Toyota of Tampa Bay
Customer Reviews of Toyota of Tampa Bay
Hands down, best car buying experience!!!
byon 11/02/2015
My experience was amazing, Meagan Dozier, my salesperson was amazing. She walked me through the whole process with ease. I was in at 12 and out at 3:30. They took such great care of me. I traded in my 2011 Toyota Corolla for a 2014 Toyota Camry and I'm in love. I am "credit challenged", so finding me a deal that I was comfortable with wasn't easy. They made it happen. I had already tried with other dealerships and they were the ONLY ones that were able to pull it off. I would recommend this place to anyone willing to give them a chance, they were great and they definitely have a customer for life with me.
- Recommend this dealer? Yes
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
- Did the dealer honor all commitments made? Yes
Do your homework!!!
byon 11/02/2014
Do your homework before buying the car there. Their online price was almost $5k lower than what they had it at the lot, if I had not asked they will not mention their online price, in other words there is a price online and a price at the dealership. Also, be careful when they give you the final numbers, they try to talk you into the payments and not the rate because they are shooting very high to see if your stupid, they started giving me a 16% rate! walked away with a 5% rate after negotiations. They try to make as much $$$ as possible to the point to even charge a crazy rate if you let them. I feel that if I was not in the industry I would have been ripped off...
- Recommend this dealer? No
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
Best deal in town
byon 07/10/2014
Wanted to buy a prius at another dealer......spent two entire sunday's there from open to close......gave me the same offer as the first day I walked in. I bought several cars from them when they had the old place and they were good to deal with. But since they built this new place down the road.....they are difficult to deal with. Went to several other dealers in Tampa and no salesman seemed like they were interested in selling a car.....all gave the impression I was bothering them and they had better things to do. Went to Toyota of Tampa Bay with the wife after leaving the other dealers and a salesman met us at our car when we drove up ( Bob N)....I told him I just wanted to test drive a prius and let the wife drive it also. No problem, Bob got a plate, sat in the back seat answered ALL the questions while we were driving. NEVER spoke about BUYING....only WHAT ELSE CAN I ANSWER ABOUT THIS CAR ? When we pulled back into the lot asked if the car I drove in was the one I wanted to trade, I replied yes. Invited us in for coffee and ASKED if we would MIND having my car appraised.....long story short, BEAT ALL THE OTHER DEALERS WE WENT TO .....ORLANDO, TAMPA, PORT RICHEY, BROOKSVILLE, WESLEY CHAPEL, DALE MABRY, BRANDON, AND HOMASASSA. We not only bought the car that night, picked out an upgraded version and color and ordered it and filled out all the paperwork, they called us three weeks later when the car arrived in Jacksonville and gave us a delivery date. I pulled up while the wife was at work, dropped off the keys to the old car, picked up the keys to the new car from Bob.....then Bob did something that NOBODY ever did before.....he sat in the car with me and explained EVERYTHING and how to use it.....would not let me go until all my questions were answered. I still deal with BOB and am looking for another new car to add to my prius....and will ALWAYS go to this dealer and BoB.
- Recommend this dealer? Yes
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
the worst dealer I met
byon 03/03/2012
The salesman is good. However the manager take too much time to provide me a quote and he let me wait very long. And later the price he gave me is not good. The second time I visited this dealer, the manager changed and said that price is only for Corolla L not LE, actually I clearly told the salesman that I need buy LE. Later I talked with this dealer regarding OTD price and we even wrote the OTD price on paper, when I want to take the offer and finally the changed to said it is not OTD price but pre-tax price.
- Recommend this dealer? No
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? No
- Did the dealer honor all commitments made? Not Applicable
Toyota Tampa Bay is the BEST
byon 01/28/2012
From the first call from Jason Hunter, my salesperson, it was a pleasant experience. I, also, got a letter from Rocky the Sales Manager that made me feel special. Jason came in on his day off to accomodate my schedule. He was so patient as I deliberated on 1 of the 3 cars I drove! And when I was not satisfied showed me a car that was coming in the next day. I loved it! And they made it possible for me to purchase this much higher package than what I had driven. I love my car and would take out a full page ad raving about Toyota of Tampa Bay but I now have a car payment!
- Recommend this dealer? Yes
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
- Did the dealer honor all commitments made? Yes
A Very Good Experience!!
byon 08/15/2011
My salesman was Ric Deleary in internet sales. He sent me an email quote on a new Sienna I was interested in. I sent him a counter offer. They accepted. The numbers never changed. Even the Finance guy was nice. I told him up front that I was not going to buy anything extra and that was OK with him. This was a very easy deal. Toyota of Tampa Bay did a great job.
- Recommend this dealer? Yes
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
- Did the dealer honor all commitments made? Yes
Great salesman and buying experience
byon 01/10/2011
We had a good salesman who had the best interest of both the dealership and my wife and I. I could care less about the finance manager, but the salesman was a very good man who no doubt deserves more. Be very careful when you are in the Finance Managers Office.If you think it was bad back in the day wait until you see the new paperless system and the built in desktop computer screen that only 7 foot people can see. Then the individual does not tell what a LoJack or whatever costs (he thinks you were just born yesterday). You know the game. My point is if you were on your toes before and did not enjoy the experience, wait for this one. Overall I bought the car at this dealership for price and the salesman's help and humor. If the finance guy was the first person I me I would have walked.
- Recommend this dealer? Yes
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
- Did the dealer honor all commitments made? Yes
Didn't Buy - here's why!
byon 03/16/2010
Finally got an internet price quote for a Highlander - however when pushed it was on a vehicle they had already sold - firts red flag!. Finally got a quote on a was Sport but data sheet attached was for an SE - didn't worry at the time but caused great confusion once we arrived at dealership! Rocky was OK but once he brought in his "Manager - aka closer" it got complicated! They tried to push a vehicle not in stock rather than a Sport model they had on the lot (and it had been there for three months) saying it was cheaper - even though the invoice was cheaper as were both hold backs - Red Flag #2. Funny ALL other Dealers will deal more aggressively on an in stock item! "Closer" couldn't understand why I was unable to understand the above fact. I was unable to understand why, with better numbers on new and trade vehicles, the payment was more (and all at 0%) than a higher amount at another dealership. All the while of course, they held onto our keys! When I finally said enough and my Wife and I decided we wanted "to go away and think about it" our friendly closer heard "take a moment". Guess that explained the communication issues! Red Flag #4 was them giving us the wrong keys to our trade! We walked, got a MUCH better deal elsewhere (review under that Dealer) and incredible service that was totally free of the Tampa Bay "sleaze feel" as I like to describe it!
- Recommend this dealer? No
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? No
The Best...A+++++
byon 08/29/2009
I went to many new car dealers before going to Toyota of Tampa Bay. After being treated like garbage,.....pressured,....lied to, and held captive ([another dealership] lost my car keys, and hid my car), I called Toyota of Tampa Bay. I sure wish I had called them first. They gave me a great price on a Corolla over the phone and stuck to their guns when I came to test drive it. No pressure, no tricks,....none of the bad experiences that make people buy cars on eBay, just to avoid the new car sales game. Everyone I encountered there was professional and treated me with respect. I am totally satisfied and happy with every aspect of my purchase. I love my new Corolla and I can say one thing for sure, "If I ever purchase another new automobile, it will be from Toyota of Tampa Bay". Thanks to all the staff there! John Eiring
- Recommend this dealer? Yes
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
Very Pleasant Car Buying Experience
byon 07/12/2009
Two weeks ago, I went to the internet and visited their website; I made an inquiry form their website about a new Toyota Camry. Matthew Mackowiak contacted me promptly and provided me with the information that I was inquiring about. I went to the dealership to test drive the car, and Matthew provided me with an out the door price that was excellent; I knew because I have shopped around at other Toyota dealers in the area. At the end of my visit, Matthew introduced me to his manager, Eddie Rivera, to see if Eddie can reduce the price a little more. After a little discussion, I told both of them that I will need time to consider the offer. Both Matthew and Eddie were very patient, pleasant and did not try to pressure me into making decision right there and then. They told me that they understand, and they are there to help me if I need more help in making the decision easier. They are absolute professionals who treat customers with respect, dignity and patience. They make car buying experience a pleasant one; after all, the customer is the one spending tens of thousands of dollars. We deserve to be treated with respect and dignity; I went to some other dealers who treated me like an inmate being interrogated and bombarded with high pressure tactics. Fortunately, I went to Toyota of Tampa Bay and met Matthew and Eddie. I went back to their dealership yesterday and bought a Toyota Camry. Matthew checked my car in great detail to make sure everything is to my complete satisfaction, and answered all my questions and requests very patiently. I admitted to him that I am very picky and detail oriented; he told me that he completely understand; Matthew is such a professional!! He listens and goes the extra miles to make sure I am satisfied with everything. Their financial person, David "Griff" Griffith, was great as well; he made the paper work processing smooth and presented all information clearly, including additional services, and patiently without any high pressure tactics or trickery to sell me any additional services. This has been the best car buying experience I have had. I highly recommend you to give Matthew and Eddie a try if you are looking for a new Toyota! I want to recommend good businesses, especially good people like these, when I found one because it is harder and harder nowadays to find one! It is having good people like these that makes a company successful and makes people want to buy here.
- Recommend this dealer? Yes
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
Steer clear of these [violative content deleted]!
byon 07/05/2008
I recently had a horrible experience at this dealership. Here is what happened: Day 1: Met nice/polite salesman (Salesman 1), looked at a few cars, picked a car, we told him to give us a bottom line, out the door number. We gave him a price range and told him up-front that if its not in our range don't bother because he would only be wasting his time, no games, we just had a very strict budget. He insisted and said he be pretty close, so we agreed to "give it a shot". (We were mainly deciding between one year old used or brand new). Came back with the numbers and as expected they were higher than what we wanted to pay. Thanked him for his time, and prepared to leave, but then his boss came over and of course made a better offer (lets call this Offer X). Thanked him for his time as well and declined the offer and left. Day 2: Salesman 1 called and asked if we're still in the market and informed that they are getting "really aggressive" and that he could get us what we wanted for $1000 off offer X. I told him that does sound good, and that we'd drop by. Day 3: We showed up at the dealership. Salesman 1 introduced us to Salesman 2. He would "take good care of us" were the words used. So we picked a car, came back to do the numbers and of course, in true sleazy dealership sales tactics, they have no idea what numbers were discussed on Day 1 & 2, and Salesman 1 is "unreachable on his cellphone, we don't know where he is". The price offered now was Offer X + $1500. At this point I realized I was getting the run-around. They applied the typical high-pressure tactics for the next half hour. We finally left. 2 hours later, we did get the deal we wanted (X-$1000) at a different dealership. It was a completely different experience. So in the end, (X-$1000) was a totally possible and legitimate deal, but they wanted to wear us down and play games to get more out of us. Incidentally, there was another family at this dealership, we saw them at the other dealer (where we ended up buying our car from). We talked and they had the same feelings. They bought 2 cars from this other dealership. So in all these guys lost 3 car sales due to their games that everyone these days are aware of. Bottom line: Avoid if possible, IMHO.
- Recommend this dealer? No
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? No
Good Times
byon 02/26/2008
I have bought 2 vehicles from Toyota of Tampa Bay, both from their Internet Dept. Let me tell you that this was one of the best things I've ever done, I got a good idea what my trades were worth from their website and got pricing on the two Toyota's I wanted (4Runner and a TC for my wife). I had some "other" places that wanted to play games by email but fortunately I was born at night and not last night so I went with the guys that shot me straight the first time, the lack of stress was well worth it!
- Recommend this dealer? Yes
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? Yes
Nice dealership, Decent Sales Staff, Bad Values on Trades
byon 07/30/2007
I visited this dealership during my last car shopping experience. The dealership itself is very nice with a great showroom and a huge lot with a lot of selection. The salesman that assisted me was very pleasant, knowledgable about the cars, and was very helpful. I found a vehicle I was interested in so we went to talk about my trade-in. I already had several offers on my trade-in so I told them that if they could match it then I would trade it wiith them because it would be convenient to deal with one dealership. I told them the minimum price and that I was not interested in any negotiations as I already had an offer. If they couldn't match it, I would sell the car elsewhere and would still have bought the new car from them. However, the used car salesman attempted to pressure me into a negotiation anyway, wasting an enormous amount of time and agggravating me in the process. I was so disgusted with this process, that I sold my old vehicle elsewhere and did not purchase the new one here either. I would recommend the dealership but would steer clear of dealing with their used car department. If you have a trade, take it elsewhere.
- Recommend this dealer? Yes
- Purchased a vehicle from this dealer? No
