The video starts out a little rough but it's a cool idea. I think my wife might want to use it on me. You can expect to see Alliance Car Sales selling cars with the new "MyKey™" Technology in a few years.
Online TV Shows by Ustream
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
Flat Tires and Rental Cars-Occam's Razor Gave Me a Flat
I just finished listening to the latest "Car Talk" on NPR. It's a very funny show and I highly recommend them. It has a little to do with cars and a lot to do with people which is actually the only reason I can handle being a used car salesman myself. I like people. Cars? Not so much.
Well, on most episodes they have a "puzzler". Sometimes it's automotive sometimes it's not. But the most recent one is automotive and it reminded me of all my years renting cars in the Twin Cities and I wanted to give the Minnesota area readers a better chance at winning this week (assuming I'm right).
As is expected when you have a lot of rental cars people get flat tires once in a while. The question then always becomes is it a problem with the rental car or did they hit something? Once in a great while a tire goes flat early into the rental and we find a slow leak caused by a nail or something. We switch cars with the customer and fix the tire. Easy.
But when someone has had a rental car for a while and then they get a flat tire they still think it was something wrong with the rental car. Since I've never seen a bad tire in 17 years of renting cars the likelihood of it being the tire is tiny.
There is a trick though to helping the person who hit something and got a flat tire realize that it actually happened to them while they had the car and as a result of their driving it. I'm guessing this is also the apparent answer to the Car Talk puzzler for episode 904. The theory goes as follows. In the winter debris gets pushed to the outside of the road by the plows. It's almost always pushed to the right. Then, when someone drives over the debris with the front right tire it bounces around until it strikes the right rear tire and punctures the tire. When it happens this way the tire usually goes flat almost instantly.
So, by guessing that the renter has a flat in the right rear tire I prepare them to accept the truth of the situation. They weren't the one in a million who had a defective tire but rather the most obvious and simplest possible cause is the most likely. They hit something. It wasn't a defective tire it was Occam's Razor.
Well, on most episodes they have a "puzzler". Sometimes it's automotive sometimes it's not. But the most recent one is automotive and it reminded me of all my years renting cars in the Twin Cities and I wanted to give the Minnesota area readers a better chance at winning this week (assuming I'm right).
As is expected when you have a lot of rental cars people get flat tires once in a while. The question then always becomes is it a problem with the rental car or did they hit something? Once in a great while a tire goes flat early into the rental and we find a slow leak caused by a nail or something. We switch cars with the customer and fix the tire. Easy.
But when someone has had a rental car for a while and then they get a flat tire they still think it was something wrong with the rental car. Since I've never seen a bad tire in 17 years of renting cars the likelihood of it being the tire is tiny.
There is a trick though to helping the person who hit something and got a flat tire realize that it actually happened to them while they had the car and as a result of their driving it. I'm guessing this is also the apparent answer to the Car Talk puzzler for episode 904. The theory goes as follows. In the winter debris gets pushed to the outside of the road by the plows. It's almost always pushed to the right. Then, when someone drives over the debris with the front right tire it bounces around until it strikes the right rear tire and punctures the tire. When it happens this way the tire usually goes flat almost instantly.
So, by guessing that the renter has a flat in the right rear tire I prepare them to accept the truth of the situation. They weren't the one in a million who had a defective tire but rather the most obvious and simplest possible cause is the most likely. They hit something. It wasn't a defective tire it was Occam's Razor.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
No Haggle, No Hassle, One Price Cars for All
I'm not sure where the line between "tooting my own horn" and "just the facts" is sometimes but here I go anyway.
We just sold a car to a very nice woman who bought a car from us back in 1995 also. Her credit union recommended she check out one of our new car competitors. She told them she is alone here in the cities and isn't comfortable shopping for a car at a traditional dealership by herself. That's why she came here.
She knew exactly which car she wanted and simply wrote a check for it. When she asked us what the price was I have to admit to not knowing exactly what the price was either. It struck me though that I could have said a thousand more than it was listed for and gotten that price with no problem.
I talked about that with our General Manager Ken Iverson and we agreed that we know people in the industry who would take advantage of a situation like that. We are a no haggle, no hassle dealer because we believe in the "one price" principal. We couldn't sleep well at night knowing we told this very nice and trusting customer a price that was more than the last jerky customer who we sold a car to.
Why should a pushy person get a better deal than a nice one? They shouldn't and they won't here at Alliance Car Sales in Edina, MN. Because it's the MN way.
We just sold a car to a very nice woman who bought a car from us back in 1995 also. Her credit union recommended she check out one of our new car competitors. She told them she is alone here in the cities and isn't comfortable shopping for a car at a traditional dealership by herself. That's why she came here.
She knew exactly which car she wanted and simply wrote a check for it. When she asked us what the price was I have to admit to not knowing exactly what the price was either. It struck me though that I could have said a thousand more than it was listed for and gotten that price with no problem.
I talked about that with our General Manager Ken Iverson and we agreed that we know people in the industry who would take advantage of a situation like that. We are a no haggle, no hassle dealer because we believe in the "one price" principal. We couldn't sleep well at night knowing we told this very nice and trusting customer a price that was more than the last jerky customer who we sold a car to.
Why should a pushy person get a better deal than a nice one? They shouldn't and they won't here at Alliance Car Sales in Edina, MN. Because it's the MN way.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Where to Place a Child's Car Seat in Your Car
I have a four month old daughter and was talking with my sister, the owner of A Plus Driving School in Lakeville MN. She asked where I keep the baby's car seat and I told her behind the passenger seat. She said it should be on the driver's side. When I asked why she just said "Left turns". I thought for a second and understood.
When you take a left turn the right side of the car is exposed and since we want our little one in the safest place possible the driver's side of the car is the place for her to be. It's one of those obvious things that I'd be upset not doing if something had happened so I wanted to share it with everyone else a.s.a.p.
Alliance Car Sales in the Twin Cities MN metro area has dozens of models of used cars to choose from including Volkswagens and Hyundais among others that have extra airbags for passengers riding in the rear of your car too. Call us today at 612-605-7843 for an appointment to see one of these highly rated used cars.
When you take a left turn the right side of the car is exposed and since we want our little one in the safest place possible the driver's side of the car is the place for her to be. It's one of those obvious things that I'd be upset not doing if something had happened so I wanted to share it with everyone else a.s.a.p.
Alliance Car Sales in the Twin Cities MN metro area has dozens of models of used cars to choose from including Volkswagens and Hyundais among others that have extra airbags for passengers riding in the rear of your car too. Call us today at 612-605-7843 for an appointment to see one of these highly rated used cars.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)