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AAA Informative - AAA 'No Hassle' Auto Buying Service a rip-off - Auto Buying Service
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA -- After buying a new Toyota Prius with the AAA's 'no hassle, no haggling' pre-negotiated price, I found out two days later the dealer was $1356 more than the other two in town for the exact same car (with Pkg#6). I am really shocked that AAA won't make this Member dealership honor their agreement.
The regional AAA program rep, Jay, refused to do anything about it, as did the dealer, since it was a completed sale. Jay even has copies of the ads and emails I sent him from the other local AAA Dealers, so I was able to fully back my point, but he doesn't seem to care.
Everyone I talked to at Steven's Creek Toyota in San Jose basically was lying through their teeth when I went back in to speak to them after I found out they ripped me off. After being referred there by AAA's website and purchasing the car (with a fancier trim package than what I was originally looking for, so I didn't have an exact out-the-door quote on hand) at what I was told was their AAA price, the Floor manager later said they did NOT have ANY written agreement with AAA (which is not true if they are in AAA's program!)and he told me that the AAA price was whatever the general manager wanted it to be that day. They said I should be happy that I did not pay full List price and left it at that. They refused to show me the AAA agreement during the sale and after when I returned, saying they could not find it (Jay has never sent me a copy either, despite repeated requests). The dealer also refused to price match, after their in-house AAA rep had emailed me that they do price match. Between the AAA program and a promise to price-match, I felt confident buying the car there without shopping around, but boy was I wrong to trust AAA!
The dealer's excuse for his high price is that they actually only wanted to give me $3500 for my trade-in, not the $5000 we agreed upon (for a vehicle worth $7k wholesale at the time,$9k retail, per KBB), and that justified the higher sales price. They also said their own *cost* on the Prius was higher than what the two other dealers in town were *selling* them for. This is a bunch of hogwash, since they also bragged that they are one of the highest-volume Toyota dealers in California, and I know high-volume Dealers get better discounts from the manufacturer. The floor manager showed me a scribbled piece of paper with their 'cost', but they had tacked on hundreds of dollars worth of advertising fees, sales commissions,prep fees, and other misc.fees; the floor manager didn't even know what some of the fees were! I assume the other dealers (Capitol and Sunnyvale Toyota) have the same costs, and they manage to sell the same car for $1356 less. I wonder if AAAJay fell for the line of crap that they were handing out. These fees didn't include any closing costs, either, which were additional and added later.
Per the AAA Buyer's program website, trade-in value is not supposed to alter the price of the new car. I would never traded a $7000-$8000 car in for only $3500, especially since the having the older car saves my teenage son a lot of money on auto insurance. $5000 was the amount agreed upon.
I do not know if I should be more mad at the slimy dealer or at the AAA Buying Program regional mgr Jay for not backing up the customers using the AAA buying program when a Dealer does not honor the terms of it. I tried speaking with the dealership myself, but found that they could care less about customer service once the car is off the lot, and all promises go by the wayside.
I was hoping for either a refund of the $1356+tax, so as to honor the AAA and the original sales agreement(s), or at least booting the Steven's Creek dealer out of the AAA program because they refused to honor it.
The regional AAA program rep, Jay, refused to do anything about it, as did the dealer, since it was a completed sale. Jay even has copies of the ads and emails I sent him from the other local AAA Dealers, so I was able to fully back my point, but he doesn't seem to care.
Everyone I talked to at Steven's Creek Toyota in San Jose basically was lying through their teeth when I went back in to speak to them after I found out they ripped me off. After being referred there by AAA's website and purchasing the car (with a fancier trim package than what I was originally looking for, so I didn't have an exact out-the-door quote on hand) at what I was told was their AAA price, the Floor manager later said they did NOT have ANY written agreement with AAA (which is not true if they are in AAA's program!)and he told me that the AAA price was whatever the general manager wanted it to be that day. They said I should be happy that I did not pay full List price and left it at that. They refused to show me the AAA agreement during the sale and after when I returned, saying they could not find it (Jay has never sent me a copy either, despite repeated requests). The dealer also refused to price match, after their in-house AAA rep had emailed me that they do price match. Between the AAA program and a promise to price-match, I felt confident buying the car there without shopping around, but boy was I wrong to trust AAA!
The dealer's excuse for his high price is that they actually only wanted to give me $3500 for my trade-in, not the $5000 we agreed upon (for a vehicle worth $7k wholesale at the time,$9k retail, per KBB), and that justified the higher sales price. They also said their own *cost* on the Prius was higher than what the two other dealers in town were *selling* them for. This is a bunch of hogwash, since they also bragged that they are one of the highest-volume Toyota dealers in California, and I know high-volume Dealers get better discounts from the manufacturer. The floor manager showed me a scribbled piece of paper with their 'cost', but they had tacked on hundreds of dollars worth of advertising fees, sales commissions,prep fees, and other misc.fees; the floor manager didn't even know what some of the fees were! I assume the other dealers (Capitol and Sunnyvale Toyota) have the same costs, and they manage to sell the same car for $1356 less. I wonder if AAAJay fell for the line of crap that they were handing out. These fees didn't include any closing costs, either, which were additional and added later.
Per the AAA Buyer's program website, trade-in value is not supposed to alter the price of the new car. I would never traded a $7000-$8000 car in for only $3500, especially since the having the older car saves my teenage son a lot of money on auto insurance. $5000 was the amount agreed upon.
I do not know if I should be more mad at the slimy dealer or at the AAA Buying Program regional mgr Jay for not backing up the customers using the AAA buying program when a Dealer does not honor the terms of it. I tried speaking with the dealership myself, but found that they could care less about customer service once the car is off the lot, and all promises go by the wayside.
I was hoping for either a refund of the $1356+tax, so as to honor the AAA and the original sales agreement(s), or at least booting the Steven's Creek dealer out of the AAA program because they refused to honor it.
Comments:
Posted by adzidek on 2007-05-29:
They probably don't have an "agreement" with AAA, per se. Also, price matching happens before or during the sale, not after. I'd venture to say that it's common knowledge that dealers set the prices wherever they want them to be - that's why it's called a Manufacturer's "Suggested" Retail Price. They may offer a discount with AAA, but that's bound to vary from dealer to dealer. Bottom line, you should have shopped around - stop harassing the dealership and move on. By the way, how do you figure trade-in value doesn't affect the purchase price?
Posted by Lidman on 2007-05-29:
Abused Consumer, when I lived in San Jose I almost baught a car from them till they tried to pull the same thing.
Posted by Hugh_Jorgen on 2007-05-29:
Don't let the dealers play the trade in card. The value of your trade in should never play into the purchase price of a new car. Car dealers love "difference" buyers - they can get the numbers so confusing that you will never know what you paid for the new car or what you received in trade.
Need to give the guy a higher trade in? Just raise the price of the new car - if necessary with add-on items. Need to lower the price of the new car? Just chip away at his trade in value....
Treat it as two un-related transactions and you will always be in command of the situation. Know in advance what you will pay for the new car. Do your research and know what you will accept for the trade in - if they won't offer enough, then sell the car yourself. Good luck.
Need to give the guy a higher trade in? Just raise the price of the new car - if necessary with add-on items. Need to lower the price of the new car? Just chip away at his trade in value....
Treat it as two un-related transactions and you will always be in command of the situation. Know in advance what you will pay for the new car. Do your research and know what you will accept for the trade in - if they won't offer enough, then sell the car yourself. Good luck.
Posted by adzidek on 2007-05-29:
OK, now I see what you mean by trade-in affecting the price of the new car. I thought you meant trade-in value doesn't affect the bottom line of the deal. Anyway....you know what I do? I either get my trade-in value before even telling them what car I'm interested in, or, I go through with the negotiations right up until the signing, before I even tell them I have a car to trade in.
Posted by Ponie on 2007-05-29:
You're so right, adzidek. When shopping for a car previous to my last purchase, we were right to the point where I was ready to buy and they started discussing what I'd have for a trade in. I blew them away when I said I had nothing to trade--was ready to write a check on the spot. All of a sudden, the price of the car jumped by almost two thousand dollars. Needless to say, I walked out of that slimy dealership.
Posted by rhondam718732 on 2007-05-29:
I price shop any big purchase I make and I would think that a car falls into that range for most people as well. Why didn't you go to 1 or 2 other places before signing? I honestly can't believe that people take the word of strangers that are trying to make commissions over their own footwork and reesearch...lesson learned!
Posted by Gaia on 2008-01-04:
When I spend this much money, I can use all the help I can get. So, I decided to use the AAA car buying service in TN and it ended up being the best deal. I was told up front that there would be an additional $300 for "processing", so that was no surprise. I had the salesman email me all the figures (Price, tax, title, fees). I then used this as a base before I began calling the other 4 dealers in my area. In the end, the AAA deal was best, but I still did my homework. I had to drive 200 miles to the dealer, but it was worth it. I got the vehicle I wanted and I didn't give in to added extra's the other dealers were trying to push off on me. As for the trade-in, I didn't mention it until right before I left home to pick up the new vehicle, and guess what? I got $100 dollars more than what my research showed it was worth! I didn't discuss financing because I already had the best finance rate available through my credit union. (Still, I had to "crunch the numbers" to decide between the cash back incentive or dealer finance package). In the end, all my hard work and the time spent using the tools at my fingertips (Internet) paid off and I have a great Toyota Truck with a note that's less than what I had originally expected. AAA lead me to the dealer, but I still did all the work. My best recommendation to anyone car shopping for vehicles is to get all your figures in writing from the salesman so you know what the bottom line is going to be before you sign.
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