Suntrup Ford Inc

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 10, 2015/08/11) */
He has been removed from our call list

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 7, 2015/10/13) */
The customer came in and bought the vehicle
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 9, 2015/10/17) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
While we did buy the vehicle, it was at a higher price than
the original dealThe only reason we bought, at a higher price, is because a similar vehicle was not available elsewhere in the areaThe dealer still used a shady practice of agreeing to a price; then, days later, when we should have been taking delivery, raised the priceThe dealership is untrustworthy and did not honor the original, agreed to priceThey finally delivered the vehicle without extended warranty and at a high price than originally agreed

When it comes to “Advertised Price” standards as you mentioned, I think you would be the first to know there really isn’t a “standard” in practiceAnyone who visits a variety of dealer websites will quickly realize there are significant variances in the 1.) vernacular used to describe the price
itself (e.gSuntrup uses “Asking Price”, *** uses “Discount Price”, and *** *** uses “*** *** ***”), and 2.) Clear availability & reasonable access to any conditional information that would apply (e.gSunset Ford has a “confirm price” button below the advertised price, *** has a “Current Incentives” button below the price that outlines what would apply, *** *** itemizes all incentives). Despite that this variance alone likely calls for an industry regulating body to provide better consumer protection guidelines for all dealers, a quick assessment shows that Suntrup’s site is significantly less clear than many of its competitorsThe strength of the use of “ASKING PRICE” is unique to your business and by vast majority of consumers would be considered a price the vehicle could be bought at regardless of conditions that applyIf a consumer is willing to pay the price you are “Asking” for, then it should be expected they could purchase the vehicle at that price, and nothing moreAdditionally, any conditional incentives that would apply to your “Asking Price” are not made clear or reasonably available to the average consumer compared to the competitionThis is why I was so shocked to not get this information until after I had visited & test drove the vehicleI asked your sales consultant how he’d feel if placed in my shoes and his response says it all - “Honestly, I wouldn’t feel good about it.” Those are powerful words that simply describe my buying experience As for the “aftermarket” additions that you described in your responseThe advertised price either includes these updates or it does notIf the advertised price does not reflect the aftermarket updates made by the dealer, Suntrup should 1.) Make them optional and removable on request so that the vehicle can be bought for the advertised price, or 2.) Update the website pricing to include the newly added aftermarket accessories to that expectation is clear, or 3.) Accept the pricing as advertised and absorb the costs related to aftermarket accessories in order to competitively market the vehicleAt minimum, directly next to the advertised price there should be a clear disclaimer(See how *** *** has the disclaimer prominently displayed on their website next the vehicle price)Your business’ choice to hide these additional costs, surprise visiting consumers with them, and expect them to pay for 100% of the changes is an unacceptable and deceptive business practiceAsk anyone outside of your company and they would agree Lastly, nowhere in your response to the Revdex.com did you actually offer to honor the advertised “Asking Price” for the vehicle that we are discussingInstead, you switched to offer another vehicleThat’s the heart of the issue and what has been so upsetting from the beginningThink about that I am always open to another vehicle choiceFeel free to list the VINs that would meet the expectations of the advertised vehicle so I can review them on your site first to ensure they meet my needs

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 12, 2015/06/22) */
We will give her a $allowance for a radio

Was the vehicle purchased in another name? We are not finding *** ** *** in our databaseThe VIN # would also be helpfulThank you

I left Mr. [redacted] a voicemail message on December 6th to try and resolve the issue.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. I have received my refund. It was posted back to my account.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 10, 2015/08/06) */
Suntrup has been in business over 50 years with thousands of happy customers. We are not in business by lying.
Ms. [redacted] has a low credit score so the lender mandates the interest rate and so forth. The lender said she gave false...

information in the customer interview, therefore, she could not get the loan for that vehicle. We have returned her veihcle, title and plates. The $500 goes towards the miles and wear and tear of the vehicle she returned.

We have been in contact with this consumer, she understood and signed documentation that her extended warranty refund from previous vehicle was being used as a down payment on new vehicle. This consumer was thoroughly explained this process before and after the sale from both sales and finance...

departments.

[redacted]Document Attached[redacted]
The VIN is [redacted]

We will provide the customer with a refund.

I would like them to contact me so that this issue will be resolved. I have been trying to contact people and no one will contact me back. There are more issues and this has not been a good experience.

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: Completely false! I was never once informed that they were taking my refund NOR that I was getting a refund. And as stated prior they can insist I was told but I HAVE recorded audio of [redacted] and [redacted] both admitting I was not told. Actually I have recorded audio of [redacted] saying and I quote "" you didnt even know about the refund, you found out about it and now you want it"" very illegal practice at this dealership. And if they think I have let this rest they are sadly , I am still seeking lefal action against them. Sadly I have had some health issues and have been unable to do much if anything. But not only are they doing illegal things I have them recorded admitting it! There is a add attachement on here for photos? Any chance I can forward the aufios somewhere? According to thr attorney I had my consultation with - misrepresenting a contract also voids it. Which is eactly what they did. Tell me again how I was explained the refund and how it would be used when I have you recorded saying I had NOT !!!! 
Sincerely,
[redacted]

The buyer, [redacted], is a grown adult and knew exactly what she was doing while buying a car.  She signed her name many times, etc.  Perhaps she went home and got "bullied" by her fiancé.  Anyway, we had her return the 2016 Escape on 5/27/16 and in turn gave...

her back the 2002 Focus.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 10, 2015/07/30) */
Ms. [redacted] is fresh out of college with no income and no credit. After explaining this to her, she brought in a co-signer whose debit to income was too high. She finally brought in a co-signer that worked. Let's keep in mind we are the...

messanger, the Bank mandates the rules. The Bank said she had to be second on the loan therefore the first signer's address is used. All of this was explained to her mulitple times. Again the Bank mandates the rules.
It is unfortunate Ms. [redacted] feels the way she does about her experience. Suntrup has been in business over 50 years and has thousands of happy customers.
My people went above and beyond explaining the process to her and we do not feel the $200 is justifiable.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/08/06) */
Suntrup has been in business over 50 years. We have thousands of satisfied customers. We offer a lifetime warranty at our body shop. We are willing to loan Mr. [redacted] a vehicle for a week while his vehicle gets fixed in our shop.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/11/11) */
On January 25, 2013 @ 43861 miles the owner presented the vehicle to us with a misfire. he paid the charges of $119.95 for us to scan the vehicle for the misfire, we recommended a tune up with new spark plugs which he declined at that time. He...

came back and used his warranty March 10, 2014 @ 53401 miles to have a window motor replaced. No mention of continued misfire at this time. He came back on April 1st, 2014 for an odometer illumination issue @ 53898 miles and we used his warranty to have the instrument cluster replaced. No mention of continued misfire at that time. On August 1st of 2014 he stopped in for an oil change @ 56227 miles with no mention of misfire. On October 28th, 2014 the truck was towed in with an abnormal spark plug issue and the owner finally agreed to have us replace the broken/missing spark plugs @ 57399 miles. He had to pay for this repair because it would not have been something that was covered under his warranty. We did not see him again until July 7th of 2015 for a vehicle inspection with emissions testing at 60506 miles . It passed fine and again no mention of misfire noted. I've laid out this time and date information to illustrate that I do not believe we were neglectful at any time to use or assist the owner with a warrantable concern. The vehicle would not have passed Missouri Emissions testing with cylinder misfire. We have equipment that can diagnose or assist in diagnosis and that is how we determined it needed spark plugs in 2013. It would be the same issue today, we can pull codes if a check engine lamp is on, or we can investigate random misfire if it is recorded as such in the vehicle's onboard diagnostic system. It may have a bad ignition coil contributing to this issue, as this vehicle has a coil on each spark plug and there are 8 total. I think the owner will just need to understand there is a life expectancy to these types or items and issues and will need to participate in the expense of diagnosis and repair.