Honda Dealers

Recommendations for dealers?

April 2003

Has anyone had a recent experience purchasing a new Honda or Toyota who could recommend dealers? I last bought a car 10 years ago and there were certain dealers I swore I would never visit again. I am not too particular about color or fancy extras, just a basic Accord or Camry at a good price. Cindy

I have been very pleased with the service at San Leandro Honda. I normally wouldn't use a dealership for service but their prices are competitive.They fixed my Odyssey for free when the warranty had expired because they knew the trouble began earlier and I did not have time to take the car in. The person I bought my car from is not there anymore. But she was so professional and not pushy at all. The people in Oakland were really pushy. I tried the service at Oakland for a while because it is closer to my home. I did not like the people there at all. To me it is worth going to San Leandro to work with friendly people. Jenny

Hi, We got our Honda through a broker. It was a wonderful experience, especially since we didn't have to deal with the sales people at a dealership. The way that it works is that you pay a small fee ($200 or so), tell the broker everything that you want and then they search for the car that you want at the BEST price. Once they find it, you go to their office in Sausalito and pick up the car. It was so easy and pleasant. The broker is called: Cartelligent and they have a website www.cartelligent.com The man we used is a friend of my sister and he owns the company. His name is David. Good luck, Michelle

I recently purchased a Honda CRV from Honda of El Cerrito and was very pleased with their service. Like you, I hadn't purchased a vehicle for 10 years. I feel the best price can be gleaned by contacting them on-line. I utilized AAA internet sales service where they send out your inquiry to all dealers within so many miles of where you live. I received several very prompt replies from various dealers and ended up going with Honda of El Cerrito. They are no pressure and adhere to that as a philosophy. A couple of months went by before I finally bought the vehicle all the while being in touch with the internet sales manager. I was surprised and pleased at how well things went. Once I decided an a make and model, they went out of their way to find one in a short time since there wasn't one on the lot. Good luck. Heather

We liked Honda of Oakland on ''auto row'' Broadway near 37th, knowledgeable, not too pushy (well, they call you a lot to follow up, as do all salespeople), good inventory. We found Downtown Auto (Toyota) to be not so knowledgeable, we knew more about the cars than the person who helped us, and we didn't have a particularly pleasant time there. Good luck.
Hate Shopping for Cars

I bought a Honda at Honda of El Cerrito and found it to be fine. I haven't regretted the price either. I looked around on the web at car reviews and decided which models I was interested in, and learned the usual prices. That was a peaceful, enjoyable afternoon. Then I went to a car buying website (you may find this through AAA something, I can't remember) and specify what you want. Dealers in the area tell you what they have and will give you an ''out the door price.'' I got bids from local dealers in Berkeley, El Cerrito, and so on, and went to test drive similar cars at two different places. I found the service and the car to be best at El Cerrito. The price they gave me by email was exactly the price I paid. Because I bought the model that was going out, and bought it late in the year, there was not the perfect selection available--I took the color they had, and got leather seats whether I wanted them or not! I knew all this because I got all this straight with them beforehand by email and web It turns out I love the seats. Have fun! Lynn

We had a really great experience working with Jeffrey Bochenko at Broadway AutoRow Honda. Mr. Bochenko was really great at taking time to explain things to us, following up on our (many) questions, and working with us on financing. I would go down there and ask for him by name. Ilana