Germain Toyota of Columbus

by Renee Riffle on 08/28/2021

Please check before you buy a used car from here and make sure they actually have the title! I traded in an FJ Cruiser for a 2015 Toyota Camry on March 3, 2021. I had my title at the time I did the transaction, I assumed a dealership as large as Germain would too! I wasn’t in a hurry to get rid of the FJ, I was waiting for the right car to come along, I found a 2015 Toyota Camry Hybrid XLE which had the features I was looking for, the mileage was 88k and it was a one owner car given to them on a trade-in. I was happy with the dealership and exchange, on top of my FJ I gave them $1800 and this car was listed for $15,900- I felt it was fair until 30 days came and went and I still didn’t have the title, I was ignored, brushed off and never received any callbacks until I talked to the Manager D’Lacy. He told me they had the wrong vin and are working to get it fixed- they have strung me along with this for 6 months! Finally they tell me they will trade my car for a comparable one, only with the microchip shortage and inflation over the last 6 months what they have on their lot (which is slim pickings) is complete junk for what I bought my car for. They don’t have any of the same features and they already sold my FJ. I found a car that was as close to mine as you could get and it was listed for $20k and the used car manager told me I’d have to pay the difference. Keep in mind I’m still driving on tags that are registered to the FJ and every time I drive this car I’m taking a risk of getting into a wreck and losing all money I put into this vehicle because the manager told me they wouldn’t be able to do anything if it was totaled yet they also have admitted they can’t get the title and my fj is sold. This isn’t the type of place you want to do business with, I was told every time someone would call me but nobody ever does, I had no other choice but to get the AG office involved because they have lied, sold me a car without the title and refused to make it right. I’m sure at this point this will end up in a civil court battle and the AG will go after the legal issues, let’s just hope I don’t get rear-ended or totaled in the meantime. Consumers- please don’t trust them and look out for yourself and do your homework! Make sure they don’t try this on you.

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by PSUArcher on 04/25/2018

Warning-be careful when dealing with Germain Toyota in Columbus, Ohio. My wife and I dealt with a salesman named Brady Lonsway starting on the week of March 20th. He seemed helpful at this time. There was a 4Runner that we wanted to buy for my wife. We made an offer, they countered, but we were still to far apart(no issue). On Monday, April 2nd, while dealing with Brady and a manager, John Woody, we were able to agree on a price. John told me to work out the delivery with Brady, so I did this ASAP on Monday, with the delivery to take place on Tuesday. Tuesday morning I spoke with Brady and he informed us that the vehicle wouldn’t be delivered on Tuesday, but that it would be delivered later that week, we agreed on Friday(again, no issue). We didn’t speak on Wednesday, but did speak multiple times on Thursday. On Thursday, we spoke with Brady to make sure that the 4Runner was being delivered on Friday, he assured us it was.(this is where it gets bad). Because he assured us the vehicle was being delivered on Friday, we sold my wife’s current vehicle Thursday night after we spoke with Brady. No more word from Brady Thursday or Friday morning, until my wife texted him on Friday morning asking what the ETA was. He then replied back that the vehicle had been sold to someone else. To say I was ticked is an understatement. But it gets worse. Through talking to Mr Woody, I found out that the vehicle was sold to someone else on Monday, April 2(the day we agreed on the price). So, the vehicle was sold on Monday, then on Tuesday and Thursday, Brady told us the vehicle was still ours, to the point that we sold my wife’s current vehicle. (I could care less about them selling the vehicle, but at least let me know......and definitely don’t lie to me repeatedly about the vehicle). Brady even admitted to me that he knew before Friday that it was sold to someone else. So after this, I spoke with Mr Woody, he could have cared less(they made their money). I left the General Sales Manager, D’lacy Stith four Voicemail’s and an email and never heard back from him. I left the general manager, Rich Newsome, two voice messages, and he did call me back 8 days later. I told him what took place and he told me he would call me about the issue, but I’m still waiting to hear back from him, and it’s been over 10 days, so he clearly doesn’t care either. I have all of the mentioned correspondence with Brady saved, as it was all done through text messages, so no one can argue on the timeline of events. I’m not posting this for any other reason than to give people a heads up on what kind of operation their running.

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by Ruby6XLE on 05/23/2017

Just wanted to give a shout-out to the staff at Germain Toyota - if you want an experience where you can find folks actually listening to your questions, concerns, comments/observations, this is your go-to place! Luke Eastwood in Finance and Norm Oribello in the sales dept. made the purchasing process go very smoothly. The service team was amazingly quick in reviewing any concerns I raised; and shout-out to Meredith Dargusch for her kindness too. I enjoyed the new car buyer's presentation by Loralee Trapp -- the info proved to be very helpful and I have used the info (and gifts) she had given to the attendees

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by jabolt2111 on 03/13/2017

I bought two new vehicles from Tom. Just wanted to write to let you know what a great job he did for me. I wanted a specific truck and would text him routinely asking what was on the lot or if a vehicle could be ordered. He always responded, even on personal time. Will and have recommended him and the dealer to friends and family. Thanks Tom.

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by slamminsam556 on 02/15/2017

Maybe they are great to work with if you live in the area, but not if you are traveling there. Called and talked to sales rep right before closing (and had touched base several times that day) and he assured me the car was still for sale. Scheduled a time after they opened the next day to come drive it. We are 30 minutes away from dealership and we get a text that they sold it over the phone and we're shipping it out. We had already driven 2.5 hours and the sales rep knew we were driving from 3 hours away. Needless to say I am pissed since I called and stressed several times how far we were coming. I won't even bother looking for vehicles here again.

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by arm666666 on 01/18/2017

Mr. Khalin Moore made the process easy. He was polite,kind and informative. If need be,we will buy from him again. Thank you,Annaliesa and Robert Meeks

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by scottlewis57 on 01/05/2017

I recently purchased a 2017 Toyota Tacoma from Germain Toyota and had the pleasure of working with Ed Sosniak. I had been in the market quite diligently for about a month and dealt with several different dealerships in the process. I live in California and so was not able to visit the dealership and relied on emails and phone calls to obtain my information and facilitate the purchase. Ed went above and beyond day after day to keep up with communication and information regarding the truck and the sale. There wasn't a question that he didn't have an answer for and if he didn't, he would find the answer and get back to me promptly. From the beginning he would call back when he said he would, even going as far as calling me on his way home from work after staying over an hour after he was supposed to be off work to close the loop on some on going communication. After dealing with multiple dealerships throughout my month long search that were less than prompt with responses, I cannot stress enough how relieving and pleasant that constant communication was. It was one of the primary reasons for going through with my purchase at Germain Toyota. The communication with Ed didn't stop after the sale either. Ed continued to inform me of when the truck was picked up by the transport company (even when the ACTUAL transport company didn't), and then continued to stay in contact for the days surrounding the delivery of the truck. Ed made sure that if I had any questions after receipt of the truck and spending some time with it, that he was there for answers. Truly what I feel is the epitome of an excellent salesman with excellent customer service. Going above and beyond. I live in California, but may strongly consider making my next Toyota purchase through Germain Toyota of Columbus. That is..... If Ed is still working there. Thank you Ed Sosniak.

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by OSU2314 on 10/27/2016

Had such a pleasant experience working with Jason the salesman. I found a car that I was interested in on Autotrader and called in to see if I could take it for a test drive. Thirty minutes later I was there and they had it out front and ready to go. Jason made the process as painless as possible. They even had it detailed and filled the gas tank for me while I signed paperwork for it. Highly recommend this dealership and Jason in particular for a quick and easy car purchase.

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by AshleyP0519 on 10/08/2016

I recently bought my first car earlier this year. Rod Smith at Germain Toyota Columbus helped me find the perfect one. I bought a Toyota RAV 4 and I couldn't be happier with my choice. He worked closely with me and my family with patience ensuring I was buying the right car that was the perfect fit for me. The process with paperwork etc went smoothly. I would highly recommend germain toyota to everyone. Thank you!

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by Buckeyes13 on 02/04/2016

I went to look at a used car on their lot, and the salesman knew next to nothing about the car he was showing me. He must have had other deals going on at the same time as he repeatedly left to do other things, but he was quick to tell me he didn't work on commission, just how many cars he could sell. Then he and the sales manager expected me to take care of the open recall on the car. After I told them that now I wasn't sure if I wanted to buy a used car, the salesman snidely told me that I had already bought a used car because the car I own now was a demo that had 2,000 miles on it. He and the sales manager then both repeatedly told me that they do not negotiate. When the sales manager told me what my car was worth, I told him what my loan officer had looked up, he told me he didn't know what book he had gotten them out of, but they were wrong. Then he tried to push a Camry. I told him I wasn't interested, and then he continued his bullying tactics. I would advise any woman going to buy a car here to take a man with them. Definitely take backup for what your car is worth and what the car you are looking at is worth. It's a shame in this day and age that a man would think that trying to bully anyone is the way to do business. The other people that I met there were very professional. Horrible experience. Embarrassment to their profession.

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by cochenour94 on 02/21/2014

I had an exceptional car buying experience at Germain Toyota. Marlin B. was my sales consultant and he provided the highest quality of customer service. He was patient and kind throughout the whole experience. The finance manager, Brandon, was also very kind and answered any and all questions I had. The Germain Toyota employees provided a pressure-free, no-hassle car buying environment and for that I am very grateful. I would recommend this dealership to anyone in the market for a new or used car - everyone was phenomenal!

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by bfoster3 on 02/19/2014

Aaron exceeded my expectations in ensuring the vehicle was outfitted, cleaned and ready for me. D'Lacy quickly resolved an issue for me and made it very clear that the dealership wanted only satisfied customers. Overall, this was the best car-buying experience I've ever had.

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by kimlet on 02/13/2014

I absolutely despise shopping for cars. And have gone from dealer to dealer, large and small. But one really stood out. I really appreciated James’ (B.) attentiveness to what I needed. He was very helpful and very polite, with a quick sense of humor. Just loved working with him, and will defiantly recommend his services to my friends Thanks James for the great help!

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by srpr79 on 02/11/2014

I was in the market for a good used car for my daughter. She had test driven a Nissan Sentra and was really wanting it. I talked her into looking at theToyota Corolla. We pulled into the used car lot at Germain Toyota and was greeted by Chris W. I felt comfortable within the 1st couple of minutes of talking with him. He was friendly, he listened and seemed very interested in what we wanted not what he wanted to sell us. The selection of Corollas was excellent and it didn't take us very long to buy the one my daughter fell in love with. It was a 2010 Corolla with 17,000 miles.After a few minutes of negotiations the car was my daughters. The service was excellent, the price was right, and the whole transaction went smoothly.I would highly recommend this dealership and Chris W. to anyone in the market for a used vehicle.

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by Misha22 on 01/24/2014

I had a completely different experience with this dealership than I had with another one I was doing some shopping with..night and day. These people make what could be considered a 'painful' experience into a nearly painless one (putting down a large sum of $ is painful unless it's all pocket change to you). Jojo was great at being personable and listening to what I was looking for and didn't hound me about a trade, my credit score, or any other subject I wasn't interested in focusing on. He also gave me time to make my decision off to the side, whether or not to keep looking, or get a vehicle with them. I ended up going with their vehicle and haven't lost sleep over it. Id recommend making them your first stop if you are checking out used vehicles in Columbus.

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by VigilantBuyer on 01/23/2014

I met a tempermental "manager" who made a neck slasher sign in front of my kids, when I wouldn't accept an obvious low ball offer from the salesman. After shopping around I found Germain Toyota to be the least competitive. Online shipping was the most competitive and time efficient. I bought online elsewhere and enjoyed that experience.

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by Sharp2K on 11/10/2013

Great sales person, Norm, who was low-key but gave me a great deal with NO pressure. 3rd vehicle purchased from this dealership and very satisfied.

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by kconlon on 02/10/2013

We really appreciated Dan C., our salesperson, and his patience with us as we worked through our decision-making process. It was a two month process with all the questions we had about the car, its financing and even its competitors. He was a wealth of reliable information – most of what he told us I was able to verify online, or had heard about previously. Clearly he does his homework. Nothing impresses me more than a well-informed and knowledgeable salesperson. But, the proof was in the driving, and the truth is that we’re having a wonderful time with the Avalon Hybrid! The more I drive it the more convinced I am that it was a very good decision. And the follow up from Dan and the dealership has been courteous, well-timed and reinforces the notion that Germain Toyota was the right place to buy the car.

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by greyday on 12/22/2012

Don't walk away, RUN away from this "dealership" if you want to buy a car. My nightmare with Germain of Columbus begins with my car being hit and totaled by a semi. I had been looking online. One day I saw a 2007 Grand Prix GT online at Germain of Columbus. It only had 35,000 miles on it and the carfax seemed perfect. The car looked flawless, the only catch was that I live in IL, about 500 miles away. I called the dealership and was greeted by a Mr. David B. He said not to worry about the distance, "he sells cars out of state all the time". After much deliberation, we worked out a deal to have the car delivered for free, wow I thought, a dealership that really cares. Before I agreed to start any paperwork, MR. B. assured me this car was perfect, no problems at all,completely mechanically sound, and if any did arise I would have a 60 day 2000 mile guarantee.Iwould be paying the taxes and registration myself, because Ohio has no taxes on cars. He was allegedly taking care of everything else, including the title. I waited patiently for the car to be delivered at 1:00 pm. The delivery drivers were 4 hours late. Other than the car being filthy,the remote start key fob was broken, in fact it even had a sticker on the back stating it was broken. Delivery guys said "they will just cut you a check to have it fixed at a GM dealer near you". I called Mr. David B., who promised to me before I signed the paperwork, that they would buy me a new remote key fob. I signed the paperwork, they put temp plates on the car that were good for 25 days. I was told the title would be mailed in 21 days, and then I would have all the proper paper work to go register and pay taxes at the DMV before the temp plates expired. Two days before my plates expired I called Mr. B. to see why I hadn't received any of the paperwork. I told him the taxes were due now and my plates were going to expire. He said I would have the paperwork in a day. The next day I received a copy of the title and took a day off work to go to the DMV to register and pay taxes on it. The DMV informed me that the copy I had got in the mail was useless, and that I needed to also pay to title it in IL. What? B. assured me that this was already taken care of. Another lie. I called the dealership to ask what was going on, couldn't get a hold of David of course but I was told that the dealership would not pay to extend my temp. plates. I went back into the DMV, they refused to register it without the real title. It was 2 days before Thanksgiving. I would not be able to drive my new car to my families house for the holiday. Another cost I would have to pay for an extension of temp plates, the DMV said the dealership had to pay for the extension, the dealership refused. At this point I contacted the bank, they felt so bad about the ordeal that they mailed the title directly to me. A half hour before the DMV closed I was able to rush over there and finally got it registered, titled which costed me an addition $120.00, (David B. said I would not have to pay), and paid the taxes. I thought I was done having to do David B. job for him. NOPE!!!! On November 29th I sent an email asking why after a month I hadn't been reimbursed for the remote key fob. One month before he said they would just buy me a new key fob. I got a quote of $250.00. But I still had two remotes from my totaled car that were programmable to my new car. They quoted me a much lower number of $130.00 to reprogram my remotes. David B. agreed to have them both reprogrammed since he would be saving money to use my old remotes instead of paying more for a new one. Our local GM dealer I went to cut us another deal and only charged $65.00 to reprogram the remotes. "Just fax me that bill and I'll get you a check out" David said on November 1, 2012. I waited one month as I mentioned above before emailing him to ask what the problem was, why I had never been repaid. He said to send the bill again, this is a month after he said he already got the bill and my check had been mailed. That night I pulled into my driveway hearing a loud squealing belt whine. This was listed on the inspection sheet. Upon further investigation I noticed my new car, that I had paid over $13000.00 for, with only 35,000 miles on it was leaking coolant. I called David B. first thing the next day. I was already mad about being lied to continuously about the refund check. Getting him to answer the phone after calling several times was irritating as hell. I informed him of the bigger problem letting him know that that weekend(it was thursday) was my families Christmas, I needed the car fixed NOW. He did not call me back, he did not answer one of the three numbers he gave me to call. I called back for the tenth time and was informed by Mr B. that I would have to drive my car that was leaking coolant 500 plus miles to the dealership to have it fixed! Are you kidding me he wanted me to risk blowing the engine in a car that was leaking coolant, to drive 1000 plus round trip???? I finally was transferred to a Robert, (at this point after not being able to get David on the phone after calling for 2 day, I was now being told that he, the salesman was delivering cars, another lie). They were now going to send me a check to have it fixed in my state after I had to take more time off work to take in in and get a quote to have it fixed. Robert seemed angered by this whole ordeal. It was now Friday, I would be missing my family Christmas on the weekend at this point. He promised that first thing Monday the check would be overnighted by Fedex, I would be able to have my car fixed and be driving it by that Tuesday. Today is Wednesday. I called Fedex twice yesterday, my wife waited at home all day for the check. Fedex informed me nothing was being sent to my address. Lived at this point I called again today and was told by Robert that they made a mistake and put the check in the regular mail. What kind of business is this???? They lie like they breathe. Robert, the most helpful person alive at Germain, figured out what was going on. I got the checks Thursday. While they were fixing it they found more problems with my "mechanically sound car". Wheel bearing are really bad. The tires B. said were like new are about dead. I'm sure the $700.00 suspension work that needs to be done is not covered by the warranty. I don't need the headache of dealing with these people again. My other car had 75,000 miles on it compared to the 35,000 on this one,it never had any problems. These issues should of all been fixed prior to them selling it to me. I would certainly look else where if you need to buy a car. Go to the BBBs website and read the vile things they have done to other paying clients. I wish I would of before buying this car.

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by sandy108 on 11/21/2012

Eric R. was my sales person and the financial guy was super. Nice people who listened to what we wanted, no hard sales. I can't say enough good things about those guys, pleasant and both of them really understand the importance of customer service. Thanks to you both and I love my new car.

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by sh1 on 03/01/2012

Recently purchased preowned vehicle. Eveyone was so helpful. I would recommend to anyone in the market for a new or preowned vehicle

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