How To Drive Customers Away

(I am female. I have always been a bit of a tomboy, and a lot of a car nut. This takes place when I am 16 and my parents and I are looking at a new model of the Ford Fiesta that has just come out. I’ve already read the literature online as has my mom. We really just want to see the car in person and see if the seat is good for my dad, who is 4’6″.)

Salesman: “Can I help you with something?”

My Dad: “Yeah, you’ve got a Zetec S out in the test drive area. Can we open it up so we can have a look?”

Salesman: “Oh, you’re interested in Zetec S? This is one right here.”

(The salesman gestures at a car behind him. I know it’s not a Zetec S because it has the wrong kit on it. We’ve checked the seat, but dad wants to see the trim detail on the new version.)

My Dad: “That’s not a Zetec S; that’s just the Zetec.”

Salesman: “No, this is a Zetec S.”

Me: “It can’t be; the alloys are wrong and the sign says Zetec.”

My Dad: “There’s a Zetec S outside. We want to look at that one.”

Salesman: *heavy sigh* “Well, I suppose I’ll get the keys. Let me go and look at what the number is.”

Me: “Number 46. ”

My Mom: “There you go… saved you a trip.”

(The salesman huffs and goes to look for the keys. When he comes back, he says he can’t find them.)

My Dad: “Oh, that’s okay. We’ll just have a look around it anyway.”

Salesman: “Oh yeah, they just bought this one out.”

My Dad: *to me* “So it’s a 1.6?”

Me: “Yeah.”

Salesman: “No, it’s a 1.4 litre engine.”

Me: “It’s not. It’s a 1.6 litre.”

Salesman: *to my dad, ignoring me* “It’s a 1.4 litre. This one has some optional extras like the leather interior and the CD player.”

Me: “…They’re both standard on this model.”

Salesman: “I think it’s a limited edition one, too.”

Me: “No, it’s a standard model. It’s the top of the range now.”

Salesman: “…and the alloy wheels are an upgrade, too.”

(At this point, my mom has finally had enough of listening to him ignore me and get it wrong.)

My Mom: “It is a 1.6 litre. It does come with leather and the CD player. Those are the standard alloys, and we were going to buy it from here. Come on [dad’s name], we’ll go to [sister dealership in next town] over and get it from them. Maybe someone there will listen to [my name] or at least know what we’re talking about!”

(We go to the sister dealership and tell them what had happened. They gave us a d*** good deal to make up for the other dealership’s salesman being dumb. Dad loved the car, and I bought my first car from the same guy as he did a year later!)