Are you comparing Apples with Apples

Following a long talk with a customer this morning, who bought her 13 month old car in to be looked at, i sat down with James and digested what the customer had explained to me.

This same customer's sat down with us 3 months ago before they purchased the said Focus that she bought in this morning, the difference between buying from us came down to we were "too nice". My words not hers but this is what happened

1. We let her test drive with her daughter, without us in the car making her nervous.
2. We didn't put any preasure on her to buy the car there and then.
3. We explained our car had a warranty for 30 months.
4. We would service the car before she had it, and re valet the car for her.
5. We gave her a better part exchange price than she eventually achieved.

The reason they didn't buy our car was that there daughter found the same car! £400 cheaper but 130 miles away and they went to see it, after all £400 is £400. When they arrived there the car they had seen on the web site wasnt there (even though there daughter had called to check that morning) it was at another branch. But after agreeing that it was the model and colour they were looking for, the sales person went to value there car, and they then found themselves in a high pressure sales process that ended with them signing an order form and leaving a £500 deposit for a car they haden't seen, and the crunch was they ended up paying more for the car, as there was a purchasers admin fee, extra for it to be valeted and serviced. And although they purchased the car, they said they would never go there again, and didn't have a good word to say about them.

But even after learning about this, we will not be changing the way we do business.

After all we still want to treat people the way we would want to be treated.

Hassle free

New registartions out on the road now

September has been very busy so far with the new 61 plate cars leaving our forecourts last week and over the weekend.

But one customer who collected his new Focus really made me think, we were discussing the many new cars he had over the years, and every one came with some new technology. But what really came out of this was his surprise of exactly how much new technology the Focus now has packed into it.

We went down memory lane and discussed the first time he had power steering and then Anti lock brakes on the next one and airbags, and then they not only came from the front but the sides and the roof and now by your legs. Where is it going to stop he asked?

Its not was my answer, because you can now get a Focus that can parallel park itself with little help from the driver, it will tell you if you are drifting over the white lines while driving or warn you if someone is coming into the blind spot on the motorway.

He stopped me then and said Ian enough, i think all that can wait until the next one, its great to reminisce but i need to go and enjoy this one now.

He called me today just to tell me his new Focus is fantastic, and the best car he has ever had, and no he wouldn't swap for any of the old ones we talked about.

The lesson i learned from this, is we have a lot of customers who still would not know what is now available in the way of safety or convenience in the new Focus, and all other new models.

Its New and available right now

No its not a new model of car, or some fantastic new device, but thats not to say we are short of them right now.

But personal contract hire is now available in the UK, as we know the way they do things in the States always makes its way over to us eventually, and this is one we have been waiting far to long for.

I could go back 20 years and customers were asking for this then, I just want a car to drive for the next 2 years and then change it, no hassle of ownership just a monthly payment.

Well you can get that now, we are busy loading them up on the we site as i write this. Try this link for starters

http://www.buckinghamford.co.uk/vehicle_details.php?V_ID=88

There will be many more coming soon, but if you want to get a quote call James or Jeff now

Exemplary Service

Hello Ian,

I'd like to say that the overall service I have received from both Bicester and Buckingham Ford during the last few years has been exemplary.

I normally contact Bicester ford as its the closest to me, and I have to say that every time I have had to deal with the branch the same caring and considerate approach has always been displayed, whether working with Jeff Lawrence in changing cars, who is relentless in his perseverance in finding the right product, yet very patient when discussing the clients needs.

When working with Neal and Andrea, there is nothing that is too much trouble.

Just recently I have had to put some of our cars through the bodyshop at Buckingham, and again Russell and his team have done the company justice in the quality of their work and good service which surrounds it.

I visited the Buckingham branch this weekend to pick up my Son's Fiesta Black from the bodyshop after some minor repairs, but while at the branch promptly "dumped" some additional work onto your team at very short notice due to one or two worries I had about my Focus Estate prior to a very imminent family holiday journey to Cornwall.

Dave and his team were able to sort out the problems, very swiftly, including the sourcing of parts.

A special thanks to Scott who sorted out the bonnet release, a commitment taken on very late in the day, but still with the professionalism and enthusiasm which I have to say I have rarely experienced in other dealerships.

Working in the service industry myself I can appreciate the hard work that goes on behind the scenes by the whole team and very often this level of service is not recognised. Well done to all!

Kindest regards and thanks again,

Trevor Mockford

Edgcott

The New Focus Woman

I can't add anything to this, this customer says it all.

Hi Ian , I would like to say thank you to James of New Car Sales for all his help in letting me test drive the New Focus Titanium by bring it to me at home after my Operation and then looking after me so well .
The New Focus Titanium is a pleasure to drive not only does it look superb , its lines are sleek and classy , but it is a lot quieter than my previous Focus's and is a very smooth ride . I was looking at going to a different car manufacturer as I have had Focus's from you for the last 14 years (Focus Woman) but am so glad I did not.

The Trip Computer tells you everything you need from tyre pressure to how many miles left in the petrol tank (which I need) to your average speed and also helps with fuel economy by assisting in gear changing so my fuel consumption has been less.

Once again thank you for looking after me so well.

Anne Marie

20 Years Between cars

There is a lot to be said for a good product lasting a long time, and when it is a car its the maintenance that is very important.

Dr Chapman picked up his Ford Fusion last Saturday. "Nothing unusual about that" I hear you say...

Well, the car Dr Chapman disposed of was the Ford Orion 1.6 GLX in Tasman Blue that he bought from me 20 years ago - this is where regular maintenance comes in.

Because 20 years ago I was working in a Ford Garage along with David our Service Manager who was a technician at the time, and Dr Chapman is David's Father in Law, and because he has maintained his car regularly it has lasted him over 20 Years.

You don't need to have a relation who can maintain your car to make it last this long, but what this shows is that if you do keep your car regularly maintained by professionals it can last you a very long time.
To bring this into perspective this is the first car Dr Chapman has had with Power Steering.

Keep cool this summer, with this celebration offer

The first Birthday offer starts today, and as its 15 years yes you guessed it's £15 off our normal prices.

We often get asked... Why have your air conditioning serviced???? Well there is the obvious one that it is not cold enough or it will not de-mist the windows. Your car can lose up to 15% of its refrigerant every year which can lead to the system having to work harder to keep you cool, which can on some cars lead to the engine working harder and using more fuel. Also a poorly performing system can cause a build-up of fungus, bacteria and other microbes growing inside causing a smell.

What is the difference between a regas and an Air conditioning service?
Well a regas is just that, we recover the existing gas from the system and vacuum it out , and then refill as required. And a service is as the regas but we will add a dye during the recharge of the system to enable us to check for leaks from the system, using a UV light. We also run a cleaner through the ducts of the heating system to kill any bacteria build up, and take away any nasty smells, carry out tests on the system controls, for both heating and cooling, and check that all is working correctly.

Can you do this on any make of car?
Yes to 95% of them, please call us with the make and model of your car, and we will be able to tell you there and then. As with car servicing and MOT, we can carry out an air con service to any car.

So if your air conditioning is not behaving itself call us today to make an appointment on 01280 812121 and speak to Paul or David.