The road to discovering a solid replacement vehicle for the 2015 Ford Focus has been long, arduous, and included a few lessons.
It started by considering simply replacing it with one of the same, moving to considering a newer used vehicle, to finally deciding to purchase new. The plan was to wait until the first of the year though, and purchase what was left over from the previous model year.
It was time to have a vehicle that could offroad a little though. For those that know, the aforementioned Focus was often subjected to conditions beyond its expertise. It always performed well, or maybe it was the driver. It made it through some sketchy dirt and gravel roads, straddling deep ruts without getting stuck, without a scratch, and with only front wheel drive and just under 6 inches of ground clearance. Gunner Pool Road to Steele Falls Trailhead in Arkansas or north of Cotopaxi in Colorado or Evans Mountain Road down in Arkansas just to name a few.
After a thorough review of potential replacement vehicles, the list narrowed to what was perceived to be the best candidates; a Jeep Compass Trailhawk, Subaru Outback, or Subaru Crosstrek. An afternoon of test driving revealed the best candidate to be the Crosstrek. What trim level, though?
The Wilderness edition seemed a good fit, because of slightly higher ground clearance (about 7/10 inch) and a heavier frame that enabled a higher towing capacity (3500 lbs. versus 1500). The unfortunate part, gas mileage drops almost 5 mpg, and that is a selling point.
That narrowed it down to Base, Premium, Sport or Limited. A test drive of the 2.0L versus the 2.5L narrowed things further to the Sport or Limited. To get most of the options available on the Limited brought the Sport up to almost the same price, so the decision was made to just go with the Limited. While the yellow highlights on the car are nice, the interior is not all that, and leather seemed a nice choice. The only thing left to do was decide on color, map out availability, and wait for day one of the new year.
Working with Van Subaru in the test drives, in spite of everything heard in the past about them, it seemed prudent to give them a chance to prove themselves. They were close and they had the stock. Cash was king. They did not have much room to be a jerk.
Cory, the first salesman, was super nice, and laid back. However, he left their employment to pursue other adventures. In reality, they probably fired him for being too helpful or he left because they were too rude. The salesman that took over for him was also kind and only pushed a little.
There is nothing worse than a pushy salesman. No means no. No does not mean maybe, and it certainly does not mean hustle, badger, or insult.
Further visits and encounters with other salesman in my investigations at Van Subaru began to witness exactly that sort of behavior. Snotty little remarks about interests, choices, and timeline were definitely unwelcome.
Spending some time on the Subaru web site, building out a car, and finding every vehicle available within a 200-mile radius uncovered that the car could be purchased anywhere. It did not need to be at Van Subaru, from a group of folks with no manners. Logging all of this into a spreadsheet, breaking things down by cost, options, available discounts, etc., the obvious path opened further.
The first of the year came and contacting the salesman Van Subaru by phone turned into a fiasco. He was not available, so his "Sales Director" hijacked the deal. This probably would not have been so bad except he was a completely different character.
This guy was the stereotypical car salesman, pushy and annoying. Making matters worse, he constantly interrupted and tried to gaslight over the phone, abruptly ending the call without so much as a good-bye.
The conversation uncovered the car was not "in stock," but was in "inventory." Either way, because it was not in stock, it did not qualify for the $4000 off they were offering on all 2024 Subaru Crosstreks. That made no sense. Seemed like a little "bait and switch." Either the car is in stock, or it is not. Semantics are little more than game really, especially for salesman.
Calling back a few minutes later, this Sales Director said that he thought there was nothing else to discuss. Explaining there were a few more questions, stunned silence lingered for a few seconds. He might have known that already had he not decided all by himself that the conversation was over.
It turned out the car was in a shared inventory with Reliable Subaru in Springfield. He could make a deal but would have to charge another $700 to have it delivered. Suggesting the car could be picked up, he said they could not allow that. Working with Reliable seemed the only option left, which he welcomed, and hung up abruptly again. Through the entire conversation, his attitude seemed to be that somehow this purchase was a personal favor to the dealership.
Calling Reliable Subaru, discovered quickly he got to them first. Their price for the same vehicle was miraculously $700 higher.
These are only a few highlights from the review left on Google Maps, which received a "Response from the owner," to give them a call to for "the opportunity to turn [the] experience around."
Doing exactly that, the person was to have called me back. They did not. Instead, the "Sales Director" emailed with no better response than to try to justify himself and his actions. This only served as further evidence of shady dealings, when paired with the evidence in the spreadsheet. They were the only dealership continually manipulating their prices up and down throughout the two months of research.
They were not the only game in town, or rather, the region. Purchasing from them would never be an option, much less taking a car for service there.
After talking with a few other dealers, a deal landed with Baxter Subaru in La Vista, Nebraska. The salesman was super nice through all interactions online and the phone. He was conscientious, courteous, helpful and already had the car priced perfectly. At no point was he pushy, and there was no feeling of being hustled. These guys will never know how that is appreciated, or perhaps they already do.
A three-hour road trip retrieved the new car. All of the folks at the dealership were friendly and accommodating, getting us back on the road quickly for a 530 appointment at birthday party that evening. This is definitely how car buying should be; collaborative and cooperative.
The only problem now is ongoing maintenance. That seems mostly resolved though, learning that Olathe Subaru is owned by the same folks. With a little luck, they will turn out to be an equitable choice.
