Santa Monica Audi
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Customer Reviews of Santa Monica Audi
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Worst dealers in the world,
by Yp on 08/28/2021Stay away from this place if your appreciate your money and yourself, manager very rude and don’t know anything about clients insulting me telling that I was In the wrong place buying the wrong car just because I try to negotiate the price… , everyone do that , , I was a cash buyer for the record. They sent me with somebody to the bank to see if I really have the cash what insults. But that was not enough they also told that I have to wait 5 or 10 days to take my car home because the have wait for the check to be clear dude I’m giving you a cashier check .WHAT ? what kind of dealer take your money but you can’t take the car to home ,( I DROVE MY CAR HOME THE SAME DAY )after 5 hours of negotiations. more to say about this dealer , WARNING take your time to look around your car before you leave the dealer, cars has a lot of body’s damage in that dealer , you won’t see it until u get home or probably the next day they , because they are good covering those damage with wax and of those details cleaning. I got the car because it’s very nice car and a amazing machine with very low millage and I couldn’t let those people stopped me to get something good or something that I want , this transaction was so sloppy and awful because this people in that dealer . I won’t recommend this dealer to anyone."Deals are abound"
by calbear92 on 08/20/2020Back for another deal session with Helen (and with props to Zach S!). This would be my second deal in 8 months witih Santa Monica Audi. Warm, friendly, and inviting. Never the hard sell. Zach is also one of the rare, upstanding people in… the auto sales industry- he is a person with integrity. #Respect. I had a pretty solid, unicorn like lease deal for 2019 Audi eTron at another well known Audi shop nearby with the incentives to move these vehicles- Costco, Audi Loyalty, stackable incentives, etc and they put together another unbelievable deal. Since this deal was actually for my brother who lives in SF, I was the proxy facilitating this deal. Helen (and Zach was able to work his magic with using MSDs) were pretty adept at keeping all of us in the loop. And especially for Helen to come in and spend her day off working on this deal with me and my brother. Since the CA DMV paperwork needs physical signatures, FedEx was involved to get signatures for these documents. Other than that, I will be getting picked up later this week and brought to the dealership for final delivery of my brother's eTron. If you want to a deal on an Audi, go see Helen and Zach. Another happy customer!Would Be 5 Stars, except for 1 Hiccup in Finance
by Four Eyes on 12/28/20194.5 Stars. This is my 1st business with Santa Monica Audi. 5th Audi overall and previously have done business with Audi San Diego, Audi Pacific, Audi Beverly Hills. I already did research for base MF, RV, current mkt incentives. Had solid… deal on 2019 Q5 with Fletcher Jones Audi dealerships in BH, Costa Mesa (& negotiated with Fremont). But previously @ BH, had a Luke warm experience last year when leasing 2018 Q5 involving 19N4 recall Customer Incentive (that's another story). However, they made another solid offer, but they did not have the color combination I was looking for. I discovered www.audiusa.com/inventory site and was able to search all the local Audi's dealers for the availability of the exact color combination and optioned package. MSRP $53745. I reached out to 3 LA local dealers via their internet portal ~ 11pm Mon night. Sister store Audi Fletcher Jones in Costa Mesa and also Santa Monica Audi had the exact optioned and color combination Q5 P+. Early next morning, email from Audi FJ would match the BH the deal. I was planning to make my way down to CM for Black Friday. (shout out to them as well since Jon M was willing to do everything exclusively via email. No phone calls. No in-person visit for test drive before numbers discussion). FJA did try to sway me with the FJ Preferred Customer benefits- lifetime car washes, vehicle/loan drop off/pick up, Audi loaners, free SNA/ONT parking. They sound nice, but I have not used any of those perks to-date on my other Audi's. However around the same time, Santa Monica Audi Internet Sales and Fleet Manager, Helen S, also reached out to me and she came prepared to make a deal. She said that she could beat the FJ deal. SM Audi/Helen also offered VIP Customer benefits lifetime car washes and same vehicle pick up/drop off. [maybe SMA should offer a VIP sticker for the lower front driver windshield as FJ does. Build dealer brand loyalty and free advertisement placement) Helen was a joy to work with- we did almost everything exclusively via email/text and one short 2 minute call to re-confirm the exact vehicle specs after we had a working deal in hand. I received PDF of the Moroney sticker and all the financial details in written form. She presented the offer to the higher ups, and got back to me ~ 90 minutes and came back with an even better deal. (I had an aggressive deal at FJA/BH which I already knew, so we are not talking about thousands of $). I made 1 small counter and we made a deal. Pretty simple. Formal offer agreed upon was all documented via email/text. (important for later). We made an appointment for the Saturday afternoon after Black Friday to meet in person for the first time, see the actual vehicle, finalize the deal, and take delivery. [Since I have a 2018 Q5 from BH, did not need to test drive] Helen also respected both my (and her) time so Saturday AM, I filled out the credit application to have approval before I arrived and expedite the process. She was in the midst of doing 7 deals over the 2 holiday days and yet, still took the time to make a personal connection. She was the consummate professional and I couldn't believe that she accommodated my request to choose among the 4 identically optioned vehicles as well. [I'm a bit OCD and especially for black paint- this was very welcomed.] Here's where I had to knock off 1 star. (I'd take half off if that was an option). SMA was doing a lot of business that day so Finance got backed up. Totally understandable. I had to wait ~ 50 minutes for slot to open up. When it was my turn, I met Keegan who was very personable. We shared our distaste for the SMPD Traffic Enforcement overly aggressive tactics. Fast forward, I mentioned that I was going to decline all the add-on packages- but she stated that she has to present the options. AudiCare adds 1% to residual value and priced at $999. [online $100 off coupon). That would leave ~ $300 to purchase and I did make a inquiry to see if I might have been able to negotiate that in. (didn't end up doing it since I didn't get a vibe that it could happen). I was told that she would have to collect the first month payment, which I understood since it is always included in the Due At Signing (DAS). I gave her my credit card to swipe. I signed the slip. This is where I have to take partial responsibility since I didn't closely scrutinize the small print on the slip. I had a negotiated deal with round, even numbers. However, it had been a long day and I was ready to take delivery and get to my game at the Rose Bowl. When I got onto the 405, I took a quick glance at my iPhone Wallet to see the charges- I was kind of shocked that I had been charged agreed upon DAS + an additional first month on top! I called Helen right away and she said that since it was near closing time, she would get this cleared up the next day even though it was her day off. Long story short- even though communication between Keegan, Helen, and the GM Niko could have been a bit better- I never did hear back from any of them besides Helen- even when I got I'm really busy and will call you back the next day from K and no reply to my email communication to GM and all parties involved. However, Helen never abandoned me. K too her that she had stated she disclosed that she was going to charge the first month- however, it was never disclosed that it would be on top of the DAS. #TrustButVerify. This is a tactic that BH has a reputation for. Helen kept me in the loop and always answered me when I was made a inquiry. She said to trust the process. To be honest, I was a bit skeptical since trying to get a refund from any dealership is like winning the lottery. I could very easily seen the other short-sighted side where they said- you signed it. Bye. Helen notified me when the refund was approved (within ~ 1 week and again, when the check had been mailed snail mail. I am happy to report that I did in fact receive a check for the full amount of the first payment. Shout out to GM Niko as well for being an upstanding person and honoring the written deal that we had made- though a personal direct message when this first started would have gone a long way to reassure me that this was being taken seriously while it was being worked on. Summary: Helen is awesome and so easy to deal with! Carefully check all the numbers at the time of signing with finance to save yourself this potential issue. But despite what others have said about this dealership, I would not hesistate to do my next deal again with Helen. I have referred my friends who are in the market for a new Audi. _________ Addendum Previous 2017 A4 lease return: I already made my 2nd to last payment on my previously leased Audi. There was no benefit for me to turn it in early. So I kept it another 2 weeks. Audi would take care of the last payment in their lease pull ahead program. Helen recommended that I just return the vehicle to the closest Audi dealership. However, Pacific would not provide a complimentary shuttle back home. Circle Audi website states that they would pick up lease return within 100 miles, but when I made an inquiry- they declined and only wanted to sell me a vehicle- despite me telling them I already got my new Q5. When I mentioned this to Helen, she made me another offer- on the AM of drop off, provide the VIN number and she would prepare the return paperwork, return the car to SMA and she would get me a ride back home. 2 thumbs up!worst sales department in US
by JSH on 04/20/2019I have in the last 40 years owned or bought 8 Audis, and have purchased them in other countries and the East Coast, never have i dealt with such a terrible sales department, and in fact after their mess i had to purchase a used BMW from… them, they sold the car from under me to someone else after refusing to take a deposit, so I the paperwork was done, no appologies nor an attempt to replace it ... huge mistake and will now have to purchase another Audi elsewhere ... Service department is excellentBEWARE THIS DEALER
by dangleib on 07/27/2017This review is about the dealer not the car. I love Audis and still drive one. BEWARE this dealer! As a so called "premiere" customer whose has leased two vehicles from SM Audi (S4, SQ5) and referred them 6 other customer who leased… vehicles, I have received horrible customer service and even shadier business practices. I did an early lease trade in on the S4 to get the SQ5, put down cash, increased my monthly payment substantially and made this my main intention to ultimately not have to pay or be responsible for the excess miles/wear and tear on the S4. 3 months later, in comes a 4300$ bill on the S4 for miles and excess wear and tear. Unknown to me, they claim to ha e "capped" what they were responsible for which was NEVER clarified to me otherwise I would have never done the deal in the first place. Fast forward 3 weeks I have called 5 times and gotten no answers or support from my "friends" over at Audi of SM. Be careful with these guys...No clue on customer satisfaction and customer retention
by ptreview on 06/27/2017I purchased a CPO A4 about a year ago. Helen Stredder was the salesperson. She seemed nice enough, but it turns out she mislead my wife and me on what was included with the purchase. We have purchased and leased several Lexuses over the… past five years or so and decided to try a different brand for a second vehicle. We just closed a deal on a CPO Lexus ES300h and wanted a similar deal on this second car. An A4 from SM Audi looked like a good choice and over several conversations with Ms. Stredder we understood that the car purchase would come with two annual/10K mile services just like the CPO Lexus ES300h, so we purchased the car. Recently, when we brought the car in for the first annual service at Carlsbad Audi, we were told the car had no service plan and we would be charged for the service. I contacted SM Audi about this and after several emails with Joe Talosi, Pre-Owned Director and Ms. Stredder's supervisor, it was clear that he did not care at all about any promises that were made to us or in losing a customer for life, which he has done with his inability to make any concessions on this issue. As another reviewer said, SM Audi apparently does not care about customer retention. On top of that, Mr. Talosi is pushing potential customers away from the Audi brand in general as I intend to go back to Lexus and stay with Lexus as the customer service and focus on customer retention is tremendously better than my first (and now only) experience with Audi. I was already thinking about upgrading to an new A6 and I definitely would have gone back to SM Audi, but no longer. SM Audi could have made a lot more money from me by investing a little (e.g., offering to pay for at least one service) to keep me as a customer. A perfect example of penny wise and pound foolish. Don't ruin your your attitude toward Audi by purchasing from this dealership. Go find another that actually cares about its customers and knows the value of customer satisfaction and retention. This dealership just doesn't get it.Sales at Audi
by Caroline14 on 02/25/2015Most impressive sales representative, Dante Samimi. If you're into presentable, knowledgeable, humorous and friendly, go to Santa Monica Audi and ask for Dante. You'll be pleasantly surprised.Best Served to Buy Your Used Vehicle Elsewhere
by bkbergla on 01/10/2015You would be best served to purchase a used care elsewhere. Here's why. I bought a well used vehicle from them. At the time of purchase it made a bit of noise but didn't sound too serious. I was told that the vehicle had been checked by… their mechanics and wouldn't be there if it was a real problem. Turns out the noise was a bad timing chain, a very expensive repair. I called and asked my salesperson for the dealer to contribute to the cost of the repair. He said not likely but he would follow up with the used car manager and get back to me. Surprise he never did. I left a message for the used car manager and received no call back. I understand that a well used vehicle may have issues. I said nothing about the oil leak or the bad bushings. But their mechanics were remiss in not properly identifying the timing chain issue and the fact the dealer has failed to even offer a call back speaks volumes about their lack of service, used car quality and overall customer care.At your service
by JS13 on 06/24/2014I just purchased an A5 Cabriolet from Santa Monica Audi. It was a great experience. Evan and Mike the internet sales team came back to my request through Edmunds quickly and with a definite response with a specific car, unlike other dealers… who did not seem to have read the specifications I had submitted to Edmunds. After a quick back and forth by e-mail, Evan found 2 cars with all the features I wanted and gave me a lease price that I shopped elsewhere but could not beat. They went to another dealer in Northern California to get my car and had it in just a couple of days. Delivery was smooth; they took all the time I wanted/needed to explain all of the hi tech parts of the car. These guys were really a pleasure to work with. I highly recommend them.Mixed Experience.
by davek888 on 05/21/2010The sales person, Munny, was friendly enough to help out with a test drive and talked to me because some female salesperson was too busy waiting for a customer to show up whom she had sold an A4 to - I guess she could only handle one sale… every couple days. Munny was helpful with the sale, but never came through with that wash and detailing promised when I bought the A3. The sales manager was very good with negotiations as it was the end of the month and helped to locate a base model car. Someone at this dealership took my credit card and charged up a couple hundred dollars worth of massages at a local place. I do not think I will ever go back here.BOUGHT A SMOKERS CAR, HAD A HEADACHE, ENDED UP BEING OK
by cmc5 on 02/14/2009I bought a 2007 A4 Audi on Dec 31, 2008 at Santa Monica Audi. It was cold that day and I was a bit quick to test drive the car in 5 minutes. At the time, I did not realize that it had been a smokers car. I liked the look of the car, how it… drove, and purchased it. It was quickly cleaned before I drove it off the lot. As I got in it to drive off, I asked the salesperson if he smelled smoke, because I thought I did. I should have trusted my gut. He said, No. He said that it was just the cleaning chemicals and that I should keep the windows open and the smell would go away. Unfortunately, I spent little time in the car that day. I got home and had to go away on a trip. Upon returning 5 days later, I opened up the car to an INTENSE smoke smell as if the car were a smokers lounge. I was so upset. I called the salesperson and explained that he must have known this was a smokers car. He said, Don't worry he'd have it cleaned. He never followed up with me to see if I was happy. I called him and said how unhappy I was.He offered to come to my house an clean it. I said No. I took it back two other times and they tried to thoroughly clean it. Finally, I realized, that I needed someone else to help me because everyday I hated being in the car because it smelled so gross. I got in touch with the owner Sam Dajani. He apologized and said he would help me figure it out. He took the car another time to have it professionally cleaned, every inch with a special solution and gave me a loner. When I picked it up he said try it out and if you aren't happy we'll get you another car. It did smell better, but the smell returned and lingered. Hot LA Days made the smell worse. Sam was very understanding and allowed me return the car for the choice of swapping out for another car or for leasing a car. I opted for leasing this time. I appreciated Sam's acknowledging my bad experience and helping me make it better. There should be a disclaimer on any car that is a smokers car. I know that my original salesperson must have known this was a smokers car. I would never have purchased it had I known. All of the headache could have been eliminated. I love the smell of my new car and hope that it ends up being a great vehicle.Great Salespeople
by andrewzhang on 11/24/2008Dealt mainly with Armen who is a very friendly guy and easy to work with. Set up a price over email, drove over to the dealership and got the price that we agreed to. Very aggressive pricing; instantly agreed to a price that two other… dealerships would not even consider. Unlike with a salesman at another dealership, Armen was very attentive and was very easy to contact. The only problem with this dealership was the finance department. The person there was either very incompetent or very shady so be careful with the numbers that are presented to you. I would definitely recommend this dealership to anyone looking for an Audi.Best Internet Sales in the LA area
by twodomes on 11/21/2008I dealt with EVERY Audi internet/fleet manager in LA, and some in Orange County, and not one of them comes close to the manager at SM Audi, Abtin. He is a straight shooter and does everything he can to get you a good deal that you are both… happy with. I cannot recommend him enough. He spent an hour explaining all the details of my new car. he is very knowledgeable and he made the whole buying experience a good one. This was my second lease from him and not my last! Please tell him Jonathan the grinder sent you!Very professional Internet/Fleet department . Great folks to deal with.
by xred1994 on 04/21/2008Santa Monica Internet/Fleet department has professional staff and willing to provide very aggressive price.Best time buying a car
by fastaudis4 on 03/26/2008I used Edmunds.com for my search for my Audi S4 and wow am I glad. I was contacted by a few dealers, but Greg the sales manager at Santa Monica was by far the easiest and realest person over the phone and in person to deal with. He made… it so simple and his price was the best right out of the gate. He made no attempts to bait and switch us and made the whole process so simple. I am very pleased with the car and the sales process they provided me with. Enough so, that I told Greg I would recommend him to all my friends and family. So far one of my friends has already purchased a TT from him and was just as excited. I had talked to numerous dealers who "had what I wanted" before they knew what I wanted. Greg was the only one who took the time to listen to what I was saying. He was knew to the Audi brand, but you could tell by his professionalism and experience that he knew how to conduct business. I appreciate all they did to make me happy. So if you want an Audi see Greg at Santa Monica and tell him Jeff Laster referred you! I love this car. I'd put his number but he might not like that so much :) JeffA delightful car buying experience.
by shoemaker3 on 01/21/2008I had asked for a quote via the internet. Albit responded quickly with a quote with my requirements, Audi TT 2.0T, Roadster, premium package, etc. I wanted a 3 year lease, 15K mile/year, no down. He quoted me a price that day on a car at… another dealership. We got together the next day, late in the day, and negotiated the details. It was between him and me, no other sales managers or closers. The car was transfered from another dealership and delivered to SM Audi at 8:00p that night. Albit stayed as well as his finance guy and car detailers to deliver my car. Albit was efficient, knowledgable, and professionally polite in his dealings with me. I got what I felt was a fair deal. The finance guy told me of all his add ons but was not pushy. All in all it was a delightful car buying experience.Bad experience with Santa Monica Audi
by przygode on 07/20/2007I called Santa Monica Audi to see if they would broker a third party lease buyout on a 2005 Audi A6. The sales manager stated he would be happy to do the transaction for a $500 fee and we setup an appointment. When the lessee and I… arrived at the dealership for our appointment, the sales guy asked us to wait while he finished up some business. While we waited a different sales guy tried to talk me out of the lease buyout and instead told me it would be cheaper if I were to purchase a new car from him. After 45 minute of waiting around we got pretty impatient and went to find the sales guy who was sitting in his office chit chatting with one of this colleagues about sports. I asked him if he was ready to do the the deal or not, and he basically in a round about way said no. After that, we went to McKenna Audi in Norwalk where the Lessee had purchased the vehicle and they took care of the deal right there with no appointment or fore warning. They were courteous, professional and responsive. Kudos to McKenna Audi, and shame on Santa Monica Audi. Santa Monica Audi purposely told me they would broker the deal to get me in the showroom then stonewalled and tried to get me to buy a new car. McKenna at least did the deal and didn't give me a hard time about it. I will buy my next Audi from McKenna!Will not give quote over email even after requesting it a couple of times
by revhappys2k on 07/31/2012updated 08/03/2025I don't understand why won't dealers give a detailed quote, instead they want you to go in person. I have a newborn at home and do not have the time to visit every dealer. If you want me to come in person give me a good reason, give me a… reasonable offer. Not just 400 down and a minimum down. what is a minimum down?Internet and Email
by thepastaman on 12/11/2013updated 08/03/2025Contact Steve M., concerning internet sales. The only way to go. I wanted a very specific car, that I knew was in the state, at a $3,000 off sticker. He didn't barter, or question, or switch! I told him I would be in today to fill out the… paperwork if he could get the car at that price. He said, "no problem and no problem". I took care of my end, and by the next day he had had it shipped in and detailed, and out the door we went. This was the best car buying experience I have ever had...as opposed to Keyes European!Professional and courteous all the way
by larz1000 on 02/23/2011updated 08/03/2025Just bought a new A4 and had a great experience. The Internet/fleet manager responded to my online request for quote within a few hours. When I arrived, Phil didn't have exactly the color combo I was looking for, but immediately found the… car I wanted after a quick search of other dealers inventories. Put the deposit down and came back the next day to finalize the paperwork. Finance dept was also fantastic. Very matter of fact about the extras. No hard selling on the extended warranties, paint protection, etc. I'd say I spent no more than a total of 2 hours from when I first arrived to when I drove off the lot in my new car. Overall everyone was friendly, helpful, and extremely professional. Never once felt pressured into buying something other than my ideal car. Two thumbs way up for Santa Monic Audi.Great buying experience
by inlove5617 on 09/28/2011updated 08/03/2025we went online and found out the car we were looking for Audi Q5 is very rare to get, so called around and start sending emails to few dealership around to get some pricing. Abtin Navab at Santa Monica Audi fleet manager responded with… great pricing and even lock the rate for us, since we where going to buy this car. In mean while he continued contacting us with the updates and delivery date and all the other extras where delivered. Great experience and the car is exactly what I really wanted. Will do business with them again for our second car soon and highly recommended.
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