Hey fellas,
Want to buy an RX-8 but I'm only interested in giving my business to a dealership that works for the sale through product knowledge, customer service, etc. Price negotiations is not important to me (I won't pay a markup, though). I recently visited Diablo Mazda in Walnut Creek (SF Bay Area) and it was a joke. I'm a Bay Area guy and need advice...

thanks friends,
-Alt

PS, I apologize if this is the wrong forum for this topic...

 

Don't feel too bad about your experience there. I have been to that dealership a couple of times in the past just because it is close to my house. The salespeople there only care about price negotiation.

The service department there is pretty though. They did a pretty good job of fixing the security alarm issue on our then brand new P5 back in 2001. We also brought our minivan in for the fog light recall.

If you live in central contra costa county, you may want to check out the dealership up north or the one in Oakland. When you go to the one in Oakland, try to find Simon Tse.

I bought my P5 and RX-8 from the dealership in Oakland and my MPV from the one in Burlingame. Both places gave me pretty good service.

 

Hey thanks for the response. I have in fact been to the Oakland dealership in the past and was totally unimpressed there too. Don't recall who I talked to though.

The ironic thing about what you just said about Diablo (the only thing they care about is price negotiation) is that I am completely willing to pay sticker for the car if I have a salesperson that does his or her job properly. I'm in sales so I respect profit margins and don't mind (gasp!) a good salesperson making money off of me for his or her hard work.

Which dealership "up north" are you referring to? I appreciate your help. I'm tempted to not buy an RX just from these negative experiences... yes, salesmanship does matter!
-Alt

 

I don't think you have to pay sticker now. I saw it in the newspaper that Menlo Mazda is selling the car for $3K off MSRP.

I truly understand your concern with the overall sales experience. Although I'm not in sales I do agree that people need to understand what they are selling before they try to make the sale. Unfortunately, most of the salespeople at car dealerships do not have sufficient knowledge of their own products (at least that is what have been happening to me). May be because we are now more well-informed due to the Internet, or the people are just too lazy to pay attention to what they are doing.

I would suggest you to go to the Mazda USA website and do a dealership search using your zipcode. Do a search on the inventory at the same time so that you know what they have in stock just in case you decide to make the offer at the dealership.

Btw, the Infiniti dealership in Concord is pretty good too. As a rule of thumb, I never do business with a dealership that does not let me do a test drive on its products (whether it is a brand new model or not).

Finally, it also depends on which salesman you happen to deal with.

 

If you want to make a run up to Auburn, Amanda at Auburn Mazda is very nice to deal with.

Vince

 

Give Bill Lang in Vallejo a try.

 

I AM A FINANCE MANAGER AT LITHIA MAZDA OF FRESNO CALL ME AT 559 436 3900 AND ASK FOR ISAAC ILL GET YOU A DEAL

 

Hi Isaac, As you may have noticed, it isn't a "deal" I'm looking for as much as stellar service.

I've since placed my deposit on a completely different vehicle due to the lack of service I've been able to find at any Mazda dealerships in my area. I'm essentially turned off of the product due to this fact. This is how important service really is.

thanks,
-Alt

 

ASK FOR CHRIS RODRIGUEZ HE IS THE BEST SALESPERSON WE HAVE