Sunset Volkswagen

If I could give this dealership zero stars, I would. My experience with Sunset Volkswagen has been nothing short of a nightmare, and I am writing this review to warn anyone considering doing business with them: do not. Back in May, we purchased a 2018 Hyundai Sonata with only 67,000 miles on it; a mileage that should not raise major concerns for a vehicle of that year. Within two weeks, we began experiencing engine knocking and other concerning noises after driving less than 100 miles. When we reached out for help, we were met with silence and deflection. Our original salesman, Michael, who had been all smiles at the time of purchase, suddenly disappeared; no returned calls, no responses to texts. From there, everything spiraled: Within 30 days, the air conditioning system completely failed. Within 60 days, the axle and engine mounts went out. Within 90 days, water began leaking into the cabin. By 120 days, the alternator failed. Now, less than six months later, the engine is burning oil at an alarming rate (likely pistons or another major engine component), and the thermostat has failed. All told, I have put over $3,500 in repairs into this car — on top of the $14,000 purchase price. At this rate, I could have bought a more reliable vehicle outright from a reputable brand. And let’s be clear; this isn’t just about money. These failures are serious safety hazards. A failed axle or engine mount can cause catastrophic accidents on the highway. An alternator or thermostat failure can leave a driver stranded in dangerous situations. An engine burning oil at this rate is not just a mechanical inconvenience; it’s a fire hazard and a potential death trap. Sunset Volkswagen sold me a car that could have endangered me, my family, and others on the road. This dealership claims their vehicles are “inspected” and “maintained to the highest quality.” That is an outright lie. Either they knowingly sold me a lemon, or they are so negligent in their inspections that they completely missed multiple major issues that became glaringly obvious within weeks. Neither explanation is acceptable. It is obvious Sunset Volkswagen has no interest in accountability or customer care. Once they make the sale, you are on your own. Their silence and refusal to address our concerns speak volumes. I am writing this review as both a frustrated customer and a cautionary tale. If you are considering buying from Sunset Volkswagen, understand the risks: you may end up with an unsafe, unreliable, and costly vehicle, while the dealership washes their hands of any responsibility. For your safety and your wallet, take your business elsewhere.

Sunset Volkswagen illustrates the definition and intent behind – ‘Once the sale is done, customer service no longer exists.’ We recently leased a 2024 Jetta. The lease experience with the salesman Thomas was uneventful. The experience with Samantha on the finance side also appeared to be uneventful. She successfully upsold us on purchasing protective film for the door edges, exterior door handle cups and trunk shelf. Totally our fault for agreeing to this unnecessary expense. We also purchased window tint through Samantha at Sunset, our choice – uneventful. The complete disconnect comes with having the window tint and protective film installed. This required a return trip which was scheduled through Samantha. The car was returned to Sunset on the scheduled day for installation, no one at Sunset had any knowledge of the scheduled installation, or why we were returning the car for the scheduled work. After getting past that unnecessary obstacle, we were told the installation would take an hour and a half, and we agreed to wait. SIX HOURS LATER, we had to seek out someone to find out the status of the one and one-half hour install. The confusion continued and eventually the car was produced. However, only the window tint was installed. When asked as to why the protective film was not installed – crickets. No one was able to help, and we were told to contact Samantha on Monday (this was Friday). We called Monday to find that Samantha does not work Mondays. Is it too much to expect the Sunset representative to know this? Customer service is about setting expectations, then providing a response within those expectations. Apparently, no one at Sunset heard of this concept. Calls were placed to Samantha to schedule the rest of the install but return calls to customers are no longer a consideration post sale. Multiple phone calls to the salesman returned a response of ‘we’ll take care of this’. The actual responsive action was once again, the sound of crickets. Eventually after multiple phone attempts, leaving unreturned messages, a date was scheduled to bring the car back to Sunset for the film installation. As unbelievable as it sounds, again no one at Sunset had any knowledge of the car returning for the film installation. After considerable frustration, and three hours later, we were provided with a loaner while the installation was done. They said should be “an hour and a half”. FIVE HOURS LATER it was done. The loaner was returned, and we were met with unprofessional arrogance as if we had done something wrong and exchanged vehicles and left. We realize that reading this review might solicit, why complain about protective film and window tint? The product is not the subject of the review, it's the Sunset demonstration of complete absence of customer service. We know that someone at Sunset will offer an attempt to defuse this negative review, but words cannot reverse what is obviously their Best Practices – ignore the customer post sale. More importantly – follow this protocol repeatedly.

Looking to buy a VW ID.4 and called to ask questions about the vehicle. The salesperson I spoke with said he would check with their regional VW representative and call me back "in 20 minutes". After 2 hours of waiting I called in again and spoke to another salesperson who said they got busy and the person I spoke to previously would call might right back in a minute. That call never came. At the end of business I called again and left a message with the sales manager describing what had transpired. Two days later I get a call asking what the message was about, I told him what had happened and he was just as clueless as the his sales people about the vehicle. Poor customer service, not knowledgeable at all about the product they are trying to sell. Steer clear of this place.

I had Inquired about a Porsche Macan S via truecar.com, the internet sales reached out and scheduled an appointment to check out the Macan S they had in stock. Decided to visit the dealership as a family since the car would be used as such and wanted to make sure it fits our needs. Walked in and was approached by a sales person who did not introduce himself(but later found online it was Marcus Kohout). He came out and asked if we were there to see VW cars ? Told him about my appointment I made with internet sales and which particular car I was interested in. He started talking about other base models on the lot. I kept Repeating that I was interested in a Macan S and I was told the dealership had one. He went to check with internet sales, came back to say they left for the day and he may have found the car. Showed me a locked car parked in the service bay. I told him I was interested in test driving. He said he couldn’t locate the key and the car was returned with only one key. Service may have it and he will try to locate it. I asked in the mean time If I could take a look at one of the 2019 or newer Macan’s on the lot. He told me “ you need to make up your mind, I can only work on one thing”. I told him I’ll wait for him to Locate the key. While we we’re waiting we came across another sales person he was extremely nice and professional and asked my kids if they needed anything and put the TV on for them. From the time I met Marcus I felt like I was bothering him and he was annoyed. Even though I was extremely patient with him. He kept asking me on occasion if I ever drove a Porsche before? I responded each time and said I haven’t driven a Macan before. Finally, after waiting for quite a while for him to locate the key. He came out and said the car is ready and cooling down. When we walked to it I immediately recognized it was a Base Macan. He didn’t mention anything until I said that it’s not a Macan S. We decided to do a quick test drive and returned the car within few mins. He said there’s a Macan GTS but I cannot look as there’s a recall on it and we left. Overall, we had higher expectations from the Porsche dealership as we received nothing but excellent sales experience at all luxury/non luxury dealers in town and elsewhere. This was the first time ever we felt a sales person treated us with hesitation and which a touch of discrimination.

The team at Suncoast Motorsports is by far the best of the best. They go above and beyond to assist you in every way and ensure you find the perfect car for you that fit all of your specifications, and some! They truly cater to you! I can’t say enough about the signing process. Rob who we did our signing with explained everything perfectly while making the process smooth and seamless, and provided us all of our documentation via USB to retain for our records (and save resources!) The communications between all of the staff at Suncoast Motorsports is superior and they truly care about taking care of their clients which clearly shows in the entire process from the moment they greet you to the moment you drive off the lot in your dream car.

We love our Jetta! We were shopping for a new car but ended up buying a used Jetta in great condition with extremely low mileage. Thank you Susanne and Rob for your friendly, professional customer service. We appreciated the helpful, no pressure treatment we received. They helped us explore different options for vehicles and we are very pleased with what we ended up with. Highly recommend Sunset Volkswagen!

$1373.40 in FEES for a $30,000 used car. No discount was given in their counter-offer after my initial offer of $1000 less than asking for a car that's been sitting for months (based on carfax). $474 was "Gov't fees" which were not itemized upon multiple requests. They could have had a sale for near asking, but getting treated like an idiot sent us to the Tesla dealership. Face-palm emoji!

Tom our sales person was terrific. Mark in the finance department was equally efficient and a pleasure to work with. The car delivered was magnificent. Definitely going to work with them again.

The Sales Team were very professional and extremely helpful in assisting us with our first purchase from this dealership. We were treated well and all questions engaged and answered. We appreciate the patience and consideration they gave us. They went over and above to make this process as smooth as possible.

Very good service and very professional. I would definitely recommend this dealership. The salesperson was attentive and very courteous. Nice selection of cars and well located.