5 Reasons to Change Your Oil

It’s always important to take good care of your vehicle. From the interior to the paint job, we love our cars; but what about under the hood. For most, it’s like looking at attempting brain surgery. A complicated task best left to technicians, or for gear heads to hem and haw about over cold beer.

Today we’re going to show you five reasons to take your vehicle into the shop and get that oil change that you’ve been putting off for too long between lattes and movies.

1. A chance to see if something will break soon.

The undercarriage is rarely seen. You’re not going to flipping the car over regularly to look, your chiropractor probably doesn’t want you to either. This is a great opportunity for your technician to get underneath and see all the parts from a clear angle and get the big picture of what’s good, bad, and about to break soon in your vehicle. From belts to hoses, your multi-point inspection will let your tech know where things could go wrong and keep you safe on the road.

According to The Car Connection, the sooner you get your vehicle on a regular maintenance schedule, the less money overall you’ll spend on repairs that can cost thousands of dollars.

2. Certified technicians from your brand will know what fluids to use in your vehicle.

Most people who do their own oil changes will pick a trusted brand of oil. However, your vehicle may perform better with a specific type of oil, many synthetic and of a different viscosity than the usual store bought brands. Bringing your vehicle in for a certified maintenance through your dealer will allow you the opportunity to better understand what your vehicle needs when it comes to fluids. Many technicians are happy to discuss your vehicle and let you know about their work.

3. A volcano on wheels.

Your engine is bombarded with thousands of controlled explosions per minute. These can add up to clogs and debris which can cause misfires. Additionally, the heat generated in the engine, if not properly lubricated, will cause overheating and eventual seizing of the engine. The result: a very heavy and expensive roadside paperweight.

4. Staying out of the hospital.

More than 5% of the accidents that occur daily are due to lack of correct or scheduled maintenance, according to Autos.com.  Next time you see an accident on the road, it should be a reminder to get your vehicle checked so that you’re not in their situation. Having certified maintenance done regularly according to your operator’s manual can prevent such a event from happening.

5. Warranties can be voided due to lack of oil changes.

Those regular maintenance checks in your owner’s manual are not suggestions, they are required to keep your warranties valid. Possibly saving you thousands of dollars is why we have warranties, but not getting that oil change can void your warranties costing you thousands when you would normally be covered.

Your dealership should be sending you regular reminders to have maintenance done. This is a two-fold reason. The first is to have you come in to have regular maintenance because they want your continued business, but also because they know your vehicle best and by getting it in the shop keeps you under warranty and safer on the road.

To schedule a maintenance check, call your dealership and set an appointment. Most dealerships will give appointments priority over “walk in” business because it expedites scheduling and they reward courteous consideration with quick service. If you have a Mazda,  GM, GMC or Chevy, give these guys a call and have your maintenance done and mention “North DFW Car Blog” when you set your appointment.

IT’S HERE! Hakuna-Miata!

The LA Auto Show unveiled the all-new Mazda MX-5 “Miata”. Style, grace, fuel-efficiency and most of all…BAD ASS PERFORMANCE! Zoom-Zoom Bitches! I’m taking pre-orders for anyone interested.

Take a look at this sexy beast!

Thanksgivings and a Turkey Feast

Today was amazing! Our owner threw one of the biggest feasts I have ever scene at a company get together. Before today, I was always working at Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving meant doubles and overtime pay. I was lucky if I got a turkey sandwich much less a whole turkey and definitely not a whole turkey at the table.

How is anyone supposed to get this into them in one sitting?

Imagine my surprise when I saw these sights before me and was able to enjoy food, conversation and celebration for blessings to be thankful for! We had a benediction blessing before the feast, our owner thanked us for our work (and not in the humdrum way of obligation, but sincerity abound), and I got to celebrate my military service by offering my seat to an elderly Navy veteran so he could sit with his wife and grandchildren. It was my honor in pleasure to be a part of it all.

 

Eat Drink and be Thankful! I Had a Great Time at the Dinner.

 

Today as we enter this austere holiday season, I want to thank a few people. I want to thank my buddy Jeremy Cox, who puts up with me and despite my faults he loves me as any brother would and I cannot thank him enough for it.

I want to thank my kids, Alex Taylor and Cheyanne Taylor, they haven’t been able to see me but I want them to know that I love them and miss them dearly. They are the reason I do this and I work myself to near exhaustion everyday to provide for them a life suitable to their kindness and generosity.

Cheyanne (far-left) and Alexander (far-right) with their grandparents and brother.

 

I want to thank my father, Stephen Taylor, for giving a role model in the auto sales industry and the advice that is invaluable to this business. I work harder and smarter because of him and look forward to one day taking on the mantle of First Class Autos owner in the future and continuing his legacy of providing excellent, moral, and equitable service to the public and my community.

Stephen and Susan Taylor

 

I want to thank my mother, Susan Taylor, for acting as a rock to our family, a model of beauty, strength, and reservation. She has called me out on my faults but always with a tempered hand crafting me towards reaching my own potential. However many times I have missed the mark, she has always been there to help me up, brush me off, and give a pat on the back to motivate me once again.

Finally I want to thank all of you, my followers around the world (yes, there are international fans now too and they deserve a shout out too). I’m not just an American auto dealer, I can service the world and I look forward to helping you enjoy the thrill of the open road soon, freedom of mobility and wonderment of seeing new sites by getting you the best engineered engines, the most efficient fuel economy and the best service in the world. To all out there, I am thankful for your support and continued interest in Mazda and me.

You Make This a Reality, Thanks!

 

Happy Thanksgiving where ever you are. May you be more blessed than I am this year and all those to follow.

Thanksgiving, Bar Rescue, Bitcoin, Busted Knees and a Puppy Dog

This Sunday was a rough one for me. I spent pretty much the doing my laundry which meant I spent a lot of time catching up on my favorite show Bar Rescue on Spike TV on Hulu Plus and switching out laundry loads. With that comes an added hazard; my puppy dog, Moya. She’s a hyper little lady with a penchant for following near my feet. Most of the time it’s not an issue because my dog isn’t doing that while I’m holding a huge tub of laundry. This time the little rascal crossed my feet at the wrong time and tripped me, causing me to twist my knee and pop it out of place. Ouch. Today I get to keep it in my brace and endure while not taking my pain pills that knock me flatter than my dog after a walk. Out like a light.

This is REALLY gonna hurt.

Since I was laid up yesterday, I took the time to get engrossed in watching failing bars get a major internal kick in the pants, a new face lift and a pseudo happy ending while tapping my phone playing Bitcoin Billionaire on my iPhone. If you haven’t subscribed to my Twitter feed then you wouldn’t have seen all the funny pictures as I was playing. Apparently it wasn’t advertised how hilarious the smart-ass geek humor is while you’re building your stockpiles. In a matter of a day I wen’t from megabytes to petabytes and then crossed into exabytes (those are really words).

Personally I love that I can do that while not paying a bit of attention to it. Hope your Thanksgiving is joyous that I’m thankful for all my readers, followers and fans. Love ya all and have a fantastic Thanksgiving.

Give me a call (469) 321-7364 if you want some bragging rights at the Thanksgiving Dinner table. I’ll get you a great Mazda to drive home to for the Holidays! See ya in the Christmas Season!

Car Funnies: The “Good Ol’ Days”

Setting a New Tone

As I reflect on the last few deals that I have done, I realized that I’m too “vanilla” in my posts. I’m not really personal. Not really off putting at times to my audience, and generally am not stirring real conversations about my postings.

What this means is that I’m going to be setting a new tone for the blog. I will give you hard, honest, brash advice about the selling process. You’ll read about my real thoughts of customers, my gut feeling about selling and my tone will be off putting to some.

This is a blog first about getting information to the public but also to get readers interested in the Mazda brand and to buy from me! Whether you’re in Texas, Minnesota, New York, California…hell even international, I want you to buy from me because you know that I am giving you real advice, an excellent product that performs, and a reasonable price for the quality of my vehicles.

Mazda is a low price brand compared to other major name brands but it is not a lesser vehicle by any stretch. You have the right to get a great car for your money. On the same token, I have a right to make money from doing my job and that’s based on commissions. If you think my service isn’t worth your time and money then nickle and dime someone else. But also know that there are few salesmen out there who will talk price up front and expedite the process of selling your vehicle while also making sure you know what that vehicle is capable of and how to use it.

Able Yougas learned, and appreciated, that approach. I got him a new 2015 Mazda 6 Touring and made a good commission too while providing him with a dealer experience that he will remember fondly.

This guy did it right!

Here’s what I need from you:

• Look at your car and see if you want a new one, not need but want a new car. 99% of you want a new car but feel that you can’t get a new one because of either an existing loan or credit issues. That’s not a reason for not calling me right now! I have a large stock of inventory, a lot of different brands, aside from Mazda, and a wide range of prices that all my banks can work with.
• Get your title out of the safe and have it handy! You know where your important documents are and should have it handy. Get your title ready and call me right now!
• Crunch the numbers and look at how much you can put aside for a down payment. Even if it’s absolutely NOTHING! I don’t care. I have options for no money down but they make the monthly payment go up, I still have the banks that will do business with you. It’s no excuse for not calling me right now!
• Use this simple formula: (Monthly Payment = Price – Down Payment / Length of Note) it really is that simple. Call me now and I’ll give you the darn price!
• Lastly, call me right now at (972) 569-0101 and ask for Drew Taylor at Ext. 3004, Call (469) 321-7364 and get me directly or email me at drewtaylortx@gmail.com. Either way, night or day, call me to get your new car! Don’t wait to do all these things. I’ll get these done for you (minus getting the title).

Heartwarming Joy

Nothing makes a salesperson’s heart leap for joy more than hearing the customer fully satisfied and excited about their purchase.

I got that opportunity last week when I was able to turn a horribly bad situation of brand distrust into a loyal customer. The following story is heart-wrenching and a horrible example of poor service to a customer.

As my followers can deduce, I work for El Dorado Mazda in McKinney, Texas. It comes as no surprise that when I heard about Ms. C and her husband had not been able to get excellent service from our brand headquarters, I could not believe that Mazda would drop the ball so horribly. What a place to be put into. My customers liked our dealership but were now distrustful of our brand because of numerous malfunction issues regarding a hard to find factory defect in their car.

Note to readers: I am in no way saying that this is a problem with the lineup. This was a single isolated incident. Don’t think that you should be worried about your vehicle if you own a Mazda.

After spending thousands of dollars in diagnostics and repairs, they finally had had enough. They needed a car and right now. Ms. C really loves Mazda cars, specifically her now failing Mazda 3 sedan, but her husband was furious, and rightly so, at how corporate handled the situation. I had my work cut out for me. How do you keep the customer while easing the fears, anger, and hesitation about buying a new vehicle after spending so much on the last one.

Here’s What I Did To Help

We looked at their options and at first it was a Mazda 2, a small stripped down vehicle with very little to offer for a mature couple. It’s like going from a Lotus Esprit to a 1970 VW Bug (a real let down, and deflation to the ego). But even though it runs great and cost-effective, it’s still sparse in the options area, having a rudimentary radio and interior at best. What they really needed was a Mazda 3, but Ms. C’s husband didn’t, and wouldn’t, trust Mazda enough to invest in a 3. No way, no how. The trust was BUSTED!

After having gained some serious rapport with Ms. C, I knew that she wasn’t enough to gain their business. I then turned to her husband and asked the hard, but necessary, question. “You really hate how corporate treated you, don’t you?” His answer came after a long sigh and grumble. “Yes.” The reason why he was angry was because Mazda wasn’t going to help them get a replacement, or even a significant discount, for a wiring issue that occurred at the plant during their car’s manufacturing.

Here’s where some short backstory is needed. When their car was produced (2006), Mazda wasn’t in charge of domestic manufacturing. Ford was. Mazda USA didn’t go it alone in the US until after 2010, so by their thinking this was a Ford problem and they weren’t responsible for the defect. But perception is reality to the customer. It had Mazda’s name, it was a Mazda model, and so Mazda is responsible. So when Mazda HQ said “Sorry, but we can’t help you.”, the customer was infuriated.

I had to reassure this man that, although the corporation may have not had his back, I did have his wife and family’s interests at heart. I showed him how Mazda had improved the vehicle since it went on it’s own. I showed him how the chassis was constructed, how the air bags were updated, how the electrical system was state-of-the-art and most importantly how the warranty worked. I also offered to personally keep in contact with them to supervise the care of the vehicle and reassure them of it’s value and stability.

Mr. C needed a friend and consular for his Mazda after the sale was done, not during the sale. He knew we’d give him a good deal on it, but what about caring for his family car afterward? That’s where I came into the plan. That’s also how I made the sale happen. Ms. C loved the Mazda 3, but would resign to have a Mazda 2 if they couldn’t make the numbers work. Meanwhile Mr. C didn’t want to invest heavy in a vehicle that might break again like the last one. But after my assuring him that I would be there after the sale, he saw the value of investing the money into the car his wife really wanted and needed.

I called them up last week, and they are absolutely loving their new vehicle! And I’m loving the feeling of having helped…along with the commission. 😉

Happy Driving!

Friday Funny: It’s In The Tank!

Negotiating Dealer Headaches

This has got to be the one part of the sale that everyone dreads, negotiation. Honestly I cannot tell you how many customers have come into a dealership saying they’ll pay one price, only to be sold at a higher price. This comes down to two schools of thought: 1950’s Car Sales vs. 21st Century Ignorance. And both need to go.

Ponder this scenario and tell me if you would laugh at the person at the counter?

A man walks up to the salesperson at the local T-Mobile store and says: “I want to look at the new iPhone 6.” He’s shown the phone, told about the features and tells the salesperson that they’ll take it. He gets the box in hand, gets the price and then tells the person: “I’ll take it for $50, but I can’t do $199.99.” and expects a return bid.

If you’re thinking he’s off his rocker, you wouldn’t be wrong to suggest that he seek medical attention immediately. You also wouldn’t be wrong if you laughed hysterically as the security guard on duty was called to “escort” him off the premises either.

So why do we still have this antiquated notion of hidden agendas when buying a car? The reason is unexpectedly simple, tradition. From 1930 (with the Model T) -1993 (The first CarMax), cars were “sold” to customers not “purchased” by consumers. This may sound redundant but it really isn’t. The concept of being sold on a car is not new to people. The salesman tries to swindle you out of as much money as they can and pockets his fat wallet with your hard earned cash, meanwhile you try and get the car from him for as little as possible.

But this model no longer works today, for either party. Why? Because both parties are at an inherent disadvantage due to the “Internet Effect”. Consumers now are able to access the previously “secret” knowledge that was once only accessible to the dealer and his competitors; namely the invoice price and the MSRP. But there is also a much harsher effect impacting that local dealer too, the “Wal-Mart Effect”. We’ve been seeing this one for years, decades really, with the impact on local stores going out of business due to large big-box retailers, like Wal-Mart, that squeeze the margins so tight that others can’t compete. CarMax, TrueCar and other wholesalers on the internet are doing the same to the local dealer too.

Take for instance my dealership. We sell our cars at about 3% above invoice (not a whole lot), but the MSRP is always listed on the manufacturers’ websites while everyone thinks the “sticker” price is a bullpucky number that is the “high” number, when in reality it isn’t. It’s really only the price for tint, paint (if premium) and 3% over the price we paid for the vehicle. The irony about this is that the consumer still thinks the dealer is able to negotiate large amounts of cash.

Don’t get me wrong there is still wiggle room if you’re going with a major brand like Chevy or Ford because of the manufacturer’s massive mark up, but for smaller brands, like Mazda, there isn’t any. The best advice that I can give for both consumer and salespeople is to be upfront with the dynamics of the deal.

If you are a salesman and you know the markup is almost negligible, be up front about how little there is compared to what you paid for it. Yes, you may be jumping the gun a bit, but you’ll save your customer frustration when you keep coming back with virtually the same numbers. You will have already told them that there wasn’t much wiggle room to begin with.

For consumers, make sure that you learn the dynamics about the brand company first so you know what the buying position of the dealer is before you go in, and also know that you are paying for their service more than their product. Otherwise, why buy from the dealership instead of eBay or Craig’s List.

Learning Manual: Funny, Frustrating

One of the more irritating aspects of driving is when I know that I can get a good deal on a car if only I knew how to drive stick shift.

With manual shift engines making up less of the inventory I really don’t have a problem with purchasing a new car. But when you’re scouring the Auto Trader or Craig’s List and you see a well kept version of the car you want, for thousands less, you jump on it.

One small but important detail though is when you see these dread words: “Manual Transmission”. This is where I hang my head in disappointment, frustration, and inevitably…shame.

I didn’t learn stick shift growing up and in the Army I drove an automatic HUMVEE and an 5-ton Automatic as well. When I wanted to get certified on the 2 1/2-ton (aka “The Deuce”), I tried to learn stick shift and almost blew the clutch. My sergeant summarily yanked me out of the truck, chewed my rear and I was promptly returned to my 5-ton. I felt horrible about it. I failed my unit by not qualifying and from that point I simply never saw a reason to try to learn again.

Fast forward to today and I am in car sales. I have to move and appraise both types of vehicles. Until last week, I have only had automatic trade-ins. Those manuals that have come in, I have had someone else take care of because I was busy with something at the time. But then I had two manual trade-ins, on the same sale! Needing to not have to cut someone in on the deal (and my commission) I struggled with moving the vehicles to the appraiser. I was bound and determined to remember my sergeant’s instructions: clutch, brake, turn it on, and for God’s sake, Private, release the e-brake! *pointing to the large stick at my right thigh*

*VROOM* The engine starts and I put it into gear, release the clutch and give it gas. *stutter, stutter, STOP* It shut off and the battery light came on.

Long story short it took me about thirty minutes to get the cars over there, and it was only next door and behind the building. I could have walked the distance in five minutes taking my time and leisure. I was ticked something fierce and frustrated that I still couldn’t drive stick to save my life.

What do I do? LEARN!

I took our resident sport car enthusiast and asked him to teach me the basics and take time out of my day for some training. I still have trouble backing up and shifting into third but, for the most part, I can get my cars back into the appraisal department and bring the car around for test drives.

The point of this post is to let you know that you can achieve a driving goal if you put your mind to task and put in the effort to make it happen. Even if your boss says you can’t.

Has anyone else found driving a manual transmission car? Leave a comment below and tell your funny or frustrating story about learning to drive stick.