I don't own a Mercury, but Mercury owners should probably know the following about Southwest Lincoln-Mercury in Houston.

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I live in Dallas, Texas, and had decided I would like to own a Nissan Murano. On Wednesday, June 20, 2007, I performed a search at
http://www.cars.com for a used 2007 Murano. I found a listing for one with no price at:

Southwest Lincoln-Mercury
10025 Southwest Freeway
Houston, TX 77074
713-981-3586
888-891-7709
http://www.swlincolnmercury.com/

I found the same vehicle listed on their website and used their website to contact them. I asked for a quote on the vehicle.

The next day (Thursday) around noon, I called the dealership, since I had not seen a reply. I talked to their Internet salesman, and he informed me that he had indeed replied. I found the emails in my spam folder, and we proceeded to discuss the vehicle.

I was told the vehicle was only available under a contingent sales contract, as the previous owner was using it as a trade-in and had not yet taken possession of their new vehicle. That transaction was scheduled to be completed on Monday, June 25th, and the Murano could then be bought on that day.

We discussed the vehicle more, and I was quoted a price. We then discussed the logistics of how a sale would work given the contingent situation and that I was in Dallas and the dealership was in Houston. We then began to discuss the need to put a deposit down to hold the vehicle until Saturday, June 23rd, which was the soonest I could get to Houston to see and test-drive the vehicle. I agreed to provide a deposit. The salesman said that they would have to work on pricing paperwork and would follow up with me on the deposit.

The salesman called me a couple of hours later and told me that, since the transaction on the Murano had not been completed, they could not accept a deposit on it. However, they assured me I was "first in line" to purchase it.

On Friday, the salesman called to confirm my visit at the dealership on Saturday. I told the salesman that I would probably be arriving around 1:30PM and received assurances that I was still first in line for the vehicle.

Saturday morning, June 23rd, I left Dallas at 10AM, headed for Houston. At 12:30PM, while in transit, the Internet salesman called me and said the Murano was "being shown." I told the salesman I was still about an hour away from the dealership. The salesman assured me that I was "first in line" for the vehicle.

At 1:30PM, the salesman called again and said the vehicle had been sold by another salesman. They had just signed a contingent sales contract with another buyer.

At 2:00PM I arrived at the dealership. I voiced my concerns to both salesmen. I was told that they were just doing as they were told. I complained about the waste of my time and gas. The initial salesman I worked with apologized and gave me $40 as compensation for gas.

After wasting 10 hours of my life and 600 miles on my wife's car, I'm right back where I started.

This happened to me at Southwest Lincoln-Mercury in Houston. Buyer beware.