A woman is swearing off a Toyota dealership in a Dallas suburb after they purportedly refused to give her a pricing breakdown for a $27,500 vehicle. But not everyone is sympathetic to her cause.
A TikTok user named Katie Casey (@ktkc_rn) posted a video on June 4 with the full story. In the video, Casey explains that she started her car shopping journey at a dealership in Richardson, Texas.
She thought she was prepared after asking ChatGPT and TiKTok how to get the best deal.
When Casey arrived at the first dealership, she says she encountered a salesperson new on the job who had trouble answering basic questions. Casey says she initially wasn’t a fan of the coworker who stepped in to assist the salesperson.
“First, I thought he was playing with me,” Casey said. “Because I was like, ‘On the CARFAX, it says there was a recall. Was it dealt with?’ And he’s like, ‘Oh, probably.’”
Casey informed the salesperson that she didn’t intend to buy a car on a “probably.”
She says the interaction improved from there. When she informed him she was going to the Toyota dealership across the street, she says the salesperson became more than accommodating. He let her take a pricing breakdown so she could comparison shop and even gave her one of their loaner cars.
Her experience at the next dealership wasn’t nearly as positive, she says.
“The Toyota dealership in Richardson played in my face,” she said. Casey said she felt like the sales staff didn’t take her seriously. She also claims that, although she was up front about her budget, the salesperson didn’t respect it.
“I was like, ‘My out-the-door payment, my max, is going to be $25,000,’” Casey recalled. “‘That’s all I’m spending.’ He’s like, ‘Well, this is $27,500.’ I was like, ‘$25k is my max.’ He’s like, ‘It’s just $2,500 [more].’”
“Sir, no, that’s not what we’re doing.”
Casey said the salesman also denied her request for a pricing breakdown
“He was like, ‘Are you going to take that to another dealership?’ I was like, ‘Is that not allowed? Do you have a rulebook?’” she said, pointing out that she just left a dealership that allowed her to take a pricing breakdown with her.
Casey said she told the salesperson that for this reason, she wouldn’t give him her business—even if he had the best price.
“He was like, ‘What can we change to sell you a car today?’” she said. “I was like, ‘Your attitude, sir.’”
In the comments, viewers offered mixed reactions to Casey’s story. Many feel her approach to car shopping is too rigid.
“Respectfully, you have not the slightest clue as to what you’re saying or doing so I probably wouldn’t be giving reviews on dealers,” wrote one person.
“We need to ban you from ever buying a vehicle… or stepping foot into a dealership,” joked a second.
“They gave you the car so you would come back,” offered another person. “It’s called yo-yo-ing.”
Despite the negativity, Casey’s approach closely aligns with most best practice advice.
In general, experienced car buyers recommend knowing your out-the-door price, shopping around, and avoiding the full sticker price. Some may disagree, but Casey’s method may have gotten her the best price. And isn’t that what everyone wants when they buy a car?
Motor1 reached out to Casey and Toyota of Richardson for comment. We’ll update this post if either responds.
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