Dealers: the bad - part 2

Vauxhall
'My impression of the service experienced when purchasing my first Vauxhall a 2008/57-plate Vauxhall Corsa Club 1.2 AC five-door was not a pleasant one. The dealer fell way short of good service.

'Communication problems: the salesman did not call back when promised. There were delays in delivering the car from the Luton branch and getting it to the forecourt. On most occasions I had to keep phoning and chasing him, because he rarely called me.

'Time delays: it took longer to deliver the car than initially suggested.

'Problems when collecting the car: as part of the deal, it was agreed that 20 of fuel and a set of mats would be provided, plus a full service record. When I collected the car there were no mats and the fuel was well short of the 20 promised. Also, there was no service book. It took a further three weeks to get the service book and mats, this was due to the dealer having to send the book back to Luton to be stamped. I was told that they 'don't pay much attention to things like that'. Mats were finally offered (not even brand-new mats) when I collected the service book. This was four weeks after I picked up the car!

'To sum up: generally very unprofessional service; poorly managed and uncaring dealership.'
Roddy Henderson

Vauxhall
'I called into my local Vauxhall dealer on three occasions just after the launch of the Insignia. On one occasion, I took a test drive in a diesel car. I explained that I would wait until the petrol version was launched. The dealer said he would ring me when one was available. I am still waiting for a call, some eight months later! In the meantime, I bought a new Audi.' N Taylor

Volkswagen
'Last month', I took delivery of a new Mini Clubman. Before placing the order, I did extensive research including reading What Car? and making dealer visits. Three times I walked around VW showrooms (I fancied a Golf). No one approached me. I logged on to VW's website and left my e-mail address no one contacted me. In exasperation, I revisited a VW dealer and made myself known. Could I drive a Golf? Well, yes and no. We have one, but it's out. Oh and the one you are interested in, we don't have, and anyway there is a long waiting list. Anything else I can do for you? (Well, try to take 18k from me for starters!)

It really should not matter, but I would add that in all instances I drove to the dealers in an 8-year-old E-Class Merc 320 (clean). I hate suits, but hey, I am 59 years old, do I have to get out of jeans and T-shirts to get attention?'
Andy Andrews

Car supermarkets
'I contacted a local car supermarket by e-mail. They got back to me the next day. I questioned their high finance rates and the fact that they wanted my car as part-exchange. I ended up having an argument over the phone with the person who contacted me, who said they sell more than 600 cars a month, and that if I wanted to deal with a main dealer, then more fool me for paying an extra 3000, and the finance was in line with current banking I disagreed strongly.

'No politeness or customer is king there. Needles to say, I will not be using them to buy my next car.'
Paul Latham