My husband and I went to Keyes on Van Nuys because they were advertising on the radio that they were having a sale where they would pay off your existing loan. This intrigued us so we went to check it out.
We stopped at the Keyes Acura dealership because we saw a car we were interested in. My husband asked the salesman about it and what kind of deal they could give on it. The salesman insisted he would give us a good deal but wouldn't give us any details and insisted we drive the car. After driving it, we went back and forth on pricing for at least a 1/2 hour while the salesman kept leaving to "check with his manager" who was nowhere to be seen. Each offer was still outside of our price range but I was willing to do it because I knew my husband really liked the car and I figured we would be able to work it out somehow.
While we were waiting, we were wondering around the lot and I was looking at other cars. This was a big mistake. The salesman used it as an opportunity to "hook" us with the promise of a "package deal" if we bought two cars. We entertained the option to see if they could lower my husband's car payment which they brought down about 50 bucks. (Note, we never saw rates, trade in value, or even discounted price they were giving us on the car.)
We went into negotation for a 2nd car for about an hour, again, them doing the same song and dance of "let me check with my manager" and coming back with ridiculous offers that they knew were out of our price range. I kept asking for specifics, like what kind of trade in they were giving me, and they never gave me a straight answer. When I finally pushed harder, I found out that they weren't giving me ANYTHING for my trade-in which had a Kelly Blue Book of over 6k. I walked out at that point competely upset that they had wasted our time with this bullsh*t.
The saleperson and yet another "manager" came over to my car and said how they "really wanted to help me" and I explained that I was not just not interested. The manager said that he would see if he could give me something for my trade-in and to go back inside with him to work it out. I continued to say that I was not interested and that we really only wanted g to get my husband's car. They said that I had "promised" to get something too and that was the reason they were able to get my husband's payment down and if I didn't get something too, they would have to raise his payment. At this point I felt like I was being completely blackmailed!
I went inside to see what this new manager would do for me. He came back with a payment that was still outside of my price range but wasn't as high as they were originally asking. At this point, they found an excuse to seperate me from my husband and continued to pressure me by myself. I eventually agreed to take the car. (Now it was almost 11pm and I was exhausted.) I drove the car home and realized that I really just didn't even like the car and didn't have an opportunity to really test-drive it to experience it fully. (Their test drive route was about 4 blocks.)
My husband and I went back the next morning and explained that I was pressured into getting the car and that I didn't like it. They said that they had a 3 day return policy if you didn't like the car which we found was actually an "upsell" policy. They just tried to push more expensive cars on me. My husband asked that they cancel the contract since at that point, my financing hadn't even been approved yet and nothing had been done with the paperwork. Yet another "manager" came out and pointed to their "No Cool Off Period" policy saying I couldn't return the car. My husband pointed out that the policy also said that the deal could be canceled with the agreement of the seller, which they were. After a heated debate about that, the manager said no they wouldn't cancel the agreement and walked away.
As a last recourse, I was referred by a friend to CARMAX who advertises that they will buy back cars even if you don't buy from them. I went there and they were willing to buy the new car from me and were going to give me a great price for it. (Over Kelly Blue Book.) I was also able to find a car on their lot that I really liked that was in my price range. (And they offer a true 5 day RETURN policy where you're under no obligation to keep the car if you don't like it within 5 days of purchase.) Unfortunetley, because I just spent my money on a down payment for the other car, I couldn't do the deal. At this point, I'm stuck with a car I hate and have no choice but to hold on to it for a a while to pay down the principle and go back to Carmax to trade it in and get something else I can afford.
Buyer beware: Don't shop at any of the Keyes Cars dealerships. Now that I've gone through this experience, I've researched the net and found other people who have had similar experiences. If you're looking for a great used car with honest people, visit CarMax. When I'm in a postion to get a car, that's the only place I'll ever go.
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