I was in the market to purchase a Sprinter and Doaba had a number of them. I called to ask if the Sprinter I was interested in had any problems and they said "no" it was clean, no issues. Ok good sign, right...so I asked for an inspection which they obliged and they dropped it off at a mechanic shop (the only reason I a (shouldn't DOABA have picked up on this?) and there was an old air filter and a few other minor issues but possibly a major one too (but it was too cold to tell if the smoke coming out of the tailpipe was smoke or just condensed water).
Anyhow, I had spent my $125 for pre-inspection and decided to drive with my wife and baby down to San Jose from SF to take a look at the car in person and verify for myself. I asked Doaba if they would consider dropping the price which they said no...but originally the price was based on everything working fine as they alleged. I called before arriving and asked if Tam would be there and he said "yes". I arrived and he wasn't there but showed up 10minutes later. During that time I got into the van and turned it on and then off...when I tried turning it on again it wouldn't start. Oh no issue they told me, we'll just jump it. That didn't work. Then they fiddled and tried a new battery and it finally worked again... Hmmm...suspicious. Ok, Tam shows up and I point out that this is a little weird... oh no he says, everything is fine. I point out that the AC isn't working... he says no, you just don't know how to turn it on... proceeds to fiddle with the AC and says there... you see. The air blowing out of it was cool but the same temparature as outside (cool day)... we try another van and that AC is markedly colder... See I said...he contests this and says no it is working, at which point we walk back and it is blowing warm air. He fiddles some more and gets the cool (but not AC) air to blow again. He proceeds to tell me that if I don't trust him then I should walk away... which I eventually did. But I had just spent 1/2 my day and $120 for the inspection.
On top of this if you walk into his shop they are basically taking sprinters and "cleaning them up" externally. New coats of paint, new bumpers, new rails, etc... but also hiding the bad underneath... who knows how much rust, etc. is hiding under the new paint jobs- All I know is I saw one van being ready to prep for paint and it had visible rust running down the outside... I'm sure in a day or two no one would know. Caveat Emptor!
I also asked for proof of a recent oil change (since the vans had no records)... he said Oh, we just did it last week. Ok, can I see proof? He said, sure, I can create a receipt for you but it will cost you $50. You kidding me?!!!
Anyhow, I would agree with the other 1 star reviews except for the fact that Tam dropped off the van at a shop that would do the pre-purchase inspection.
Anyhow, my impression is these guys are like the van version of "house flipper" ... buy them dirty and cheap and cosmetically fix then sell... Maybe not all of them but make sure you carfax and have a pre-purchase inspection by a AAA rated auto repair shop. read more
