I was truly amazed by the repeated screw-ups, poor customer service and unresponsiveness of this dealership. Among the results: a lovely new car that I couldn't legally drive for about 6 weeks, and being overcharged $250 for excise tax.
In early March I purchased a 2025 Kia Niro from King Kia in Laurel, MD. It was technically a used car, since it had been purchased and then returned a few days later with only 56 miles on the odometer, because the buyer decided he wanted a different model. I felt like I got a good deal on the car and the purchase went smoothly. Following the usual practice, I paid the fees for the dealership to handle the title and DC registration, and was told I could expect the new DC plates in the mail within 4-6 weeks.
Six weeks later, no new tags, so I started calling for updates. After numerous calls and unanswered voice messages, I finally learned that they had not yet even obtained the title from the previous ower, much less started the title process at DMV, but they assured me they were "on it." I told them I was concerned the temporary tags would expire before the new ones came, but they said not to worry -- everything was fine. Two weeks later the temporary tags expired, and I discovered that since they had not been extended prior to expiring, it was now too late-- no extension possible. Since I couldn't legally drive my new car I asked the dealership for a loaner, which they refused saying they only gave loaners if a car came in for repairs.
The next several weeks were aggravating, as I got nothing but stonewalling or misinformation from the dealership. One example: in late May they finally got around to mentioning that the car had to pass DC inspection before it could be registered, since it was technically a used car. Of course, by this time the the temporary tags were expired and it was not legal to drive. A King Kia/Laurel manager told me I could go and get it inspected anyway, but by this time I knew better than to believe anything they told me, so I checked with DMV. Of course it turned out that this was not possible: I had to wait until the title came, then get a temporary DC registration so I could get the car inspected, and only then apply for the regular registration.
By early June I was fed up and told them I would handle the DC registration myself, once the title arrived. I had to ask repeatedly for a refund, and when it came it was for much less than I expected. It turned out the car's weight was incorrect on the registration (3800 lb instead of 3247 lb), which raised the excise tax an extra $250. Instead of challenging this error they paid the full amount and just deducted the extra from my refund, leaving me to file a request for refund from the DMV -- I'm not holding my breath on that one. read more