M.T. of New Rochelle writes:

My wife and I had been looking at the choices among minivans available, and decided that the Ford Windstar was the safest and most practical of them all. We visited many dealerships and discovered that they were offering 0.9% financing till 3/31/99.

My friend and I were curious about what my car would have sold for had we put it into one of those auto trader publications.

As we were looking through it I spotted Smith Cairns full page add with my Pathfinder being sold by them for over $8900! I was furious! My stomach was in knots and I developed a splitting headache that kept me up into the early morning. My wife was so angry she burst into tears when I showed her the ad! We feel violated and frustrated because we believed their lies! We haven't really been able to enjoy the new car because everytime we get into it we are reminded of this nightmare.

Let's see now ... what was the problem again?  You bought a new van, which you like, and you got an allowance of $5,300 on your old vehicle which the dealer isnow trying to sell for $8,900.  Everything seems more or less normal, including the salesman's sob story about how your old car will never sell. 

It's really important to remember that the advertised price has nothing to do with the sales price.  Maybe the dealer will get $8,900 for your old bucket of bolts, maybe not. 

Our advice:  Relax and enjoy your new Windstar.   

Automotive Page

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