Complaint Review: Sullivans Northwest Hills Dealerships - Torrington Connecticut

After finding a 2009 Chrysler Town and Country Touring through my banks car buying service (USAA for military members) On 6/18/2014 I contacted the dealership, Sullivans Northwest Hills Dealerships to inquire about the vehicle, I spoke with Jessie.  I had agreed to let them draft our credit card for $500 to hold the vehicle for us because I didn’t know when my husband would be able to get out there to see the vehicle due to the demands of his military career. I went to Sullivans on 6/19/2014 with my mother and two children to test drive the vehicle, I decided that I wanted the vehicle.  Jessie had gone on vacation so he passed us along to Paul Paolino. There were a few issues I asked to be addressed before we came back the following week with my husband to purchase the vehicle.  I noticed when I test drove the vehicle that the brakes felt odd, I asked Paul about it and he said he didn’t know anything about them.  I asked him to have it serviced before we came back and he assured me “we won’t sell a car that is not safe for the road.” I also asked they address the leaking window, smoke smell, and detail the vehicle because it was filthy.

After calling back and forth with Paul trying to get everything set up he started getting rude and short with me.  I had at this point refused to keep working with Paul and I called Jessie while he was on vacation, mentioned that we want the car, but it needed the brakes to be looked at and I couldn’t deal with Paul any longer.  He apologized for his co workers rude behavior and got us set us up with Howard.  My husband and I along with our children, returned on 6/25/14 to purchase the vehicle.  We checked out the car and it looked spectacular.  The window was repaired, it was beautifully detailed, and they had put a smoke bomb in there to get rid of the smell, which all we could smell was the pungent freshener. I did notice that between my first visit and this visit, someone had removed the headphone for the VES out of the glovebox.  I also noticed the remote was missing, but I never noticed it on our first visit.  I asked Howard about the brakes, he said he didn’t know but he would find out.  I also asked him for the inspection report on the vehicle and what happened to the remote and headphones.  He got us a new remote and the two missing sets of headphones.  He never gave us the info on the brakes or the inspection report which I forgot about while trying to keep a 4 and 1 year old content so they didn’t destroy the place.

Steve handled our paperwork.  He gave us info on our warranty he said “3000 miles 90 days” and its also a  pre-owned certified vehicle so theres a second warranty.  After everything was a signed a man from service name Cory came out to the car, I asked him if he could please fill the tank, check the tires and if they had a spare blindspot mirror since the one on the passenger side was now falling off.  He did all three for us and we were very impressed that they were being so kind. We thanked them for everything and drove off.

About 40 minutes into our drive home my husband was driving and we were traveling 40-45 mph., there was a slight curve In the road and my husband applied the brakes.  The whole front end of the car started shaking, I thought we were going to wreck.  I immediately called I believe it was Howard at the dealership, I got his voicemail.  I left a message and kept calling for the next two hours, he never called back.  We had decided to keep going since they said it was safe for the road, the kids were screaming and hungry, we were out of food for the baby and there is a Chrysler dealership very close to our house.

After we got home I sent my  husband to Valenti, the dealership in Mystic, CT. He was working with a man named Paul Prediamo, the service manager.  Paul had the vehicle inspected free of charge and told my husband what the deal was.  My husband doesn’t relay messages very well so I had him call Sullivans to tell them what he was told. 

I tried contacting numerous people the next two days. I contacted the General manager and left a message, Meagan Finn whom my husband spoke with, Steve who spoke with me, Howard, maybe others I don’t remember. No one ever called me back.  On Friday 6/27/14 I called Valenti and spoke with Paul.  He told me that one of the rotors was warped in the front, and that the brakes were brand new.  He told me to request the paperwork on the brakes since it didn’t look like they were going to honor the warranty.  I asked him if this was a safety hazard.  He replied, “the ABS system could be triggered while driving, so yes, it could potentially be a safety hazard.” I called Steve and told him what Paul from Valenti had told me.  I gave Steve Pauls number and Steve said he would contact Paul.  At 6 PM I called Paul back, to see if Steve had contacted him.  He had not.

They have also not refunded our $500 deposit to our credit card.

This was taken directly from the Connecticut Attoerney General's website:

"If the vehicle costs between $3,000 and $5,000, the warranty is good for the first 1,500 miles or 30 days, whichever occurs first. If you paid $5,000 or more, the warranty period is for 3,000 miles or 60 days, whichever comes first.

During the warranty period, the selling dealership is responsible for all repairs necessary to make the vehicle mechanically operational and sound -- at no cost to you. If the vehicle goes into the shop for repairs during the warranty period, the warranty is extended for each day the vehicle is in the shop for repair."

Department of Consumer Protection, 165 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, CT 06106

Reference:  Connecticut Attorney Generals website ct.gov/ag/cwp/view.asp?A=2066&Q=292362