The thread title is pretty much self explanitory...other than Cadillac, what brands do you like?

For me it's: (in no specific order)

Brand New Vehicles:
Honda
BMW
Acura
Nissan
Chevy
Infiniti
Audi
Hyundai (surprisingly, their new cars are really nice)
Infiniti
Mazda
Pontiac
Mercedes Benz
Toyota (yeah, I'm shocked too..some of their new cars don't suck! haha)
VW (only as long as the warranty is in use, after that's expired, get rid of it)


Older Vehicles:
Buick (aside from the Lucerne, no new Buick really does anything for me)
Oldsmobile
Chevrolet (Caprices and the 88-98 full sized trucks!)
Imperial
Honda
Infiniti
Jeep (Grand Wagoneer, Cherokee and 93-98 Grand Cherokees)
Lexus (any LS before the LS430)
Lincoln
Mercedes Benz
Pontiac


And that's it, aside from the exotics, which everyone likes. What about you? This'll be an interesting thread!

chevrolets, mainly monte carlos and caprices, especially the 2 door caprice yummmm, fbody's? meh

all 78-87 gbodies (88 for monte carlo and cutlass wasnt it?)

new mercedes (2000+) gotta be the biggest, s600 s500 etc, if youre gonna do it do it big ni99a

new bmw 760li same as above, do it big

mercury marauder,

buick roadmaster

not much else comes to mind


o,o, even though its a lexus, the ls430

the exotics? meh, i think id have one just to shit on miggas other than that id spend the money on more cadillacs

I've always liked Nissans and Infiniti, especially the 350Z and G35 coupe. I'm a big fan of the new Mustand GT also, very nice (not crazy about much else from Ford though except the F250 and GT). I'm a Chevy lover at heart, always will be. Still miss my '93 Blazer at times. I think Hondas and Acuras are starting to get a little nicer. For as long as I can remember I've always liked Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Audi. I'm a HUGE fan of Porsche, always have been. Got to drive a Boxter S once and absolutley loved it.

I like whatever catches my eye. id say most (beside Cadillac) is Mercedes-Benz. then id say my Chevy's (mostly the older ones but some new). i like Pontiac, and Buick (the new stuff and the 92-96 Roadmaster), Lexus. other than those, it would have to catch my eye.

I'll explain my choices...

New cars:

Honda..I always liked how they were fun to drive, simple, and efficent. My favorites...03+ Accord, last gen Prelude. Nothing I really desire to have, but nice nonetheless.

BMW...best driving cars in the world? Perhaps. I like how the older BMW designs didn't draw too much attention to themselves like the Bangle BMW's do. Their fit and finish is ungodly too, atleast on the older ones. I'd love to own an E38 or E39, but I couldn't afford it now. I like the E38, E39, E40 and the new bangle 7 Series, and I LOVE the new E90 (3 Series) Coupe

Acura...used to be very boring cars, but now they're not. I like the new TSX, RSX, TL, RL

Nissan...like Honda, but a little bigger and more sporty. I like the Maximas, especially the 95-99 style and the 00-03 style. Also, the Z cars were quite nice.

Chevy...just good old all american cars for the masses. Something for everyone! Plus, I like them a lot more now that I'm working at a Chevy dealer. My picks: 91-96 Caprice/Impala SS, 88-98 C/K (especially the 90-93 454SS), 95-02 Blazer LT, 94-04 S-10, Colorado

Infiniti...the Japanese BMW, but more clinical, not as emotionally striking. I especially like all the Q45's, G35, M45, QX56

Audi....the thinking man's/avant garde luxury sedan. My favorites: Any A8 or S8, otherwise I like the 00+ A4 after they redesigned the tailights, and the S6. Another one of those cars that's gotta be a blast to drive, but suck to own, atleast for those without deep pockets.

Hyundai...the Honda of the '90s, quick to rise out of no where. I can remember the Hyundais from the early '90s....IIRC, they seemed a lot like a Daewoo..cheap. Now they're better built than a Toyota or Honda...real nice cars all the way around. My favorites...new Azera, Tiburon.

Pontiac...GM's performance car division. Sporty, and slightly white trashy. My favorites...87-92 Trans AM GTA, 97-03 Grand Prix GTP, 92-99 Bonneville SSEi, 62-70 Grand Prix, new G8, 04-07 Grand Prix GTP/GXP, G6 GXP

Mercedes Benz....used to be the world's best cars, not so much anymore, still great cars. My favorites: W140, W126, W220, 600 Grosser.

Toyota...bland cars for the masses... it's like the Japanese Chevy but it won't provoke the same feelings, and doesn't have nowhere near the same amount of prestige that Chevy carries among the american people. My favorites... new style 4Runner, Land Cruisers, Sequoia, 05+ Tacoma, 07 Tundra, 06+ Avalon, 93-98 Supra

VW....great to drive, horrible to own. Terrible, terrible reliability, very expensive to repair. My favorites..99-04 GTi, 05+ GTi, 99-04 Jetta 1.8T or VR6, 05+ Jetta GLi or 2.0T, Phaeton, Touareg.

Buick...like a Cadillac, just cheaper! My favorites... 92-96 Roadmaster, 79-85 Riviera, 83-87 Gran(d?) National/GNX, 77-84 Electra, 71-76 Electra, 97-03 Regal GS, 69-71 Skylark Grand Sport (especially the '70 GSX), 91-96 Park Avenue Ultra, 97-04 Park Avenue Ultra, 95-99 Riviera, 71-73 Riviera, 63-64 Riviera, anything from 1958-59, and to be honest, I've got a thing for the 82-96 Centurys...and all other A-bodies.. :hide:

Oldsmobile: See Buick. My favorites: 91-96 Ninety Eight Regency Elite, All Toronados except the 86-89's, 95-99 Aurora, 2nd gen Bravada, 88-90 Ninety Eight Touring Sedan, 71-76 Ninety Eight, 82-96 Cutlass Ciera, anything from '58-'59.

Imperial: Chrysler's very well engineered Cadillac competitor. My favorites...anything built between 1967 and 1975!

Lexus: Boring Japanese luxury...very reliable, but boring. Now not so boring, but wierd Bangle rip off. My favorites: 98-00 LS400, 90-97 LS400, 91-00 SC, 06+ IS, GS, LS460

Lincoln: like a Cadillac, only cushier and more isolated. My favorites: Mark III (1958 and 1968-71), Mark IV (1959 and 72-76) Mark V, Mark VI, Mark VIII, anything from 1958-59, 90-97 Town Car, 80-89 Town Car, 95-97 Continental.

Mopar. Real mopar, from before the mid seventies. The uglier the better. 57 Desoto! 58 Fury! Any Max Wedge car! Early 60's Darts I've always liked.

Jaguar XJ16
Range Rover 4.6 HSE
Impala SS 94-96
That's it. Id take any 94+ model of any of these.

I like whatever catches my eye.

Yeah, that. Which got me into the CTS-v.

I have no brand loyalty whatsoever. Japanese cars (Mazda, Nissan, Toyota) have given me the least trouble over the years. I loved me my little 1981 Mazda RX-7. Today I lust after MB AMG and BMW M cars, but I want to buy American.

Past likey: 57 Chevy, 67 Stingray (the unsteerable 427 variety), 66 Chevelle SS, 67 Goat, 70 Nova SS, 70 Chevelle SS, 70 Challenger, 70 Cougar (had two of 'em; there'll always be a soft spot in my heart for those cars, bless 'em, even though it was a constant struggle to keep the vacuum powered headlight covers down), 85-87 Grand National, 95-96 300ZX twin turbo, 92-95 RX7 Turbo.

Future maybe likey: new CTS-v, new Challenger, new Camaro.

Vettes, any AMG or SL/E body benz...



F

Mopar. Real mopar, from before the mid seventies. The uglier the better. 57 Desoto! 58 Fury! Any Max Wedge car! Early 60's Darts I've always liked.For ugly Mopars, it's hard to beat the downsized '62 Dodge. Exner had to have been hallucinating.

Here are two examples from one of my favorite movies, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (http://www.imcdb.org/movie_57193-It-s-a-Mad-Mad-Mad-Mad-World.html). Lots of car chases with classic Detroit iron:

http://www.gdwriter.q45.org/261.jpg


http://www.gdwriter.q45.org/490.jpg

Imperials from 1957 thru 1978
The new current Buick Lucerne
Lincoln Town Cars of 2003 thru 2007
The Final year Olds Toronado
Ford Mustangs
Lincoln Mark Series
Jaguar XK R
Jaguar XJ R
Avanti
Certain Alfa Romeos
1970-1971 Dodge Challengers & Plymouth 'Cudas

Ford GT40. It will turn heads today.

My likes/dislikes are time-oriented:

Mercedes-Benz before the DC merger.
Chrysler and Jeep in the 90s, before the DC merger.
Nissan before Carlos Ghosn.
Cadillac during the 30s, the 50s, the 90s, and now.
GM during Bob Lutz and before Roger Smith.
Mercury in the 60s and now.
Lincoln at the turn of the century and the 60s.
Toyota in the 80s.
BMW before Bangle.
Honda and Acura now.
Buick in the 50s, 60s, and 80s.
Jaguar always, even during B-L socialism.

Lexus never.

Chevrolet - Corvettes to Chevettes, the Bowtie's gotcha covered!

Pontiac - Seriously, is there any other car that represents white trash (thank you Chad) and millions of clueless 16-25 year old women more than Pontiac? Probably not, but they gave us the Goat. 'Nough said.

MB - The days of yore with the likes of the 560 SEL, for example will always have a place in my heart. Simply Timeless.

Pre-Bangle BMW - How one company can continually release excellent products for years and then let an escaped mental convict like Chris Bangle design their cars is beyond me, but love it or hate it, it's still an M. (Side note, 318's are not BMW's, it's not a BMW if you take the engine from a lawnmower!)

Reagan-Era Jaguar - Pieces of shit with classic lines. But at least everyone knew they were pieces of shit (Thank you Lucas Electric) with classic lines.

AMC - What a great company with a lot of good ideas, and problems up the wazoo.

Buick - If I wasn't driving a Cadillac I'd be driving a Buick. And the Grand Nash is still to this day one of the most bad-ass cars ever built, period.

Ive always been a fan of lotus ....all of them , even the new ones with the damned toyota engine

After Lotus it is in no particular order ...

Saab

Volvo from around 94 on esp any "T" car

The Turbo years for chrysler namely 84-93 with emphais on 1990 and 1993

The Turbo Buick Years , and all FWD Riveras

The Turbo Years for Ford , namely 1984-1988 (XR4TI,SVO,TURBO coupe and all cosworths esp the rs200)

The Turbo Years for GMC 1991-1992.5

All GMC motorhomes

Oldsmobile , namely the early 60s speicals and starfires (the starfire was turbo) then toronado ALL years, all Quad 4 Cars (w41 calais),and Aurora

Chevrolet , 63-70, 83-92 , 99-oresent

Pontiac , All from 58-63 , 83- present

Subaru

Studebaker

AMC

Alburn/cord/duesenberg

and of coarse Audi/NSU all years

ANY rotary mazda

I manily do GM, there is some of their stuff I don't like, but for the most part I like them all. My Favorites are the Corvette and F-body.
That is how I ended up with my 00 WS6. IMO the 98 and Up WS6 is one of the best looking cars GM has ever built.

I have a GM motor home as well. It is a 88 Fleetwood Southwind, 24 foot Class A motor home. It is on a Chevrolet Chasis with a 454 and Turbo 400, same drivetrain as my truck except it has a carb.

But I have the special place in my heart for the 2.2/2.5 Turbo Mopar Cars my favorit being the Daytona.

I won't drive an import but there are few that look good.

Most if not all Mercedes and most BMWs.

My favourite brands apart from Cadillac are...

Buick
Pontiac
Saturn
Oldsmobile (yes, I'm a GM fan!)
Alfa Romeo
Lancia

That's it as far as whole brands go, but there are a lot more brands where I like a handful of their products.

Stoney, not to make you ill, but...

I had an opportunity to buy a W41 Calais that was factory tricked out & warranted! I believe that the figure quioted to me was that it was 1 of 50 offered to "Fifty Select" Dealers across the USA. My local dealer (where I bought my Sixty Special also sold Oldsmobile) and the factory Rep called them and told them that they had been selected to recieve one. The Sales Manager called me and dangled it in front of me and said that I was the only person who'd buy the most expensive Calais on the plant and that it was blindingly fast. Sure, I wanted it, but I had other financial obligations at the time, and buying it woulda been a hardship. I closed my eyes & passed on it. It went to some other dealer. I later found out that just 2 dealers in N.J. were chosen to get one, and with my turn down, it became 1 dealer. Not sure, but I think the car was bright red. Was there a W42 ?? ??

Chevrolet - Corvettes to Chevettes, the Bowtie's gotcha covered!

Pontiac - Seriously, is there any other car that represents white trash (thank you Chad) and millions of clueless 16-25 year old women more than Pontiac? Probably not, but they gave us the Goat. 'Nough said.

MB - The days of yore with the likes of the 560 SEL, for example will always have a place in my heart. Simply Timeless.

Pre-Bangle BMW - How one company can continually release excellent products for years and then let an escaped mental convict like Chris Bangle design their cars is beyond me, but love it or hate it, it's still an M. (Side note, 318's are not BMW's, it's not a BMW if you take the engine from a lawnmower!)

Reagan-Era Jaguar - Pieces of shit with classic lines. But at least everyone knew they were pieces of shit (Thank you Lucas Electric) with classic lines.

AMC - What a great company with a lot of good ideas, and problems up the wazoo.

Buick - If I wasn't driving a Cadillac I'd be driving a Buick. And the Grand Nash is still to this day one of the most bad-ass cars ever built, period.


I agree with you on pontiac,especially the grand am,I put the chrysler
lebaron (late 80's into the 90's) coupe in the same catagory,cheap
substitute for a nice car. I also like the 80's buick nash. olds 442 of the same era were pretty nice too.

Okay, I looked it up (found the paperwork).
Was a 1981 Oldsmobile Calais 4.4.2. Quad-4 W41 Coupe.
Was 1981 Corvette Red (also available in black.)
H.P. was 190 (10 more than any other division's Quad-4)
200 were made. 152 in Special Order Corvette Red and 48 in Black.
It had a higher Cam and enlarged radiator and a couple of other things.

My dealer wanted MSRLP sticker price for her. Love was born

No in particular order
Jaguar:
X300 ,XJ40 ,Mark II,Mark VII,XJ220
Mercedes Benz :
W140,W220
Lincoln :
Continental Mark IV ,Town Car late 96's
Rolls Royce: (any kind of them )
Bentley : (same with RR)
Land Rover:
Range Rover P38
Lamborghini:
Murcielago,Diablo,Countach
Ferrari :
F Series ,Enzo
Aston Martin :any kind of them after 60s
Maybach :
S57 ,S62
:highfive:

Okay, I looked it up (found the paperwork).
Was a 1981 Oldsmobile Calais 4.4.2. Quad-4 W41 Coupe.
Was 1981 Corvette Red (also available in black.)
H.P. was 190 (10 more than any other division's Quad-4)
200 were made. 152 in Special Order Corvette Red and 48 in Black.
It had a higher Cam and enlarged radiator and a couple of other things.

My dealer wanted MSRLP sticker price for her. Love was born

yup , it was a diffrent year ....i wanna say 91 but i cant remeber for sure , it was between 88-91 ...i have every article ont he car , it was blindingly fast , went down as the fastest quad four car made ...later on the formula (calais+ fe3+ 190 hp quad4)would win many scca chamiopnships

it had very few options , one was a/c delete along with radio delete to make it a full on compeition package ...

and i am kicking myself on your behalf , but sandy you own asc mclarens so its still all good ....

I think I saw one of those Quad 4 442s around here a few years back. Those are such neat little cars.

yup there a sleeper too ....

there were faster non factory built quad four cars , there was the 88 Cutlass Supreme Indy Pace car , which had a turbocharged quda four m rick mears iwbs (perhaps owned) it , and chuck yeager drove it dureing the race ...and of coarse the olds aerotech , which would later have its quad four removed and a aurora v8 put in its place

As a rule, my favorites are:

Chevrolet
Lincoln
Mercedes
Buick
Oldsmobile (pre-'90's only)


pretty basic, I don't have real feelings about many new cars, those are just names that make or made many cars I like.

'Ya, in retrospect, I guess I shoulda bought it - - but, who knew? In the end, after I said NO, my local dealer refused the car & I think I heard it went up to New England. Knowing me well, he used to call ME to see if I wanted whatever ultra special Caddy or Olds was about to be hatched. My wife, therefore HATED him!! I actually only bought 2 cars from him, the 1993 Sixty Special - with which I drove him crazy, as I made all the calls he woulda had to make to get the white interior with the dark plum (a non-available
combination). (and) a 1988 Sedan deVille Mary Kay Pink turn in car that was dropped of AT his dealership and I beat him to the punch by buying it directly from the leasing company that leased it to M.K. and connected A to C (he was B)...... But I did send him ALOT of other people who bought Caddys or Olds from him. and in place of $25.00 thank you fees, I had open access to the brochure closet !! ((MORE BETTER)) :)

But I did send him ALOT of other people who bought Caddys or Olds from him. and in place of $25.00 thank you fees, I had open access to the brochure closet !! ((MORE BETTER)) :)

Well, that explains a few things, lol.

Lets seeee other than caddy...I like

Lexus
BMW
Mercedes
Infiniti
Chevy (corvettes only)
Nissan

and then of course porsche, ferrari, lambo..etc ;)

No brand loyalty here either. If I can afford it, and it looks ok or looks the part, and it drives great, Ill be very interested. If it doesnt drive great, Im not interested. If it drives great and looks bad , ill short list it. If it looks like Keith Richards on birth control and drives like a bus with bricks for wheels, then Ill just leave the Toyota dealership...

And in place of $25.00 thank you fees, I had open access to the brochure closet !! ((MORE BETTER)) :)


Good lord, I am jealous! I don't even have open access to our brochure closet at the Chevy dealer I work at. Hah, I had a wierd dream last night I was going thru the brochure closet at work for whatever odd reason, and I found a bunch of old '90s brochures in a pile and I grabbed them, I can remember there being one for a '96 Silverado and the '95 Caprice.

For the most part I am a "Bowtie" man. I have always loved the 50 through very early 70s Chevy's. I have owned many Chevy pickups and currently a 2002 Suburban Z71.

I do like some Fords but it is limited, I own a Ford but I will most likely not buy another one unless something comes out that is just too irresistible. Customer service and overall experience pissed me off so much, I am not happy with them.

I like Aston Martin, Ferrari, Jag, Bugatti, and a few other exotics

Standard:

Chrysler
Ford
Acura
Honda
Mercedies
BMW
Mini Cooper S

There are a lot more that I like and would love to own, but for keeping this time based, have to get back to work, this is a basic overview.

I have to add those followings as well ...
Vector
Maybach:
Exelero


PS-I said any RR model in my previous post but Camargue

Dodge
Ford
Lincoln

Prefer American cars, not including the exotics.

I've always been a Ford guy myself--especially the 1963 -1966 Fords.
Lincoln (late '70's, mid to late '80's Town Cars, 1995 -1997 Town Cars
Mercury (late '60's Cougars, mid '70's Cougars, late '70's Grand Marquis)
Buick LeSabre, Pontiac Bonneville Convertibles 1976
Oldsmobile-mid '80's Cutlass Supreme
Dodge Viper
Pontiac Firebird w/TTops- 1979
Foreign stuff I like: Mazda Miata's, Ferrari F40, Jaguar XKR convertible, BMW convertibles

JRau in central Iowa

Hmm.. as in Like enough to actually buy?

BMWs, my main love, but I really can't stand most of the new ones.

Air Cooled, Rear-Engined Porsches

Ferraris, but the mid engined cars of late don't do it for me like the front-engined V12s.

Lamborghini Gallardos and Murcielagos. Lambo has finally made cars that you can actually use, and, for what they are, a damned good car for the money.

PA Series Vauxhalls.

58 GMs

That sorta does it.

Cadillac, Buick, Pontiac, Nissan, Mazda (last three in no particular order).

I have been "stealing" (I prefer "Lifting") brochures for decades. I've sluffed off since 2006, I will admit. But it's an easy task to do

1. Go into the dealership you want the goods from. Go any time of day, it does not matter. Ask for 1 brochure on one model they sell. Try HARD NOT to engage the salesman in ANY conversation, as he'll lose his turn in line to speak with a REAL customer. Make it quick. Tell him it is for your brother who is coming home from college. That will end the conversation fast.

2. The purpose of this is to see (follow the salesman) WHERE they keep the brochures. Hopefully ON the showroom floor, in a closet.

3. NOW you know where they are. NEVER EVER go into a restricted area, such as a private office or the general offices. Brochures are more oft than not ON the showroom floor in a utility closet.

4. The Key. Okay. In a day or two or three, get you rear in gear & get up early. Leave your house so that you arrive AT THAT dealership no later than 8:10 AM. Most showrooms open at 9AM and salesmen begin arriving by 8:40 AM - so you gotta be there no later than 8:10. You'll find (in most, but not all) dealerships that all the doors to the showroom will be locked. You can try pulling on 1 or 2.

5. So, 'ya, they are locked! Okay, you walk around the side to the service dept. and enter & head to the Customer Waiting Room. There will be people there reading & waiting. The waiting room ALWAYS connects to the showroom, ALWAYS ! Enter showroom and head to the area/closet where you were a day or 2 ago. BINGO ! Nobody around, but you and maybe another customer or two. HELP YOURSELF TIME. Don't wear crummy clothes. No sweats, jeans, work clothes. Wear a nice pair of slacks, a nice shirt, and a tie. No sport coat.... LOOK professional !
Remember to CLOSE the closet door !! !! Leave via the waiting room.
I have found that carrying a brief case LOOKS very professional AND gives you a place to put the brochures, rather than risking dropping the load on the way out. ((Very embarrasing)) !

6. Nobody in the world has a better nose for B.S. ers than car salesmen have. We can smell B.S. across the freakin street, trust me, so the less you say, the less you offer up, the better off you'll be, plus you will not steal his turn at bat. To end the conversation fast - just blame the car interest on someone who is not present....such as a Mom, Brother....you get the idea. IF IT'S YOU, the buyer, you cost him his turn at bat.

Ya know those companies that send out "Mystery Shoppers" ? Well, I had one come in to the Dodge dealer I was at. She took up 30 minutes of my time, and I finally excused myself, and walked outside. I eyed her arrival car, and looked inside. That is where I spotted all her work stuff, & immediately knew WHY & WHAT she was doing there.
At this point, I will not procede with my own doings, because while she was wasting my time, another person, a man, came in & spoke to the other salesman regarding a pick-up truck for his sanatation company. THAT man woulda been mine, if not for "her" and he returned 2 days later & ordered 5 pick-ups. I lost $900 because of the "Secret Shopper" ~ I got VERY even..... VERY even !!

So, don't take up a guys time and turn at bat. Blame your interest on another party who would be THE ultimate buyer.

Leave it to Sandy to have car brochure shopping down to a science!!! How cool, Sandy! I've been "collecting" car brochures since 1975, and I've been relatively successful in grabbing lots of brochures before getting "hit up" by a salesman. I usually wind up going to several different dealers so I don't have anyone recognize me from year to year. It takes me several months to get all American makes, cars and trucks doing it this way. A couple places though, I can go in and get everything at once because the salespeople don't watch too closely.

I might try a few of your methods. I don't like to waste a salesman's time, but sometimes I play like I'm searching for a car to buy in a few months and am just collecting info early on.

Once or twice I've been turned down because the brochures are too expensive to just give out. Other times, I've been honest and said I have this 30+ year brochure collection and the guy is cool, and says "sure, help yourself."

JRau in central Iowa

I perfer Pontiac , I have a 2000 GTP and I love it , I just bought a CTS , and I have not even picked it up yet. hope to get it this weekend but over all I am a GM man :)

I have been "stealing" (I prefer "Lifting") brochures for decades. I've sluffed off since 2006, I will admit. But it's an easy task to do

1. Go into the dealership you want the goods from. Go any time of day, it does not matter. Ask for 1 brochure on one model they sell. Try HARD NOT to engage the salesman in ANY conversation, as he'll lose his turn in line to speak with a REAL customer. Make it quick. Tell him it is for your brother who is coming home from college. That will end the conversation fast.

2. The purpose of this is to see (follow the salesman) WHERE they keep the brochures. Hopefully ON the showroom floor, in a closet.

3. NOW you know where they are. NEVER EVER go into a restricted area, such as a private office or the general offices. Brochures are more oft than not ON the showroom floor in a utility closet.

4. The Key. Okay. In a day or two or three, get you rear in gear & get up early. Leave your house so that you arrive AT THAT dealership no later than 8:10 AM. Most showrooms open at 9AM and salesmen begin arriving by 8:40 AM - so you gotta be there no later than 8:10. You'll find (in most, but not all) dealerships that all the doors to the showroom will be locked. You can try pulling on 1 or 2.

5. So, 'ya, they are locked! Okay, you walk around the side to the service dept. and enter & head to the Customer Waiting Room. There will be people there reading & waiting. The waiting room ALWAYS connects to the showroom, ALWAYS ! Enter showroom and head to the area/closet where you were a day or 2 ago. BINGO ! Nobody around, but you and maybe another customer or two. HELP YOURSELF TIME. Don't wear crummy clothes. No sweats, jeans, work clothes. Wear a nice pair of slacks, a nice shirt, and a tie. No sport coat.... LOOK professional !
Remember to CLOSE the closet door !! !! Leave via the waiting room.
I have found that carrying a brief case LOOKS very professional AND gives you a place to put the brochures, rather than risking dropping the load on the way out. ((Very embarrasing)) !

6. Nobody in the world has a better nose for B.S. ers than car salesmen have. We can smell B.S. across the freakin street, trust me, so the less you say, the less you offer up, the better off you'll be, plus you will not steal his turn at bat. To end the conversation fast - just blame the car interest on someone who is not present....such as a Mom, Brother....you get the idea. IF IT'S YOU, the buyer, you cost him his turn at bat.

Ya know those companies that send out "Mystery Shoppers" ? Well, I had one come in to the Dodge dealer I was at. She took up 30 minutes of my time, and I finally excused myself, and walked outside. I eyed her arrival car, and looked inside. That is where I spotted all her work stuff, & immediately knew WHY & WHAT she was doing there.
At this point, I will not procede with my own doings, because while she was wasting my time, another person, a man, came in & spoke to the other salesman regarding a pick-up truck for his sanatation company. THAT man woulda been mine, if not for "her" and he returned 2 days later & ordered 5 pick-ups. I lost $900 because of the "Secret Shopper" ~ I got VERY even..... VERY even !!

So, don't take up a guys time and turn at bat. Blame your interest on another party who would be THE ultimate buyer.Jeez, Sandy where do you live? Ive been collecting for about 10 years now, and I just walk in and take them. If they arent out in the open, I ask for them. Ive only been turned down twice that I can think of, in 10 years. I have every brochure you can think of too.

Never owned a foreign car, unless u count the ford courier, but that was just to resell anyways. I've had some of all three makes, but kind of lean towards chrysler.
My real loves are Packards. The late 30's are so classy as are the 1955 and '56 executive series including the carribeans.
Studebakers are next in line, with various models and years. I currently own a 1964 cruiser with complete records from day one. Used to own a 1963 wagon with the slide top roof, like the envoy, and will again someday.
Recently I got involved in pro cars. Ambulances, hearses, and limo's. Currently I own a 1954 Packard/Henney Junior Ambulance, but soon to own a 1984 Cadillac hearse made from a DeVille 2dr notchback coupe. And that's why I'm into caddy's now.
Other than that I'm just basically an orphan car lover. There are Amc's that I like, perferably 1966 - 1968 Ambassadors, or an American convertable.
So that's enough to keep my addiction to cars going, and keeping me in trouble.

I'm partial to Mercedes and Alfa Romeo after spending so much time overseas. The Alfa I had was sporty and small enough to navigate the tiny streets of the Italian coast. The Mercedes was almost as comfortable as my Eldo and a good autobahn cruiser.

I like Buicks A LOT. Favorites are 70 GSX, 87 GNX and newer Regals. Lucernes look pretty nice also. For the most part I like GM cars but Ford trucks. Some Mopars are nice.

Corvettes

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-12/559348/ICmag1lsmall.jpg

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-12/559348/redvette2lsmall.jpg

Jeeze, some of you guys seem to be obsessing... :)

Brands? or MODELS? Brand covers an awful lot of territory, and, admit it, some stinkers along with every Rembrandt...

Jaguar - love 'em or leave 'em, they have a personality. And who wouldn't want to drive an English country-house drawing room...

Lambo/Ferrari/Maserati : The Italians build cars with their hearts, but not always their heads.

Citroen - Just goofily French enough to be likable, unlike Renault...

The only American car I ever thought was really cool was the Avanti - designed about 30 years ahead of it's time.

I have never been in a German car that I thought was worth looking into - MB, BMW or VW, for that matter. Too damn authoritative - too cold, too rigid.

Most Japanese cars have no personality - they're too perfect - a mirror of their society, in a way.

Everybody and their brother overcomes ED with Corvettes and their ilk...but I just never saw the attraction. To each his own, of course.

It may be my warped sense of reality, but it seems to me that a high number of the cars I've had experience with accurately reflected the stereotyped culture of their country of origin...

Jeeze, some of you guys seem to be obsessing... :)

Brands? or MODELS? Brand covers an awful lot of territory, and, admit it, some stinkers along with every Rembrandt...

Jaguar - love 'em or leave 'em, they have a personality. And who wouldn't want to drive an English country-house drawing room...

Lambo/Ferrari/Maserati : The Italians build cars with their hearts, but not always their heads.

Citroen - Just goofily French enough to be likable, unlike Renault...

The only American car I ever thought was really cool was the Avanti - designed about 30 years ahead of it's time.

I have never been in a German car that I thought was worth looking into - MB, BMW or VW, for that matter. Too damn authoritative - too cold, too rigid.

Most Japanese cars have no personality - they're too perfect - a mirror of their society, in a way.

Everybody and their brother overcomes ED with Corvettes and their ilk...but I just never saw the attraction. To each his own, of course.

It may be my warped sense of reality, but it seems to me that a high number of the cars I've had experience with accurately reflected the stereotyped culture of their country of origin...

Well said,

As well as you are what you eat, you are also what you drive. The criteria could be economic, socialogical, personal pride / ego, as well as traits of national heritage.

Points for a good point!

Ford- I like their trucks and always have. My whole family is completely and utterly loyal to Ford for some reason, and a bit of my heart is attached to them because I have grown up around them.

Lincoln- Embodies similar qualities as Cadillac, just without the coolness factor, or at least with a "different" coolness factor. I'd love to own a 60s Continental someday.

Chevrolet- Transported the majority of North America for the middle of the 20th century, it's quite an accomplishment really, and who doesn't like a 350?

Mercedes- My grandpa had one when I was very young and it was the first car I was ever in which truly felt "exclusive" I've had a bit of a soft spot for them since.