Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  10/01/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Dishonest, greedy manager at Lafontaine Subaru (**** ***************, *****************, **) - Avoid buying cars from this place!!!On June 18th, 2022, I took my 2018 Subaru Forester Premium with ****** miles to trade for a new 2022 Subaru. I shook hands with the manager, and got a signed contact to get a trade-in value of $21,000. I also put down $1000 for deposit.After over 3 months of waiting, on September 30th, 2022, they called me in to pickup the new 2022 Subaru. My 2019 Subaru now has ****** miles.They told me that, due to market fluctuations, my car trade-in value now only worth $17,000, down from $21,000 3 months ago. They refused to honor the printed contract.They kicked me out of the show room when I mentioned I will file a complain and would ask a lawyer to look into the signed contract.I took my 2019 Subaru to the ****** Dealer Ship in ************. I was able to trade-in my 2019 Subaru for $20,5000 and got a ****** Rav4.I proved that my car was worth around 20K as reflected on KBB and Edmunds. The manager at Lafontaine Subaru just low-balled their customers to make a buck. They are greedy and have no integrity in their words and actions. Even a signed contract did not mean anything to them since they know most people won't file a law suit due to cost and time.I have the documents of the signed contract, deposited money receipt, and document that I was able to get a trade-in for $20.5K at another dealership.I will file a complain with the Better Business Bureau. It is a waste of time for me after over 3 months, and it caused me a lot of grief and anxiety dealing with dishonest people.

  Business response

  10/03/2022

  Mr. **** is correct in that we appraised his vehicle @ a value of $21,000 on 06/18/2022. However, what Mr. **** neglected to mention is that 1.) LaFontaine tells every customer that the vehicle value that is put on their vehicle is "today's" value not a future value and values are subject to change as market conditions change daily, and 2.) upon we re-looking at the trade in vehicle on 10/1/2022, there was extensive staining to the interior, a plethora of scrapes, dents and dings on multiple sides of the body, and an aftermarket windshield had been installed. These issues, combined with the market fluctation that is present in the entire world, caused the overall value of the vehicle to decline. An aftermarket windshield costs $1,600 to replace to adhere to Subaru safety standards, to re-******* the dents, dings scarpes etc. would have cost another $1,000, and to replace the interior of the vehicle was another $1,000 - combinsed with the dramatic decrease in market value's over a 3 and a half month span, the $17,000 offered was fair and correct. It is highly unlikely Mr. **** received $20,500 for the same vehicle at any Subaru store - however; being that the customer went to a ****** store, it is possible that dealer is not aware of the safety standards required by Subaru to retail the vehicle. 

  Customer response

  10/05/2022

  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of why I am rejecting this response appear below:
  
  

  The only true statement from Lafontaine's reply was:
  
  

                         Mr. **** is correct in that we appraised his vehicle @a value of $21,000 on 06/18/2022.
  

  
  The rest of the statements from Lafontaine are false:
  

  
  1. I did not neglect to mention about the present or future value. As an average consumer, I rely on the typed or written agreement on paper, and not verbal or after-the-fact statements from the dealership.  The clause that the value of the trade-in could change base on the present/future values are not in the signed paper that provided to me in any form. The manager and the salesperson never mentioned verbally or in writing at any time about today/future's value to me or my wife on 6/18/2022. I only see this rationalization the first time from this exchange. 

  
  If it was explained to me that my car trade-in value could decrease significantly in 3 months, I would not have signed the agreement, shake hands, and put down the $1000 deposit. I would take my car to another dealership the same day. Why would I want to subject myself to such uncertainty? 

  
  Once the agreement paper was signed on 6/18/2022, I thought that with the signed paper, deposited money, hand-shakes, 2 witnesses (manager and salesperson), and the reputation and integrity of the Lafontaine Family would protect me as a small consumer. But now I know that none of these matters at Lafontaine.

  
  2. Regarding the windshield cost, the interior and exterior repair costs, these factors were already discovered and communicated with me by the manager and salesperson  on 6/18/2022. The inspection persons did do their jobs correctly the first time. These blemishes are not some thing new that were discovered when I came in to pick up the car on September 30th, 2022.

  
  On 6/18/2022, I asked for the trade-in value for $22.5K and the manager agreed for 21K due to the blemishes discussed. We shook hands, signed the paper and agreed on this value.

  
  The car is garage kept, and I only drove the Subaru ***** miles for 3 months as shown on the odometer. There was nothing changed on the car.

  3. Yes, on Friday September 30th, after I left Subaru Lafontaine,  I did buy a ****** Rav4 from ************ ****** and got $20,500 trade-in for the Subaru. ****** did a thorough job to inspect the car just like Subaru did on 6/18/2022 and reduced my trade-in value by $500 not $4000 as at Subaru Lafontaine.

  
  The fact was that Mr.***************** did try to increase my trade-in value to $19,000 after I objected to the initial amount of $17,000 showed that my car trade-in value did not decline to $4000 as described.

  4. This is only a car. No big deal.  Anyway -  you can close this complaint as I don't believe my action would make any different for other small consumers like me dealing with corporation like the Lafontaine Family.

  I will let the words out to my friends, families, the public,  and just hope other consumers read this and know that signed agreements, handshakes, deposited money, integrity, trusts, and words do not mean much at Lafontaine Subaru.

  Regards,
  
  *******************

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