Outlander

So, about the Mitsubishi dealership. You're probably thinking where the heck I got the idea to even consider a Mitsubishi. Well, a few weeks ago, I went to the Indy Auto Show down at the RCA dome/Convention Center thingy. It was pretty decent. I had the intent of checking out small SUVs. And yes, I'm still opposed to SUVs in general. But hey, I need to start being practical.

There were three main contenders -- the Honda CRV, Toyota Rav 4 and the Outlander. The best part about the Outlander is the tailgate. It folds out completely flat so you can sit on it. And, since the door swings up, it can block out the rain while you sit and contemplate life.

So, on a snowy Saturday morning, I went to the Mitsu dealership. I wanted to go to all three ... but when I started asking about the Outlander, the salesguy produced a little comparison book. Basically the Outlander is cheaper, has a better warranty (a much better warranty, mind you) and is more powerful and capable than the other two. Thing with me is that I'm not that hooked on having to get a Honda or Toyota for "reliabilty" and all that crap. I mean, with a 10 year, 100,000 mile warranty, you don't really care about reliability. And keep in mind that this is going to be a car for Maria, not me.

My thoughts on new car dealers ... I hate them. Well, not the Saturn and Mercedes Benz folks. Because those are the only two where you go in, see the price, and pay that price. No haggling. That's a great system. Everyone should adopt it. It's just silly having to go "back and forth" with the salesguy and his manager to agree on a price that you're only going to be marginally happy with. And besides, when the next family walks in, they could get the same car for like, $500 less. Asinine.

My salesguy had been working there for three months. Before that he was a truck driver. Asked if he liked it, he replied, "I hated it." He did that for two years. The details are fuzzy, although looking back, I wish I would have probed into this a lot more.

We went for a test ride in a bare-bones model, which is what I was after. It rode well, blah, blah, blah. I'm a car guy, but really, I can't get excited about something that I would try not to treat as a rental. The best part about the test drive? The salesguy started singing along to the song on the radio. That's right. Singing along. It was fantastic. I wasn't sure if I should have told him to shut up or maybe turn up the radio to drown him out. Either way, it was classic.

When we got back to the showroom, I checked out how well the baby seat and stroller would fit. Very easily as you can imagine. I wanted to make sure the lift height to toss the stroller in the back wasn't too high for Maria.

I basically told Salesguy that I wasn't ready to buy right now. Needed to talk it over with the wife. So, no need to do any haggling since I'd be wasting everybody's time. He did give me a price so I could compare it. It was $5,000 higher than what I saw online. $5,000. That's a hell of a starting point for them. Then he started with some great ones:

"Well, because of the weather (it was snowing) we're not getting a lot of customers. Actually, you're my first. So we can certainly try to make a deal if you want."

Nice to know that the weather is such a deciding factor in sales. Next time I'll make sure to buy a car during a blizzard.

"What if I was able to get you the price on that car you test drove today that you'd be happy with? Could you see yourself taking it today?"

No.

Here's the thing about me. I don't like to negotiate. It's not one of my personality traits. I fold way too easily. I'm like, fine, sure, whatever, just get me out of here.

That's what basically lead me to CarMax and the Volvo.