Any comments on dealerships in Toronto to use/avoid?

11904 Views 57 Replies 31 Participants Last post by eipromb, Mar 25, 2004

skru_fase

Discussion Starter · Dec 3, 2003

I am going to be a firsttime Mazda buyer, and I was wondering if anyone had any comments on dealers in the GTA to avoid/use. Or does it really make much of a difference?

Thanks

41 - 58 of 58 Posts

vintagez

· #41 · Mar 19, 2004

which dealer

I also went to the Whitby dealer, they have no interest in the customer at all. It seems you are dealing with the old used car salesman image there. No product knowledge, just show me your money and take the one off the lot. Look at the facilities, they are old and run down, would not consider buying or servicing there at all. Try Ajax Mazda, the Sales Manager and his assistant manager are great, they take the time to demonstrate the product and have great product knowledge and are willing to bend to make a deal. Facilities are modern and clean, you feel confident going there. If you live in Durham Region give them a try.

bluntman

· #42 · Mar 19, 2004

I noticed the oddest thing when my dad picked up his vehicle from Avante Mazda Toronto. The person who went over the car with him, I forget her title, never went over "the little things". Things like the lockout feature on the rear doors, the location of the spare tire and the jack, the proper way to check the windshield washer fluid level. Maybe she was new, who knows, but Dave (the other person whe did all of my financial "stuff") went through every inch of my car with me not one month earlier.

The sales people were great, Alex, our salesperson, even gave my dad a bottle of wine before he drove away. Which leaves me thinking...where are my perks! I brought my dad into their showroom!

SED

· #43 · Mar 19, 2004

Air 1 said:
SED said:

Got my Mz3 GT Hatch sunset orange mica from Morningside Mazda, as they were the only one in the GTA having one in stock. I will never go back there. Good experience I have with Markham Mazda; always happy to help, the sales is great, service also - I am getting my crash sensor replaced tomorrow.

Click to expand...

Why won't you go back there?

The sales people (lease manager/sales manager) is just BS-ing you. I was buying it with X-plan (so no tricks here, just formulas) and they tried to cheat me on the lease payment twice. Even now, I'm still debating with them the lease contract. More than that, they didn't provide the wheel-lock stuff, so ended up at a tire dealer screwing the locks down...

dinu01

· #44 · Mar 19, 2004

Typical Morningside BS.

It amazes me how that place stays in business.

billyfo

· #45 · Mar 19, 2004

dinu01 said:
Typical Morningside BS.

It amazes me how that place stays in business.

I'm not sure, but I think they only open for less than 5 yrs???

ArcticM3

· #46 · Mar 20, 2004

Yeah just go to Downtown Mazda, they are the most willing to budge on price, they just want to sell they are very high volume (maybe the highest in GTA???) have a HUGE off-site lot, excellent service. They'll beat pretty much anyones elses price they don't care.......

dinu01

· #47 · Mar 20, 2004

Interesting - I assumed downtown dealers have the highest prices due to their proximity to teh business district where ppl have little time to car shop...

ArcticM3

· #48 · Mar 20, 2004

dinu01 said:
Interesting - I assumed downtown dealers have the highest prices due to their proximity to teh business district where ppl have little time to car shop...

That's what I thought initially, and it still may be true they like the rich ppl.., but as long as your serious about buying and you want to negotiate they will, I went to 3 other places b4 and the salesman laughed, he called me on it, I was just going to get a quote and go back to Avante since Avante was tight at the beginning but they were nice ppl. but Downton Mz gave me no reason to shop around more they accomidated all my needs/requests......bigger dealers have much more room to move, it's all about volume.......

Anyone else try out Downtown Mazda? I'm curious to see if they'll agree with me....

bluntman

· #49 · Mar 22, 2004

Some dealers actually read these posts and bring them up at their meetings!

I noticed the oddest thing when my dad picked up his vehicle from Avante Mazda Toronto. The person who went over the car with him, I forget her title, never went over "the little things". Things like the lockout feature on the rear doors, the location of the spare tire and the jack, the proper way to check the windshield washer fluid level. Maybe she was new, who knows, but Dave (the other person whe did all of my financial "stuff") went through every inch of my car with me and called me (both Dave and Alex) not one month earlier.

The sales people were great, Alex, our salesperson, even gave my dad a bottle of wine before he drove away. Which leaves me thinking...where are my perks! I brought my dad into their showroom!

I got my bottle of champagne today and my (free) touch-up paint is on order. I hope I didn't get that other person in trouble.

eipromb

· #50 · Mar 23, 2004

Actually I went to Downtown Mazda twice before buying my sportgt at Ontario Mazda (dixie/401). They wouldn't budge on their price, I think they offered like $200 off.

I also went back to downtown mazda for service because of the notorious airbag problem and because my brake rotors are showing nasty grooving. For the airbag problem they told me to come back early another day (they were closing up - reasonable), the techs would check it out order a part and call me back in 2 weeks to replace it. For the brakes they said "its normal", but it isn't at least not on all the other cars I've driven, the only reason I think they said that was because it was a warranty issue, otherwise they'd love to charge $$$ me to machine the rotors.

Anyhow I left and called Ontario Mazda about the airbag problem, and they said yeah come by leave the car with us and we'll give you a rental in the meanwhile so you don't have to drive a car with a possibly non-functioning airbag. I was blown away by that, thats going above and beyond, great service. I have to see what they say about my brakes though.

All in all, the people at Downtown Mazda were friendly but didn't really go out of their way to please. At Ontario Mazda, they did a bunch extra that you wouldn't normally expect.

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eipromb

· #51 · Mar 23, 2004

Oh, another rant about Downtown Mazda is when I was taking my first testdrive in the 3 our sales guy didn't give us the freedom to do anything. I wanted to play with the manumatic but he was hesitant to let me touch it, he was like "uhm,. lets just concentrate on driving for now so you can get the feel of the car". Our test drive was also super short, I think we did a loop behind on some small streets and then 2 exits on the Gardiner and back.

Ryo

· #52 · Mar 23, 2004

i went to Ajax Mazda last week, just to get a feel for the place and see what kind of service they had. i wandered around the parking lot for almost 30 mins., no one came to see if i needed help and i made it very obvious that i was interested in an mz3 by the way i was seriously inspecting the 2 or 3 models that i really liked. At this point im freezing my ass off, so i go inside and stand there for almost 5 minutes before i finally chased after someone to help me, while all that time they were chatting it up amongst themselves. i ended up talking to some sales dude with a moustache and fake smile, typical generic salesman image and everything.
first thing i told him was that i just wanted to see some numbers because im already financing a car and im curious to see how plausible it is for me to trade and get an mz3. as soon as i said that, his plastic happiness faded away and it was more like a "youre just wasting my precious time" kinda thing that i got from him. i tell him i like the auto gt sedan with the gfx and he half-ass scoffs at me like "good luck buddy". he pulls out some number doodling pad and writes down 24500, tells me its ballpark (which usually means it'll end up costing more than that). then he looks in his little black book for what my car is worth right now, tells me 13500, meanwhile its 16000 because my brother in law is in the business himself and already hooked me up with all the real numbers. i try to work some numbers with him, but he wont budge and gives me the standard "this is a hot item" BS. no matter how hard i try, he wont give discounts, eat any extra costs or anything. he asks if im willing to put a downpayment and i say no, and i tell him i wont go higher than 500/month. he's like, "okay no problem we can do that. i can put you on an 84-month financing plan". he's all excited about telling me this like its great news for me or something. i kinda laugh at him and say " how does that make sense? i can just wait a couple years or until i pay off my car, trade it in for the newest mz3 of whatever year im done paying, and then have 200/month payments instead". he looks at me like i made so much sense he didnt know how to comprehend it. i just tell him he's being ridiculous and im not stupid or going to pay out my ass for a car like this, and as i get up to leave he gives me his card and tells me to call him if i change my mind. so i tell him, the only time im using this number is to get information on the next closest mazda dealer....

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Jimdragon8

· #53 · Mar 23, 2004

Three different dealers

When I bought my MZ 3 I was in contact with 3 different dealerships. 1) Downtown Mazda :? , 2) Westowne Mazda

, 3) Whitby Mazda :roll: . Downtown Mazda called me back a few times but really didn't move on the price. Went to Whitby Mazda, was told that the Mazda 3's are no longer in production (not true) and that I should get it right away. "Needed committment" (i.e. downpayment) to be able to budge on price. As frustrated as I was, I had a price and qualities I wanted in the car, went to Westowne Mazda spoke with David Chen, did all he could to accommodate me, and gave me all I wanted for the price I wanted to pay. Calls me to give me updates on my car.

eipromb

· #54 · Mar 23, 2004

Re: Three different dealers

Jimdragon8 said:
When I bought my MZ 3 I was in contact with 3 different dealerships. 1) Downtown Mazda :? , 2) Westowne Mazda , 3) Whitby Mazda :roll: . Downtown Mazda called me back a few times but really didn't move on the price. Went to Whitby Mazda, was told that the Mazda 3's are no longer in production (not true) and that I should get it right away. "Needed committment" (i.e. downpayment) to be able to budge on price. As frustrated as I was, I had a price and qualities I wanted in the car, went to Westowne Mazda spoke with David Chen, did all he could to accommodate me, and gave me all I wanted for the price I wanted to pay. Calls me to give me updates on my car.

Whitby Mazda said they were no longer in production?!? What kinda of company would stop production on a car thats been out for only 5 months? and if they really did would you want to own one? I mean think of all the problems that would have to occur to stop production of a brand new car.

Anyways in regards to the messages posted above with my dealings with Ontario and Downtown Mazda; I went to Ontario Mazda today with the airbag problem. They took it in checked it out and had a (Mazda paid) rental car for me within and hour and a half. I think thats amazing service. Too bad the rental they gave me is a Civic :evil:

Jimdragon8

· #55 · Mar 24, 2004

Re: Three different dealers

eipromb said:
Jimdragon8 said:

When I bought my MZ 3 I was in contact with 3 different dealerships. 1) Downtown Mazda :? , 2) Westowne Mazda , 3) Whitby Mazda :roll: . Downtown Mazda called me back a few times but really didn't move on the price. Went to Whitby Mazda, was told that the Mazda 3's are no longer in production (not true) and that I should get it right away. "Needed committment" (i.e. downpayment) to be able to budge on price. As frustrated as I was, I had a price and qualities I wanted in the car, went to Westowne Mazda spoke with David Chen, did all he could to accommodate me, and gave me all I wanted for the price I wanted to pay. Calls me to give me updates on my car.

Click to expand...

Whitby Mazda said they were no longer in production?!? What kinda of company would stop production on a car thats been out for only 5 months? and if they really did would you want to own one? I mean think of all the problems that would have to occur to stop production of a brand new car.

Anyways in regards to the messages posted above with my dealings with Ontario and Downtown Mazda; I went to Ontario Mazda today with the airbag problem. They took it in checked it out and had a (Mazda paid) rental car for me within and hour and a half. I think thats amazing service. Too bad the rental they gave me is a Civic :evil:

Yeah, that's why I didn't get my car at Whitby Mazda, I called Mazda Canada and they were said that they wouldn't be stopping production. That's what I was thinking too, I guess the salesperson was just trying to pressure me. Didn't work!! 8)

ArcticM3

· #56 · Mar 24, 2004

Re: Three different dealers

Jimdragon8 said:
When I bought my MZ 3 I was in contact with 3 different dealerships. 1) Downtown Mazda :? , 2) Westowne Mazda , 3) Whitby Mazda :roll: . Downtown Mazda called me back a few times but really didn't move on the price. Went to Whitby Mazda, was told that the Mazda 3's are no longer in production (not true) and that I should get it right away. "Needed committment" (i.e. downpayment) to be able to budge on price. As frustrated as I was, I had a price and qualities I wanted in the car, went to Westowne Mazda spoke with David Chen, did all he could to accommodate me, and gave me all I wanted for the price I wanted to pay. Calls me to give me updates on my car.

Interesting comments, actually you guys are partially right about Downtonw Mazda not moving on the price, the salesguys NEVER budge on the price maybe a couple of hundred, if you are really serious about buying the car and want to negotiate a higher diacount you are going to have to talk to the business manager (asian guy) to talk real numbers, did you guys go that route? I know it can be fustrating when sales guys won't deal, you just have to show them your serious and go to the next level, a tip for all you future Mazda3 owners!!! The business manager basically asked for my bottom line (in not so many words) and we went from that.

mazda3_ZOOMZOOM

· #57 · Mar 25, 2004

How to Negotiate with a Dealer

My friends.. I am a fellow MZ3 member patiently awaiting my new ride on April 4 2004

Tit Grey GS A/C

What I'm about to tell you is true for all dealerships, all cars. No exceptions.

1. The hungry sales rep that approaches you has sold the same car you are interested in several times over within the past week. I can gaurantee you that he didn't sell it at the same price everytime. MSRP is for chumps.

2. Learn how to calculate your own finance rates / lease rates. Factor in all costs (taxes, freight, pdi, security deposit etc).

3. Don't show up at the dealership unless you have a figure in hand that you are ready to settle on.

4. Be prepared to walk out. Don't get emotional. You will give a quote and the sales rep will reject it. Even if you offer MSRP he will still try to get another 5 bucks off you for something extra.

5. The sales rep goes to the manager to get the approval on your quote.. he comes back and says no.. you kindly thank him for his time and walk away . I assure you, you will not make it to the door before the manager calls you back.

6. The application process (unless you pay cash) is a waste of time. They will try to sell you every coverage under the sun. Unless you really need the extended warranty on the factory stereo unit screw it. Extended warranties are for chumps.

7. enjoy your ride.

Cheers,

Zoom Zoomer

Tips: Take a business card from one dealership and bring it to another dealership. Write the price you are willing to pay on the back. (be realistic 4 to 9 % off MSRP is the average you'll get depending on the options you put into the car) after you present the rep with your price and he rejects it flash the card. (!! careful not to show the sales rep the identity of the dealership in case they own that place too).

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eipromb

· #58 · Mar 25, 2004

Re: Three different dealers

ArcticM3 said:
Interesting comments, actually you guys are partially right about Downtonw Mazda not moving on the price, the salesguys NEVER budge on the price maybe a couple of hundred, if you are really serious about buying the car and want to negotiate a higher diacount you are going to have to talk to the business manager (asian guy) to talk real numbers, did you guys go that route? I know it can be fustrating when sales guys won't deal, you just have to show them your serious and go to the next level, a tip for all you future Mazda3 owners!!! The business manager basically asked for my bottom line (in not so many words) and we went from that.

When we went there we dealt with the sales manager, was like an older (40-50ish) man. His office is the one across from the coffee machine close to the service center. We only talked to the sales guy (Rick? Ripon?) when we took our short ass test drive.

Anyhow I'm glad I went to Ontario Mazda, they've been really good looking after us.

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