Clawson Honda of Fresno

Clawson's website and the linked CarFax report advertised a 2011 CR-V as certified. We test drove it, negotiated a price, and proceeded with purchase. Near the end of the lengthy sales process, I asked about certification and the Sales Manager on duty said the vehicle was not certified. Having forgotten the website and CarFax statements about certification, I agreed to proceed. The next day, I called the same Sales Manager, and pointed out the advertising and CarFax statements about certification. He rebuked me for raising the certification issue again on the grounds that he had disclosed the non-certified status before the purchase was finalized. Having learned that California's Vehicle Code section 11713.18(a)(9) addresses this situation, I attempted to confer further with sales management and sensed I was getting "slow walked." So, I telephoned the General Manager's office. Nikki displayed keen interest and referred me to Tony, who had been recently promoted to General Manager overseeing all Clawson dealerships. After listening to my recap, Tony revealed the underlying problems: (1) a recent audit by Honda resulted in Clawson losing its ability to certify vehicles for at least 90 days and voided certification of our vehicle, (2) advertising had not been updated accordingly, and (3) sales staff had not informed us of these situations. In a voluntary response, Tony had Clawson purchase a service contract and take other steps which provided us the equivalent of certification. This four-star rating reflects the excellent value we received and Tony's first-rate professionalism, offset by the time, effort and assertion required to bring about resolution. I posted this review because, in response to my thanks for his help, Tony asked that I write a candid on-line review.