Stohlman Automotive

I purchased a 2008 VW Jetta here in spring of 2008. I chose to purchase my vehicle here when the salespeople were much more helpful, friendly and sufficiently attentive (not too much pressure but ready t chose to purchase my vehicle here when the salespeople were much more helpful, friendly and sufficiently attentive (not too much pressure but ready to discuss options and pricing when asked) than other dealerships I looked at the DC area, particularly Congressional Mazda/VW in Rockville (disliked). The sales staff at the time of purchase were good, working as expediently as possible for a new car purchase. I take my car here for all my servicing needs. When I had a problem with the paint on my Jetta staining too easily from tiny drops of gas near the gas tank (it was the first year that specific shade white was mixed and used) the service director was extremely helpful in getting the small spots eliminated. The service staff typically remember me when I come in, including the service director, which is impressive. In my experience, the servicing has always run on time, and they typically finish earlier than the estimated time. The one time a small mistake was made (radio being put into the car hadn't been checked when mailed to Stohlman from the parts place), the VW service employee on duty (Bobby S.) kept me posted and was very apologetic about the delay and error, which actually wasn't even his dealership's fault. I would recommend this dealership to friends or family buying or servicing a Volkswagen. More

Purchased a 2003 Mitsubishi Montero on a Sunday, trading in my car. The inspection sticker was almost expired but the salesman told me to go ahead and bring it in during the week and they would fix it sinc in my car. The inspection sticker was almost expired but the salesman told me to go ahead and bring it in during the week and they would fix it since they couldn't sell a car without a valid inspection. I came in on Thursday after work only to be told that the service department didn't take cars after 3:00pm. I was told to come back on Saturday. At that time, I told them that the payoff for my trade-in turned out to be about $350 less than what we had agreed. I was told no problem I would get a check for the difference. I came back on Saturday and was then hassled by the service department (Lour Delgrada) for coming in without an appointment. He was very rude and disrespectful. I didn't get my car back until the next day. It did have a new inspection sticker on it. After a month, I still hadn't received the check for the money I was owed. I called the salesman and was told they were looking into it. After two months, I called again and was told that the payment was delayed since the registration process hadn't been completed. Seems the car needed an emissions test. Why it wasn't done when the inspection was done, I have no idea. I arranged to bring in the car on Saturday. Again, ran into Lou. Same rudeness, same disrespect. This time, I didn't get my car back for several days. I had to call the service manager to resolve this. I finally got my car back, with the emissions done. The same day, I received a check in the mail, along with a note that Stohlman Mitsubishi didn't register my car since I had failed to get the emissions testing done on my car. And when exactly was I going to be told I needed one to complete my registration?? More

The worst car buying experience I've ever had! It started with the usual searching and comparing vehicles and dealerships. It culminated in getting the "out the door" price (confirmed several times) started with the usual searching and comparing vehicles and dealerships. It culminated in getting the "out the door" price (confirmed several times) between two different manufacturers and choosing, what we thought was, the better value for the money. The car was ordered and several weeks later when we went to pick up the car, we were informed that the price wasn’t really the “out the door” price, but rather a “sale” price which meant that another nearly $1400 had to be paid! While we negotiated the price down (split the difference) and then further to include a maintenance service, the sales representative was eager to get me out of there as this car is selling very fast and someone behind me was likely to pay the full price. Bottom line is that there was no integrity on the part of the sales representative and his immediate manager could have cared less as well. I had to go to the General Manager to further the negotiations and get the car. To be clear, the bait and switch tactics applied have no place in American business in 2010 (if ever). The purchasing process was terrible and ruined what was meant to be an exciting event. I’m glad to see that services such as this (Dealerrater) are available to warn others of this practice still being used by some in selling cars. More

I recently put a deposit on a 2008 VW R32. My initial deposit was $500 but I was pressed to increase my deposit to $1000 to show good faith. The car was described as being in perfect condition with the deposit was $500 but I was pressed to increase my deposit to $1000 to show good faith. The car was described as being in perfect condition with the exception of a hardly noticeable scratch on the rear passenger side fender well. I took a day off work, traveled more than 300 miles to pick up this car and, 5.5 hours later, finally arrived at Stohlman VW. The car was in much worse condition than described. It had significant paint damage. There were spots where an unskilled hand had burned through the paint with a buffer, deep buffer-induced swirl marks all over the car, acid spots (most likely from bird droppings, or tree sap) on the hood, scratches all over, and a dent, on the roof from a roof rack, 4-6 deep scratches on the front driver's side bumper, and significant curb rash on the wheels. Far more than what was described to me as a barely noticeable scratch on fender. Needless to say, I left without the car and with the promise that my $1000 deposit would be refunded. This was April 1st. It is now April 13th and I've yet to receive my deposit refund. When I agreed to put a deposit on the car it was described as "fully refundable". These guys are the epitome of sleazy used car dealers. My advice is to stay as far away as possible. Look elsewhere for your next vehicle. More

Very cooperative,friendly and the best guys I've seen. Very cooperative,friendly and the best guys I've seen. They helped us search for cars from different locations even though they were not having in st Very cooperative,friendly and the best guys I've seen. They helped us search for cars from different locations even though they were not having in stock the car we wanted and showed us differnt models and interior of cars patiently.I recommned to see Deiter Connrad in sales dept. More

I bought a Used car from this delaership, guess What?? the car went wrong after 4 days, the transmission failed, the brakes needed to be replaced, fron rotors needed to be replaced as well, engine mount n the car went wrong after 4 days, the transmission failed, the brakes needed to be replaced, fron rotors needed to be replaced as well, engine mount needs replacement, coolant hoses, Idle control valve failure, After having the problem, i got it checked bya honda dealer, and they estimated $ 8,500 of work to be done. Thank god they put me on a 90 day warranty, but the warranty denied the claim because they said they were pre-existing condition, so they would not cover it, since this was a delaer warranty i had to step on ther toes to get this repairs done.I called them , brought the car in, they said they didn't know what was gonna happen, finally, they probably lied to the warranty company saying that the vehicle was fine at time of sale. Finally after the warranty company approved the claim, they "said" they repaired the transmission, but guess what, no receipt at all for the work, this is incredible, the warranty company paid them and they don't give me any receipt for what they were supposed to do. So Stay away from this dealership, if a knew before they were a ripoff, i would promised myself not to come to this dealer. And I already did promise myself not to come back to this dealership, they have lack of service, they don't care about anything once you've come out of their lot. STAY AWAY FOR REAL YOU ARE GONNA BELIEVE ME IF YOU COME TO THIS DEALER AND BUY CARS OR GET SERVICE FROM THEM. More

My 2003 Passat is definitely of very bad quality. I was told the famously problematic coils has been changed before I purchased it as a new car (from another vw dealer), still had coil problems after I bou told the famously problematic coils has been changed before I purchased it as a new car (from another vw dealer), still had coil problems after I bought it, which brought me back to the dealer's so many times, even the shuttle driver at the dealer's knows me and wish me do not have to go back again. Now warranty expired, I was in the dealer's for a factory recall on the coils again. On top of that, they said I have two light bulbs went out that'll cost $35, and another $800 worth of other repair, which I decide to do at other cheaper place. When I pick up my car, I was told $35 is for each bulb, including one in the back that I could have just change myself if I had known that it'll cost so much. Let's say it was my mistake to believe they'll change two bulbs for $35, what made me really upset is their attitude, just like the previous reviewer said, basically "pay up and get the xxxx out of here!". Since the warranty expired, they can always find something seriously wrong with my car. Last time they gave me an estimate of something cost more than $1000, I end up fixed it for $200 at another place. I used to like this car so much that, 3 years into having it, after many trips to dealer's for repair, I still tell my friends I don't regret getting it. But by this point, I totally understand why some people buy a boring but very reliable car. Not only there's a time/money cost every time you go back to the dealer's to fix something, they also make you feel bad, almost as if intentional. This is definitely my last vw car. More

This place is a rip off. I had a very bad experience with their service department. They recommeneded and charged me for transmission flush, coolant flush etc, etc. about 6 months later, I took my car to an their service department. They recommeneded and charged me for transmission flush, coolant flush etc, etc. about 6 months later, I took my car to another service station and found that they never did any of the work that they charged me for. Complete Rip Off. Also the guy who dropped me off at work when I left my car was very rude and asked for a big tip in a very unprofessional way. I would rather get my car serviced at a gas station rather than these guys! More

It's no secret the people who work at service departments of car stealerships are not the most honest people but the service people at Stohlman VW are jerks who will lie, intimidate, and tell you to "pay up of car stealerships are not the most honest people but the service people at Stohlman VW are jerks who will lie, intimidate, and tell you to "pay up and get the xxxx out of here!" I brought my car in because it was having transmission problems. While shifting the car would jerk. However, the 4yr/50k mark had just barely passed so I was only left with the powertrain warranty. I had always had my car serviced at Stohlman (and payed them lots of money in the process) so the check-in process was simple. Ten minutes after I left the dealership I got a call from the service advisor (Brent) telling me to come back so I would pay the $98.00 diagnostic fee. When I told him he should have told me this while I was in there signing the papers he told me I had no choice otherwise they would not look at the car. When I asked for the service manager he said "Why are you threatening me?" What a fool. This guy was just trying to cover up his mistake which later after talking with the service manager (Joe) we both confirmed it was his mistake. A couple of hours later I got a call back from another service advisor (Jack) telling me there was a problem with the transmission and that it needed two parts to be fixed. I had to pay for the first part ($260.00) and the powertrain would cover the second part. When I told him both parts should be covered under the warranty he said I was lucky not to pay the $98.00 diagnostic fee and should just accept the charge. According to him "I had no other choice otherwise I will have more problems if I left the dealership without accepting their offer." Without much choice and unable to get in touch with the service manager I agreed. After doing some research and calling other dealers in the area I found out the part they were charging me only cost $100 at most - installed. Just because they did not charge me the diagnostic fee they were charging me double what other dealers were charging to change a simple part which I could have changed myself. When I went in to pick up my vehicle I saw Jack and asked to speek with Joe who was in his cozy office. I told Joe "please help me out, times are rough, I have always had my car serviced with you guys so please cut me some slack this time. The powertrain warranty is very subjective and you could have this part covered under the warranty." He said "I could do that but we've already written the paperwork." With Jack standing next to me telling me to pay up Joe looked at me and said "Just pay up and get the xxxx out, I have had enough of your bickering." My jaw just dropped and I payed and left. Bottom line is, take your business somewhere else. The people are Stohlman are jerks who don't care about you. More

The car buying experience with Dieter was the easiest I've ever had, outside of using a buying service! I knew what I wanted, so when we talked on the phone, we had a price agreed to in about five minut I've ever had, outside of using a buying service! I knew what I wanted, so when we talked on the phone, we had a price agreed to in about five minutes. I had been shopping around, so I knew what I wanted to pay, and what other dealers were offering. Dieter took a few hundred dollars off the price to beat the other dealers. He had the car for me in a couple of days. Their service department has been fine. They forgot to reset the computer the first time I had it in, but I took it back in and they reset it in five minutes. They still owe me a car wash, but they are friendly and quick. More