J M Joseph

Review of Ray Catena Infiniti

I had one of the worst car shopping experiences at...

I had one of the worst car shopping experiences at their Edison Infiniti location. I hate to brush the entire dealership with a broad stroke since I only met 2 people, so I'll be specific. It started from the moment I walked in the door. I had an appointment but was running late, so I called to notify my salesperson. When I arrived I was told someone other than who I spoke with wold assist me.There was only 1 other customer in the show room when I arrived that morning, but I waited almost 10 minutes. The receptionist called David Daroff on the phone, but he did not answer. She also got frustrated and yelled his name several times, because he was sitting at his desk which was clearly visible from where we stood, yet he still didn't answer. The receptionist finally walked over to him to tell him I was there. One would expect the salesperson to greet a potential customer, but I was told to walk back to where he was. I've purchased cars on my own for the last 20 years and never had to seek out a salesperson. As I approached him he did not even make eye contact or get up from his seat. He was concentrating on "paperwork" as I said good morning with a smile, then he finally acknowledged me and extended his hand (from a seated position). The rest of my experience was downhill from there. I had research in hand on the QX30 and explained I wanted to test drive and learn more about the vehicle since it was a newer model, but I had recently seen 1 on the road and liked it. The conversation was very one sided, with me asking all the questions and him being very vague. The actual test drive was extremely painful. When we walked outside to the car, he described nothing about it and simply told me to get in. No opened door or look around the vehicle. He walked straight to the passenger door. I asked what trim line I was in and he said it was the sport version, but they all drive the same. He didn't ask me which trim I was interested in, however. He did not instruct me on any features and literally asked me one question during the drive around the block, which was "so what do you think?" When I asked if they had the trim level I liked in stock he said, "maybe, I don't know, they're selling so fast". We sat through the test drive in silence while I attempted to asked what questions I could muster through my shock at his poor service. I got the feeling I was wasting his time. When we arrived back at the dealership he told me to go look at the floor model, which was well beyond what I needed. When he finally came back to me, I asked what their current lease specials are and he said "it's what you have on your paper, we don't do negotiating or haggling," which typically is great to hear but not in such a bombastic tone. I then asked if he could view his inventory and discuss pricing he said it would take "45 minutes" to do all of that, almost to deter me. I have family members/friends who have purchased from Infiniti and Ray Catena, so I was confident about my choice to visit this dealership. Let me just say that I am coming out of a Nissan lease so I was very motivated to discuss my options, and even come back if it couldn't be finished that day because I had a family event that afternoon. But after the test drive, I couldn't leave fast enough. Even after all of that, I mentioned that I would also be interested in the QX50 since it was larger. He did not even attempt to address my interest in that vehicle. Finally when I made it clear that I was leaving, the more cordial sales manager came over, and to my surprise offered a possible additional incentive off of the car. But I thought they didn't negotiate? Even if I completely loved the car, I would never purchase from this location. I'm not sure if it was my age, gender or ethnicity, but perhaps if I was someone else I would have received a much more customer friendly reception. I see another review where the person said David went over every detail with them. Maybe he had an off day but I'll be headed to another Infiniti dealer.