I just drove out of their lot with my new car - a 2014 Mazda 2, after about a month of exceedingly frustrating search and I feel like this experience changed the way I will look at car buying forever.
First of all -- No one enjoys getting a car, and especially if you're like me and are looking for a solid used commuter car under 10k, you know that if a deal it's too good to be true... it isn't. And let's be real a lot of the stress of buying a car comes from dealing with car salesmen. Pushy, sketchy, gregarious, standoffish, sexist -- I met one of every flavor while searching for a replacement for my faithful 2005 Altima. I hadn't given up hope per se but I had started looking at taking on a lease.
Until I found the Mazda on www.carfax.com, and got a simple, informative text from Kenia (the manager at Radical Auto.)
She was knowledgeable, responsive and accommodating. And when i met her the next day for my test drive, she revealed to me the most shocking - and most relevant - detail about Radical.
All the salesmen are... saleswomen.
You have no idea what relief went through me. Honestly It was both refreshing and kind of stunning. There was no sales pitch other than agreeing with me that the front tires were worn out, which Kenia immediately promised they'd replace.
No surprises during the test drive, no overselling, easy conversation, upfront shop talk about the car and what they could do for me. She didn't press me to drive another car, she didn't try to stop me from leaving or any of the other tricks I had to deal with. She was confident and knew their product spoke for itself.
I left to do my third test drive or the day, and the very stark contrast with the man at the other dealership cemented my resolution to get the Mazda at Radical.
I texted Kenia -- no calls, no overbearing follow up, or emails -- just a quick text. She got back to me very quickly and said she ordered the tires and car would be ready Friday. Took my deposit via phone, with my credit card, and this morning she texted me the car was ready! Boom! I went in, everything she said she'd do to it was done, and I drove away feeling better than I had felt in months - since my accident, at least.
I can't believe I lucked into finding an all-women dealership but I will recommend it to everyone, especially some of my girl friends who have had similar unpleasant experiences with other places. I can't thank them enough for being a welcome breath of fresh air and the resolution to my car haunt! read more