Toyota Universe

OK...its long...but bear with me....might save you too. OK...its long...but bear with me....might save you too. Saw new 2010 Tacoma online, MSRP $27k+, Internet price $25k+. Steal right? Wrong. Calls OK...its long...but bear with me....might save you too. Saw new 2010 Tacoma online, MSRP $27k+, Internet price $25k+. Steal right? Wrong. Calls within seconds of submitting an email to dealer from website. Robbie (Internet Sales *Fanager) [I only say "Fanager" b/c he's not really a manager....just wants to be one....like how everyone wanted to be like Mike. And FYI - there is no "Mike" at this dealer]. Moving on. Robbie proceeds to tell me "come down, we'll take a test drive, yada yada yada". Ok. Stupid me drives 45 minutes to dealer, walk in, ask for "Robbie"......MIA. Ok, thats fine, things come up, he had to run out, whatever no biggy. I tell front desk "just send someone that wants to sell a truck today". Now you would think that the dealership would turn into the Rice Bar at a Sumo competition at this point with Salesmen diving for the chance to actually sell a vehicle. Nope. Nothing. Actually, the secretary (who is the only person that i would remotely converse with after this debacle b/c she was very sweet and polite) starts to curse out the other people on the end of the line telling them that there is a customer waiting for help and he's been here for over 20 minutes. Yup. 20 minutes. Not a single salesman said "hello" or "hi can i help you". Nothing. Ok, no problem, i'll just go out and look at the truck i came to see. (Now mind you it is lightly raining out and i would prefer NOT to go outside, but after seeing the most stereotypical dealership and salesman at this place, with their oversized Car salesmen suites that look like they borrowed it from a Dallas Cowboys linebacker, I decided that if I am going to get wet, they are.) So I walk outside (from side door of Toyota Universe Prison, no really...its prison like with all the gates and security offices.) and I have to go and find the truck myself on the lot (remember, 30 minutes and counting --> still no salesman) Finally, 10 minute after that (40 minutes), Robinson (Salesman) walks out and we proceed to talk truck. I tell him up front that I do not qualify for the $1000 College Grad discount, nor do I qualify for the Military discount. Ok, so no discounts, thats fine, as long as the Salesmen knows upfront, so when we get to the price, there are no issues. Take a test drive, which went well. Its a Toyota tacoma.....how could it not? During this time, the Salesmen goes on to tell me that he's only worked there for 2 months, this is his first time selling cars, etc etc. Whatever. Don't care if your a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle in a Salesmen costume, just talk truck. Thank you. Anyway, test drive done, love truck, lets talk numbers. Now mind you, if i knew what i was getting into, i would have shoved my own own foot up my arse and kicked myself out the front door. Stupid me. I sat down. 4 box pricing paper comes out, and these salesmen LOVE it. I was told by the Saleman to "ignore what i'm writing down here, this is just to tell my manager that i talked to you about all of these prices, and then you showed me the lower internet price afterwards"......Ok, no problem, but WHY would they want to hide the internet price from people that didn't bring in their little print out? Odd in my eyes, but I played along. Scribbled a line on the makeshift "contract" that he presented me which was actually just the backside of the 4 box sheet. Salesman dissappears, has to talk to the Sales Manager. Ok, no prob. Comes back, and i won't even begin to tell you what came out of his mouth b/c after he said "ok...." i lost track. Numbers were flying everywhere, pen marks everywhere, its like he's convincing HIMESELF that his numbers are correct, in which I have only 1 choice but to agree with b/c I want to see where this leads to. Nowhere. Thats where. So, I put my offer on the table and tell them that I know I can afford this truck at this price, with this loan term and interest rate. I did my homework, so I was OK right? Wrong. (now I forgot to mention in the beginning of this story that I also had a trade-in vehicle in which I would either not trade, or take the trade depending on what they would give me.) So I proceed to discuss the trade. They asked what I "wanted" for it. I told them $2000 over the price that I owed on it, b/c in reality, thats what I WANT, but def. not what i'm expected to get. Bye bye Salesman, back to Sales Mangers office (which always seems to be so far away that you can't see them either). They come back, say sorry, can't give you what you owe for trade, yada yada yada, "I gotta feed my family" BS line comes out, the usual. Whatever, no trade, i'm OK with that. Not end of world. So now comes TAZ. TAZ will be the individual that presents himself as the "Sales Manager" and looks nothing short of the next CEO of any other business....except for the fact that the instant he opens his mouth, you'll realize that your talking to nothing more than another sneaky Salesman. Still, I'm ok with that. I consider myself a pretty hard nosed fella, so I stick with it and try to haggle. No go. I take a minute to look at numbers, and even though they alrady "took" $2000 off the sticker price, its still not making sense. (again, did my homework and I know exactly what I can afford, and all they want to do is talk about "getting me to my monthly paymen".) I tell the saleman that I need a night to think about it (after repeatedly telling them that I can't buy the vehicle today b/c I need to talk to my significant other about the purchase before I buy. Understandable, at least for me anyway.) They didn't like that, but said they would hold the deal until the next day and I could come back. Ok, no pressure anymore, I can go home and feel good that I might be getting a V6 Tacoma at a steal of a price, well, from what it LOOKED like anyway. Tomorrow comes, I wake up early like a little boy on Christmas morning, 8:00am. (I usually sleep till about 11:30am on Saturdays regardless of any interruptions, heavy sleeper, what can i say). Excited as hell to drive my truck. Show up at Dealer...where's the Salesman? Aparently they all have a early morning pep-rally upstairs to talk about how they will financially rape that days customers. Ok no problem, I was early anyway. I did however bring some firing power with me. Best bud, used to Sell cars for over 10 years. Ford. Knows his stuff. Thought I would be able to have him just verify the numbers and tell me that yes, they are NOT ripping you off. We'll see. I take my buddy out, we look at the truck, he likes it. Doesn't really care much about it as he has not been looking at this truck and only did a minutes worth of research that morning. But he knows the game, and thats all i needed. Salesman comes out, again, I make him get that suit wet hoping that someday it will soon cause it to shrink. No go. We sit down again. This time with Buddy. Buddy proceeds to talk to Salesman, and he lets the Salesman do his thing and "explain" what he is showing me. And let me tell you was this entertainment. The Salesman did the explanation, Buddy ask some questions, they continue to talk, blah blah blah, lots of terms and numbers I don't understand anyway. Then it gets to the point where Buddy just asks to see the invoice of the truck. We've talked numbers long enough, and we just wanted to see where we were at as far as what type of deal we were getting. And mind you, ANY, and I repeat ANY reputable dealer will show you invoice price of the car if you ask. If they don't, walk away. Salesman refuses to show invoice price even though he has it on the table, only hiding the price with another sheet of paper. He asks "well if we're going to look at Invoice price, let me pull up the invoice price on your car". I told him no problem, but it would make no difference. He basically did not want to show us HOW MUCH they were still ripping me off. So we quit the "show me the invoice" speech b/c it wasn't going to happen. This is when it gets interesting. Salesman back to Sales Manager office. They both come back. Salesman is now sitting in a chair directly behing myself and Buddy. Sales manager at the throne. First thing, "We can't give you what you want for your Trade.....actually, we can't even give you what you owe" (which mind you, its only $3600 for payoff and I was asking 5800 privately knowing that I will never get it.) He then continues to the deal breaker questions. "Are you a college graduate within the past 2 years?" NO. Are you active in the military?" NO. Here's comes pen to paper, and the addition of about $1350 on the total price of truck. Wait....I thought the truck was only $25k+ and that if I didn't qualify for these items, which the salesman alrady knew, then we should have gotten this out of the way from step 1. Nope. Salesman, who now I am pointing directly at like bird dog hot on a trail, and procee to tell him that I told him from the start and that he should have told his manager that. He, who is now looking like a puppy who just piddled on the floor and saw the better half of a backhand, claims he was "unaware" of that information. BS. This is the moment when me and Buddy stand up and proceed to give TAZ the better parts of our thoughts on what he's just tried to pull. Now in the heat of the moment, I am pissed. Obviously. But the minute I start my own truck and drive away through the prison gates of Toyota Universe, I begin to smile, knowing that they were NOT able to dupe someone else into their tricks. I wholeheartedly hope that no one ever has to go through this with this dealership or any other dealers. Yes....there IS a cherry on top. I got a call from the Toyota Universe phone number on Monday (couple days after I was at dealer) and as usual, I don't pick up b/c I'm at work. Listen to the voice message that was left. Aparently....this dealer has done this quite a few times and for whatever reason they've had quite a few bad reviews/surveys from customers. Go figure. NO WAY! Would never have guessed. Anyway, guy on the phone states he works for "Hotdealers.com" and was hired by Toyota to fix problems and hacks at dealerships across the country. Now you would think I would just ignore and move on, but I really like this truck. So I call him back, let him do his thing, blah blah blah, which is actually a bit interesting as his story on what he does make a bit of sense. Anyway, he told me he will be talking to the GM of the dealership about the problems, the 2 individuals that I worked with, and there will be some "changes" at the dealer within the next few weeks. Good right? Finally someone to get the baddies out and the goodies in. She I am currently in the process of working with this gentleman and he said that he will see if he can make the deal happen with the vehicle i want and no games or gimmicks. Told him where I wanted to be, told him whats too much, and if he can't do it, just tell me. That was yesterday (11/17/09) around 5:30pm ET. It is now 12:35pm on 11/18/09 and I just received a call from this "gentleman". I'll keep you posted....but ya...stay away from this dealer. They stinky. Sincerly, Truckless Shopper More

My wife and I were looking to buy a new car. We were greeted by a saleswoman who was very nice. We looked at three Toyota Highlander's and were not interested with any of the vehicles. When we started greeted by a saleswoman who was very nice. We looked at three Toyota Highlander's and were not interested with any of the vehicles. When we started getting serious in negotiations, another salesman got involved and I don't remember his name and I dont care to. They seem to hire immature salespersons who can't make decisions on their own. When negotiating, they always have to talk to the sales manager (Their Daddy) and when they came back to the table, they really have nothing to offer. Just a bunch of lip service. While we were in the dealership it was busy but it seemed like it was families eating all the free popcorn and hotdogs. I didn't see any vehicle sale transactions happening. when I made my final offer on the Highlander, I was told by the salesman, "Look how busy we are, we don't have to discount our cars, we are TOYOTA!!! I said OKAY, I'll talk to you later. I now own a new Honda. Go Figure. CarMan More

i went to this dealer and i was going to purchase a car and left a deposit . came back next day because i didnt want to get the car and they are still not giving me my deposit back. i didnt even drive the and left a deposit . came back next day because i didnt want to get the car and they are still not giving me my deposit back. i didnt even drive the car off the lot. Beware of This dealer horribl More

We tried to buy Prius: sales person Taz said to us, "if We tried to buy Prius: sales person Taz said to us, "if the MSRP on the sticker says 28,600, we are going to sell it for 30,600 because we as a deale We tried to buy Prius: sales person Taz said to us, "if the MSRP on the sticker says 28,600, we are going to sell it for 30,600 because we as a dealer need to make money". ? what kind of BS is that? if you are going to add $2000 for NO REASON (he wasnt adding any features to the package) why do they even advertise MSRPs and have the MSRPs listed on the stickers?? We tried to trade in our FJ Cruiser. He said, "that model is discontinued so the value is less", but at the same time, he said (as one of the reasons why he needs to add $2000) Prius 3 is discontinued so the market value is high (because everyone wants it). The whole experience was very upsetting and annoying, not to mention, his story didn't make sense to us at all. More

After negotiating a set price with Luis the internet manager and Bill Moloy, the store finance manager canceled my deal and told me that he could not sell the vehicle at the set price because Luis had m manager and Bill Moloy, the store finance manager canceled my deal and told me that he could not sell the vehicle at the set price because Luis had made a mistake. I actually sat in the store for 2 hours while Bill Moloy searched for keys for a car he didn't have. This dealership is unprofessional, dishonest and very unorginized in all aspects. Stay away from this place!!! On the following day, I went to "Parkway Toyota" in Englewood Clfs, and the sale for the car I was seeking for went very smooth and at a price I was willing to pay without any hasseles. More

Sleazy sales tactics at a sleazy dealership. Bad faith negotiation by playing around with numbers. Taz, the sales manager, tried oldest trick in car salesmen book, i.e. what if I sell you the car for $X negotiation by playing around with numbers. Taz, the sales manager, tried oldest trick in car salesmen book, i.e. what if I sell you the car for $X will you buy it today, but he never came close to actually meeting the X number. Overall a bad customer experience. More

- Rob? - Today I got an internet coupon off their site - Rob? - Today I got an internet coupon off their site for -$1000 which I had to fill in my contact info. to print. Never give your home number use - Rob? - Today I got an internet coupon off their site for -$1000 which I had to fill in my contact info. to print. Never give your home number use your mobile. Before I was done printing the coupon the phone rang and it was there "internet manager" Andy. I told him I was looking for a price on a 2010 Corolla LE and was using the "cash for Clunkers program", paying cash, had my coupon printed and was ready to buy today. He told me he would give me just above invoice a price of $16,500 which included the $1000 coupon. an additional $4500 for the "Cash for Clunkers" and the car would be $12500. The actual invoice price by the way according to www.edmunds.com (best car info on the net) is $15,326 plus a couple hundred bucks for options, a $1200 difference (lie). I was still OK with that even though I knew he was lying I didn't expect a car for cost, which invoice isn't actually dealer cost, look up charge backs sometime. I went to the dealership, I told the salesman the price Andy quoted me. I asked for an out the door price (include taxes and fees). He then pulled out the piece of paper with the 4 boxes printed on it. If you see this trick get up and leave. This is where they do there fuzzy math to screw you out of your hard earned money. I laughed when the salesman tried to calculate the taxes on the MSRP without the $5500 off for the clunker and their internet coupon. In NJ thats a $385 dollar "mistake". When I pointed that out he crumbled up the paper and threw it away. He asked me if I used to sell cars, and then he volunteered to me that in certain states it is illegal to use the box trick. Then he was going to present my offer, $18,500 (over $3000 dollar profit for the dealer) to his sales manager. He said with a smile he would try his best (to get the price they quoted me on the phone) what a joke. He asked me to sign a paper that wasn't a contract and had virtually no info on it to "prove" that I was a committed buyer and a credit card. I said to him you know this isn't a contract, he agreed so I literally scribbled 2 jagged lines on it, not my name and nobody seemed to care. I also told him not to run a credit check on me , I was paying cash. An unnecessary credit check can lower your credit score. So the sales manager sent back the non-contract with a red magic marker smiley face, saying I should look at used cars. The salesman then said that his manager told him that I couldn't combine the "Cash for Clunkers" with the coupon ( even though their internet manger said I could and salesman a few moments before told me it was OK) . Illegal under the NJ Consumer Fraud Act and the federal terms of "Cash for Clunkers". He then told me that the sales manager said that Corollas were in such demand that he was going to have to charge me $1000 over MSRP also ( illegal in NJ) but he would "give" me the car for MSRP. Which out the door price was now approaching $21,000 for a car that I was told $16,500 by their internet manager. I stood up said thank's but no thank's and left the sales room. As I am writing this I just got a call from some other manager to see how it went. I told him and he said he would get back to me. I am now dealing with 2 other dealerships strictly by phone and am approaching the price I was told by these hacks. My advice is avoid this dealership at all cost. Opp's just got another call, this time a different internet manager and now they want to give me the out the door price for $18500.THE ORIGINAL DEAL. F*ck them. I'd rather deal with any other dealership, I can't imagine what crap their service dept. must try to pull. Educate yourself at edmunds.com. Read confessions of a car salesman. Read the confessions of the Finance manager.(NEVRE BUY THE WARRANTY never buy the paint protection, it's just car wax) Dealerships like this are trying to bamboozle you out of your hard earned money. If you let them. There are good dealerships out there, this isn't one of them. It is worth the time and your money to find one. Read the reviews ( I didn't and wasted a couple of hours) More

Stay away from this place! I visited the dealership for a used car a few years back and they use every dirty trick in the book to take your money. The salesman went as far as to not let me speak to the fina used car a few years back and they use every dirty trick in the book to take your money. The salesman went as far as to not let me speak to the finance manager until they had my down payment check in hand. After agreeing to a deal, they called me two days later and told me they couldn't get the financing done and I had to come back in to renegotiate. when I returned the car. By the time I came back in, they had already chased my down payment check! Even after bringing the car back, I had to deal with a third party to try to get my down payment back. Disaster! Very dishonest people, stay away!!! More

We did a web search last year, looking for a Toyota Matrix with certain features. Toyota Universe's website said they had several. I telephoned Toyota Universe; they confirmed they had what we were l Matrix with certain features. Toyota Universe's website said they had several. I telephoned Toyota Universe; they confirmed they had what we were looking for. I said we'd be over within the hour. When we arrived, they told us they did not have, on the lot, what we were looking for. They alleged that the car we called about may have been sold and delivered within the past hour. We should have walked away then. Talk about "bait and switch!" Unfortunately for us, we stayed, accepted their low ball price for our used car- less than two years old- and waited almost a week for delivery. They exert very high pressure on their customers. The entire sales process at Toyota Universe left us feeling unclean. Sometimes, the first impression one forms is the accurate one; we should have walked away. If Toyota Universe were the only Toyota dealer in the world, we wouldn't be buying another Toyota. Our Toyota Matrix is great, but we still have a bad taste in our mouths when we think of Toyota Universe. More

This was the worst car-buying experience I've ever had. The sales rep was nice enough and did try to be helpful, but he appeared to be new and it turned out that he communicated a number of things incorrec The sales rep was nice enough and did try to be helpful, but he appeared to be new and it turned out that he communicated a number of things incorrectly. The old game of "let me check with my manager" was played repeatedly as we tried to come to agreement on a price. When we did come to that agreement, it kept turning out that things that were supposed to be included weren't and that would add 'just' several hundred or a thousand more dollars - even though we had explicitly stated several times that we only wanted to deal with one person and that we wanted to see complete final prices for everything including taxes, warranties, etc. At the end, because of the many miscommunications, I felt I had to actually read and understand the terms of the financing contract carefully. When I asked to have an authorized signature on the contract, they insisted that this could only be done by their accounting department, but that the contract is valid. How can I write a contract with myself, even if it is on Toyota's boiler plate template? At that point, the finance guy left, and the general manager came over and literally berated me for my obvious dissatisfaction, for the look on my face(yes, really!), for reading the contract too slowly and asking too many questions, and finally threatened to tear up the contract. We were pretty far along at that point, and didn't feel we wanted to start the process of looking all over again (at that point, WE had signed all the needed contracts, the downpayment was made, I had the keys in hand, etc. - I was literally only asking for an executed copy of the contract, and this seemed to outrage the General Manager). He and the three other staff members we had talked to insisted repeatedly that they were "losing money" on this deal, a ludicrous and baldfaced lie. Toyota's are fine cars, and I am sure I will be happy enough with the one I bought, though other manufacturers like Honda certainly produce vehicles with equivalent quality and pricing. If you have a choice, do not ever go to this dealership. Buy a Toyota elsewhere, if that's the car you want. More