Customer Reviews of AutoNation Toyota South Austin
Review type:
Smooth process throughout
by Sashi K on 02/01/2025
Buying a car from this dealership was super easy ! thanks for all the help Rito, Polyana and Charlie.
440 reviews
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Jim Lee is the Man
by bowie69godawgs on 07/02/2010I've been searching and debating between a Dodge, Cheverolet, GMC and Toyota for a couple of years. Actually i started looking at the Toyota's in 2008 and then went on down the trail to decide which truck do i like. Which one of these has… the comforts that i'm looking for in a truck. Will i went full circle. Started looking at the Toyota's went and checked out all the others but for the price and size truck i got i couldn't beat it. Jim Lee pulled out all the stops to get me my truck. He went above and beyond Customer Satisfaction to make sure i was a Happy Toyota Truck owner. I will send all of my friends and family to Jim Lee if their in the market for a great vehicle and salesperson.Experience so great, bought a 2nd car the next week!
by teamlilyabean on 03/31/2010Found the dealership via Edmunds. Jim Lee, our salesperson, gave a quote quickly w/o hassle or haggling. It beat the others by at least $1k and that was us supposedly getting the Costco club discount. They matched my outside appraisal on… my trade-in and even got me a slightly more expensive 2011 Toyota Sienna for the original quote because it was the color I liked. That saved us over $2k what the other guys up North were offering (again, at the Costco predetermined discount). We had an issue with our after market rear entertainment system. Champion outsourced to a great guy (was awesome) but he said cost was an additional $275 to install with a dedicated pathway for sound (vs. using an FM radio frequency). I sent Jim a note expecting to have to argue or push for them to address it. I quickly got back a note that just said, "Consider it handled." And it was. Just like that. We actually abandoned our plans to purchase a 2nd vehicle of different make and found a Toyota RAV4 that fit the bill just so we could go back to Jim and Champion. Got a great price and 0% financing as well. We love both of our cars and both experiences were great. I even liked my Finance person, Wade Higgenbotham. He was polite, helpful and not pushy. On the RAV4 purchase the Finance Mgr. got involved to make sure they got us in/out quickly (I wasn't super impressed with Finance guy #2 but the Mgr. and my salesperson jumped in and we were all good!!!). The customer service guys, Mark and JD, were also great to work with. Definitely ask for Jim if you go in. He's the reason we went back for car #2. His office is full of awards. Work with him and you'll understand why!Dealership Won't Even Back Their Own Cars - HORRIBLE
by jlee2380 on 03/19/2010I purchased this Toyota Avalon 2005 thinking that if it was certified, it's probably a solid bet that the car won't have too many issues. They constantly reassured me that with EVERY single question I had about the reliability about the… car that it was certified. FALSE CONFIDENCE. I have had this car for 8 or 9 months, had to take it in for work 3 times. These 3 times weren't very quick repairs either. Each time averaged about a week. Then, I took my car in the last incident because my brake "stuck" and it accelerated. This is the Toyota nationwide recall for this and many other models. I had popped my car in Neutral and tried to hit Park but stalled before I could. The car would not start up again. I had it towed to where I bought the car from. Champion Toyota. They take a few business days to get back to me. When I finally get a hold of the service advisor, he tells me that I have contaminated fuel and he quotes me $750 to clean the fuel lines and tank. Actually before he said this, he had a "disclaimer" already set up and said, "this has nothing to do with the recall on your Toyota but....." I call back a few times to only get a voice mail. I call back to talk to a service manager, I get placed into some department that hands the note to the service manager. I did that on Monday, no call back. On Friday, I decide to call them and get a hold of a service advisor. He tells me Keith will call me in a little bit. This was absurd. The car was running well, definitely at least starting up fine, before the recall and wasn't ok since the incident that caused me to take an instinctive measure in popping into Neutral. Indirectly, at the very least, is this recall the culprit here. Champion Toyota, the freaking dealership I had purchased the car from, will not acknowledge that. On top of NOT having the car towed back to my home free of charge, they said that I can pick it up myself and drive it AFTER he said there is no way I am sending one of my guys out there to drive the car. This was Keith, THE SERVICE MANAGER. So, pretty much he tells me drive this car at your own risk, or pay for the tow or pay ridiculously for the repair. Great options, huh?Great Experience
by jaganii on 02/04/2010I wanted to take a moment to comment on the sales experience I had with Champion Toyota in Austin Texas. I did my research prior to purchasing and emailed all of the internet sales departments within a 100 mile radius of my residence… telling them what I was interested in (Prius IV) and asking them to get back with me on price. While I did hear back from several. Jon Porterfield, director of internet sales for Champion Toyota, was the only one who did not try to play games. While the others immediately started at MSRP. Mr. Porterfield's initial offer did not insult my intelligence. And during the negotiation he was always prompt in his reponses and courteous in his demeanor. There was no "high pressure" like I felt with some of the other salespeople. When we were able to come to an agreement on the price. I went down to finalize the paperwork. At the showroom, none of the figures changed and I was able to get in and out in less than one hour, including financing. I also think Mr. Drake of the financing department did a good job. There was no pressure for add-ons, etc... . I would recommend Mr. Porterfield and Champion Toyota in Austin to anyone who is in the market for a new car.2009 Toyota Venza -- Great Experience!!
by briggsda on 01/05/2010My wife and I had to purchase a new vehicle due to my new job. Since we had 2 cars that were already paid off, we weren't really looking forward to going through the whole car buying process. After looking around, we decided on a 2009… Toyota Venza. I can tell you that Champion Toyota and the salesman, Scott Foss, made the process very painless!! They worked with us much more than any of the other dealerships and didn't play any of the normal games one encounters when buying a car.Dan Lewis - Excellent and Trustworthy
by brookshire4 on 12/28/2009I bought a Toyota Corolla recently and had a great experience. Dan Lewis was my car salesman, and was unlike any salesman I have ever worked with. He truly was a good person and authentically cared for my needs as a buyer. I would recommend… anyone to go to this dealership (Champion Toyota) and ask for Dan Lewis. I got a fantastic deal and I am very happy with my purchase. I was able to get 1000 dollars more for my trade then other dealers and got rid of almost all my inequity from my previous trade.Great Experience buying at Champion
by mechtheist on 11/17/2009I was impressed all around by how things went when I bought my Tacoma. The salesman, Jim Lee, was very knowledgeable and helpful, all questions answered truthfully, and he came through with everything he promised. The other staff are… extremely courteous, helpful, professional. No Hard-sell which I find very aggravating. They have the best coffee machine I have come across in any kind of shop/store.Best Toyota Dealer in Austin
by paulfromaustin on 10/30/2009No dealer is perfect, but Champion has the other 2 Austin dealers beat by a mile. The sales people more or less just got the job done without a lot of sleazy attempts to steer you to something you don't want or up sell you to something you… don't need. They respond to phone calls and emails in a timely fashion. They got me a 2010 Prius in the color I wanted in one week even while they are in short supply. They got me an adequate trade in value a week before the new car arrived and did not try to change that number (a sleazy tactic used by less ethical dealers) on the day of the deal. I went to Champion after attempting to get a car through [another dealership], but that was a total disaster which after 3 weeks got me no closer to a car. After that fiasco of employee incompetence, outright lies by management, and a complete inability to perform, Champion looks golden. If I had read the reviews here first I would have already known that and not wasted my time. Champion is still a dealership and they will try to make as much money off of you as possible, but they didn't lie to me or unnecessarily delay me. They just got the job done.Great Experience!
by monikaw on 10/28/2009I used Edmunds.com to research the vehicles in which I was interested, went and test drove them, picked my choice and was ready to make an offer when I contacted Champion Toyota. Allen Lenth at Champion Toyota was my sales person. He… recognized that I was a serious buyer who had done her homework, and he did not try any of the usual dealer tactics to try to get more money. He treated me with respect and made the deal seamless and easy. I would highly recommend him as a salesperson and Champion Toyota as a dealer to anyone looking for a new Toyota. (As in all things, though, I also recommend you do your homework before you go in.......the more you know about your vehicle and the invoice pricing, the better your experience will be.)found our Venza
by bruckgirma on 10/06/2009Me and my wife had been looking for a specific venza, color+options, for a while and we had visited the numerous dealers and online databases. It really was hard to find the venza with the specific combination of options we were looking… for and most sales associates didn't seem to care to do the extra work to find us the car. In fact it looked to us like they just wanted to sell the expensive ones sitting in their lots. However, we ran into Roland at south champion and he found our venza (that was destined to be delivered to out of state) with the exact combination of options within out budget!! His service was excellent and he is a nice guy and he respects his job and he cared for our needs.FRAUD!! FRAUD!! FRAUD!! FRAUD!!
by gilcdds on 08/25/2009BEWARE!!! SERVICE DEPT. IS ALL ABOUT FRAUD. I towed my vehicle in for brake trouble on my 2008 toyota sequoia..had just purchased it from out of town dealer.Unfortunatley my vehicle broke down while on vacation and I had to get it towed… to Champion. They told me vehicles brake fluid was contaminated with power steering fluid. and since it was human error warranty would not pay for it. Champion blamed Firestone for contaminating fluid since they are the ones who changed our oil. Service manager (Keith Hennesy)stated to me-" I have been doing this for 25 yrs and it is what it is...I know what I am looking at". It will cost you $7,000 to fix and we can have it ready in 2 days! they were very quick to quoute us this amount! Well I am an educated consumer and did not believe it was contaminated because I had driven vehicle greater than 2,000 miles since last oil change and had no trouble. You usually cant drive that far with power steering fluid in your brake system! We quickly towed our vehicle out of Champion Toyota. I had a mechanic pull fluid from brake fluid reservoir and had it sent to a lab in california. The results came back with no contamination of any! (nothing I did not know) Champion toyota had fluid sent to their own lab of choice and they stated it came back contaminated with water (10 times the normal amt.) not power steering fluid! but they would not release results to us because it is proprietary info.! Well I took vehicle to another toyota dealership and guess what? they found no contamination of brake fluid.!!!! no water, no power steering fluid. What gets even more mysterious is that they saved me a sample of what they sent to their lab....and so I sent it to my lab and guess what? results showed no contamination either!!! This is what u call a classic case of fraud. search for reviews for them.......they do not have good reviews!!! not a surprise. I would steer clear from this service dept....they do not know what they are doing. and whats even sadder is that the manager stood behind all this fraud.Not only is the service department a FRAUD, but the Toyota Corporation is too. We contacted both of them on a problem we had with our 1999 Avalon. They told us that it was our problem not theirs. When you buy a Toyota, your service ends when you drive the car off the lot. I am really sorry that you had a problem with them. We will never buy another Toyota car. Our 1999 Avalon was in our driveway for a year before we could afford to get it fixed. We were still paying on it. We took it to a private company to fix it. Good Luck!
Selection, Test drive and Negotiations on My 2010 Toyota Camry XLE
by billnaustin on 07/29/2009Champion sales experience was excellent. My experience in Auto buying is extensive. My sales person Mr. Nassir A was expedient in helping us select,test drive and answer my wife and I were totally satisfied with his style and delivery. I… spent 40 years in this business being either a sales person or a manager or general manager at a Chevy store in college station. The floor and gen sales manager were great listeners and both followed up after the sale to check the opinion and outcome of the final deal. there may be others equally as efficient as Champion Toyota's sales and finance group:but not many. we traded a 2008 Mercedes C300 and are very happy with the Camry XLE.1999 Avalon- Oil Sludge
by flos on 04/25/2009My husband and I bought a 1999 Avalon in 2005 from Champion Toyota. We did not find out right away that our car had an oil sludge problem. We went online to check to see if there had been a recall on our car. There wasn't a recall, but… there was a class action suit. We found out that the date to be part of the class action suit had already passed. We then contacted Toyota headquarters. We were told that they wouldn't do anything about our car, because the date to file for the suit had passed. There should have been a recall on the car, not a class action suit. Our car has been sitting in our driveway for over a year, because it will not drive. We are paying for a car that isn't drivable. I know when you buy a used car, it isn't perfect. Toyota knew that there was a problem with several years of Avalons. We would have appreciated knowing this, so we could have purchased a different car. It is great to have a good product, but if you don't have good customer service, then a good product isn't worth much. We really value good customer service. It is really upsetting when a company as big as Toyota, won't stand behind their product. We also bought a 2008 Corolla in November, 2007. We will never buy another Toyota product. Good Luck. Flo Smallnot surprised u were not helped by either Champion or Toyota headquarters. its a good idea not to buy another toyota.
used car dept
by stacieh84 on 04/15/2009i am a single mother of three that need reliable transportation.i went to champion toyota because i had a relative that used to work there and highly recommended them . i found a van on their web site in my price range,when i got there the… price was $300 more than advertised.after just 6 weeks ,it broke down on me and now i stuck with no transportation again and a van has major problems.i am about to lose my job over this issue with no transportation. thanks champion toyotaExcellent Experience Buying My 2009 Prius!
by OilManSam on 02/10/2009Let me tell you. This is my first time ever buying a car on my own. My only experiences I've had buying cars were with my dad over the years. We've bought 3 Toyota cars and each time was always a hassle trying to get the dealership to give… us the bottom line, with the 4 square games. So in preparing for this, I did all my research on edmonds and other websites trying to figure out invoice pricing, what others paid and manufacturers incentives. I went into Champion Toyota with a a price range I wanted to pay that I knew would be fair, which obviously was much less than the MSRP including the incentives. Brad Stroud was the sales person who contacted me after submitting for information online. From the moment we met him, he never tried to oversell us or push us and only wanted to sell us what we want or just needed. He was always patient and willing to meet with us anytime we needed. After picking which car we wanted, we sat down to discuss pricing. I told him immediately all I cared about was the price of the car, no monthly payments, no down payment, no financing talk. He came back with a price for us and it was only a couple hundred over my desired range, which was nearly $3000 under MSRP already. I got him to knock the few hundred off and we were right there in my range! There was never any "let me talk to my manager", "Im barely making any money", or sitting and waiting for hours game. Everything went smooth and quickly and they gave us the price we wanted almost upfront. I'm sure I could have "haggled" some to get it lower, but I was already happy and didn't feel like I need too. Priuses 3 months ago were on waiting lists that were months long and they were paying almost full MSRP. I felt like I got a great deal! Afterwards we went and talked with Jay the fiance guy and even then he didnt trying to sell me anything I didnt need. I asked them afterwards why it was so different at this dealership and they both told me it's based on service, they want repeat business back and Jay said he was paid based on how many contracts he got financed and not what he sold us. -SamOk, but ask detailed questions to get the real answers.
by Sail_ski_bum on 02/02/2009Recently received a reasonable reply quote via email. Talked to our salesman several times to confirm that the vehicle was available and that we would be down to do the deal. Decided to trade in another vehicle (Edmunds trade-in value… $3500) and was eventually told they would only offer $1500. Since we had already had another salesman tell us $2500 was fair, we weren't too happy. Not terribly surprised they decided they could make another grand off the sale of our trade-in, but we were determined not to fold. They knew we had a doctors appointment that afternoon and I think they decided to ratchet the tension up through delays. Not acceptable. This vehicle would be no problem to sell, but the rebate offers were ending in a couple of days and the inventory was sparse, so we needed to move then. Well, we're fussing back and forth about the trade-in value and of course our salesman is giving us the "I'm on your side" routine and "I'll go back and see if there's anything I/we can do" lines. The psychology behind these routines would be funny if it wasn't so stupid. At one point we asked to "see" our vehicle and we were told it was in the make ready area being detailed. When I posed a HUH?, I got a quick "just a wash and vacuum job" answer. Surely a new vehicle wouldn't need detailing, right? So, JJ comes back for the 2nd time (each wait is 10-15 minutes, long enough for the salesman to have a smoke and a cup of coffee and to let you know who's in control) and says he has good news....He twisted some arms and got what we wanted out of our trade-in, which is only $2500, BUT, he also just found out the car has a couple of miles on it. After pulling his wisdom teeth teeth, he admitted to over 1100 miles. Still, not a deal breaker, but disappointing all the same. We drove a long ways to buy this "new" car, and we are keeping an open mind. He shows us the offer sheet with the pricing and everything looks about where we expected it to be, so we sign the offer sheet. It's then that I realize, we still haven't even seen the vehicle, nor the add-on feature, priced at more almost $700. (This is apparently a steal, since JJ said so....12 times.) So we are finally led to the vehicle (it seemed like hours later) and right off I find a big round, dry spot of paint damage on middle of the hood, scratches on the tail light lenses and scratches on the plastic door panels. This is after detailing! Well, after promises of total vehicle re-paintings (of course, this comment was denied completely, just hours later), complete part replacements, and lifetime servitude by the entire dealership, everything seems to be resolved acceptably. Woops, now we realize that some of the equipment listed on their online invoice was wrong, Only the driver's seat is power, different mirrors, etc, not to mention the problem with the mileage. Nothing within their control, we're assured. Gee, I guess they were as surprised as we were! At least until after we signed off on the offer. By the way, don't bother ordering the backup camera as an aftermarket installation. It is a poor substitute for the company design. The camera is mounted on the license plate holder and could be stolen by removing two bolts. The rear view mirror display is nice though....at night! In daylight, you can't make out anything due to the back lighting from the windshield. Again, we weren't shown a unit, but we were TOLD it was a GREAT unit. Since they were charging exactly what Edmunds listed as the invoice cost, we ASSUMED it was the same unit. Big mistake. I called a few days later to discuss the paint issues, which wasn't corrected with buffing, and the problems with the backup camera and to generally voice my concerns, figuring the Manager would be interested in some honest feedback. HA! No sooner did I start into my story than he just exploded on the phone "JUST BRING THE THING BACK AND WE'LL UNDO THIS WHOLE DEAL. I WON'T HAVE ANY UNHAPPYGreat Experience
by fkp on 01/07/2009I recently purchased a 2009 Corolla. I love the car, it's easy to handle and a very smooth ride. The whole experience at Champion Toyota was great - from the initial greeting until I drove off the lot with my new car. Special thanks to… Nassir Ahmed (sales rep) and Nick Drake (finance rep). I truly appreciate the courtesy and professionalism I was shown by all personnel involved.Great Service!
by jleecraft on 08/16/2008I am very happy with the service I receive from Champion. I have a Toyota Highlander, and when I take it in for regularly scheduled service, I am in and out quickly, efficiently, and Champion makes sure I am confortable. It helps that the… Toyota Highlander is a well-built car, as I have not had a single problem with it and it is 3 years old. Good sales representation and good service. How refreshing.Great Experience
by chulofulo on 08/05/2008I've purchased several vehicles from Champion. Each expereience has been a very pleasant one. I commend Steve Roy and his effforts to take care of my needs. The entire staff has been attentive any questions/concerns I may have. I would… definitely recommend this dealership.New car review
by gpa1 on 07/17/2008Recently purchased an 08 Avalon from Champion Toyota from the start to the finish everyone was extremely helpful, knowledgeable, friendly and professional. A very pleasant experience. Many thanks to Kevin Hupp, Ben Bennent, Steve Roy… (sales rep), Nick Drake (finance rep.) and Bill Brown in delivery.New Car purchased
by jsalantai on 07/07/2008Jose Lopez helped me purchase my new 4runner. I managed to find the exact vehicle I wanted with his help. I had tons of questions and put him through more than he probably wanted. However, he stuck with me through all of it and in return… received my business. Thanks!
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About our dealership
We make it easy - we'll buy your car with a check that you can deposit the same day, our pre-owned vehicles come with a 5-day return policy* and we'll even sanitize your vehicle so you can buy and service safely. Now that’s easy. Schedule an appointment today!
*Money-Back Guarantee is valid for 5 days or 250 miles, whichever comes first. See store for complete guarantee, warranty and service contract details.
What sets us apart
Through DRV PNK, we continue to raise millions to support cancer research and treatment. Every AutoNation Pink Plate on the road helps put our fight against cancer on full display.
We offer a wide range of finance or lease programs with a menu that makes financing with us clear & simple.
We’ll buy your car and give you a check that you can deposit the same day. Get a certified offer for your vehicle, guaranteed for 7 days or 500 miles at any of our locations, even if you don’t buy a car from us.
We use an EPA-approved disinfectant to sanitize every vehicle we sell. Plus, we offer store-to-door-delivery for a safer shopping experience.
Our pre-owned vehicles are priced just right. Every 1Price Pre-Owned Vehicle is backed by a 5-day or 250-mile (whichever comes first) Money-Back Guarantee and a CARFAX™ Vehicle History Report.
Amenities
- Complimentary Coffee
- Complimentary WiFi
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback with us. We're always here to provide exceptional service at a great value -- we hope you'll consider us again in the future!
by Sue Tilly on 02/04/2025