LaFontaine Ford Lansing — Local services in Lansing

Review #1: Cassandra “Cassie” Nelson I’ve got to give it to her — Cassie is the true MVP who never gave up. To shorten the story a bit: I bought my husband’s truck so he could upgrade to a bigger one for hauling our family camper. Was I a fan of his truck? Eh… not really. It was dependable, and that’s about all I could say for it. But I did him a solid and bought it anyway.

That’s what eventually led me to Cassie — and let me tell you, she’s a force! I’d been in and out of the market for a while and had reached out to more dealerships than I can count. Every single one of them gave me the same old story — low trade offers, little effort, and a “take it or leave it” attitude. But not Cassie.

Man, that woman has grit, heart, and hustle! From the moment she reached out, she was all in. I got an email from the dealership that caught my attention, which led me to Cassie — and she never stopped working to find exactly what I was looking for. She sent me options, checked in without being pushy, and really listened to what I wanted. I’ll admit, I’m not the easiest customer — I had a long list of must-haves and was extra picky after a few bad experiences in the past. But Cassie never once made me feel like a bother.

She was patient, professional, and genuinely determined to help me find the right fit — not just make a sale. That kind of dedication is rare these days. Cassie went above and beyond every step of the way, and I truly feel like she earned my trust and my business.

If you want someone who’s passionate, persistent, and truly cares about getting you in the right vehicle, Cassie is your girl. She’s the definition of top-notch service, and I can’t recommend her enough!

Review #2 Manager Emily I’ve got to give a huge shoutout to Emily, Cassie’s manager — because she absolutely deserves it! From the very start, Emily showed what true leadership and customer care look like. She was always open, transparent, and ready to jump in whenever needed.

Emily didn’t just oversee things from a distance — she got involved, making sure every detail and every number made sense. Negotiations can sometimes be stressful, but Emily made the process feel fair, honest, and even enjoyable. She worked every angle to make sure things lined up just right — not just for the dealership, but for me as the customer. That level of integrity and balance is rare, and it didn’t go unnoticed.

What really impressed me was how she and Cassie worked together as a team. You could tell Emily genuinely cares about her staff and her customers. She went above and beyond to make sure everything came together smoothly, and that I drove away feeling confident and completely satisfied with my purchase.

If you’re looking for a dealership where management actually listens, problem-solves, and truly has your back — Emily sets that standard. She’s the kind of leader who makes the entire experience better.

Review #3: Wes - Finance Manager

And last but definitely not least — a massive shoutout to Wes, the finance manager who was an absolute hoot, honest and upfront!

From the moment I sat down, they made the whole process feel easy and even fun — and that’s saying something when you’re talking paperwork and signatures! Keeping the mood light, and somehow managed to explain every detail clearly without making it feel overwhelming. You could tell they really knew their stuff and genuinely enjoyed helping people.

But don’t let the humor fool you — this person was on it. Every number, every form, every little box was handled perfectly. They walked me through all my options, made sure I understood what I was signing, and found ways to make the numbers work in my favor. By the end, I was laughing, signing, and actually enjoying a part of the car-buying process that usually feels like a chore.

It was the perfect ending to an already great experience with Cassie and Emily. If every finance manager had this much personality, knowledge, and positivity, car buying would be a lot more fun for everyone!

Final...

Do not make the same $495 mistake that I did and STAY AWAY from LaFontaine service center. Took my car into the service center for an oil change, a few recalls, and I had a check engine light on and a rattle underneath my car when driving slowly. I was informed that there was $630 in diagnostic fees, but that this would be applied to any repairs that I needed to make. My expectation was that the repairs would be ~$1,000 - $1,500. I was extremely surprised when my quote came back with almost $7,000 in repairs – this is more than I owe on my car. In reviewing the repairs themselves, the prices were egregious. I was quoted $850 for front brakes, $780 for rear brakes, $225 for brake fluid, $830 for a purge valve replacement, and $4,280 for a new catalytic converter. I obviously declined these repairs as the brakes I didn’t ask for (my husband can replace for well below that cost) and the other repairs were significantly above the averages. I may not be knowledgeable about cars, but I can do my research. I was informed that I still needed to pay the diagnostic fee – had I known the repairs were going to be so wildly expensive and above industry average, I wouldn’t have asked for them to be looked at (let alone even gone into LaFontaine in the first place). I asked what the fees were for and was informed it was the technicians time – I understand and am willing to pay for the information and the time, but I was charged $330 (aka 2 hours of time) to diagnose the engine and $165 (1 hour of time) to diagnose the rattle – especially after seeing the quotes for the other repairs, I have a very hard time believing it took 3 hours to get to these conclusions nor that it is industry standard to charge someone $500 to simply find out what is wrong with their vehicle. I’m not sure if these things are standard practice at every Ford service center, but I will be reaching out to Ford directly. The employees I worked with did give me $20 off in total and I had to use all my FordPass rewards that brought the cost done to $397 (including an oil change, which was a shockingly good price at $43). I do not consider the FordPass to be any sort of discount as they were rewards that I earned by spending money with Ford. I’ve essentially just paid $400 for an oil change. I’ve definitely learned my lesson and will not be returning – after speaking with others, I actually feel a little silly as it sounds like this is the general reputation of LaFontaine in the area. All I can say is don’t make the same mistake I did, and take your...

Updated:

Worst service I have ever experienced at a dealership. Josue is the most unresponsive, unprofessional service attendant I have worked with. My phone calls would not be returned, he would be out of the office without letting me know he would be out and I would have to call him for updates on my vehicle.

I ended up having my vehicle towed to another dealership for service.

This is the second time I have worked with this dealership and second time I have experienced bad service.

*Update

So I took my vehicle back. Service went from bad to worse!!! I brought my vehicle in for a bad battery or alternator and to check the transmission they replaced last year. I asked about the cost for the battery and Susan kept giving me a range for the cost of services due to the different cost of batteries. After doing a load test and replacing the battery, they sent me a diagnosis, with issues that didn't pertain to my alternator or battery. When I asked about the cost, they said there was only one battery for my vehicle and gave me a price. They originally told me the vehicle was drivable, but after I asked if I could pick it up, they said the vehicle was not drivable due to other electrical issues. They kept trying to get me to pay for other services. I requested to speak with the service manager and he kept telling me to forget the bad service I received in the past, and to only focus on the new issues, which had nothing to do with the reason why I brought my vehicle in again.

They diagnosed new issues other than what I brought my vehicle in for, then the service manager got mad when I asked why the new issues weren't diagnosed and listed with the other diagnosed issues. Then, they wanted to charge for a new diagnosis for the reason I brought the vehicle in for. The service manager blamed me for the bad service I received in the past and was receiving now. I asked if I could pick up my vehicle, but the service manager made it a point to continue interrupting to tell me he doesn't want my business and to come pick up my vehicle.

Once again, I had my vehicle towed to another Ford Dealership who resolved my issues for a few hundred dollars instead of the thousands LaFontaine quoted me.

My issue was due to a bad alternator and bad coolant line. They wanted to charge for additional diagnosis and last time I had it there, they wanted to replace the engine.

If I could give the service department a -5 stars, I would. It's night and day between the service I receive from this dealership and other...