Mama's Used Car Supermarket

Buyer Beware! My wife and I visited this dealership a couple of weeks ago to look at a 2001 Ford Explorer Sport. I was looking to arrange a smaller monthly payment. My wife and I visited this dealership a couple of weeks ago to look at a 2001 Ford Explorer Sport. I was looking to arrange a smaller monthly payment. When we got there I assumed we were the only customers there since about six or seven guys were standing in a group laughing and joking with each other. When we drove up, it was like who's going to get this guy first! Reminded me of a bunch of buzzards trying to get some road kill. Tom was the lucky (?) one to be our salesman. He was a pleasant, past middle age guy who seemed like he really was out of place. He was nice, courteous, and somewhat knowledgeable about the vehicle. It had about 43,000 more miles than mine, but he told me they were highway miles and the car had been owned by one person its entire life. Very strange, because the Carfax I had pulled on it and had in my pocket stated several different owners. I should have called his bluff right then, but I let it slide. Wrong, give a used car salesman an inch and he'll take you to the cleaners! He told us to test drive it on the road next to the dealership which went in a big circle, I think. The only problem was that the speed limit was either 25 or 35 mph and there were speed bumps everywhere! I never got out of third gear the entire time! When we got back I told him we hadn't eaten since breakfast (it was about 3 pm) and could we drive it down the road to get something to eat? He checked with the sales manager and it was ok. Grabbed a quick lunch and took off on the Mark Clark to air it out. It really would run with the 4.0 V6 and shifted very well, too. I liked the vehicle even though there was a big mileage discrepancy and it was seven years older. It had a lot of options that mine didn't also. We got back and after about an hour had reached a good deal-$8000 trade-in for mine (payoff was $7250) and price of $6000 for the Ford Explorer Sport. Next we had to go to Palmetto Ford next door to finalize the deal. The longer we sat there, the more nervous Tom, our salesman looked. He was called into an office while we continued to wait. He finally came back and told us that W**** F**** wanted $3000 down. I knew this was a lie because I had financed three other vehicles over the years with them. Even though I was a little upside-down on the loan, I had been more upside down on one of the others. I had my last statement with me, so I told Tom we(my wife and I) needed to step outside to discuss it. She gave me her cell, I called W-F, gave them my account info, and explained the situation to them. The rep. said that was not true, they did not require a downpayment. Their policy was to add negative equity or a required trade-in deposit to the balance of the new loan. I knew Tom had lied to us, but I needed to check to make sure. We went back and told him that we didn't have anywhere near that to put down. Back he went to the office. He came back and asked how much we could put down because the bank (W-F) required something down. He said his sales manager had just spoken with them. I told him that we knew he was lying because we had called them and talked with them when we stepped outside, and they told us they DID NOT require a downpayment or any money down! He looked like a kid who had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar! Since I had somehow managed to get our keys back, I told him he could take it and shove it right up his a$$! And we left. And that's the end of that story. So if you need a good used car and decide to visit to Mama's, remember it's at your own risk! More

I contacted the dealership with interest in a particular vehicle. They couldn't give me much information except to say it was still in service. They scheduled an appointment for me to come to the dealersh vehicle. They couldn't give me much information except to say it was still in service. They scheduled an appointment for me to come to the dealership and test drive the car. I arrived at my appointment on time and waited more than thirty minutes to finally speak to someone who would try to help me. They couldn't find the car. They drove me all around the lot(s) (they are next door to the new car dealership) and tried to sell me the van we were in, which was in no way comparable to what I was there to see. After almost an hour, I was finally told the car was still in service, and that they would call me the very next day to see it. They called the next day to tell me it was still in service because the person servicing it was on vacation and wasn't expected back until Monday. They promised to call Monday as soon as the person servicing the car was back in town. I never heard from them. On Wednesday, I looked on the site again to see if the car was still listed. It was still there, but the price had gone up by $2000! I emailed immediately explaining my situation and asked that someone contact me. When I was contacted, I was told the van had been sold the day before. Bottom line, their very poor customer service wasted my time and caused me to pass on several other cars while waiting to purchase this one. On top of the poor customer service, their cars are way over-priced and not in great condition. While we were waiting to speak to a sales agent (at my appt), my father (who has been a VW technician for more than 30 years) asked to look under the hood of a VW Jetta with a particularly high price tag. Upon inspection, the timing belt had not been changed (which can cause complete engine failure), the 80,000 mile service had not been completed (the car was reading more than 99,000 miles), and the brake hose had been duct taped together. These are all VERY easy services/repairs if done on time. However, if a buyer (who doesn't know what they are looking at under the hood of a car) drove this car away from the lot under the impression it was a sound vehicle, they could have quickly had complete brake failure, a blown engine, or both, and would have had no recourse. Buyer beware when shopping at this dealership. More