In looking at car pricing online after work yesterday (10/20/2014,) I ran across Grapevine Ford's website showing the following car for sale: A 2014 Ford Focus 4-door Sedan with a 2.0L I-4 cyl engine, 6-Speed Auto-Shift transmission, Tuxedo Black exterior, Charcoal Black interior, VIN # 1FADP3E20EL406154, Model Code P3E, Stock # EL406154, showing an MSRP of $18,730.00, but a "Grapevine Price" of $13,528.00. I called the listed phone # (877-413-8184) and spoke with Kris Weatherspoon, who checked and confirmed that the vehicle was available and that the price of $13,528.00 was correct, that the car was new, and that it had been on the lot for a total of 24 days. I scheduled an appointment for approximately 30-minutes to one-hour later, allowing for driving time from Fort Worth to Grapevine, and set out for Grapevine Ford. On arriving, I spoke with the receptionist, who paged Kris several times. When he didn't show immediately, I wandered around the showroom looking over display cars. Some thirty minutes later, Kris came onto the floor, introduced himself as a manager, and immediately handed me off to a salesman (whose name I've forgotten,) who would "take care of" me. After my wife joined me, the salesman took down our information and took the key to my trade-in 2009 Kia Rio, so its trade-in value could be determined, while he set up the paperwork for the sale. Then everything started going downhill. The staff couldn't find the key for the advertised vehicle...or the advertised vehicle. Kris stepped in at one point to say that "probably" meant the vehicle had not been prepped for sale yet, and that he would have it the following day... At that point, the salesman began "looking for alternate vehicles" in the same price range...coming up with another Ford Focus in the $15,000.00+ range, and a couple of other vehicles in the $17,000.00+ range. When those didn't work, the salesman brought out a 2012 Ford sedan in the $13,000.00+ category... As soon as the salesman started looking for other options, all pretense at having the original vehicle offered seemingly evaporated, as we never heard another word about it... Finally, after getting us to tentatively consider a vehicle in the $15,000.00+ range, and having fished for information on trade-ins offered by other dealerships (to which my wife told him that Moritz Kia had offered $9,000.00 and CarMax had offered $8,000.00,) and after determining the pay-off on the trade-in (approximately $200.00,) the salesman came back with the trade-in offer of $1,000.00!!! I immediately told him we were walking. The salesman indicated that was an initial offer only, and that he realized it was "insulting." He asked that we wait while he worked with the office to see what he could come up with as a subsequent offer...and then proceeded to work on us to see what sort of down payment we could offer in addition to the trade-in, and began working us through payment amounts based on the total down payment, during which he several times "forgot" that we had a trade-in to consider in determining the potential loan balance and payment size. After another 45 minutes of that, he went back to the office, and came back telling us that "they" simply wouldn't offer more than the initial amount of $1,000.00 for the trade-in. I told my wife we were leaving. As we were going out the door, another man came out of the office, and, without identifying himself, stated that he understood we didn't like the offer, and suggested that we return to CarMax and sell them the car for the $8,000.00 offered, if the "offer was still good," and then return to purchase whatever vehicle we wanted from Grapevine Ford. I have never seen such a flagrant display of the old "bait-and-switch" tactic, and have never been low-balled by any dealership like this. Bottom line: No one can pay me enough to return to Grapevine Ford -- even if they were to "find" the bait vehicle offered in the ad. Final note: I don't normally complain about pricing and sales -- in fact this is my first-ever posting on this site, and I've only listed one other complaint online on another website, which was about this very same experience with Grapevine Ford. In this case, I think on-line complaint(s) are entirely appropriate.
Marvin
Fort Worth,#2Author of original report
Thu, October 30, 2014
Dear “AUTHOR: Tyg - ()”
Based on the key points you made in your rebuttal to my post in which you obviously misread most of the points I made, and taking into consideration the poor grammar, spelling errors, lack of proper syntax, rudeness (including the use of capitals to make your poorly thought-out points and name-calling), I assume you have some issues with literacy, resulting in an inability to follow the flow. That being said, I will attempt to address the points you made as succinctly as possible. Now, now, please don’t go looking for a dictionary. I’ll try to refrain from using too many difficult words and phrases, and for your edification, I will attempt to remember to explain some such that I do use and point out exactly when you might want to reach for a dictionary.. Succinctly means simply. “To refrain from using” means to avoid using. Edification means teaching, guidance, clarity, etc. Before reading too much of my response to your rebuttal, you may want to try to get a grip on the obvious anger issues you exhibited (showed) in your diatribe (tirade, bitter verbal attack,) as I’m sure you won’t enjoy the taste of this verbiage (now, you might want to use a dictionary on that one – verbiage, that is.) Point by point, my response is as follows:
One final note: Your rebuttal was actually not really worth answering, but it amused me somewhat to respond in kind to a total idiot (can’t get any more succinct than that!) May you make use of a dictionary -- one might hope, might one not?
I do apologize for the somewhat-rambling appearance of my response, but then again, following your drivel and attempting to perceive the points you were trying to make, was like following a drunken fool down a narrow, curving path on the very edge of a steep mountain. Sometimes your thought patterns (trying to take it easy on you; it’s not your fault you were born an imbecile.) You might want to hire someone to ghost-write your next journalistic masterpiece, however.
Tyg
Pahrump,#3General Comment
Wed, October 29, 2014
Well since YOU did not buy anything, HOW can YOU say YOU have been ripped off? Oh that's right, YOU CANT!!! Its ONLY a bait and switch IF you bought something. Since the ad was on THE WEB did you ever stop and maybe think that someone else was going after that VERY SAME VEHICLE??? No...YOU wouldn't think that way because YOU are a self entitled dipwad. Had you even used a smidge of logic OR common sense YOU would see what I see, aggressive negotiations where a deal WAS NOT reached that benefited BOTH parties. THAT is all it was and YOU have made it out to MORE then it was. YOU!!! So not only is your post heading a pack of lies since a bait and switch requires MORE THEN ONE ITEM!!!! Even if its a car. Odds are that the dealership was trying to get the best deal they could on that sale and the OTHER ppl made a better offer then YOU. THAT is also HOW CAPITOLISM WORKS!!!! You know, that little thing YOU have been dealing with your entire life. It REALLY just sounds like YOU want something to complain about more then anything was ACTUALLY done to you. While YES you DO have the right to complain, you DO NOT have the right to write whatever YOU feel like putting on the web. YOU have presented YOUR OPINIONS as FACT. You CANNOT do this on a public forum. See the web and its users are under the same LAWS that EVERY printed publication MUST follow. Since YOU have slandered them, THEY get the option of going after YOU in a civil proceeding!! So REALLY stop and think about WHAT you wrote. Just because YOU couldn't come to a deal with your purchase DOES NOT make them the bad guys. YOU just got there too late to get what YOU wanted. Which was THAT car at THAT price. YOU need to grow up a bit because YOU are showing all the signs of a teenaged girl. YOU didn't get your way, so YOU are going to bad mouth them online. There IS a price for doing so and that price is usually in favor of the business that YOU have slandered on a media outlet. FYI: Trade in values change from dealer to dealer. The way a trade in works is YOU are offered what THEY think they can sell it for minus 66%. SO what this tells me is that THEY thought THEY could get roughly 3k for YOUR vehicle. CarMax has a LARGER distribution hub. Which means that THEY have MORE then the single dealership that YOU were dealing with.