Ford of Columbia — Local services in Columbia

Shame on this dealership. I bought my vehicle back in July. AJ was the sales man and Steven financial. I was told by both AJ and Steven that I had to purchase a service warranty to purchase the vehicle. (this was my first time buying a car by myself and they knew this. LESSON LEARNED) I did my part and asked questions, in which I was bluntly LIED to by both AJ and Steven. The process of getting reimbursed for this warranty was a nightmare. In July, I believe it was Mary who told me I just need to send an email to a lady who cancels warranty. I will recieve no confirmation, no communication, just trust that it will get done before the 60 day deadline for a full return instead of a prorated return of my 4,000 dollars. Anybody with a brain would be skeptical of a process where there is no real proof of anything being done when that much money is on the line. I called the warranty company who stated this is not a normal process but give it a week then call back. I even called another Ford dealership who said paperwork needs to be signed in person at purchasing dealership. I called the dealership back again, explained to Mary what was said by the company in which she stated "and I'm telling you ..." in a rude manner and told me to call back next month. If I sent a cancellation email in July and warrantys get cancelled once a month, why would we skip all of August and wait until September (which also gets very close to the 60 day deadline for full refund). I gave it two weeks, called the actual warranty company back and was given a customer service email, signed real cancellation paperwork, and thank goodness the warranty company was able to deal with this dealership to get me my money back for this warranty. The warranty company was able to get this cancelled within one week instead of waiting months like I was told by the dealership. Beware of predatory sales people like AJ and dishonest financial managers like Steven. I could see if I didn't ask questions, but I did and was lied to. I was not even presented the paperwork for the warranty at the dealership, I didn't see the paperwork until I got home and realized what had happened. Other issues to note is when I get into the car to drive it off the lot, there are scuffs on the outside of the car, a waxy looking drip all over the car, and there is zero windshield wiper fluid, which is giving me a notification on the dashboard. According to AJ, my car was detailed prior to me driving off with it but I find that difficult to believe. Another issue is the chunk of tint missing off the passenger side window, in which I had to drive back out to the dealership again (I live an hour away) to have them fix it. The tint guy stated someone in the dealership was placing stickers and removing them poorly on the tint which caused it be scratched and he even stated that should have been noticed and fixed before I drove off the lot. Even after the tint service, the fluid they use to place the tint was dripped all over the side of my passenger door. Again, no attention to detail. Steven also stated the windshield protection I purchased was active for as long as the loan. This was another lie; I would have saved my money if I had known it was only for two years, I believe. I am grateful to have learned how dishonest, downright predatory, and what illegal practices car dealerships have/can be because I will know when to walk away next time I need to buy a car. You would have thought this was a sleazy used car dealership instead of a Ford Dealership. Murfreesboro is the one to go to. Of note, I tried calling and speaking with the general manager twice in which both times the call just kept ringing and I could not get through. What comes around, goes around and it will always find liars and scammers like AJ, Steven, and Ford of Columbia. I am happy for all the good reviews on Google, these people must know who to prey on. I would do your due diligence and look at all the complaints on Google and the BBB instead of the 5...

Let me just say this was a very interesting experience in purchasing a vehicle. I found the exact type vehicle I was looking for online at this dealership. I have been shopping for several months. I submitted an inquiry from the website with my potential trade-in. A sales person emailed me back and I then corresponded with him for several days asking questions and getting more information about the vehicle. I live six hours away and I’m not local to this dealership. Once I was ready to do the deal, and I personally talked to the sales person for the first time on the phone, he advised me that they would not give me the amount of money for my trade that their website appraised. I completely understand needing to see the vehicle to make a final offer, but it was very evident to me that the sales person and even management did not feel I was a serious buyer or they really just did not care, nor did they offer to try to work with me at all. I was told the price that the vehicle is listed is the final price for everyone and that the prices are not negotiable. Fair enough. I eventually decided to go ahead and do the deal at their offered trade price on my vehicle so I drove six hours to the dealership to do the deal. The best experience I had the entire time I was there was with the business manager, Steve. Other than Steve, this is not a professional operating dealership in my opinion. The receptionist girls were goofing off the entire time I was there and did not even acknowledge me When I walked in the door. Again, other than Steve, who took care of the paperwork, they made me feel like they were doing me a favor. I have purchased more cars in my lifetime that I care to admit, and this was one of my least favorite transactions with this dealership. I honestly felt like they did not want to do the deal. I never leave long negative feedback, however, I would just advise anyone that is going to do business with this dealership to be close enough so you can go and talk face-to-face as I would not recommend what I went through for nearly 2 weeks. Communication was sub par at best with the sales person. A manager even walked right by and never even spoke. This dealership reminds me of the old-school way in the car business. If I lived closer, I would even be hesitant to do business with them again. That’s just my honest assessment. I am thankful that I have the vehicle I have been...

Update from 11/22 & 11/24 visits (had to return for tires because I did not have time to wait-that's on me not them) This is a complete 180 from my previous 2 times at Ford of Columbia. Amber was great from the moment I drove in, throughout that first service call then when I returned to complete service a few days later. She kept me updated on the process and upfront about pricing and options to pay. I decided to give them one more shot and Amber and the team did not disappoint. The personalized video message she sent after was a nice and unexpected touch, that is how you make customers feel special! Very glad Ford of Columbia has stepped up their customer service, I hope it continues for as long as I have my Escape and potentially a new one when it is time to trade.

Previous 1 star review from August 2024: My husband took my 2019 Escape to Ford of Columbia for an oil change under the prepaid maintenance plan that was purchased at another Ford dealership in the area 5 years ago. The plan is good for an oil change & tire rotation every 5000 miles to 75,000 miles, car was at 59,900. Ford of Columbia service was not going to honor the contract, one that is supposed to be honored at any Ford dealership nationwide. However, they were kind enough to supposedly call the purchasing dealership and knocked a whopping $20 off the $80 total and also said that was our last one on the plan.. Really? The CONTRACT states every 5000 miles to 75,000 miles. This dealership apparently does not want to earn a customer. Since we are now local to the area and not the other dealership, they had a prime opportunity to earn a customer but instead lost one for good. We have multiple cars and just went to another area dealership because of how we were treated here. Ford of Columbia actually just lost 4 potential customers, not just one. We & our child will be in the market for another car within the next couple years, parents within the next few months...Ford of Columbia will be nowhere on our/their list. Plus this experience will be spoken about every chance we get when people we know are looking for where to go to purchase their next car. And this is the 2nd time, at the old location the same happened but I managed to get them to knock it down to $20 total. I decided that maybe since they moved to a new location their service would be better...nope, blew...