So, a friend can get you a deal?
YOU’VE heard that you should never mix business with pleasure, right? But when you have friends and family in the car biz, the implication is that you should go to them to get a deal. Maybe yes, but what about never mixing business with pleasure? My relatives’ learned the hard way after an experience with a car-salesman cousin. How so?
People tend to trust their car-biz contacts too much, lulling the buyers away from doing their homework. So when a pal calculates lessthan-bargain prices, you’re more likely to unwittingly blink prettily and say, “Sure.” This is not to say that it’s intentional.
Your friend selling the car — making his or her livelihood doing so, remember — might have some assumptions, too.
It’s like you’re expecting to get a better deal than you should get, because you’re friends or family, and then the person selling the car is thinking maybe they shouldn’t be asking as much as they want to, because you’re friends.
In short, whoever feels they got the best deal could take a lot of guilt with them. Whoever doesn’t might feel they were taken advantage of, whether it be the buyer or seller. And that can put a genuine strain on any relationship and becomes even worse when family and friends are involved.
For example, friends of mine approached a relative who sells cars. It’s a long and sordid story, but my friends ended up with a car that was not right for them. And because of the personal relationship, they somehow felt obligated to keep quiet — so at not to ruffle any feathers — when they discovered the car didn’t have the key options they thought they were getting.
Despite our pushing (which probably didn’t help), they still wouldn’t discuss the problem with the dealership, which, upon discovering the mix-up, might have been able to fix the problem somehow. But I guess we’ll never know.
There’s a flip side to the issue, and that’s the problem of telling your best friend that you don’t want to buy from him. From my experience, it’s best not to bring it up in the first place.
Most professionals understand that car purchases are very personal decisions. But a less understanding acquaintance could be hurt or even angered if you don’t go to him or her.
A case in point: A few years ago I talked my mother into visiting the dealership that sold me a midsize car. A social acquaintance of mine just happened to be a salesman there. I suggested she check out the place more out of my own experience than out of loyalty to my friend.
Mom tried out one of their cars, decided it wasn’t for her, and moved on. As it turned out, she was looking for a big luxury car. My friend, however, politely harangued the heck out of her for weeks afterward. Running into him at the mall one day, he asked me what she was driving and I had to tell him she had decided on something else.
In retrospect, we should have just stayed away from him altogether instead of tantalizing him with the prospect of a sale that was never to be.
The moral of the story? While buying a car could and should be a pleasant experience, understand that business and friendship seldom mix. Really, they don’t.
Don’t think of your car salesman as your buddy, even if he or she really is. It’s a business relationship and you need to keep it that way. Do your homework and ask a lot of questions (as you would whenever you’re planning to buy a vehicle) and you’ll come home satisfied every time and your friends will stay your friends.
You can message Rhonda Wheeler at www.theoctanelounge.com by clicking the contact link. Wheelbase Media is a worldwide provider of automotive news and feature stories.