“I need to sleep on it.”
Car dealerships already carry a reputation that most salespeople don’t stand a chance against. Lots of folks walk in assuming they’re about to be tricked, pressured, or upsold into financial ruin.
Meanwhile, the people working there are running on quotas, deadlines, and the constant pressure to keep numbers moving. It creates a tense ecosystem where everyone thinks the other side is out to get them.
So when a dealership decides to poke fun at the misery of their own job, it hits a nerve, because some of it is painfully true.
The Facebook page for Art Moehn Chevrolet Honda posted a skit-style video showing “A Haunted House for Car Salespeople.”
In it, they show a hallway of doors, each labeled with a phrase that makes every salesperson’s blood pressure spike.
The first door reads, “I need to talk to my WIFE.” Two salesmen walk up to it slowly, acting like it’s a jump scare. When a customer says this, every salesperson knows that the deal is dead. Dealers hear it as code for “I’m leaving and I’m never coming back,” even though customers think it sounds polite.
On the next door is “I want retail for my trade.” That one sends the salesmen into full panic mode, with one jokingly spraying it like he’s trying to tame a wild animal. And again, in dealership land, this is a real fear.
What Drivers Are Saying
Because everyone thinks their decade-old sedan with 198k miles and hail dents is a collector’s item. Salespeople have to be the ones to break the news that it’s…not.
Third is “I need to sleep on it.” Salespeople hear this and think a customer is saying, “I’m going to disappear into the abyss and buy a Hyundai somewhere else.”
Another door reads “Who wants to sell me a car?” The joke is that every salesperson wants to answer “ME,” but this customer stereotype won’t actually get through with it.
The video pulled in hundreds of comments from people who either work in the industry or have traumatic dealer memories of their own.
One person wrote, “I picked out 8 cars on your website I’d like to look at and test drive for when my lease is up next year!”
“Yea I’m just looking, gonna be in the market next year,” wrote another.
Someone else joked that the only real nightmare was the loud guy who walks in and shouts, “Who wants to sell me a car?” commenting of this type, “They’re a different breed.”
Of course, customers had their own clapbacks. One wrote, “Then a customer comes in with an 800 credit score and you guys will say…the best APR I can do is 9.9 for 48 months.”
Another made it equal-opportunity horror: “Pft, it’s a haunted house every other day of the year for the customers.”
Much of the tension stems from the way the industry operates. Salespeople operate under pressure from managers who want units sold, trades acquired, warranties added, and financing closed.
That pressure gets passed on to customers, who feel pushed, cornered, or talked over.
Then there’s the whole pricing mystery of it all. MSRP, “market adjustments,” doc fees, trade values, and interest rates. It feels like too many opportunities for someone to get taken advantage of. So when a salesperson tries to move the process along or asks certain questions, customers assume it’s a setup.
The dealership’s haunted house clip reveals the other side of that dynamic: car salespeople also deal with unclear expectations, customers who shop “just for fun,” or individuals who want luxury values on a budget. Neither side really trusts the other, and that tension shapes the whole experience.
Motor1 has reached out to Art Moehn Chevrolet Honda via contact form and will update this article if they respond.
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