On December 3, my husband and I purchased a 2002 Toyota Camry XLE from Desert Toyota in Las Vegas, Nevada. We paid $17,991 at the dealership, $2,000 more than the posted internet price for this vehicle. During and after negotiations of the sale, we encountered numerous instances of dishonesty, disrespect and immorality.
Under inquisition, Desert Toyota withheld vital information that the car had sustained extensive frame damage from a previous accident. It was during a routine appraisal evaluation following the sale that we learned of the prior frame damage that Desert Toyota either failed to discover, or neglected to disclose to us. This damage had critically compromised the integrity of the vehicle, primarily, in the form of a crack in the engine block. It also significantly reduced the value of the car, leaving us with thousands of dollars in negative equity unbeknownst to us for months.
Various other minor structural damage and malfunctioning systems became evident immediately upon delivery of the vehicle: a non-functioning rear defroster, a leaking rear windshield (which resulted in flooding of the trunk), a cracked and leaking windshield fluid container, several misaligned and broken consoles, and a strong pull to the right. These systems had all passed a 160 point inspection conducted by an in-house technician, however were all malfunctioning at the time of the sale. This information was apparently either overlooked or ignored by the staff at Desert Toyota. The malfunctioning systems were evident to us instantly upon taking delivery of the vehicle; we owned the car for less than 48 hours before it spent the next 30 days at Desert Toyota's service center being repaired.
Desert Toyota advertently misrepresented this damage to Toyota Motor Corporation; they claimed defective material on the service requests and failed to cite the prior accident, as to receive warranty coverage for the leaking engine and other systems a blatant act of fraud that is easily extrapolated to the rest of their business practices.
Desert Toyota then failed to deliver to us a compensatory extended service contract, as repeatedly promised, to protect our interest in the case that future repairs, due to their negligence, became necessary. After numerous confrontations with their management team regarding business practices and ethics, we became wise to the fact that they were unwilling to honor any of their pledges or do anything to rectify an immoral and dishonest transaction; we finally asked them to repurchase the vehicle from us, to which they flatly refused.
During every transaction with Desert Toyota's management team, with the exception of the initial sale, we were treated with apathy, disrespect, and sarcasm. Not one member of the sales or management team, including and especially the General Sales Manager, considered our satisfaction a priority, as they did exactly nothing to either validate our concerns surrounding our buying experience or to retain us as customers.instead, I found myself fervently arguing for a mere apology, which I never received. I would certainly not recommend this dealership to anyone seeking an honest transaction and a quality product.
0 comments