Xorg

Let me get this straight - Acura is supposed to be a high-end luxury car right? By default that implies outstanding customer driven service and doing whatever it takes to make the customer happy.

It also means treating customers with respect and offering a level of service and support above and beyond what you would expect as a part of the "luxury car ownership experience" - so why do most Acura dealers I hear about SUCK and treat people like CRAP?


Case in point: I bought my car at Greenwich Acura, they were the only people who didn't try and jerk me around or play games -the only place where they respected the fact that I did my research and homework and dealt with me fairly as a knowledgeable consumer.

All the other CT dealers were just jackasses to deal with and played endless dealer games I thought were out of style and practice in most places. Fudging figures, leaving details out of "offers", and trying to hide fees my grandmother could spot without her glasses.


Since Greenwich is a 100 mile ride for me, when it came to service, I called Morande Acura and they assured me that they would be glad to service my TLS, and to offer me the same free loaners and oil changes Greenwich did.

Today I call to make my 3,750 mile appointment and ask for a loaner. No problem. Then I tell the service rep I've already done my oil, but have a few problems they need to check out. "Uh, what problems?"

I mention a slightly misaligned tailpipe, some creaking from behind the dash, and scruff marks on my engine shroud. "Uh, hold on." She comes back and tells me she's sorry, but they can only offer me a loaner "if I'm having major service done." What the F-??

So all of the sudden now that they may actually need to do some warranty work I can't get a loaner for the day? I told the lady I was less than thrilled by this and canceled the appointment. They just lost all my service work because I coudn't get a loaner car for one day - smart eh?

I called Schaller instead (I'm not thrilled with them either) and they said they do all the stuff while I waited, so I made the appointment with them.


I've had it with Acura dealer B.S. and I'm firing off a letter to some executives at their Corporate HQ after I get the names of the people in charge of their dealership programs.

If anyone wants to send me their bad experiences in email, I'll be happy to attach them in a joint letter.


I also own a Saab 9-3 and I split service between two dealers.
They treat me like royality every time I show up for service and could care less where I bought the car. Loaner car every time, they call me twice a day to let me know how my car repair is going, wash my car when its done, and they even offer me coffee and a ride to work!

I owned a Jeep Grand Cherokee, and even CHRYSLER's dealerships treated me better than Acura does!!

I've *never* heard of any Lexus, Mercedes, or BMW owner going through this kind of bull****, time for Acura to WAKE UP because this kind of thing will cost them sales and marketshare.

tgif

I think just your dealer is having those issues.

I bought my car in Downey Acura. It is around 20-25 miles from my home. The reason is this dealer is the only one with the combo I want. However, when it comes to service I went to Acura Of Pasadena, which is only 2-3 miles away from my home.

The Acura of Pasadena dealership had dealt all the repair work issue professionally. This dealership adjust my tile pipe, do the window recall, and fix my passenger seat with no problem. Loaner is also provided. The service staff is very knowedgeable and friendly.

Sorry to hear your unpleasant experience.

rock

I have not taken my car in for service or warranty yet. All I have to say is that the sales department reminded me of the usual sassy, think they know it all, pushy people at Nissan, Honda, Chevy etc. dealers. The sales people that I have talked with at Infiniti, Lexus, Volvo and Mercedes were very nice. BMW was not all that great. I guess this is why Acura is not ranked that high for dealer buying experience. Consumer reports rated Acura 15th place out of 30, with Saturn, Lexus, and Infiniti in the top 3.

seqiro

Living in Northampton, there are NO Acura dealers near me, so I tried making a deal with Schaller. FUNNY. They came back to me with $31,300 for a TL-S w/o Navi, $33,300 for TL-S w/Navi claiming "You won't find a better price than this, this is a hot car! When shall I set up a test drive?". I wrote them back a nice note telling them I could get the car for over $1,000 less in MA, which I finally did end up doing. An Aegean Blue Pearl TL-S w/Navi is on its way from Acura of Boston. I faxed them an offer and FOUR MINUTES later they called me back and accepted. I drove up the next day. There, I was treated VERY well by everyone, they did not try to scam me with additional fees, and the car will be on its way from Ohio soon! I don't know if anyone else has here has had any experience with them beyond the sale, but so far it has been the best car buying experience I can remember. So Schaller lost an easy sale. Not my problem

Incidentally, Acura of Avon and Morande Acura didn't even respond to my requests for information and a quote. I decided that driving to Boston was better (and easier for insurance reasons to stay in MA) than trying to deal with nearby dealerships that don't want my business!

Paul

bh

hehe i'm in the middle of writing my complaint. I'll tell u guys about it when its resolved. I hope thats in my lifetime.

Xorg

Yeah, Schaller is the place where I told the guy I wanted to put $2,500 down on the lease, he tried to use up all that money by hiding it a bunch of ridiculous fees and charges rather than taking it off the price of the car.

I talked him down to $29,900, but he refused to match my offer of $29,700 or even to throw something in, like splash guards - gee makes a heck of a lot of sense to lose a sale and about $2,700 in profit over $200 right? :-)

bioyuki

The problem is partially Acura's and where you live. Dealers of Lexus and BMW are expected to have a high standard. With Acura's top of the line car (not counting NSX) barely pushing 50k its not quite in that league where everything is covered and perfect yet. I live in SoCal where I can easily count 15 dealers in a 25 mile radius. Here, dealers have to offer competitive pricing and good service because its so easy to go to the dealer 2 or 3 miles away. Case in point, I bought my car at South Coast Acura which is about 10 miles away. Me being a lazy bum, I get my car serviced at Tustin Acura which is only 4 miles away. I could goto Canyon Acura which is even closer but I hear service isn't very good there. I was very pleased with Tustin's service...only thing is that I got a POS loaner car.

BlackShadow

I know exactly what you're talking about. My previous Acura dealer was Montclair Acura where I bought my TL. But their service was horrible so I switched to Park Ave Acura where I heard so many great things about their service.
I guess we northern NJ people are lucky with Park Ave Acura.

thejavagod

Acura of Valencia is great, they treat me like a good customer. Longo Lexus treats me like GOD

RedLined

Every dealership is going to be different. Duncan Acura in Roanoke has "updated" their sales tactics to be more in line w/ what people expect today, especially of an Acura dealership. That is, less b.s. and jerking around of the customer. Unfortunately, it seems most of the car salesmen and sales managers out there are of the old school so it take a long time to change their attitudes and habits. It's amazing how slow they are to change and still try to jerk people around regarding pricing, especially when so much info is readily available on the internet.

Road Rage

The answer is of course no.

Crown Acura in Richmond has been great both is sales and service.

They have always treated me well, and done good and clean service. Most of the time I get a tL loaner.

Maybe it was that NSX I bought....Hmmmm...

Write all the letters you want, they may pacigy you. but they won't do anything - these guys look at the customer surveys and sales figures.

Like any business in a capitalist system, if they do not address the requirements of the majority of buyers (which may not be your needs BTW), they will not stay is business.

daverman

IMO, the Acura dealers seem to be a bit inferior to the Honda ones, at least the ones that I've seen around the Kansas City area. Remember to speak your mind when sending in the surveys. Don't let the dealers intimidate you into reporting better than you think.

Also, keep shopping around for better shops. This forum too is ideal for keeping people informed about the dealerships. Keep your comments coming, and hopefully we can help the better dealerships get more customers and take customers away from poorer ones. That way they'll be forced to shape up or ship out!

1000bpm

I think it's important to distinguish between Service and Sales here.

SALES: I had a HORRIBLE experience with Continental Acura (Chicagoland). What happened there pretty much amounted to fraud. Fortunately for them I was moving out of town temporarily and I did not have the time or inclination to pursue the matter legally. Don't want to get into the detals here.

SERVICE: As far as service goes, my experience with Frank Leta Acura here in St. Louis has been fantastic. Don, the Service Manager runs a tight ship and is generally a great guy. It's been an absolute pleasure dealing with Pam and Jeff as well. I have nothing but good things to say about these guys, they really do genuinely care about fixing your problems.

In general I've noticed that the Service Divsions at Acura dealers have a lot more "integrity" for lack of a better word. They truly care about customer satisfaction, they have to otherwise the customer will take his business elsewhere. The Sales operations are a different story however. They have been getting too greedy with the knowledge that they have two hot products on their hands (MDX & TLS). Look at whats happening in the case of the MDX.

Somehow, the overall luxury experience is missing. I think Acura would do well to take a few cues from Lexus.

Xorg

Well I can't buy the argument that its where I live - I have seven (7) Acura dealers within 100 miles of me, so the lack of competition isn't the problem.

Proper dealer service is driven from top-down, if Acura doesn't care enough to make sure their dealers are providing proper service - there is the root of the problem.

Consider what Chrysler does (again, I received MUCH better service and attention from my Chrylser dealers - ponder that for a while.) Chrylser has two hot special cars - the Prowler and the PT Cruiser. Chrylser offers preferential treatment to dealers who meet or exceed their quality and customer feedback standards. Only Five Star dealers get Prowlers, and only top *customer* rated dealers get priority treatment when ordering PT Cruisers.

Gee, wonder how much better Acura dealers would be if Acura did the same with the TLS and RSX??

I also don't buy the argument that its the price of the car - I have a Saab 9-3 and Saab's dealers have all treated me WAY better than Acura dealers have - this for a $31,000 car! And gee, my Jeep GC was $28,000!

wakkolio

John Eagle Acura is very good at taking care of me so far. All my recalls and services has all been done in a very professional manner. My service guy was great...gave me free things as well. I get loaner cars and don't have to fill the gas back.

fguv

Does anyone have an opinion on John Holtz Acura in Rochester, NY? How is service.. Or, what is the best acura dealer around northwest NY (Syracuse, Buffalo, Rochester)?
thanks

lonny

javagod is right - Longo Lexus treats its customers like kings and queens. After I moved from the valley to Downey, I started taking my GS400 to them for service and was always treated very well. I got my TL-S at Downey Acura and they treat me good, too, although I have only been in a couple of times.

gohawks63

I can give a few examples of my experiences. I previously owned a '93 Vigor which I bought new at Acura of Libertyville (formerly Carr's Acura). Great experience then. I began shopping the TL as soon as it was redesigned in '99. At that time most dealers were charging sticker (or more) for the car. Acura of Libertyville offered a fair trade on my Vigor, but wouldn't budge on the new car. They didn't play any games and were honest. Also shopped Lexus and they offered a comparable trade on my Vigor, but the ES300 was overpriced IMO. Went to Pauly Acura in Highland Park, they also were selling at sticker, but offered my $3k less on my trade compared to everyone else!!!! When I told them what everyone was offering the trade the following conversation took place:

Me: How come everyone's offering me aroun $8K
Salesman: On what car?
Me: On the Vigor.
Salesman: No, what car are you looking to buy?
Me: What do you mean? The TL, we've been talking about.
Salesman: I can't give you $8K for a trade if you're buying the TL, this car (TL) is too hot. If you want, I'll give you $8K and I'll sell it to the other dealer.
Me: Now why would I do that. I'll go to the dealer who is upfront with me.

I promptly walked out. They were oviously lo-balling trades to make a profit. More subtle than adding a fee to the sticker of the new car. I vowed that I would never go there again and I would tell everyone my experience. I was so Pi$$ed, I figured I would wait on buying a new car.

When I finally decided to trade in the old Vigor this year, Acura of Libertyville didn't have the car I wanted, Arlington Acura (where my Vigor was serviced) gave me a decent price on a new TL and a fair price on my trade. No games, but I was curious to see if I could get a better deal. I ended up buying my TL at Woodfield Acura (in Hoffman Estates, IL) and had a fantastic experience. Just make sure you deal with John Malioris Sales Manager. My buddy went there a couple of weeks later shopping for an '02 WDP TLS and dealt with the same salesman as me, but a different sales manager. He vows that he'll never go there again and ended up buying from Continental Acura and loved them (different experience than what 1000bpm had).

It goes to show you that it all depends on who you're dealing with no matter the dealership.

I get my car serviced at Arlington Acura (in Palatine, IL). Service manager is Barry Kogos and he is top notch.

I'll never ever go to Pauly Acura

imax

I can not speak as to "ALL" Acura dealers sucking but I know that the Rick Case Acura delaership in Fort Lauderdale after the sale customer service stinks. On the other hand, I have also bought an Acura from Acura of South Florida and although they are a smaller Acura dealership they have been very good. Still give ya a small loaner car though

Wampum

My dealer sucks!! Bad thing is that they are the only one Tucson!! They suck. Enough said.

Xorg

I'll post of my letter to Acura/Homda Motor when its done, you guys can all electronically "sign" the letter if you want :-)

acutee

I personally think they are all suck. It will be just your lucky day to get things done properly. They don't have standard level of customer service. They don't know the meaning of customer service. How can they satisfy a customer to get problems resolved. Forget about donuts and candies, you pig.