Cole Lutz | Page 5

Russ Darrow Toyota is the worst car dealer in the greater Milwaukee area. Do yourself a favor and avoid Russ Darrow at all costs. I was treated like dirt for not falling for their deceptive sales tactics. Milwaukee area. Do yourself a favor and avoid Russ Darrow at all costs. I was treated like dirt for not falling for their deceptive sales tactics. Full Version: I have purchased a total of 3 vehicles at Russ Darrow Toyota over the last decade. I also would service my vehicles there as well, but I will assure you, this will never happen again after what I experienced. I leased a 2021 Toyota Corolla from Russ Darrow Toyota 3 years ago, and my lease was coming to maturity. I was hoping to purchase my car. Since the state of Wisconsin does not allow Toyota to buyout leases directly to the consumer, I had to work with the dealer to finalize this sale. I called Cole in the finance department and informed him I wanted to see what Russ Darrow Toyota can offer me for financing. At the same time, I was working with my FI to see what they could offer as well. Cole got back to me stating he was able to give me a loan but seemed unwilling to give me the details on the loan. I pressed him harder. After refusing to send me an email with the details, claiming they can't send electronic documents, I got on the phone with him. That's when he finally told me that the interest rate was well above 10%, and he decided to add an additional $5,000 to the principle by adding an extended warranty and gap insurance. At this point, I knew I would not take that loan, and my FI came back with a significantly better loan. The only problem is I needed a document from Cole to finish the loan process. I thanked Cole for the loan and requested that he sends me a copy of the document. Instead of sending me the document, he instead questioned me about the loan. He then questioned me, and I responded by giving him the name of my FI and telling him that the loan has been completed and all I need was the document. This is when he decided to give me a call, and things went from a stressful but civil loan dispute to something far worse. When I received the call, I told him first and foremost that the only thing I want from him is the document. Just send it to me, and we can continue like normal. He refused and then continued to argue with me about this document. Eventually he said, "We will not accept third party financing on this purchase." We argued more about this, and this is when he said, "We have you on a recorded line saying you wanted to finance the vehicle with us." My response was of course "What?" because who says something like that, let alone has something like that to a customer. Not to mention as previously mentioned I was exploring options and would never agree to a loan without details first. This whole back and forth continued until I eventually asked if he is willing to lose a loyal customer for the last decade. Cole said yes to that, which I think is very telling of the culture of Russ Darrow in general. After hearing that, I decided enough was enough, and hung up on him. And to the GM, Danny Shutts, if you truly do care, I recommend retraining Cole in customer service before he drives away more business. And, before you try to deflect this criticism, I was indeed speaking to a Russ Darrow Toyota employee, and there was not miscommunication about whether outside financing was accepted. Cole was attempting to either get me to accept the predatory loan or attempting me to turn in my car. Essentially, he was trying to do everything possible to prevent me from buying the car. And if all phone calls are truly recorded, you may want to review my conversation with him for “training purposes.” After these disgusting tactics, I decided to look at other places and saw positive things about Andrew Toyota. I decided to give them a call and Tammy in financing was not just willing to help me but treated me with kindness. If you are looking for post-lease options, don't even bother with Russ Darrow Toyota. Instead call Andrew Toyota and ask for Tammy. More

Print

Everyone at Russ Darrow Toyota was so helpful and easy to work with. Our salesperson, Hadrian, always made sure we were informed of each step of the process and was super helpful in our search for a vehicle. work with. Our salesperson, Hadrian, always made sure we were informed of each step of the process and was super helpful in our search for a vehicle. Cole made the financing step pretty painless and easy. There was a bit of a wait, but that's no fault of anyone. We would most definitely work with Hadrian and Russ Darrow in the future. More

Print

I had a very enjoyable experience purchasing my new car. The staff was helpful and friendly. The staff was helpful and friendly. More

Print

We had a very knowledgeable salesman, Neven. He answered all of our questions, we test drove 3 different vehicles , he had a lot of patience! He answered all of our questions, we test drove 3 different vehicles , he had a lot of patience! More

Print

Dan was great to work with and made the process super easy. Would highly recommend easy. Would highly recommend More

Print

I had a very enjoyable experience purchasing my new car. The staff was helpful and friendly. The staff was helpful and friendly. More

Print

Good guys. Travis was huge help with getting the car we were looking to purchase Travis was huge help with getting the car we were looking to purchase More

Print

Travis watched for the vehicle we wanted and contacted us as soon as it was available. as soon as it was available. More

Print

Great and honest service! Won’t shop anywhere else! Thanks for the wonderful and easy car buying process! Won’t shop anywhere else! Thanks for the wonderful and easy car buying process! More

Print

We purchased a used car with little hassle which we greatly appreciated. The staff were friendly, knowledgeable and professional. If I am in the market for another car I will definitely go to them fi greatly appreciated. The staff were friendly, knowledgeable and professional. If I am in the market for another car I will definitely go to them first….. More

Print