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825 Posts
Hi,
I took delivery of my new FIAT Pop on Saturday. I live a bit over an hour from the dealer, so my folks took my wife and me up. That way, we could meander back in the car together. I had ordered a Pop in Verde Oliva with the only upgrade being alloy wheels.
Arrived at Bob-Boyd FIAT in Columbus, OH about 4PM. The first thing I noticed was a Sport in Oliva, which looked good. A little further down, though, sat my FIAT, front and center. It looked sharp!
Matt, the sales specialist who handled my order, met me at the door, handed me the keys, then introduced me to Mark, the finance manager, and Alex, who would be showing me the ins and outs of my new car.
The first people to sit in it -- my dad and my wife. Dad, well into his 70's and a die-hard Buick owner, commented that the car felt more solid than he expected and seemed truly impressed and more than a little surprised. Mom, of course, thought it was "cute."
Mark had a great surprise for me -- 2% financing. Considering I work for a bank and he beat my employee discount by a full 1.03%, my grin went from huge to GIGANTIC.
Mark got us through the paperwork in no-time flat, which I really appreciated. Alex was up next to walk me through the finer points of the car.
Most everything on the Pop is pretty self-explanatory, so Alex spent most of his time walking me through programming the EVIC computer. It's got a lot of stuff on it, but it's about as easy as an alarm clock to step through.
After that, it was time to go. We fired it up, thanked everybody, then headed out. My wife and I purposely chose backroads to make our way back home, making the trip more than double, but it was fun.
We stopped for a bite at a small dairy bar along the way. I didn't even make it inside before the owner came out, wanting to look at the car. He loved it!
Driving the car was wonderful. First of all, the front area is much more spacious than one might expect. I wear a lot of dress hats, and I have enough headroom for that (I'm 5' 10"), which I don't in my wife's 2006 Honda Civic. I didn't feel like I was in a small car at all. For a subcompact, it also sits up a little higher. I didn't feel like my butt was kissing the pavement like I did in my old car (Saturn SL).
The car is a little sluggish from a dead stop, but I'm not an aggressive driver at all, so that didn't bother me. Once it's going, though, it's feels a lot quicker. It can jump from 40mph to 70mph before you know it.
Not a lot of road noise, somewhat stiff ride, but comfortable enough. The seats felt good, no pinching or squeezing. Great turning radius, too, easy to park.
So far, a day later, I'm very, very satisfied.
I would like to publicly aknowledge Matt, Mark, and Alex at Bob-Boyd in Columbus. From my first contact with Matt, my experience with the dealer was terrific. Matt always responded to my email questions on the same day, usually within an hour or so, and sometimes as late as 11PM.
Mark was quick and thorough and made the most unpleasant part (financing) quick and painless -- and what a rate.
Alex was fantastic. I could tell he felt really passionate about the car, his excitement in pointing out the features was infectious.
Even though there will eventually be a dealer closer to me, I plan on continuing with Bob-Boyd, as long as their service department is as good as their sales department. They're really top-shelf. Thanks, guys!
I posted several pictures of my car in the photo section. Enjoy!
Ryan
I took delivery of my new FIAT Pop on Saturday. I live a bit over an hour from the dealer, so my folks took my wife and me up. That way, we could meander back in the car together. I had ordered a Pop in Verde Oliva with the only upgrade being alloy wheels.
Arrived at Bob-Boyd FIAT in Columbus, OH about 4PM. The first thing I noticed was a Sport in Oliva, which looked good. A little further down, though, sat my FIAT, front and center. It looked sharp!
Matt, the sales specialist who handled my order, met me at the door, handed me the keys, then introduced me to Mark, the finance manager, and Alex, who would be showing me the ins and outs of my new car.
The first people to sit in it -- my dad and my wife. Dad, well into his 70's and a die-hard Buick owner, commented that the car felt more solid than he expected and seemed truly impressed and more than a little surprised. Mom, of course, thought it was "cute."
Mark had a great surprise for me -- 2% financing. Considering I work for a bank and he beat my employee discount by a full 1.03%, my grin went from huge to GIGANTIC.
Mark got us through the paperwork in no-time flat, which I really appreciated. Alex was up next to walk me through the finer points of the car.
Most everything on the Pop is pretty self-explanatory, so Alex spent most of his time walking me through programming the EVIC computer. It's got a lot of stuff on it, but it's about as easy as an alarm clock to step through.
After that, it was time to go. We fired it up, thanked everybody, then headed out. My wife and I purposely chose backroads to make our way back home, making the trip more than double, but it was fun.
We stopped for a bite at a small dairy bar along the way. I didn't even make it inside before the owner came out, wanting to look at the car. He loved it!
Driving the car was wonderful. First of all, the front area is much more spacious than one might expect. I wear a lot of dress hats, and I have enough headroom for that (I'm 5' 10"), which I don't in my wife's 2006 Honda Civic. I didn't feel like I was in a small car at all. For a subcompact, it also sits up a little higher. I didn't feel like my butt was kissing the pavement like I did in my old car (Saturn SL).
The car is a little sluggish from a dead stop, but I'm not an aggressive driver at all, so that didn't bother me. Once it's going, though, it's feels a lot quicker. It can jump from 40mph to 70mph before you know it.
Not a lot of road noise, somewhat stiff ride, but comfortable enough. The seats felt good, no pinching or squeezing. Great turning radius, too, easy to park.
So far, a day later, I'm very, very satisfied.
I would like to publicly aknowledge Matt, Mark, and Alex at Bob-Boyd in Columbus. From my first contact with Matt, my experience with the dealer was terrific. Matt always responded to my email questions on the same day, usually within an hour or so, and sometimes as late as 11PM.
Mark was quick and thorough and made the most unpleasant part (financing) quick and painless -- and what a rate.
Alex was fantastic. I could tell he felt really passionate about the car, his excitement in pointing out the features was infectious.
Even though there will eventually be a dealer closer to me, I plan on continuing with Bob-Boyd, as long as their service department is as good as their sales department. They're really top-shelf. Thanks, guys!
I posted several pictures of my car in the photo section. Enjoy!
Ryan
