VW dealer in Evanston advertising two cars on both cars.com and their dealership website. I spent an hour+ Saturday morning finding my way to the dealership. I get there only to find the prices were completely different, by the tune of several thousands of dollars. I was then told "typo by a new hire in marketing".... I had the iphone with me, walked the lot, and every singe car was the same way.

The cars in question? Two 2007 Passat Wagons. One advertised at $16.9K, the other at $17.9k. Actual price on the window of the cars? $16.9k = $21.9k & $17.9k = $24.9k.

Further more, "VW Certified" in ad's = Dealer "pre-certified", meaning "certified" warranty is an additional $2,500 (I know the real cost is about $1k).

The "certified" part doesn't bother me. What bothers me, and the basis for my question, is don't you guys have a bait & switch law up here?

I find it hard to believe that "a new hire" didn't have someone checking before they posted their prices.

Even harder to believe they couldn't have reposted their pricing given how wide spread it turned out to be.

Thanks guys. It was a frustrating day, to say the least. Had my dad in town, and he was stunned. I've been telling him it's a whole different ball game up here when trying to buy a car. He didn't believe me, until then. I feel sorry for those who just walk into that dealership off the street, and get hosed! They had a base model, very used, Mini Cooper on the lot, for the price of a new one elsewhere. Just criminal. If you look up "certified" passats on cars.com, and select down to just the wagons "only 12 of them w/n 30 miles of GE", you'll see the two I'm talking about. One is a silver "sport" model, the other is a dark grey model. Both are advertised as "VW Certified Pre Loved" cars...meaning an extended 2/24k VW warranty. Until, that is, you get to the dealership.

The good news.....2.99% Financing.

Tried to buy a car from them when I lived in Evanston. Went to close on it and the decided they didn't want my trade in because it was a manual. Was a sweet red Acura Integra. Went to a different dealer . . .they took the trade, car was sold in 3 days.

FWIW, I have never seen or heard of an extended warranty under $2K. $2,500, depending on what is covered and who is writing the policy, doesn't seem that out of line price wise.

Does VW have a CPO Site like BMW has? If the program is like BMW, I would have little worry about buying it sight unseen as they fix everything. And if it isn't fixed, they fix it. I would have no problem buying a car in Cali and sending it out . . . if it was a BMW.

Clam, they do have a site similiar to BMW to find CPO cars within the VW network, and these cars listed on Evanston are part of that search. Some VW's are considered "pre-certified", whereas they were inspected by VW and ready for the warranty to be attached at the point of sale. Pugi does this too. I asked on the cost of the warranty on a model they had, was quoted $1,300 and change. But, Pugi cars aren't advertised as true VW certified from the beginning, unlike Evanston. Additionally, the prices advertised are what I've found on the cars when I went there.

I think I'm just going to keep my Lexus until I have time to buy a car out of the state of Illinois. This has been the worst headache of b/s games I've ever had to play in my life. From getting yelled at from a salesman at the Acura dealer in Naperville, to the games at VW Evanston, to the "it's perfect, come on down" only to find it's far from it. I even drove a "certified" Passat wagon last Friday, that barely got us back to the dealership. Until I get the time to head out of state to buy a car, I'm just going to keep my perfectly fine Lexus and move on. Sad really, when you've got the cash, the reason, and the motivation to buy a big ticket item but can't, unless you're willing to get lied to, scammed, ripped off, and treated like crap.

You can always buy a BMW.

wow, I can't see paying over $1k for a warranty.

edmunds.com

That looks like an example of an extended warranty purchased when the car is new. So many factors go into those things, it is mind-boggling. Unless they are backed by the manufacturer, they are typically worth the paper they are written on. A comprehensive ext. warranty that covers pretty much everything on a used BMW is about $800 per year maxed out at 3 years. The cheaper the ext. warranty, the less you probably want or need it.

true, you can get a better deal on the ext warranty when you purchase a new vehicle...