The Autobarn Mazda of Evanston

A few weeks ago, I purchased a vehicle from the Mazda dealership in Evanston. During the purchase, I was pressured into buying an additional service, LoJack, for $500 despite initially declining it multi dealership in Evanston. During the purchase, I was pressured into buying an additional service, LoJack, for $500 despite initially declining it multiple times. What followed was one of the most disorganized and unprofessional customer service experiences I have ever had. The day after purchasing the car, I attempted to set up my LoJack account, but it did not work. Over the next several days, the app repeatedly stated that my vehicle could not be found and instructed me to contact the dealership. When I finally did, the first employee I spoke with could not even locate my account and stated that the service must not have been properly set up at the time of sale by my salesperson. I was told the salesperson would contact me. When the salesperson, Daler, reached out, there was no explanation or apology. Instead, I was casually told that I needed to come back to the dealership to "update" my equipment. I had just purchased the car the week prior and live 40 minutes away. I asked why this was necessary and was given no clear explanation, nor was there any acknowledgment of the inconvenience. I then asked to speak with a manager, which only escalated the issue. There was still no apology for the fact that a service I paid for was not working. The manager, Anthony, claimed that I likely failed to activate my account within a required timeframe and therefore needed to bring the vehicle back in. I explained that I attempted to activate the account the very next day. He had no response other than repeating that I would need to return to the dealership. I scheduled an appointment with the service department and took time off work to address the issue. After waiting 1.5hrs I was told that the LoJack equipment installed in my vehicle had malfunctioned and needed to be replaced. After the replacement, the service still did not work. The service department did not know how to proceed, so I contacted LoJack directly. LoJack customer service explained that when new equipment is installed, it must be re-registered under the customer's name by the dealership. When I relayed this information to the Mazda service department, I was told that nothing further could be done and that I would need to drive to another dealership an additional 15 mins away. This was especially frustrating because during the sales process, the dealership had no issue coordinating and driving between facilities to complete the sale. Once the purchase was finalized, that coordination and accountability disappeared, leaving me to navigate their internal disorganization on my own. After driving to the second location, the employee simply looked at the serial number in my car, something that could have easily been communicated over the phone. This unnecessary back and forth wasted hours of my time for an issue that stemmed entirely from the dealership's errors. When I later spoke to Anthony in person, he denied suggesting the issue was my fault and claimed I misunderstood him. Although he acknowledged the situation was mishandled, he never apologized. I was then told that the person responsible for managing LoJack accounts was unavailable and that I would need to wait several more days for access. I was told that if the service still did not work, I would be refunded, as if this were a favor, despite the fact that I had already paid for a product that never functioned. When I asked Anthony for Mazda's corporate contact information, he said someone would email it to me, stating this in a way that made it seem beneath him to provide it. I still haven't recd that number. The core issue here is accountability. If a dealership aggressively pushes an add-on service, staff and management should understand how that service works and be prepared to support it. Instead, I was blamed for their mistakes, passed between departments and locations, and treated as an inconvenience once the sale was complete. More

TERRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE. I had an appointment at their service center to which I showed up for. I sat and waited for nearly 30 minutes (when there weren't even any cars in f I had an appointment at their service center to which I showed up for. I sat and waited for nearly 30 minutes (when there weren't even any cars in front of me) before I left without ever being helped or even acknowledged. No greeting, no "we'll be right with you" - nothing. I went IGNORED by the at least 3 employees at their computers of whom made eye contact with me. This place was decent when I started going more than 5 years ago but there's been a steady decline of everything from customer service to turnaround times to now the WORST service advisors I've ever dealt with. I came here out of convenience but when I sit around almost half an hour waiting to be helped after my set appointment time there's nothing convenient about it anymore. This service center does not value it's loyal customers nor their time. Unprofessional, disappointing, and completely unacceptable. Would not recommend this service center to anyone. More

During a recent visit to your service department for scheduled maintenance, I had a disappointing experience with one of your representatives, Jamie Mossman. He told me my paperwork would be ready in scheduled maintenance, I had a disappointing experience with one of your representatives, Jamie Mossman. He told me my paperwork would be ready in 5 minutes, but after 35–40 minutes passed and I saw him assisting other customers in the waiting area, I finally had to approach him myself. At that point, he printed the paperwork for me to sign. Throughout the experience he displayed hostility and unnecessary rudeness. Frankly, I’m left wondering why I should return to a Mazda dealership when I can receive faster, more courteous, and transparent service from places like Jiffy Lube—at a more reasonable price. More