Long Island Chevy Dealer sells '02 Malibu for $13,900 to an autistic 25y/o (Updated!)

[Buick61]

Newsday

Sean Beaudoin, 25, has an autism spectrum disorder, but with help he has become fairly independent.

He has his own car. He works 20 hours a week as a kennel assistant. He has a credit card in his name, though his mother keeps it. And he has a good credit rating.

But his parents, Curtis and Paula Beaudoin, recently experienced the downside of such autonomy for their son, who lives with them in Nesconset.

Last month, Sean walked into Hustedt Chevrolet in Centereach and traded in his fully paid 1997 Ford Explorer for a $2,500 credit toward a 2002 Chevy Malibu with 50,000 miles. He owed an additional $11,400 on the Malibu.

After Beaudoin's mother discovered the purchase and complained to the dealership, the manager agreed to lower the total price to $8,550. That's more than the car's $6,940 retail value in excellent condition, according to Kelley Blue Book.

Paula Beaudoin said she agreed to the purchase because the dealership refused to reverse the deal. Hustedt Chevrolet has an unsatisfactory record with the Better Business Bureau of Metropolitan New York for failure to respond to complaints.

Edward Reyer, general manager of Hustedt, said Beaudoin seemed more intent on getting the price lowered than on reversing the deal. And he said the price had nothing to do with Sean's condition.

"Anybody can be overcharged," Reyer said. "Forget about autism. If you come in here and you like a car and you're given a price - no matter how much it's marked up - and you accept a price, you're accepting the price, no matter who you are."

Sean Beaudoin had "everything we need," Reyer said - a driver's license, good credit, a job and car insurance. "He's as normal as normal can be as far as having the proper stuff."

The young man's parents said his condition, called "pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified," makes him unable to understand how to engage in a complex financial transaction, such as a car purchase, and leads him to naively trust others. Such traits can make him susceptible to sales pitches as well as to people intent on taking advantage of him. For instance, Sean Beaudoin told a reporter he didn't need to research the value of the car because the salespeople have a list of prices to show buyers.

Full article Updated: See posts 89 & 90

[mbukukanyau]

When all these facts came to light, he should have reversed the decision, out of the goodness of his heart.
But Most tacky domestic dealers leave a bitter taste in ones mouth

[Butz]

Some people lack conscious.

[t-rex]

What's this society coming to??

Those who commit acts such as this should be tarred and feathered. Ya'll get the chicken, I'll get the bucket of tar, and meet me on Long Island...

[likearock00]

Originally Posted by t-rex

What's this society coming to??

Those who commit acts such as this should be tarred and feathered. Ya'll get the chicken, I'll get the bucket of tar, and meet me on Long Island...

I'm up for a road trip!

This is just sad. What's really bad is that I'm not surprised one bit.

[CobaltSScrazy]

unchecked unregulated unfair cut-throat capitalism at its finest! (eyeroll)

Give me FAIR TRADE and FAIR CAPITALISM with EVERYONE playing by the rules instead of this free trade garbage where everyone else bolsters their economy at the expense of ours...

until that occurs, abuses like this will continue unfortunately. Some people have a very poor soul and are worse than ebineeezer screwge

CobaltSS

[goblue]

To be fair - its not just car salesman, every business has unethical people - problem is, the car business has more than average, for whatever reason.

[Uzzy]

Originally Posted by mbukukanyau

When all these facts came to light, he should have reversed the decision, out of the goodness of his heart.
But Most tacky domestic dealers leave a bitter taste in ones mouth

I don't see how domestic, or import even matters. It could happen at either, and many dealership owners own some of each. It's like the race card around here. It comes up when it has no bearing on the situation.

EDIT: As a matter of fact, this could have just as easily hapened at a Hyundai dealer, since Hustedt also ownes one of them.

[likearock00]

Originally Posted by Uzzy

I don't see how domestic, or import even matters. It could happen at either, and many dealership owners own some of each. It's like the race card around here. It comes up when it has no bearing on the situation.

I agree. It is so tiring to here salespeople torn apart here- especially when it is narrowed down to just domestic salespeople! Give it a rest.

[Uzzy]

Originally Posted by likearock00

I agree. It is so tiring to here salespeople torn apart here- especially when it is narrowed down to just domestic salespeople! Give it a rest.

Well, I'm not necessarily against tearing into the occasional greasy salesman (I know what they're really like, some of my friends are) but to say domestic salespeople are any different than import sales people is rediculous. They don't hold loyalties, or change tactics when changing jobs, I assure you.

[espo19047]

Originally Posted by mbukukanyau

But Most tacky domestic dealers leave a bitter taste in ones mouth

Please explain this comment. Domestic dealers? So an Import dealer never pulled something like this?

[GMCSonoma]

If I was the competing GM store in the area, I'd contact that kid & pay off his term on that Malibu...

[tama z71]

If I was GM I would just give the kid a brand new Malibu and financially penalize the dealer in some form or fashion and do it without press release.

[asim]

That truly sucks for the kid and the parents. Sometimes people need to realize what they are jumping into.

Man, they really jacked up the price of that car. I bought an '02 Malibu for CHEAPER than that NEW.

[sigma]

Originally Posted by asim

That truly sucks for the kid and the parents. Sometimes people need to realize what they are jumping into.

Man, they really jacked up the price of that car. I bought an '02 Malibu for CHEAPER than that NEW.

The kid was autistic so he may not have known exactly what he was jumping into. That's the whole point of the article. When this fact was brought to the attention of the dealer by his parents, they lowered the price to only 2-3k over the BB value.

I know there are alot of good dealers out there with great staffs. I just wish there was some way for GM to penalize dealers who do stuff like this.