Sandra Vanek

Review of Future Ford of Sacramento

Late January 2015, I went to Future Ford to try to...

Late January 2015, I went to Future Ford to try to unload my 2004 Ford Taurus as I was moving to Seattle and knew the car wasn't up to the trip. I was 65 at the time and hadn't been in a dealership in over 20 years so I was very naive. These guys are very crafty. First they settle you down with a delaying tactic. They are very solicitous---making sure you have bottled water or coffee. Then they start the patter. Pretty soon you think this guy is your new best friend. The waiting continues. Then they give you their Starbuck's card and invite you to go across the street and treat yourself. Lot's of "friendly" vibes. They had me there for EIGHT HOURS! They made it clear that the only way they would take the Taurus off my hands was as a trade-in. I found a car on the lot that had been returned by its owner with only 850 miles on it (no explanation as to why). I thought I would get a good deal because it was technically a used car. By the time the closer got through with me they had added on $4000 in service contracts (which were particularly useless to me since I was moving out of state in the next couple days! Something they knew). I was in such a state of brain fog by then I would have signed anything. I had that car for THREE WEEKS before they found a financial institution willing to loan me the money for the purchase because my only income is from Social Security and it wasn't enough to warrant such an expense. I ended up with a 5 year contract @ $293 a month plus insurance. That represents a substantial percent of my monthly income. It put me into a financial straight jacket for the next five years. At my age that might mean the entire rest of my life! They don't care what it means to the buyer...they are only interested in their own side. Buyer Beware seems to be the justification. So SAVE YOURSELF! Don't go any where near these guys as you may regret it for years and years and years. By the way, after fourteen payments I still owe over $2000 above Blue Book even though the car is in cherry condition and doesn't even have 4,000 miles on it yet! I can't even sell it and take my losses yet.