GOLFMK8
GOLFMK7
GOLFMK6
GOLFMKV

Future GTI owner - dealerships are a joke.

brock

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
so cal
so, i have a 2005 toyota tacoma and i've absolutely fallen in love with the new gti (black magic, lol) and i went with 2 of my buddies to go testdrive and maybe buy a new gti on the spot. i ask if they have any black magic's with an auto and the saleslady tells me ya and i told her i wanted to take it out for a testdrive. she then proceeds to tell me that she will have to look at my credit history to take the car for a testdrive. (WTF?!) i just recently got my first credit card and payed off my first bill so i tell her my score isn't going to be high. i can get 23,700 on a trade-in on the taco and the GTI would be a little over 25k OTD and i told her i have enough money in my account and she still wouldn't take me out on a testdrive. i even asked if she could take me out with her driving and only me in the car and she still refused. i think that story was complete BS and i have some MAJOR beef with the local VW dealership (Ontario auto center in ontario CA) what a way to treat your potential customers. i will NOT bring my business to them. [/rant off] lol, what a first post.
 

onthevirg

Oval Champion
Location
Riverside, CA
Dealership I used

Well I've been to Ontario, Corona, Riverside & San Berdoodoo dealerships while I was investigating buying a GTI. Salesguy in Ontario seemed like a tweaker, Corona dude was an overbearing ass, Riverside didn't have enough ppl working there and Berdo was ok. Was able to do a test drive w/ no trouble Berdo. Place I ended up buying from though was Commonwealth VW in Santa Ana. :headbang: Was able to find the car I wanted, the price I wanted and iron out all the details about financing and such either through email or on the phone w/ their Net fleet manager Cathi Jensen. Not to sound like a schill, but I'd seriously consider getting in touch with her if you actually get the chance to drive one and decide if you want to get it. Was in and out of there in 45 minutes with my car, she was awesome. I know mileage will very from person to person, but it was by far the best car purchasing experience my g/f or I have ever went through. :thumbup:
 
Last edited:

Slowride

Touring Car Newbie
Location
US
There is another thread around here about people having a similar problem with some Honda dealers.

I said it there, and I will say it again here. ALL car companies have this issue. Some dealers are better than others, and if you want a VW, find a different dealer is my advice.
 

herrstreet

Touring Car Newbie
Location
Pittsburgh, Pa
Are you really young looking??? That's not really an excuse. I've had lousy experiences in car dealerships too. Don't give up on the car, just shop elsewhere. But calmly and clearly tell the manager about the treatment you got and that you are not going somewhere else with your story of a very negative experience at the dealership and your 25k.
 

brock

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
so cal
oh, im nto giving up on the car... dont worry. it's weird because right after i was at the VW dealership i went over to honda and they let me testdrive the Si, no questions asked, all they did was take a copy of my liscense. and when i bought my tacoma i got in touch with the AAA fleet dealer at toyota and even if i am a 19 year old kid he treated me like an adult. all 19 year olds are not little pricks. i don't know why im so upset, but it just felt like an insult that she treated me like i was a 12 year old asking to drive. i also think now im going to wait for the second year of the gti's to come out so they have some more problems worked out... anyone have an idea when the 08s will be out?
 

brock

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
so cal
onthevirg said:
Well I've been to Ontario, Corona, Riverside & San Berdoodoo dealerships while I was investigating buying a GTI. Salesguy in Ontario seemed like a tweaker, Corona dude was an overbearing ass, Riverside didn't have enough ppl working there and Berdo was ok. Was able to do a test drive w/ no trouble Berdo. Place I ended up buying from though was Commonwealth VW in Santa Ana. :headbang: Was able to find the car I wanted, the price I wanted and iron out all the details about financing and such either through email or on the phone w/ their Net fleet manager Cathi Jensen. Not to sound like a schill, but I'd seriously consider getting in touch with her if you actually get the chance to drive one and decide if you want to get it. Was in and out of there in 45 minutes with my car, she was awesome. I know mileage will very from person to person, but it was by far the best car purchasing experience my g/f and I have ever went through. :thumbup:


thanks man... i'll hit up cathy and see what she can do for me. u da man:bow:
 

onthevirg

Oval Champion
Location
Riverside, CA
Hope it goes well

brock said:
thanks man... i'll hit up cathy and see what she can do for me. u da man:bow:


Let me know how it goes man, hopefully she can give you a great deal on what you're looking for. :burnrubber:
 

punkey

Passed Driver's Ed
I was doing some scouting, comparing the Si and the GTI, and if you're in the Orange County area, I'd give McKenna VW a look. After a first test drive, the Internet manager, Ken Aloha, gave me a DSG GTI w/ sat radio and sunroof for two hours, no salesman, free drive, with just a copy of my driver's license and insurance. Even waited for a half-hour while I was waiting for my current insurance card to get dropped off after I got a friend to drop me off with the outdated card in my pocket. Highly recommended.

(And in case you're wondering, yes, I did take it out to PCH, put it in Sport and floor it. :smile: )
 

herrstreet

Touring Car Newbie
Location
Pittsburgh, Pa
That's cool. But the GTI is technically a 2 year old model since it's been out in Europe for 2 years and it's a factory in Germany which is handling the GTI's production.
 

bigdyno

FIA World Rally Car Newbie
Location
Toronto, Ontario
Test drive suggestions

I went in to a dealer to test a GTI and made sure I had a few things in place. I knew just about everything I could read about the car so when the saleswoman asked me any questions, I had an answer. I would suggest you try going to a dealer on your own and drive the "Taco" as you so affectionatly called it.
Let them know you are interested in trading it in, even if you aren't. If it isn't already, clean the truck inside and out, trust me they notice these things. Dress well (ie: pants that fit and a shirt with buttons, nothing personal, but there are too many people not dressed well these days) wear a good watch is you have/can get one.
Ask questions about things like finance terms and warranty upgrades and make it sound like this is important to you. I can't tell you how much I don't really care about alot of the stuff they will tellyou as far as safety and reliability. It's a VW, I know they have a very good warranty (better and longer than Honda, I looked at an SI too).
Ask questions that you don't think the sales person can answer ( I asked her if it was a cable or Hydraulic clutch) so it seems like you are on the ball.
Make notes in a small note pad, so it looks like you are making comparisons. Tell them about your drive in the SI and any other cars you can get a drive in and list the pros and cons of each car.
Don't walk in and ask for a test drive, rather bring it up after ten or fifteen minutes. My wife and I went for the test and I let her drive first, making it seem like I had to get her on board. Ask the sales person if it is ok to do things before you do them, eg pass someone, relly punch it or stop quickly.

These are all just suggestions, I hope you get a drive soon, the MK V rocks!
 

Slowride

Touring Car Newbie
Location
US
bigdyno said:
Let them know you are interested in trading it in, even if you aren't. If it isn't already, clean the truck inside and out, trust me they notice these things. Dress well (ie: pants that fit and a shirt with buttons, nothing personal, but there are too many people not dressed well these days) wear a good watch is you have/can get one.

This isn't a job interview, but rather a car purchase. He should be able to walk in there with ripped jeans and a t-shirt and get the same respect as a guy in a suit. I wouldn't go out of my way, since MANY dealerships sell cars.
 

Accel

Rally Car Champion
Location
Chino Hills, CA
Myself, and 2 of my friends just waltzed into Corona VW (Power VW) and they pretty much asked me outright if I wanted to take it for a drive, thats what sold me on the car, but I felt bad because I bought from Bozzani in Covina, because they had exactly what I wanted and I couldnt wait, either are good dealerships, I'm going to go to Corona for my service stuff because they are so laid back on mods.
 

brock

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
so cal
Accel said:
Myself, and 2 of my friends just waltzed into Corona VW (Power VW) and they pretty much asked me outright if I wanted to take it for a drive, thats what sold me on the car, but I felt bad because I bought from Bozzani in Covina, because they had exactly what I wanted and I couldnt wait, either are good dealerships, I'm going to go to Corona for my service stuff because they are so laid back on mods.

whoa man... im from chino hills too, lol. havn't seen anybody driving a new GTI yet... maybe i can stop by your place or we can meet so i can look at it? maybe we can even trade vehicles, indefinately, LOL, jk.

as far as them being tested in germany. i never knew that, lol. my first vehicle was a silverado, and now the tacoma (taco, lol) and both trucks were first years (03 silverado and 05 tacoma) and have each had their problems and they are not fun dealing with. maybe i'll get one sooner than expected. thanks for the help guys, i really appreciate it, i just need to find a dealership that wont treat me like a child now, lol.
 
Top