Hyundai of Columbia offers the highest quality repair and maintenance for your vehicle.Hyundai of Columbia offers the highest quality repair and maintenance for your vehicle.
***** BUYER BEWARE *****
Worst experience ever at a dealership culminating in likely illegal pricing practices breaking some or all of the following statutes in both TN and Federal law which carry penalties ranging from severe fines to revocation of license to do business. I've included all the details below but for those that want the TLDR version - don't do business here.
T.C.A. § 55-17-114 (Unfair Trade Practices)
Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0960-01-.12 (Advertising of Motor Vehicles)
T.C.A. § 47-18-104 (TCPA - Unfair or Deceptive Acts)
16 CFR Part 455 - Used Car Rule (FTC Used Motor Vehicle Trade Regulation Rule)
15 U.S.C. § 45 - Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA)
16 CFR Part 251 - Guide Concerning Use of the Word "Free" and Similar Representations
16 CFR Part 423 - Care Labeling Rule (Indirectly Relevant)
15 U.S.C. § 1231-1233 (Monroney Sticker)
After a couple hours of test-driving various cars and with the title of our trade-in in hand along with a check, we sat down with our sales person to complete a deal. The first red flag was when the sales manager approached us, sales contract in hand and proceeded to tell us that the advertised price on their website was wrong and it was actually $4,000 higher than we were told. So the law actually requires them to honor this price but understandably mistakes can happen. However, things only got worse after that. Rather than acknowledge the mistake and attempt to find a reasonable compromise, we were presented with a contract that not only had this new "correct" higher price but also listed a $2,000 "protection package" that was "included on all car sales" and "not optional". The sales person had told us about all of these great free benefits including annual ceramic coating but they weren't free, they weren't optional and they weren't included in the advertised price of the vehicle. This is what is commonly known as a bait-and-switch and it is clearly addressed in both state and federal law designed to protect consumers. Finally as I worked my way through the contract, I noted the trade-in offer which was significantly lower than the range they had advertised using the tool on their website and our specific VIN. If you're counting at home, that is (3) bait-and-switches in one transaction resulting in a net price difference of almost $10,000. We stood, cordially shook hands with both the sales person and sales manager and left immediately disappointed that we wasted an afternoon and resolved to make sure that others didn't.
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Worst experience ever at a dealership culminating in likely illegal pricing practices breaking some or all of the following statutes in both TN and Federal law which carry penalties ranging from severe fines to revocation of license to do business. I've included all the details below but for those that want the TLDR version - don't do business here.
T.C.A. § 55-17-114 (Unfair Trade Practices)
Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0960-01-.12 (Advertising of Motor Vehicles)
T.C.A. § 47-18-104 (TCPA - Unfair or Deceptive Acts)
16 CFR Part 455 - Used Car Rule (FTC Used Motor Vehicle Trade Regulation Rule)
15 U.S.C. § 45 - Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA)
16 CFR Part 251 - Guide Concerning Use of the Word "Free" and Similar Representations
16 CFR Part 423 - Care Labeling Rule (Indirectly Relevant)
15 U.S.C. § 1231-1233 (Monroney Sticker)
After a couple hours of test-driving various cars and with the title of our trade-in in hand along with a check, we sat down with our sales person to complete a deal. The first red flag was when the sales manager approached us, sales contract in hand and proceeded to tell us that the advertised price on their website was wrong and it was actually $4,000 higher than we were told. So the law actually requires them to honor this price but understandably mistakes can happen. However, things only got worse after that. Rather than acknowledge the mistake and attempt to find a reasonable compromise, we were presented with a contract that not only had this new "correct" higher price but also listed a $2,000 "protection package" that was "included on all car sales" and "not optional". The sales person had told us about all of these great free benefits including annual ceramic coating but they weren't free, they weren't optional and they weren't included in the advertised price of the vehicle. This is what is commonly known as a bait-and-switch and it is clearly addressed in both state and federal law designed to protect consumers. Finally as I worked my way through the contract, I noted the trade-in offer which was significantly lower than the range they had advertised using the tool on their website and our specific VIN. If you're counting at home, that is (3) bait-and-switches in one transaction resulting in a net price difference of almost $10,000. We stood, cordially shook hands with both the sales person and sales manager and left immediately disappointed that we wasted an afternoon and resolved to make sure that others didn't.