The Used Car Salesman Conspiracy

So I'm in the process of selling my truck to a Hertz used car dealership. Today I took it in for the final inspection, i had told the man on the phone that I could not sell my truck until my new car gets here which isn't for another week or so, but he pushed me to make an appointment for this inspection, so I did and went in today. (Apparently they only do this inspection right before the sale is finalized), but I didn't know that.. and he didn't make that clear to me.

So they did the inspection and came back with all these "problems" they found and I told the man I would need a couple days to look at all this before I make a decision and he became very agitated and increased the price he would buy my truck for on the spot.

I thought it was odd that he was getting so nervous and upset..etc.. because I had made it clear on the phone to his colleague that I wasn't selling the car for another week..

Anyway.. they finally give me my keys back, but they don't give me a copy of the inspection and these "problems" they found.. so I have to ask for a copy.. the guy doesn't make a copy he just quickly writes down short-hand what these problems were.

One of the problems listed was my air conditioning which I found odd because I've never had a problem with it before.. so I turn on my truck to drive back home and turn on my a/c and it starts making the most ridiculous loud horrible sound.

I have no doubt that this problem with the a/c was purposely created by these people to lower their buying price.

So I'm going to take my truck in to an actual repair shop and have them look at the a/c, along with the other "problems" listed.

They originally told me 3,000 before the inspection, after the inspection they said they'd buy it for 2,500.. after I told them I wasn't selling the car today and would be driving it home they quickly said 2,800..

When I go back I'll be asking for 3,100 and mention how odd it was that my a/c was broken.

Sounds to me like a good scam these guys got going on you.
They are looking to get the best price possible, even if it means falsifying information.
Which is illegal.

I would seriously look into exposing these guys for the crooks they may be.

Either that or sell your truck in the local paper and get what you want.

There is no conspiracy here, they are looking to optimize their profit for re-sale of your automobile. This is a standard practice of all dealerships. Appraise car, find CURRENT problems, and deduct accordingly. If they purposely broke your AC, than they broke the law and you can take the proper actions to rectify the situation. Although I doubt a company like Hertz would do something as stupid as this just to scoop $500.

It is also strange that they got angry with you over the timing of the sale, again, you are selling them the car they are handing you the money. $3,000 today or $3,000 a week from today makes no difference to them unless they have a buyer lined up. If they do have a buyer lined up why would they break an item in your vehicle only to have to repair it again.

It is your car and you don't have to sell the vehicle to them, find someone else to buy it if you are not happy with the way you were treated.

i owned a used car dealer for years, I never resorted to tricks like that. Sell, your car yourself for 5 or 6 thousand. It's unfortunate there are so many scammers in the car business.

reply to post by Drezden

Man I used to sell cars at a new and used dealership and one thing I can tell you is trust your gut, if you think they messed up something in your car to lower the price they probably did.
Not sure what kind of noise your AC is making now but I've heard tales of guys hiding rocks in rims and trying to tell people they had a bearing going out, they could have put done something to make it sound bad and its an easy fix for them.
There are a lot of honest car salesman out there but there is also a reason for the stereotype, the salesman get paid a percentage of the profit margin they make on your vehicle so many will do anything to bump the profit up. The dealership I worked at basically had things laid out so they were making money by ripping off the customers buying new or used cars, trading stuff in, and also making money off the employees through their crazy commission/draw system. Some of the guys I worked with would've starved if they didn't resort to dirty tactics.
Unfortunate but that's the name of the game.

Like the guy above me says, try selling it yourself roadside or in Auto Trader if you don't immediately need the money, you'll get more money out of it.

And if your buying a used car to replace this one, absolutely do not buy it from a dealership, they will fight you every step of the way as far as considering things under warranty that need repair and whatnot. You can usually find a much better deal from a private owner and with the hassles of trying to get repairs covered by the warranty at a dealership, you'll find you're better off just paying out of pocket to fix what may go wrong.

Originally posted by TheRealTruth84
There is no conspiracy here, they are looking to optimize their profit for re-sale of your automobile. This is a standard practice of all dealerships. Appraise car, find CURRENT problems, and deduct accordingly. If they purposely broke your AC, than they broke the law and you can take the proper actions to rectify the situation. Although I doubt a company like Hertz would do something as stupid as this just to scoop $500.

It is also strange that they got angry with you over the timing of the sale, again, you are selling them the car they are handing you the money. $3,000 today or $3,000 a week from today makes no difference to them unless they have a buyer lined up. If they do have a buyer lined up why would they break an item in your vehicle only to have to repair it again.

It is your car and you don't have to sell the vehicle to them, find someone else to buy it if you are not happy with the way you were treated.

edit on 2/14/2012 by TheRealTruth84 because: (no reason given)

You are clearly a used car salesman. Everyone including me knows that used car salesman try as hard as they can to buy cars for as cheap as possible to maximize profit in re-sale. This is not the problem. The problem is them purposely disrupting my a/c to mark the price down. I've had this truck for 2 years, I've never had a problem with the a/c, I used it as I drove to the Hertz. Then when I get my car back it makes a jarringly loud noise and obviously isn't functioning optimally on any setting.

The a/c is not broken beyond repair, I'm sure they did something that would be extremely easy to fix once I sold the car to them, just as easy as it was to create the problem. unplugged or unhook something here or there.

I don't think it's unreasonable to assume they altered some things slightly to knock down the price a couple hundred dollars when it would cost no money for them to fix. They were operating under the 100% assumption that I was selling the car to them there and now. They had no thought in their mind that I would be getting back in that truck. He was extremely frustrated/unfriendly/panicky when I explained I was leaving with that truck, and he was reluctant to give me a copy of the listed problems.. which were all vague and minor.. including the thing about the a/c.

Here is the list of problems directly from the note he gave me as he wrote them:

Brake " "
Slight inner fieRod Play
A/C system LO
Drive Line

How vague................ he wouldn't give me the actual official written copy even though I asked for it.

I know without a doubt that I am being scammed with the a/c no doubt, as for the other things they could very well be valid, but because of the a/c I can't be sure.. as I said I'm taking my truck to a repair shop for a real inspection to verify these things before I make serious claims.

reply to post by Drezden


Yes I do have experience in the automotive industry and I am fully aware of what I am speaking of. If you have proof of their misdoing than peg them to the wall, I'm all for calling out the crooks that give this business a bad name. But I am also speaking from experience, and know that a nationally held company such as Hertz isn't going to put themselves in a situation to be fined upwards of $25,000 just to scoop $500 on your sale. The fines dealers are charged for fraud and the likes are no pittance, and for good reason. There is no better way to get someones attention than to hurt them where it counts most...their wallets.

Hold them accountable for their misdoing if there is misdoing, just because Hertz is a reputable company doesn't mean the staff at this location aren't crooks. But don't come on here, drop a companies name and call it a conspiracy until you are 100% certain of the facts. Understand there are laws in place to protect the consumer and avenues in which you can take to rectify the situation.

Again they can buy a car from an auction and any Joe Schmoe off the street. Why risk $25,000++ for $500. It just doesn't make sense.

reply to post by TheRealTruth84


It makes plenty of sense when I cannot prove anything. I cannot prove to a court that my a/c was working before, or that my check engine light was not on. Even if I could prove it, all hertz has to say is that it was a genuine mistake on the part of their mechanic.

Even if I get another mechanic to tell me that the problems caused were things that could have only happened intentionally or from carelessness when inspecting the car it won't do anything.