Good and Bad Dealers

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Many people may have their own preferences when it comes to dealers based on their own experiences, so check out our forums pages for other people’s advice and feedback.
In the meantime let us give you a rundown of some important things to look for in a good or bad dealer.

Honesty

It should go without saying really, but how do you test the honesty of a salesperson you have never met before?
Well firstly any salesperson worth their salt should always be forthright with any information you require on the vehicle in question. If you want to see license details, insurance documents, existing bills or logbooks, then they should have them right on hand. Don’t ever accept conditional agreements to see any documents only after first agreeing to purchase.
An honest salesperson with an honest car won’t be in too much of a hurry to sell it to the first person that comes through their door, so be wary of anyone immediately pressuring you to buy and spouting reasons why “this one is the best choice for you,” especially when they don’t even know fine well what you’re looking for.

Having some facts on hand about the car in question can allow you to ask questions to the salesperson to find out if they really know the car or are simply being untruthful. Ask them questions based on known details about fuel consumption, engine power, optional extras, airbags, seatbelt pre-tentioners, stereo functions, reliability, and service costs for example.

If they don’t show much knowledge about the product they are trying to force sell to you, then you know where you stand, and you know you must take more control of the situation or walk away.

Beware of advertised ‘facts’. It has often been our experience and the experience of many of our customers that the advertised ‘facts’ regarding many used vehicles are not always true. Some bad dealers or sellers will often purposely post misleading advertisements regarding a vehicle’s age, price, previous owners or specification. Sometimes the advertised vehicle doesn’t even exist! Be aware that some dealers find it difficult to find customers in their location, or because of their poor reputation or quality, and may resort to poor tactics to simply get people on their forecourt, before dealing up a heavy dose of hard sell. Always double check the accuracy of advertisements before making a commitment, or travelling long distance for viewing. Ask for additional photographs of advertised vehicles if possible, or ask Auto Checkers to carry out a basic vehicle information check.

A.C. checking and vehicle reports.

Our independent reports simply don’t lie about a vehicle’s condition, and will tell you exactly whether or not a car is as good as the salesperson thinks or says it is. Many used vehicle sales can’t or don’t actually inspect their cars in a detailed way before they themselves purchase them in, and they are often surprised to find out exactly what faults they may have, sometimes even being quite severe. Others know exactly what their vehicles are like, but may not pass the information on to the customer. There are also quite a number of write-off vehicles in Taiwan that are spruced up and resold as if nothing was wrong.
It is our experience and advice then that all claims to worthiness should be double checked with A.C. prior to taking the word of any dealer. Just check out what some of our satisfied customers have to say.

Used cars are not new cars.

A good dealer will always be willing to admit that even they cannot hold all of the best used cars on the market. Unlike spanking new cars, every used car will be in a different state and has a different history than every other. A good dealer therefore will be willing to make allowances for certain required repairs or servicing to bring their car up to their customer’s standards and requirements. Beware of any salesperson then that claims their car is better than everyone else’s, as that simply cannot be a justified claim.

Be aware of dealers that don’t consent to inspection. Any dealer confident in their vehicle won’t mind a good poke around by any customer or technician.