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Agree. Recently car shopping I found that at foreign brand dealerships the price negotiation was straight up. At the American car brands (all GM, Ford) it was smoke and mirrors. I ended up buying a Saturn but the buying experience was horrible. The salesman went back and forth with the sales manager, even though I walked in with the invoice price and made a straight offer. We finally got to my price and then when reading the documents before signing I found they had reduced the rebate by $500. When I pointed out the switch, the finance guy claimed it was an accident. All of this gamesmanship for a straight cash transaction with no trade. Two and a half hours to complete a cash transaction. A few years ago when I bought a foreign car it took 30 minutes to negotiate the deal and take delivery.

US car manufacturers have made substantial progress on the quality and value of their products. However, they won’t regain market share until they fix the dealerships. In the internet age, most consumers are savvy. In a ruthlessly competitive market, you can’t win by not fixing the customer experience on the showroom floor.

One other thought. OnStar is a great feature that GM should be able to use to gain competitive advantage. They need better marketing.

Had a similar experience back a few years ago. I was buying a new GMC pickup truck. I was writing them a check, no trade, no financing. The salesman started that crap with the sales manager. I told him to bring the manager into his office which he didn't want to do. I asked him how badly he wanted to sell this zoot suit new truck. He went and got the manager. I told them I had gone on line knew what the truck was worth and what I was going to pay for. I was giving them their reasonable profit. The SM actually got to the point of haggling over $50 on a $30,000 truck. I had to get up and threaten to leave before they agreed to sell me the truck. I think they see it as a game to win. I mean come one $50 on a $30,000 truck.

I must say though that my wife who is a Toyota devotee and has had just as bad experiences with some Toyota dealers, one of whom who wouldn't give her her keys back after they drove her trade.

We have found that the best way to buy a car is to deal with the Internet Sales staff. You do all the negotiating on line or by phone and in some cases they will actually bring the car to your home and do the paper work in your kitchen. We have bought both of my wife's recent Toyotas that way. I bought my Tahoe that way and though I had to go to the dealership everything was signed sealed and delivered when I got there.