Ideal Cars — Local services in Mesa

Normally, I'm really thorough before making a purchase, so in any car-buying situation, the buyer always has to acknowledge that any level of getting screwed is on them to some extent. I accept that as my responsibility. However, the other reviews are dead-on. I definitely got screwed. Get ready for a long read.

I was looking for a basic car for cheap, just to get me to and from work locally as my wife's office relocated to Tempe and I took a new sales position and gave up a company vehicle. I admit I know nothing about cars, so aside from the obvious, I won't pick up any issues. Well, I took the car for a test drive and it ran fine, no noticeable issues. I asked the salesman if there was anything wrong that I needed to be aware of, and asked him to be honest and let him know that if there was, it didn't mean I wouldn't buy it, I just wanted to know what I was getting into. He said there was absolutely nothing wrong and promised that their technicians went over the car top to bottom and found nothing wrong. Bought the car, got it home, and little things started falling apart. It was all cosmetic at first, so I fixed what I could and had them replace the sun visor that fell off. Bad signs, but I figured it was superficial and I needed the car.

Well, a few months later, more started falling apart and more half-fixes became apparent. The frame of the center console was broken, the motor on the passenger window didn't work, the license plate light was taped over with electrical tape and shoved back in, and all sorts of issues popped up. Not normal wear-and-tear issues from me driving it, but a laundry list of issues and damages that had obviously been discovered by the "technicians" and hidden to make a sale. And I'm not one to stereotype or be judgmental, but after seeing their "technicians", it was really just a group of Hispanic laborers in the back with screwdrivers and electrical tape.

I sold the car to a friend for super cheap after fixing what I could, because he was in a desperate situation and I bought a new car. He took it to a legitimate mechanic and, direct quote, he said any dealership that sold that car with the existing issues he found on top of what he noticed from my description are "*holes". A cylinder was shot, factory hoses were never replaced, etc. I know that anyone should take that with a grain of salt, because it's easy for a mechanic after the fact to point fingers at the last place to deal with it, but still...the mechanic was pretty surprised and said that any dealer with actual mechanics who looked at the car would've known that the issues in there were obvious and needed to be addressed before selling the car.

So, my two cents, don't buy from this place. There's a good chance, from what you can read in these reviews and my own experience, that you're being sold a car with existing issues and the dealer is more than comfortable lying about it or citing their electrical tape-certified "technicians" as assurance that the car is in perfect shape. It's a used car place, sure, but this isn't the place...

I have gotten 2 vehicles from this place. 1st was an 2011 nissan altima. Ran great til I had to change batteries and found out my battery posts (yes both) were rusted and corroded to the point where the terminal was falling off. The crazy part is when I test drove it before I bought it, the battery died and they replaced but said absolutely nothing about the battery terminals. Sad to say this car got totaled a few weeks back after I put a lot of work in fixing it up, so I had to get another vehicle. Tried going to a dealership and they told me I had 2 repo's on my Altima so I was unable to get another vehicle (Not once has my vehicle been repo'd). They told me I would have to contact Ideal Cars and figure out what happened. Contacted them and spoke with Blanca who is AWESOME and HIGHLY over worked. Blanca is the only reason I gave this review more stars than it deserves. She helped clear it out and raise my credit so I was able to get another vehicle through them. New vehicle is a 2012 nissan pathfinder. Did my pre-inspection of the vehicle and noticed a few things that they were able to fix up and clear with no issues. Biggest thing I found was (once again) that the vehicle had a new battery, but the terminals and around the battery had battery acid all over it as if a battery previously exploded in the vehicle. Terminals looked a bit rusted but the metal looked intact. They did clean out the battery acid around the battery before I left the lot but they did not clean the battery terminals. Big things to check when getting a vehicle from this place is battery, air filters, gas (they barely give you just enough to make it home which is slightly above E), all electrical (radio, lights, wipers, etc.), and fluid levels. They are now offering full year of oil changes after buying a vehicle, however I live on the West valley and they are located in Mesa lol. So unless we passing through there I don't plan on using it. They should offer an alternative for people who live further away like a gas card or even a coupon for oil changes at widely known shops, such as Brake Masters, pepboys, Meineke, etc. Overall Blanca made the experience better and made me feel like no matter the issue she...

I waited a bit of time before i wrote my review because i wanted to make sure that i was truly satisfied with my vehicle. When buying a used car you do not expect perfection but you do expect that the vehicle you have given so much money down and possibly a loan will be good enough to get you around without breaking down. I had a turbulent experience but was satisfied with the results in the end.

I purchased a 2013 Chrysler Town and Country. After having it for a few days it began to idle rough, i took it in several times and was told it was OK. I knew it wasn't and eventually the check engine light came on. I brought the van back to the dealership and the O2 sensor was changed. The car still idled rough and i took it in several times after getting back the throttle was cleaned, engine cleaner added, spark plugs changed, engine mounts replaced and 1 coil was changed and a fuel injector. The car still idled rough and i completely lost it. This was at the beginning of Covid, id taken the car in at least 3 times and the problem remained. They put another mechanic on it who replaced the original O2 sensor with a more high quality part, the one used was generic. He said it fixed the issue, i truly doubted that. But to my surprise it did.

It was rough but ultimately they truly cared and fixed what needed to be fixed. I did not buy my care from Ron but he was great the whole way through. He talked to the mechanics for me and even gave me a ride to work one of the times i had to leave the car. The GM Brian (I think) was also pretty cool when we eventually spoke towards the end. If you have an issue with one of their vehicles, they will fix it. They can even offer a cheaper rental through enterprise. It sucks you may have to get a car fixed after you buy but the reality is they are used vehicles. Overall, i was pleased with the service and i really love my fully loaded family van. I also got it for a...