Gunfight ?
Why?
Any action taken, any at all, — is subject to the bar of reason. One can ask “the why” of anything. Why am I here? Yesterday afternoon why did I find myself at the Honda of Lisle dealership, being introduced by a stranger at the front desk to another stranger who would sell us a new automobile? I’ve purchased an auto on several occasions in the past, and most of those experiences came with misgivings. “Surviving the slings and arrows of life” is a rudimentary way to describe the challenge that we all face, and so it has always been for untold generations. The purchase of a new vehicle is a prospect attended by risk. It ranks right up there with buying and selling a house, or with saying “I do” while looking another human in the eye, as you both stand in the presence of a person representing God and the state. Ok, maybe the marriage vow example is not a good comparison.
The scenario involves an exchange of substantial value, and the promise that one will make good on regular payments, for the next five years. One says in writing that one’s word is unconditioned, that payment in the agreed upon amount will sustain the ongoing customer — manufacturer/dealer relationship until the obligation is fully met. That is the logic inscribed in the purchase of a new automobile. Not that you will try your best, but that you will-keep-your-word.
We chose a Honda product because in our past experience Honda design engineering, and the workmanship of their vehicles has been as good as we have imagined and hoped. That has not been the case with other brands, but that is a story for another time.
Debby the sales consultant to whom we were introduced listened well to our expressed intention, and efficiently showed us the CRV model that we thought was right for us. We drove the car for a bit. Debbie didn’t need to convince us of anything because we came knowing the CRV would meet our needs. In the process of gathering the information necessary for the purchase, Sagar, a sales manager came over to say hello, to introduce himself. We swapped some car dealership stories and shared in a laugh. No question that many years in any business allows one a sense of irony. Human beings in all of our endeavors are unforeseeably weird.
When we finished going over some add-on features Debbie accompanied us to Bob’s office. Bob is one of the financial officers, whose responsibility it is to wrap up a sale and receive the signatures on the bill of sale contract. His office is toward the rear of the dealership. I confess that I have had some painful experiences in the past at this stage of purchasing a car. Experience can be a good teacher, but the sellers representative always has a better hand to play than does the customer. This can be a unfair and long term hurtful encounter for the customer, as a financial person is well prepared to extract quite a bit more profit from the transaction. The exchange consummating the deal can be like a gunfight. The winner walks away, the loser does not.
I do not think that happened to us, as Bob presented the warranty extension options and allowed us to make our decision. Financing is the intangible side of the purchase and can be shifted to the sellers advantage.
I and Laura left the dealership, she driving the new CRV and I in my faithful Suzuki feeling that we experienced a number of exchanges that were mutually humanizing, adding another positive note to life.
Why purchase a car? Why do anything? Do we not all seek, quest after the priceless affirmation of our worth, the exchange between selves that truly matter, the exchange of word and gesture, — which by style and intent confirms that life is good? I think so.
The material reason that we needed to buy a vehicle was that our 2005 Toyota Matrix had 198,000 miles on the odometer, and would soon need a clutch. The cost of clutch replacement was more than the car was worth.
