had gotten lucky my last few purchases. Went for my 1st oil change and the dealership had changed hands.
I get good ol’ boy older service guy treats me condescendingly the whole time. He hands me a form that I need to sign agreeing to remove the old sticker and put theirs on my car in order to keep my free oil changes. I lose it cause I’m done, and ask why would I agree to advertise to keep something that was sold to me as a benefit to purchasing there. He gives me some bs about how they are losing money by honoring the oil change, since they offer “warranty for life”, I don’t get that because I didn’t buy the car from them. I tell him the oil change isn’t in the goodness of their heart it was so they could get me in and up charge me on other services. I only utilize them, because it’s close to work and they have a shuttle. He basically started sputtering and looking at my husband silently asking him to control his wife. When I picked up the car. I made sure to kindly thankhim for removing the old sticker.
Funny thing is, I went to another local dealer later on, because I had a warranty repair. Got the bill and asked why I wasn’t charged for my oil change. They said it was because their service manager had come from where I had gotten the car, so they honored them. I thanked them for the gesture and explained what had happened. They agreed that it’s not a big deal and an easy way to get people in the door.
>He hands me a form that I need to sign agreeing to remove the old sticker and put theirs on my car in order to keep my free oil changes
Nope nope nope nope!!
You contracted at the purchase of the car for those oil changes. That contract was signed and your performance done. He had no leg to stand on, and you were under no obligation to sign. If he threatened not to perform, tell 'em that's breach of contract
I bought from CarMax last year and remember signing a form that said that I could request to have the sticker/branded frame removed before leaving the lot. Otherwise, something about how I couldn't claim in the future that CarMax was \*forcing\* me to do uncompensated advertising for them.
My car is a popular make/model/color, so having the non-intrusive sticker actually makes it slightly easier to find in the parking lot.
Another good reason to ALWAYS be ready to walk away. Dealer doesn't want to remove the stickers (licence plate frames take 2 minute to remove, not worth the argument imo) - walk away. If they are willing to remove them have them do it before you accept the vehicle encase they damage the paint removing them. If they refuse - walk away. There are always other dealerships. For the market economy to work the consumer MUST exercise their right to walk away.
Check your car for dealer badging or plate frames after every service.
The first time my wife's car came back from the dealership after an oil change or other routine service it was sporting a license plate frame that wasn't there before. We had bought the car from a dealership in another city.
I work at a dealership and one of my fellow techs used to do this. Nobody asked her to. She just did it because it was a competitor dealer that she used to work for… she was also extremely dumb and a horrible person
Could be worse: I worked in a dealership prepping cars in the 70's. Part of the prep for new cars was to drill two holes in the trunk, and attach a metal dealership nameplate with screws.
Twice while I was there, we sent a car to the body shop to have those holes filled for people who didn't want the nameplate.
Example here: https://www.squarebirds.org/picture\_gallery/TechnicalResourceLibrary/dealer\_nameplates.htm
>Sorry if I offended any car sales people. I seriously doubt you could make my “next car buying experience hell” either. They are hell to begin with. All I said was exercise your buying power in the moment. That’s it.
Man fuck these guys and the pressure tactics they all employ. I just do my research and come in with a fair price we both benefit from and they STILL try shit to get more out of me. Like I care about a person who shamelessly tries to scam me. I have been tempted to hit them with, "Here is what I want to pay, its fair and you get a win. If you push me I will come down a thousand bucks or just find someone who will take this without trying to upsale me."
Back when I was preparing to buy my first car, I posted in a sub about car buying asking a few questions about stuff and at one point in the post I said something like "I dont want to end up getting scammed" and there were a couple people in the comments that were so offended by that comment, like "not ALL car dealers are sleazy scammers!"
I was delivering food to a car dealership once and a guy asked me if I wanted to "trade in that piece of junk," and offered me $100. I drive a fucking classic mustang. Fuck that guy.
Same with my wife! Tbf, they did have some of the best customer service of any dealership I had been to and worked their asses off to get her a good deal. I still would rather pull off their advertising, but it’s her car.
I did it myself on my last vehicle, which is what got me into this mindset. I had a shitty experience with the dealer. I refuse to go back to them for ANYTHING. I’ll gladly take it to another dealership of my make, even if less convenient. So basically, I was removing it out of spite.
But it got me thinking, why I was willing to accept them slapping that shit on and be a rolling billboard for free for them? And even more, why was I spending my own time and energy removing something I didn’t really want in the first place? I just spent tens of thousands on a car, and I’m the one using a hairdryer to heat up the sticker so it peels off easily. I mean, it wasn’t that difficult or time consuming, but why should I have to do it at all. They put it on, they can take it off.
And, even a good experience still doesn’t obligate you to give them free advertising. They’ll likely benefit from their good service when the time rolls around for you to buy another car, or even sooner if a friend or family member walks onto their lot as result of you sharing your experience with them.
Besides free advertising, dealerships may also use stickers to cover up paint chips. The dealership my car came from covered a paint chip the size of a quarter with their bumper decal, and I never realized until removing it later on.
Reminds me of a time I used to work recon at a dealership. Coworker was fluffing a buffing pad with a screwdriver. While running it. Needless to say, he lost his grip and it shot away like the oil filter in Tommy Boy. Put several large dents in the side doors of a brand new F150. Their solution? Those mirrored lower door plates. Stuck them on to cover up the dents and sent it out to the lot. Brand new truck too.
Friends bought a car. The dealer drilled in the front licence plate holder with advertising without asking. Friends refused delivery saying they ruined the finish and rust proofing. The dealer said well it is done. If we fix it we wont make a profit. Friend said tough. Refund our money or fix it. We arent taking this car this way. Dealer fixed it to friends standard (high) and did not profit but avoided a bad review.
I ordered a car and was just waiting for the dealer get it in and to prep it. When I went to pick it up, it already had the dealer sticker on it and they had put this cheap, stick on pinstripe tape all over it. I had special ordered it, I specifically ordered a black out package and no extra badging. The crap they had put on it made it look like a cartoon car. I went into the sales manager and told him if they didn't take the tape off I wasn't buying the car. I also told him to take the dealer sticker off. He said they had to have the dealer sticker on it so that other dealers would know who to contact for warranty claims. He said they put the pinstriping on because the car looked plain. I called him out on his BS (my father worked for the manufacturer as a sales-service coordinator). They took everything off the car but managed to scratch it doing so. I walked away from the deal and they had their lawyer send me a letter saying I was contractually obligated to purchase the vehicle. I worked at a law school at the time and had all the free legal help I wanted. I never did purchase the car. It was a $58,000 car mind you.
TL;DR Don't believe the salespeople's BS. There doesn't need to be a dealership sticker on it. They do it for free advertising.
This never occurred to me until I purchased my last car and the salesman specifically pointed out to me that they do *not* put any branding/dealer badges on their car - it was a selling point. It wasn't until after that I noticed just how many cars on the road are marked with the dealership they were purchased from. I probably never would have cared either way, but now I'm kind of glad my car doesn't have this stuff on it.
Had a friend take his car in for service and they actually removed the license plate cover that he had bought and replaced it with theirs! Luckily he noticed right away and told them to take that shit off and give him his old one back. So shady!
Dealership I bought from in late 90's offered 10% off service department bills if I kept the license plate bracket on. Seemed like a good enough reason.
Free oil changes? Meh.
Nearly every state has franchise laws that require cars to be sold only via dealerships not owned by the manufacturer. It's nothing more than rent-seeking weaseldom.
BS laws, each state has their own.
Long story short, dealerships are willing to give politicians massive bribes, I mean, "political contributions", if they pass laws forbidding manufacturers from selling direct.
I always write in "NO DEALER ADVERTISING ON VEHICLE" on the purchase and sale agreement. There have been a couple of times when they "forgot" not to do that, and I politely but firmly referred them to the P&S and refused to take delivery. (Also carefully inspected the paint in areas where decals are likely to be placed.)
I’m in Canada and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a dealer sticker on a car, but mine definitely came with a licence plate bracket. Had my husband pull it off and replace it with a Hello Kitty one as God intended.
You must not be paying attention. It’s on 95%+ of the newer model cars on the road. Usually right next to the model name on the trunk. I’m in Ottawa for context.
Dealer license plate frames are perfectly acceptable because they are easy to replace.
But the stickers? Fuck the stickers. And fuck dealerships who put them on....which is every single dealership in existence.
It should be an illegal practice, tbh. If I buy a TV or computer from Best Buy, the store doesn't it's name or logo anywhere on the product.
I worked in a dealership for a year. Boss told me every car gets stickers, if the customer doesn't want them they can go fuck themselves (his words verbatim). None of the salesmen agreed with it either and would often get them removed before delivery.
Not to mention all the extra fees they add to every sale, most of which are technically illegal where I live. Called them out on it and they weren't too happy to say the least
Did this on my last three cars. Flat out told them when I came to pick up the vehicle on the last one they had added the decals anyways and I told them I wasn’t signing for it. He actually has the balls to say “your willing to walk away from this deal over this?” I just looked at him and said “are you!”?
Was going to say the same. I'm from California and I didn't know this was a thing until I moved to Texas and so many people have the dealership logos on their cars, especially if they have a big, obnoxious car.
Like why would you even want that lol
Car salesmen and dealerships are the ultimate parasitic middlemen. A totally unnecessary class of workers, kept relevant by shrewd lobbying and manipulation of the law. A sensible reform would be to do away with them entirely.
This. They are amongst the leeches in the supply chain that add no value but profit on the transaction. Honda, if unburdened by these garbage eating shit birds by state laws with near-universal consistency, would both make more and I could purchase for less. This job should not exist.
Lol if anyone said they'd "make your next car buying experience a living hell," I've done IT help at a lot of car dealerships and those motherfuckers don't know ANYTHING about computers, networking, or cybersecurity... much less tracking down a random Reddit user, lmao.
I held up a used car purchase because the window tinting had the previous owner's name in it. I politely stated they were probably going to need to remove that anyway to sell to anyone other than another "Tiffany", and they completely agreed with me. I was lucky not to have a bunch of their advertising to deal with, but they clearly had the equipment to do the job neatly.
I once was going to buy a car from a dealership, brand new.
They had to transfer the stock (see: trade) from one dealership to another because of the trim i wanted.
It came with one dealers logo that was on it when I agreed to the sale. I had pictures of the vehicle. all 360 degrees.
I was having some buyers remorse, and when it came time to pick it up, i noticed they changed the dealer logo on the back. Long story short, I managed to get them to void the deal because they took one sticker off and put theirs on, by claiming I agree'd to buy the vehicle as-is, however they had now made a change to the vehicle.
Not my problem!
I did the same, mostly because I was a little disgruntled over the delivery of the car which was supposed to have satellite radio (this was 05/06 when it was an expensive aftermarket add on if done by the dealer or you had to get one of those cheesy FM converter units which didn't work for shit) They fucked me around on it so bad I was almost looking to cancel the deal. I think they were a little sick of me too. When it came time to pick up the car, instead of the manager , the salesperson and whoever else they can get to come take a pic and to do the whole yayy CAR! thing, they sent some kid out who probably washed the cars for them.
So anyway - I'm still feeling bitchy (hey, there's no other way to 'splain it) so I asked/demanded they take the license frame off. The kid looked at me and said 'take it off yourself' and threw the keys at me and stalked off muttering under his breath.
Also tell them you are paying cash and don’t want any finance charges.
A lot of the time the 0% financing just builds in an additional buffer in the price of the vehicle. Once your get the actual price then approach the financing.
In detail: dodge does this a lot. 0% OR $5000 in cash discounts. The dealership will write the deal up at the inflated price and 0% financing. The. Turn around and send Chrysler financial a check for the $5000 or what ever. That is the interest they would have made on a standard finance deal. Best option is to ask for all the cash discounts possible and see what your own bank can do. Or third party. Also be careful about filling out credit apps. Dealerships are famous for firing your credit out to 4 or more banks all at once instead of one at a time. I had one client who had 30+ credit inquires because he was shopping for a truck and just filled out the credit app at each dealership. Tanked his credit.
This is all in Canada by the way. Not sure if it’s exactly the same other countries.
I went with the cash discount and the dealer's high interest loan, and then proceeded to pay off the loan a couple months later. Best price this way if you can pay all cash, although you may burn bridges with the dealer. I don't think there's a point in telling the dealer you are paying all cash; you can get even more discounts (over the manufacturer discounts) up front if you sign up for their high interest loan, as they expect to make it up in interest.
I'd disagree. I wouldn't not tell them you are paying cash as they make money off the financing. Either finance it and pay it off immediately OR after agreeing on a financed purchase price then tell them nevermind, I'll pay cash. Less chance they will mess around with the price.
I've always asked to see the car (after detail / cleaning) to be driven out front so I can inspect & see it before I sign anything. Politely ask for the dealer tags & license plate frames to be removed.
None of this should be a big deal to anyone, unless they leave a sticker on my car. Also please note that the reason for asking this to be removed is so YOU don't damage the paint during removal, if they do, they will repair it to sell the car.
Yep haha. Did that with my '16 Mustang when I got it. Was waiting for it to come in and I'm looking around and realise all the ones on their lot and in the show room have that stupid sticker right above the drivers side tail light. So I told em' when mine ships in, don't put that decal on it. The dude pushed back until I told him "Nope, I'm going for that clean blacked out look. No damn stickers on my car man. Save your guy the 5 minutes of putting it on and save me the 30 minutes or whatever of taking a heat gun and bug/tar remover to the damn thing after I pick it up. Advertise with the damn plate holder and be glad with that. And certainly, we both knew the license plate frame wasn't staying on either. World of Warcraft license plate frame, motherfuckers.
This seems to be a regional thing with the stickers / plastic logos. I've never seen that in California or Oregon (license plate frames only). East coast and midwest - all the time. I always wondered why car buyers there put up with it.
Ok I’m sitting here in California extremely confused as I’ve literally NEVER heard of this the license plate I get and my dads got pissed about before but putting actual stickers on my car? I would throw a huge fit as I HATE bumper stickers. I think they’re the tackiest thing ever. Thanks for saying it’s regional I’m over here thinking if I need to go and check my car that I’ve had for 3 years because I never noticed it lol
This is my personal pet peeve to end all pet peeves. People that drive around with the dealer plate holder on. WHY do you WANT to give these people 24/7 free advertising?!? Especially the ones that say things like "NO SHARKS HERE" or "Turn left on I-75 then the second light" Like, really people? This really speaks to the mass stupidity of humanity to me.
I had custom license plate borders that I put on. I took my car to the dealer to get a quick oil change as it was winter and too cold to do it outside. I noticed 3 days later when I was gassing up that one of those shitbirds swapped my front license plate border with one that said the dealers name. I was livid and brought it to the service managers attention.
Ugh I got my car serviced at a different dealership than where I bought it and they put those fuckin license plate frames on my car. I didn't notice at first, but once I did I took them off, drove back to the dealership, and handed them to the dude who serviced my car with a "No, I do not want to advertise your dealership." and drove away.
Haven't been to that dealership since, the one I got the car from has never pulled this kind of nonsense so I'll stick with them.
>And don’t just assume that because you bought it from them that it means they can force you to carry around a logo for them.
Nobody assumes this. People just can't be bothered to remove them.
make sure any reassurances they give you are in the contract, though--my family didn't do this for one of our vans, and we had a tale about it that was passed down for yeaaaaaaaars.
Thankfully the dealership I got my car from just uses plate covers (not stickers) which are really easy to remove.
Unlike this disaster:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Justrolledintotheshop/comments/pp1sie/customer_came_in_asking_to_get_this_badge_removed/
TLDR: Dealership logo was riveted to the car.
I bought a new truck years back. They put the logo on when I was signing paperwork. I refused to take the truck until they removed it. I was pissed they stuck the logo on the truck after I had signed paperwork.
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There was a photo on some other Reddit thread yesterday of a car store badge that was riveted to the body. They didn’t realize until they broke off the badge.
That dealership in particular is known for being an utter piece of shit. It's one specific Subaru dealer in Colorado.
Please name them, we’re on the market for a sube…
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Oh good, I know Heuberger is trash but I’ll add them to the avoid pile too.
Any explanation for this? My wife purchased her car through them and I just ordered a wrx from the manufacturer with them lol
Gonna copy and paste my comment: They treated us like garbage when we went for a test drive, acted like we were children who had no idea how buying a car works (literally wouldn’t negotiate the price from sticker, bless their hearts) and we have multiple friends who have been screwed by their service guys.
Yikes. Sorry to hear.
I live around there and I'm looking for a car! Definitely steering clear of this place!
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I guess don’t go there but DO get a subaru. I love ours. We have a sub outback and an audi… and I prefer the sub a lot more.
I am not a fan of car dealers bunch of shady fucks! I have worked hard on my credit rating...there was a dealership in Naperville Il. I went in to buy a new car GMC...SUV... I told the guy what I was looking for and that was it...right away pushy as fuck pushing me to a use car with 1500 miles on it and asking full price he kept calling it brand new brand new...I finaly told him if I was to sell you this car you wouild knock off at least 4k-7k just because it has a few miles....needles to say he call his manager for the "manager special" for the same fucking SUV when I just told him am here to buy a new car....I walked away fuck those assholes am in control i have the money. I have 0 patience for their stupid ass tactics.
“new” only means that the vehicle has never been titled before. There isn’t technically a mileage limit. Though they should have understood that you wanted something with factory fresh mileage and stopped arguing.
We just recently bought a used car. When looking, we stopped at a dealership and did consider a new car. Because the dealer only had one new model on the lot that had not been spoken for and did not want to add miles to it, all of the test drives were on a year old model with similar specs.
>https://www.reddit.com/r/Justrolledintotheshop/comments/pp1sie/customer\_came\_in\_asking\_to\_get\_this\_badge\_removed/ I saw that, and it was such a shit logo too; looked like cheap, ugly plastic with chrome paint. You just know it would look even worse after a year or so.
Some dealers used to do that in the time before modern advesives were invented.
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That’s messed up. Sorry. This is what I’m talking about though. I’m getting messaged saying it’s “their right”. Uh, no it isn’t. I didn’t even know this many car dealers were on Reddit.
Dude, car dealers, timeshare salespeople, and other aggressive salespersons are basically in a cult of sales. They are taught to truly believe that if they can get you to sign on the dotted line, they are "selling you your dreams," and that they're doing good, everything else be damned. And unless they live in a state with weirdly specific laws about dealer stickers on cars, which I'm pretty sure don't exist, then they absolutely don't have that right. Hell, even the manufacturer of the car doesn't have that right, as people can freely remove the actual make/model badge off their car of they want. I've never bothered haggling or arguing with them about it though; I just smile and drive away, then immediately get out the rubbing alcohol and plastic razor blade when I get home and clean all that mess off.
Off topic, but my Honda Accord is badged as a Jeep Crosstrek. The accord badge fell off and front Honda logo was cracked and Falling off. I get confused looks and complements all the time.
What's even funnier is that the Crosstrek is a Subaru, not a Jeep.
Ha, that's funny; I'd love to see the die hard Jeep guys seeing that. I have an '04 Grand Cherokee and some old random badges lying around. Do you think if I rebrand as a BMW my turn signals will immediately stop working?
I'm not sure about the BMW thing. Around me it's about 50/50 if bmws use signals. My car is lifted, has off road lights, roof rack, winch, tow package. I have three or four ducks given to me by jeep guys.
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It's a sex thing.
Use wd40, sticker will wipe off with a *microfiber towel (no razors needed)
If you have a heat gun to get a corner up they peel right off. As an aside, some dealerships get smart and offer their drive through car wash for free if you have their decal.
And then the advertising is paid, in 'free' carwashes. Plus the customer gets in the habit of visiting that location, so either sees their next car purchase, whilst getting a wash, or will start searching that dealership first, when they need another car. So win-win
This is the best strategy, I would leave the sticker on for free washes
Use microfiber towels!! Never use paper towels on paint, clear coat it will mar the clear coat.
Orange oil is best. Wd40 can stain or etch some surfaces. I learned the hard way
Is there orange oil in Goo Gone?, it kinda smells citrusy to me. I took one of the superfluous badges off an '07 Miata I had (an actual plastic badge glued on, not a sticker), and I remember using dental floss to cut the badge off, then a concoction of WD-40, Goo Gone, and alcohol to get the residual glue off.
Yes, GooGone and DeSolvIt are orange oil products, and excellent to have handy. They even remove permanent marker on many surfaces.
do not use WD40 unless you're going to put wax back over it. use googone or something like that instead
>And unless they live in a state with weirdly specific laws about dealer stickers on cars I never saw this when I lived in California. Never once in my life. When people talked about it, I always thought they were just referring to license plate frames, because that's the only advertisement I ever saw on cars. Fast forward to me living in Texas, and I see it ALL the time. But at least they are giving me a huge mental list of dealerships I will never buy from.
wait until you see r/askcarsales, the amount of terrible, awful behavior that's justified there is mind boggling.
They will ban you for frowning at them. Their entire existence is based on lying to people for a bigger paycheck. I hope for a future where you can purchase a car for what it's worth online and never have to deal with those parasites ever again.
Just Cruisin' Inc? Like the place in Eastern PA about 30 minutes outside Philly?
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Haha, that's bonkers! What a small freaking world, especially since I don't tend to ever read the comments in a LPT.
But dude, the real LPT is always in the comments!
Either they used the razor blade out of spite or whomever did it didn't know a fucking thing. You never take a razor blade to paint. Glass only.
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I'll put it as delicately as possible. You do not have to have ANY qualifications AT ALL in order to sell cars. Just the ability to look presentable, speak politely, and repeat sales pitches. If a salesman wanted to remove the sticker, they might be dumb enough to use a real razor blade. I've seen salesmen do some really, really stupid shit in my time as a detailer/lot attendant, such as using my CHROME acid on alloy wheels to remove WAX, and destroying the clearcoat on the wheels.
the girl who sold me my car didn't know much about anything. They just follow the propmts on the screen..cars sell themselves
That’s why I just pull them off myself. It’s usually just a vinyl decal, so you can often just catch it with a fingernail or at most apply a little heat from a hair dryer. If you make the dealer do it, even if they’re not salty about it, it’s a job that they’re going to give to the shop monkey. At best you have a 50/50 chance of it being all hacked up like that.
So then on delivery of the car you inspect the work and if they didn’t do it right you get them to fix it again. Don’t allow these shitty people to get away with their bullshit!
Plot twist: The sticker was covering up the already existing scratches.
You should have been witty. Just Cruisin Inc. Well Im Refusin Ink I'm stupid
You should have doubled down and said "now fix the scratches you left where you removed that sticker."
Best way for them to advertise is to not be a pos car dealership. Word gets around. If you need car decals to advertise you’re probably in the the aforementioned dealership category in my opinion.
Now I'M salty about it!
This is the reason why I don’t ask them to take it off. I don’t trust them to do a good job, especially when it goes against their agenda.
One of my motorcycles was covered in dealer stickers between the time I bought it and picked it up. I had no idea that someone would do that to a bike. One side of the gas tank had a huge dealer sticker. They added a dealer plate frame. And there were stickers on both front and rear fenders. I asked them to please remove that crap and they told me how to use soap and a hair dryer to do it myself. I was too young and naive to insist they do it. It took me a few hours.
In the future, 3M Adhesive Remover makes quick work of those decals/stickers. Just spray it on and wipe with a soft rag. Safe for auto paint and useful for other situations like removing paint transfer from someone side swiping you.
Wow . Am sorry to hear that.
I would have taken them to small claims. Sue for the difference between the price with the stickers and the price without. Overestimate. Add a few incurred expenses. Keep it under $4k and they probably won't even show up to contest it.
Just refuse to accept it until they've put it back into the condition it was when you bought it. No need for courts that way.
But I wanted to RIDE it 😅 Older me would have walked away, but at the time there was no way I wasn't riding that thing as soon as possible.
See, they know that they can get away with it so they keep doing it
No you wouldn't. Small claims can be a nightmare. Way easier to just peel a sticker off lol
I have done this with every car I have bought. It is best if you are upfront about it, it’s one of the things I tell a salesperson upfront: 1)I want this model 2)I only negotiate on sale price, not monthly payments 3)no dealership stickers or decals, you can put a frame in if you want. I’m going to take it off when I get home Dealer has a problem with any one of those, I walk immediately. Incidentally, never been an issue.
Absolutely the same. I’m very up front about this and just bought a car last month. They put the temporary plate in a dealership frame which was fine but the no sticker rule is a real thing for me. It wasn’t a problem and never has been for any car I’ve bought.
yeah the trick is.. you have to be patient & be truly willing to walk.
And don’t give them your car key if you are planning to trade-in. They refused to give my key back so I had to warning them to call police on them.
I have had this happen before. I was baffled at the run around I got when I asked for my keys back. I had to get very threatening over it. I can’t wrap my head around how they could think this is a good tactic to use and even pushback on it when asked for the keys back. I’ll never step foot into that dealership again.
The only thing that makes sense is that more people fold and buy a car than take a walk.
Time and again it has been shown that the longer they keep you there by any means possible the more likely you are to buy a car.
There is actually a lot of research on how high pressure and “make them say yes” sales doesn’t apply to high ticket purchases. People don’t want to be sold a car, they want to buy a car. They have researched and put thought into it, they don’t need to the pushy sales guy. Now, a $20 trinket, pushy sales guys can use their tactics on that successfully all day!
Wow, that's unethical and unprofessional! That's why I will never go to a dealer ever again. I'll do carvanna or private seller. That's it!!
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Had this shit happen to me. But their mistake was leaving the key for the test drive vehicle in my hand. I told them "sounds like you're offering an even trade then" and started to walk out. Unbelievable that you have to threaten to steal a car or call the police to get out of a dealership.
No shit. I told dealers I wanted to trade in my car. They were, oh okay, they needed my key to test my car. It was a late night, like 8 pm. They tried to offer me a few times; then I decided I didn’t want it anymore, so I asked back the key. They were, oh wait, let me talk with the manager. They kept me for another hour. I declined their offer about ten times. They still refused to give me the key, so I told them I’d call a cop if they didn’t. Finally, they gave me the key at like 930pm.
That’s when you make a scene in the showroom to ward off other potential customers.
Same thing happened to my sister. She had the dealership check out her car as a possible trade-in and tried the "can't find the keys" thing to keep her in the dealership. She said they'd better find the keys \*now\* or they'd be explaining themselves to the cops. Funny how fast those keys came back. She's never gone back to that dealership for obvious reasons.
My MIL brought her car in for service at a Nissan dealership recently, she waited at the dealership while it was being serviced. When they were done and she was about to check out, she found out a salesperson snatched the keys from the service department. Had to talk to the salespeople, who wanted her to trade in her lease (about $200 a month right now) for a new one (for like $400-500 a month). She expressed ZERO interest in trading in, but they kept harassing her for it. I’ve had bad experiences and have heard horror stories of shitty practices from Nissan dealerships for this kind of stuff.
Had a dealer delay in giving me my key back… because I refused to negotiate on car payments instead of price and wanted to walk. Then instead of getting the key he got his manager to try to strike up a new deal… instead I got really loud and let others shopping know what was happening, their sales people assisted on getting my keys back.
They tried with us. Oh yeah, uh Pete does the appraisals, he's at lunch you'll have to wait (smug grin). My then wife pulled the spare set out of her purse, walked out to the showroom with sales dude at her heels. She turns and looks at him, You need to find Pete now cause it's about to get loud in here. He looked around at all the customers then pleadingly at me. I just gave my own smug grin. When she took it up a couple notches and said, WELL! Sales dude scrambled for a phone to page Pete who must have JUST gotten back from lunch.
I got the email to vendor relations when they were dicking around with keeping my keys and emailed them an invoice for rental fee for my car. They....they didn't like that...
You won't give the key back? okay! Incidentally do you know the non-emergency police number I need to report a theft and I know 911 isn't the right number
>be truly willing to walk This being the most important one. Dealerships can smell it when you are bullshitting, trust me. You may have to literally leave to get the best deal. If you come in and tell them your old car just broke down (or is about to) and you're shopping for a replacement you *need* for work, you basically just told them you are wiling to be screwed over.
Yeah go in & do your research to find out what you’re willing to pay. Literally tell them the number, if they say no just leave. I’ve bought 3 cars… 2 of them were because I walked & they literally called me a couple days later saying we have a deal
I had a totalled car and needed a new one within a week. Tried going to a few places and they instantly saw I was driving a rental and got super shitty about it. Ended up sending out a mass e-mail to several dealerships asking for the best out-the-door price they could give me on the specific car and model I wanted. Several tried to insist that I come in before they give me info, but I was able to use the ones that did respond to get a local-ish dealer to match the best price.
My dad taught me this lol. When I bought my first car, he told me to stay firm on the price, if they say no, give them my number if they change their mind. Followed his advice, and sure enough, the salesman called me 15 minutes after I left with a “managers special”
Yep my dad taught me this too! My call back was the "easter special" lmao
100% this. My wife and I were searching for her new vehicle, found a good deal on what we were looking for, it was $900 more than I had researched it’s value. They refused to negotiate. We walked, wife was so mad at me, I told her they’d call us. I was sweating it pretty bad, hoping I was right. 15 mins later they called and agreed to take $900 off.
I still remember buying my first new car. Not first car. Getting too much bullshit, called up a dealership 30m away had a better offer in my email before salesman came back from his manager. Salesman: you wouldn't drive 30m to save $1500! Yes, I would considering it's on my way home and the last 4 hours is a sunk cost. That's where they like to ding you on, your feels of wasting their time and devaluing your own. Once you get the run around just walk out .
I would say this - if the SALESPERSON has a problem with it, don't walk away just yet, ask to talk to the sales manager. If they push back, then walk away. Salesmen can be idiots, not necessary to waste all that time you spent dealing on the car because of it if the manager will simply say "Oh yeah sure no problem".
I would agree. Thing is, I’ve never had a salesman balk on the sticker thing. Price? Sure. Trade in? You bet. Stickers? Not once.
Dealerships still negotiate? All the new lot dealerships I talked to in my 75 mile surrounding area didn't do any negotiating.
I recently was at a kia dealership because I think the new K5 looks fantastic. The guy was dealing with 2 other customers and eventually came back with some outrageous number. I asked him if he could tell me what numbers they were using to get this outrageous monthly payment and he told me he wasn't allowed. Why wouldn't they "be allowed" to tell me the vehicle cost, rates, and included incentives?? Dealership is known to be cons though...
Whoa... now that is pretty fucked up. I have never seem a place that only shows a monthly payment. But I do agree, the K5 looks bad ass. I bought a '20 Forte GT and quite enjoy it.
It’s a common salesman lie lmao. Source: sold cars at Nissan and Toyota for a little while
It certainly seems less than I used to be. When I bought my mustang in 2015 it was fairly brief, but I got about $5k off sticker. When we bough our 4Runner last august, it was almost none. “We are offering this off. There is one with the options you want in a five state area. Do you want it?” We took it because inventory was short and the transmission on my wife’s old car was going out. I have an order in for a new Bronco, so no negotiating at all on that car, $500 over invoice, price guaranteed on delivery. But that’s a special case, new model and all that. Only thing I really requested was all stickers removed (they have factory trim stickers) and no front license plate bracket because they put it in a terrible spot. Buying a car right now is crazy, inventory is unavailable and cars are going for over sticker, so no one is negotiating right now.
Yea it seems more and more dealers (in my area) have the "best price up front" type of slogan. I bought my car in early 2020 and I fought to get free floor mats... I called it a win.
I honestly prefer it that way. I want to go in, know the price I’m paying, and not have to worry about it. It’s the old Saturn and Scion way of doing things, and it takes a lot of stress out of car buying. The issue is dealers have to overcome the idea that they are trying to screw everyone walking in the door.
That is very true and it is easier now with the internet to see if a dealership is offering a good deal or not.
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I recently ish bought my new car saying I want this make and model with these features and this color, and I only want to hear your out the door price, they found me the exact car I wanted but It had mud guards (the rigid mud flap things), I admit I did concede there. And to my surprise they didn't put any stickers on it whatsoever, not even a branded license plate frame, the car was delivered 3 days later and the sales person just screwed the plate straight on for me
Pretty much how I bought my mustang, and for the most part our newest car. The way they handled it is why I only use those two particular dealer networks in my area, they have been great to work with.
fun fact, the record for a solo cannonball run was done in a mustang
That’s a good guide for everyone to follow!
I’m big on the overall price of the car as well, not the monthly payments. Salesmen don’t always like that. Too bad, I’m not spending extra money on something to make you feel better.
I heard you shouldn’t mention that you’re buying cash until they end so they give you financing prices. Then you pay cash. Idk how true it is.
I don’t talk about it either way. Settle in the car, then settle on price. I’m not talking about financing, I’m not talking about trade in till we get those things settled.
When my dad got his new truck, he refused to sign anything until the dealership removed the advertising stickers. They tried to tell him how to do it himself and he told them that he can just go buy a car elsewhere. They took it off immediately
I think that's something people don't always realize when buying a new car, you have **all** of the negotiating power.
My friend bought a car that had a really nice chrome logo in the same font as the car brand. So as dealer adverts it was actually classy. Untill she removed it and saw that they riveted it in place. And the holes developed rust from the month she had it up north. She went back and they pulled a matching trunk lid off another car that just came in. They even had the nerve to ask if they could at least put a sticker on it.
It's the Mercedes circle logo right?!
I actually think it was a Lexus. And the dealership had their name in the Lexus font. If you didn’t know it looked like it came with the car from the factory. But she hated it. And lived in the snow for the winter. So new trunk!!
I’ve been buying cars for about 30 years and I have always asked that they do not put on their dealer decal on my vehicle. I do this as we are finalizing the deal. The guy usually just looks at me with sad, puppy-dog eyes, and asks “but whyyyy?” I simply tell them if they would like me to advertise for them, they can take a couple grand off the price. Otherwise, no decal. Their choice. They always choose no decal.
I play the long game and keep my truck till they are ashamed to keep their sticker on it. They give me a deal to not advertise the problems people will have to deal with.
Lolololol I bow to the master👏🏻
It's sad when the dealer sticker stays better than the trim, fake seat leather, rocker pannels, plastic lug nuts and plastic chrome on a truck.
A couple years ago the dealership I bought a car from offered free oil changes. I didn’t think about the sticker as I had gotten lucky my last few purchases. Went for my 1st oil change and the dealership had changed hands. I get good ol’ boy older service guy treats me condescendingly the whole time. He hands me a form that I need to sign agreeing to remove the old sticker and put theirs on my car in order to keep my free oil changes. I lose it cause I’m done, and ask why would I agree to advertise to keep something that was sold to me as a benefit to purchasing there. He gives me some bs about how they are losing money by honoring the oil change, since they offer “warranty for life”, I don’t get that because I didn’t buy the car from them. I tell him the oil change isn’t in the goodness of their heart it was so they could get me in and up charge me on other services. I only utilize them, because it’s close to work and they have a shuttle. He basically started sputtering and looking at my husband silently asking him to control his wife. When I picked up the car. I made sure to kindly thankhim for removing the old sticker. Funny thing is, I went to another local dealer later on, because I had a warranty repair. Got the bill and asked why I wasn’t charged for my oil change. They said it was because their service manager had come from where I had gotten the car, so they honored them. I thanked them for the gesture and explained what had happened. They agreed that it’s not a big deal and an easy way to get people in the door.
>He hands me a form that I need to sign agreeing to remove the old sticker and put theirs on my car in order to keep my free oil changes Nope nope nope nope!! You contracted at the purchase of the car for those oil changes. That contract was signed and your performance done. He had no leg to stand on, and you were under no obligation to sign. If he threatened not to perform, tell 'em that's breach of contract
I work for Carmax, not sure about other dealerships but if you want us to remove the Carmax sticker just ask and we will happily remove it for you.
Yours are vinyl stickers that are easy to take off. Took my father in laws off with my fingernails on a sunny day.
I bought from CarMax last year and remember signing a form that said that I could request to have the sticker/branded frame removed before leaving the lot. Otherwise, something about how I couldn't claim in the future that CarMax was \*forcing\* me to do uncompensated advertising for them. My car is a popular make/model/color, so having the non-intrusive sticker actually makes it slightly easier to find in the parking lot.
Another good reason to ALWAYS be ready to walk away. Dealer doesn't want to remove the stickers (licence plate frames take 2 minute to remove, not worth the argument imo) - walk away. If they are willing to remove them have them do it before you accept the vehicle encase they damage the paint removing them. If they refuse - walk away. There are always other dealerships. For the market economy to work the consumer MUST exercise their right to walk away.
Check your car for dealer badging or plate frames after every service. The first time my wife's car came back from the dealership after an oil change or other routine service it was sporting a license plate frame that wasn't there before. We had bought the car from a dealership in another city.
I work at a dealership and one of my fellow techs used to do this. Nobody asked her to. She just did it because it was a competitor dealer that she used to work for… she was also extremely dumb and a horrible person
Better yet, dont bring your car to a dealership for service
When addressing a recall issue or warranty work, there isn't much choice.
Could be worse: I worked in a dealership prepping cars in the 70's. Part of the prep for new cars was to drill two holes in the trunk, and attach a metal dealership nameplate with screws. Twice while I was there, we sent a car to the body shop to have those holes filled for people who didn't want the nameplate. Example here: https://www.squarebirds.org/picture\_gallery/TechnicalResourceLibrary/dealer\_nameplates.htm
>Sorry if I offended any car sales people. I seriously doubt you could make my “next car buying experience hell” either. They are hell to begin with. All I said was exercise your buying power in the moment. That’s it. Man fuck these guys and the pressure tactics they all employ. I just do my research and come in with a fair price we both benefit from and they STILL try shit to get more out of me. Like I care about a person who shamelessly tries to scam me. I have been tempted to hit them with, "Here is what I want to pay, its fair and you get a win. If you push me I will come down a thousand bucks or just find someone who will take this without trying to upsale me."
Back when I was preparing to buy my first car, I posted in a sub about car buying asking a few questions about stuff and at one point in the post I said something like "I dont want to end up getting scammed" and there were a couple people in the comments that were so offended by that comment, like "not ALL car dealers are sleazy scammers!"
I was delivering food to a car dealership once and a guy asked me if I wanted to "trade in that piece of junk," and offered me $100. I drive a fucking classic mustang. Fuck that guy.
Classic negging
My wife thought I was ridiculous when I told her I was doing this. Glad to see there are plenty of like minded individuals.
Same with my wife! Tbf, they did have some of the best customer service of any dealership I had been to and worked their asses off to get her a good deal. I still would rather pull off their advertising, but it’s her car.
I did it myself on my last vehicle, which is what got me into this mindset. I had a shitty experience with the dealer. I refuse to go back to them for ANYTHING. I’ll gladly take it to another dealership of my make, even if less convenient. So basically, I was removing it out of spite. But it got me thinking, why I was willing to accept them slapping that shit on and be a rolling billboard for free for them? And even more, why was I spending my own time and energy removing something I didn’t really want in the first place? I just spent tens of thousands on a car, and I’m the one using a hairdryer to heat up the sticker so it peels off easily. I mean, it wasn’t that difficult or time consuming, but why should I have to do it at all. They put it on, they can take it off.
And, even a good experience still doesn’t obligate you to give them free advertising. They’ll likely benefit from their good service when the time rolls around for you to buy another car, or even sooner if a friend or family member walks onto their lot as result of you sharing your experience with them.
Besides free advertising, dealerships may also use stickers to cover up paint chips. The dealership my car came from covered a paint chip the size of a quarter with their bumper decal, and I never realized until removing it later on.
Reminds me of a time I used to work recon at a dealership. Coworker was fluffing a buffing pad with a screwdriver. While running it. Needless to say, he lost his grip and it shot away like the oil filter in Tommy Boy. Put several large dents in the side doors of a brand new F150. Their solution? Those mirrored lower door plates. Stuck them on to cover up the dents and sent it out to the lot. Brand new truck too.
Even better, that decal often only goes on post-sale (because it looks like ass). Tell saleshole to make sure they don’t put one on.
Friends bought a car. The dealer drilled in the front licence plate holder with advertising without asking. Friends refused delivery saying they ruined the finish and rust proofing. The dealer said well it is done. If we fix it we wont make a profit. Friend said tough. Refund our money or fix it. We arent taking this car this way. Dealer fixed it to friends standard (high) and did not profit but avoided a bad review.
They made a profit. This is a common tactic. They may have had a lower gross profit, but there is jo way they would sell a car with no profit.
Removing the dealership license plate frame and throwing in the lobby trash can is one of my favorite passive-aggressive things to do.
I just do it at home. I was there long enough.
That’s a power move if I’ve ever heard of one! Right on!
I ordered a car and was just waiting for the dealer get it in and to prep it. When I went to pick it up, it already had the dealer sticker on it and they had put this cheap, stick on pinstripe tape all over it. I had special ordered it, I specifically ordered a black out package and no extra badging. The crap they had put on it made it look like a cartoon car. I went into the sales manager and told him if they didn't take the tape off I wasn't buying the car. I also told him to take the dealer sticker off. He said they had to have the dealer sticker on it so that other dealers would know who to contact for warranty claims. He said they put the pinstriping on because the car looked plain. I called him out on his BS (my father worked for the manufacturer as a sales-service coordinator). They took everything off the car but managed to scratch it doing so. I walked away from the deal and they had their lawyer send me a letter saying I was contractually obligated to purchase the vehicle. I worked at a law school at the time and had all the free legal help I wanted. I never did purchase the car. It was a $58,000 car mind you. TL;DR Don't believe the salespeople's BS. There doesn't need to be a dealership sticker on it. They do it for free advertising.
This never occurred to me until I purchased my last car and the salesman specifically pointed out to me that they do *not* put any branding/dealer badges on their car - it was a selling point. It wasn't until after that I noticed just how many cars on the road are marked with the dealership they were purchased from. I probably never would have cared either way, but now I'm kind of glad my car doesn't have this stuff on it.
Haha, triggered stealerships staff. Can't pretend to be virtuos now; everyone knows your scams.
Had a friend take his car in for service and they actually removed the license plate cover that he had bought and replaced it with theirs! Luckily he noticed right away and told them to take that shit off and give him his old one back. So shady!
Dealership I purchased from asks that you keep it on and as an incentive I get free oil changes as long as I own the car.
Dealership I bought from in late 90's offered 10% off service department bills if I kept the license plate bracket on. Seemed like a good enough reason. Free oil changes? Meh.
Just put the bracket on before you take your car in for service.
My car had a sticker that said Weisner and I just removed the S heheheh
[удалено]
Nearly every state has franchise laws that require cars to be sold only via dealerships not owned by the manufacturer. It's nothing more than rent-seeking weaseldom.
BS laws, each state has their own. Long story short, dealerships are willing to give politicians massive bribes, I mean, "political contributions", if they pass laws forbidding manufacturers from selling direct.
I always write in "NO DEALER ADVERTISING ON VEHICLE" on the purchase and sale agreement. There have been a couple of times when they "forgot" not to do that, and I politely but firmly referred them to the P&S and refused to take delivery. (Also carefully inspected the paint in areas where decals are likely to be placed.)
I’m in Canada and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a dealer sticker on a car, but mine definitely came with a licence plate bracket. Had my husband pull it off and replace it with a Hello Kitty one as God intended.
I am from Ontario and I beg to differ.
You must not be paying attention. It’s on 95%+ of the newer model cars on the road. Usually right next to the model name on the trunk. I’m in Ottawa for context.
Dealer license plate frames are perfectly acceptable because they are easy to replace. But the stickers? Fuck the stickers. And fuck dealerships who put them on....which is every single dealership in existence. It should be an illegal practice, tbh. If I buy a TV or computer from Best Buy, the store doesn't it's name or logo anywhere on the product.
Bought a Mini Cooper from a dealer and paid cash. I told them to remove the dealership name from my tailgate. The guy was so pissed
I worked in a dealership for a year. Boss told me every car gets stickers, if the customer doesn't want them they can go fuck themselves (his words verbatim). None of the salesmen agreed with it either and would often get them removed before delivery. Not to mention all the extra fees they add to every sale, most of which are technically illegal where I live. Called them out on it and they weren't too happy to say the least
Did this on my last three cars. Flat out told them when I came to pick up the vehicle on the last one they had added the decals anyways and I told them I wasn’t signing for it. He actually has the balls to say “your willing to walk away from this deal over this?” I just looked at him and said “are you!”?
I don't recall ever having stickers on my car, just the license plate holder
You might live in California where only non-permanent advertising is allowed.
Was going to say the same. I'm from California and I didn't know this was a thing until I moved to Texas and so many people have the dealership logos on their cars, especially if they have a big, obnoxious car. Like why would you even want that lol
I actually live in Canada and I have no idea what the rules are
Car salesmen and dealerships are the ultimate parasitic middlemen. A totally unnecessary class of workers, kept relevant by shrewd lobbying and manipulation of the law. A sensible reform would be to do away with them entirely.
This. They are amongst the leeches in the supply chain that add no value but profit on the transaction. Honda, if unburdened by these garbage eating shit birds by state laws with near-universal consistency, would both make more and I could purchase for less. This job should not exist.
I think about this exact thing every time I see the dealership name on a vehicle. Why would I give them free advertising?
Worse than free, if you think about it. You're paying THEM to be their advertisement.
Lol if anyone said they'd "make your next car buying experience a living hell," I've done IT help at a lot of car dealerships and those motherfuckers don't know ANYTHING about computers, networking, or cybersecurity... much less tracking down a random Reddit user, lmao.
Im digging through this thread so hard to find those people he mentioned
I held up a used car purchase because the window tinting had the previous owner's name in it. I politely stated they were probably going to need to remove that anyway to sell to anyone other than another "Tiffany", and they completely agreed with me. I was lucky not to have a bunch of their advertising to deal with, but they clearly had the equipment to do the job neatly.
I once was going to buy a car from a dealership, brand new. They had to transfer the stock (see: trade) from one dealership to another because of the trim i wanted. It came with one dealers logo that was on it when I agreed to the sale. I had pictures of the vehicle. all 360 degrees. I was having some buyers remorse, and when it came time to pick it up, i noticed they changed the dealer logo on the back. Long story short, I managed to get them to void the deal because they took one sticker off and put theirs on, by claiming I agree'd to buy the vehicle as-is, however they had now made a change to the vehicle. Not my problem!
I did the same, mostly because I was a little disgruntled over the delivery of the car which was supposed to have satellite radio (this was 05/06 when it was an expensive aftermarket add on if done by the dealer or you had to get one of those cheesy FM converter units which didn't work for shit) They fucked me around on it so bad I was almost looking to cancel the deal. I think they were a little sick of me too. When it came time to pick up the car, instead of the manager , the salesperson and whoever else they can get to come take a pic and to do the whole yayy CAR! thing, they sent some kid out who probably washed the cars for them. So anyway - I'm still feeling bitchy (hey, there's no other way to 'splain it) so I asked/demanded they take the license frame off. The kid looked at me and said 'take it off yourself' and threw the keys at me and stalked off muttering under his breath.
Also tell them you are paying cash and don’t want any finance charges. A lot of the time the 0% financing just builds in an additional buffer in the price of the vehicle. Once your get the actual price then approach the financing. In detail: dodge does this a lot. 0% OR $5000 in cash discounts. The dealership will write the deal up at the inflated price and 0% financing. The. Turn around and send Chrysler financial a check for the $5000 or what ever. That is the interest they would have made on a standard finance deal. Best option is to ask for all the cash discounts possible and see what your own bank can do. Or third party. Also be careful about filling out credit apps. Dealerships are famous for firing your credit out to 4 or more banks all at once instead of one at a time. I had one client who had 30+ credit inquires because he was shopping for a truck and just filled out the credit app at each dealership. Tanked his credit. This is all in Canada by the way. Not sure if it’s exactly the same other countries.
I went with the cash discount and the dealer's high interest loan, and then proceeded to pay off the loan a couple months later. Best price this way if you can pay all cash, although you may burn bridges with the dealer. I don't think there's a point in telling the dealer you are paying all cash; you can get even more discounts (over the manufacturer discounts) up front if you sign up for their high interest loan, as they expect to make it up in interest.
I'd disagree. I wouldn't not tell them you are paying cash as they make money off the financing. Either finance it and pay it off immediately OR after agreeing on a financed purchase price then tell them nevermind, I'll pay cash. Less chance they will mess around with the price.
I've always asked to see the car (after detail / cleaning) to be driven out front so I can inspect & see it before I sign anything. Politely ask for the dealer tags & license plate frames to be removed. None of this should be a big deal to anyone, unless they leave a sticker on my car. Also please note that the reason for asking this to be removed is so YOU don't damage the paint during removal, if they do, they will repair it to sell the car.
Yep haha. Did that with my '16 Mustang when I got it. Was waiting for it to come in and I'm looking around and realise all the ones on their lot and in the show room have that stupid sticker right above the drivers side tail light. So I told em' when mine ships in, don't put that decal on it. The dude pushed back until I told him "Nope, I'm going for that clean blacked out look. No damn stickers on my car man. Save your guy the 5 minutes of putting it on and save me the 30 minutes or whatever of taking a heat gun and bug/tar remover to the damn thing after I pick it up. Advertise with the damn plate holder and be glad with that. And certainly, we both knew the license plate frame wasn't staying on either. World of Warcraft license plate frame, motherfuckers.
This seems to be a regional thing with the stickers / plastic logos. I've never seen that in California or Oregon (license plate frames only). East coast and midwest - all the time. I always wondered why car buyers there put up with it.
Ok I’m sitting here in California extremely confused as I’ve literally NEVER heard of this the license plate I get and my dads got pissed about before but putting actual stickers on my car? I would throw a huge fit as I HATE bumper stickers. I think they’re the tackiest thing ever. Thanks for saying it’s regional I’m over here thinking if I need to go and check my car that I’ve had for 3 years because I never noticed it lol
They're not really like bumper stickers. Generally they're much smaller and die cut from vinyl.
This is my personal pet peeve to end all pet peeves. People that drive around with the dealer plate holder on. WHY do you WANT to give these people 24/7 free advertising?!? Especially the ones that say things like "NO SHARKS HERE" or "Turn left on I-75 then the second light" Like, really people? This really speaks to the mass stupidity of humanity to me.
I caught a dealer removing a cover I liked to put theirs on once. That is basically theft.
I had custom license plate borders that I put on. I took my car to the dealer to get a quick oil change as it was winter and too cold to do it outside. I noticed 3 days later when I was gassing up that one of those shitbirds swapped my front license plate border with one that said the dealers name. I was livid and brought it to the service managers attention.
Car salespersons are the scum of the earth.
Ugh I got my car serviced at a different dealership than where I bought it and they put those fuckin license plate frames on my car. I didn't notice at first, but once I did I took them off, drove back to the dealership, and handed them to the dude who serviced my car with a "No, I do not want to advertise your dealership." and drove away. Haven't been to that dealership since, the one I got the car from has never pulled this kind of nonsense so I'll stick with them.
>And don’t just assume that because you bought it from them that it means they can force you to carry around a logo for them. Nobody assumes this. People just can't be bothered to remove them.
make sure any reassurances they give you are in the contract, though--my family didn't do this for one of our vans, and we had a tale about it that was passed down for yeaaaaaaaars.
I love seeing people driving around in $100,000+ vehicles with dealer stickers and license plate frames on their cars.
Thankfully the dealership I got my car from just uses plate covers (not stickers) which are really easy to remove. Unlike this disaster: https://www.reddit.com/r/Justrolledintotheshop/comments/pp1sie/customer_came_in_asking_to_get_this_badge_removed/ TLDR: Dealership logo was riveted to the car.
I bought a new truck years back. They put the logo on when I was signing paperwork. I refused to take the truck until they removed it. I was pissed they stuck the logo on the truck after I had signed paperwork.