Bait and Switch ...You be the judge

[SorryDad]

I don't use social media, but millions do. As others have mentioned, you should state the dealer, address and sales names on social media. Perhaps others would be kept from suffering the same experience.
Just my 2 cents worth.

I can say from experience, that at least Google reviews do make an impact. Smart business owners monitor that and respond accordingly.

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[Mark S.]

BTW I was looking at a 2026 Hybrid XL and they were pushing their 2025s. I bought one a couple of days later at an out of state dealer.

I hope you drive over to the other dealership sometime and rub it in their faces.

My wife decided she wanted to purchase a new car once without my help. She narrowed down her choice to a new Toyota Camry at the highest trim level. She even had a color picked out. She went to the local dealership and told the salesman what she wanted. The first question he asked her: "Is your husband coming in to help?" She gave him "the look," then got up and walked out the door without saying another word. She ended up going the fleet sales service with our credit union and got a great deal on exactly what she wanted. They even delivered it right to our house. The first thing she did was drive over to the dealership to show the salesman the sale he had lost out on. And yes, I went with her to watch.

 

[Pointyears]

I don't remember what the dealer's name was in Woodbridge 20 years ago before Koons took it over, but we had...fun there.

Cowles Parkway Ford.

 

[Aherpa]

Since they would not accept your offer of 'good faith' money, I'd say the truck you were interested in was not there and it was definitely a bait and switch operation.
Thankfully, I'm happy with our dealer.

 

[uncle red]

We have all probably been there. Smarmy salesman who knows he can sell you something you weren't interested in. Thinks the old 75 year old is a mark waiting to be convinced. Not caring the cost in time and .... well read on ...Ahhh so begins the tale:
We drove 4 1/2 hours based on assurances the truck would be ready and could close a deal right then. I offered a credit card to provide earnest money on the deal which was rejected and was sent a dealer Deal Sheet # 12619 listing all costs and final price. He had my cell phone number and I was on time. He waited until I was seated and told me the truck was sold 20 minutes earlier. Then he and a sales manager? tried to sell me a truck that I repeatedly said I was not interested in. I finally told them a price I would consider concerning the outgoing model year and what was below what I could do locally and to "make things right" knowing they would not take it and to show my disgust with how cavalier they were with what had occurred, And car dealers wonder why they are not trusted (2024 KPA Dealership Trust Survey conducted by The Harris Poll). Knowing I was coming, a reasonable salesman would insure the car would be available by placing a temporary hold on anyone selling it until after the time I said I would be there. The process turned into all the appearances of a classic bait and switch where the salesman knew if it was sold he could convince me to buy from older in stock vehicles. The alternative to that manipulation is indifference to buyers time and resources where a day of 2 peoples lives were wasted driving to this dealership. Time is a resource that can't be replaced.
We traveled 244 miles @ 70 cents per mile (IRS mileage rate)=$140.80 round trip $341.60 is a real cost not including eating on the road. They knew I wasn't local so why would they care if I never returned.
Now its your turn to add to the madness with your tale of woe

I had the exact thing happen twice!

 

[CJV]

I had the exact thing happen twice!

What was your experience?

 

[First Sergeant]

I did try to buy locally but they were unable to get one in the time frame I needed to replace my car that had just been totaled in a freak accident (not my fault).

Until now I have not listed the dealer or sales people involved in order to give the dealer Koons Ford, Woodbridge, Va an opportunity to prove good faith and that this was not representative of their dealership and that they would "make things right" or at least acknowledge they were wrong and send some token of goodwill.
I was given the GMs number and extension and decided not to further respond to him after I received no response from him regarding clarification of an email he sent with a cc to the salesman Gregory Gibson and Sales Manager Abdi Kadir on Dec 9 that started:
subject: Your feedback matters - As the General Manager, how can I better support you"
with the following body in html that I couldn't convert to legible text
"you?
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: multipart/mixed;
boundary="----=_Part_703786_63211990.1765288785837"
Date: Tue, 9 Dec 2025 13:59:45 +0000
Feedback-ID: ::1.us-east-1.zqkl6NBgtiAsImi1/Tlby9YzjDKjokouvLGU8+WW8Lg=:AmazonSES ..."
and went on like that in html for 7 pages!
I emailed him but after he did not respond for clarification I made the decision that the onus of contact is on them to reach out to me not for me to chase them down. The Customer Relations Manager is the only one that reached out and responded. I acknowledge that she is in a tough spot and have no complaints regarding her.
The way I see it this is what should have happened
1)The salesman should have put a temporary hold on the vehicle since he knew what time I was coming that day and the distance I was travelling and since he acknowledged it would be there by email and what the price was. Although it wasn't stated I assumed if I didn't show by the agreed time then it would be on me if truck was unavailable. We are not talking about holding the truck for days here, although he did state on the phone that it was unlikely the truck would be sold if I couldn't be there until monday. He stated they couldn't take a credit card as earnest money and that it wouldn't be necessary.
At that point He should have put on a hold or called me back if it wouldn't be available. We then spent 4+ hours on the road.
2) When he told me after I got there that the truck was sold 20 minutes earlier he said they would see if one was available at another dealer that day. Based on my searches I knew there were none in a hundred mile radius. He came back with the sales manager and said there weren't and then tried selling me a 2025 after I made it clear I wasn't interested at all.
At that point he could have done one of several things
a) offered to get one at the quoted price and since I had driven all that way delivered it to me.
b) offered to fill my gas tank and bought dinner as a good will gesture.
Instead ... crickets until the Customer relations manager contacted me about my posted reviews.

We are stuck with dealers when buying new vehicles. I think some of the responses in this thread illustrate that we need some advice for people who find themselves in similar situations which are all too common. Blowing up does nothing because the bad apples don't care. Publishing reviews in places helps but it would be satisfying to find more immediate alternatives when confronting these situations. Tons of guides on how to buy a car but none on getting satisfaction on the bad apples in real time.

Your email settings or the senders email settings could be set up incorrectly regardiing HTML. Might try looking at them, here is a little help.


If you are the email recipient and cannot read emails in HTML:

• Check your email client settings: Your email program might be set to read all messages in plain text by default. You can often disable this setting.
  • In Outlook: Go to File > Options > Trust Center > Trust Center Settings > Email Security and deselect the option to "Read all standard mail in plain text".
  • In Thunderbird: Check View > Message Body As and select Original HTML.
• Update your email client: Outdated email clients may not support modern HTML rendering standards. Ensure your application is updated to the latest version.
• Check for add-ins/antivirus conflicts: Sometimes, third-party add-ins or antivirus software can interfere with email rendering. Try running your email client in safe mode to see if the issue persists.
• View the email in webmail: If the email client isn't working, try accessing your email through a web browser (e.g., Gmail in Chrome) to see if it renders correctly there. This confirms if the issue is with your client or the original email itself.

 

[CJV]

Your email settings or the senders email settings could be set up incorrectly regardiing HTML. Might try looking at them, here is a little help.


If you are the email recipient and cannot read emails in HTML:

• Check your email client settings:Your email program might be set to read all messages in plain text by default. You can often disable this setting.
  • In Outlook: Go to File > Options > Trust Center > Trust Center Settings > Email Security and deselect the option to "Read all standard mail in plain text".
  • In Thunderbird: Check View > Message Body As and select Original HTML.
• Update your email client: Outdated email clients may not support modern HTML rendering standards. Ensure your application is updated to the latest version.
• Check for add-ins/antivirus conflicts: Sometimes, third-party add-ins or antivirus software can interfere with email rendering. Try running your email client in safe mode to see if the issue persists.
• View the email in webmail: If the email client isn't working, try accessing your email through a web browser (e.g., Gmail in Chrome) to see if it renders correctly there. This confirms if the issue is with your client or the original email itself.

Thanks. I use the latest Gmail client and never have had problems opening html and did try web access. I did try several other methods and decided screw it and to just email him that I couldn't open it. He never replied which was the point that he didn't care enough to clarify what was in the email.

 

[Hankgagnon]

As long as the stock number was available, and it was sold - the dealer has avoided it being a true bait and switch.

Since OP refuses to name dealer, or say much more than the dealer sent them a build sheet - one has to assume the vehicle was real and sold.

Scummy? Yes. Bait and switch? No.

Bait N Switch or not, They can come up with any technicality they want. Call it what you want. I am never going back to that dealer " McGovern Ford of Saugus" Again. And I will tell, and write to anyone who will listen or read what SCUM BAGS they are. That's my time they wasted. Nobody sells (2) vehicles between 5:30 AM - 9:30 AM that early in the morning, when I was told they were both there for sale at 5:30 AM. IT WAS AN OPEN BOLD FACE SCUM BAG LIE to get me there. and try to sell me another piece of shit I did not want.

 

[Maggie5618]

Fortunately for us, we did not have a long drive, and I was more than happy to walk away (but I really wanted the Maverick).

Be sure to keep any correspondence (texts, emails) that you have had with the dealerships and their minions. When we went to receive delivery of our 2025 Maverick XLT AWD, they presented me with paperwork with the wrong price. If I hadn't been able to produce the emails, I feel fairly certain they would have insisted that that was the price I had agreed to. Miraculously, with the emails produced with the correct pricing, the paperwork was corrected forthwith.

Some of the shenanigans may have been because of the perception of me being an older person who may not be all that adept using the apps on their smart phone.

Just remember you less than honest dealing dealerships and sales people, old age and treachery will overcome youth and skill.

 

[CJV]

, old age and treachery will overcome youth and skill.

I use that line a lot. I also use email a lot to create paper trails. I will send an email after a call summarizing what was said. If I don't get a correction it's on them

 

[Maggie5618]

Document, document, document. May take time but so worth it.

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