Matinee Performance

Honest John Back Room » Motoring discussion
View Threaded
Fri 20 May 2005 21:33
Matinee Performance - thallium81
I witnessed the following whilst waiting in the showroom of a main dealer of a well known make of car.

Two salesmen trying to start a brand new car which had been standing in the showroom for over four weeks. Initial attempt showed flat battery, salesman 1 brought in a battery pack on wheels and connected it to car's battery; big crackle and spark. Salesman 2 attempts start, nothing happens for two minutes but battery pack starts to become exhausted, so he continues turning engine but at the same time pumping the accelerator. Battery pack expires. Salesman 1 brings in a heavy duty charger and connects it to car battery they try again to start the car, no joy.

I asked No 1 what they intended to do with the car, "Oh it's sold we want to get it on the front to make room here for another model".
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 20 May 2005 21:45
Matinee Performance - school boy
I saw at one garage a line of new cars parked an a base two bricks high with no ramps and no other way of. Surley this would have damaged the underneith and set the tracking out!
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sat 21 May 2005 13:42
Matinee Performance - BobbyG
Quite common - they use portable ramps.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sat 21 May 2005 11:17
Matinee Performance - bimmer-driver
So the new buyer bought it without even starting the engine? Sensible
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sat 21 May 2005 11:33
Matinee Performance - blue_haddock
If it is a brand new vehicle in the showroom they will have test driven a demonstrator and decided they liked the car and then a deal would be put together on the similar model in the showroom so no need to drive it.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sat 21 May 2005 11:44
Matinee Performance - bimmer-driver
Oh, I didn't think of that.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Looking for a garage you can trust? Honest John's Good Garage Guide has thousands of reader recommended garages, plus how-to guides and tips on servicing.

The Good Garage Guide

Our honest used car pricing is a little bit different to all the others. You can get to our values through make or model - you don’t have to follow a prescribed route. Plus, it’s live, which means we can react to changes in the market quicker than any printed price guide.

Honest Used Car Prices