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BRZ First-Gen (2012+) -- General Topics All discussions about the first-gen Subaru BRZ coupe


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Old 03-01-2012, 01:56 PM   #1
Longhorn248
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Subaru Dealer Blacklist (Surprise markups and other shady dealings)

Edit: I haven't been updating this thread so there are tons of shitty experiences not being added to this front page. If you are thinking about working with a dealer I strongly suggest you use the forum search function on the dealership. If that specific dealership isn't on the up and up they should pop up in this thread. Happy searching!

I want to first start off with the fact that I have no problems with dealers putting mark ups on cars since that's basic capitalism. You should charge as high of a price as the consumer is willing to pay, that's basic economics. With that being said, what I do have a problem with are sales people that will outright lie to you and then reinforce why people hate car dealerships. Below are dealerships that we hope you can avoid in the future based on their shady sales tactics and problems that members have encountered when trying to order their cars.

If you have experienced these or other "bait and switch" type tactics from dealers please post them in this thread and PM me so I can update the first post. If dealers are being up front with markups they don't need to be raked over the coals as that is their decision as long as they are up front with the customer about it.

List

Bertera Subaru, Hartford, Massachusetts
Stamford Subaru, Stamford, Connecticut
Chaplin's Subaru, Bellevue, Washington
Koby Subaru, Mobile, Alabama
Colonial Subaru, Feasterville, Pennsylvania
Subaru of Las Vegas, Nevada
Fitzgerald Auto Mall, Gaithersburg Maryland
Puente Hills Subaru, California
Hiley Subaru, Fort Worth Texas

Subaru of Costa Mesa, Huntington CA

References


Quote:
Originally Posted by Bertera Subaru, Hartford, MA (ngabdala)
I am reposting this as Bertera Subaru of Hartford told me that if I removed my post then maybe they would "consider" returning my deposit.

Because of my new job and the restricted salary for the first 12 weeks I will not be able to afford a BRZ at this time. On April 30th I put a downpayment for a BRZ at Bertera Subie of Hartford and made sure it was written on their copy and mine "Deposit refundable."

So today they called. They asked if I could pick it up Saturday. I let them know things haven't changed with work and I need to come in for a refund on my credit card.

They told me they would not do that. They are bullying me on the phone telling me my only option is to buy the BRZ or they will use my $1000 towards a car in the future when I'm ready. I told them my paperwork clearly shows that it is refunable. And they said "Yeah refundable by a $1000 certificate you can use next time you pick up your car."

They wouldn't even act professionally. They told me this with anger. They would not listen to me even though I told them what the law states and told them in their own handwriting it says refundable.

I think they are assuming I'll take the hit because I don't want to hire a lawyer and I won't want to do business with them again so I'll let them keep the $1000. Well let's just say I have a couple lawyers on it now.

I wish I had checked out their Better Business Bureau rating and ratings on google before going there. They are notorious for this and hidden fees which is crazy considering they're the #3 largest Subie dealer in NE. I was so excited to put a downpayment on the car that I felt I needed to rush ASAP so I could get one earlier in the year. Well there's plenty in my area. I won't make that mistake again.

Just a heads up.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Stamford Subaru, Stamford, Connecticut (Jayde)
Drove out to Stamford Subaru in Connecticut after being told I would pay MSRP on a limited BRZ. I drove an hour and 30mins to get there and when I do, there's all of a sudden a $2500 markup on the car. My sales person told me he didn't want to do this, but his manager made him. He spoke to his manager and then it gets dropped to 29000 with destination. I again told him no and walked out. Drove an hour and half for nothing.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Chaplin's Subaru, Bellevue, Washington (R0ME0)
Chaplin's Subaru (Bellevue, WA). Told me over the phone that they are doing MSRP. Once I went in to put down my deposit it suddenly changed to $1000 over MSRP. Shady in my book and waste of Gas! I hate dealerships that do the Bait and Switch! Please Ass!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Koby Subaru, Mobile, Alabama (Alias)
Koby Subaru in mobile Alabama, lied to me about selling the car at or below msrp long enough to get me to put a thousand dollar deposit on the car, also told me I was first in line. After using my money long enough to get my preorder in they tacked $2000 above msrp and told me I was 4th in line.
order cancelled

"Salesman" was Luke, the manager was nice enough to tell me EVERY dealership in Florida and Louisiana was adding a markup so that made it acceptable business practice for them to lie to me and then argue that it was just a misunderstanding.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Colonial Subaru, Feasterville, PA (Jimbo)
So, last week I visited my local Subaru dealer in Feasterville, PA. Colonial Subaru. They said that they were only getting a few units and would be charging more than list... BUT if they could order more than their initial allocation they would sell me at list. They called back the next day and said that they could indeed do this.

So, went today to do the paperwork and put down the deposit and found out they changed their mind. They will mark-up (a yet unknown amount) all the ones coming in.

So...

I declined to do business with them.

-Jim
Quote:
Originally Posted by Subaru of Las Vegas (Poobalooba)
Well, I spoke to soon. Placed my order yesterday with a promise of no markup over MSRP and no deposit. Today I got a call saying that they wouldn't be able to place my order until they got a $2,500 deposit and that there will probably be a 10% markup over MSRP. Then I got the story about how the car is going to be rare and Subaru is requiring the markup from all of the dealers. So, looks like I probably won't be getting one. Subaru of Las Vegas should probably be added to the dealer blacklist.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fitzgerald Auto Mall, Gaithersburg MD (Tbxgz)
Fitzgerald Auto Mall in Gaithersburg MD just slapped on $2000 mark up fee.
Originally, they pulled me in by telling me it would be MSRP pricing or below. On top of that the sales manager told me he would take my order first thing this morning... Then failed to mention today was his day off. A number of other posters around here have had really bad experiences with Fitzgerald as well. I highly recommend avoiding them if you are in the DMV area. Annapolis, Herb Gordon, and Beyer Subaru in Alexandria, are far better options with FAR better reputations.

Quote:
Originally Posted by OrbitalEllipses View Post
Seconded. Have yet to have a "good" experience at Fitzgerald, sales or services or parts.
Quote:
Originally Posted by goldenfri View Post
I agree, I didn't have a good experience with them either. I would go to Annapolis any day. They are awesome.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Puente Hills Subaru, California (Giccin)
Long story on this one, but see this thread for the reason http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1983
Quote:
Originally Posted by Puente Hills Subaru, California (bryan)
Stopped by Puente Hills Subaru earlier this week. Judging by all the bad reviews, I should've known better but decided to go anyways. Terrible Mistake. I walked in to try and get more information on the BRZ as well as to place a pre-order, instead, I got unnecessary attitude.
The sales manager kept interrupting my questions to rant on about how there's going to be a huge premium on the car. Then he proceeded to show me what he had on order. He said that he has a bunch of cars ordered and that only one of them was galaxy blue, the color I wanted. I pointed to the screen and said that the car was already sold to another customer. He then says that it didn't matter, that he makes up the price when the cars arrive to the dealership and that if I were to pay more than the guy who actually ordered it, he would sell it to me. Then he proceeds to give me, an economics major, a lecture about supply and demand. When I told him that the other dealerships in the state were charging no more than msrp, he told me they were all liars and that I should just go elsewhere.
It's absolutely unbelievable how people like this get hired. If you're the one with the pre-ordered galaxy blue BRZ at Puente Hills, I would advise you not to get attached to the car because it seems like the dealership's word is worthless.
Coming from the Bay Area, I would've made my pre-order with Capitol Subaru, who seem like they put customer service first, judging from the reps I've talked to there, but the dealership's allotted BRZs have all been accounted for. Page, a sales rep at Capitol knew everything about the car and even though he couldn't help me with a pre-order, he kept me in the loop and even emailed me a photo of a white BRZ that is coming to the dealership for the weekend. That's what customer service should be.
It's extremely rare that I ever write a bad review but Puente Hills Subaru deserves it. I wouldn't buy a BRZ there if they had the last one in the state, or the country for that matter.
Ended up stopping by a couple other southern california dealerships the same day while I was in the area. All dealerships were friendly and helpful. I did eventually get my pre-order and guess what? - It didn't have a huge dealer markup on it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Subaru of Costa Mesa, Huntington (LeeLeeTee) View Post
I hate them. I pre-ordered my car in March. Got a call from them today saying the car was in the dealership. I go in to see that the car has been marked up 5000 above MSRP. Not paying more than MSRP, when they had specifically said MSRP when I pre-ordered.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hiley Subaru, Fort Worth (Longhorn248)
Quote:
Originally Posted by Longhorn248
So final price will be MSRP (whatever that ends up being) + TTL?
Quote:
Originally Posted by reply from Jonathan Clark
Yes Sir. When we get the pricing information I will let you know. And for the deposit all I will require is $500, and taht will be applied tot he sale of the car.
After getting a deposit form with "unknown" filled in for price, the attached scan is what was sent to me this morning.

If they're willing to outright lie and not try and remedy the situation I wonder how they treat their customers for other services.
Attached Images
 

Last edited by Longhorn248; 11-09-2012 at 10:29 PM. Reason: Updates
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Old 03-01-2012, 01:59 PM   #2
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That is stupid. Poor form Hiley Subaru. Will let my family in the Fort Worth area know to avoid that dealership.
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Old 03-01-2012, 02:01 PM   #3
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scam artists
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Old 03-01-2012, 02:03 PM   #4
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Are they trying to keep your $500? Or had you not put it down yet? In any case, that sucks. All of the hype around this car has made people crazy, and a $2500 markup on this car is nothing short of insane.
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Old 03-01-2012, 02:03 PM   #5
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I'd report them to the BBB!!!
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Old 03-01-2012, 02:04 PM   #6
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I'd report them to the BBB!!!
BBB is almost worthless. They have zero authority really.
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Old 03-01-2012, 02:04 PM   #7
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Good on you for posting this. We need to make a list of scammer dealers to protect fellow FT86Club members from dealing with shady people. This is typical bait-and-switch that so many of us loathe.

Edit: yes, report it to the BBB but don't expect it to do much. It is far more helpful to post it here and spread the word about people engaging in sketchy maneuvers.

Just to be clear -- you have not yet given them any deposit, you just emailed the guy and he said one thing and then when the paperwork arrived it another thing, right??
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Old 03-01-2012, 02:04 PM   #8
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Did you ever get feedback from his Sales Manager or the GM?
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Old 03-01-2012, 02:04 PM   #9
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Nope, no deposit with them fortunately, but a 10% market is ridiculous.
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Old 03-01-2012, 02:07 PM   #10
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Nope, no deposit with them fortunately, but a 10% market is ridiculous.
Well it's a good thing you realized their antics before getting any further along in the process.
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Old 03-01-2012, 02:08 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bestwheelbase View Post
Well it's a good thing you realized their antics before getting any further along in the process.
I knew they were just trying to slip one by me when they sent the form filled in with "unknown". There wasn't any way I was sending them credit card info without any type of guaranteed tied to MSRP.
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Old 03-01-2012, 02:09 PM   #12
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Leave these clowns to their ridiculous markups and go to a (somewhat) honest dealership.


If I put an order down sometime I am being sure to confirm or MSRP and if they try this on me, I'm out.
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Old 03-01-2012, 02:11 PM   #13
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This won't make you feel any better.. but it is proof that some salespeople and some dealerships are trustworthy and stand by good ethics:

I was in contact with a salesman locally prior to the allocation notification email. He must have been under the impression that they would get a ton of cars, so he made me a promise that if Subaru didn't accept VIP, he would still sell me the car for invoice.

I drove out there the next day and met him.. He said he found out shortly after how limited the supply would be and that they wouldn't take VIP and his boss was really really pissed at him for making that promise.. BUT.. they stood behind his promise and wrote the order for me at invoice.


Hiley Subaru could learn a thing or two.. going back on your word to add an upcharge to an MSRP is very bad form.
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Old 03-01-2012, 02:12 PM   #14
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I never heard back from the first dealer that I actually had a deposit with, so now I have to figure out how to get that money back...ugh PITA.
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