I had always heard that you should dress nicely when you go to a car dealership so they'll take you seriously. Well, way back in 1999, I was dressed up for yard work, as I was planning on going over to my grandmother's house and raking leaves. My uncle also needed me to take him to the car dealer. His '97 Silverado had eaten its transmission, but under warranty thankfully. So the plan was to take him to the dealer, get his truck, and then go do some yard work at Grandmom's.
Well, we get to the dealer, and my uncle says "hey, while we're here, why don't we go look at the new trucks!" At the time, I was driving an '89 Gran Fury that used to be a police car, and had an appetite for premium. I had a second job delivering pizzas, and that car wasn't the best for that type of work. It was rugged, but not exactly fuel-efficient. Luckily, fuel was still somewhat cheap.
Anyway, a salesman came over, and we said we were just looking. He was able to pull off the trick of being around to be helpful if needed, yet not hovering, pushy, and annoying. I was most likely wearing either beat up shorts, or sweatpants, and a t-shirt. My uncle tended to dress like a Walton. As in, "Walton's Mountain", not "Walmart". Still, the guy didn't seem to pass any judgement whatsoever. He let us take out a couple of trucks, none that I really liked, at least at the price I wanted to pay. I also really didn't need a truck.
Anyway, by the time that little "take me to the dealer so I can get my truck" excursion ended with me coming home with a brand new 2000 Intrepid (it was a Dodge/Chevy/Isuzu dealer). When my Dad wanted to get a used car, in 2003, we went back to that dealership, and the same salesguy was there. My Dad bought a used '03 Regal from him.
I liked that salesman. I'd almost be tempted to track him down the next time I want to buy a car, but then I just realized, "it's later than you think." I just searched his name on Whitepages.com, and, presuming it's the same guy, he's 78 now! I guess it's possible he's still selling cars somewhere, but seriously, I hope he's out there enjoying his retirement...early or otherwise!
Now, a few people did judge me, after I bought that Intrepid. I was only 29 at the time, so maybe that made a few people take notice. Single 29 year olds usually don't buy new cars that big. I remember taking it to my pizza delivery job that first night, and one of the insiders, who never paid me much attention, suddenly let out a squeal when she saw it and said "Andre will you marry me??" And, one or two customers asked me about it, and how I could afford a car like that. It really wasn't any of their business, but I explained to them that I had a full-time job, and this was my second.
I also remember someone, who was driving a fairly new Honda Civic at the time, asking why I bought an Intrepid? He said "That just screams FAMILY!!" I was like c'mon now, it's an Intrepid, not a Delta 88 Royale Brougham LS with wire wheels, whitewalls, and a padded top!
The only other time I bought a new car was in 2012, when I bought an end-of-the-model year 2012 Dodge Ram. I had already done a lot of email back and forth the night before, and was planning to pay cash for it, so when I went in the next day, I wasn't overly concerned about how I was dressed. Most likely, it was just shorts, sneakers and a t-shirt again. My uncle went along again this time, so he could drive my car back, in case I actually bought it. One odd little detail I noticed about the sales guy though. He was dressed up fairly nice, in slacks and a white button-up shirt, and black dress shoes. But he was wearing white ankle socks with the shoes. On one hand, that's a bit of a fashion faux pas, but I guess you could also argue that his shirt matched his socks! It's funny, the little details that can stick in your memory.
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