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Dishonest, Bait & Switch, Non Responsive
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I wish I’d have read the Yelp reviews before dealing with these people! Worst buying experience of my life and I’ve been driving Mercedes Benz since 1982. Beware and don’t ever buy a car from this dealership.
There are dozens of customers like me that have posted negative reviews. This dealership gives lip service but in almost every response, they say;
“We are sincerely sorry for any inconvenience or miscommunication you faced. We take customer satisfaction seriously, and we are disappointed if you did not experience that, blah, blah, blah.”
Their response is virtually identical every single time from Michael G. But clearly, they are not making any changes to eliminate these bad reviews.
I found a Certified Pre-Owned 2017 Mercedes Benz E-400 Wagon on Auto Trader with the options I wanted through Mercedes Benz of Oxnard. The internet manager, Nicholas Gutierrez and I agreed on a price. As I said, I should have read the reviews on Yelp because he is called out in other reviews as incompetent. I’m at a disadvantage as I live in Kansas City so have to rely on their honesty and integrity. Big mistake!
After asking 4 times for a Vehicle Sales Contract to make sure what we’d agreed on was in writing, Heather Bull, the F&I Manager finally sent me one, it had $799 “Zurich Shield Upgrade” added to the price. This is simply paint and interior protectant, which cost the dealership about $100 and is pure profit. It’s a scam that Buy Here Pay Here dealerships run to pad their profit. I’ve never heard of a Mercedes dealership doing this. Not only doing it, but not disclosing it in their Auto Trader ad or when the deal is made.
Had this been advertised or discussed, then the buyer could make the decision, but when they just add it on after a deal is made smacks of bait & switch. BTW – there are other customers that complained about this exact problem (8/22/2020, 11/1/2018).
I said I didn’t agree with this and didn’t want it. I was told too bad, it has already been applied and it can’t be taken off. This was not disclosed in the Auto Trader ad and Nicholas said nothing about it. Had I known what was to come, I would have run away. Because my wife really wanted the car, I swallowed hard and made the purchase.
A few days later, the car was delivered to Kansas City. A quick inspection found that this car should not have been a CPO car. While MB of Oxnard checked “OK” on all of the boxes, it was a joke.
The console wood looked like a chain had been drug across it. There was an actual pen mark about 2” long on the rear seat leather. There were numerous scuff marks and a pin hole in the leather in various places.
The console wood was so pad, I bought a replacement for $413.31.
There were paint chips in the white exterior in numerous places. I had to purchase a paint pen for $35.58 to touch these up.
My first four e-mails with photos of the above items went completely unanswered, nothing but crickets. Finally, Nicholas e-mailed back stating, “After speaking with both my service department and Pre-Owned Inventory manager & showing them the pictures you sent both state that the vehicle meets Mercedes Benz Certified Pre-Owned Requirements.”
That’s it, no discussion, no offer to make it right, nothing. Their Auto Trader ads hide problems or take photos at an angle where you can’t see the issues.
I specifically ask Nicholas about any interior leather issues or wood issues and was assured that the car was like new.
I am shocked that Mercedes Benz of North America would allow one of their dealers to have sales and customer service people this dishonest and allow them to retain their franchise. “The Best or Nothing” sure doesn’t apply here.
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