Is this a typical KIA dealer experience?

[Jmiracle]

I stopped by my local dealer today to see if I could take a closer look at one of the 2 GT2’s they have on the lot. The sales guy let me sit in the drivers seat for maybe a minute, no offer to even start it up or test drive. I let him know I’m looking to buy in the next few weeks and wanted to look at a few different colors. They only have red on the lot. He suggested visiting a larger dealer a couple hours away and even went so far as to say they offer better deals than he can. I was already planning a trip there next week....it was still surprising to hear him suggest i look elsewhere.

I asked about current incentives that I know are available per the Kia website. He said they don’t know of any incentives available on the Stingers. He told me to come back in a few weeks when I’m ready to buy. He made it pretty apparent he had no interest in dealing with me. Needless to say, I won’t be going back.

 

[westcoastGT]

I stopped by my local dealer today to see if I could take a closer look at one of the 2 GT2’s they have on the lot. The sales guy let me sit in the drivers seat for maybe a minute, no offer to even start it up or test drive. I let him know I’m looking to buy in the next few weeks and wanted to look at a few different colors. They only have red on the lot. He suggested visiting a larger dealer a couple hours away and even went so far as to say they offer better deals than he can. I was already planning a trip there next week....it was still surprising to hear him suggest i look elsewhere.

I asked about current incentives that I know are available per the Kia website. He said they don’t know of any incentives available on the Stingers. He told me to come back in a few weeks when I’m ready to buy. He made it pretty apparent he had no interest in dealing with me. Needless to say, I won’t be going back.

well at least he was honest !

 

[Jmiracle]

This is true. I do intend on talking to 3 other dealers soon, so I guess we'll see what happens.

 

[DaJackson]

That wasn’t a typical Kia experience, it’s a typical car sales experience.

It’s the end of the month and end of the year. Sounds like the sales person felt spending time with you showing off the vehicle with no chance of a sale wasn’t worth his time. He lost a potential sale next year for the shot at a potential sale today.

 

[MerlintheMad]

Not typical at all. A proper Kia lot will have most of the colors available and a bunch of cars and will offer you a test drive up front. Too bad that the next closest dealership is three hours away!?

Maybe if you got into a conversation with this honest salesman, and said that a test drive is a good idea, because if it is favorable then you will special order and put money down to get "your" Stinger brought to you, his attitude will change and he'll become cooperative.

 

[Jmiracle]

oh, he suggested once I find the color I like to call him right away and he would work a dealer trade for it. He said he trades with just about any dealer in the state....except, oddly enough, the dealer I plan to visit next weekend.

I think I'm most confused about how they don't seem to be aware of available incentives and had no way of looking them up except for a google search. Yes, he pulled up google on his PC and let me watch him google for "kia stinger lease incentives". The only thing he was certain of is that leasing a 2018 model wouldn't be possible after the 1st of the year. lol. That was when I decided I was ready to leave.​

 

[KiaofMuncie]

I stopped by my local dealer today to see if I could take a closer look at one of the 2 GT2’s they have on the lot. The sales guy let me sit in the drivers seat for maybe a minute, no offer to even start it up or test drive. I let him know I’m looking to buy in the next few weeks and wanted to look at a few different colors. They only have red on the lot. He suggested visiting a larger dealer a couple hours away and even went so far as to say they offer better deals than he can. I was already planning a trip there next week....it was still surprising to hear him suggest i look elsewhere.

I asked about current incentives that I know are available per the Kia website. He said they don’t know of any incentives available on the Stingers. He told me to come back in a few weeks when I’m ready to buy. He made it pretty apparent he had no interest in dealing with me. Needless to say, I won’t be going back.

I am so sorry that you left with a less than favorable impression. What can we do to help? We will not play any games and we are here to answer any questions.

 

[Jmiracle]

You are on my list to contact! It will be a few weeks before I can make it your way, but will make an appointment for a weekend when I'm available. Thanks.

 

[KiaofMuncie]

You are on my list to contact! It will be a few weeks before I can make it your way, but will make an appointment for a weekend when I'm available. Thanks.

Awesome. Just keep me posted. Happy New Year!

 

[DrGCS3]

Wow, I think you went to my local dealer in Indiana. They only had two red GT2 2018s. No motivation whatsoever to deal with me. I like red okay, but really wanted to see panthera or ceramic. Manager literally said “I drive my car from the inside and who cares about the color”. I was out. Two weeks later I’m at another dealer signing the papers on my 2019 GT2 ceramic. Super happy and wouldn’t choose another color. I won’t even return to my local dealer if I have a need for something for my car. Idiots.

 

[Jimmer]

Wow, I think you went to my local dealer in Indiana. They only had two red GT2 2018s. No motivation whatsoever to deal with me. I like red okay, but really wanted to see panthera or ceramic. Manager literally said “I drive my car from the inside and who cares about the color”. I was out. Two weeks later I’m at another dealer signing the papers on my 2019 GT2 ceramic. Super happy and wouldn’t choose another color. I won’t even return to my local dealer if I have a need for something for my car. Idiots.

I hear these horror stories and must wonder if all the good KIA people work in my local dealership? I have had no issues with getting my Sorento or Stinger this year and no issues with the service guys or sales people. We test drove a Red one and when we got done, he is like which color and trim do you want?

 

[MerlintheMad]

I hear these horror stories and must wonder if all the good KIA people work in my local dealership? I have had no issues with getting my Sorento or Stinger this year and no issues with the service guys or sales people. We test drove a Red one and when we got done, he is like which color and trim do you want?

Same thing at Jerry Seiner. They even sold to a Cali guy, who flew up here after making a deal on the phone, and within an hour he and his gf were on their way back to Cali in the car. My "honeymoon" with Jerry Seiner is over nine months long now.

 

[nhcowboy28]

Not that it is right... but they often qualify you by appearance. I purposely dress way down. T shirt shorts sandals. Unshaven for weeks. See how they treat me BEFORE they know my income / credit rating.

Unless your car is dead, you are always in control and should always be prepared to walk away even if emotionally committed to the new car.

They aren’t your friends. You are a meal ticket. And they won’t take a bite if they think you are week old chuck.

 

[Kia Stinger]

The conversation ended, as far as he was concerned, when you said two words: "few weeks".

 

[ScottE]

I had a similar experience a few years ago when I bought my Optima - where the salesman wasn't interested in talking to me once I also said similar words that I wasn't yet ready to buy. Once I did buy the car I had a chat with the GM at the dealership, who was not happy with the salesman and actually broke away from our chat to go interrupt the morning sales staff meeting and tell them not to do that - their job is to sell cars, not avoid selling cars. I like that GM and we bought our Sorento and the Stinger at the same dealer.

As others have mentioned though, this is not unique to Kia. I had an even worse experience at a Volvo dealership when I was doing research and hadn't decided on the Optima yet. They didn't even want to talk to me when I said I was just doing research. That was fine though, Volvo tech was about 5 years behind Kia.

 

[jatleson]

Not that it is right... but they often qualify you by appearance. I purposely dress way down. T shirt shorts sandals. Unshaven for weeks. See how they treat me BEFORE they know my income / credit rating.

Unless your car is dead, you are always in control and should always be prepared to walk away even if emotionally committed to the new car.

They aren’t your friends. You are a meal ticket. And they won’t take a bite if they think you are week old chuck.

I take the same approach - and have walked out after hours of back and forth. I'm tempted to have a friend drive me for the next car buying experience - that way my current vehicle doesn't give any clues. This isn't just a Kia thing.

 

[Jmiracle]

I will never understand how some sales people want to treat the purchase of a car as an impulse buy. It's extremely unlikely i'm going to plunk down 40k+ for something during my very first contact. I don't even buy a pair of shoes without trying them on. Why would I ever buy a car without spending a fair bit of time in, around, and driving first?

The local Mazda dealer pulled similar stunts with me during my first visit. I was upfront and honest that I had done significant research online first and wanted to sit in and drive a miata. I made it clear I wasn't buying that day but would be back once I had settled on color. The sales guy was very persistent in asking what he could do to get me in one that day. I ended up walking out. I bought one a couple months later from an out of state dealer that was very willing to negotiate via email. Drove 7 hours to inspect, test drive, and sign. They made the whole process as painless as possible and I got to enjoy a nice road trip home in a new roadster.​

 

[jatleson]

@Jmiracle - Miata's are great cars.

This could start a bit of a war, but what the hey, let's end 2018 with a bang. Everybody has different likes/desires and everybody has different means of getting said likes/desires. Let's call 'everybody' the market. In the USA, Kia's majority market is minimal car desire and minimal means (they are using the Stinger, Cadenza and K900, kind of, to change that). The car is a necessity, Kia requires the least means to meet the need. That market does frequently purchase on impulse. My current car died, I need a car now, what is on the lot is likely the common story a Kia salesperson hears. My current car is nice, I like it, it is getting older or my lease is coming due and I am researching what I will get in the next couple of months, is not what a Kia salesperson typically hears.

What salespeople pitch and listen for are based on two things, typical buyers and compensation plan. No idea how Kia dealerships comp their sales people. Maybe some of the Kia reps can help here. But, I believe, a typical Kia buyer is a buy now/impulse buyer not a doing research, I'm a car guy and have the means buyer.

The above will be Kia's biggest challenge - the sales and overall ownership experience. Brand stigma is an issue, not a small one, but a true car person, with the means to buy a Stinger (or more) will get over the brand because of the quality of the car. Lower price, better warranty, same or better performance, great looks, every option you could want, build quality to match will make anyone who asks 'You bought a Kia?" bite their tongue. And the crowd that asks the question will want to start buying Kia's (Stingers, Cadenza + K900) because that is the market that has means but could care less about cars, but care about the ownership experience.

Cards on the table, I haven't bought a Stinger yet, but I'm 95% sure when I get a car in the next couple of months, it will be a Stinger. I drive a loaded BMW AWD 3 series now and love the car, but the upkeep is getting a bit out of hand. The 5% that keeps rattling in my head is the ownership experience. If I take my 9 year old car to a _____ (BMW/Audi/MB/Lexus/Infinity/Acura/Cadillac) dealer, I leave said dealer in a loaner, no questions asked. What happens when the Kia goes in? I (majority of this market) don't want the hassle of planning my day around service. Bring in car, get loaner, leave is a big deal to this market. Genesis and G70 have the ownership experience figured out, but don't have any owners because they haven't figured out how to sell cars. Make the Stinger a Genesis, call it a G75 and then my 5% changes from ownership experience to how do I actually buy the car when I am ready?

 

[Jmiracle]

This is the most logical theory i’ve seen so far and makes a lot of sense. I’m sure there are Kia dealers that have figured this out and have embraced the internet. My local dealer isn’t one.

I get the ownership experience concern as well. I’ve never owned a BMW/Audi or similar luxury brand so I’m not accustomed to the type of service I’ve heard is common to those brands. I wasn’t accustomed to heated seats before I purchased my Avalanche either...but couldn’t own a car without them now.

The car purchasing experience is ripe for disruption. If not for dealer associations and lobbyists, i’m sure it would have already happened. That’s one reason I hope Tesla succeeds even more than they have.

 

[OliverNuther]

The conversation ended, as far as he was concerned, when you said two words: "few weeks".

Yup. I once had a salesman (not KIA) refuse to even give me a price unless I committed to buying that day.