Crown Honda Southpoint

07/06/2008 Posted by Triangle2

I went into Crown Honda to purchase a Civic and take advantage of Honda's nationwide lease special of $199 a month for a 12,000 mile per year lease. Civics in the area are limited because they have been selling like hotcakes due to gas prices. Crown had one left and I decided I wanted to buy it but instead of letting me take advantage of the nationwide lease special, Crown came back at me with a severely inflated lease price ($320 per month - after a $1,000 deposit) and blamed it on supply and demand and the price of gas. Essentially they were price gouging knowing the Civic was in high demand. I found this to be despicable and unethical. Look I know dealerships are in business to make profits but for them to suggest this just shows how far this dealership will go to make a dollar. The gentleman who helped me knew very little about the Civic and what they were willing to give me for my trade was $2,500 less than Carmax bought my car for. Bottom line they really tried to screw me. One other thing while Im taking time to vent my frustration about Crown happened a couple years back when we took my wife's Accord in to be serviced. The service was great and affordable however our change in the ashtray was stolen. Of course this $3 in change wasn't that big a deal but it was the principle of dishonest service people behind the issue. I called back and told the service manager about and he said he would look into it. Fortunately for me there was Eren Martin, the internet sales manager at AutoPark Honda. They were willing to uphold Hondas national lease price and lease me the vehicle at the advertised lease price. Thank god for some people in this world with integrity. Bottom line: Crown Honda is a small time Honda dealership. Yes they have been in business for years but when you look at their total sales each month they always get hammered by the bigger Honda dealerships in the state. There is a reason for this.Do yourself a favor and head to Auto Park or Flow.

Pros: Nice showroom and waiting area

Cons: despicable, unethical, dishonest cheats

06/30/2008 Posted by autopro58

Reading past reviews of this dealer i understand the vast difference in opinion. As a dealer myself for 29 years ive seen it all. I,ve been the salesman and i,ve been the guy in the back giving the prices and if either of the two r crooks...youll have a bad experience. And many times its not that they are crooks...just sloppy business people. Either way, in the case of THIS dealer i know that if a person is NOT satisfied with their experience that if given the opportunity, management will bend over backwards to be fair. But you must make your concerns known to those in charge. And they do TRY to hire good people...not always a perfect science.

06/16/2008 Posted by lynng1

We recently bought two cars at Crown Honda in Durham and we had a positive experience both times. We really liked working with our salesperson, Mike Kramer who was helpful, informative, friendly and seemed more interested in helping us get the right car than making a quick sell. He is the internet sales specialist so you may have to go that route to work with him. It would be difficult to imagine that you would have a bad experience if Mike was your salesperson.

06/02/2008 Posted by Bmurray73

This is contents of an email I sent a sales person and Crown Honda detailing our experience with them: <P> <P>Obviously we did not buy a Pilot from you or Crown Honda. <P> <P>The whole process with Crown Honda left us feeling dirty, cheated and lied to. <P> <P>True, when you quoted my wife the price on the Pilot, you didn’t say that we would not be able to get the .9% financing at that price. But, based on our first meeting we were told that we would be able to get the .9% financing. You did not say that the .9% was tied to a certain price for the vehicle. <P> <P> That is a lie of omission. <P> <P>You told us a low price to get us in the door, and then changed things when we got there. It was a classic bait and switch routine. <P> <P>The funny thing is, had you been straight with us from the beginning (by telling us what the Pilot would cost had we opted for the .9% financing when you gave my wife the quote on the phone) we probably would have bought the vehicle. <P> <P>I was also troubled by the fact that you could not explain to me what the ‘doc fees’ were for. And when I told you that Carmax’s were a lot lower, you told me ‘Well, that’s because they sell used cars.’ And what is the price of ‘doc fees’ on Crown Honda’s used cars? The same as on Crown Honda’s new cars. So, that was another lie. <P> <P>And who were you lying to? A loyal Crown Honda customer. In 2004, we bought an Element from Crown and had all the service for it done at Crown. Every oil change, tire rotation, check up, brake pad replacement, etc. Everything. <P> <P>So, what did of your, and Crown’s, lie of omission cost you and Crown? It cost you a loyal customer. It cost you a sale. And it cost Crown thousands of dollars in future car service work. <P> <P>I hope going forward you, and Crown Honda, will deal honestly and fairly with your future customers.

Pros: They have cars.

Cons: They act like typical car salesmen. Every trick.

05/26/2008 Posted by tomnc

I was surprised by the earlier review. I've been going to Crown Honda since 2000 and never had an issue. They've always handled things quickly and professionally. The one time I had my brakes done and knew it wasn't quite right (they went further down to the floorboard than they had in the past), I took it back and they repaired it (no charge of course). Even times when they could have ripped me off, they didn't It's unfortunate the earlier reviewer had a bad experience. I continue to go there to this day. I would personally recommend them highly. I'm not disputing what the other review said. Just giving you my honest experience.

05/24/2008 Posted by hondacrv06

Use caution and when choosing Crown's service department for any service. They charged me for service I did not approve and disregarded the issue I initially wanted repaired. Basically I was charged over $600 for something that wasn't fixed. When I brought the vehicle to a local mechanic, he charged me $4 for fluid and $10 to pour it in. Rear differential problem fixed. Beware of these crooks.

Pros: nice waiting room

Cons: dishonest crooks

05/20/2008 Posted by Smedge

After going to 2 other (unnamed) Honda dealers in the Triangle, I ended up buying my new Civic from Crown Honda in Durham (near Southpoint Mall). While the other 2 dealers offered me a price about $300-$500 below Crown's price for the Civic, when I brought in my trade they tried to rip me off. I ended up getting a fair price for my old car at Crown and it more than made up for the difference in price. BTW, Crown got me a much better finance rate than the 15% one of the "other" dealers tried to stick me with. I will never fall for the "lowest price" scam again that the other guys tried to pull. There is much more to buying a car than just how much you pay. Thank you Paul and Alissa at Crown Honda, you really made my day!

Pros: Honest, best overall value, treated me with respect, great financing department

Cons: Hard to find, hidden near Southpoint Mall