Holy Crap! I just saw a white Evo in Pflugerville by HEB on that road that goes to the NEMP soccer fields. It was at 2pm. It had to be you iodine23, right?

The car looks so nice. I'll admit it. I even like the altezzas. I can't wait to pick mine up this week.

I'm avoiding the Austin dealers entirely. Barret may be bad, but I don't think Maxwell is much better. The lesson here is use your own financing so that you can bargain as if you were paying cash -- and have it ready when you bargain. Don't be afraid to have dealers compete for your business. Remember, they work for you and the more time that car sits on their lot, the more it helps you out. The other good point is you have to deal with more than just the salesman.

Good that you got that cancellation clause.

 

Yes, that was probably me because I was going to play soccer up there. Had a 1:45 game, lost 3-1, that sucks.

 

Well, I also agree that Maxwell is not much better than Barrett but I didn't get kicked out of that dealership. To each his own.

So, when am i going to see that sweet new ride of yours, can we maybe get together this week. Still looking forward to meeting up with ya.

/<

 

Just a follow up from my experience with Gillman. After I told the sales guy I wasn't paying more than $31,500 (which to me is generous enough over MSRP) last week, I walked out and told him to call me when they were selling at MSRP. Anyway, he called back a few days ago and said that they were 'lowering' the price of the Evo and that I should come in and even take a test drive....hahaha. After my first experience with them, I doubt I'll ever go back, let alone buy anything from them.

Hey Dan, any news of when your Evo comes in?

 

Supposedly my car arrives on Thursday. They came in a couple days early with the first shipment, so who knows, I may be driving home tomorrow night in a Black A00. I've got the VIN number, financing, pricing, insurance all down; everything but the final contract is signed. Having trouble sleeping at night I'll post a picture when I get it.

I saw a yellow Evo at Mopac and Duval early this afternoon. I wonder if it was the one at Maxwell.

 

On Mopac and Duval this afternoon? Weren't you supposed to be at work?? Spring break is over you know!

That's cool that it's coming in soon. Good luck on that and I hope to see pics! Lots of 'em

 

Want to negotiate price on an Evo8? Deal directly with one of the owners. Seven to chose from, with or without service agreement. You will be able to test drive. PLEASE, appointment only. Call Ken Rose @(512)531-5090.

 

Hey guys I thought I should give you an update on my situation. I went in to Barrett this morning and talked to the F&I guy to cancel the extended warranty. That went alright, but I still felt kind of bad about all of this.

Turns out I had to go back in, *again*, for the 2nd time today and like the 6th time in 7 days, to give them my proof of income (paycheck stub). I wound up telling my story about my experience Friday night to some of the big guys there... Randy Cash, Ken Rose, and David Smith. While obviously they can't change what happened Friday night, they did work to rectify the situation for me.

We voided the order from Friday night and ripped up the service agreement contract. They gave me the $270 as originally promised and wrote me up a new purchase order and contract to reflect the new price and lack of service order. In other words, I got tonight what I was expecting to get last Friday night in the F&I office. They went out of their way tonight to make sure I was satisifed with the deal, and I think I'm starting to feel that way.

I think now I should be able to sleep a little easier and enjoy the Evo, which kicks ***! If you can, see if they'll let you test drive the car or maybe I can arrange a show and tell for mine sometime in the near future... have to show off the new toy yaknow!

 

RGARCIA (Inventory Manager for Barrett),

"Negotiate a price on a EVO8?" How come Randy went off the handle and kicked me out of your dealership when I tried to "negotiate"? What's your view on this thread?

/<

 

K, I talked with them about this thread a little bit last night and obviously they were very concerned with the bad stories that they were seeing. They did everything they could to help rectify my situation, partially probably beacause of the bad press on here, but also just given the overall disappointment I had with my F&I experience.

Im guessing if any of you guys called up Barrett, asked for Ken, and told him you've seen this board and this thread, you'll probably get some good service. While you probably won't get MSRP (at least not yet), I'm sure they'll work with you to try to get you in the car. After all that's their business, and they have 7 of them they still need to move. They're not making any money sitting on the lot or in the showroom, right?

 

I am very happy to hear that you are feeling bettter about the whole deal, and it is worth noting that they are attempting to rectify the issues. I am also glad to see that some bad publicity might have changed their minds on how to treat new sales. I am interested on reading what their coments are on the subject. Your above quote is exactly how I pitched my discussion with Randy and I think thats what made him get all "non-friendly".

/<

So, hows the car? I am curious to hear how it compares to the old RS?

 

K, you are right. We do not want bad publicity on this site, or anywhere else for that matter. You are also right by saying that we do not make money by having cars sit on the lot. We are in the car selling business, NOT the car storage business. The owner would like to speak with you personally. His name is David Smith. Ken Rose is the General Sales Manager. Call David @ 531-5090.

 

K: But just because they haven't sold any yet doesn't mean they're ready to come down to MSRP either (unfrotunately). There is some reason to have maybe 1 or 2 sitting around to keep bringing people onto the lot... the "halo" car idea or whatever.

The car is pretty mean. I haven't really wrung it out yet since I'm still in break-in. But it feels like there's lots of power on tap, and even running it up to 5k to pass someone or change lanes it gets up and goes quickly and relatively quietly. It's very easy to go fast in the car.

The sspension is stiff, but not back-breaking. In fact the normal ride quality is just fine for me. The RS had a Prodrive WR Sport suspension (Bilstein inverted struts, Eibach springs) that I put in and I had upgrade the rear bar, mounts, and links. I think that gave me a pretty stiff ride there too. In the Evo I do notice a little compliance when I cut left or right, I think it's body roll.. but I'm not that technical so I can't say for sure.

The shifter is silky smooth, it's so unbelievable easy to shift and the throws have a very positive thunk at the end of the travel. The steering is tight and responsive. It's something just over 2 turns lock-to-lock, which takes a little getting used to in cutting the wheel to sneak out of a tight spot.

The brakes seem strong, but I haven't really tested them yet. I know when I first got the car the pedal traveled so little before the brakes started aplying that my brake lights weren't even coming on if I was just lightly riding the brakes. Now it feels like there might be a little more travel in the pedal and that helps give better feel when stopping. The RS brakes are a joke compared to the Evo.

And just the overall build quality seems far superior to the RS. It seems more robust or substantial and it looks that way too. Little things, like when you slam the door it just thumps shut instead of kind of ratling around... stuff like that.

And of course it's getting a lot of attention. I had a pack of 4 guys practically humping the car in a parking lot the other night (Friday night, ugh). One of the guys had a carerra (with GT spoiles and a GT3 badge, hah! posers at every level) and he was pretty much drooling too. Another had a WRX and said he had a deposit down on an STi. Good to see another "non hater" like myself. The cars should be appreciated for their own merits, not just because of the badge, right?

Is that good enough for now?

 

you guys think ya'lls experiences are bad? try being a girl. i feel like i get raped on every deal. i got my oz from barrett and the whole situation was bad. the guy didn't even lower the price since it was a test car and had 300 miles on it, but it was the only one they had and i was pressured into buying it. i was so walked all over. then i went up there last week just to check it out and it seemed like they were trying to run me out even the manager, ray barlow, seemed like he was saying everything he could to get me to not want one and to just leave. my dad said he would trade mine in for an evo if i wanted but i'm not getting one from people as rude as they were. i'm sorry i even did business with them in the first place.

 

In some wierd way it is comforting to know that I am not the only one who has had a bad experience with Barrett. However, I am going to call David Smith on Wed and we will see what he says about his sales team. I am willing to give him a chance, but I will also mention your experience (lulu). I kind of want to talk to him in person, as I hate over the phone conversations. I wonder if he will kick me out. Heh Heh.

/<