bad experience at a dealer

[jump123]

Hi.

Last month I had the worst experience at a dealer here in the New York area. To make a long story short, I was left waiting for my purchased car for over 5 hours. I'll spare you from the details, but what matters is that the experience led me to never recommend this dealer to anyone, ever. (Please understand that I have a high tolerance for bad experiences and I've only once ever had to write a letter of complaint years ago).

I was wondering if the best way to give my comments were directly to Toyota (HQ) or to the dealer itself? One thing I'm a bit upset about is how a 701.00 charge for Royal Guard roadside assistance was added to my invoice and was merely explained as "it's a mandatory coverage that the bank requires you to buy". In hindsight, I feel that I should've put my foot down and asked for more proof that it was mandatory. The real problem, however, is that I was seriously being rushed through the paperwork (we were signing the papers after the dealership was closed...THAT'S how long they had me waiting).

Does anyone know anything about this "mandatory" Royal Guard coverage with M&T Bank? Or did I get duped?

[EJFB1029]

Sounds like you got duped, that sounds like a dealer extra profit deal, and you CAN cancel it, if you added it to your loan, you should still be able to redo the paperwork. Roadside assistance usually comes with the warranty standard, but in either case, it CAN'T be mandatory, it has nothing to do with paying for the loan.

And you are not alone, EVERY Toyota dealer I've dealt with, in San Antonio, Houston and Corpus Christi, were horrible, worst car buying experience I have ever had, and this is my first Toyota.

Complaining to dealer will just be to get it off your shoulders, but I've found they could care less, the Toyota Survey you will get will be the way to go, let them have it on that, that means A LOT to the dealers standing with Toyota, and by A LOT, I mean it is VERY IMPORTANT to the dealerships bottom line.

[jump123]

it was, in fact, added to the loan. I'm sad to learn that I was duped. I thought I had gone in there and done a good job of deflecting all the tricks that they try to throw at customers. I guess this one got through.

I've left a message with the dealership's executive office to call me back. When she does, I guess I'll have to tell her that not only was my service horrible, but that I've learned that the Royal Guard item was not mandatory after all and that my customer service feedback survey is going to have to reflect my disappointment.

[rudiger]

Originally Posted by jump123

I've left a message with the dealership's executive office to call me back. When she does,

I wouldn't hold my breath on gettting that call since the scam likely originated from the dealership's executive office in the first place.

As already stated, about all you can do is rip them a new one on the customer survey you'll receive in the mail in a few weeks. Additionally, you can always go to one of the dealer rating websites (like the one below) and write your story up there. Maybe it will help someone else to not get ripped-off in the future:

DealerRater.com - Dealer Reviews, Car Dealer Directory, FREE Dealership Classified Ads

[paprius4030]

I've had car loans from M&T Bank in the past and there never was anything mandatory added. I would call M&T Bank directly and explain it to them and see if they can remove it and redo the loan. Also Toyota survey forms you get in the mail would be the place to complain.

[richard schumacher]

Which dealer is this? Help the rest of us avoid them.

Yeah, you got screwed. Too bad you waited a month. You could have canceled it, or indeed the entire purchase, within the first few days.

The next time you buy a car read Consumer Report's advice on car buying, either online
ConsumerReports.org - Car buying guide for new and used cars by Consumer Reports
or in their April car issue available in most libraries. Using their advice I shopped and bought mine entirely by phone, email and fax, and played dealers off each other to get the best price from the dealer I liked best.

[Jack66]

Or get with Royal Guard and ask for a refund if none of the above work. The refund should come directly to you if the loan paperwork cannot be modified with the reduced loan amount.

[jump123]

thanks so much for your advice guys and gals.

also, the dealer to avoid is Plaza Toyota in Brooklyn, NY. I normally wouldn't list a name or complaint like this, but the experience was beyond horrible.

[okiebutnotfrommuskogee]

I used to have an uncle that was in the Chrysler business. Back then we just went to his dealership, picked out a car, pointed at it and said "that one".

That was a fairly long time ago. Since then we have bought cars like everyone else. Cars from Honda, Mazda, Hyundai. Ford and Toyota. The last two have been Toyotas and our experiences at Jim Norton Toyota in Tulsa have been the two best car buying experiences we have ever had. (same salesman both times)

There probably are a lot of dealers that are not pleasant to deal with, but not all of them.

[EJFB1029]

Very true, but by far, the worst experience I have ever had, has been Toyota, and I'm not talking one dealer, I went to 7 dealers, and each and every one, was a horrible experience to deal with. I've bought cars since 1975, and had almost no bad experience that I could say that I probably won't ever by that car brand again, except for my experience with buying a Toyota, and I really like that car, but dealership experience has turned me off to another one.