I don't know that I could recommend this place, but I admit my experience is based upon one visit.
I had been in the market for a Q7 and had been to various dealers, including a really good one in Audi Warwick that just didn't have as much inventory as Natick. I went to Audi Natick with a friend on a Sunday (it was Father's Day, actually.)
The building itself is nice... and they have a decent inventory.
Maybe it was just the way I was dressed (jeans and a t-shirt) but it doesn't seem anyone there was really interested in my business. We looked around for about 20 minutes with no one approaching us (don't get me wrong - this part was great and I wish more dealerships did it.) I went up to a girl at the desk and asked if we could speak to a salesperson. Within a few minutes, a young guy came over to us with some water and asked what model we were interested in. He brought a Q7 into the garage and said he would get a "brand specialist" for us.
We sat in the car a few minutes when Steve approached us. I gave him the background and told him how I had a new Yukon XL Denali that was killing my back and I wanted to have it appraised for a trade in on a Q7. He said that was fine and asked if we wanted to take the Q7 for a test drive. A test drive, alone, sounded great, so we did. They appraised the Denali while we were gone, which was a good use of time.
We came back about 20 minutes later, and that's when things really went south. I expected that since Steve has been assigned as our salesperson, he would be available to answer questions, talk prices, inventory, etc... But in fact, he was busy at his desk with another customer. He saw us many times as he walked from his desk to the manager's desk area, but didn't acknowledge that we were back. We waited around, sitting in various vehicles. Eventually, as he walked by, he said, "Did you like it?" I said, "Yes... I'd like to talk to you about it." "Okay," he said, "I'll be done shortly."
Now, about half an hour after we returned from our test drive, I managed to catch the attention of the guy that appraised the Denali. He gave me a low figure, and I said that that seemed low (much lower than the KBB dealer trade in figure) but that maybe it could work out through making it up on a discount on the Q7. "We don't negotiate," he said. "Well, I said, I get that, but you know, there must be something we could do to make this work." "Nope," he replied, "We're under strict orders from corporate not to negotiate on Q7's because we can sell them all day long at the MSRP."
Well, that attitude didn't exactly warm the cockles of my heart (like I said, it's as if they didn't take me seriously.)
Another half hour went by, an hour went by, and finally after an hour and a half went by, and Steve was still busy. As they were getting close to closing, we finally went over to the manager's desk area and waited until someone noticed us.
"What's up?" a manager asked.
"Well, I'm just wondering how much longer Steve will be? We've been waiting an hour and a half." I said.
"What you do want?" he asked.
"I'd like to get some pricing on the Q7 we drove over there." (by this point I knew there was no time left to go through inventory.)
He ruffled through some papers, found a copy of the window sticker (or some spec sheet) and pointed to the MSRP.
"That's the price." he said.
"I get that, but I was wondering if Steve and I could sit down and work on some pricing?" I replied.
"We're closing. We don't negotiate on Q7's." was his answer.
Okay, fine... I got the hint that they just weren't interested.
I went back to Audi Warwick a few days later where Mike Jackson is warm and inviting and takes time to figure out what you need. I gave him the VIN of the Q7 in Natick I wanted to buy, and they traded with Natick to make it happen, even giving me a good discount in the process.
I'm picking up my Q7 tonight, and didn't have to deal with the guys in Natick to make it happen, which is great after that experience. read more