What Car Should You Drive to the Dealer?

I receive questions and messages from readers every day on the blog. Since some have kindly allowed me to share their inquiries, I thought I’d start featuring these questions and my answers here going forward.

So, here’s a question I received recently:

Do you feel that dealers or stores treat you differently depending on the car you drive there? Do you pay attention to what car you take when visiting a dealer?

Interesting… I wonder how others handle this.

I asked my husband right away, and he answered like this:

Well… I guess it’s better to show up in a decent car rather than a beat-up one.
When I first bought my Porsche (a 981 Boxster GTS), I thought, “If I’m going to a Porsche dealer, I should probably go in a respectable car. I should also wear the best watch I have.”
But now, I don’t really feel that way anymore.
In fact, the other day when I went to test drive at a BMW dealer for the first time, I went in the 992 (Porsche 911 Cabriolet). I had originally thought, “I’ll take the Swift Sport,” but since my wife was using it, I just took the 992 that was parked at home.
I guess I’ve lost that kind of fussiness recently.

Showing up in a decent car might convey to the dealer that you’re “not just browsing,” and some salespeople might be more positively impressed.

That said, in my experience—which isn’t extensive—I’ve never noticed a blatant change in how a dealer treated me when I went in a Volkswagen Golf versus a Porsche 911.

Cars (and really, any big purchase) aren’t just about buying and being done. There’s ongoing communication with the dealer about maintenance, insurance, and more, so it might be more important to visit in a way that feels natural to you and see if you vibe well with the dealer.

Speaking of which, when I asked our Porsche dealer contact, Mr. H, about this, he said:

I don’t think we openly change our attitude based on the car someone drives in, but salespeople are human, so it might subtly affect how they respond.

It’s About the Person, Not the Possessions.

I asked my husband, “You used to care about the car and watch you brought with you—why don’t you anymore?” and he replied:

I used to think that when going somewhere important, you should pay attention to status symbols to some extent…
But after going more often to luxury hotels, fine dining, and high-end car dealers, I realized that “the things you wear or the status you show aren’t as important as I thought.”
What matters more is how you treat the people at the store and how you behave yourself.
No matter how expensive your stuff is, acting arrogant or like “I’m the customer, so I’m entitled” just isn’t right.
Even if your appearance is minimal, if your attitude and manners are solid, I’m sure the dealer will pick up on that and treat you well.

Makes sense…

By the way, a friend of my husband who works at a luxury hotel once told me this:

“Truly wealthy people come to luxury hotels dressed normally and driving ordinary cars. They’re incredibly humble. They often look like regular folks, but later you find out they’re CEOs of huge companies.”

I thought, wow… real wealthy people, those beyond our everyday world, don’t need to show off. They’ve reached that level after going around the block three or four times, so to speak.

Dear readers, do you pay attention to anything special when you visit a dealer? I’d love to hear your thoughts and perspectives if you’re willing to share.