Greetings Fellow "Drive-By" Victims!
Wow. After reading through all the other consumer complaints, I'm thanking my lucky stars my situation was so good!
I purchased my truck from the Ugly Duckling in Brandon, FL back in 1999. I was new to Florida from Canada and had little to no credit in the US. I tried every dealer I could find & got turned down by all. I was walking down the street crying when I stumbled upon The Duck. Yes, I was literally crying! The salesman, Richard, welcomed me with open arms and told me I COULD be approved for any car on the lot (I had good income). I picked out a truck and he was kind enough to steer me to another truck.
"You REALLY don't want that one. Get the Mazda... Trust me!", exclaimed Richard. Ok. Yikes!
After writing up the paperwork, he even drove me home afterward! The next day, I got a ride back out to the dealership & test drove the truck (he called me that morning to see if I needed a ride). I took it out on the freeway & it handled very well & there were very few minor repairs that were needed. The service dept fixed all before I left (probably because I refused to take possession until they did). When all the paperwork was signed & my down payment was taken, I happily drove away. I couldn't believe I got it. After I realised I was paying 200% more than Blue Book @ 29% interest, I was quite upset.
I thanked my lucky stars for that salesman, because that truck is GREAT! Probably the only good one they sold! Its a 1994 Mazda and from March 1999 until now, I've put in a total of $850. I had to replace the starter, alternator (1999) and wheel bearing. That is it! It had 115K miles on it when I bought it. When I moved back to Canada, I drove it from FL (1,700 kms). It had new brakes and I found a bunch of the paperwork from the previous owner (oil changes, radiator flushes, etc...). It was well taken care of. I was EXTREMELY lucky!
Now, I know about The Duck & the quacking harassment. But, that is the nature of the business. When you're financing people with bad credit, you know they're going to be strict. They want their money & that's the bottom line. However, that doesn't mean they can do whatever they want to you. It is clear they have their technique down and are going to use it because it works. But, in my situation, I had them by the balls and they knew it!
After a year of paying the MIND-BOGGLINGLY HIGH price for my truck, I lost my job in FL and had to move back home. They called my friends & family (in the States). I called them. They threatened to sue, repo, call the police, report it stolen, the lot... I informed them I was in Canada and there really was nothing they could do about it. There really wasn't. It's not like they could call the RCMP on me! They instantly changed their tune and worked out another payment plan. They even patiently waited till I got another job! And the calls to my friends & family stopped. After almost 3 years, my truck is paid off.
Now a word of advice...
The way to hurt them is not by refusing to pay your bill or telling them to repo the car. That only hurts you & your already fragile credit rating. I empathise with those of you with broken down cars. I was lucky enough not to have that problem. But believe me, they would rather work it out than have to repo the car. You'll end up paying for it eventually. I wish I lived closer but no one even has even heard of Ugly Duckling up here. My advice...
LET PEOPLE KNOW!
Post signs around the dealerships warning people not to buy from them. Picket. Round up other "Drive-By" victims (the name I christened them) and picket out in front. Put up flyers in stores or at bus stops warning people. If several people do this, it is bound to hurt their sales. As you see people going to the dealership, stop them & have a little chat. All they can do it tell you to leave (I think). Post signs on poles around the dealership. I'm sure many people, like I was, will be walking up to the dealership.
CALL THE NEWS
Call local TV stations. Most have "Hall of Shame" expose type segments. Let them know about Drive-By's business practices. Most love to expose bad businesses. Show them your broken down cars and huge monthly payments. You may even end up on Dateline NBC! I don't know if newspapers would care or have articles for bad businesses. (???)
HARASS THEM RIGHT BACK
Believe me, it just about KILLED me to pay a 200% mark-up on my truck. Most people I know with brand new SUVs had cheaper car payments than me! But it was my mistake & I had to live with it. Like I said, refusing to pay is what they probably plan on. That only hurts you. Complaining to them will not hurt them. Once you've signed, you're stuck. There is no getting out of it. All you can do is pay & give them hell! When they called me, I started calling them. I called them more than they called me. Each time I called, I'd have them go over the payments and every aspect of the loan. Thanks to their 800 number, I could hassle them for HOURS for free! They really LOVED that! NOT!
GET YOUR LEDGER STATEMENTS
Oh, yes... Another thing you'll need. To keep track of your payments, have them mail you LEDGER STATEMENTS. They list all payments, how much was paid, how much went toward the principal vs.interest, etc... You have to fax the SIGNED request to Drive-By (I always called them that over the phone too. They really loved that! Ha ha!) @ 480-632-3018. You must write down your address, phone# and remember to sign it. The Ledger Statement is another source of info to make them discuss with you for hours. Make them repeat stuff. When they do call you to harass you, harass them back about stuff from your Ledger Statement. Write down their names too. Keep calling them back. Hee hee!:) Another thing to watch out for. They'll tell you that by paying more each month, you'll pay off the loan faster/earlier. That's a LIE! I paid almost $50 extra each month for over 1.5 years and I didn't get it paid off till the day they said in the first place.
I hope some of that helps. The reason Drive-By doesn't care is because people don't find out till it too late. Make people in your area aware of their business practices.
Mac
Mac
Royal Oak, Michigan
U.S.A.
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