Brooks Biddle Automotive

Let me tell you a story:My brother's car died. Not Let me tell you a story: My brother's car died. Not important, but this is why I was looking at a truck- he can't afford to buy one due to COVID l Let me tell you a story: My brother's car died. Not important, but this is why I was looking at a truck- he can't afford to buy one due to COVID layoffs, so I was helping him out. He and I saw the ad one night last week for a truck that would be perfect and affordable, so that he could get back to work immediately. It was at Brooks Biddle Automotive in Bothell, near where I lived. The next morning, I get up and head straight down there. I meet with a salesman, go through the truck and was offered a test drive. I hop in and take it for a drive for about 10-15 minutes. I get back, call my brother, tell him this is perfect and we agree to buy it. I head inside and talk with the salesman some more to arrange a purchase. As per standard, I make a cash offer on the truck and he disappears in back to review it with his manager. 5 minutes later he comes back and tells me he can't sell it to me. Seems that the owner's son sold it while I was out on my test drive. The salesman apologize for this, as he said he was wasting my time, and I leave. My only comment was that this whole event was exceptionally unprofessional and disrespectful. As I am pulling out, Ian Biddle, the owner's son, comes out to my vehicle and tells me how he sold it to his friend, and how he and his friend do favors for each other, and that he should have told everyone on the floor and on the internet (it was still posted for sale on-line when I got there) and so on- lots of canned justifications... I tell him that it doesn't matter; I've still been treated badly and that he has poor ethics and no professionalism. He then offers to "make things right"- he'll find me at least as good of vehicle, offer me a more than fair price on it and make his errors good. I say that would be appropriate and give him my phone number and email address. That was about a week ago. He's contacted me a couple of times and offered me trucks. None were as good of condition, all had at least 3 times more miles, none had as good of accessories, and all were more money (when miles, condition and options all factored in). A couple of them actually sounded good when he sent me the specs, but when I asked back what the price was (he didn't send price) he responded that they were already sold, so it didn't matter. Ian has shown his true colors- He has none of the ethics and community responsibility of his father, but I guess that's what happens when you inherit the family business. He has shown that he has no remorse for selling a vehicle out from underneath a local customer, screwing his own salesman out of a well-earned commission, and then only going through the motions to make it right (simply because he only wants to give the impression, but not actually go through the full actions). As a life-long resident of Bothell/Kenmore I have always wanted to see local businesses succeed and grow. Now I see why Brooks Biddle lost their Chevrolet dealership and why they are trying so hard to sell their land to Sound Transit. If Ian is the future face of this auto dealer, I weep for his father and grandfather as their legacy is doomed to die a slow, miserable death. More

Neither Negative nor Positive Experience Caution: Lengthy Attempted to purchase a used vehicle through Brooks Biddle. The salesman seemed nice enough, but kept me waiting hours and was not r Caution: Lengthy Attempted to purchase a used vehicle through Brooks Biddle. The salesman seemed nice enough, but kept me waiting hours and was not responsive to my questions or concerns. Further, the salesman was extremely condescending. If I weren't a young-ish woman (in my late 30's), I suspect I would be paying less, but I wasn't willing to haggle very hard since the salesman spoke to me as if I were a particularly stupid child and I knew the price to be in a reasonable range according the KBB values. It turned out to be slightly high using NADA values; be sure you check both. Salesman was not knowledgeable about the vehicle. Sure, it's a "really nice car," but that gives me no information about the vehicle. I would expect some basics, such as gas mileage, knowledge of braking system, etc. Would not give me any paperwork after we settled on a price, and in fact, did not seem to know what paperwork was required in the sale of a car. Turns out a different guy handles all the paperwork. That gentleman was quite nice and respectful. Salesman said multiple things that were factually inaccurate, such as telling me the car had all wheel drive when it has front wheel drive (thankfully I came having done my homework), telling me that CarFax reports were guaranteed accurate (they are only as accurate as their information sources; a CarFax report can't actually guarantee much and only shows records from certain sources), not seeming to understand what a certification of emissions is, otherwise hemming and hawing and ultimately seeming slightly incompetent. Perhaps this is a sales tactic of some sort, but it had the effect of causing me to want to take my business elsewhere rather than wait for the salesman to get it together, but I really liked the particular vehicle I was purchasing and stuck it out. This dealership very clearly prioritized service to people who were using their financing (to be expected), as well as middle-class, older (50's and above) couples, to the extent that I constantly felt they were trying to put one over on me in some way, but couldn't really put my finger on how. I know there's some bias because the salesman was constantly assisting another (older, white) couple while I was waiting and when he returned to me he had forgotten what we'd previously talked about. Perhaps they just don't have enough staff? Perhaps "bumbling, disorganized dad" is part of his sales strategy? However, I'd guess that based on the majority of the positive reviews of this dealership being from older white people, and because all of the staff seem to be older white people, there may be some inherent bias happening. I certainly didn't enjoy the way I was spoken to and felt there was a severe lack of professionalism in treating a customer like a child. The salesman thoughtfully had the gas tank filled up when I came in to finalize the purchase, but the windshield wiper fluid reservoir was bone dry. This dealership is connected to a service garage. The lack of attention to detail was somewhat concerning. Not a deal breaker, but proceed with caution. I appreciated that his heart was in the right place, but there is room for improvement. The dealership could vastly improve the customer experience by using more respectful terms to address customers (ix-nay on the "young lady" and "kid," I'm almost 40) and by being more transparent about timelines and documentation. You have to expect a certain amount of B.S.-ing with car sales, but there are more savvy ways of presenting it to the client. Salesman told me he was "proud of me" when I purchased the vehicle. What?? I received a "survey" call after my purchase. When I expressed my concerns, I was told I was wrong and the "majority of people" enjoy their experience, then the caller quickly ended the call. Why call to get my opinion and then tell me my opinion is wrong? I'd like to say it was a wonderful experience because the people at Brooks Biddle seem very nice and probably mean well, probably aren't aware that their mannerisms are even remotely problematic, but "inter-sectional feminism" is definitely not a term they're familiar with and they are decidedly not politically correct. Proceed with caution if you are female, under 40, or a person of color. I did not have any experience with the service side of the business, only sales. More

Kind of pushy, overall good experience. Came to look at a 2001 Chevrolet Malibu. The car was in phenomenal condition. My only real gripe is that the car was priced about $1500-$2000 more tha Came to look at a 2001 Chevrolet Malibu. The car was in phenomenal condition. My only real gripe is that the car was priced about $1500-$2000 more than it was worth, and the salesman was super aggressive for the sale. So much so that they almost lost their sale for the car. I won’t ding them on the price, because that was my decision, obviously. I could’ve haggled, and I didn’t. To be honest, I think that’s part of my problem is that I clearly wanted the car, and was willing to pay for it if the car was all together. The dealer was very cool about putting into the bill of sale that the purchase was contingent on the vehicle passing a “pre-purchase” inspection. Which, actually highlights another issue I had. They told me the car had brand new tires, and to be fair, it looked it to me. However, I did end up discovering that he tires were actually the same ones that rolled out of the factory 16 years ago. The long and short of this dealer is this. The salesman fit the stereotype. If you know this going in, I think you’ll be fine, and might just walk out with a cool little buggy. More

The Best CarBuying Experience we have ever had! Today we bought a 2012 Rav4 we had Scott Mason for our salesman. He was amazing! There was no pressure! We decided on our own what was the best car Today we bought a 2012 Rav4 we had Scott Mason for our salesman. He was amazing! There was no pressure! We decided on our own what was the best car for us. It was a breath of fresh air. We will now do all are future car buying here! Thank you Scott! We love our Rav4! More