Subaru South Tampa

Jurnee Abigail Courtenay Mr. Pete Mastro 4113 S Orlando Jurnee Abigail Courtenay Mr. Pete Mastro 4113 S Orlando Drive Sanford, FL 32773 RE: An open letter to Mr. Mastro regarding my experience purchasing Jurnee Abigail Courtenay Mr. Pete Mastro 4113 S Orlando Drive Sanford, FL 32773 RE: An open letter to Mr. Mastro regarding my experience purchasing a used vehicle at Mastro Subaru Tampa. Dear Mr. Mastro, I have been wanting to contact you for a while since my purchase here in Tampa, but it has just taken this long to compose myself enough to explain my experience. I used to live right down the street from your store in Tampa. Every time I passes by I would think that it looked like such a friendly, family operation. Unfortunately, I was involved in an accident (I was not at fault) and My 2006 Mazda MX5 was totaled. I was without a car for almost a year until I could save a down payment and get a private loan for a new car. I was looking for a white hatchback. After months of looking for one, I found a white Nissan Versa on your website. It was advertised as a very well kept car, traded in towards the purchase of a new Subaru. I went in on 8/28/13 as soon as I got off of work for a test drive. I tried to be as thorough as possible testing everything I could think of. When pulling out and driving over the speed bump in the parking lot there was a slight “twang” in the steering. I tried to replicate it, but was not successful. The salesman assured me that there was no issue and that your “master mechanics” had thoroughly inspected the car and fixed anything that was wrong with it. We went inside to haggle on pricing. The salesman gave me the bottom price stating that it could not be any lower because of the money your company spent to make it to bring it up to standards, including a tune up. I thought it was a little too much, but after I thought about everything the salesman said, I took this to mean that everything was ok with the car. I felt as though I was in such a friendly, family environment that I just took his word for it. The following morning I went in to give a down payment and start the paperwork. That evening, after work, I went to pay the full amount and take possession of the car. My employer (who is like a father to me) went with me and grilled the salesman to make sure that I was getting the best price and that there was in fact nothing wrong with the car. Again the sales person said that his “master mechanics” had resolved any issues and brought it up to standards. We both felt so comfortable with the transaction that he was going to come back the following month to buy a brand new Subaru for his own daughter to replace her Volvo. As soon as I pulled onto the highway, the check engine light came on. In hind sight I should have turned right around and canceled the check. Instead, I trusted your store and texted the salesperson about what had happened. Also the “twang” in the front steering returned and got worse and worse. I brought it in the following Saturday, but the service center had already closed and the salesperson was closing a deal so I didn’t want to bother him. I would have brought it sooner, but my work schedule would not allow. A few days later, the car overheated and after many attempts to reach the salesperson (to no avail) I just brought it in. They needed to keep it for the weekend and gave me a loaner car, which I appreciated very much. I finally received a call from the service center saying that they needed to replace the alternator and a belt. Also he said that the steering was “twanging” because the rack and pinion needed to be replaced. He went on to say that they were already aware of these problems BEFORE THEY SOLD THE CAR TO ME! I argued that they should have told me about these issues when I asked, and I only got the run around. They replaced the alternator and serpentine belt with used parts, and gave me an estimate of over $600.00 to fix the rack and pinion which was preexisting and not disclosed to me at the time of purchase. When I returned to pick up my Versa, The head salesperson and I had a very heated conversation about why I was lied to about the condition of the car. He tried to assure me that he instructs his sales persons not to lie to achieve a sale. He showed me the original papers that diagnosed the problems before I bought the car (I recorded the entire conversation with his knowledge). I called my employer and put the head salesperson on the phone with him to confirm that the salesperson did not disclose these issues when asked at the time of purchase. He continued to stand behind his salesperson and also said “We don’t sell new used cars, there are going to be problems with them (the used cars that you sell).”A horrible way to describe store policy while doing business with your company in my opinion. Again, the conversation was getting us nowhere. I left feeling swindled and cheated. My employer felt the same way and found a reputable dealer to purchase a new car for his daughter. At the same time I decided never to use your service center again, even though I am entitled to free oil changes. A week later, the check engine light came back on, blinking this time. The car started jerking. I had it towed to our family mechanic who determined that 2 of the ignition coils had burned out (1 before I bought the car and the second because the first was never replaced). Also, the spark plugs were the original ones that came with the car (as I noted before, the salesperson said they couldn’t go down on the price because of bringing the car up to standard). To top it off the CD player is jammed and won’t work at all (as I didn’t try to play one until I got the car back from the service center). In summary, while paying my monthly payment on my loan, I have had the added expense of $400.00, plus the price for the rack and pinion, and no CD player because of the lack of transparency of your salesperson. While I would advise my peers to purchase a new Subaru from your company, I would caution anyone from acquiring a used car from your establishment. Sincerely, Jurnee Abigail Courtenay More