Taking care of small-town business
I went out today and got my 2008 "Victory Red" Cobalt at my cousin-in-law's dealership. (It's not his dealership; he just works there.)
As anticipated, I got the good-ol'-boy treatment as a FOT (family of Tom):
*He sold it to me at cost.
*In addition to the standard $2k rebate, Tom called in a dealer's bonus certificate for an extra $1,000.
With the rebates, insurance check, and the dealership's cash-in-the-dash promotion ($200 more), I was able to put nearly $5,500 down (30-some percent).
Thoughts from the day:
*My salesman's name was Ashley. I'm not being un-PC; his name was Ashley. Did a fine job, though, I must say.
*I went to the nearby branch of my bank to set up a car-payment-only account. (My bank has so passed calendars as gifts; my new account got me a free panini grill.) The account manager's name, believe it or not, was James Stewart. He was tall and lanky, but he didn't stutter.
*For the heck of it, I took the back roads to get back to my grandfather's house, where I stashed my luggage while swapping cars. In the process, I passed a hot-dog stand closed for the season called "Mustard's Last Stand."
*A mamallama shout-out: Along that back-road drive, I picked up her local station on the radio, and caught the Trading Post program. (So quaint!)
*And why was my grandfather so insistent on me getting a yellow car? Just because I mentioned this morning that I didn't want something that bright, he took that and shuffled off with it.
[After I got bathed and dressed]: "Brad, the dealership called. All they have left is the yellow."
[raised eyebrow]: "The only cars left on the lot are yellow?"
"Well... just the model you wanted."
As anticipated, I got the good-ol'-boy treatment as a FOT (family of Tom):
*He sold it to me at cost.
*In addition to the standard $2k rebate, Tom called in a dealer's bonus certificate for an extra $1,000.
With the rebates, insurance check, and the dealership's cash-in-the-dash promotion ($200 more), I was able to put nearly $5,500 down (30-some percent).
Thoughts from the day:
*My salesman's name was Ashley. I'm not being un-PC; his name was Ashley. Did a fine job, though, I must say.
*I went to the nearby branch of my bank to set up a car-payment-only account. (My bank has so passed calendars as gifts; my new account got me a free panini grill.) The account manager's name, believe it or not, was James Stewart. He was tall and lanky, but he didn't stutter.
*For the heck of it, I took the back roads to get back to my grandfather's house, where I stashed my luggage while swapping cars. In the process, I passed a hot-dog stand closed for the season called "Mustard's Last Stand."
*A mamallama shout-out: Along that back-road drive, I picked up her local station on the radio, and caught the Trading Post program. (So quaint!)
*And why was my grandfather so insistent on me getting a yellow car? Just because I mentioned this morning that I didn't want something that bright, he took that and shuffled off with it.
[After I got bathed and dressed]: "Brad, the dealership called. All they have left is the yellow."
[raised eyebrow]: "The only cars left on the lot are yellow?"
"Well... just the model you wanted."