The first time we bought a car here was 3 years ago. We were desperate for a new car as ours was almost done. That car we only had for about 3 years and it was purchased from Joe Cecconi Chrysler Complex. They were shady crooks. They did dirty deals while writing up the paperwork that my husband didn't notice. It wasn't until he got home that I saw what they did and after that I swore off of dealerships. Well, once that junk car started really shitting the bed, we saw we had no choice. People don't sell cars on the side of the road like they used to.
I remembered when we bought our car from Joe Crookcconi that a customer overhead me while I was at work complaining about this. She said "You should have come to me, we're the biggest dealership in Western NY and we would have given you a good deal!" Those words stuck with me and so when we had no choice I said to my husband that we were going to West Herr. We didn't care what we got, as long as it was in good condition and wanted a crossover or suv but not a gas guzzler. We looked at a 2008 Honda CR-V LX and I was in love. It's a basic model but it was awesome enough and exactly what we needed. They worked the financing and we didn't have any credit so it took a while and I thought we weren't going to be able to buy a car because we had been turned down by another before we remembered to try West Herr. They were able to help us and when we couldn't come up with the down payment they were asking, they were able to talk to the bank and get that lowered to something we could afford. It was amazing. The car has ran beautifully and other than minor wear and tear and the typical, battery, tires, brakes, and wiper blades, as well as the heat shield rattling underneath, we haven't had any issues. We're just now having to replace the air conditioning compressor and it's got 104,000 miles on it. We bought it at 50,000. Oil changes are all done at West Herr Honda and we choose to go there because the car requires Honda oil. My husband was going to do them himself but the Honda oil is expensive. It's only $34.99 for an oil change there and you get a key punch tag that gets you one free oil change after you get 5! That's a great deal and no one else does that!
We are currently buying our second car as a second vehicle, since the first one is still running well, from West Herr Honda. The process is pretty quick and painless and while I haven't found the dream car, I'm pretty excited about the one we settled on. It's not that it's a bad car, it's just not what I wanted. That's no fault of theirs though. We are getting a great deal and a great car for the price we are paying. It will be so nice to have 2 vehicles again. My only complaint this second time around is it would be kind of nice to test drive the car on our own, like take it home and see how we like it and use it for a day or two. We were able to do that with the first car we purchased from here. This time around the saleswoman rode with us while we test drove the car and we were not able to take it home, at least we weren't offered to and I didn't ask. Not sure if that's something they stopped doing or what.
I was also very appreciative at the honesty of the finance services manager we worked with to get financing. I had a car picked out before we even started talking to them and he went over our credit and suggested going with something about $8,000 cheaper because even though we have credit now unlike the first time, it's not great. I don't really have any blemishes, we are just still new to the credit game and I have a lot of inquiries. I was always told inquiries were bad and he said they aren't really bad, but they are looked down upon when you're applying for credit. They kind of overlook it a little when buying a car and he worked some numbers and showed us how much we'd be saving by going with a cheaper vehicle just in interest alone. Especially since you want to add that protection plan to cover anything going wrong with the vehicles of today, so much is electronic and that's what seems to go most often. He also told me about a protection plan for the seats, if the seats get any sort of staining that won't come out with the wipe of a cloth, YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE TO ATTEMPT TO SHAMPOO THEM, they will reupholster the seat. It's refreshing to see them not working to just make the highest dollar amount. If a dealership is actually trying to save you money, you know they're doing something right.
Also you can look at the Carfax for FREE before purchase, you can even look at it online. I found a car that is purple that I wanted more than the one we are going with because of the color. Checked the car fax and saw it was a rental, had been in a sideswipe accident, and has been stolen. Not exactly what I think I want. It's funny to see people complain they bought a rental as it's not always bad, but that info is free and open. Just ask for the car fax or look it up yourself, it's right on there for free. read more