Pre-purchase inspection failed to highlight costly repairs - Stephen P.
I recommend avoiding this dealership.
I took a used Nissan into Applewood for a pre-purchase inspection. The inspection was done professionally and revealed several flaws with the car. Not being a car expert, I didn't have a good sense of how severe the issues were. My service advisor was very positive about the vehicle, saying that the car was in really good shape and made me and the owner, standing next to me, think it was a vehicle that was a good buy.
Unfortunately, the issues that were 'no big deal' are, in fact, likely going to be about 30% of the value of the car to fix. My expectations in a dealer pre-purchase inspection are that potentially expensive repair issues are not just noted, but highlighted as potentially very expensive. At no time did the service advisor suggest that these would be costly items. Not being a car expert myself, I didn't think to ask because from my perspective, he was to downplaying the issues so much.
I therefore cannot recommend the service advice given by Applewood Nissan and would strongly encourage anyone purchasing or servicing a car to look elsewhere. You are likely much better off dealing with a local mechanic who will talk to you directly rather than an intermediary like a service advisor who is not a trained mechanic and who may or may not have a good sense of the severity of the issues identified with the car. I have a mechanic I trust (Tokyo Auto, Vancouver), but the seller was too far away to allow me to take his car there.
Secondly, the service staff at the desk were openly derisive of a customer while I was standing there. They suspected him of accusing the dealer of doing damage to his car while he was there unfairly - of being a scammer. As I left, I saw that customer doing the sorts of things that someone who just found their car was damaged while being serviced would do - either he was a great actor, or he was being unfairly profiled. Whatever may or may not have been the case, it is not professional to deride another customer in the front-of-house. That's what the back office is for.
If you must use this dealership for some reason, then be sure to quiz the service advisor you get and ask lots and lots of questions. If possible, take someone you trust and who knows cars with you. Unfortunately, trusting this dealership to work in your interests seems to be asking too much.
I did call the Service Manager and he apologized saying he would talk to that particular person. It would have been nice if his apology came with a partial refund given that better trained staff likely would have saved me thousands of dollars, but it did not.
Read More
Sign In
