Jack Powell Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram

I found a Jeep on the Jack Powell website that matched what I was looking for at the right price. I spoke at length to Mark, the internet sales manger, prior to coming in to see the vehicle. I did not want to waste my time on a test drive or on a contract unless I knew we were on the same page regarding the price. Mark assured me multiple times that there would be no shenanigans, no "bait and switch," and that they would honor the deal advertised on their website. When I arrived, Mark came out to show me the vehicle and introduced me to a different sales associate, Jose. When Jose got into the Jeep for a test drive, he disclosed that there was an ant-theft device attached to it that was not disclosed on the website or discussed prior to my arriving, but assured me that it could be removed. The test drive went well, and at this point I was quite happy with the overall purchase experience so far. However, when sitting down with Jose to go over the price of the car, I happened to notice that the total price of the car was around $2000 more than the sum of the vehicle, tax, fees, etc. In other words, the math on the initial sales paperwork didn’t seem to add up. When I asked about the difference, Jose pointed to some small print near an asterisk lower down on the page for a "S.W.A.T." anti-theft device at a cost of $1995. It was alarming to me that something that cost almost $2000 would not be included in a transparent way in the price breakdown of a vehicle. I told Jose I did want want the anti-theft device, and reminded him that he indicated that it could be removed. He went back to his sales manager, and came back indicated that they were willing to sell me the S.W.A.T. device ”at cost." I told Jose that I wasn't interested in buying the device, and again reminded him that he told me it could be removed. I also told him that I specifically wanted to avoid these kinds of hassles when I spoke to Mark (internet sales manager) prior to coming in. I told him that I would not have come into this dealership if I had known up-front that I would be asked to purchase an anti-theft device, or any other "add-on" that was not disclosed on the window sticker or the website. 
Jose came back a third time with essentially the same message — that they would sell the S.W.A.T. to me “at cost,” and that that was the best they could do. There were unwilling to remove it. I told Jose (I think I even wrote out) what I would be willing to pay for the car — which was exactly the price which was published on their website, which Mark and I had agreed to, plus taxes, doc, and fees. This price, to me, represented the starting point of the negotiation. The fact that I couldn’t get them to agree to even that was discouraging, to say the least. Jose went to run my offer by their sales manager, Lee. Instead of Jose returning, however, some new person (a woman whose name I can’t remember), came back and told me they would not sell me the car without the S.W.A.T. device. At that point, I saw Mark outside, so I walked up to him and let him know that I felt that he had lied to me — that there WAS an add-on that they were trying to get me to buy — the exact thing I was concerned about before coming in —and they were not in fact going to honor the deal we had agreed upon over the phone. At this point Mark, clearly frustrated, brought me to speak directly to their sales manager, Lee. Lee tried to explain that they could not let me have the vehicle for the price Mark and I had agreed to because it was a “loss leader” — i.e. that if they sold it to me at that price, they would be losing money. He said the fact I had been told it could be removed represented a "training issue." I told Lee I didn’t really understand the ins and outs of their pricing strategy or advertising strategy, and didn’t really want to. I knew what the vehicle was worth to me, knew what it was listed for on their website, and I had been very careful in my conversations with Mark prior to coming in to avoid any "tricks" or surprises like this. I knew what wanted to pay, had a verbal “man-to-man” agreement with Mark about this, and only when I felt that we had an agreement decided to visit the dealership. After several hours at the dealership, including a lot of emotionally draining and frustrating negotiation, I honestly just wanted to get out of there. It was a few days before Christmas and I wanted to get the deal done as a gift for my wife. I think I ended up paying about $1000 for the S.W.A.T. device I didn’t want. When I finally got to Keith in finance, the purchase price that I “agreed” on with Lee was still wrong — the actual price was about $200 more than what was written down on the agreement. Keith indicated that there was a “glitch” in the system regarding the calculation of fees— which he indicated currently goes in the dealership’s favor to the tune of a few hundred dollars on every transaction. So, to sum up, I bought the car — mostly because I wanted the gift for my wife and because I didn’t want to go through anything like this again. After several hours negotiating with multiple people, none of whom seemed to have any intention of honoring the deal Mark and I made over the phone, I just wanted to get it done and get out of there. 
As I see it, the brand that Jeep is trying to build and sustain are principles like integrity, simplicity, ruggedness, and the sort of straightforward transparency where someone's word is worth something. Apparently these Jeep dealers don’t seem to support that brand — instead the brand they seem to be creating is one where hidden add-ons are deceptively slipped into contract fine print, where people will say anything to get you “in the door,” and where a man's word means nothing.