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So 2 weeks ago, I called Plaistow Powersports to see if I could get a deal on a leftover '06 SV650S. The saleman I talked to agreed to sell it to me for $6k flat, out the door, inclusive of all fees that would be incurred through financing and everything else (assembly, paperwork, etc). I agreed to put down a $200 deposit (the salesman told me on the phone that it was "absolutely refundable" and that they "have no desire to keep your money") so the bike and what appeared to be a decent deal would not be gone when I had the chance to go up and sign the paperwork.
I told them that I live 45min away (1.5hr round trip), and would much prefer to get everything out of the way so I could pick up the bike on Saturday and ride it home, as I work strange hours and am not around during normal business hours.
A week ago, when I asked to have them fax me a copy of the paperwork so that I could go through it and doublecheck everything to make sure that's it was correct (and potentially save myself an hour and a half round trip up to Plaistow NH from Boston MA, at first they resisted, but then they agreed to fax it.
When I received the copy, the total cost was $6444.38 excluding interest costs. I called them to investigate why these mysterious fees had appeared, they told me that it was the "standard fees" and that "all dealerships had them." First off, I live in a different state and have to do all that stuff myself. I told the sales manager that this was not the deal we had agreed on, and that I had put the $200 down as a deposit in good faith expecting that to have been the final deal, after negotiating.
A few days later, I called back to inform them that, as the deal had changed on their end, I was no longer obligated to leave them with my $200 deposit, and that their choices were a) sell me the bike for $6000 out the door (not close to the door but still inside the building), or b) refund my deposit and forget that I had ever dealt with them.
They chose hidden option c) harass me about the deal, and then refuse to return my deposit on the bike. When I spoke to the sales manager after telling him that I wanted them to return the money I had given them, he asked "where does it say the deposit is fully refundable?" to which I replied "your salesman told me that over the phone, which is the sole reason I agreed to put it down in the first place." He then asked if I had it written in writing. I told him no, I had dealt with them exclusively over the phone except for going up there to fill out finance paperwork. He replied "Ok, well your money is not fully refundable," so I informed him that I would talk to the BBB and looked forward to seeing them in small claims court.
So, in closing, the deal I had agreed on with the salesman was not actually the deal. They did an extremely poor job in trying to make it easy for me to buy the bike (as I live far away and in MA, so they can't do any of the titling/inspecting/registering). The salesman lied to me about the deposit, the sales manager jerked me around for a while, and then refused to refund my deposit when I told him the deal was no longer a deal as they had changed the terms on their end.
Additionally, they are affiliated with Greater Boston Motorsports, Cycles 128, Everett Powersports, and Billerica Motorsports -- all of which is not disclosed anywhere to consumers, I had to call each place individually and ask, after a salesman at GBM told me not to shop around because those were all his stores and they had a "no competition policy."
I will never again do anything with Plaistow Powersports. Their sales team was rude and deceptive, and their sales manager is demeaning, argumentative, and unresponsive to customer requests.
I was trying to buy a bike from them and they treated me, a potential buyer (which is what generally garners the most respect and suck-uppedness), horrendously and without respect -- I can't even imagine how their service departments treats customers.
They will never get my business and I will be telling all my friends that ride to steer clear.
And now I have to go shower and head over to MOMs South so I can buy a new bike...