name: E. O.

city: 91345

I was sorry to hear about the problem that the gentleman had at Galpin Ford in North Hills, Calif. I am conscientiously bound to state that I had a wonderful experience when purchasing a car on April 14, 2001. The two salesmen I dealt with, Charles Dunn and Barry Libitsky were essence of professionalism and customer service. I was purchasing on a special Ford discount, so there was never any large commission involved. Nevertheless, they never rushed the transaction in order to get to a better commissioned deal. They were patient and worked hard to get me the very best deal they could. I suggested that I might want to pay cash, but Charles, who has quite a financial background, convinced me that I was better off leaving my money where it was earning interest. The trade-in allowance was very fair, my payments are manageable, & I was made to feel like the most important person sitting in Galpin Ford that day!

Never has the usual ordeal of purchasing a new car been more pleasurable. I would recommend either of these 2 gentlemen to anyone!

name: T. S.

city: 90713

problem: 01/27/2000

I was shopping for a new vehicle. I owned a 1997 Ford Explorer Limited. I was looking at a 2000 Eddie Bauer Ford Explorer. I decided to go to Galpin Ford in North Hills, California where I bought my 1997. When I showed up for my appointment, they had my file ready since I was a previous customer.

When we initially started negotiations we were very far apart. I told them I couldn't afford a $700+ payment. So, they brought in a manager, Mr. Jeffrey Gelt. From there began a rather lengthy negotiation process. I told him I really couldn't do anything above $580. He came in at $649. I said no and was up and ready to leave. He started to list the pros of making the deal and asked me where I was at money-wise. He was still in the $600's. I said even $625 would be tight for me. He eventually came back with $619. I said I really didn't know. I asked to test drive the vehicle. When we came back I still wasn't sure and told him so. He again listed the pros of the deal i.e. 36,000 miles on my car, mounting maintenance costs, trade value of my vehicle, etc. After thinking, I reluctantly said yes. We then had to wait another hour and a half or so before getting to the finance office. During that time I was rethinking my decision. When we finally got in to do the paperwork, I stopped short of signing the lease papers. They then called Mr. Gelt back in. I told him I couldn't sign. I said I was tired, in pain because I had recently had spinal fusion surgery, and didn't think I could sign tonight. I asked him if the deal would be available tomorrow. He said it was a special deal so I should sign the papers tonight. I repeated the question. He said it would cost me an additional $616 if I didn't make the deal that night. He also reiterated the pros of the deal -

1) My manufacturer's Warranty was up and my costs of owning the vehicle would be significantly increasing.

2) There are too many used Explorer's on the lot and people aren't buying them which equals lower trade-in value.

3) Even if I kept the 97 Explorer and paid it down, I still wouldn't get much on trade-in because the vehicle would be 2 body styles behind.

I asked him, "don't I have an extended warranty on the 97." He said "no." I said I was pretty sure I did. He said he'd check the computer and then advised me that I did not have any warranty on it. I knew they had a file on this purchase and it was on the last paperwork that they had in the file. With this in mind, I figured they had to be right. After panicking by what he had said, I signed the papers.

Two days later, while going through my auto file I realized that I did, in fact, have a premium care extended warranty and it was on the paperwork which they had.

I brought this to their attention and they said, "sorry, there is nothing we can do."

I feel that they misrepresented the facts in order to make the sale. Not too mention their strong armed, high-pressure sales tactics. If they hadn't misrepresented the information I would not have made the deal that night. I have sent official letters to the dealership, Ford Motor co, and my legal advisor.