Eastern Shore Toyota — Local services in Daphne

Eastern Shore Hyundai & Toyota - Dishonest Sales Tactics & No Accountability

I recently purchased a 2016 Mini Cooper Convertible from Eastern Shore Hyundai and Toyota, and this has been the worst car-buying experience I’ve ever had. I was repeatedly assured by my salesperson, Anthony Fagan, that the vehicle was in excellent condition and well cared for. That turned out to be far from the truth.

Day 2 of ownership: The battery died, and I had to pay $280 for AAA to replace it. A dead battery that soon after purchase raises serious concerns about the so-called “great condition” of this car.

Serious Transmission Warning Ignored: Before buying, I noticed a message on the dash stating, “Transmission: Secure vehicle with parking brake when stopped. Consult service center.” I asked Anthony about it, and he brushed it off as a “standard message for Minis” because “they like the e-brake on when parked.” That was a blatantly ignorant response. Once I took the car home and actually read the full warning, it was clear this was a serious issue.

When I reached out, Anthony initially told me the dealership would take care of it and provide a rental. That quickly changed when I spoke to the service department. The service manager refused to fix it, claiming I bought the vehicle as is. The sales manager told me to figure out the problem myself first. After investigating, I discovered the warning was due to dangerously low brake fluid.

How did this car pass inspection? • The battery was completely dead after one day. • The brake fluid was almost empty, which is a major safety issue. • A transmission warning was displayed even before I bought it.

This was the third vehicle I’ve purchased from this dealership, and I’ve referred multiple people to them in the past. But that ends today. This dealership clearly prioritizes quick sales over customer safety and trust.

No Accountability & Deceptive Paperwork: • Anthony stopped responding to me completely. • Sales manager Mani is friendly but just tells you what you want to hear with no follow-through. • The service manager couldn’t care less. • They claim I purchased the car as is, yet there is no signed documentation confirming this in my paperwork. A blank form in my glove box suggests they were supposed to disclose this, but it was never completed or presented to me.

Had I been told this was an as is sale, I would have asked to see all of the service documents on the vehicle and asked about an extended warranty. I even emailed Darrick Heath before buying, outlining concerns about purchasing a used vehicle. Instead of transparency, they saw my questions as an opportunity to make an easy sale, yet they never even attempted to sell me an extended warranty. I’ve attached screenshots of that email as well.

Darrick was the only honest person I interacted with, but everyone else at this dealership is a snake in the grass. I would never buy another car here again, nor will I recommend them to anyone. If you value integrity, safety, and customer service, stay far away from Eastern Shore...

I purchased a Subaru Outback a couple months ago. The salesperson was nice and the facility well kept. When signing documents, the finance advisor argued with me about the agreed upon price I had preestablished with the salesperson. Once he verified with the salesperson, he tried to have me sign paperwork stating that I didn't qualify for the dealership lifetime warranty. I provided paperwork to him from the salesperson that proved it qualified. Then the finance advisor tried to have me sign information on an iPad with the signing block covering the information that I was signing for... had I not checked, I would've once again been 'swindled' from warranty deals that I was promised during negotiations. Advice to the consumer: Read all the paperwork you sign.

Once I got the vehicle home, I realized I wasn't sent home with temporary tags. I called the dealership and the woman who answered the phone told me that temp tags aren't required. 3 weeks went by, and it still didn’t sit well with me. I called the dealership again asking about temp tags and was told again that they aren't required, until I mentioned that I live in Florida, not Alabama. At that point I was redirected to Accounting. They assured me that they would overnight the tags, and they did, but to the wrong address. When I called the accounting department and the sales rep to rectify this and resend the tags. They were unresponsive- they wouldn't text or call me back. I eventually called and got a manager involved who handled the issue promptly.

My car is registered in Ohio. When I went to the Ohio BMV, they wouldn't accept the dealerships check for the taxes because it was addressed to the wrong place. I was visiting home on leave and wouldn't have the opportunity to return to the BMV, so I paid the taxes twice- once through the dealership and once at the BMV. I called and spoke to the manager from the previous tags issue. I emailed him proof of receipts and he said he would make sure the check was sent to me. The next week, I called to make sure the check had been sent- no answer. I called a few days and left messages with no responses. I then called and spoke with another manager who said they would take care of the issue. Accounting called me and said they would overnight the check and the latest it would get to me was Saturday. It's Monday and I still don't have the check. I move on Wednesday and at this point I don't trust the dealership to overnight it to me. I don't have time for another mistake.

The buying experience here has been disappointing but for reasons that could be corrected: Have better interdepartment communication. Don't prompt a customer to sign something they can't read. Know what your customer is asking. Practice better follow-through. The most important issue to me was the lack of communication, if a mistake is made own it and address how you can rectify the situation, instead of ignoring the issue...

This is a dealership group and I went to their used car location and their Hyundai location and the Toyota location. In one location they couldn't even find the car that I wanted to look at, that they said that they had on hand. That stock number was supposed to be parked on the lot right there, but no one could find it. I also went and looked at some used cars. The salesperson made basically no attempt to sell me a car. It's like he just stood there and expected me to pay full sticker price. I made some offers that were pretty reasonable and they just went completely ignored. And then I called and talked to a salesman briefly at the Toyota store, who immediately tried to switch me on to a new car even though I wanted to buy a used car. Probably because he's not allowed to sell used cars or something. After speaking with two sales people and asking them both to please call me back about some vehicles that I wanted to make offers on, neither salesperson called me back, one finally did, in like 36 hours. So I called the Toyota store and asked to speak to a sales manager because I just wanted to let the sales managers there know that their sales people were not bothering to call potential customers back. You're not going to sell many cars if you're not calling customers back! I was basically screened and interrogated by the girl who answered the phone. She insisted on knowing the reasons why I wanted to talk to a sales manager. Mind you, I was really trying to just help them by letting a sales manager know that they're probably not going to sell a lot of cars if they don't call people back. Anyway after interrogating me, and refusing to let me talk to a manager, I reluctantly revealed that I was just going to basically complain that two salespeople wouldn't / didn't call me back. So FINALLY the girl says that she will have the sales manager call me. Of course he never called me back either! What a joke. Honestly they didn't even really try to sell me a car. It's like they just walk you around the lot and expect you to pay full asking price for all their used cars. And when you make reasonable offers they just sort of scoff at you and say nothing. I got a really negative vibe from this place and the people that work there. And I know several people who have bought cars there and have absolutely had their heads knocked off because they didn't know what they were doing when they went into the sales process. If you don't know what you're doing when buying a car? This place is going to stick you with a really awful deal. If they even bother to call you back. ...