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What's Torque? But even in the bazaarlike, haggling auto market, verve and imagination are all too rare. "The trouble with the auto business," says Miami ex-Chevrolet Dealer Anthony Abraham, who sold his dealership this month, "is that nobody really sells automobiles any more. They sell the deal." Many salesmen sit behind a desk pushing a pencil on a pad when they should be out pushing the qualities of the car. Recently a customer walked into a Salt Lake City showroom on a Saturday afternoon, was greeted by two customers who said: "Are you a salesman?" When he said no, one customer sighed, "There doesn't seem to be one"—and both walked out. After searching the place, the newcomer finally found a salesman in a back room—figuring out a deal for a customer on a pad of paper.
"We shopped at six auto dealers.'' adds Cleveland Bakery Foreman W. Kelso Smith. "They had our name and address, but not one followed up with a visit.
You'd think that the way business is.
they'd be out fighting for it." Dealers blame a decline in the quality of salesmen. One Miami salesman, asked by a customer what kind of torque converter a new car had, could only stammer: "I don't know. I've only been here a couple of months." A Drink of Water. On the other hand, some aggressive salesmen use so many tricks and traps to sell the customer—ranging from legitimate gamesmanship to downright shabby conduct—that customers enter a showroom on guard. Sample unscrupulous tactics: ¶ The highball: the salesman offers an unrealistically high price for the customer's trade-in, then jacks up the price of the new car (often with accessories) to cover the too-high trade-in, or backs off altogether.
¶ The lowball: the salesman quotes a rock-bottom price for the new car to win the customer, later hikes up the price, declaring that a mistake has been made or that the quoted price was for another model.
¶ The double dip: two salesmen work on a customer, pretending to be in competition with each other. When the first salesman is turned down, another moves in with a better deal. Later, the two split the commission.
¶ The bush: the salesman persuades the customer to sign a blank contract after he has agreed to certain terms, then fills in figures different from those agreed on, or adds additional costs for such fictitious items as delivery charge, handling costs and excise tax (which is already included in the price). The bush is illegal in some states.
A variation on the bush is to fill out the contract at the agreed-upon figures, sending the customer away satisfied. Then the salesman calls later and informs the customer that a mistake has been made and that the car will cost more money—figuring that he will pay the difference rather than go through the whole haggle again. Some salesmen try to close a deal by insisting, "I can only get it for you at this price today1'—though they will be glad to quote the same price tomorrow.
Another salesman rushes off into the back room to check the new low, low price with his boss, but often simply goes for a drink of water. He comes back breathless, bearing the news that his boss has lost his mind and agreed.