If zero stars were an option, that would be my rating.
I purchased a 2017 Kia Forte from Ace Auto Sales on August 15, 2026. Six days later, on August 21, the vehicle developed a check-engine/drivability issue.
I had the vehicle taken to Victory Tire & Auto, an independent repair facility. Victory diagnosed a misfire/spark-plug issue. I then requested a more comprehensive inspection because I wanted to know what I had actually purchased.
That inspection resulted in recommendations for spark-plug service and brake-fluid service and documented low coolant requiring further diagnosis. Victory ultimately completed the cooling-system testing and, thankfully, found no coolant leak.
What makes this experience particularly disappointing to me is that Ace had performed its own multipoint inspection on August 4--only 11 days before I purchased the vehicle. Ace has explained in writing why it believes its inspection findings and Victory's subsequent findings are not contradictory, including that some of Ace's checks were visual leak inspections rather than tests of fluid condition. Consumers can decide for themselves how much confidence that explanation gives them. Personally, this experience taught me that a dealer's multipoint inspection would never again substitute for an independent pre-purchase inspection.
I notified Ace of the problem within six days of purchasing the vehicle. Ace acknowledged in writing that my notification was timely under Minnesota's Used Motor Vehicle Warranty Law.
I asked Ace to unwind the transaction because a drivability issue occurring six days after purchase, followed by the additional inspection findings, had destroyed my confidence in the vehicle. Ace declined.
Ace ultimately required that the vehicle be returned to its facility if I wanted to continue pursuing the statutory warranty process. By that point, however, my confidence in allowing Ace to work on the vehicle was gone. After Victory's final testing found no coolant leak, my family chose to pay Victory ourselves to complete the repairs and maintenance rather than continue pursuing warranty service through Ace.
I want to be precise about what I am and am not saying. Victory did NOT find a coolant leak. Some of the items Victory recommended are maintenance items. I have no evidence that Ace knowingly concealed a defect, and I am not alleging that they did.
I don't need to make those allegations to give an honest account of my experience.
I bought a vehicle from Ace. Six days later it developed a check-engine/drivability problem. An independent shop subsequently documented additional items requiring service or attention. I spent days without the transportation I had just purchased, dealt with extensive back-and-forth correspondence, requested that Ace take the vehicle back, was refused, and ultimately decided I would rather spend my own money having an independent shop I trust work on the vehicle than return it to the dealership for warranty service.
That is not an acceptable post-sale experience to me.
Ace was certainly willing to explain its legal position and what it believed it was and was not obligated to do. What I personally did not come away with was confidence that Ace was a business I wanted to continue dealing with.
I regret purchasing this vehicle from Ace Auto Sales, and I will not purchase another vehicle from them.
My strongest advice to anyone considering buying here is simple: don't. If you buy a used car anywhere, pay an independent mechanic of YOUR choosing to perform a complete pre-purchase inspection before you sign anything.
I wish I had. read more
