Dealer will fix the tire pressure issue. They are funded by GM for warranty work. You are probably SOL on the dings. Not a warranty item. You got them on the price. They got you with the dings.Please bare with me. I am still in the "excitement" phase but I also have a few concerns and require some input. Sorry for the long post - I can write novels some times.
Been working on some deals for the past 3-4 weeks and finally pulled the trigger Saturday night. Got a call Saturday morning from a dealer who had made me a pretty good offer on a Liquid Red GT earlier in the week. I told him I'd think about it but I was still looking around for an MGM GT. He called back a couple hours later and found one in upstate PA (I am in S. MD). I asked if he'd hold it at the price of the red car (OTD at $29,653) and he confirmed. He actually quoted me a price a couple hundred more but I figured it was to cover hauling.
Anyhow, I head up to the dealership around 6ish (after a wedding) to sign some papers with the expection of picking it up Monday. They handed me a sale sheet and asked me to "sign" it showing the purchase price and the OTD price of the car. I quickly noticed that the sale price of the car matched the OTD quote from our previous conversations and emails. And the new OTD price was about $32,000. I said "No way" - this isn't what we talked about. That started a bunch of back and forth concerning our earlier conversation and our apparent misunderstandings of the deal. I simply told him I wasn't paying $2500 more than what you quoted me simply for a color change that carries no premium and last time I checked, the haul rate was less than $500. He came off a couple bucks but I still said no deal. I said I'd pay the earlier quoted price plus $500 and that was it. They said they couldn't do it so I got up to leave.
He then asked if was still considering the liquid red car that he called me about that morning. I said possibly but considering he had 4 on the lot - that I still had time to think about it. He said I gave you a great price this morning but what if I can wow you with a better price - would you make a move? I said "Sure, but you best wow me."
He does his number trick and comes back with $28,750 OTD. I say "great price but I still might hold out for the MGM car - but make it $28,500 even and I'll sign" - he counters with $28,600 and I say OK but I want some perks from the shop (touch up paint, detail products, etc). They offer 2 years free oil changes so that has a price and given the distance, I won't use it so I want comp. consideration. They agree and we start the process.
Run through financing and they secure me a very fair rate and I am out the door at just under $500/mos with no money down. Not a bad deal IMO. What I was shooting for when I started this process.
Anyhow, by the time I sing all the paperwork, it's 8PM and dark outside (losing daylight plus it was misting out). The salesman takes me to my car (we test drove it earlier) and walks me around it and sits me inside to go through the Onstar setup and show me all the bells/whistles. Everything is fairly standard so after about 20 minutes, I shake his hand and drive off.
About 15 minutes later, my DIC display notifies me that I have a "Tire Pressure Sensor Fault". I flip between screens (not really knowing what I am doing) and notice that the tire pressure page shows dashes where numbers previously were - as if it wasnt reading the tire pressures. The car is driving fine so I hit up Onstar remembeing they do "diagnostics". I explain I really have no idea what I am doing as I JUST bought the car and was wondering if they could help. They switch me to their diagnostics group who basically asks if they car is driving fine (it is) and says I should check the air pressure when I got a chance. I drive home this way and park the car overnight.
The next morning, I get up with the expectation of cleaning the car up and doing a few things (maybe the washer mod and debadge mod, etc) but decide to wash the car first to start things off on a good foot.
Before washing, I run the car up to the gas station to add air to the tires (they were all at 30 psi - very low per the door panel info). I figure the low psi readings were causing the fault so I added air to get them to the proper range. This didn't clear the code so I am lost at this point. I drive back to the house.
As I am washing the car, two problems arise. The first is that the passenger side rear tire has a 3" chunk missing from the lip. Like the lip has been ground down. Looks like someone curbed the car (maybe in an earlier test drive). Also, on the front end of the hood, just up and the to the left of the Pontiac front emblem (if facing the car) is two small dents. Almost looks like someone shot the car with a BB gun. The dents are right on top of each other so someone hit the car with something at some point I guess. It's very hard to see as the paint isn't broken but it's definately there.
So, I email the general manager (he gave me his card) and CC the internet contact I was speaking with earlier in the week and explained what I found and conveyed that I expected them to take care of it. The dealership was closed (as it was a Sunday) so I will follow up with a call later today.
My concern is will they try to play the "you had the chance to walk around the car before signing the papers and you didn't note anything so it's not our problem"? Keep in mind it was dark when this whole process was going on.
Can they play the "you did that when you had the car" game?
Everything is recorded, as in I called OnStar immediately to discuss the tire pressure issue and emailed the sales manager around 11AM yesterday morning.
I am a little pessimistic regarding dealerships given some earlier bad experiences with one trying to weasel out of warranty work so I am concerned I will have another fight on my hands.
I got a great deal IMO but the "greatness" goes away real quick if they expect me to eat these problems and not take care of them.
Any thoughts?
P.S. Keep your gas cap tight. It causes a check engine light due to "Evaporative Emissions Leak".
