Towbin Dodge reviews and complaints

I've been looking around for a car and at Towbin Dodge I found a 2006 Monte Carlo that I really liked. I did my research on the car, vehicle report came back good, mileage was good for the year and the price was great. The price being great should have been enough to stop me but I wanted to see things through. I filled out the financing application on-line and spent the next day speaking to a rep named "Sunny" numerous times. She was very high pressure with trying to get me in right away to buy the car when I made it perfectly clear I had wanted to wait one more week as I'd be able to put even more money down up front. She was even pushing for the dealership to come pick me up so I would not have to wait for a ride, which would ofcourse leave me stuck there if I did not buy the car. She assured me that the money I had on hand was enough and that I would have to come in with all my documentation to get the specifics of my financing offer that I was being pre-approved for.

I set an appointment for that night with her manager "Doug" as she would be gone for the day by time I got there. Doug says he has no one available to speak with me right that minute and suggest I go look at the Monte Carlo that I was interested in. After waiting around for almost 30 minutes "Doug" brings over a sales rep "Michael" to help me that supposedly has all my information. I give Michael my paper work, check stubs and that sort of stuff, so he can make copies of it. After getting that personal and sensitive information Michael tells me "Sunny told you that you can not get the Monte Carlo right?" thus dropping the Bait-N-Switch scam. I had told Sunny and the manager Doug that the Monte Carlo was the only car I wanted as it was the only car Sunny said I "qualified" for that was in my price range. Michael tells me that the 93k miles on the Monte Carlo was too high and that's why the bank won't approve the loan. Sunny had only told me any car 2005 and newer on the phone but in person I am told 2005 and newer PLUS it has to have less then 70k miles.

I still gives these people a chance and ask if they have anything in my price range, around $10, 000 or less (the Monte Carlo was listed at $8500), and meets the requirements for the bank. Michael then directs me to a 2007 Hyundai Elantra that they had pulled up to the front specially for me since they knew I was coming in, which only goes to show the Bait-N-Switch was planned. I ask him to first see the information on the car, like the price and such, and Michael refused and he insisted I go and look at the car and take a test drive. The car was OK but I do not like Hyundai's and that's not what I was looking to buy. I'm a bigger guy so I need a bigger car like a Monte Carlo or Impala.

So after the test drive I instruct Michael to get the info on the car as the car does not matter if I can't afford it. Something I had stressed with Sunny during multiple phone conversations was I was looking for a car for around $10, 000 and that I'd be putting down $3000 in cash (would be $4000 if they let me wait a week). And since I was putting down over 30% of the cost of the car I was looking for payments around $200-$225 a month. When I used the financing calculator that Towbin Dodge puts on their own website the Monte Carlo was coming back at only $152 a month with $3000 down, and that was even with me estimating high on the interest rate at 18%. I did not trust that calculator to be 100% honest and that is why I was figuring payments are $200-$225.

Michael finally brings out the information on what the cost and payments would be and the car was $11, 999, not the $10, 000 or less that I was looking for, and with $3000 down and a 60 month loan my payments would be $358. After all the lies I nearly blew a gasket and expressed my frustration at being lied to. Michael gave the canned response of "This is not our fault, we have to do what the bank says". So I got up to leave and Michael started begging me to stay and that he'd get his manager and they would try to work something out. I asked him point blank "Can you get this price down to get these payments below $250 a month?". He ofcourse had no answer and just kept repeating he needed to ask his manager. I did not waste my breath pointing out that he claimed it was up to the bank and that if it's up to the bank there's nothing his manager would be able to do. So I walked out the door and left and will never return.

So after numerous phone calls and all sorts of promises from the sales rep Sunny, Towbin Dodge had no intention of ever selling me the car that they promised they would and instead tried to get me into a car that was $3500 more then the car I wanted with payments that were double what I had been promised. I even mentioned the financing calculator on the website to Michael and he said "Well that's never going to be true". I was lied to from the very start and was denied information when I asked for it. One other red flag, the piece of paper that had the cost and payment info on it did not even list an interest rate. I had what the payments would be but not the interest rate that was being used to get those numbers. Failing to provide that kind of disclosure is totally dishonest and should be criminal if it's not already. I should not have to sign a contract before finding out the interest rate I am going to be expected to pay.

I went to this dealership yesterday to trade in my Acura for a vehicle of lesser value. This turned out to be the biggest mistake of my life. I have never dealt with such dishonest salesmen & so called company managers in my life. It started out with them not having the vehicles that had drawn me there in the first place. Right after arriving, they took my keys & title (to apparently check my vehicle etc.) It was decided that I'd take a 2005 Kia Sedonna, which was listed at 5, 995.00 but written up on the contract at 7, 995.00. Every time I posed an objection or pointed out a discrepancy, I'd be told it would be fixed etc. then that person would disappear with all the paperwork etc and someone new would be send my way. Facts & stories kept changing & it was very confusing. When I told them I just wanted to take my car & leave, I was told if I took the Kia home & was unhappy, I could return it today & the deal would be off (imagine my surprize when all the people I needed weren't there today.) They also led me to believe I had signed off on my car, when I actually hadn't. End result, they refused to let me leave with my car, just their piece of junk (and that's putting it mildly)I left without the title for the Kia or the money I was supposed to be paid; I was told I would get it the next day. Again I told them, they were'nt honoring the contract & had NOT told me I couldn't have title or funds due when they had me sign off on my car, so I should be able to cancel the deal; again I was refused. To add insult to injury, they sent me off with a car that had hardly any fuel in it, & by the time I noticed it I was in the middle of nowhere.

Trying to find out who the big Kahuna is with a contact number is an impossibilty. I have since discovered that this company (there's several dealerships) are being investigated for fraudulent dealings in several areas. They lie, cheat & sell substandard vehicles which become way over priced by all their various fees & charges that are NOT related to buyers up front. Someone else who's involved in a lawsuit with them is trying to have them shut down, & I agree they should be shut down to protect the unsuspecting public. There need to be better laws & safetys in place against the fraudulent practices of company's like this! There is nothing worse than being kicked when you are already down & these people excell at it. I honestly don't know how they can sleep at night.

Do yourself a favor and do NOT go near any of their dealerships. It became very apparent to me that they operate with no ethics, nor do they care about the stress nor hardship they place on their customers. I now understand why they overcharge & have so many hidden fees, it's to pay for their huge TV budget for their so called Reality Show.

Please do yourselves a favor and stay away from these sharks. If you insist on dealing with them, take a lawyer & a video camera!

I buy my 2006 Dodge Grand Caravan. It dies in my driveway overnight. They tow it away, put in the cheapest battery they could find. I complained about my brakes squeaking, they said they needed to be broken in. Within 1 week, I had to get my oil changed because I was already 2 qts low. There idea of "detailing" did not include vacuuming, doing the windows or cleaning out the drink cups. I had an appt with the sales dept to get a $100 cash. Still waiting, and that was 1 yr ago. Now I need to get my new brakes fixed by someone who knows what they are doing to the tune of $700. Why is this place still in business?

Purchased a 2004 Kia Sedona Van from Tobin Dodge on January 20, 2008. I drove the van no more then 5 miles from the Dealer and the “Check Engine Light” came on. I called Pete my salesman and explained this to him the next day. He said it was probably just a loose fuel cap so I secured the cap and reset the computer only to have it come on again. I bought a new fuel cap and again the check engine light came back on.

I took the van to my mechanic the next day only to find that there was an EVAP code from the van computer saying there was some kind of a pressure leak in the vans fuel system. At this time he noted that my serpentine belt was worn out and my crankshaft idler pulley was making noise. This was making some sound when I got the van and just got worse within a short time. (Was probably greased to quite)

I call the dealer and notified Jana in customer service of my concerns about the check engine light, serpentine belt and idler pulley and was told to get an estimate and fax it in. I drove 70 miles round trip to get the estimate and sent it to Jana and was later told by Jana that I could get the work done and send her the paid invoice for reimbursement. It took over a week for the part to come and in that time I had further trouble with the vans air conditioner unit and again called customer care and spoke to Jana.

This time my mechanic looked at the vans A/C unit and ran a test and found the system was low on the T32 coolant or what ever it’s called. He added 1 pound to bring it back up to 2.4 pounds it should have had. With the car only 4 years old you have to ask just how would it get so low so fast with out having a leak? I paid $42.50 to have the A/C system recharged.

The next time I called to speak with Jana, Frank answered the phone from Sales and informed me that I would not be able to have the repairs done outside the dealer as I was originally promised. When I went to pay for the shipping cost ($15.00) on the parts that were ordered I had the mechanic drive the van because I noticed a noise in the right front end. He said that it pulls to the right and need new struts on the front and probably more. He also stated that he didn’t feel the van was even safe to be driven in its condition without further inspection.

Both the mechanics that I showed the van to agree that the Towbin Dodge Inspection should have shown these obvious defects.

1) Check Engine Light

2) A/C unit

3) Serpentine Belt and Idler Pulley

4) Right front makes strange noise during execration

On 2-20-08 I returned the Van to Towbin Dodge for the A/C unit, Check Engine Light and a faulty Idler Arm Pulley and worn Serpentine Belts. The Dealer said there were 2 codes on the computer from the check engine light and they fixed one that had never been seen before instead of the evap code that I told them was causing the problem. The engine noise was still there when I got my car at 6:00 PM (after waiting there 11 hours). Before I drove 10 miles from the dealer the “Check Engine Light” came back on. I called and talked to both Jana and Kelly and was told to bring the car back for a follow up. By the time I arrived at Towbin Dodge for my appointment I was so upset with having to return again that I just wanted to trade the van for another vehicle or refund. When I was talking to Curtis in service about the engine noise he became very rude about my Van being a “Kia with almost 100K” on it. I saw a 04 Ford Focus in the lot and inquired on what it would cost to trade into it. At that time I was told that they would only give me wholesale value for my Van and not what I had just paid them for it despite the fact that I have had so much trouble with it right from the beginning and had barely drove it 1000 miles. I tried to go upstairs and see Kelly to talk about the Van but Frank came up and found me saying Kelly works for him and I wasn’t allowed to talk with her. He claimed I wasn’t where the customers were supposed to be and I had to wait downstairs for him to work things out. Franks deminer was always edgy and rude at best and never professional. After waiting an hour Frank called me into Virgil’s Service Dept. Office and began arguing with me about nearly everything. Including the “Relax” 3-day return policy. He said it didn’t exist and was yelling and argued about it. Frank then said I have 4 choices 1.) I was going to have to take $800. Off the price I paid for the Van to return it (7 percent restock & doc fees). Or 2.) Have them fix the check engine light only and not the air conditioner or engine noise. And sign some paper saying I would not hold them liable for anything more on the Van and never come back there again to buy a car or have service. Frank never did say what option 3 and 4 were. But I knew I didn’t trust Towbin Dodge to make the repairs correctly. So I told Frank I would take the refund. And he left to go upstairs. I went out side and an hour later Frank walked up and said come look at this. It was a Ford Focus with 158K on it and a motor that should like it was ready to explode or something. He wanted me to take the car in exchange for the van. I thought the car was worth maybe $2500 on a good day and rejected Frank’s proposal. I asked him once again to just get me my money back and I would be on my way. Again he disappeared for some time (an hour). When he reappeared he said that I wasn’t going to get my money back or my car fixed and that I should leave right now. I told him I needed more questions answer and Frank replied that if I didn’t leave he was going to call the police. I told him to go ahead. I spoke with Virgil in the service center about the strange tactics that Frank used to handle my problem and he replied that he would have handled it much differently. When I questioned him about the leak in my air conditioning unit he said he thought that they had ran dye in the system and it was OK. I knew this wasn’t true because I had talked to Marcus (the mechanic) and was told he didn’t do it. I left the dealer without the sets of keys I gave them to my vehicle. I stayed and spoke more with Virgil trying to figure out what was the deal with Franks attitude on fixing my car but it seemed obvious this wasn’t going far so I finally left. I finally got an OK from Don Heckenborn to return the vehicle for refund on March 12. On Friday March 14 I arrived at the Dealership at 11:00am as instructed by Mr. Heckenborn. 5 hours later I still wait for the refund for my Van. Finally Steve Weaton brought some papers for me to sign. Still no check for another hour. Then when the check did arrive they had some legal document “releasing Towbin Dodges liabilities” they said I had to sign in order to get my check. Mr. Hechenborn waved the check like a carrot and said sign the release or you don’t get the check. This is not even legal; I was forced to sign the document under duress. Under contract law that isn’t even a legal contract. As far as I’m concerned I only scribbled some lines to make them think I sign the document but never even attached my signature to it.

My experience with Towbin Dodge has been horrible from start to finish. Frank the GM was as unprofessional as anyone I have ever seen or meet in my entire life. Curtis in Service was also unprofessional and rude. And Steve Wheaten needs his diaper changed. In a nutshell: The price was changed from on the phone to when I arrived with cash in hand (by $600). The vehicle inspection was poor at best (a/c never worked but checked OK). Judging by the timing of when the check engine came on the first time it was reset by Towbin (by simply disconnecting the battery) and was always on and they knew about it. I can’t even tell you how many phone calls I made that were never returned. Out of 50 calls maybe 3-4 were returned. BUYER BEWARE TOBIN DODGE *** BIG TIME!