STG Auto Group

★☆☆☆☆ — My Experience With STG Auto Group Has Destroyed My Confidence in This Vehicle

I rarely write reviews like this, but my experience with STG Auto Group has reached a point where I believe prospective customers deserve to know what I have experienced.

I purchased a 2020 BMW X1 from STG Auto Group in June 2026. I signed the contract on June 14 and took delivery on June 19. The vehicle had approximately 28,000 miles.

Before I had even owned the vehicle for two weeks, and after I had driven it only approximately 279 miles, the BMW displayed a "Drivetrain Malfunction – Maximum Drivetrain Output Not Available" warning AND the Check Engine Light came on.

That was the beginning of an experience that has left me questioning not only the vehicle, but the quality-control and service practices of this dealership.

I initially returned the BMW for diagnosis but remained concerned that the problem had not been adequately diagnosed. Eventually, after I sent STG a formal demand letter, the dealership arranged to have the BMW towed back to its Bellflower location and provided me with a rental vehicle while they performed additional diagnosis and repairs. I appreciated them finally taking those steps and made a point of telling them so.

STG then drove my BMW more than 130 miles during its diagnostic/testing process.

I finally picked my vehicle up on a Thursday believing that, after everything that had happened, it had been thoroughly inspected and I could finally feel comfortable driving the car I had just purchased.

Two days later, on Saturday, the tire-pressure warning came on.

When I personally checked the tires, I was stunned.

My four tires measured approximately:

40 PSI, 37 PSI, 27 PSI and 25 PSI.

The manufacturer's label on my BMW specifies 33 PSI cold for these tires. That means two tires were overinflated and two were significantly underinflated. There was approximately a 15 PSI difference between the highest and lowest tire pressures. I photographed and documented every reading.

This was after STG had possession of the vehicle and had driven it more than 130 miles.

I contacted STG and specifically asked how this could happen.

Their representative, Manny, responded in writing that the tire pressures had been checked but the individual pressures were not documented. He also stated that it is standard practice for their technicians to check tire pressure before a vehicle is driven. STG said its diagnostic data showed no active tire-pressure warning during service, the technician reported no abnormal driving behavior, and the vehicle supposedly underwent a final quality-control inspection by the shop foreman.

What I found particularly concerning was another part of the response.

Manny told me that his early professional background was as a tire technician and acknowledged that while a 3–5 PSI fluctuation might occur, a 10–15 PSI variance is "certainly not standard." He then said he would have the air-pressure gauges at the Bellflower facility checked to make sure they were properly calibrated.

That response did not restore my confidence. It raised additional questions.

If STG says the pressures were checked, but there is no documentation of what those pressures actually were, how can anyone verify that they were correct?

If a final quality-control inspection was performed, how did the vehicle leave with four substantially different tire pressures?

And if STG believes its own pressure gauges may need to be checked for calibration after I reported what I found, that only increases my concern about the inspection process.

This isn't about me having to put air in a tire. I can put air in a tire. This is about trust.

I purchased a vehicle and experienced a drivetrain malfunction and Check Engine Light before I had even owned it for two weeks. The vehicle went back to STG more than once, eventually had to be towed back, required me to use a rental vehicle, underwent additional diagnostic work, was driven more than 130 miles by the dealership, and then within two days of getting it back I had another warning light and discovered four dramatically different tire pressures.

I have tried throughout this entire process to be patient, reasonable and professional. I have thanked STG when they did something to help. I have provided photographs and documentation. I have given them opportunities to address my concerns.

But at some point a customer has to ask:

If something as simple and objectively measurable as tire pressure can be overlooked, what else was overlooked?

STG says customer service is its top priority. I can only review the company based on my actual experience as its customer.

At this point, I do not feel that I received the peace of mind, reliability or level of quality control that I reasonably expected when purchasing this vehicle.

And unfortunately, there is another issue that adds to my disappointment: I was also told that a reimbursement check was being overnighted to me, and I never received it. After everything else I have dealt with, even something that simple matters because it speaks directly to follow-through.

I am from the South and perhaps I was raised with an old-fashioned expectation: if someone trusts you with something important, you take care of it; if you tell someone you are going to do something, you do it; and if someone treats you fairly, you treat them fairly in return.

I have tried to extend that courtesy and good faith to STG throughout this process.

I am still waiting to feel that same level of accountability and integrity has been extended to me.

I have documentation, photographs, emails, repair-related correspondence and tire-pressure photographs supporting the experience described in this review.

I sincerely hope STG ultimately resolves this situation appropriately. If they do, I will gladly update my review to reflect how the company handled the final resolution.

But as of today, based on what I have personally experienced, I cannot recommend STG Auto Group.