Five Star Subaru — Local services in City of Oneonta

Unfortunately, I had some really disappointing and frustrating service experiences at Five Star, which is a bummer because they do some nice things in the community (sponsor WSKG, etc).

My 2019 Outback has the dreaded Starlink parasitic battery draw issue (a widespread problem; there's a class action settlement--but curiously no recall). Now, that's a manufacturer's issue, and I didn't buy this Subaru from Five Star, but they were going to do the module replacement to fix it. Subaru of America ("Corporate") agreed to cover the part and we'd cover the labor. So Corporate got in touch with Five Star, relayed the details, and Five Star set up an appointment for the replacement.

In the week leading up to the appointment, we were in touch with both Five Star and Corporate to confirm two things: the part was in stock, and we're responsible for labor only. We got affirmatives on both.

I showed up at Five Star on time on the day of my appointment, and the front desk tells me the part is not in. I live almost an hour away. The appointment was on the books for weeks, they didn't have the part, and they waited until I drove an hour to get there to tell me.

For the new appointment, I called the day before to make sure they had the part; they did. On the day, before I handed over the keys, I asked them to confirm the all-in cost that I'd be responsible for. He confirmed (ballpark), $155 labor, $170 including tax. He specifically said that's my after-tax cost.

Two hours later, it rang up a fair amount higher; he said I owe the tax on the part as well, despite what he told me before work started. A non-apology ("Oh yeah, Corporate will never cover taxes"). The amount wasn't huge, but that he waited until I had my credit card out to backtrack what he told me earlier, was unprofessional.

So: 1) They waited until I drove an hour to get to my appointment to tell me my part wasn't in, and then 2) They waited until I was at the payment window to tell me that the cost I explicitly asked about before service, was...

This is my fourth Subaru Outback that I have owned and have had serviced here. Beginning in 2005, the first time I needed serious work on my first Outback, and had the occasion to work with Justin, the service manager, I have had completely trust in him and never trusted anyone else to give me advice or to take care of my cars in the same way as I have with him. Over the years he has provided excellent, thorough and professional service. Justin has always been able to answer every question that I have had in detail so that I understand what's going on, and he's always given me excellent advice. (Including when I was getting ready to get another car this year, he was able to advise which year would be best for me, within the budget.) Dealerships can generally charge you money, here and there, for every little thing whether you really need it or not, but Justin specializes in making sure that you understand how important it is to keep your car in perfect condition to maintain safety and provides excellent care so that your car is in tip top shape. Even though I now live approximately 90 Mi away, (and have about five dealerships circling the perimeter of where I live,) I still try to arrange my service appointments whenever I'm going to be in that area so that I can have my work done with Justin at Five Star Subaru. The relationship of trust I have developed with Justin, and the standard of care that I get here, is 100% excellent. Very Highly...

I can not speak higher of my experience with Five Star Subaru. Yesterday my husband and I bought a 2021 Subaru Forester. The transaction went so smooth. Leading up to my appointment car salesmen; Jeff Allen and Jonathan Ellis kept in touch with me and answered all of my questions. They saved the vehicle I wanted and didn’t show it to anyone till I got there. I provided a $200 refundable deposit that reserved the car; well worth it since it was the only one on the lot that was the model and line I wanted. (Due to COVID there inventory is lower than usual) When we go there Jeff took us out to the car and went over the many features you get when buying a Subaru. He gave us great directions for our test drive; that took us on a little bit of every terrain. While we were on our test drive they went over my trade in and determined a great trade in value. We went inside and crunched some numbers and then we headed to lunch while they got the new car all dolled up and prepared all of the paper work. They did it all. I didn’t have to do anything but sign. Jeff even hooked up our phones to the new car before we left. Our experience was phenomenal and we would recommend anyone in the market for a Subaru to Five Star Subaru. Talk to Jeff Allen and tell him...