Mark Miller Subaru South Towne

Reviews 3

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Bob B

Its a pleasant enough place. The people are okay. The prices arent out of line. However, remember that nothing is ever free. Whatever is included is factored into the price, so youre paying for it. Promise pricing is a no negotiation gimmick. In general, fixed price dealers make more per car than dealers who negotiate. Some people dont like the negotiating part and dont know how to do it properly so they wind up paying more. Maybe Promise Pricing appeals to them. Dont let the invoice price fool you. Look into brand hold backs. A hold back is money per car that a dealer is rebated by the factory at the end of the year, so the invoice isnt the true dealer cost. As an example, if a dealer were selling a $30,000 car for $400 over invoice with a 2% hold back, the buyer is actually paying $1000 more than the true cost of the car. Then of course there are the fees that can vary hugely from dealer to dealer. A document fee is simply a dealer addon. Its not the same as registration fees. Other fees like advertising reimbursement fees, acquisition fees and other baloney are simply one more hurdle to negotiating. Mark Miller doesnt have advertising fees or acquisition fees on purchases, so that too is a plus. In addition, the hold backs can increase during the year as an incentive for the dealers to sell more cars. If a dealer was selling a car for $400 over invoice, and the hold back is increased by $1000, the dealer can advertise they are selling cars at invoice or below and still make more than they did before the incentive hold back. All this should be known to a buyer before setting foot in a dealership. Right now some Subaru models sell fast enough that customers will pay the Promise Pricing and not ask too many questions. It wont always be that way. Like every market there are times when the demand is high so prices rise, and times when its not so prices fall. Subaru is no exception. The last few years sales of Subarus have been increasing and production capacity has lagged behind thus the residual value of used ones is high and raising the cost of new Subarus. Just beware that can change quickly, so dont buy one counting on resale value or it being an inexpensive car to own. Mark Millers service seems to be satisfactory, but there are differences between the two locations. Subarus are not highly reliable vehicles. They are very average to slightly below average in terms of defects and service visits. Like all cars, Subarus quality varies between specific models. Subaru parts are expensive. As they age they require quite a bit of expensive maintenance. So plan on spending some time at the dealer. Subaru is a small car company owned by Fuji HI of Japan. Subaru sells less than a million cars around the world per year and is ranked 22nd in overall sales. Subaru still makes 75% of its cars in Japan. Being small has advantages and many disadvantages. Subarus are better than they used to be, but just because they are built mostly in Japan (and a third in the US) doesnt mean Subarus have the same quality as many models of the Toyotas or Hondas. Basically, the people who like them stick with them and pay for their upkeep. Subaru tends to market to niche groups like outdoor people who also associate with environmentalists, etc. However, there is nothing special about a Subaru when it comes to the environment. The company tries to tie itself to specific causes in an effort at brand identification. Mark Miller is better than the average car dealer so thats good but in the end they are still a car DEALER.

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Jess Watson

When I first was checking out what kind of SUV I wanted a few months back, I went to Mark Miller South Towne. Cole Christofferson was helpful and pulled up several different makes and models to test drive. A little over a month later I was looking at their inventory online and requested some information on two Foresters. I was immediately transferred to Cole, so he could assist me. I was planning on working with him, but did not want to waste his time if the vehicle I was looking at did not fit my needs. Being able to deal with one person seems really great and really amazing customer service...or so I thought. After getting the information I requested we set up an appointment to test drive the Foresters the next day. I messaged him the following day and asked to come in a little early then originally expected (The one I was really interested in was just uploaded to their inventory and I was afraid someone would jump on it) He told me that the tires were currently being changed and he would email me back once they were finished in the shop. About 6 hours later, I decided with traffic I would set out in that direction, so I was able to test drive it when it was done. (how long does changing tires on a car take?) I went to a few different dealerships in the area to pass the time and actually found a really great deal and vehicle that fit my exact needs at Doug Smith in America Fork. I didnt close on the Forester and told the salesman at Doug Smith it was due to me making a previous commitment and appointment with Cole (I am not the type of person who is unreliable and I do not break commitments. Wish I would have known that I could not expect the same from Cole.) After leaving Doug Smith 2 hours after my original test drive appointment had past, I text Cole and asked him if the Forester was out of the shop and if it was ready for a test drive? If not, would he text me for convenience. His response back was "Will Do!" He did not acknowledge my previous question nor did I hear back from him that night, the next day or ever since. The vehicle I was interested in was was still listed online the following days. I could have sent a compliant and probably worked with a different salesman due to my level of interest in the Forester, but I felt so much disrespect from the whole ordeal, I was not about to make this big of a life decision and deal with children. Granted I understand that Cole is one salesman at Mark Miller South Towne, but he represented them at that point. I am a Quality Analyst for one of the biggest online retailers in the world. I use to be a secret shopper for almost every major fortune 500 company you can think of. My career is based around creating a great customer service experience and analyzing customer service representatives. Face to face Cole puts up a minimal effort, but I guess once you walk off the lot his job is done. He does not seem interested in selling cars and in the process wasted my time and devalued me as a customer. Good news is I walked back into Doug Smith in American Fork and dealt with Cody. Who was amazing to work with! He was attentive, got me a great vehicle that I love, and provided a great price with no haggling. In the end, I got really lucky and am now apart of the Subaru family, but any future vehicle purchases I make will not be done through Mark Millar and my friends and family have and will be made aware of my poor experience at Mark Millar.

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Angela Gines

I really enjoyed the low-pressure approach from my salesman Jason. Its a very refreshing change from the pushy "dont let them leave the lot" approach the LHM group employs which is geared towards pushing you into making a decision right then. Im new to Subaru and my first visit to the lot was spent learning about the different options available including detailed pricing information for the various trims and features and a test drive as well. Jason was thorough and very helpful even after he knew I was just "kicking tires" and not looking to buy that day. When I returned a couple of weeks later to make the purchase the process was efficient and everyone was very easy to work with. I had my car appraised, financing completed and the vehicle (delivered from another lot) and ready to go within the space of a couple of hours from my decision to buy a specific vehicle. During the financing portion of the purchase I did encounter the typical strong sale on the extended service contracts and other types of protections, etc. which was really the only time I felt like I was being pushed into doing something I didnt want to do but Pete was pleasant and respected my wishes not proceed with some of his recommendations. He was very thorough and made sure I understood every line in the sales contract. He also went the extra mile in securing me the best available finance rate even after the first one didnt work out. Through his extra effort and time he ended up getting the same terms through a different bank (which, by the way, was a lower rate than the initial quote when we struck the deal so it was a bonus that lowered my expected payment). Now to the car: I was in the market for a crossover vehicle (Ive been driving mid-size sedans forever and wanted to change). I compared the Subaru Forester to the Honda CRV, Nissan Rogue, etc. The difference in the way the vehicle handled and the visibility made the Forester an easy decision. Every other crossover I sat in (and I went to the car show so I sat in every one of them in its class) had a lot less visibility - between the large windows and limited obstructions the Forester is wide open. Plus, because I had the time to compare prices, features and really think about what I wanted from the information I got from my original meeting with Jason, I ended up deciding on the XT Touring model, yes, Ive found my soul mate - Im going to have to invent reasons to drive this thing around, it is so much fun to drive! Thanks for the great buying experience you guys, Ill definitely recommend you to friends and family.

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