[zaimon]

I'm considering the prospect of buying my new Mz3 by the end of the year (instead of waiting 'til the end of March when I become eligible for S-plan pricing through EAA)...

If anyone from NorCal or the Bay Area/Sacto area have had any pleasurable experiences with dealers, please list! A good price on the car is important, but not nearly as important as receiving good service/attention from the dealer (this includes post-purchase services for any potential warranty work).

Right now I've ruled out a couple dealerships (Mazda of Vacaville, Royal Motors in SF) and have one or two that seem to be pretty decent (Green Valley in Fairfield).

Any suggestions? TIA!
- Jeff

 

[A10ZA03]

hey jeff.. dunno if you're still interested since it's late and really far away from you but i had a great experience at putnam in burlingame... his name was micheal, but pronouced mee-shell... yes it's a guy... i can tell you i had a rotten experience in fremont and in vallejo... i don't know any of the dealerships up near you though... =/

 

[RaGe]

I bought mine at the Roseville auto mall from Tony

Everything went great and I got a really good deal on the car.

 

[DJ Spencer]

Stay away from Alamaden Mazda and Oak Tree in San Jose. I got royally screwed somewhere. Still am actually!

 

[Jeff Peterson]

Stay away from Alamaden Mazda and Oak Tree in San Jose. I got royally screwed somewhere. Still am actually!

Where is the best place to buy a Mazda3? I got a quote on a 3s at Oak Tree Mazda for $18,524 and $17,888 from Almaden Mazda.

For the following items:
Automatic Transmission
ABS Brakes
Side Air Bags
Side Curtain Airbags
Sport Package

Where should I go? I don't want to be screwed over!

 

[DJ Spencer]

Really? They are the same dealer, I wonder why it was different ??

If you want to try Almaden Mazda, ask for the General Sales manager - his name is Nick. Let him know that Jason Spencer referred you to them for a great deal on a Mazda3.

He'll take care of you.

 

[Jeff Peterson]

Really? They are the same dealer, I wonder why it was different ??

If you want to try Almaden Mazda, ask for the General Sales manager - his name is Nick. Let him know that Jason Spencer referred you to them for a great deal on a Mazda3.

He'll take care of you.

The quote I got from Almaden Mazda came from Kathi Greene- the Internet/Fleet Manager.

The quote I got from Oak Tree came from a guy by the name of "Fish"!? What a douche! :lol:

 

[DJ Spencer]

Yeah, Fleet Managers can usually work deals. For some reason, they are usually the Internet Manager too...

 

[Jeff Peterson]

Has anyone had a good experience at Al Sanchez Mazda down in Gilroy?

 

[jenjenf]

Mazda Dealers Nor Cal

Al Sanchez Mazda in Gilroy is a great place but they have VERY Limited inventory of most cars. If you are willing to go there, you should check out the Mazda dealer in Salinas off Hwy 101 at Boronda Road -- HUGE number of MZ3 in a lot of colors - including titanium grey.

I bought my MZ3 5 dr at Great Valley Mazda in Sacramento (on Fulton Ave) from Walt. Great guy, great price, great service. I would have bought the car from Auto West Mazda in the Roseville auto mall (JACK HAHN) but they never got the color I wanted, not matter how much I went in to check.

Good luck.

 

[DJ Spencer]

Salinas is far better than Gilroy. I used to live in Marina, so I would visit that automall frequently.

I've heard bad things about EVERYONE in Gilroy, except the Chevy dealer (but he's only good for fleet services).

Auto West is good too, from what I hear. I still would recommend Menlo or possibly Fremont.

 

[Oricle]

got my mazda 3 from mazda stockton. they had a butt load of mazdas. way more than santa cruz, salinas, gilroy and sacramento. from what i know santa cruz only had three 3's. salinas had quite a few but all auto trans. gilroy didnt have that many, but the only place worth a darn there is the chevy dealer. sacramento had a respectable amount of autos. hope this helps any one thats in the market.

 

[DJ Spencer]

Yeah, I wouldn't touch Santa Cruz with a 10 foot pole.... Besides, they get nothing but fog there (well, so does Salinas and Seaside). I'm not sure I'd want a car that's been hanging out in fog for a few weeks/months.

 

[Subwoofer]

Don't know if you bought yours yet but I got myn at Oak Tree Mazda in San Jose, CA on Stevens Creek BLVD. Awesome service there. I believe they have (or are at least in the top 10) the number one rating for their service department. The sales transaction wasn't too bad. We were able to lower the price well and quickly write a check and we were out of there.

 

[DJ Spencer]

Weird. Oak Tree is owned by the Del Grande Auto Group, who also owns Almaden Mazda (and as of March, Sunnyvale Mazda).

It is true, they are rated among the top 10 in California on a bunch of numbers, and even number one in NorCal I think.

I had decent service with them when I bought my Protege, but when I got the mz3, they were just flat out a bunch of buttholes about the whole thing (well, not my saleman, he was cool - but everyone else sucked).

It was so bad that I actually sat down and met with the President, Kevin Del Grande. We never *really* got it to the point that I was happy, but what can you do.....

Now I have to figure out how to refinance my car loan without getting screwed on interest due.

 

[roddy]

i got mine from kathy greene at almaden, but i guess a fuse was out in the car... retarded of me not to notice... but anyway i took it back and they fixed it.. and for the hassle i got 2 free coffee mugs, wooooo!

 

[DJ Spencer]

What fuse? I'm curious.

I didn't get two coffee mugs for having a dead battery - just a day without my car.

 

[wings]

Really? They are the same dealer, I wonder why it was different ??

If you want to try Almaden Mazda, ask for the General Sales manager - his name is Nick. Let him know that Jason Spencer referred you to them for a great deal on a Mazda3.

He'll take care of you.

________________

Why are you recommending someone to a dealer who you claimed s****** you? Or is this irony?

 

[wings]

i got mine from kathy greene at almaden,
__________________

I came across Kathy Greene's name more than once. So how does pricing work when dealing with the Internet Sales Manager? Is it like Costco pricing (an agreed upon amount over invoice?)

 

[DJ Spencer]

I'm not recommending the dealer - I'm recommending that you talk to the President and GSM of the dealer. They know that I have beef, and if I refer someone to them, they know that that is just an extension of my ass they have to kiss to keep happy.

They are still freaked that I sent my letter to 2 dozen news agencies...

And I still haven't seen my refund check from my old warranty on the Protege.

However, Kathy is really cool too - I just never see her that much.

FYI - the Internet Sales Manager is generally the Fleet Manager - you can get good deals there too, because they are not working on commission.