If you know Nancy and I, you know Nancy is NOT a car person, and I am. So when Nancy said that to me I asked, "What brand of car do you want?" "I want a fully electric car." "Ok, what brand?" I don't know. Do some reach." And we were on our way.
Of course Google is the only way you look up answers, so that was where I started. "Hey Google. What is the best electric car available?" Google came back with many options, so I had to sort through all the ads and extremely expensive ones, and see which ones suited her taste. She told me she want one that I would drive too. Now, you must know I am a motorhead that likes the rumble of an internal combustion engine with the smell of exhaust in my garage. A whining of an electric motor was just not my thing. But after I drove my daughter's Tesla, I was sold. The acceleration is AMAZING!
I laid out a plan to visit three dealerships with different brands and let her see which one she liked. I would be the consulate and ask the hard questions to the salesperson. But Nancy asked some great questions too.
First was a KIA dealership, not impressive. They only had a 2020 model, and did not expect any more in until we ordered one, and that took up to 6 months to get. WHAT? Then we went to a Hyundai dealership, and they had none, and the story was the same. None to drive or to even look at. They were getting 4 in, of which 3 were sold and the only available one was black ... bad idea in Arizona with our heat. Next stop was a Volkswagen dealership, hopefully to see their newly released model the ID.Q4. Guess what? None to drive, BUT, they did have three we could look at and seat in. The three were ordered and waiting to be pickup by the new owners. The salesperson explained why the long wait to get the EV s. Basically the same we all get when you order something, COVID, ships stuck in ports waiting to be uploaded, computer chip shortages, and so on, and so on. And of course Nancy liked the VW, and guess where it is built? IN GERMANY! A lot of their models are built in Tennessee, but not the ID.Q4.
By this time, my stomach was rumbling and lunch was in order. We discussed the day so far and from what the situation presented to us was we were forced to order a car online and put a deposit down before we could drive it or do the old fashion negotiation shuffle that I so loved. Dickering over the bottom line, standing up and acting to walk away as they drop the price ever more. I love it! But, no. The price was set in concrete and there was no dickering or negotiating at all. I have never bought a car or truck like this. Fold up my cards and go home? NO! Nancy wanted an electric car and we were going to get one. Yep, you got it, we ordered on online with a deposit. I was broken. All those years of 'wheeling and dealing' was shot down.
But the bottomline is, Nancy will get her new fully electric car, that I may drive occasionally, no more oil changes for me, less gas we have to buy, AND we can drive in the HOV lane anytime we want. Plus the acceleration is AMAZING! And the price is one we both were satisfied with. Except a 4 month wait is a pain in the a**.
Congrats on the new ride.
ReplyDelete