I was shopping alone at Phil Smith Kia in Lighthouse Point and was sold a CPO car that after I got home and researched found out it had been in a major accident during a test drive with multiple airbags deployed. How is this legal to CPO a car after that kind of wreck? If it is legal, slipping a Carfax into the rest of the paperwork is NOT how that car should be sold. I found out that Kia allows the dealerships to certify the cars at the dealership - I bet Kia doesn't realize that they are selling CPO cars that have a history like this car. Is this happening because of low inventory restraints? They refused to return it and give me my Lexus trade in, forcing me to keep the car or buy another one from them. I have been physically sick from how much I was taken advantage of. Not sleeping and now have a LARGE car payment on a car that I settled on just to get out of the situation I was in.
I was trading in a 2020 Lexus RX 350 and looking at a 2023 Telluride. Never purchased a preowned before and was talked into it by the Sales Manager. As a buyer, you have no idea what the actual price of the car they are selling until you sit down and negotiate. This dealership (and likely others) are on-the-fly marking up the sticker price to cancel out your trade in equity. Saying that its due to low inventory but high demand. I was priced out of the new car I was looking at because of this. The sales manager, Bijan Motiei, was set on me leaving with a car, even though it was 1.5 after closing time on Sunday evening. A preowned was suggested and after frustration I agreed as my lease was ending and I had $8-10K equity on my Lexus, thinking I was finally getting a car in a price range I wanted. I needed to make a decision on something - and I made the wrong decision!!! I was alone, it was dark out and no one was left at the dealership but myself, the sales guy, sales manager and finance girl. The paperwork was quickly underway and I asked about a Carfax and was told, 'the car is good, it was in a fender bender but don't worry - its Certified PreOwned and all covered." I was concerned about the 'fender bender' and was then assured, "Kia wouldn't Certify the car if they thought anything was wrong with it.' Like an idiot, I trusted what I was told. I bought all the additional warranties just in case. The Carfax was handed to me with all of the other paperwork. It was never reviewed with me, but they claim I signed it - yet to see proof of that. They were rushing to get the deal done and go home for the night, it all happened so quickly. On the way home the car felt jerky driving and I got a pit in my stomach knowing I had messed up.
I got home and purchased the crash report (attached) and the car had been crashed badly with multiple airbags deployed!!! The car was new and on a test drive with a sales person demoing the auto brake feature. The car slammed into the back of a PARKED city bus. Multiple airbag deployments. The dealership clearly fixed it up, drove it for a while to consider it 'used' and Certified (CPO) it in house. How is that ok, safe or legal? They claim there was an owner that then traded the car back in 10 months later.
I wrote emails overnight as it was Sunday and Monday AM called as many ppl as I could to help. No one would return my calls so I took off work and went in to the dealership to ask for my Lexus back - they refused, said it was too late. They claimed the deal was funded and my Lexus was already sold to a local Lexus dealership that they were partnered with. Mind you my Lexus is for sale on their site now. When I called my bank funding the deal, Bank of America said the transaction could still be canceled but Phil Smith Kia would not do it. The only option I was given was to trade in the car in. Basically, they kept my trade in with the $8-10K equity, my $3K and said it was all lost with the purchase of the first car but they were going to cut me a deal on the new car. I really had no option but to trade that wrecked car in for a new car. I was crying hysterically, mad at myself for getting into the position but shocked at how I was being treated. I kept telling them how much the were F'ing me and they were still being so slimy working me as a new sale. The new numbers were BS and I left with a huge car payment. They promised things like a maintenance warranty and 90 deferral but never told the finance person when completing the paperwork. Arrived a 12noon and got home at 8pm last night. I was there the whole day and not in a much better place. I finally was able to speak to the General Manager after having to find him personally on his Instagram account. When this was all happening, I called the dealership multiple times asking for him but they would only take a message and clearly was not passing it along. He was very kind and I explained what happened and he did try and help me out but he was not offering to decrease pricing anything close to what I had in my trade in and the $3K I put down. read more