Interesting used car dealer in Las Vegas

[quattrorunner]

Ok this was noteworthy. Really funny.
Other day I and my wife went looking for a car for her boy to use at school. We were on a budget with this car as he's proven to consume vehicles. Yeah, this was one of those lots. Anyway, got there 3:30 and the sales guy was gone? Some older dude was there rattle can spraying wheel wells in the lot. Said the sales guys would be there at 9:00am. I asked if he could tell me anything at all, he said that's what he paid the sales staff for. So I said you're the owner? Saud yeah and I asked for a card with a number. I took the cars and put it on the hood of a 97 s10 blazer so I could jot some numbers down when he yelled at me to get off the paint job! I quickly grabbed the card and jumped back hoping i didn't hurt the paint on the hood. Sure enough it was still fresh from the factory, 17years ago. Complete with original patina. I thought that was odd but whatever.
Next day I called 8:50, then 8:55, then showed up at 9:00 sharp. That's me.
No one really there yet. At 9:15 this same old guy comes rolling in one of his honey-bucket cars proudly. Walks over to me straight without going into the office and gives me the info I'd asked for the day before. Hmmmm ok cool. Well I was interested in two in particular. I opened one, and I sat in it as he loosely described what I was seeing.
Next I asked if the titled was marked and he didn't even let me finish without barking at me that all his cars are perfect! Ooh good to know. Ok what else ya got? How bout the other one? We make our way over to that one and it looks better. "Can I test drive it?" I said. He wants $20 for a test ride. Said he has to close the lot down. Ok. I pull $20 out in order to see if this car was as good as he said. Ok he puts a plate on and tells me where all the cops are. Why? Whatever. I pull out easily, trying to pay attention to sounds and noteworthy feel of things. He tells me where to go and so I do as he directs. Made the u-turn and gave more throttle in order to see how the engine felt. He freaked out!!! I was going 35-40 in a 45 just about half to 3/4 gas seriously! He said take it easy that no way to take a test drive! I told him I hadn't given it much gas and he told me about how he needed to control the testers and so now I'm getting mad. He said someone had been killed doing exactly what I was doing. ??!! So I asked him If I looked like someone who wanted to kill someone and he answered "yes you do" So I asked how I'm supposed to know if a car is good without driving it and he told me to go back. Said he'll give me my $20 back. He didn't need to sell it that bad.
Shocked and confused I said ok. Then I told him he gas something he's hiding. He said have a nice day. Ha. Ok.

[masraum]

Wow, nice, what a nutter. No wonder he's got to close the lot.

I went to look at a 260 or 280 or something like that years ago. this was a private seller. Yeah, the car runs great. No, you can't start it or drive it. It's been sitting for a long time, so you'll suck a bunch of crap into the engine if you start it, but trust me, it runs fine.

[masraum]

I almost forgot.

So did you buy the car?

It was perfect afterall.

[oldE]

You went back the next day?????

Sorry, but if you have your finger on top of the nail when the hammer comes down, you know it's gonna hurt, don't you?

Hope future car hunting goes better.

Best
Les

[biosurfer1]

You gave him $20 for a test drive?? That's the most absurd thing I've ever heard

[Paul_Heery]

You went back after you had discovered him spray painting wheel wells with a rattle can & experiencing other cosmetic cover-ups?

You must have really been desperate.

[herr_oberst]

Doesn't Las Vegas have craigslist?

[masraum]

I'm guessing that he's looking for a car that's $5k or less, maybe a lot less like 3500 or 2500 or less. At that price, sometimes, you look at what's available. In the past when I was poorer, I've looked at some pretty appalling stuff. If you look around enough, you'll find the decent deals, but at that level, you've gotta wade through a lot of sewage to find the gems.

[stomachmonkey]

The guys a nutter and no good at sales or customer relations and probably knows it which is why he has a sales guy.

[BeyGon]

After the first two minuets you were giving him too much of your time.

[RANDY P]

It seems that most car lots (or auto service anything) is like that in vegas- think trashy drug addict used car salesman types.

Avoid buying in Vegas. Go to CA instead.

[speeder]

Getting to the root of this post, cars are common pieces of machinery that nearly everyone in the country owns. Many people own more than one. People constantly buy new ones, so at any given time there are thousands, (millions?), for sale.

Regardless of how the market may be at the moment in terms of supply:demand, this guy with his sparkling personality and charm is going out and buying people's worn-out old crap boxes, spray-painting the wheel wells and selling them to people like you who walk on his lot for a couple grand more. This really makes no sense from a buyers standpoint, unless you need a 22% loan on a car for double or triple its value and consider dodging the repo man to be fun and exciting. That's the only scenario where buying from some ghetto used car lot starts to make sense.

As in other things, always skip the middle man where possible. A friend just bought a really decent 2001 Jeep Cherokee off Craigslist for $3500, he will put a few bucks into fixing some leaks and new tires but he is far from a car guy, just needed a dog-mobile to take dogs hiking and a beater so as not to ruin their new cars. He had his choice of several similar ones, all on well known public classified ad sites.

Used car lots like you describe are the equivalent of "rent-to-own" furniture.

[rcooled]

Originally Posted by quattrorunner

...and gave more throttle in order to see how the engine felt. He freaked out!!! I was going 35-40 in a 45...

When I test drove an Audi S4 at a dealer in Santa Monica, the sales guy directed me to a quiet area nearby and told me to stand on it

Twenty bucks for a test drive...you should've walked right then & there. Stick with craigslist if you're looking for an inexpensive car.

[fastfredracing]

Old guy is probably just beaten down, and worn out from a lifetime of selling pos used cars, to , and trying to collect from some of the finest caliber people las vegas has to offer .
This is not where you should be shopping.

[LakeCleElum]

On the other hand: When I was in college, I was selling my 1st car to buy an Austin Healey 100-6. Guy driving way to fast on a test drive and crashed into a poor soul backing out of his parking space at work........Told the guy "he broke it, he bought it".......He did and the other guys insurance paid to fix it........

Bet the dealer has seen a lot of flakes in his career......

[quattrorunner]

Originally Posted by masraum

I'm guessing that he's looking for a car that's $5k or less, maybe a lot less like 3500 or 2500 or less. At that price, sometimes, you look at what's available. In the past when I was poorer, I've looked at some pretty appalling stuff. If you look around enough, you'll find the decent deals, but at that level, you've gotta wade through a lot of sewage to find the gems.

DING DING DING
Looking to spend $3500 to $4000

My wife's boy consumes cars. I wouldn't let her get a nicer one, on the other hand, I don't want him stuck on the side of the road either. SO it is really hard to find the right one and it takes time. Wadding through the mess.

Plus he's 6 foot 6 inches tall and doesn't fit in every car. It's hard.

I am a pretty reasonable dude. never dis respectful and never drive others cars unless helping diagnose a symptom or test driving inspection. On a test drive inspection the car needs to be driven not coddled. We would all like to think the car has been coddled all it's life and perhaps it has...but whatever, I don't need the front end coming apart at 60 mph because the guy didn't let me properly test it.
F...no I din't buy it. I would never buy from this guy, he's got things to hide, some with black Krylon and others some other way.
I went straight to the internet to see all the reviews on him and found that he's kicking people out of the office for asking for a mechanical inspection.
I too think he's tired of the car life, but he fit's the image with a silly hat on and spray paint can in his hand.
I'm looking on craigslist too and that presents all sorts of new problems. There are scams everywhere. Time wasters and some real roaches spit shinned up nicely.
That's why I wanted to give a car dealer on the bolder highway a try.
We'll see

[quattrorunner]

Originally Posted by rcooled

When I test drove an Audi S4 at a dealer in Santa Monica, the sales guy directed me to a quiet area nearby and told me to stand on it

Twenty bucks for a test drive...you should've walked right then & there. Stick with craigslist if you're looking for an inexpensive car.

I had a sales guy tell me to do a donut in a subaru wrx he was trying to sell me. I just couldn't do it and I didn't buy from that dealership either.
But Standing on it isn't unreasonable in some cars, slow cars. I didn't even do that though, I was maximum 4500 rpm and like I said got to 40mph before this guy made me take it back to the lot. I'm so dangerous!!

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by oldE

You went back the next day?????

Sorry, but if you have your finger on top of the nail when the hammer comes down, you know it's gonna hurt, don't you?

Hope future car hunting goes better.

Best
Les

Originally Posted by biosurfer1

You gave him $20 for a test drive?? That's the most absurd thing I've ever heard

Originally Posted by Paul_Heery

You went back after you had discovered him spray painting wheel wells with a rattle can & experiencing other cosmetic cover-ups?

You must have really been desperate.

Yeah, that pretty much settles it.

[Nostril Cheese]

Las Vegas.

there's your answer.

[quattrorunner]

HAHA.
Well there you go.
My problems all stem from trusting EVERYONE. People have to earn their distrust with me. I believe everyone is on the level till they prove otherwise. Sometimes it happens quickly and other times it takes longer. This guy didn't have my radar flickering even when walking around with a can of paint. My best friends dad growing up was a used car seller and he would touch up old steel wheels with a can of paint and it brought back some memories so it didn't freak me out till after he told me he was the owner and didn't want to show, or give any info till the next day. I found that odd but also found some comfort in the fact he wasn't trying to throw anything down my throat either. Almost like he didn't want to sell anything. I don't understand that.