Toyota of Scranton

Don’t let the Toyota brand name fool you: this place is about very high-pressure sales and deceptive finance practices that any fly-by-night used car vendor would envy. They believe in the one-night stand, about very high-pressure sales and deceptive finance practices that any fly-by-night used car vendor would envy. They believe in the one-night stand, hard sell, sign on the line today or you can’t leave experience. I actually was followed out into the parking lot by the finance guy so he could get my down payment check; how is that for trust? More about that later. Also, don’t let their high star ratings fool you, as they fooled me. They have at least one full timer called a VP of Guest Experience who tries her best to get all negative reviews either changed or deleted. What does this tell you, that they can afford a yearly salary to a management level person just to maintain a positive online presence? Tells me a lot of people are having problems here, besides me, and a lot gets swept under the rug before any of us have warning. This is why I am sharing now. Anyway, I first spoke with Toyota of Scranton on 28 Dec after contacting them through their online web consultant bot “Scarlet.” The salesman Jeff rang my cellphone literally on the second that I hit the enter key giving my phone number to Scarlet. I should have taken warning right then that I was dealing with hungry piranhas, but I figured Toyota was a premium dealership and product, and my guard was down. I told him I wanted to see an advertised 2008 Rav4 Limited for $10k, and also a Nissan Rogue and a Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. Another person at Toyota said they would hold these vehicles for me overnight, but Jeff said she was wrong and “I had to take my chances” if I did not come out TONIGHT, even though I live a hour away and it would be dark before I got there. So, here began the high pressure. When I got there the next day, the Rav4 vehicle was indeed saved for me anyway. If fact, it had been detailed and the engine compartment was still wet from a steam cleaning. As for the Nissan and Hyundai, Jeff bad mouthed those so much without even letting me see them. This is to a person who drove out there in my 2011 Hyundai Sonata that I just love, and was not even going to trade in: I only wanted a 4 wheel drive for the winter, but would and did keep my Sonata for the rest of the year. Jeff did not really concern himself with my needs; they went in one ear and out the other. Nor did he spend any time explaining the large Toyota stable of vehicles or hybrid technology options that might have interested and better suited me. He called himself a “guide,” and now I see he planned to guide me into the highest commission generating thing he could, my needs be damned. From the Rav4 that I had come for and test drove, he “steered” me into an expensive and totally unsuitable vehicle for where I live; a 2018 Highlander costing $28k (plus a $4k warranty that came later with the finance guy). It does not have the features I told him I wanted: it lacks necessary cargo dimensions and space, has no remote start, was not offered with severe service snow tires that are necessary in the mountains where I live, included a mediocre factory radio and not a JBL premium radio that impressed me in the Rav4, there is no hitch or trailer wiring for the trailer I told him I use in summer, and has third row fold down seats even though I told him I have no kids and need height and space for cargo. With the spare tire underneath, and 3rd row seats, the cargo height is less than the Rav4. The Rav4 had the spare mounted outside making more interior height. This Highlander is also underpowered for the hilly country near Honesdale where I live, and hunts through its gears constantly if I don't shift manually. It gets only 18mpg so far, much less than the 20-27mpg I was told. When Mike the finance guy got involved early in the sales process, he started pitching extended warranties on certified vehicles, saying that the $10k Rav4 would not qualify and therefore I should buy a newer vehicle that can be “Certified.” Him and Jeff were tag-teaming me like a cheap late night wrestling match in my mind, but I still reminded myself I was dealing with Toyota, and all my past bad experiences at other dealers and brands was interfering and making me imagine things. I ended up signing up for the deal at around 8:30pm that same day I went out there, and during that time the salesman Jeff actually came into Mike’s office to say he was leaving (around 7pm). He was not even concerned enough about the sale to stay as long as I had to stay to finish the deal! As if that was not an insult enough, this finance guy would not let me leave the property on this first visit until I wrote him my down payment check in the parking lot, as the dealership was closing for the day! He actually followed me out to my car like he didn't trust me to come back the next day, and they almost locked him outside as I was driving away. They would have sent me home that night with the car, but it was "fresh off lease" and still had to go through its “160 point certification,” so I had to come back on the next day anyway. Since I had to come back, why pressure me into writing a check in freezing weather in the parking lot? Was Mike’s experience telling him I might wake up in the morning and not come back after realizing how I was being swindled? It is a story in itself how they rushed the Highlander through the 160 point “Certification” in mere hours, and as a result of this rubber stamp certification, as I drove it home, I noticed a soft brake pedal that I hadn't noticed on the very short test drive the day before as they were getting ready to close for the day. This Certification is billed as getting a used car to be as good as new, and yet they raced through this process and would not have had time to fix or replace anything of consequence, like brakes, in that short time, so it is a sham. Some background about me: I am a commercial driver and have driven well over a million miles in all kinds of cars, trucks, SUVs, limos, and even Prevost motorcoaches (think NASCAR luxury motorhomes) and even tractor trailers. So when I told them the pedal was soft, I knew what I was talking about, but they called them “normal.” (When you step on a brake pedal, the amount you press the pedal moves the brake pads the same distance as your foot presses. Brake fluid does not compress if it is uncontaminated with air or water; it is one-to-one movement.) With new pads you should have braking start within a half inch press on the brake pedal. This vehicle takes a good inch to start braking, and the first press feels like air in the lines. I told them they are not working right, they are spongy and soft, so then they said they would check again. Their answer was to lube caliper pins instead of bleeding the brake fluid and checking the master cylinder. The VP of Customer Experience even asked me if I was familiar with anti-lock brakes? Really? With all my years of experience driving everything with 4 to 18 wheels, she asks if I know about ABS? I do know some things about brakes as a professional CDL driver, and a soft pedal most likely comes from air in the brake system lines, or a failing master cylinder; not pin resistance on these calipers, which would have different symptoms (brakes would grab or stick). I spent several hours at the dealer during this service appointment while they said they worked on the brakes, but in the end the pedal is still soft just like the day I drove it home. Missed work to do this as well. About the warranty: this is what I meant about deceptive finance practices. Mike told me that to make my “deal” go through I needed to have Toyota’s best Certified Plus warranty on the vehicle. This added nearly $4,000 to the price, and was “required” so that Toyota would not worry I could have a problem and not be able to make my car payment. On one hand they say Toyota quality is such that you can go 200k miles without issues; however, now I was being told that the average car repair is $2,600 and without this warranty I would be taking my chances and Toyota might not accept me for financing. This was after having to put down over one third of the vehicle value in cash so that they cannot lose. Mind you all, I went to Toyota only wanting 4 wheel drive with good snow tires, and good cargo space to get through the winter. But as time passed and they kept buying me coffee and food from the on site eatery, they were convincing me I couldn’t trust a 2008 Rav 4 with only 107k miles and I need a certified, warrantied, expensive car. Only hours earlier they wanted me to buy it. By the way, when I came back for this service appointment, I was not offered even a cup of coffee for free, although this salesman was busy buying cookies for his next victim, and blew me off when he saw me, saying he’s busy with a customer. Like I said, this was a one-night stand for them, with no relationship intended, and absolutely no after-sales support. One final thing: Jeff and I both wore anti-covid masks the whole time inside the dealership, and even outdoors, even though it made it hard at times to hear each other at this busy dealership. But on the day I picked up my car, and when he for the first time entered a vehicle with me (all test drives were me alone in the vehicles to limit exposure to each other), he decided to pull his mask down under his chin for the radio Bluetooth setup, talking right next to me for several minutes, and even grabbing my phone to show me a setting, instead of just telling me what to do on my phone. And it was quiet enough inside the car that it was not necessary to demask. I guess he figured for once he was not being watched by the massive amount of security cameras at this dealership whilst inside the car, so who cares about the rules? I had my mask on but he broke protocol, and I guess I should not be surprised, since he also lied that the $389 document fee included my tags and registration (it did not) and that I did not need collision insurance with a bank loan (I did). The dealership fee ended up being $735 instead of $389, so Mike lied too; par for the course at Toyota of Scranton. This is long but hope the warning helps you all avoid this place. More