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Join Debra Vaughn in a look at she took a lemon from the dealership
and quickly turned it into lemonade. Find out how having a new vehicle
checked out by a mechanic can save you headaches and thousands of
dollars in repair costs.
Make Lemonaid from a Lemon
About 2 months ago my family grew by one more. When we had our
baby, the reality that we could no longer fit our family into a
car hit us. Our back seat simply would not fit 2 carseats and a
carrier car seat. So off the the dealership we went to buy a mini-van.
After browsing several dealerships in one day. I found two vans
that I liked at two different dealerships. Here is how I got a van
that is practically brand new, though the year of the van is 1996,
for $8,999.00. The best part about it is, you can do it too!
First, my husband and I went to 3 different dealerships. We found
three vans that we loved. at the last dealership, I fell in love
with a particular van. The van was marked at $13,995. I mentioned
to the salesperson that there was a van that was practically identical
at the dealership right across the street that was priced at only
$9,999. I told my husband that maybe we should just go across the
street and see about getting that one. I did this intentionally
right in front of the salesman loud enough so that he could hear
me. Within two seconds, maybe less, he chimed in with, "Let
me talk to my sales manager and see what we can do for you."
I agreed. I was expected him to come back with a price that matched
the dealership across the street. To my amazement, he came back
with a price of $8,999! That was a full $5,000 LESS that the original
price with NO trade-in and nothing down! We jumped on that offer
and signed the contract within 45 minutes. We did insist that they
give us a 30 day dealer warranty with no deductible. They agreed.
Being the "savvy shopper" that I am, I immediately drove
my new van off the lot and took it to my father, a mechanic. He
gave the car a good evalutaion and gave me a list of everything
that was wrong with it. On my way home that night, my service engine
light came on, six hours after I signed the contract. To say I was
upset would be an understatement!
I got up the next morning and purposely got myself all worked up
and ready for battle. I waited for one hour after the dealer opened
then drove my new van back to the dealership. The trick here is
to not call ahead of time and go to the dealership at a busy time,
usually on the weekends.
One thing that dealers count on you not knowing is that, by law,
you have a 72-hour cooling off period to take any major purchase
back to where you got it and return it for no reason. So knowing
this, I went back. As soon as I pulled into the lot, I was approached
by another salesman. His first reaction to me was to ask me how
I was. I replied with a simple, "Not good!" He asked what
was the matter and I told him and gave him a list of everything
that was wrong, including a cupholder being missing. I let him know
that no matter how much I liked the van, I was had no reservations
about giving it back, after all, I was within my legal limit.
He immediately went back and got the sales manager, I vented to
him, in front of other customers. He took back my keys and put my
van into the shop immediately to save face in front of the other
customers. he gave us a loaner van to use in the mean time.
After two days, I still didn't have my van back, so I called the
edalership and told them that unless I could get another 72 hour
cooling off period, he could keep my van. I was obviously not going
to be stuck with a van that I only had for 6 hours! Needless to
say, I got my time extended.
My van was returned to me that day. My cooling off period was extended,
I had the 30 dealer warranty and the repairs were made. Curious
as to what needed to be fixed? He is the list: the catalytic converter,
several sensors, the transmission, the alignment was out, two tires
were worn, it needed an oil change, the gas cap was missing and
my cup holder was broken. By the time my repairs were done, my $8,999
van was worth a total of $15, 127! I got a practically new van after
all the work was done! Then 2 days before the dealer warranty was
up, I took it back in and got a new belt in the motor. I got a lemon
and made lemonaide, you can too!
Hint: Check out Carfax.com to see if your vehicle has been in an
accident or anything else has been done to it. Most dealerships
subscribe to this service so you should get it for free. If they
dont subscribe, ask if they have an internet access you can use
to check yourself, for free, while at the dealership.
About The Author
Debra Vaughn is a stay-at-home mother to 3 young girls. She is
a freelance writer in her spare time. Debra Vaughn also edits and
publishes The Family Budgeteer Bi-Weekly Online, including a FREE
E-book and Newsletter which can be found at familybudgeteer.com
The California Lemon Law website is dedicated to bringing our
readers both information specific to the state of California
and more general information across all 50 states so that you can
make informed judgements concerning your rights and methods of achieving
retribution.
Disclaimer: The information on this website has been complied
by the California Lemon Law website from public sources. Use
of information from this website does not constitute an attorney-client
relationship. Please contact an attorney in your state or your Attorney
General to ensure that all your rights are protected.
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