After test driving 13 cars, I ended up at Car Village at 4920 Virginia Beach Blvd, Virginia Beach, VA 23462. I met with Aydin. I explained I needed a vehicle for me and my wheelchair. Aydin and the other salesman said they had a Grand Caravan that would work good for me and was in excellent condition. So I did my due diligence and climbed out of my wheelchair and crawled underneath the Caravan. The undercarriage was spotless. (I should have realized it was too clean). The bushings were not dry rotted and the upper and lower ball joints were in great shape. The belts were good. No sign of any leaks. So I climbed into the engine area. The engine was spotless. As if it had just been cleaned. No signs of leaks or puddles on the manifold or engine. I checked the transmission fluid, coolant, and oil levels and the fluid clarity. Everything looked great. I decided to come back the next day and take a test drive.
The next day, I found the back passenger seat was broken and wouldn't fold into the floor as designed. I explained I needed that seat to go down since it's easiest to put my wheelchair in the seat right behind the driver's seat. After much trial and error, we figured out how to manipulate the mechanism and get the seat folded into the floor. Then I sat in the driver's seat. The power controls for the seat were no longer attached to the seat and were hanging off the seat. Both salesmen insisted they would fix the problems before I bought the van. Then I started the test drive. But not before Aydin tells me the backup camera wasn't working because they had to put the dealer tag over the camera thus blocking the view. I asked specifically if there were any other defects I needed to know about. Both salesmen insisted that was all. So I test drove the car. It ran great. But I discovered Aydin had lied about the backup camera. It actually was registering "no signal" which indicated the camera was not connected. It had nothing to do with the dealer tag obstructing the view. I decided the camera was not a deal-breaker and I'd take on that responsibility and cost myself. But I was vocal about the lie he told about the backup camera being obstructed when it was really defective. I paid a deposit and Aydin said he'd fix both of the seats.
4 days later, I arrived to pick up the Caravan. The rear drivers' side seat had not been fixed, but the front seat controls had been fixed and were working. Again, I decided something wasn't a deal-breaker, paid in full, and signed the papers.
2 days later, the vehicle suddenly started running pretty rough. By day 5 I had a "check engine" light, a TPMS light, a skid light, a flashing oil light accompanied by a loud beeping, and 3 1/2 quarts of oil on the driveway. As quickly as the oil was leaking, Car Village had to have known about the leak.
When I called Aydin, I reminded him I had spent $221.83 in parts, not including the cost of labor, since driving off his lot. I told him that on top of those costs, I now needed to replace the oil pan gasket. After only 5 days! I asked him how could a dealer be trusted if they are willing to sell a vehicle with such a huge oil leak without disclosing the defect. What happened with being a man of your word? Why is it so easy to throw around words like "excellent condition" or "we will fix that before you buy the van"? Why lie about a backup camera when it clearly wasn't a dealer tag obstructing the view but rather a defective unit? Why not fix what you said you'd fix? Aydin once again refused to accept any of the cost or responsibility. His response: all vehicles are sold as-is. Touché.
Beware! They will not stand behind their vehicles. They have no regard for customer service or being men of their word with integrity. And they will lie about the smallest things just to make a sale. Run! read more