Back in June, my mom was given a recommendation to visit this dealership to purchase a used vehicle. With my help, she was able to get approved through a co-sign credit application and began looking at vehicles. I knew I should have had the credit application already taken care of prior to her walking in...
Upon my mom setting foot the place and myself being part of the conversations, I knew there was definitely something wrong with the buying process.
She was aggressively pushed into one vehicle and told no other vehicles were available to be approved by the bank on the lot, which sounded pretty strange. The vehicle they pushed her toward is a 2011 Subaru Forester with mileage in the low 70s. I have purchase many vehicles over the years used from different dealerships and was never told I had to buy a specific vehicle, as that was the only one that bank would cover.
I raised the red flag with my mom on the strong-arming process pushing her into this vehicle, though she was eager to get the vehicle and have something durable to drive around. She seemed to be happy with the 2011 Subaru and was told it was a very dependable vehicle that her and the family could rely on.
Strangely enough, it took nearly a week to get the vehicle ready, as it was being "prepared". No car in my personal experience has taken a week to get ready, unless repairs and other major service items are being done.
Once the paperwork was signed and the deposit made, my mom drove the vehicle off the lot and for roughly 90 days, with the vehicle ultimately breaking down on the freeway and leaving her and the family stranded.
Upon having the vehicle towed to the Subaru dealership in town, the head certified mechanic had some pretty alarming things to say about the vehicle including:
- The vehicle had been worked on recently and someone did not use the correct bolts within the engine, resulting in bent gears and the engine being completely ruined. The Assumption was made that whoever worked on this vehicle and their lack of experience or negligence resulted in the motor being bad. The head Subaru Certified mechanic was also confident someone was in the motor not knowing what they were doing.
- The head mechanic at Subaru also said someone did not install the brakes correctly, even putting the brake pin in upside down. The owner at Rome pre-owned personally told me the only thing his people did in prepping the vehicle was installing the brakes, hmmm...
I believe we were sold a bad vehicle. My recommendation for anyone considering this dealership is to do your homework, read the reviews and have the vehicle checked out by a third-party Certified mechanic..
It cost thousands to have the motor rebuilt, and luckily I'm blessed to be in a situation where I could absorb it. Not everyone, unfortunately, is in that position, so please do your homework, research and protect yourselves.
I personally would not recommend this dealership to friends or family. read more
