Complaint Review:
Volunteers of America Auto Sales Michigan
Volunteers of America Auto Sales Michigan Stole my money for a vehicle that only lasted 4 months. Pontiac , Michigan
My husband and I had gone to Volunteers of America Auto Sales in Pontiac Michigan looking for a van that we could use for our Elder Care business. When we bought it the sales man said that the car had a good couple years left on it and that the check engine light was nothing to worry about that it was probably the 02 sensor that always breaks on a car for whatever reason. My husband and I bought this van for $1700 and one day while driving to Livonia Mi this car stopped running and would only go 35 mph on the freeway. When I got to my husbands work it was barely moving at 5 mph and then finally died and wouldn't start up again. The mechanic we had look at it thought it was the distributor cap so he replaced it and it still wouldn't run. Long story short it had to be towed back to our home in Saline and today I tried calling Volunteers of America to see if they could do anything for me or if they would buy it back from me.
This guy Bob told me I was a liar that his sales guy never told me that it would last years (Even though "BOB" wasn't there) He told me that I was sh*t out of luck because I guess they sell their vehicles as is. This isn't right I spent $1700 on this van expecting to get more then 4 months out of it and they won't do anything for me they wont even buy it back. This man was very rude to me on the phone and I am disgusted by how they run this business. They are selling piece of sh*t cars at high prices probably knowing they won't last long. I will NEVER buy another vehicle from them again and hope I can sell my van to get another car. Thanks a lot Volunteers of America you sure do care about the people who spend hard earned money on your junk and then won't do anything to help you out.
5 Updates & Rebuttals
Scott
Waterford,Michigan,
U.S.A.
VOL does not require their mechanics to be certified
#6Consumer Comment
Sun, November 06, 2016
I was on VOL's website a a couple weeks ago and decided to look at their jobs page. They had a mechanics position open and required a High School diploma and no certification. Michigan law requires mechanics to be certified when working on automobiles for pay.
I am well aware of the fact that a certification does not = a good mechanic. I have personally accomplished things with autos that a certified mechanic either could not or would not do. However, when a person is working on autmobiles for a living, they should do the studying and become certified.
A company, even a non profit, that is doing repairs and providing vehicles to low income persons should be required to have certified mechanics on staff when they have one repairing automobiles.
That said: it is imperative that if you are purchasing a used vehicle, that you have someone look at it who knows a few things about cars. It is imperative that you not purchase a vehicle with warning lights on or the obvious sticky shifter. Especially, if you have no choice but to purchase a vehicle for that amount!
Jim
Orlando,Florida,
USA
Trusting or dumb?
#6Consumer Comment
Sun, October 07, 2012
If you read the paperwork BEFORE you signed it there would be no "PROBABLY" about it! You would have known this was an AS IS purchase! Was the salesman looking at the actual data stream from the oxygen sensor when he told you that is what caused the check engine light to stay on? You chose to buy a high mileage, tired, worn out piece of junk. Who chose to do that? YOU DID! Next time, go to buy a car with somebody who actually knows what in the hell they're doing. Swallowing hook, line and sinker whatever the salesman tells you isn't "trusting". Its called playing doormat!
Stacey
Dallas,Texas,
U.S.A.
Guess what
#6Consumer Comment
Sat, October 06, 2012
Larry is right - and if you don't like comments then don't post a complaint. All complaints are subject to rebuttals period.
Andrea Layher
Saline,Michigan,
United States of America
To the a**hole above me
#6Author of original report
Sat, October 06, 2012
Larry
Phoenix,Arizona,
U.S.A.
How dumb can you be?
#6Consumer Comment
Fri, October 05, 2012
You bought a used car that had the "check engine" light on. Did you have a mechanic check it out before you bought it? How about after you bought it? I mean, between the time you bought it and the time it quit running?
You wrote, "I guess they sell their vehicles as is." You guess, as in you did not bother to find out if there was a warranty before you purchased it.
Why didn't you just buy a new car if you wanted trouble-free driving? Because you cannot buy a new car for $1,700!
What you do get for $1700 is a used up piece of crap that will bankrupt you because you won't walk away from it when it breaks. You will tell yourself that you spent so much money on it that it would be wrong to just dump it. So you will spend more money to repair it. A few months later it starts all over again except that you have an even bigger investment because of the previous repair.
Grow a brain. Dump the car.