[CalGuy]

Hello,

My wife recently got her much awaited Sky, and she is a beauty.
She is real happy with it, and I can see why. Silver pearl exterior, black leather interior, and fully loaded. I was pleasantly surprised at how the car looks in real life (pictures don't do it justice). Also, the interior is surprisingly tightly done, and just plain awesome.

BUT...

Here's the problem: After looking at the Saturn website and comparing how much we got charged by the options as opposed of MSRP we think we have gotten ripped off. Everything is marked up at least 200%, so instead of paying about $3,500 for all the options, they charged us $10,000. To add insult to injury, they would only accept the transaction as a trade-in, so I had to give up my wife's L-Series (They said they needed a trade-in because they don't mark up their cars, so they need to make money someway )

To give some examples of the prices we were charged: The tonneau cover is listed at $336.00, and we got charged $995.00. The Splash guards are listed at $157.00, and we got charged $595.00 (That's right). The list goes on, and on.

Although my wife loves her Sky and so do I, I can't help that these people took advantage of her impulse-buying (I was out of town). For a company that has a reputation of being honest and customer friendly, this is something I wouldn't expect.

I forgot to add: The final sticker price was over 37K.

Thanks for reading my rant. Any feedback will be appreciated.

Robert

 

[ku4zs]

WOOWWWEEEE, yea my guess is you got ripped, pretty bad too. It's a shame that some dealers are taking full advantage of this car's appeal to new Saturn buyers. The old time Saturn buyers know Saturn's way, and can smell :bs: before they try to give it to you.

 

[SkyHope]

Report this experience @ http://www.saturn.com/saturn/footer/contactus/index.jsp attn: Jill Lajdziak

 

[SkyHighinTX]

I would agree that it seems the dealership has truly taken advantage of the situation. Even though the dealership may not "mark up" the MSRP, they still get a reasonable profit on the sale. And the recommended pricing for the dealer accessories, while not set in stone, should be somewhere near the prices advertised on the Saturn website. Those prices also include a reasonable profit for the dealership.

I have heard of and read several accounts of greedy dealers who take advantage of the fact that they can sell Skys (Skies??) very easily due to the limited production and high demand. I would hope that when this happens, folks would report the price gouging and bad business practices to the Better Business Bureau so that others may not have to experience the same thing.

I have always heard good things about Saturn and their dealerships. My decision to order a Sky was fueled in part because of my mother's excellent experience with her Saturn dealer two years ago. That said, I suspect that in this capitalist society GM and Saturn have little control over the dealers' business practices. It is the customer that keeps the dealer in business and the customer that can hold dealers accountable for fair business practices.

 

[Stu's Sky]

WOW, that hurts. Did they give you a fair trade for the L series, or below market value?

 

[ku4zs]

I noticed something the other day at my dealership (who is charging MSRP and not a penny more). Right (and I mean RIGHT) next to the GM's office is a stand with a framed poster. The poster says "Code of Ethics" and it has a list of ethics that they follow. I didn't get a chance to read them all. Very nice though. Bet that dealership had no such thing.

 

[Kustomkaps]

Oh My Goodness. IMO you had a job done to you. Granted, I wish you would have gone on the Saturn site, or this forum for that matter, earlier as many people have gone over this problem and could have put you on a better list somewhere else. Taking your words as my only proof, you have been taken by a very shady dealer and I would complain to Saturn itself. Also, if you keep the car, I would not ever go back to that dealer- try a different Saturn dealer- even if it is a drive for your upkeep stuff. Why give them more. There are dozens and dozens of great Saturn dealers out there that wouldn't dream of doing what your dealer did to you (ok, maybe in a perverted dream, but not in reality).
On the other hand, you did order the car, and when shown the prices, signed the contract thinking it was a good deal for the car you wanted. That is how I would have to look at it if I bought it- it was a good deal for you at the time. (but if your car was bought in the last day or so, check out the return policy in your state. Some states allow a 3 business day return for autos with out penalty. You would be better off taking it back and going to a different dealer- a savings of about 7K.

 

[SkyHi07]

Man,, my Sky is the 5th Saturn I have bought. Never a problem or one glich. If fact he charged me less for the chrome wheel upgrade than I expected.

I would call and write the 1-800-rat-fink!!!!!

 

[CalGuy]

Thanks for the many replies so far. At least now I know for sure something stinks pretty bad here and it's not just my nose.

I will reply to each post individually.

My wife and I feel rather bad about the whole thing. She's feeling guilty for trusting Saturn, and I feel guilty for the same thing (and encouraging her to get the Sky without much thought, assuming no ripoff would take place.)
Even if we don't get anything out of this, at least let it be a warning for the good people in this forum.

 

[CalGuy]

WOOWWWEEEE, yea my guess is you got ripped, pretty bad too. It's a shame that some dealers are taking full advantage of this car's appeal to new Saturn buyers. The old time Saturn buyers know Saturn's way, and can smell :bs: before they try to give it to you.

Yeah, that's the thing. A lot of expectations and eagerness to get our hands in this beautiful car.

What I don't get is: This is my wife's 4th Saturn (loyal buyer), and she always told me how honest this company is and all that. Granted, it is not Saturn we are talking about here but a Saturn dealership. You would still expect that Saturn would require their dealerships to adhere to a minimum code of ethics.
Oh well, live and learn.

 

[MOMDRAE]

Hello,

My wife recently got her much awaited Sky, and she is a beauty.
She is real happy with it, and I can see why. Silver pearl exterior, black leather interior, and fully loaded. I was pleasantly surprised at how the car looks in real life (pictures don't do it justice). Also, the interior is surprisingly tightly done, and just plain awesome.

BUT...

Here's the problem: After looking at the Saturn website and comparing how much we got charged by the options as opposed of MSRP we think we have gotten ripped off. Everything is marked up at least 200%, so instead of paying about $3,500 for all the options, they charged us $10,000. To add insult to injury, they would only accept the transaction as a trade-in, so I had to give up my wife's L-Series (They said they needed a trade-in because they don't mark up their cars, so they need to make money someway )

To give some examples of the prices we were charged: The tonneau cover is listed at $336.00, and we got charged $995.00. The Splash guards are listed at $157.00, and we got charged $495.00 (That's right). The list goes on, and on.

Although my wife loves her Sky and so do I, I can't help that these people took advantage of her impulse-buying (I was out of town). For a company that has a reputation of being honest and customer friendly, this is something I wouldn't expect.

I forgot to add: The final sticker price was over 37K.

Thanks for reading my rant. Any feedback will be appreciated.

Robert

Wow, you did get ripped off. Our dealer, from who we have purchased 10 of our Saturns, would never pull anything like that. I ordered accessories and they charged what is on the web site and did NOT charge for installation. The GM felt bad that he had no incentives to offer for the Sky (the owner) so he did give me anotoher option at their cost (saved me about $600 . At our dealership you can bring your car back within 30 days at no more than 1500 miles and give it back!!:willy:

Where do you live??

 

[twirp]

.................

 

[ineedmorebotox]

oh my gosh! You need to do something about this mess or your wife will feel terrible about it for years. Much more difficult for her to enjoy her car if she feels bad because she impulse bought will you were out of town. They should be shot.

 

[CalGuy]

Report this experience @ http://www.saturn.com/saturn/footer/contactus/index.jsp attn: Jill Lajdziak

Thanks a lot for the link. Have you dealt with this person, or know somebody that has? Is she in the customer relations department?
I am putting this into my file. Thanks again

 

[CalGuy]

I would agree that it seems the dealership has truly taken advantage of the situation. Even though the dealership may not "mark up" the MSRP, they still get a reasonable profit on the sale. And the recommended pricing for the dealer accessories, while not set in stone, should be somewhere near the prices advertised on the Saturn website. Those prices also include a reasonable profit for the dealership.

Exactly! MSRP already factors in some profit for the dealer. It makes the whole thing even more grievous and disgusting, having them justify that they wanted a trade-in on her L-300 because they needed to make some profit out of it...:banghead:

I have heard of and read several accounts of greedy dealers who take advantage of the fact that they can sell Skys (Skies??) very easily due to the limited production and high demand. I would hope that when this happens, folks would report the price gouging and bad business practices to the Better Business Bureau so that others may not have to experience the same thing.

I have always heard good things about Saturn and their dealerships. My decision to order a Sky was fueled in part because of my mother's excellent experience with her Saturn dealer two years ago. That said, I suspect that in this capitalist society GM and Saturn have little control over the dealers' business practices. It is the customer that keeps the dealer in business and the customer that can hold dealers accountable for fair business practices.

Believe me, I intend to exhaust any course of action to fix this, and either way I intend this dealer to accept some sort of consequence (an exposition of the facts to this community of prospective owners, resulting in bad publicity, being one of them)

Thanks for your response, very well put.

 

[CalGuy]

WOW, that hurts. Did they give you a fair trade for the L series, or below market value?

Hey Stu,

Actually, my wife was very happy about the trade, because they gave her $11,000 (This is a 2002 L-300), and the fair market value was around that area or slightly lower. Of course, after every thing is factored in, this seems nothing more than a clever strategy to take the focus off the real issue (The ripoff on the options), and everything accounted for, we are still losing a net of around $8,000.

 

[CalGuy]

I noticed something the other day at my dealership (who is charging MSRP and not a penny more). Right (and I mean RIGHT) next to the GM's office is a stand with a framed poster. The poster says "Code of Ethics" and it has a list of ethics that they follow. I didn't get a chance to read them all. Very nice though. Bet that dealership had no such thing.

Thanks for the fact. I don't remember seeing that poster in this dealership, and obviously don't expect to find one if I was looking for it.

 

[Axel]

CalGuy,

You may or may not want to return the car or escalate the PR battle... but I compiled some other sources I was going to use to fight the good fight that may be of use to you:

http://www.skyroadster.com/forums/showpost.php?p=58227&postcount=19

 

[SkyHope]

Thanks a lot for the link. Have you dealt with this person, or know somebody that has? Is she in the customer relations department?
I am putting this into my file. Thanks again

She is the face of GM with respect to the SKY and will be very interested in your recount of purchase experience.
http://www.autoblog.com/2006/05/24/sky-is-not-the-limit-for-saturn-sky-redline-pricing/

 

[CalGuy]

Oh My Goodness. IMO you had a job done to you. Granted, I wish you would have gone on the Saturn site, or this forum for that matter, earlier as many people have gone over this problem and could have put you on a better list somewhere else. Taking your words as my only proof, you have been taken by a very shady dealer and I would complain to Saturn itself. Also, if you keep the car, I would not ever go back to that dealer- try a different Saturn dealer- even if it is a drive for your upkeep stuff. Why give them more. There are dozens and dozens of great Saturn dealers out there that wouldn't dream of doing what your dealer did to you (ok, maybe in a perverted dream, but not in reality).

You are right, we should have done our homework before taking the plunge. Let that be a warning for other unsuspecting buyers. This dealer is bad news. I just got off the phone from talking to the store manager, and I am putting up a separate post with updated information later.

On the other hand, you did order the car, and when shown the prices, signed the contract thinking it was a good deal for the car you wanted. That is how I would have to look at it if I bought it- it was a good deal for you at the time. (but if your car was bought in the last day or so, check out the return policy in your state. Some states allow a 3 business day return for autos with out penalty. You would be better off taking it back and going to a different dealer- a savings of about 7K.

Actually, we didn't order the car. The dealership notified my wife that they were receiving a new Sky that day, so she just showed up there. That day the deal wasn't closed, because that's when she found out that they were forcing her to trade in the L-300 (which we weren't planning to do). At that point, the sticker price that she saw was a little over $27,000. The next day, upon my insistence , she went back to the dealership to get the car, and that's when the $37,000 sticker price had been attached. But yes, you are right, she knew the price when she signed the contract (what she didn't know was that the dealership was taking advantage of us like that.) Fricking incredible if you ask me.

Thanks for the information. Unfortunately, California has a no-cooling-off law (or something of that nature) that doesn't allow you to go back on the deal unless for legal reasons (fraud). By the way, does lying and overcharging more than $8,000 over MSRP constitute fraud? I don't know, but I'm going to find out.