I had an awful sales experience at Steele Mazda, t...

I had an awful sales experience at Steele Mazda, that made me second guess and ultimately miss out on a great vehicle. I went in for a specific used vehicle, which the sales agent Rebecca had said was available. After my test drive, I was informed that the vehicle had already been claimed by someone who had called in that morning, and she had been unaware. I was placed second in line, which is about how I was treated the whole time.

I attempted to negotiate, as you do when making a car purchase, and Rebecca was incredibly abrasive, acting as if I was in the wrong for negotiating. Despite my excellent credit and car loan history, I was offered an abysmal interest rate. I was attempting to finance just $9000 over 24 months with the remaining $5000 as a down payment, and their standard rate was 9% interest! To make the deal more reasonable, I suggested adding in an undercoating or tires, and I was met with a snappy No. We can t do that. When I mentioned my significantly lower past interest rates, she quipped That s impossible, not going to happen and mentioned times have changed, loans are not what they were five years ago. Not true.

I really wanted the vehicle, as it was quite special and a fair price, so I decided to put up with the interest rate. When asked about getting my mechanic to look over the car, I was told they have no vehicle return policy. Almost every dealership I ve dealt with will allow you to take a vehicle back within seven days if it doesn t meet expectations. I couldn t get it in to be looked at same day, so I would ve missed out on the car anyway. I was told I could submit my financial information, in case this phone in buyer fell through, but Rebecca came back to me stating that it s probably not worth it since I don t seem serious about buying the car. I guess trying to negotiate a large purchase makes me not serious? Does she expect someone to walk in and say Perfect I ll pay sticker and please give me the highest interest rate possible ? I insisted on submitting my application, but was then told the finance manager was out on a delivery for at least the next 45 minutes and it wasn t worth waiting.

The whole time I was treated like they didn t want to sell the car to me. I was constantly told that there were interested buyers across the country. When I suggested it would be easier to sell it locally, in person, I was told No. A sale is a sale. I would ve bought the car, had I been treated better, and if they didn t waste my time by not knowing there was already an offer in.
Very strange experience, and I ve heard awful things from friends that dealt with this dealership too. It s a shame they had such an interesting car on their lot. I ve bought from O regans in the past with no issues and a pleasant buying experience. If you re looking for a Mazda go to City.