Know Your Product!

I recently changed jobs and became a sales and leasing consultant for a local car dealership. The first thing that was stressed to me by my new employer was to know the product. Your customers will, so you had better!
I immediately went to work becoming certified in Subaru products as well as the other makes that we carry. Part of my certification was to review the newest member to the Outback series, the new 6 cylinder Outback wagon.
The 2001 Outback H6-3.0 comes in 2 vehicles, the L.L.Bean Edition and the VDC.
The certification process involved going to a closed race track and actually taking the car at high speeds around the track to get a feel for the new traction control system( the VDC.) and to feel how much more power was achieved with the H6-3.0 engine.
We also did accident avoidance tests against some more expensive competitors, Mercedes and BMW. Each sales representative was allowed to drive both vehicles in each test, the slalom on a wet track course and a standard swerve avoidance test also on a wet track. In my testing, in both cases, the Outback H6-3.0 VDC outperformed the higher priced competitors. I felt I was in better control and was able to shave off a second in time during both tests in the Outback.
Part of this is due to the traction control system, but another factor was the engine weight and the lower center of gravity achieved by the horizontally opposed engine. The engine was modified slightly to add the 2 extra cylinders. Length was increased by only 110 mm and weight was only increased by about 100 lbs. This means that you don't suffer at the gas station because the Outback still gets around 26 mpg.
After driving the vehicle I then had to pass a written examination on the vehicle. I did indeed pass the test and am Subaru Certified!
The release date for the 2001 Outback H6-3.0 was the first week of November. My dealership received an L.L.Bean Edition and sold it immediately. We are currently trying to get more delivered.
Many of you who receive the L.L.Bean catalog will be seeing quite a bit of this vehicle as it will appear in the Holiday Edition of their catalog, if I am not mistaken.
Subaru is one of the safest cars on the road today and they keep getting better. They are stylish, smart, rugged, and dependable. I highly recommend that if you are looking for a new vehicle, give one a test drive. There are several styles from which to choose and you won't be sorry if you purchase one._
As I said, Know your product. All of my customers have and they have loved their Subarus. I know because they tell me in their customer service surveys that they send to Subaru!