Two years later I'm about to trade in the car I pu...

Two years later I'm about to trade in the car I purchased from Toyota of Hollywood. Back then I wrote about the terrible experience with this shady dealership and how I was misled throughout the entire purchase process. From a finance person pissed off because I was the fish that got away from her trying to put us in a high interest rate loan through the so-called Toyota certification where very worn out tires were turned inside out while certifying that they met the minimum thread standards set forth in the certification process to follow up with a repair that was actually never done even though I left my vehicle at the repair shop. And there was the saga just to get title to the vehicle. It was all too crazy and I have purchased about 10 cars over the past couple of decades.

Well the saga continued with the discovery that the vehicle, contrary to the express statements of the salesperson, had been in an accident and had gone through body work, crummy at that. At the time I was showed the vehicle I was also given a copy of the Car Fax report showing that the car had no reported accidents. The salesperson gave me the story that the car was absolutely clean because he had sold it to the original owner supposedly a lady who traded it in because she didn't need a large vehicle anymore. The salesperson told me he had personal knowledge as to how this so-called lady owner had taken good care of the car. I later saw information that suggests that the car hadn't been originally sold by Toyota of Hollywood but rather by another dealership in West Palm Beach. Since the salesperson told me had been with Toyota of Hollywood for a number of years this precludes that he could have sold the vehicle to the original owner in West Palm Beach doesn't it? That aside the fact is that the car, contrary to the salesperson's assertion, had been in an accident that required body work.

Perhaps like most car buyers I don't have the skills to self-inspect a motor vehicle and was thus left at the mercy of the salesperson's ethics or, in this case, lack thereof. The repairs to the vehicle started peeling about 6-8 months after I purchased it to the point that the paint peeled off as shown in the photo I include with this posting. I've asked people who work in the auto industry and they have told me that there's no way that a reasonably trained buyer couldn't tell the car had been in an accident. They pointed me to the "fish eyes" which are rivets used in such repairs and other things relating to the finishing. This, combined with what turned out to be a false story about the origin and previous ownership of the vehicle lead me to the unavoidable conclusion that I was the victim of unethical sales practices. Unfortunately, because the purchase of used cars is "As Is" I have no legal recourse and must simply take the hit. What I can do, however, is share my experience because in this age of social media it's up to us consumers to help each other avoid the pitfalls by informing and sharing our experiences. I would never, NEVER EVER, set foot in this dealership again and certainly would never recommend it to anybody. I contacted Mr. Craig Zinn's office back when the whole purchase fiasco transpired and got absolutely nowhere which is unfortunate because I don't believe a person would want his/her lifetime's work be tainted by unscrupulous people. So I will move on, trade the vehicle, and purchase another Toyota but not from Toyota of Hollywood or any of its affiliates through the Craig Zinn Automotive Group.