San Francisco Honda — Local services in San Francisco

My mom wanted to buy a new car for me and my fiancé as a wedding present for getting married this year. We didn’t know whether to get a CRV or Pilot. After dealing with a really pushy and rude salesman, Andy at Honda Burlingame, we decided to check out Honda San Francisco.

We met Christian who showed us the CRV and Pilot, and he stood to the side and let my family look through it and waited for us when we had questions. We narrowed it down and decided on the Honda Elite but none were in stock in the sonic grey pearl that me and my mom liked. But he told us in a couple weeks it would be arriving and he would text us. In a couple of weeks, my fiancé received a text from him saying the car arrived but we didn’t have time until Sunday to check it out. But there was someone by the name of Cyreene who kept texting my fiancé about just paying for the car before we had even looked at the car. We didn’t want to do that, it’s a big purchase, we need to look at the car and check for scratches and mileage. And we were both upset that she was texting my fiancé when the person who we were communicating with was Christian.

That car ended up being sold to someone else in the morning because we didn’t put a deposit on it and we arrived in the afternoon. I wasn’t upset about it, I just took it as a sign as it wasn’t meant to be. A guy named Abe let us test drive a Pilot but it wasn’t in the Elite trim so it didn’t have the head up display that I wanted to see in person. But like Christian, I like how he stands in the background and let my family explore the car and wait until we have questions.

Then when we decided we still wanted the Honda Pilot Elite in the Sonic Grey Pearl color, the manager Van told me there were 3 options: 1) I could wait for a car to be sent from SoCal but it would have 500 miles on it, 2) A car in San Jose but it was a demo car 3) a new car from the factory but it wouldn’t arrive until the end of April. I told Van that I was willing to wait to get the car that I wanted so that wasn’t a problem. I appreciated that he gave me those options. He told me I had to put down a deposit so they could hold the car for me and I did that and my mom and I signed the initial paperwork.

On 4/28/2025, my fiancé got a text from Christian that the car was going to be arriving on 4/30 for pick up and they wanted us to try to get there on that same day so they could count it as part of their sales goals that month. That was inconvenient for all of us, we were planning to go on Saturday so it wouldn’t interfere with work. But we understood where they were coming from so we were going to try to make it there that day. I work in the pharmacy and I had to ask my boss to leave work an hour early just so I could make it in time before closing which meant the pharmacy had no technician for an hour and the next day we were really behind on filling prescriptions.

Everything seemed fine since it was already confirmed about our appointment day and time with Christian but my fiancé again kept getting texts from Cyreene. We both agreed on her micromanaging employees and it’s so annoying that I almost wanted to say let’s just cancel everything because I was getting so overwhelmed and mad with all her texts. We were communicating with Christian, there was no need for her to text and also ask the same questions. We all have to work, we don’t have time to text back all the same questions. If we say we will be there at a certain time then we will be there, no need to keep asking.

Finally on 4/30, we arrived at 6:15pm to check out the car and take it for a test drive. It was everything I had asked for, the mileage, the color, the trim, so I was ready to sign. Illona, the finance manager is easy to talk to and explain things clearly about what you’re signing. The final documents we needed to sign went by smoothly and we were able to drive off in our new car before 8pm closing time. Thanks again Christian for putting a bow on the car so we could get some nice family photos and videos.

Thank you to Christian, Abe, Van,...

I had a really bad experience buying my car from these people earlier this year and I just had another bad experience with them today when trying to ask questions about scheduling a maintenance appointment today.

I'm a fairly well informed car buyer and came in knowing most the tactics they were going use to try to milk as much money out of me as possible, but the bait and switch they pulled was even more shady than any tactic I have read about anywhere else.

First off, the sales manager tried to make it seem like he was doing me a favor by letting me purchase a car from them since I don't live in SF proper. He said something like, "We really like to sell cars to our own." I've lived in the bay my whole life so for someone to say that to me is absolutely absurd. He was just trying to make it seem like he is already doing me a favor right off the bat so he could use that as leverage later on in the conversation incase I asked for a lower price. He was lying to me from the second we started talking.

I was straight forward and told them exactly what I was willing to pay from the beginning and let them know that if they can't make a deal then it's not the right time for me to buy a car. They did the normal car dealership thing and stone walled saying "we cant do that" until I said I was walking, and then all of a sudden it's, "Oh, let me go talk to my manager." Unfortunately, all normal stuff for a car dealership.

This is the part that was especially shady and the reason I'm writing a 1 star review. I have pictures of all these documents to prove all of what I am saying.

We negotiated and landed on a number that I was really happy with for a new car, which was actually lower than I was hoping for. I was suspicious so I had them reprint out the new numbers so I could take a picture, which they did. So the "deal" was made and I was waiting to meet with the finance person when all of a sudden the sales manager walks up and tells me there has been a mistake and the new number is 4k higher than what we agreed upon. He apologized and said it was just a mistake, which I don't believe for a second.

So then we renegotiated and landed on a different, higher (than the original deal) number. I believe that he sensed that I was ready to walk if they didn't want to come to a reasonable deal, so he baited me with a low number and let me sit for a long time, imagining myself in the car, and then came back right before I saw the finance person to get a few more thousand out of me. And it worked. (If you think this sounds paranoid, you need to read about the mind games these people play. They are not your friends.)

It left me with a really bad taste in my mouth to the point where it made it difficult for me to enjoy the car for the first few weeks I had it.

Fast forward to today when my first service appointment is coming up and I called them to ask if I can schedule it somewhere else, closer to where I live. My new 2023 car comes with free maintenance and oil changes for the first 2 years, from the manufacturer, that can be applied at any dealership. Multiple people I talked to when I called this location today lied to me and said I need to have it done at their dealership, or one of their other associated dealerships. I asked very direct questions and all I got in return was vague, run around answers. They are just trying to keep me coming to them so I will spend money with them in the future, standard car dealership stuff.

All it took was one call to the dealership closest to me to have someone be direct with me and give me normal answers, confirming what I already understood.

Every car dealership exploits its customers and unfortunately things have gotten worse sine the pandemic across the board for the buyer, but this place seems especially shady. Do yourself a favor and avoid them if you can, I will...

Avoid this place like the plague! These salesmen are dishonest, shady, and incompetent. To begin, when I came down to look into purchasing my car, there was a charge showing up for around $500 that I assumed was one of those “extra charges” that some less-than-reputable dealerships insert to try and skim a little extra money. I asked the manager, Bill Gooden, to explain these charges to me and expressed that I am not willing to pay any additional fees that are not necessary for the sale. He then began to try and guilt trip me by saying that “everyone should do their share” of helping them pay to recycle tires, dispose of oils and various other waste, and so on. At this point, the salesperson I was working with, Josh, interjected and explained that these fees are simply registration. The fact that the SALES MANAGER doesn’t even understand a basic fee that is included in every single sale speaks volumes about the level of competence of the employees at this location. As we proceeded with the sale, I showed Josh and Bill that the car was missing the driver’s side floor mat, and that the rear bumper cover and upper bumper molding were destroyed. I was guaranteed a brand new bumper, molding, and floor mat and was assured that the repairs could be done in one day as I was driving from 3 hours away and couldn’t drop the car off. Deciding to trust the promises of the salesman and the manager Bill, I went ahead with the sale. Can you guess what happened next? I called and called the dealership for over a month asking about when I could drop the car off. I was told repeatedly that they will “call me back” and talk about scheduling. This never happened. After weeks and weeks of calls, unanswered emails, and extreme frustration, I finally got ahold of Bill via email. He explained to me that he would not be replacing the floor mat or the bumper as promised, and that they would attempt to repair the bumper but would need the car for a few days. This was not possible for me, nor was it what we agreed to. During this whole process, Josh repeatedly assured me that the NEW bumper was already ordered as we had previously agreed (see photos below). This was a blatant lie as the shop never intended to actually replace the bumper according to Bill.

To make things worse, the shop left the removable splash guard that covers the oil filter loose after they changed the oil. As a result, the thing was smashed beyond all repair before I even made it home, and the dealership refused to replace the part or even answer my inquiries about doing so. Their incompetence cost me money and time yet again! I do not recommend that anyone buy a car from these people, and that if you really feel that you must, make sure that every single thing they say is in writing. They are willing to make up any lie they can to make a sale, and they will refuse to take any accountability for the arrangements they promise throughout the transaction.

As one final little note, they also forgot to have me sign the paperwork for the loan. They started repeatedly spam calling me about having me fax over a signature, which I did immediately as I wanted things to be smooth for them since I believed that they were truly going to “take care of me” as Bill promised. I was kind and considerate throughout the whole transaction, and my kindness was rewarded with deceit and disrespect. AVOID THIS DEALERSHIP. They have not made good on a single one of their promises as of writing this, and I had to pay out of pocket for the bumper to be repaired since Bill told me that they would not...