The complaint has been investigated and
resolved to the customer's satisfactionResolved Car Hop — junk car
The complaint has been investigated and
resolved to the customer's satisfaction
resolved to the customer's satisfaction
MY GIRLFRIEND PURCHASED A DODGE CAR 1998 STRATUS, AND THEY WOULD NOT TELL HER THE VALUE OR PRICE OF THE CAR SHE PAID 9000.00 FOR A CAR WORTH 2500 TOPS, BEWARE OF THESE CROOKS.
I went to carhop in des moines today as i desperately needed a vehicle to get back n forth to work as i live out in the country and no one on my line comes from this direction. i was upset at first because i was told it would take less than a hour if i had everything. and it took over 2. but thats not a huge deal to me if they can help get me into a car. my credit went bad from when principal laid off thousands of us back in 08 and i had to give my vehicle back and move back home and it was hell. since then ive worked temp and part time jobs until the past year ive been at a good place making really decent money and can work alot of ot if i want. so i understand i will be paying more because my credit. the guy that worked with me was pretty cool and nice. i went in wanting a truck or prefer a truck with 4x4 because of living on a farm and in the country where in winter my road doesnt get plowed out till about 2 pm and my shift starts at 5. i guess i wasnt able to be approved for the silverado or f150 4x4 they had. but i was approved with 150 down for a car i actually liked and thought to myself that maybe it would be the smarter decision to get a car and save on gas since i seem to travel alot. i told him when i first went in that id want a truck but also like the grand prix/bonnevilles like 04 up style and monte carlos etc. well i got approved for a monte ss that is loaded with everything even heated seats and moon roof. before i even got in the car i said the one thing i have to have is ac. if it has ac that works but is just low on r134 i can afford to put a can at 8 dollars a can in. no biggie. and he said actually if i can stop by when the shop people are there they can fill it up (i live hour away)... anyway i sign the paperwork and go on my way. so far ive had the car maybe 12 hours as i write this. and for the most part i like the car... but i was very upset when i got to walmart to buy a can of refrigerent and low and behold theres not even an AC compressor, its just a bypass bracket thing. the lines look like theyre just left open. idk if carhop did that or if whoever owned it did it because they couldnt afford a 200 300 dollar pump. but regardless, i said the 1 thing i need is AC. now some people wouldnt care to much about it but for 1 i work in a factory and sauna every day for 10 to 14 hours and my drive home i want to be comfortable not sweating the whole way home. but the biggest reason is my dad (disabled) doesnt have a car so i have to take him around when he cant find other options to his dr appts etc and he does not do well with the extreme heat like were getting now in july. and there are a couple other things i noticed with the car like the dash lights a couple of the gauges flickered when id go over bumps and the RPM tach light is completely out. again maybe not a huge thing. but luckily i read over my paperwork and they have a 3 day satisfaction where i can return the car by july 14th and get my refund of my down payment. so i will be going up monday to see what happens and i will update my review then. I like the car and i think i would like to keep it even tho im paying almost 190 every 2 weeks for 2 and a half years for a vehicle that if i could buy for 4000 outright and no issues. I will try to keep my business with them if they will either let me choose another vehicle or if they install the AC to a working condition before the 14th. otherwise i did stop at another dealer before carhop and found a grand am for 3000 there and 200 a month. but i had to have 500 down which i dont have today. im just glad that i noticed it now and not during the winter and that i decided to read my fine print which there is one line in all that paperwork u get that says 3 days. maybe now i can get that silverado that i originally wanted. i guarantee that they will still make a ton of money on the truck vs the ss. we shall see what happens.
a verified customer
My husband & I purchased a 1999 Dodge Grand Caravan in December 2012. We needed a good family car as we are expecting a baby daughter in June 2013. We went to Car Hop in Des Moines Iowa. They ran my name & credit information. I was able to get the loan for the van. They put my name on all of the paperwork, allowed me to put $50 down payment, tax, title, registration fees, etc. my total came up to $300.00. Whenn I got the money order & put the money down--they allowed us to drive the van off the lot. The salesman advised that we will need new brakes, rotors, & calibers right away. I had made a payment arrangement to make my first payment right after Christmas--seeing as that's when I would get my paycheck. They "noted my account" with the arrangement. UAC had fit when I made my payment on 12/26. The "account manager" claI'ms that my van was up for repossession. I went rounds with her, screamed, yelled, argued, & fought with her. She claI'ms she was canceling my tow to have my brakes fixed & that she was having my van repossessed. I drove up to the sales lot, my husband & I fought with a different sales man than the one who sold us the van. This guy claI'med that he would not help us because my payment was late--even though I had an arrangement noted in my account. The repair shop came up to the sales lot, towed my van (for free) to the repair shop & replaced the brakes, rotors, & calipers. I picked up the van 2 days later. Whenn I picked up the van, I was advised by 2 of the mechanics that they use used parts when fixing vehicles. Whenn I asked if my brakes, rotors, & capsules were used--I was not given a strait answer (which makes me wonder if I got new parts or used parts). It was just (seriously like 2-3 days) before the brakes were fixed that my power steering pump blew out. Whenn the brakes were being fixed, the repair shop was told to fix the power steering pump. They did not. They did not even look at it. Whenn I got the van back, I I'mmediately called the warranty department & told them that I needed the power steering pump replaced. (To make a long story short), I went several rounds with the warranty department & all I kept getting told was that "it was MY responsibility to pay to have the power steering pump replaced, because it is not covered under my warranty". It literally took 7 long, grueling, hellish weeks & 4 days for them to replace it. The only reason why they did & why it was covered under the warranty is because I had called the State Of Iowa Attorney Generals office. They forced the warranty department to fix my power steering pump at no cost to me. Whenn I took the van in, I was quoted a "new part price" for the power steering pump, however when i got the van back, there was no "new part". The only thing I can tell is that they either patched the one already in the van or they ground down a used part & put it in there. Either way I was taken advantage of. I've been making my payments on a regular basis & getting them in on tI'me or early--however because I am not doing the automatic payments I do not qualify for the extended warranty benefits. Whenn I had an issue & was only able to make a partial payment 2 weeks ago-- the UAC rep i spoke with talked down to me, calling me horrible names, telling me I'm stupid, that I'm not being responsible, that I'm a failure, & that she was better than me. Whenn i asked for her supervisor she cussed me out, called me names, & told me to "f*** off". I hung up on her, i went up to the sales lot crying, when i got a call from my "account manager" she worked with me, allowing me to make a parital payment & then the rest when I got my next paycheck. Whenn I called back 03-15 to inform her that I would have my payments in 03-18 no later than 630pm, she advised me that the rep who i hung up on, went into my account AFTER i spoke with my account manager, & noted my account--the rep noted that I would have my payment in by 7am 03-15 & that if it was not in there, that my van was to be repossessed that day. My account manager put a "repo protection" on my van stating that the prev rep had no legal right to do what she did. I also advised her that when the repair shop fixed my power steering pump, that a large hole was put in my power steering hose--leaking all over my serpentine belt. This caused the belt to fall off & the van to have mechanical issues. When I spoke with UAC & my account manager, she advised me that THEY ARE THE ONES WHO FINANCE THE WARRANTY & SERVICE DEPARTMENTS. She advised me that if they are using used parts, but quoting customers & them a "new part price", then they are at a huge legal fault. She advised me that there is a federal law stating "if a repair shop, quotes you (the customer) & the service/warranty departments a 'new part price', then the repair shop must use a brand new part in the repair of the vehicle. Should they not use a brand new part--& a mechanical failure of the part &/or a serious accident be caused by the part not working properly--then the repair shop is 100% liable for the accident, medical bills, & monies owed on the vehicles involved". She was irate when I told her that I am not able to keep power steering fluid in the reservoir & that it is my belief that the repair shop placed a hole in the hose. I believe that they did this intentionally & that they have not been honest with me. Since I have purchased this van, it has done more sitting, spent more tI'me in the repair shop, than it's been driven. I find it pretty sad that Im paying like $7, 500 or $7, 800 for a 14 year old van with a car payment at $322 per month. For everything that I am paying for this van--these people should be kissing my behind & working with me to get it fixed 100%. Not fighting with me, causing me to call the State's Attorney Generals office (this is the reason why i think a hole was put in the hose.). I feel completely disrespected & like crap when I have to talk/deal with service & warranty. I can stand UAC to a point, but when I ask for a supervisor because I have a rep who is talking bad to me, & all i get told is "no & go f*** off"--then I have a real problem. I work in customer service in a call center--I know how to talk to people so that they feel educated & knowledgeable--not stupid & worthless. So why is it that some of these people think that because some people in this world have bad credit that it makes them bad people?? It's not always their fault--maybe someone screwed them out of money/services/goods & now they are left to pick up the pieces. Maybe they got into the wrong crowd & was backed into a corner? You never know anyone's history until you take the tI'me to listen & learn. So why judge someone with bad credit?? There are a lot more places out there a lot more willing to help people with bad credit & help them get their credit back together (& no I am not speaking about JD ByRider--those people are just as bad as Car Hop-if not worse).
When you are told that UAC and Car Hop are 2 different companies you are being lied to. Both companies are owned by the same people and UAC and are 2 different sides of the same company Interstate Auto Group.
All employees, Car Hop and UAC are trained to create a separation for the customer. That way when a customer becomes upset or disgruntled by the pos vehicle they were brow beat into purchasing the sales person can divert blame to UAC, or the reverse, a UAC rep can blame the sales agent.
The entire sales process is carefully tooled to focus a customer on certain vehicles, everything is done on a very extensive script that every sales person must memorize at 90% or better accuracy. It is designed to break a person down, dig out their most embarrassing financial issues so that when you do object to the 12 year old car with 150k miles on it you will have those issues thrown back into your face.
Throughout this process you will be reminded over and over that Car Hop and UAC are separate, but they are not.
It is very important to know the inspection process that these vehicles, many of which are bought site unseen, go through. A 10-15 minute inspection by a "recon" employee who may, or may not, even be a mechanic. Fluid levels are checked, no oil change is done, brakes are not inspected, tires rarely are even looked at, duct tape is often used to effect repairs. Cars that the people are selling you are often cars they would not even consider putting their own families into.
In short from the moment you walk onto a Car Hop sales lot you are being lied to, misled, and manipulated. You will be told what a great deal you are getting on a car that was purchased for $[protected] and being sold to you for 5 times as much as the purchase price with a warranty that will cover the engine tranny and drive train, but only with used parts that come from some random nearby junk yard.
When you finally realize that the purchase you have made is going to cost you as much as a new car at Kia and you have had to sink hundreds of dollars into repairs that Service and Warranty will not cover even 15 days after your purchase you will be hounded by the vultures at UAC who will disrespect you, your family and your friends. Calling you if your payment is 2 hours late at home, at work and where ever they can find you, and they are not nice, or even professional in many cases.
The one positive thing about the Car Hop program is that if you are lucky and get one of the few decent vehicles they have for sale and you make your payments on time and never have to deal with Service and Warranty the credit reporting will in fact work wonders to improve your credit score. The question is, are you willing to take the risk of getting one of the many lemons and end up paying $12, 000 for a 12 year old car with 120, 000+ miles in order to get that 75-100 point credit score boost?
Why would anyone think a 10 year old car is work nine grand... a Dodge on top of it?