Toyota dealers compared to the rest

[Jostan]

Picking up my new Aygo X in 4 days time.  Can I ask folk on here what the general perception is of Toyota dealers compared to the rest?

I tend to buy new cars at the small/cheaper end of the market, keep them for 3 years or so, & have had a mixed bag of experiences with main dealers.  I'm generally fed up with most of them but am not sure about many of the independents these days either (seems there's a lot of morons out there pretending to be 'mechanics'/'technicians').  Sadly my trusted local indy mechanic retires today 😞.

I heard a couple of years ago that Toyota is a company that seeks continuous improvement and is more 'on the ball' when it comes to monitoring their dealers, & that those who consistently fail to hit customer service and fix-first-time KPIs are dealt with.  I'm told that that is why Toyota parted company with Arnold Clark.  

What's the consensus on here?  Toyota dealers better than the likes of Stellantis or 'different brand, same s**t'?

[TonyHSD]

And yes and no. It’s a mixed bag tbh. I have both the best and the worst experience with Toyota cars and Toyota dealers.
It will depend perhaps on luck, area, particular dealer, employees etc

I dealt mostly with Steven Eagell St Albans branch, Watford and Aylsbury. The St. Albans I am buying usual parts from there and they always deliver their promise. Watford ones fixed my gf cars free of charge as she was a customer of theirs, Aylsbury branch sold her a “used approved “ car with tons of issues that were promised to be fixed upon collecting the car, but nope, there weren’t., so we had to fight with them and at the end they did most of it but was not smooth. 
Listers Toyota Stratford-upon-Avon Sold me a nearly new car with huge issue which they claimed were not aware , car was returned on the same day of collection. Good garage but as any other dealer sales profits are top priority and not custumer satisfactory. , or cars quality. 
New cars are pure luck but dealers also add to the overall experience. Some new cars been sold with damage to bodywork, poor fit and finishes, or not clarity about finances. Best to do your math at home, inspect the car prior to sign your papers and the rest is a luck 🍀👍

[flash22]

Toyota stealers keep changing between 2nd and 3rd worst for me, Nissan (now Renault) has the top spot, Vauxhall (pre Peugeot) swap places with Toyota

only constancy between marques is parts departments, what i have had no issues with (apart from making up prices as you go along philosophy)

[Jostan]

Mmmm.  I'm wondering if the hassle of using main dealers to maintain the 10 yr warranty is worth it or whether I should use Toyota for the first couple (so I have a warranty for 3 years) and then go it alone.  There's a family owned Toyota dealer where my parents live so I think I'll try there when the time comes and see what they're like.  If they're decent then I'll continue to use them.  If not then I'll do my own servicing and forget the warranty.

[Jostan]

Saying that, I think Block Exemption still applies even though we're out of the EU.  If the Toyota dealer proves to be really bad then I can maintain the initial 3 yr warranty even if I use an independent VAT registered garage and not bother thereafter.

Roll-on the UK getting electric cars like the Nissan Sakura.  Any car that involves less dealer interaction during both the sales and servicing process is a BIG WIN in my book!

[TonyHSD]

First 3 years perhaps it’s worth  service in the dealer then after up to you and depending on your annual mileage and usage. If only one service per year is needed you can do that still within the dealers network. 

[Pumatron]

Dealer experience can make or break a brand with customers.

They are a bit like restaurants in a way, years of nice meals and good service, new staff arrive, new chef and the meals and service go down hill.

My experience with dealers is no different, either good start and after a few years go off the boil, rubbish from the start or generally give average customer satisfaction. 
 

I’m happy to move around dealer (and restaurants 😂) to keep an average service level….

[152bobby]

7 hours ago, Pumatron said:

Dealer experience can make or break a brand with customers.

They are a bit like restaurants in a way, years of nice meals and good service, new staff arrive, new chef and the meals and service go down hill.

My experience with dealers is no different, either good start and after a few years go off the boil, rubbish from the start or generally give average customer satisfaction. 
 

I’m happy to move around dealer (and restaurants 😂) to keep an average service level….

Yep, that's a good idea, move around.  Were I am in the Wokingham/Reading/Bracknell/Sandhurst and even outer London area, I have a few choices within a 10 mile radius, although two are the same Jemca Franchises (Reading and Bracknell).

I like how you put it, in regards to restaurants, doesn't matter how good the food is (or the car), if the staff are crap, I simply walk away.  I see it all the time whether it's a restaurant,  cinema, bowling alley, holiday reps, car dealers etc, staff can make or break a product ! But in todays climate, a lot of these places pay minimum wage (whilst charging top prices) and that unfortunately means people that have no experience whatsoever in the product that they are serving/selling. And I do not mean that in a bad way about people on minimum wage in any way shape or form.

[Cyker]

Very variable I'd say. I do get the impression the ones 'Ooop North' tend to be better, while the ones around London seem to fare worse.

When this forum still had a Dealer Rating section, the Lindop Bros franchise was consistently top ranking (I'm sure Parts-King, who works for them, was very smug about this  ).

I've used three, two Jemcas and a Hills - My original one was pretty good, always did what I asked, maintained good communication, never had any complaints with them. Sadly they were closed down, along with another dealer site, which they were merged with to form a new dealer and I found them far worse. They have been improving, and I don't always feel like they're trying to get rid of me now, but I think their biggest problem is they are understaffed which means long wait times are common and their communication, while improved, still needs work.

The third one, I usually use for parts as they still have an actual accessible human at an actual physical parts desk and you can chat to them and stuff! The other dealer does not, so you have to wait for ages in the general waiting area for someone to appear, which I've found to be generally upwards of half an hour. I haven't had much experience with their service department, and had been considering switching to them for servicing, but they were the ones I got to procure and fit the 15" rims and also connect up my Dashcam, but they were unable to do the Dashcam (They wanted me to pay an extra £50 above what they  originally quoted and wait 2 weeks for some one-use trim piece. I did it myself and still don't know what this trim piece is.), and did the rims but sent me home with one side at 20 psi... Not very confidence inspiring, esp. as they didn't even have the courtesy to reply to the e-mail I sent them about it...

 

[FROSTYBALLS]

Going back to the 90's and before, when one bought a Toyota and for most dealer visits for service or repair, resulted in the owner receiving a questionnaire - from memory at least four pages - from Toyota GB asking for comments and feedback. Dealers were scored from these questionnaires, knew their reputation depended on giving good service and achieving good scores and all were very keen for customers to complete them. They wanted to hear about any problems before Toyota GB did.

[Cyker]

Wow that's going back a bit - I remember getting a few of those when I had my first Mk1!

 

[haelewyn]

 I am not in uk.

Had a megane before.

Dealer was the best I ever had. Car one of the worst with especially bad engine 1.2 tce.

 

My toyota dealer is less good.  Noticed they try to get me on my way without really helping me out. I expect that would be their attitude on expensive engine repairs too .... which I hope to not encounter again.

They are very good for sales as they gave me the best price on a car the third time now since 2016.

Maintenance : only 2 mechanics. I am not expecting much of them.  When I asked one about the new aygo X changes (flywheel), he started to stumble and started blowing nonsense from his *****.

F* expensive maintenance.. seems not worth it. But if I calculate to buy a decent assistance myself (included in maintenance) and / or an extended warranty on an other brand, it's worth it probably.

If no problems,  I an going to stick to them several years.  If their service disappoints me too often, I will calculate my options.

[Roy124]

I notice two dealerships are mentioned by name here.  These two cover a huge area and  market several different brands.  As dealerships they feel impersonal. 

In contrast the small single garage dealers depend on retention of their customers as their customer base is inevitably smaller.

Many years ago a new dealership for a brand opened up in the North of Scotland.  The nearest competitor for that brand was 90 miles away.  It was very definitely a small business, the boss, his wife, their Old English sheepdog, and an expert mechanic.  You were always welcome to drop in.

I still remember a special SAAB built in the hope of winning a James Bond film slot.  It had real armoured doors and bulletproof glass.  The Walther pistol in the glove box was a replica and the smoke dispensers were dummies. 

With the main dealerships they are only as good as the team.