Bentley Atlanta

It has been 6 weeks since the purchase of my Bentley Continental GTC V8 from Bentley Atlanta. What should be cause for celebration, the purchase of a Bentley was anything but memorable. Just about ever Continental GTC V8 from Bentley Atlanta. What should be cause for celebration, the purchase of a Bentley was anything but memorable. Just about everything the General Sales Manager, Mr. Chris Tuckley, said during my transaction was a misstatement. You know, I'm tired of tiptoeing around here, let's call it what it is. In a nutshell, he's a liar. His mastery with his lies, deceit and greed make this Sales Manager of Bentley Atlanta a prime example of why in most consumer surveys that car salesmen rank so poorly. The sales tactics used by Mr. Tuckley to make this almost $200,000 sale on December 27, 2013 go beyond shameful - they are illegal. His catacomb of deception and fraud had one objective, which was to purposefully misguide, mislead and coerce me to buy from him with a total disregard for my financial well being and the law. A complaint has been filed with the Governor's Office of Consumer Protection for the direct violation of The Georgia Fair Business Practices Act [O.C.G.A. Sections 10-1-393 (A) and (B)]. The following are some excerpts of the deception utilized by Mr. Tuckley in this transaction. This is written in the fashion of "AS TOLD OR LED TO BELIEVE" followed by "THE TRUTH AS FACT" on an individual point basis. I was looking at an almost identical car in Dallas and was told by Mr. Tuckley that it had been a smokers car and reeks of cigarette smoke. A client flew to Dallas to look at the car and has first hand knowledge of the problem. The cigarette smoke cannot be removed from the car. “It’s priced there for a reason, so if it sounds to good to be true…”. The price difference was in excess of $10,000 USD. Not true. The owner of the car in question purchased the car from the dealership new and traded it after only a few months for another Bentley. The same client has subsequently traded in that car for yet another one. This client does not smoke nor do they allow smoking in their cars. I have suffered financial harm as a result of this fraud. I was also told by Mr. Tuckley that "If you purchase the car from Dallas, we cannot service it for you here at Bentley Atlanta. We only service the cars that we sell and focus on our customers to deliver them the best customer service. If someone has a car they purchased from another dealership or individual, there are trucks that transport the car to the dealership of purchase for service. The only good note to that is it is only once per year that they require service." Mr. Tuckley knew how important accessibility of proper maintenance was to me and this greatly influenced my purchasing decision. Not true. Bentley Atlanta is open to service any car. I called and made an appointment posing as a new resident of Georgia. An appointment was made and even reconfirmed for Friday morning that week. There was no question of where my car was purchased, but instead eagerly welcomed to the dealership for service. This was also confirmed by Mr. Stuart Cochrane, Regional General Manager at Bentley Motors, Inc. that they service all Bentley's. I was told by Mr. Tuckley that the Interest rate is set at 5.9% through Bentley and is the only source of financing available for the extended length of term and amount. Other banks are not interested in financing Bentley’s and other cars for that sum of money. Limited to shorter terms if using local lending institutions. Not true. Bentley interest rate is 5.99% or higher; however, several banks locally in each market offer competitive rates usually being much lower that the 5.99% rate. In fact, after requesting Mary (Financial Services) to check other rates that was the case with me as my rate was 3.57% with SunTrust. I also received approval in Dallas for that car purchase at a much lower rate that the Bentley rate. Even after Mr. Tuckley achieved his objective of me buying the car, he could not stop there. Instead, he proceeded to take advantage of me financially by selling me grossly marked up warranties. I was told that Bentley sets pricing on the extended warranty items and is standard nationally. The prices for warranty is handled by the finance department, but costs as follows for the Dallas car I was looking to purchase: Interior/Exterior warranty treatment 7 year $1,395.00 Tire & Wheel road hazard coverage 5 year $2,395.00 LoJack $ 995.00 The truth is that pricing is set on a local level by the local dealership and handled on a local level with no Bentley involvement. These are the costs I was charged at Bentley Atlanta: Interior/Exterior warranty treatment $3,599.00 Tire & Wheel road hazard coverage $3,599.00 LoJack $1,399.00 I purchased all of these items and I have suffered additional financial harm as a result of being coerced into purchasing the Atlanta car. I paid an additional $3,812 to purchase the same warranty sold in Dallas. I was told the car I am looking at was purchased at auction, straight from Bentley at the Bentley auction. Mr. Tuckley stated "This is the way that Bentley moves cars about from dealership to dealership. I drive all cars at Bentley auctions." I was led to believe that he drove this car prior to bidding on the car. Not true. There is no such thing as a Bentley auction held at Bentley. This car was listed on Ebay auction. Mr. Tuckley never drove this car at all period. I understand that "puffing" is used by sales people; however, the following is grossly incorrect. Mr. Tuckley said that as Sales Manager at Bentley Atlanta, I am # 3 nationally in sales just behind Beverly Hills and Florida (which rotates between Naples and Palm Beach Motors as they are owned by the same person). Mr. Tuckley stated that he has been with Bentley Atlanta for 15 years. Not true. Mr. Tuckley has never been in the top 10 other than one time as number 3. Additionally, Mr. Tuckley added that “I could sell every car that we get in here from Bentley at a loss and still make money because the rebates that Bentley gives us is a very large number – enough to cover a loss on each car we sell from Bentley.” I have purchased many cars in my life, both new and pre-owned. This is a first for me and I must tell you that I expected much, much more from Bentley. Mr. Tuckley is nothing shy of reprehensible. I have many concerns about the car I purchased and why it was so important to go to these lengths to make the sale. Why was this sale at the end of the year so important? Were there sales targets to reach on a specific company wide scale? I have so many questions that come to mind. There may be more to add to this list as I reflect over this transaction and as time goes on. The car does have a shifting issue with the transmission and an appointment for service has been made for next week. I have been working with the General Manager of Bentley Atlanta, Mr. Richard Kim since December 31, 2013 to bring an end to all this. Bentley Atlanta would not honor my request to void the deal; however, Mr. Kim suggested that I consider purchasing a new 2014 as I would be the only person to drive the car and the one to begin provenance. I agreed to go along and look into what options existed there, but I stated that I would only pay about $10,000 more towards the 2014. Since that time, I have repeatedly received proposals that required much more than $10,000 additional. The first proposal required $49,064 additional. This has been ongoing since December 31, 2013 and is still unresolved. In the interim, I agreed to consider payment of up to $15,000 additional, up from $10,000, for a car that I approve, but I have not received any proposal that has required less than $19,807 and according to Mr. Kim, that is for the lowest priced, bare bones 2014 that did not have anywhere close to the options on the 2013. Mr. Kim further added that he would not be able to buy back the car at the full price he is offering now after March 1, as the buy back amount would decrease, but that we should continue to look. I do not see any merit to continuing to look for a vehicle that does not exist and potentially end up in a situation that violates other provisions of The Georgia Fair Business Practices Act. It is important to me that we put this matter behind us ASAP. On October 7, 2013, I was the victim of an armed carjacking and home invasion that received national news coverage. I am trying to move on with my life and put all this behind me. What I thought could have been a bright star shining through, appears to have the makings of a celestial black hole and consume the energy I have left. I am available to discuss with you and may be reached at 404-405-60 on my mobile. Take care, Brad Edmonds More