Part 1 led up to this point, and I'm sorry for the delay in getting this written. I've had some big changes in my life this week. I'll post on those separately.
As I wondered whether the oil leak in my engine would be an easy fix or an excuse to trade the car in, as I wondered whether the car would cause me more problems later on, I also thought about my mechanic's specific recommendation to go to Burn's Hyundai. My wife and I talked about how we would work out the purchase of a car and decided to see what Burn's would offer.
As we walked on the lot, we were met by Steve. At the time we were thinking about the Hyundai Santa Fe, but he suggested we go inside as it was cold. We told him what we had available, what we wanted in a car, and what kind of payments we were looking at. At this point the script was followed to the letter as he said "I have the perfect car for you." He took us to a 2003 Kia Sedona. It was nice, but I expected the normal procedure to be followed: we test drive the car, like it, decide to buy it, then find out with trade-in and unreasonable down payment much higher than we already said we could provide, the payments will be more than twice what we asked for. Then as we bargain back and forth, the monthly payment will come down $10 to $15 at a time.
That actually didn't happen. After we drove the Sedona, we asked about the Santa Fe. The dealer said that if we wanted a $200 a month car payment, the Sedona was our best bet. Wow, that has never happened before! As we needed to get my Suzuki to trade in, we did test drive the Santa Fe. I thanked the dealer for that. I didn't like the Santa Fe as much as I thought but without that test drive, I would have spent the rest of my life wondering if I might have liked it better.
The trade in went well. They were clear about the whole process, the financing worked out, and we drove the car home. Based on this experience, I would highly recommend Burn's Hyundai to anyone looking for a car. If you need a car, new or used, and Marlton, New Jersey isn't too far for you, check out Burn's Hyundai on Route 70. They also have Pontiac and GMC.
Obviously, not everything about every dealer is perfect. I need to comment on the service department, which I did not find to be anywhere near as professional or competent as the sales department. During the test drive, about two traffic lights from the dealership, I noticed smoke coming up from the engine. It was a fairly clear smoke. None of the engine lights were on, and the temperature was normal, so I wasn't really worried considering how close we were. The dealer took the car to service right away and his manager came out to assure us that everything would be taken care of. She showed us the service record. Three tires had been replaced, as well as the belts, hoses, battery and brakes. Apparently one of the clamps wasn't put on right and anti-freeze spilled out onto the engine and burned up during the test drive. The issue was fixed.
I took the car to my mechanic, who wasn't quite as thrilled that I bought a Kia as he would have been a new Hyundai, but I told him a new car just isn't in our budget. We typically buy used cars that can be worked out to around a $200 a month payment. It's what you have to do to get by on a single income. We also get a lot of furniture for free on Craig's List. In any case, my mechanic found a few issues. The rear shocks needed to be replaced, a bolt under the car wasn't screwed back in properly, the spare tire was bald and dry rotting, and some connectors in the engine weren't properly mounted. Except for the spare tire there was nothing life threatening, but all of it shows a serious lack of professionalism and a lack of attention to detail and pride in the work of the service department. I've worked on equipment that could kill people if not properly maintained, so when I see attention to detail problems like this, it scares me. I don't see how a dealership can sell a car without an adequate spare tire. That should have been part of the inspection prior to putting the car out on the lot to be sold. If the data port connector was left hanging rather than remounted on the battery where it belongs, what else didn't this maintenance department screw back in properly? Also, remember that hose clamp that wasn't put on properly that caused smoke to come out on the test drive? They put a new clamp on OVER it, rather than taking it off and replacing it. I can understand being busy and overworked, but add all of these details up and I start to think laziness and incompetence.
I brought these issues up and was told to bring the car in. The spare tire and rear shocks were replaced.
Like I said, if you need a car in Marlton, NJ, check out Burn's Hyundai. Ask for Steve or Penny. The sales department is great, but the service department scares me. I might try to have any warranty work done at another dealer. I would buy another car from this one again.
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