6 Speed Failures????

[badams1]

I don't get it guy's? Tell me why do you need a sales person at all? Not too far in the future there will not be any sales people because they just are not necessary. A sales person has to make a living and you don't mind paying a little extra for the hand holding? Come on! Thats why online information is the future. Sales people are a must like the old codger that says hi when you enter the Walmart? What for? It's a God given talent, like singing. Salesmen are born,not made and they always end up being the sales manager because they are the only real sales person there. Why talk to any body else. They are the final deal makers.

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

BADAMS - YUP - what you say is true more often than not - or see the Fleet Manager if the dealership has one...

 

[DLeno]

my last deal I actually made with the dealership GM. then he picked a salesman to write up the order, and basically push the paper. As informed as many CTD owners are, the primary value-add of the salesman is not value at all to the customer -- it is value add for the dealer. To me, its just paper pushing. but the value to most traditional dealerships is the up-sell potential.



same goes for the finance office. no value to the customer -- only the upsell potential for the dealer.



so the whole traditional sell process is stacked so heavily in favor of the dealer -- adding value to the dealer I mean -- that the informed buyer has to try and get around what (s)he can. The more informed one is at every one of those purchase steps, the better.



At the sales step, I knew exactly what i wanted and asked for it to be ordered. At the finance step I knew exactly what charges would apply and how much i wanted an after market investment company to statistically benefit from my premium payments (in other words I declined extended warranty).



At each step of the way, there was no value add for me. It was a cumbersome, time-consuming necessary evil that I had to endure. But the outcome was great, and as far as traditional dealers is concerned, they earned my repeat business.

 

[klenger]

Hey, don't knock the Walmart greeters. I'm aspiring to that position someday.

 

[RankRam]

Originally posted by klenger

Hey, don't knock the Walmart greeters. I'm aspiring to that position someday.

Ken I hope I live long enough be one!

 

[mberry]

I hope my '05 gets built quick. The dealers service department will not change my VP-44 even though it's got the 0216 code.



I do not believe salespeople will go away for a while. As long as there are people who do not know how to use the internet to find information, they will go to the car dealerships and take almost everything at face value that the salespeople say.



People like my father that want the internet or computer to work the way they want it to rather than learn how to use it will always go to a dealership and speak to a salesperson.

 

[RustyJC]

Originally posted by klenger

Hey, don't knock the Walmart greeters. I'm aspiring to that position someday.

Ken,



Yep, that's an integral part of my retirement plan! :{



Rusty

 

[DLeno]

mberry -- when I started truck shopping for my 02 I decided to try and use the sales force for information. boy was I in for a shock. I realize that hopeless analytics like me would not be satisfied with someone who tries to memorize the sales brochures, but Frankly I did expect that a sales person would know the difference between a limited slip and a std rear end.



What the sales staff told me was to try the internet for research. The implication is that their expertise and value add is in the paper pushing process within the dealership.



But once you understand that and use the sales people for what they are there for (add value to the dealer, not the customer) then things go smoother. you gotta add your own value

 

[banshee]

I had to laugh at the story my buddy told me about his trip to the dealer last week to look at buying a new 600. First the salesman was trying to steer him to the Hemis, but he got around that. They went inside to talk after seeing there weren't any diesels on the lot, and the salesman says "Ok, so you want a diesel... now. . do you want a 1500 or 2500?... LOL. My buddy told him you could only get a diesel in the 3/4 & 1 tons, but he wanted the 3/4 ton, with a 6 speed. He said the salesman repsonded with "Well. . you can't get a 6 speed, but you can get a 5 speed with it". To make a long story short, He didn't stay much longer... LOL.



John

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

YUP - THOSE are exactly the sort of salespeople I was referring to further up above - they simply don't have a CLUE as to what they earn their living selling - pretty pathetic as far as I am concerned...



NOW, add to that the similar service department genious who wants to void the warranty on your VP-44 because of the new 4 inch exhaust you added last year, and you have a real pair...

 

[R.M.THOMPSON]

Saleman told me the same thing about a six speed and even showed me the screen he was looking at! I think there may be a hold on certain things right now .

 

[DieselB59]

Now, I see my fair share of 6 speed clad trucks. Furthermore, heavily modified 6 speeds. To date, I've seen two things ever happen to that transmission. 1. Transmission came new from the factory with no second gear. Nothing. Gearshift goes in and out of the gate with no clutch, no effort, and nothing there at all. 2. A manufacturing defect in one of the gears finally showed its face after about 100K of really hard beatings when the gear tooth shattered and once it broke off, began a list of catastrophic failures within the meshing of the gears. If anything is prohibiting the production of the vehicles with 6 speeds, it's more likely a DC favorite excuse like being on nationwide backorder, or a legitimate production defect which was found during a routine quality control teardown. I can't fathom the integrity of the transmission, which has proven itself for years now, being at stake.

 

[nickleinonen]

when i ordered my 04, i had used the online build your own truck deal thing to option out my truck as i wanted, then went to the dealer, handed him the paper and simply asked for the best price he could give me. now, i may have not gotten the best price around, but the sales guy needs to make money, and the dealership needs to make money. and the sales guy wasn't a prick. he was very nice, didn't push anything and we had a deal made in like 15 minutes. the finance lady however, ever did try to push the undercoating and extended warrenty and service packages many times after saying i don't want any extra's. the service department at that dealer has been good. my truck's been there once to get the rubber rocker panel plugs put in [i had tape]



and my 6 has been good to me. sometimes when cold it is a little stubborn [need to double clutch to get the gears] but once it is warm, it is fine as long as you don't try shifting it like a sports car [ie, real quickly]

 

[DLeno]

oh, don't get me started on the finance thing. My dealer was rather powerless and got caught in a "corporate training" exercise. they later appologized profusely. what happened was, just at the time I was closing on my 02, DC sent a finance trainer in to show the ropes to a new guy. I found out later that I was dealing with the trainer, who definately was a jerk. I think he was showing off. Later, when I traded by 02 for the 04, the new guy/trainee was still there, all experienced and all of that, and he and I had a good chuckle and I had a good finance experience 2nd time around.

 

[nwcatman]

Originally posted by DPelletier

repeat after me: "The NV-5600 is the strongest transmission available in a light truck. "



Some salesman really tic me off!! I used to just ignore them, but I'm getting old and irritable these days, I guess! Now I don't let them off the hook. Once they realize they've lost the sale, they generally mumble and walk away. I got my first "Ford owns Cummins, you know" just the other day, and I'm pretty sure he wishes he never opened his mouth.



Life's too short to deal with stupid people.



Dave

 

[nwcatman]

Originally posted by DPelletier

repeat after me: "The NV-5600 is the strongest transmission available in a light truck. "



Some salesman really tic me off!! I used to just ignore them, but I'm getting old and irritable these days, I guess! Now I don't let them off the hook. Once they realize they've lost the sale, they generally mumble and walk away. I got my first "Ford owns Cummins, you know" just the other day, and I'm pretty sure he wishes he never opened his mouth.



Life's too short to deal with stupid people.



Dave

bud, you are 100% CORRECT! don't let em check you cause you don't tolerate idiots and thieves. everytime you shrug it off and say "oh well" what you are actually saying is " shove it in again, cause i'm too wussy to stop you". some of us aren't.

 

[jarmar]

I don't know much about the service department, but Charlie Gillies in sales at Carson Dodge is someone who I would recommend highly. We purchased there in March. Just a short drive down the road from Reno.



jr

 

[mberry]

jarmar,



I went there and he was busy. RankRam also recommended him to me. Unfortunately, I didn't get to talk to him. Spent my time arguing with some other salesman that said I needed $20K down for them to even think about working with me. Obviously it was a wasted trip because of that.

 

[RankRam]

mberry I went in and let Charlie know what had happened, he was very dissapointed in the news.

 

[jarmar]

Originally posted by mberry

I went there and he was busy. RankRam also recommended him to me. Unfortunately, I didn't get to talk to him.

We had visited three other dealerships in the Sacramento area and I was quite disappointed. Charlie restored my faith that truck/car salespersons can be knowledgeable and helpful.



BTW, most here are probably knowledgeable about diesel trucks, but if not I also highly recommend the free 'Diesel 101' class offered at Carson Dodge. John Holmes presents the class once a month and it is a morning well spent.



jr