I know that car salesman have a bad rep, and I’m sure it’s deserved sometimes. But I learn all the time not to paint too broad a brush when it comes to stereotyping or labeling people.

My own experience is that the field is  very high pressure and attracts bold young men with stamina and energy and thick skins.

It is not a simple job, and the salesmen and woman that I have met say people are often cruel and belligerent with them, thinking that toughness and anger will get them a better deal.

Car salesman have very little real room when it comes to bargaining, and they have no real power anyway.

Showroom managers make the final decisions, and they rarely face angry and demanding people. The internet has made life a lot worse for car salespeople because it’s so easy to walk away and look for a better deal.

I very much enjoyed working with Nicky, a salesperson at the Toyota dealership in Bennington. He was furloughed at the start of the Pandemic and returned to work the same time I showed up with Zinnia to look at the Toyota Rav4 Hybrid.

We were both bewildered at the new Pandemic-era salesroom, roped off to the public, for now, socially distant people lined up and wearing masks. Improv car selling.

I had very little money for a down payment, and my Toyota Highlander, eleven years old, was rusting and coming apart at the seams. It has been with Maria and me from the beginning.

The Highlander gave me 177,000 miles and eleven upstate New York winters. Like most people who love their cars, I thought I could keep it going forever. As it was, I was lucky to get it to the dealership. I knew I would get little for it in trade, and that is what I got.

I felt a bit ghoulish about it, but I guessed this was a good time to buy a car, the dealers are in worse shape than I am.

Nick was impressive. He was honest, empathetic, and focused on getting what I wanted. I wanted a smaller, more environmentally efficient car and my budget wouldn’t permit more than $300 to $400 a month.

That was a tough order for a new car.

I said I wanted a smaller car but most of all, I wanted to continue my flirtation with Mother Earth and get a Hybrid with exceptional mileage. Since they are more expensive than gas-only vehicles, that made it even more difficult for Nicky.

He didn’t bat an eye or try to talk me into a more expensive car, or even roll one at my utter ignorance about how cars work and function. I got to test drive a Rav 4 and it felt like my car.

Nicky and I went back and forth for a couple of days, and he finally came up with the right deal – a three-year lease, 15,000 miles a year, and the car would cost $359 a month. I got a tax refund, so put down $2,000, which brought it down to $310 monthly.

The car gets up to 41 miles per gallon in country driving. It is just what I wanted. I liked it right away, and I liked working with Nicky. I know I couldn’t be a car salesman for 15 minutes and survive. He was patient and open with me, and I never once felt pressured or manipulated. He didn’t even laugh at my stupid car questions.

He didn’t play any games with me, and I trusted him from the first. We just got down to work, coming up with options that would make a deal possible.

He got me exactly the car I wanted at the price I needed. I don’t mean to sound like a car ad, but I don’t think I could do any better than that.

I was proud of knowing what I wanted and sticking to it and proud of scaling down rather than up, as I was once wont to do.

I am grateful to Nicky for helping to make this happen. I couldn’t bear to put Zinnia in this car today, it is so clean and new smelling. But she’ll get in there shortly.

Maria and I took a ride when I came home. She loves the car also, we drove around for a half-hour together. It’s just a car, not a lover, but it is the right car for me at the right time. And it is hopefully another kiss to Mother Earth.

I said goodbye to the Highlander – I did feel a tug – and kissed it on the hood and said goodbye. I expect it will be chewed up for spare parts in a day or two.

I believe it is very important to treat people with respect and to be respected in return. I do believe in positive energy. You get back what you give, you earn what you get.

Thanks, Nicky, you’re a good salesperson and a good human being.