Shopping for a car is stressful enough as a woman. Not only are dealerships predominantly staffed by men, but it\u2019s common knowledge that car salesmen aren\u2019t the most honest, let alone when they think they can take advantage of someone because of their age, gender, or financial status.<\/p>\n
This woman recorded a deeply uncomfortable interaction with a salesman, and now, commenters are telling her she should sue.<\/p>\n
Creepy Car Salesman<\/p>\n
In a viral video with more than 5.2 million views, content creator Em (@rockerfoo13) shares<\/a> that a car salesman at the Metro Honda in Montclair, California, allegedly kept making advances toward her and tried to use his position of power to pressure her into a date.<\/p>\n “Went to the HONDA dealership to buy a car and the SALES MANAGER refused to sell me a car because I wouldn\u2019t go out with him and then marked it up 10k more when we called him out,” Em says in the initial text overlay on the video.<\/p>\n In one part of the video (it\u2019s unclear if this was the incident that sparked her recording or if it happened toward the end of her experience), a salesman is heard telling Em in Spanish that he\u2019s going to be at the dealership all night til 10 p.m. but doesn\u2019t want to keep her there long.<\/p>\n He claims that “with sincerity and respect if I can get the price you want then perfect.”<\/p>\n Then he goes and ruins it: “But only if she goes out on a date with me, if not then no.”<\/p>\n In another part of the video, a salesman (unclear if it\u2019s the same one) tells Em that after she buys the car, she needs to take him out on a date.\u00a0<\/p>\n “I don\u2019t think the date is included,” she says, clearly trying to politely shrug him off.<\/p>\n “It\u2019s required, it\u2019s part of the entrance fee,” he volleys back.<\/p>\n When Em starts to push back, the salesman<\/a> refuses to show her the pricing and paperwork for the car.\u00a0<\/p>\n A person who seems to be Em\u2019s friend steps in at this point, saying, “It’s not a joke at this point because you’ve been at it for the past hour.”<\/p>\n They go on to tell him they feel uncomfortable, especially because buying a car is a serious matter involving their personal information and finances, and that it\u2019s rude and unprofessional for him to use his position to his advantage.\u00a0<\/p>\n “We can only tolerate so much,” one of them tells him.<\/p>\n The salesman continually interrupts, insists he was just joking, apologizes once, and tells them to “relax.”<\/p>\n “@Honda is this how you sell your cars to your customers? This is my second HONDA dealership where I’ve been harassed as a woman. Buying a car alone is scary enough but never in a million years did I think it was going to be as bad as it went,” Em adds in the caption.\u00a0<\/p>\n What Happens Next?<\/p>\n In a follow-up video, Em clarifies that this was a one-sided, unwelcome advance.\u00a0<\/p>\n “I just wanna make it clear that just because I was friendly doesn’t mean I was flirting back. There’s a reason why I started recording because I felt uncomfortable, and I didn’t feel like it was right, so I started recording. That doesn’t mean I was into it,” she explains.<\/p>\n Em goes on to say that she\u2019s a “very soft spoken girl,” and her natural way of speaking and interacting often gets misinterpreted as flirting. This is a common complaint from women who say men often misinterpret their politeness or friendliness as romantic interest rather than just being nice.\u00a0<\/p>\n As for the car situation, Em doesn\u2019t have any updates to share yet.<\/p>\n “I am still trying to figure out how to proceed with this, that’s all I’m gonna say, like I don’t want to comment too much because I am trying to figure out what my next move is,” Em says.<\/p>\n Gender Bias At Car Dealerships Isn’t New<\/p>\n Em’s experience isn’t an isolated incident.<\/p>\n Research shows that there\u2019s been systematic gender discrimination in car sales<\/a> for decades. A landmark Harvard Law Review study<\/a> from the 90s found that white men got much better prices than Black people and women. White women paid a 40% markup compared to white men, Black men paid more than twice the markup, and Black women had to pay more than three times the markup.<\/p>\n The study was based on more than 180 independent negotiations at 90 dealerships. But the problem goes beyond pricing. Women face challenges the moment they step into a dealership.<\/p>\n According to Edmunds<\/a>, when they sent male and female testers to Los Angeles-area dealerships, their experiences were wildly different. The female tester waited 10 minutes to be acknowledged by salesmen, and when she finally approached them, she was offered less information and worse pricing than her male counterpart.<\/p>\n The discrimination extends to auto financing as well. More recent research from the University of Wisconsin<\/a> found that women paid an average of 1% more\u2014and up to 39.4% more in some cases\u2014in dealer markups on auto loans, which researchers cited as an example of the “pink tax.”<\/p>\n The research found that the pink tax was lower in areas where women had higher education levels and was absent in Democratic counties, suggesting that cultural attitudes play a role in perpetuating discrimination.<\/p>\n Viewers Appalled By Salesman’s Behavior<\/p>\n People who commented on her post were overwhelmingly on Em\u2019s side.<\/p>\n “Once u own that Honda dealership can I get a car sis,” a top comment joked.<\/p>\n “He refused to give you a Honda because after that lawsuit you\u2019re gonna get a Benz,” another said.<\/p>\n “Does he have all your information? That would be seriously scary,” a person pointed out.<\/p>\n “This wasn\u2019t a joke at all. He was harassing you,” a commenter added.<\/p>\n Motor1 reached out to Em for comment via Instagram and TikTok direct message and to the dealership via online contact form. We\u2019ll update this article if either responds.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \n \t\tWe want your opinion!\n\t<\/p>\n What would you like to see on Motor1.com?<\/p>\n \t\t – The Motor1.com Team<\/p>\n
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