If it was possible not to give them any stars -that's what they would've received! I purchased a…read moreBMW, manufactured in 2022 from Royal Auto Group (RAG) in June 2024. The car had ~21,000 miles on it, it was still under the manufacturer's warranty and I was told by Igor that it had never been in any accidents.
Within minutes of driving the car off the lot--it didn't feel right--it felt a little unstable but I was not overly concerned because I was buying it from a friend of a friend who had purchased 3 cars from RAG in the last 3-4 months.
When I got a little time, I'd take the car back for RAG to take a look, but before I got a chance, my dashboard lit up with alarming warnings ie. Collision Warning System Malfunction, Initialization of driving stabilization, etc.
I called Igor, the salesman, and sent photos of the warnings'. His response was "The car is fine" "You do know how to drive, right?" which I took to mean--you're not new at driving ". He then stated that I probably just needed to bring the car in for them to turn off a sensor. I told him that I would.
Until I was able to bring the BMW in for RAG to assess--I decided to drive my other car, hence, caring for 2 kids with special needs requires extra planning and time that I simply never seem to have, hence, I'm always in need of a vehicle due to the demands of being their primary caretaker.
When I did get the chance to bring the car to Igor--he called stating that his mechanic had done a thorough check of the car and found nothing wrong, other than it needs an alignment and suggested I take it to Midas. He then said to me "You must have hit a big pothole because the steering wheel was not straight. I responded," I did not hit a pothole." He responded, "Maybe, you don't remember it" I reiterated--"that didn't happen".
I drove my car from RAG directly to Mr. Tire Auto Service in Voorhees for them to perform an alignment. Later, the tech. called and asked me if I had recently had some front-end work done to my car--I responded"No, why?" He stated that the left front outer tie rod had "play" in it (loose) and that the right front (passenger) bolt for the tie rod was missing. He stated that this typically happens when work is being done on the car and the tech. forgets to put back on the bolts. He then stated that he could not do the alignment because he couldn't get the parts.
Again, I called Igor to share what I had been told. His response was," They're wrong, they don't know what they're talking about and they're simply trying to get your money", "Please bring the car back to our shop." At this point, I no longer felt comfortable with what I was being told by Igor, therefore, I took the car to the dealership where the car was examined and a report of their findings was provided along with an estimate to fix the issues. BMW's findings included a Carfax report which entailed proof that my car had been in an accident prior to me buying it, which I was never made previously aware of by Igor nor RAG.
I informed Igor of the report at which time, he offered to have my car towed to RAG's auto shop and stated that they would take care of it. Again, because the trust was gone, I decided to leave my car with the dealership.
I sent over to RAG the costs to repair~$2700 hoping they'd want to make things right and by doing so--pay for the charges to fix my car. They chose not to!
The best advice I can give you before purchasing a used car is to get a Carfax report. If possible perform a VIN number check--in the event a car has been in a recent accident and it was reported--sometimes you can see imagines on-line of the crash and what the car looked like prior to any repairs. Keep in mind, not all accidents are reported to the insurance company, hence, some people may opt to have the work done without involving the insurance and in that case--the accident will not appear on Carfax and/or Autocheck, but, if the incident is eventually reported for example using a police report--it will ultimately find it's way on Carfax but maybe not Autocheck which is what happened in my case. It was found on the carfax report but not on autocheck which is what perhaps some of the autions and autogroups are more inclined to make use of or at least that's what they'll have you think. Never purchase a used vehicle without your mechanic (who you trust) evaluating the car and giving you the okay to proceed. Even if you have a good friend like in my case who innocently refers you to his/her good friend who works in the company or whatever the case may be --Always do your due diligence--unfortunately, not everyone like my good friend and I have a moral compass, has integrity, are honest, forthcoming, decent and want to do right by others. If I can help the next person learn from my mistakes--I've done my job.
BMW's findings and invoice are below:
https://app.mykaarma.com/service-cart/mpi/jQdzqfqRnalgmIEi0xverBa21Jq3wdt8zBjf0Mfr-oE/detail
