It’s every new car owner’s dream to be handed the keys to a brand new vehicle, tied together with a red bow on top of their new purchase—just like the commercials. But one customer says her dreams were squashed after she tried to take the bow home.
In a video with 1.3 million views, Elizabeth Riley (@elizabethriley1) sits in a chair at a car dealership, staring into the camera and blinking.
On-screen text reads, “If I’m spending almost $30k on a new car, why can’t I keep the pretty red bow?”
The caption continues, “I just want to take the bow home.”
In an email to the Daily Dot, Riley clarifies, “When I purchased my car, I was genuinely surprised to learn that the dealership didn’t allow customers to take home the red bow. I had always assumed it was part of the celebratory experience, especially since it’s such a big moment for many buyers.”
Car buyers share their ‘red bow’ experiences
While the dealership Riley purchased her car from wouldn’t let her take the red bow home, some commenters say they got lucky.
“No, girl, you need to find a sweet salesman; they let me keep my red bow for my Porsche!” one shares.
“My mom got a bow from a different car and kept it,” another says. Riley responds, “My boyfriend’s mom got to keep hers, too.”
“Am I the only one who got to keep my bow??? and it was pink,” a third adds.
However, other car buyers are in the same boat as Riley, leaving disappointed and bow-less from the dealership.
“Wait, I bought my car new, and they didn’t even offer me a bow,” a viewer writes.
“Just bought a car and the salesman said they only had a few and couldn’t give it to me. Just had to take a pic and give it back,” another says. Riley replies, “That’s what happened to me! I never knew they didn’t come with the car.”
“Me realizing I’m paying 45k for my new car and didn’t get a bow..,” a third notes.
Car dealership workers explain
In the comments, car dealership workers explain why they don’t always give away the bows.
“Cuz each bow is like $200+, no most places don’t buy in bulk, and their reasoning is if they give it to the client, they end up throwing it out vs they can continue to reuse it and make every1 happy,” one explains.
“LOL, I work at a dealership, and we have one bow total. We lost it for a while, and it caused a panic… It turns out the Subaru dealer next door stole it to use,” another writes.
Others suggest that Riley should have added the bow into her final negotiation for her new car.
“Just say, ‘I’ll buy the car if I get the bow,’” one suggests.
“Becuz you paid $30k for the car, not $30k for the car+bow. You should’ve included it in the negotiations,” another says.
@elizabethriley1 i just want to take the bow home #fyp #foryou #newcars #bow #carbow #newcarbow #biggirlpurchase ♬ Cartoon Eye Blinking Sound – Anna
The Daily Dot reached out to Riley via email and TikTok direct message for further comment.
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