Kokomo Auto World

09/29/2023 UPDATE: Received a response from "owner" saying they would look into my situation and get back to me. Going along with their lack of care and follow-thru, this is now over a month and I have heard ZERO from them! This is to be expected from 2nd rate dealerships where the main priority is revenue at all costs. BEWARE...Dealership verbally offers things and doesn't follow through. It's the best way to do it since there is no proof of offers extended to customers. I drove 10 hours round trip to purchase a car. Was given the run-a-round for over 1 month with "out of state" paperwork and them giving me a copy of the Carfax. In finance the guy told me he wasn't very familiar with out of state deals, go figure! Most recently I was dealing with Andy the used car manager and now waiting on one of the things I was promised (14.00 touch up paint) going on seven weeks now. Was also offered NEW floor mats, which I never got! I've been lied to and played by this dealership. Maybe because I'm far enough out of state for them to provide after purchase customer service. You would think that the Owners Greg Landwerlen or Jim Kerbrdle would step up and make things right...

I initially thought I would write a good review, but the sales manager - Andy Sparger - hastily botched a remote sale in progress with his arbitrary terms that were not clear to me or my salesman. The preowned salesman - a really nice guy - and the preowned sales manager had poor and inconsistent communication between themselves and with me for the sale of a car I was in the middle of purchasing, in which I already had money down. Ultimately the sales manager sold it to someone else while they still had my down payment because I could not respond fast enough, in less than 24 hours, to his immediate and unexpected demand for full immediate payment, shared at the literal end of the working day prior. This contradicted what the salesman had initially shared earlier and what he and I had agreed to. The miscommunication between the two employees - including about my times of availability to discuss issues related to my purchase - ultimately ended with them selling my reserved car immediately. A few red flags about the dealership led me to do my own research that night before speaking with the manager the next afternoon - when the car was sold to someone else -- namely: 1/ receiving texts from personal cell phones 2/ vague explanation about the proposed 'ghost sale' (and me questioning its legality) and then 3/ the unexpected demand for full payment immediately before picking it up. For me, the most biting aspect was that the sales manager insinuated as though I had caused great distress to the dealership by not answering his call while I was working (teaching!) in the morning and midday and assumed that I was trying to scam the dealership. (How would I be a scammer if I had already successfully deposited $2,000 and had provided my driver's license, in addition to securing a plane ticket to the region?!?!) This alone shows his lack of due diligence to me and his salesman. He even said that I had left the dealership without communication for days, which was completely false, as I spoke to him less than 24 hours after he had demanded new conditions for the sale at the very last minute the day prior, and I came with informed questions about the process. When we did speak the next afternoon, the sales manager said that he considered my transaction cancelled and had invited a new customer to look at the car in that moment, and ultimately sold it to them an hour later. While the dealership has agreed to refund my down payment the next business day, I cannot express how disappointed I am in the sales manager. He acted without tact to give me less than 24 hours to respond to his last-minute change to the transaction process. He judged me to be a scammer despite money I had put up alongside my identification documents. A good manager would take ownership for this mismanagement and miscommunication. He had the opportunity to take responsibility and tell the potential new customer that it was his mistake, the car is in fact under contract - because it was. He did not, for the sole purpose of making an immediate sale. I wonder what my salesman - who had a day off this day - thinks of this hostile takeover of his transaction and client? It was unfortunate to lose not only my time (spanning three days of contact) and my peace of mind in working with the sales manager, but also money spent on the plane ticket that is now non-refundable. If the dealership actually cared about customers, the sales manager could work to rectify the dilemma he engineered by offering to find a comparable car at a comparable price for me, to make good on our initial transaction. I sure hope the ownership and HR team of this dealership take the time to investigate the protocol and communication system of the preowned sales manager for remote sales, to better respect customers who have committed to a purchase with a down payment, and to respect their sales associates in the process. I expect to hear back from ownership on a way to rectify this situation.

If I could, I would give a rating of negative 5! On August 3, 2022, I took my Honda Accord to Kokomo Auto World for service because the vehicle's check engine light was blinking, and the VSA and exclamation point warning lights were on. At stop signs and stop lights the engine hesitated and ran rough. The service representative that I initially dealt with flippantly said the blinking check engine light was really a "time to trade in indicator", prior to having any diagnostics completed. After a technician ran tests another service representative came to me in the waiting room. She informed me that the tests showed codes PO304- cylinder 4 misfire and PO430- leaking injector- damaged converter, and presented a Repair Estimate of $8,783.67 and advised that the vehicle should not be driven at all, almost giving me another heart attack. My wife and I were staying at a lake house in Rochester. I decided to drive the car back to the lake house, using the cruise control set at 62 mph. Once there I called the service manger at Valley Honda, my home Honda dealer in Aurora, Illinois. We discussed the codes, symptoms and the Repair Estimate issued by Kokomo Auto World. Valley Honda has the largest sales volume of all Honda dealerships in Illinois, and I have done business with them since 1999. The service manager from Valley Honda indicated that the service codes and Repair Estimate made no sense to him. We decided that I would drive the vehicle back to Aurora, Illinois in the same fashion as I drove from Kokomo to Rochester. After we got back to Illinois, I took the vehicle to Valley Honda. Service code PO304 was obtained and a finding that #4 spark plug oil fouled, but the indicated repair was drastically different. Valley Honda replaced #4 plug. The codes were cleared and retested. The car has been running like new since Valley Honda completed the work. The invoice from Valley Honda was $118.75 vs the Kokomo Auto Repair Estimate of $8,783.67. INCREDIBLE! Kokomo Auto World is the worst. Either incompetent or dishonest, or both. I WILL NEVER HAVE ANY FUTURE DEALINGS WITH KOKOMO AUTO WORLD! Michael McGurn

We were forced into something. We were very uncomfortable. We bought a 40k vehicle just to be treated like this? Will never buy another vehicle from here.

Wonderful folks at Kokomo Auto World! Very friendly and helpful! Would highly recommend to friends, family and anyone looking to purchase a vehicle or have repairs completed.

Searched Internet for a Sienna and while 90 miles away, we went to look at it not only because it was the vehicle we wanted but also because of my salesman Adam Richardson who was fantastic to work with. Had a lot of questions and not only did he answer them all but very quickly via e-mail and text. Great to meet him in person. Once we looked the vehicle over and did a detailed "look around", we purchased it that same day. Adam was great--start to finish. Also would like to recognize the Finance person ( sorry forgot his name but an ex-Marine!) From my experience from start to finish, I'm glad I made the decision to travel the 90 miles (one way).

I had a wonderful experience with buying a car from kokomo auto world. I found the car online, called and spoke with a representative from the dealership and they made everything super easy. We drove several hours to look at the car and drive it. It was perfect and I love it! It was in the exact condition that they listed and was immaculate. Everyone we dealt with was friendly and the dealership was clean. After leaving I found one small flaw on the windshield that I hadn't noticed while we were there. I called and spoke with someone and they took care of it promptly!

My father always swore that these guys were the best and most honest people in the car business. I took his Tundra there for a repair. They tried to charge me 10% over list price for the part and then tried to upsell me a brake bleed for $139 for a job that REQUIRES a brake bleed. I guess they didn't know I spent many years managing a Toyota store and had already looked up the parts and labor when they tried to rip me off. I'll be buying and servicing in Fishers from now on. I do not tolerate thieves.

Horrible experience. Even though they pride themselves on being open and honest that’s a lie. They aren’t. About anything. I was looking to purchase a used vehicle and had a deadline to meet. The vehicle I chose hadn’t been priced yet and details very grey. But they assured me it would be finalized by Monday when I needed to purchase the vehicle. Still grey on Monday and still no price given. I forgot that I gave a $500 check to hold the vehicle, my bad. Also assumed the vehicle had a warranty as nothing was said otherwise until I got the car detailed the next week and was handed the paperwork to sign that it had no warranty. I’d never pay 12,000 on a vehicle with no warranty. And to top it off I was told that the credit company we were going through had a grace period as the car we originally assumed would be in our monthly budget was a hundred over and wasn’t told this until we were signing paperwork. Credit Acceptance doesn’t have a grace period and I was counting on this as we have other bill as well due on the final due date for payment we were told which was the 23rd and not the 8th. Don’t go there for a vehicle. Also forgot to say before a month has past the engine maintenance light is on. Actually that was after 2 weeks of owning the vehicle.

Call Adam Richardson! I will never go to another dealership again. I live 3 hours away in the Chicagoland suburbs. I was looking for a very specific Subaru and had visited several local dealerships. The price point was a little high and the customer service at all the dealerships were lacking. As if the cars will sell themselves. Not at Kokomo. I contacted them via email and immediately Adam Richardson called me back. Answered every question or concern I had. And sent me a personal video tour of inside and outside of the vehicle being honest about every single detail about the car so there would be no surprises when I arrived. They gave me top dollar for my trade in and worked out all financing, details and negotiations before I even arrived so I did not wast my time. Their price was the lowest in a 200 mile radius and had the most features on the car. Adam was absolutely amazing to work with. Went completely above and beyond for me. This is how all dealerships should be. Andrew and Christ helped out in the financial aspect and got me an amazing interest rate. I couldn’t have asked for better service than what I received there all around. No high pressure. Treated me and my family as if we were their family. So glad we made the drive out there. Will recommend this place to everyone I know.