My dealership nightmare

[RapidRick]

My new 2015 Mirage is finally home, finally in my driveway, and finally done visiting the dealership. I can honestly say that my experience with the car dealer has been the most awful customer e pertinence I have ever had, ANYWHERE, for anything.

I know I posted the details of how I wound up in a Mirage on a separate thread, but let me briefly recap and bring everyone up to speed about how I have gotten to this point.

I bought a new Honda Insight about 2.5 years ago after spending an eternity car shopping and number crunching. I honestly wanted the Mirage, but it was not for sale in the US yet and my old car was about to die for good. I bought the Insight and it gave me good service and great MPGs. A little over a week ago I saw an email from the forum about the big sale on Mirages.

After a bit of research and reading up here on the forum, I thought I'd swing by the dealership and see if we could hammer out a deal. My first dealer visit went well. They quoted me the invoice price, minus the dealer holdback, minus 3500. Also a good offer for my trade in, but not great. No prob. I leave and immediately get a call from the general manager offering me a better deal, an additional 500 off plus another 500 on the trade in. Now we are sounding like we have the makings of a good deal. This is a Saturday, late afternoon.

I think about it on Sunday, spend the day crunching numbers, and visit the dealer on Monday. I look at what they have in stock, what options are on the car, and we make a deal. As we start going through the paperwork, the bullcrap begins. The dealer starts offering add-ons, like they always do. Perfectly fine with me, this is where much of their profit comes from. I'm not really interested in any, except for their pre-paid maintience package, which was quoted by the general manager as 299 dollars for two extra years of oil changes, free towing, free alignment checks, etc... At 299 bucks it is worth it, but marginally.

The dealer then tries to charge me 529 bucks for the same package. Of course, I say no, and they drop the price to 450. Even though I'm annoyed we are now playing financial games, but I agree to the 450 dollars. We continue to roll through the rest of the paperwork and come to the end of the paperwork process.

I read the total amount of the transaction and am puzzled. Even accounting for the extra 150, the total is too high, by quite a bit, about 350 dollars. I start pouring over the numbers and I realize that these ******* have overcharged me for sales tax. OF COURSE, they blame it on a computer glitch, explaining that the law changed regarding the tax status of trade in value and the computers have not been updated. (Mind you, the law was changed 2 years ago)

I am about as pissed as can be, but I don't say anything and leave. I was furious, but at this point I had already signed the paperwork. I understand that I most treat this dealership without any kind of trust. They are looking to extract as much wealth out of me as possible, for as little as possible in return.

I come back a few days later to arrange delivery. I lay out what I need done to take delivery of the car. It is Thursday afternoon. I will pick up the car on Saturday. Here is what will be done....

1). Hitch installed
2) Goofy stripes removed
3) Alignment done and report printed for my inspection
4) A check ready for me for overpayment because I paid for some extra labor to have a transmission cooler installed. They can't install a cooler on a CVT so I told them they could refund me, or order me the Mitsu factory seat covers. I even told the guy whatever was best for him. If he could make a little profit on the covers, cool. If not, a check is fine.
5)Throw down a plastic adhesive floor mat for me to use until my Weather-Techs arrive.

Since I understand that these people are idiots, I make very sure to spell out clearly what I expect. I go over the list three times. We know where this story is going, don't we.....

.... I get there late Saturday afternoon and the only thing done is the hitch installation. Of the list of five things, only one is done, and they still expect me to take delivery of this car.

At this point, things became very ugly. Tempers were lost and bad words were exchanged. At the end, I am promised that if if I take delivery of the car I can come back first thing Monday morning and everything else will be handled top priority and I will be out in no time.

I get there this morning, I am given a loaner car and dismissed. I was left with this distinct impression that I would wait and it would be done first thing. A little after lunch, the car is done. I am handed the keys and sent along. I am informed that the alignment was done, and is good, but they can't print it out because their computer is too old. The check? They didn't get to that yet. He going to call me back this afternoon about possibly obtaining the seat covers, or refunding some money.

Obviously, I'm most disgusted with the financial tactics, but the general inability to follow through on any kind of meaningful customer service has been pretty awful too. Honest to God, if I knew buying this car was going to be this much bull**** I would have never bought it. I like the car, but I am spent and exhausted by difficult they made the process.

I've got a call out to a friend who just bought a Mirage from this dealership, and she seems to think that they might have got her for extra taxes, too. God only knows how many people were defrauded by this dealership.

This situation is going to cost me a lot. I paid 450 for a prepaid maintenance package I now will never use, but that is only the start. I never will set foot at that dealership again. Any other Mitsubishi dealer is pretty far, so I can expect to pay for all repairs out of pocket. I'm due at least another 150 dollars for overpayment of labor. Plus, now I have to go to an independent shop and have the alignment checked, since there is no verifiable proof that my alignment was ever done.

My new car experience has been thoroughly ruined by this dealership. I now need to wash it, clay it and wax it, a process that would normally be tremendously enjoyable in a brand new car. I'm as disgusted as can be by this whole process and just want my old car back. I'm mostly pissed about the tax thing. Using the government as an excuse to charge me extra in hopes that I won't figure it out is tantamount to theft. These fools tried to steal from me.

If I find out later today that the tax overcharge was not just me, but a more widespread situation, the poop is going to seriously hit the fan. These people messed with the wrong guy.... ☹️

[uheym]

I'm not sure if it's possible to sue them in a way?
I would talk with the local police if you think they did something wrong / or you have payed to much.

The other way around, if you paid the service package, bug never wanna put your feet on their ground again you lost more money, so I would go to them with everything, even the smallest thing with the car, and or maybe report them ind to Mitsubishi US, that should be possible?

[IwantaMirage]

Please do a "Yelp" review on them, that will alert other shoppers to their shenanigans.

[Eggman]

Which dealership did this?

[RapidRick]

Bowling Green Mitsubishi. Bowling Green, KY

[Top_Fuel]

That really sucks. I'm so distrusting of dealerships any more, I have them work up ALL the numbers and then email me a purchase order before I even set foot back on their lot. That way I review the numbers on my own terms...not while I'm sitting at some salesman's desk.

My dealer was great, but even they tried to pad their doc fee a wee bit. I asked them to remove it and re-send the PO. They did and then I showed up to buy.

Here's what I don't get...

My dealer probably asked me this 3 times before I left their store... "If you can't rate us a 10 on everything we've done, please let us know now so we can correct it." It was clear that these guys didn't want Mitsubishi to see anything but great survey results. Yet other dealers don't seem to care?!?

My impression is that corporate Mitsubishi does care about sh*tty service. So if you weren't happy, be sure to hammer them when you get your post-purchase survey. I would be shocked if you aren't contacted by Mitsubishi.

[Cobrajet]

"We can't print out your alignment numbers (or invoice, or service inspection) because our printer is _______________."

They do this ALL THE TIME. That way, there is no paper trail if you come back to them. My dealership did the same thing, only their printer was 'broken'. I swear I could make my fortune just by repairing, replacing, or upgrading dealership printers!

Have your alignment checked by an indy as soon as you can.

[foama]

Sorry you had such a terrible dishonest dealer, but it could be even very much worse!


Here is some of my very bad experience with a Mitsubishi dealer, (or does he qualify as a crook?).

A dealer in Königsbrunn in Germany offered me a Space Star (Mirage) model "1.0 Mivec Light" for €7990.- Although I live hundreds of kilometers away, I decided to accept that offer, because it was the best price. We made a binding contract stating that specific model at that price, delivery to be in May, or latest by beginning of June.

I sold my old car privately, and was to keep it till the end of June, when the buyer needed it. Came June my old car was gone and the new car was not there yet. Me having to go to work by bicycle on sunny days, or by foot in the rain, a distance of 18km or 12miles one way, through bogging mud, fields and woods. The car was supposed to arrive "in a few days", and then "in a few days" again and again and again. I hiked to and from work for four months! Often wet to the bone and covered in mud.

The dealer phoned me in August the new car had finally arrived! But what a shock upon seeing it! It was a totally stripped naked model, albeit with radio and aircon, but not the more expensive model agreed upon in the contract! It did not even have a cover for the luggage area, no adjustable seat, no nothing, just a totally stripped naked car at the same price! Meanwhile I had more than enough of hiking to and from work through the countryside in rain and thunderstorms with my shoes getting firmly stuck in deep mud and being cold and wet all over,covered in mud like a hound, so without any other options I reluctantly took that stripped naked car at the same price stated in the contract for the better version. I possibly would have taken back my old car to the price of the new one.

When pointing out the contract to the dealer, and specifically mentioning we had agreed to a different model at that same price, he said it the contract was binding only for the customer, and I could take it or leave it, and if not he would sue me!

You see, there are some really rotten dishonest dealers out there!

I contacted Mitsubishi Germany, and mailed them copies of everything. Luckily I collected everything in writing.
Mitsubishi wrote back: "Thank you for your mail. We regret you are not happy with "Company Name". We regret the delivery delay. Your contract partner is however your Mitsubishi partner (the dealer).
Although Mitsubishi Germany was well informed about that dealer and received everything in writing, that same dealer still sells Mitsubishi almost two years later...

[uheym]

So you are driving a car you did not really buy if i read it correctly ? If the contract Says that you bought a model with all equipment, but it's not there at delivery, why take it? I mean in the Contracts it says one thing, but you get something else.
Damm it! They should not have this with me - i would have called the Police and would not leave the Shop until i got what i paid for ..

[ed100]

Sorry to hear of the problems. I'm fortunate to have had a good experience with my mirage purchase with the local dealer here. I've been on the not so good end of a purchase though so I know the feeling.