A Turo host went viral on TikTok after documenting their less-than-ideal experience at a car dealership.
User Lainie (@beepbeeplainie) posted the video documenting the episode. In it, she explained that she was given the runaround and kept from seeing a car she inquired about.
“Is it just me or have these car dealerships completely lost their mind?” she asked before sharing her experience with the salesman.
@beepbeeplainie #cardealershipsbelike #buyingacarbelike #buyingacar ♬ original sound – beepbeeplainie
Lainie said that she went to the dealership to see a car she found on its website. Instead of showing her the vehicle, however, a salesman asked Lainie to take a seat—a move that signaled to Lainie that she was about to get dragged through a sales pitch.
The Turo host acknowledged that these interactions are par for the course at car dealerships. Still, she said that she was frustrated by the barrage of questions.
“He asked me, ‘What was it about this car that made me want to look at it as opposed to anything else?’” Lainie recalled.
Lainie said the line of questions annoyed her, in part, because her answers might be used against her in the negotiation process.
“No matter what I say, I’m screwed,” she said. “None of these questions help me. … They only help the dealership.” Her reluctance to answer questions, she said, ultimately frustrated the salesperson, who then asked her what she wanted her monthly payment to be. Lainie maintained that she wanted to see the car first and told the salesperson that they could talk numbers afterwards.
After some back-and-forth, the salesperson finally provided figures for the car—which included a non-negotiable $3,000 protection package. Lainie said that the dealership refused to negotiate.
“This is my least favorite part of being a Turo host,” she said.
A number of viewers who watched Laine’s video shared their own negative experiences at car dealerships.
“The car I was looking at had been a smoker’s car, so the salesman suggested I take up smoking so it wouldn’t bother me,” one person shared.
Someone else said that they couldn’t believe that the dealership wouldn’t remove the protection plan fee. “If it’s a fee they won’t remove, it needs to be included in the list price,” they said. “Otherwise it’s optional.”
Another person wrote that dealerships ruin the experience of purchasing a vehicle. “Buying a car should be enjoyable,” their comment read. “Instead it’s the worst process ever. I absolutely dread going to a dealership.”
In a comment, Lainie said that she would’ve purchased the car had it not included the $3,000 fee. “That’s why I stayed,” she wrote. “I wanted it at list price.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Lainie for comment via email.
