So, as a few of you know I just bought a truck from Josh Bernhard, Cam Clark out of Olds, and I just wanted to comment on my experience.
I started out this process using CarCostCanada, to get an idea of what I should expect for pricing, and of course I got the automated response from the website, then the inevitable calls from whatever dealership they're tied to. Then on a whim, I went up to Cam Clark in Airdrie to actually see the trucks, and go for a test drive. I dealt with a lady there and she was ok, and she got me a price on what I was sort of looking for, but was pretty expensive and higher than I wanted it to be. Then I remember Josh, and was talking with Cos who told me he was in Olds now. So I contacted Josh via email, and he after a few emails we narrowed it down to a truck he had on the lot. Great! Josh sent me a price, and specifically said that nobody would be able to touch it in th email.
At this point, I found out one of my neighbors down the way also sold Fold trucks at Universal, so I figured I'd give him a go as well. Basically to make sure that I'm getting the best deal, and so I had a counterpoint to compare against. So, the wife and I head down there on my day off and talk with them for awhile, and they can't come close. They're easily a couple thousand more expensive for exactly the price of truck. So I point out they're still to high, and then the song and dance starts. After about 40 minutes of the back and forth crap, I finally decide enough is enough, and the wife and I walk and go get lunch. While this is going on, I called Josh to confirm he still had the truck in stock, and his price and fee's.
So, Universal just let's us walk, and I'm fine with that. The wife and I talk it over, and decide that we're going to go with Josh in Olds, sight unseen. After lunch, Universal calls me back and says that they can do this deal but it's getting waaay to complicated and they're shuffling stuff around and in the end I'm still paying 2G's more for the same truck, but somehow I'm not supposed to notice that.. (rolls eyes).
Meanwhile, keep in mind, my entire interaction with Josh has been about 25 minutes and a few emails. So, to say it's been easy to deal with him has been an understatement. It was too easy. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop.
On the way home, I call Josh and tell him that I'm ready to put down a deposit, but I have to complete the sale of my Outlander first. He puts me in touch with his finance guy, and we put down a deposit, and he sends me the offer to purchase. There's no surprises on it at all. No extra fee's, or taxes, or anything added on to the end. I'm still suspicious, but ok, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. A couple of days pass, and the Outlander is sold, and we arrange to go to Olds to pick it up. We get there, and the truck is ready to go. They had the bedliner sprayed in, at a phenomenal price too, beating everyone in Calgary hands down. We went through the "here's your new truck and how to operate it" with the salesman that was assigned to us, and then signed all the paperwork with Robin, the Finance guy. It was that easy. We were in and out of there in about an hour. There were no surprises. The entire transaction was WAY too easy. I still honestly have troubles believing it was that simple. There was NO stress, no battle, nothing. Josh gave me his best price right out of the gate, and it was the best price. He was right, nobody could touch it.
So, the long and the short of this is that I'm more than happy to recommend anyone that's looking for a Ford contact Josh Bernhard of Cam Clark Olds. He's the rarest of the rare, an honest car salesman. :D
If you want to get in touch with him, his email is
[email protected]. Tell him that Jim sent you. :)