Russ Darrow Group, Inc.

I'm sorry that you experienced major mechanical issues with a vehicle you purchased within a matter of a few months, however, we cannot determine when an issue will present itself.  This is the reason that we extend aftermarket warranties to our customers during the purchase of the...

vehicle.  With an out of state repair, Russ Darrow would have little to no involvement since we cannot diagnose or repair the issue.  The warranty is a available to any authorized shop nationwide.  The shop would have to make a claim through the warranty to see if it is a covered repair.  If they chose not to go that route your next recourse would be to submit the claim directly to the warranty company for possible reimbursement.  We do not own the warranty company and would not be able to get involved in that process since we did not do the repair. 
The warranty company information should be located on the warranty contract that you received at the time of purchase.  I would call and start a claim for reimbursement through them directly.
[redacted], [redacted]

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending...

it.]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.  I am so sorry for late response . Russ Darrow group did contacted me and said that they will give me the refund so I still waiting for my refund check if I don't hear anything from them then contact you again . Thank you very much for helping me god less you and have a good one . [redacted]

I'm sorry for the inconvenience this may have caused your daughter and yourself.  I contacted the Service Manager and the [redacted] of the dealership and they both thought that the Russ Darrow Gift Card had been sent to you.  After further review, you are correct...nothing ever...

went out.  As such, I have gone ahead and cut a check for $127.73 and will be placing this in the mail to you today.
Again, I am sorry if you felt we took advantage of your daughter, this is not how we conduct business.
Thank you for your consideration.
[redacted]

As a courtesy, I will waive the cancellation fee and remit the proceeds to your lender. Thank you,[redacted]

I apologize, the check is being sent out today.[redacted] Corporate Paralegal

I'm sorry that there was an error made when submitting the warranty contract to the company, however, the protection product was applied to the vehicle at the time of contract.  As such, this warranty is a non-transferrable, non-cancellable item.  The contracts were submitted to the...

warranty company and they will cover anything under the warranty from the date of purchase.  There would be no denial based on them not having the contract as we have a viable contract that they would accept and back date the coverage.  As of recently, the contract has been marked received and applied to your account and will be available to you until you no longer own the vehicle.Also, it is my understanding that your husband contacted several dealership personnel and stated that he did not want to cancel this warranty and that he intended to keep the warranty.  Even if there was a request to cancel the warranty, this would not be a reasonable request since it is non-cancellable.Nicole [redacted], Corporate Paralegal

I am sorry that you feel we missed this issue on inspection, however, that is not the case.  Our initial inspection on the vehicle was thorough and informative.  We performed a oil change service, a multi point inspection, an A/c/ perf test, replaced front disc brake pads and machine the discs as well as replaced a license plate bulb.  The vehicle was in great shape and was sold accordingly.  During the purchase of the vehicle I will assume that you took the vehicle for a test drive and had no questions about the mechanicals of the vehicle.  Also, you could have taken the vehicle for an independent third party inspection to make sure what you were buying was inspected properly.  Did you do this?  Also in reviewing your entire service history there never seems to be a question as to any deficiencies with the vehicle.  It was not until you brought the vehicle in out of the blue on September 23rd for an inspection to see if the engine cradle was rotting out that you brought any concern to our attention, which was 1 year and 20,643 miles later.   However, you failed to mention at the September 23rd visit that the car had been involved in a moderate damage rear end auto collision just 14 days before.  This collision could have accelerated the separation in the weld and brought the issue to the forefront.  Obviously there is no way to tell exactly what happened, but Russ Darrow is not liable for this issue.Attached for your review is the WI Buyer's Guide that you signed acknowledging receipt of the same document which is contained within the paperwork for your vehicle purchase.[redacted], Corporate Paralegal

I am sorry that you were having problems with your vehicle shortly after purchase.  I am glad you were able to remedy the issues you were experiencing with your vehicle.  As for not receiving a car wash which is included in your Maintenance Care, sometimes the carwashes go down and a...

technician from the company cannot be dispatched immediately.  As such, you requested that your Maintenance be cancelled.  I will start that process on your behalf.  You stated that you would pay for the one oil change that you received, however, this is not necessary.  You received 3 free oil changes at the time of purchase, so you will be receiving a refund of the full purchase price less a cancellation fee.  This refund will be sent to your lender to offset that principal balance remaining on your loan.  If you have any other difficulties in the future, please feel free to contact me directly.[redacted]###-###-####

Thank you for contacting us regarding an issue that you experienced in receiving a second key for a certified vehicle.  As I stated on the phone, we will be providing you with the key and fob on Wednesday, July 22nd.If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact...

me.Nicole P[redacted]###-###-####/direct

Review: I purchased a vehicle from Russ Darrow Automotive Group on 7-19-14. The form for having the vehicle registered and plates transferred from previous vehicle were filled out. I paid for this in full at the time the car was purchased. I was under the assumption that everything was taken care of and I would not have any problems. About two weeks later or so I recieved a check in the mail from Russ Darrow in the amount of seventy-five dollars for "overpayment for license plates". I cashed the check thinking they had made a mistake and refunded me the overpayment. On June 23, 2015 I was stopped by the Menomonee Falls police department for driving a non-registered vehicle and was issued a $98.80 citation. I was confused because I thought the dealship had sent in the necessary paperwork for the registration of the vheile and the transferring of the license plates. When I looked at the title and registration I saw that the registration had expired on 8-30-14, less than a month after I purchased the vehicle.I thought the registration was good for one year, not just 42 days. I called the dealership multiple times and finally was able to speak to Scott F[redacted], business manager at Russ Darrow on Brown Deer Road. I explained what happened and all he said was that he was sorry that happened and offerd me a "free detailing" of my vehicle worth over $100.00 .I said no, I did not want that, I wanted a solution to the problem and why it happened. He told me that "someone" in the corporate office sent me the check. I told him now I have to have the vehicle re-registered, paying for it again, get new tags which I expeced to do anyway and pay for a citation that I recieved because they did not register the vehicle. Again I was told they were sorry, not once offering any kind of solution to the problem, but offered a "free detailing" again. I ais I would tell people about this and would not bring my vehicle back to them for service,EVER!!!I did not care for the SO WHAT attitude.Desired Settlement: For them to pay for the registration of the vehicle and the citation I was issued because of them.

Business

Response:

Thank you for contacting us in relation to an issue that you experienced after sale. At the time of the sale, the renewal box was not checked for your registration that was expiring shortly after sale. As such, when the deal came up to the corporate office for processing, they noticed that there was an overpayment and sent a check to you indicting overpayment of title and license plate fee. A red flag should have been raised when a confirmation of registration was not received by you from the state. On the other hand the box should have been properly checked at the time of the deal.Did you pay the ticket, if so, please provide me with a copy of the citation along with a paid receipt. If you paid the registration and go the ticket dismissed, please notify me of this as well.I will await the documentation as requested.Thank you,Nicole P[redacted]###-###-####/direct

Review: I purchased a 2009 Nissan Altima of February 15. Also purchased the recommended warranty. On may 6th 15, for the second time since purchase, my car wouldn't start. The first time it was a fuel pump, covered under warranty. This second time it was a known issue with my yr/make/model of car but neither Nissan covered it as their extended warranty for this issue expired August 14 and it was not covered under my purchased warranty. This issue was not disclosed to me at time of sale not was it fixed while in dealership's possession. I feel as though I shouldn't be forced to pay the entire fee and the problem should have been rectified before selling the vehicle.Desired Settlement: I paid $677.85 and due to the situation, I feel as though the dealership should refund half the cost, if not all the cost.

Business

Response:

I am sorry that you are experiencing issues with your vehicle, but if the upgraded warranty that would have covered this part was not purchased or available to purchase, Russ Darrow cannot be liable to reimburse for a mechanical failure. We sell all vehicles as is with no implied or stated warranty. There are many known issues that occur with specific vehicles, however, that doesn't mean that we research every vehicles known issues and repair them. If the vehicle was not experiencing any symptoms during the safety inspection then we would not arbitrarily fix it.[redacted]

I will never do business with Russ Darrow again. I bought a used car from them. Did not last 4 hours when it broke down. I thought it was the clutch. When I got it finally towed to the mechanic it turned out to be the entire transmission was shot. Now it's going to cost me over $1,000 + the tow fee to fix this car. In there gold customer card there is a If you are not satisfied within 3 days you can trade the car in. I was going to tap that policy until it occurred to me "How long will it take for them to find me a replacement at same cost as what I have. I have already been riding the bus for a week because of all this when I could of been driving. I will never do business with them again and will not recomend them to anyone else.

Advertising mislead me to believe the vehicle was less than the actual price. Salesman would not allow me to pay cash for my car, but instead required I finance. The vehicle has had MULTIPLE problems since it left the lot that were "inspected" and checked off. They filled the AC so it would work during the test drive, which is illegal!

Review: I bought a vehicle from Russ Darrow Mazda in Madison in October 2013. I had experienced failure to honor advertisement price, high pressure sales, and even had problems with the car dying to the point I had to disconnect the battery every time I had it off for over 3 hours. My experience with them has been less than satisfactory. However, I recently purchased another vehicle from a different dealership and that is when I was advised that Russ Darrow acted illegally when financing my vehicle. When I purchased my vehicle from Russ Darrow I had informed them that I only wanted GAP insurance. They told me that I couldn't just get GAP. I had to purchase an extended warranty with it. They also told me I would be getting 10 complimentary oil changes and used it in their calculation to negotiate the price of the car. When I told them I didn't want their oil changes,(trying to keep car price down) they told me that I had to take it and it was a package deal with the vehicle. They proceeded to show me on paper 3 different options for their warranty plans. The first 2 options didn't include GAP. But the 3rd and most expensive option INCLUDED GAP. I never wanted the extended warranty. I ONLY want GAP insurance. I have also come to find out that I had to pay for their 'complimentary' oil changes. It is clear that this is a common practice as the finance man talked so fast I had to ask him to slow down numerous times. Clearly, I have learned my lesson and will never do business with them again. It bothers me that I even have to get my oil changes done there. Something has to be done to make sure that they learn their lesson too and stop taking advantage of people. It is amazing how one dealership (Trecek Automotive) honors the law and their customers, while Russ Darrow completely disregards the law and lies to their customers. Make no mistake about it, I asked the right questions. I was just INTENTIONALLY lied to. Due to being bullied in the past, I am no longer comfortable complaining to the business directly. It took 3 months, a few batteries, and management from a different building before they would agree to fix my car. I am still uncomfortable taking my vehicle in for service.Desired Settlement: I would like to keep my GAP insurance and be refunded the price of the extended warranty/service contracts. I would also like confirmation that my GAP will continue upon termination of the extended warranty as I was told it was a package deal.

Business

Response:

Thank you for contacting us to let us know of an issue that you have experienced with one of the Russ Darrow dealerships. I cannot locate a transaction in your name. Can you please provide an additional name that may also be on the contract as well as what dealership you purchased the vehicle from so that I can verify what warranties were purchased so that I can start the cancellation process for you immediately.[redacted]###-###-####[redacted]

I want to report extremely deceptive advertising on Russ Darrow's web site and phone calls. There is a link below to their web site with pricing and description of autos which are out right lies at the Milwaukee area dealerships. In fact these cars are not even drivable
http://www.russdarrowhonda.com/search/used/tp/

Review: on September 10th I called about a key for an mitsubishi eclipse and ask the cost. I was informed at that time that the key would be$142.20 and the labor to cut the key would be around $60.00. When we came in for our appointment on September 12th, after the key was cut we were informed that we would have to pay and additional $20.22 for shop supplies. Now paying $59.95 for labor that only took about 10 minutes to do is highway robbery, but we knew that going in. What we did not know was that we were going to get gouged again on shop supplies that they didn't even use. When we asked the salesman about it he told us that there is a 10% across the board on all repairs. We did not get a repair, we only bought a key. I tired on numerous occasion to contact [redacted] the manager of the parts department, and he did call once and left a message on my home phone, even after I left my cell number with him and he has not returned any of my other calls.Desired Settlement: We would like a phone call from Mr.[redacted] and a refund of the $20.22 + tax. We feel that his manager and customer service skills need a little improvement! And we feel it is also unethical to have a additional 10% added on to every bill, no matter the circumstances.

Business

Response:

I apologize that no one has reached out to you and explained in detail our shop supply (environmental) surcharge. All dealer service areas charge these types of fees on every invoice created. These fees are not just for repairs which would include using degreasers, towels, tools and or equipment, it is also charged on your invoice for a key. The fee helps cover the techs time, the programming machine for the key and or fob, the computer where the information is imputed, the printer which prints the invoice. This surcharge helps to cover our overhead of doing business. I'm sorry that you disagree with the fees, however, they are a standard fee that is charged on every invoice regardless of what's done.[redacted]###-###-####/direct

Business

Response:

I have reviewed your response, and I would like to again apologize that my staff did not reach out to you immediately. However, once you filed a complaint with the Revdex.com, staff members are unable to speak with you as I handle any complaint from that point forward. I did speak with [redacted] and we both agreed that we cannot for any reason refund the surcharge as this would set a precedent and we would be liable to refund every surcharge ever charged to every person. This surcharge is charged by any dealership, no matter what the service is. I'm sorry you feel as though we "robbed" you, however, I see it as a normal and customary charge. [redacted]###-###-###[redacted]

Consumer

Response:

My Unfortunate Experience with the Russ Darrow Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep Milwaukee Dealership - 7676 N. 76th St., Milwaukee, WI 53223
On November 20, 2014 I contracted with the Russ Darrow Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep Milwaukee Dealership at 7676 N. 76th St., Milwaukee WI to install 4 new tires on the 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee I bought new from them. I wasn’t having any trouble with the tires and wheels – instead I was taking a proactive approach to safety in advance of the upcoming winter driving season. The dealership installed the tires.
On December 5, 2014, at approximately 4:00 pm (rush hour), my daughter, while driving the Jeep north on I43 in the Marquette interchange (Milwaukee, WI), the left front wheel/tire flew off the car. This incident occurred 2 weeks and 1 day from the time the tires were installed.
Miraculously, my daughter was able to safely maneuver the car over to the left shoulder of the interchange. We’re lucky and grateful that no one was injured or killed after such a dangerous incident. The MKE Sheriff’s department arrived on scene and instructed my daughter to remain in the car for safety reasons. The Sherriff arranged to have a flatbed truck come to have the car removed. He told my daughter the wheel was last seen approximately 1/3 mile behind where she was able to stop the car. The wheel was never recovered. I gave instructions to have the car taken back to the Russ Darrow Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep dealership for inspection and repair. When I explained the situation to John Vansickle, the service rep from Russ Darrow who took my call, he stated without even seeing the car that he highly doubted the work they had done on the car on November 20 had anything to do with the incident. He told me the earliest anyone could look at the car would be Monday, December 8.
When I spoke to [redacted] on Monday, December 8, I asked what he found while inspecting the car. He told me he found “broken studs on the lug nuts.” When I asked him what would cause that condition, he replied “I don’t know how that could have happened.” I then asked to speak to the General Manager, who never returned my calls, even after repeated attempts.
After being unable to speak with the Darrow dealership General Manager, I contacted the Darrow Group Corporate Office and spoke with [redacted] in customer relations. [redacted] ultimately referred me to [redacted], a paralegal in the legal department. [redacted] told me that Darrow’s position was that they would not accept any liability for the incident and it was incumbent on me to prove negligence. She further added that it would be nearly impossible for me to prove negligence without the wheel/tire. She advised me to contact my insurance Company to conduct an investigation, and she terminated the call.
My insurance company sent out an adjuster who stated he was not an engineer or an inspector. Still, when I asked him what his gut feeling was regarding how & why the wheel/tire flew off, he replied “I think they didn’t put the wheel on right”. The adjuster authorized the repairs to my car in mid-December and quoted me a $250 deductible.
However, the SAGA continues….and the issue list with the Russ Darrow Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep dealership expands….as of 1/9/14; the repairs are not complete – over 1 month since the car was towed to the Darrow dealership! The excuses I’ve been given for the excessive time taken to make the repairs are many:
• The flu ran rampant thru the body shop and they were understaffed.
• The mechanic assigned to my car was sick
• The mechanic had jury duty
• Every time the mechanic pulled something off the car – more damage was found requiring the Insurance Adjuster’s authorization to fix.
• The car sat in the Service Department for 2 ½ weeks before it got to the Body Shop
Hanover Insurance notified me on 12/29/14 that they would not extend my car rental past 1/7/15. I called the Russ Darrow dealership on 12/29, and explained the rental car situation. I spoke with [redacted] in the collision center, and she told me Darrow would “loan” me a car while the repairs were being made. I circled back with [redacted] to verify I would be given a “loaner” on 1/6 and then again on 1/7. She assured me I would be loaned a car. [redacted] called me late in the day on 1/7, once again with the news that he found additional damage to the car that would require an adjuster visit. It was at this point that [redacted] told me that he spoke with his manager [redacted], and Russ Darrow would NOT loan me a car. When I reiterated that their employee [redacted] gave me her word Darrow would loan me a car, [redacted] told me he was sorry, but that it wasn’t going to happen now that there was a chance the car would be totaled. On 1/8 I again made a direct appeal to [redacted] about loaning me a car. After listening to the entire story and timeline, [redacted] relented and agreed to loan me a car. I returned the rental and went to Darrow for the loaner I was promised. I was met by [redacted], Body Shop Director who told me he would not loan me a car (ironically, his Business Card states “Free Loaners”). I told him that 2 of his employees promised me a loaner and pointed out that, based on his employees assurance, I had already turned in my rental car. He was unmoved by my situation and told me he wouldn’t stand behind his employees promises because the dealership wouldn’t make any money if my car was totaled. When I again gave him my story and the timeline of events, he remained adamant that he wouldn’t loan me a car if he couldn’t make money on the deal. When I asked him about Darrow standing behind their word, standing behind their employees, and the concept of customer service, even if he had to eat some cost, he replied “I don’t care.” The meeting became very contentious and degenerated from there. My daughter finally asked [redacted] to ask his employees if they had promised me a loaner, and poor [redacted] had the courage to admit he had. In a rage – [redacted] asked [redacted] if it was within policy to give me a loaner and [redacted] replied “no.” Again, visibly enraged, [redacted] stated “then put her in a car” and he stormed out of the office. Because I was so afraid [redacted] and his colleagues would be forced to pay for the loaner, and/or disciplined or fired, I left the dealership. I didn’t want them to bear the brunt of their manager’s rage, due to his anger at me. I am now without a car unless I pay for a rental out of my own pocket.
In summary, the Russ Darrow Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep Milwaukee Dealership provides what I believe to be shoddy and potentially negligent service. They don’t stand by their work; they don’t stand by their word and they don’t stand behind their employees. I believe [redacted], Body Shop Director spoke best on behalf of Russ Darrow’s Service Repairs, Customer Service, Mission and Practices when he stated “I DON’T CARE!”
I invite everyone who reads this review to do the math and form your own conclusions about the Honesty and Integrity, or lack thereof, of the Russ Darrow Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep Milwaukee Dealership.
[redacted]I would like to commend Russ Darrow Collision Center employees [redacted] and ultimately [redacted] for their diligent and courageous attempts to provide customer service.

Worst car buying experience I have ever had. I was told that I had to purchase an extended warranty in order to purchase a used car. The very next day I called my bank to refinance the loan and was told I did not have to purchase anything and I needed to call and cancel that warranty. I did that, and was told that it would be canceled right away. It has now been six weeks, a dozen phone calls and just as many false assurances that I would see the refund within a day or two. I am just being lied to day after day by the people at this dealership and I have never been able to speak to a supervisor or received a call back from one. I will never go there again or recommend this business to a friend.

Review: On August 2, I went to Russ Darrow to see a person who sent me an e-mail about Russ Darrow was working with banks to lower monthly payments on cars purchased at Russ Darrow. According to them, the lady who wrote the email wasn't there anymore, but you can talk to this person. The person I talked to was a man name [redacted]. I told him why I was there, to see about having my car refinanced at a lower rate. He said ok and took all of my personal information, name, social security number, address, ect. He then went to the main desk and talked to someone and then came back to me. He said he checked and it would be cheaper for me to buy a new car. I told him, I do not want a new car. But he insisted. Lets go on the lot to see if you see one that you like. I went with him and I told him again, NO. He then said I will tell you what I will do. I got just the car for you but I have to go get it. But he kept insisting that I take a look at it. He said if I give him $100.00 that he would go get it and if I don't like it, I will return your $100.00. I finally told him to go get it and gave him my debit card. He went to the desk and when he came back, he said how much can I take out $500.00. I said no because I'm not going to give you $500.00 to get a car that I don't want. I also told him that my sister work for Chrysler and I need her number. This was my protection because I didn't want the car and I knew that I wasn't going to give them the number. The next day, Aug. 3 he called me up and said I got your car and when are you coming out. I told him that my sister wouldn't give me her number and that I will be out to pick up my $100.00. Because they had all of my information, everything but my sisters number, there scheme fell through the roof.They then went to work on my credit. I didn't tell them to check my credit nor call any bank on my behalf because I wasn't buying anything.Desired Settlement: They applied to five banks on my behalf, [redacted] and [redacted]. I received letters from these companiesThe Credit report has [redacted] 8/3/13, [redacted] 8/3/13, [redacted] 8/3/13, [redacted] 8/3/13 Inquires: Every time you apply for credit, a hard inquiry is placed on your Credit report. I didn't authorize RD

Business

Response:

In reviewing your complaint you specifically stated that you went to the dealership to see if you could refinance. Upon entering and talking to a salesperson, you gave all of your requisite information including your social security number. By giving this information and requesting a possible refinance you gave permission to the dealership staff to run your credit. With this acknowledgement by you, Russ Darrow cannot remove any inquires associated with your request. You are correct in your statement that there were five banks that showed up on your credit report. As you also stated, all of these were pulled at the same time, thereby showing them individually on your credit report but only providing one hard inquiry and credit score drop. Any application submitted to multiple lenders under the same application is considered one inquiry.

If you have any questions, please contact me directly at ###-###-####/direct. [redacted]

Business

Response:

I have read your response and will I will still disagree with your position. The ad is correct and not misrepresented in any manner. Car dealerships are just that, dealerships. They are not finance companies unless they have a license to in-house finance a vehicle loan. In your case, you came into the dealership looking to “refinance” your current loan. Refinancing can logically mean two things…refinance with your current lender or with a new lender. In the case of the later, the new lender would not see this as a refinance, but as a new loan because they were not involved with your previous loan. So, the denials that you received by all of the lenders that we sought to “refinance” your vehicle through would not have stated they were refinances because your current loan was not through them.

The end result no matter what agency you write to, is that you came into the dealership looking to refinance your current vehicle and we ran your credit. The statement that you wrote your personal information on gives us that right. We cannot call the credit bureaus and say that this was not your intention…it doesn’t work that way. You can write the credit bureaus and tell them your story and see if they reverse the inquiries on your personal credit. This would be the only way to accomplish what you are looking for. Russ Darrow cannot and will not be able to do anything as we did what you requested.

I am sorry that you do not like this answer or the outcome, however, I would be extremely careful of what and who you give your personal information to and for what ramifications will follow.

Consumer

Response:

Review: On Saturday, May 23, 2015 my wife and I purchased a used vehicle from Russ Darrow Mazda East in Madison WI. This was a Mazda 6 I Grand Touring with 718 miles on it. It was sold as used because the dealership titled it to themselves to use as a company car. We inspected the vehicle and noticed a few problems which they promptly took care of. I test drove the vehicle and everything appeared fine. The salesperson was very attentive to us before the sale. We drove it 30 miles to our home after a 4 hour purchasing process, which we thought was excessive. We should have been able to get out of the dealership in a lot less time. Later that day we went to a local restaurant for supper. When we left, my wife drove it for the first time. She noticed a spot on the windshield as soon as she sat down in the car. We looked at it further and noticed that it was a stone chip. She made the comment that it was directly in her line of sight. We thought it happened on our way home from the dealership even though no one heard anything hit the windshield. On May 26th, 2015 we called a local windshield repair shop to come over to fix it. When they arrived the tech said he couldn't repair it because it has already been repaired. That meant we bought it from the dealer in that condition.

Later that same day I contacted the salesperson and asked what they would do about it. I already had planned to stop at the dealership to cancel the GAP coverage we purchased so he said they would look at it then. When I arrived at the dealership on May 27, 2015 my salesperson inspected it and said that he would talk to the General Manager. The salesperson came back out and said they couldn't do anything for me. I asked to talk to the GM and we went back inside. The GM asked me what I wanted and I explained the situation. He didn’t appear very interested in what I had to say. I asked him to come outside to look at it. As we were walking out to the car he pointed to a 2016 vehicle in his lot and said that vehicle has two stone chips and it happens all the time. He looked at the stone chip on or vehicle and said they had already repaired it and that is all they are required to do. He admitted they didn’t do a very good of repairing it. I told him and our salesperson we just spent over $30,000 on a vehicle that was sold as used, but in the salesperson’s words, "it is virtually a new car" because it only has 718 miles on it. After I spoke with the GM, I was very upset that they wouldn’t replace it and I left the dealership. I was surprised with his attitude. I felt as though I was interrupting his day and he didn’t want to take time to assist me. I went away with the feeling he didn’t value me as a customer.

We contacted our insurance company and they got involved. Our agent spoke to a few individuals at the dealership. She was told there wasn't anything the dealership could do. I was given a contact number for the Russ Darrow customer complaint center by my insurance agent and spoke with the representative. She said she spoke to the GM and he said they already discounted the price of the car because it was sold as used and they weren’t making any money on this deal. I told her that I didn’t believe that because a dealership is out to make money and they aren’t going to sell a car and not make a profit from the sale. He said there could be nicks and scratches in a used vehicle. I told her I understood how buying a used car works but this stone chip is in the drivers line of sight and is the first thing you see when you get in the car. It’s a distraction and because of that, a safety hazard. She said she would escalate the case. She called back and said that they would agree to pay half the insurance deductible of $100, (they would pay $50). I told her that I wouldn’t accept this because a business as large as the Russ Darrow Group could afford to pay more than that. She said she would contact her boss to see if they could do more. I told her that paying over $30,000 for what is basically a new vehicle is a big deal for us and is a lot of money. The repaired chip is a distraction and the windshield should have been replaced by the dealership. We have since learned that our insurance company will not cover the replacement because it was incurred prior to our ownership of the vehicle.

The dealership was happy to take my money but has ignored me after the fact. I wish I would have researched Russ Darrow Group in the Revdex.com before I bought the vehicle. There are over 200 complaints closed within the last three years. Now I know why. In my opinion, they don’t care about their customers after they have taken your money. My salesperson asked us to tell our friends about the dealership. Believe me, we will definitely tell everyone about this so they don’t make the mistake we did by buying from them.Desired Settlement: The poorly repaired stone chip is a safety issue because we are distracted by it as it is in the driver’s line of sight. You notice it as soon as you get in the car. I want the dealer to replace the windshield at no cost to us. The salesperson was our "friend" when we were considering purchasing the vehicle but after we bought it, the dealership doesn't want anything to do with us. This dealership doesn’t value their customers after the sale.

Business

Response:

I'm sorry for the delay in responding to your complaint. I have requested your deal file as well as the service history for the vehicle. The General Manager who you were dealing directly with is no longer with the company, so I will be discussing this matter with the Operations Director for our Group. I will be in touch with you shortly.Nicole P[redacted]

Business

Response:

I have reviewed your deal and corresponding service file and it is notated that we contracted a third party company to do a windshield chip repair on or about April 30, 2015. The repair was within normal standards and did not surpass the threshold to replace the windshield. The repair was present at the time of the test drive and if it was a problem it should have brought up at the time of the negotiations for the vehicle. All vehicles are sold as is with no implied or stated warranty. A new windshield for this vehicle is approximately $675. We will agree to pay 1/2 of the repair on your behalf. The repair would be through [redacted]. If you wanted to call around and see if you can find a cheaper windshield, please feel free to do so. I will agree to pay 1/2 of any estimate that comes in lower than the company that we utilize.Please let me know what you would like to do.Nicole P[redacted]###-###-####/direct

Consumer

Response:

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response. If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.