A friend is thinking of purchasing a Prius. I bought mine at Longo and had a good experience. Before I send him to Longo, I seem to recall there was a lady in the South Bay that was highly regarded. Is she still around? Where is the "go to" place in SoCal for getting the best sales experience (i.e. price)?
Dianne Whitmire [email protected] Fleet Director Carson Toyota | Scion (310) 522-2317 Office line (949) 689-0717 Cell phone (707) 202-3618 eFax It seems that everyone who buys from her is a happy customer, me included.
Yeah, Dianne and Nathan took excellent care of me on my new 2012. I drove from Sacramento for the car. The price was good as was the total experience. Definitely give her a call or send her an email!
A couple of months ago, somebody posted a similar question, but another responded that Dianne might not give you the best price but will give great service. I have no experience with her. I had a good experience with Marina Del Rey Toyota as they quoted me a good price and was willing to discuss the price via email. I think they were confident as they even told me to shop their price around. So, you might want to send them an email just so that you can get a number. Can't hurt. I ended up getting a better price at Power Toyota in Irvine (through a connection who is no longer there). FYI, the rumor is that Longo Toyota sells the most Toytotas in the nation where Santa Monica Toyota sells the most Priuses. I don't know what that information will do for you, but thought it interesting. Mike
Longo Toyota is Not a good dealership, they purposely buy base model Prius with extra accessories so they can charge more for them. When I called them for a price and told them that I only need the base model with no extra anything, they told me they do not and will not carry that model ever. I had great experience from Hollywood Toyota, and both Hollywood and Santa Monica sells the most Priuses. Also just FYI, don't even think about going to Wonderies Toyota, awful attitude and high prices. In a matter of fact stay away from all Wonderies dealerships, they all have the same Sh!tty services.
I bought mine from Cerritos & they're ok & are willing to work w/ u. I've been seeing(newspaper ad) & hearing good things about Manhatten Beach Toyota lately.
If you're gonna ask here, many are gonna say Dianne at Carson. But that doesn't mean you won't get a good experience elsewhere. There's too many dealerships here in socal. BTW, a quick search (I don't mean search function, but browsing the site or dealership forums) would easily give you what you are looking for without starting a new thread. I know, I'm usually not the type to bicker about these things, but these thread subjects really are more repetitive than they need to be. http://priuschat.com/forums/dealers-pricing/60755-top-southern-california-toyota-dealers.html http://priuschat.com/forums/dealers-pricing/107458-prius-iii-deals-in-socal-how-much-otd.html http://priuschat.com/forums/dealers-pricing/106385-diannes-april-2012-deals-prius-hatchbacks.html ---all recent lol!
Apparently, your experience with Longo is different than the OP, as he says he had a good experience with them. I have had no experience with them, so I won't pass judgment either way. But I think a good reason to go to Longo's lot (and to Santa Monica Toyota and maybe Hollywood Toyota, but I haven't been there) is to look at the various models, colors, kick tires, etc. To the OP, if you haven't done so already, I think the first thing you should do is pick up a Sunday Los Angeles Times and take a look at the automobile section. At least that'll give you an idea of the price you'll be starting at. Mike
I had a great buying experience at Longo Toyota. I did everything over the internet and had it delivered to my house (sight unseen). Excellent service there too (if you don't mind the large crowd). They do TSBs and warranty replacements without giving you much trouble, as well as dealer-servicable Prius personalized settings free of charge.
32kcolors - I had a similar experience at Longo. I dealt with a salesman named Adam. Got the best price I could find on my Blizzard Pearl Prius 4 with solar/nav and the car was delivered to my wife's school where she is a counselor. I'm too far away from the dealer to use them for service. p00kienrayray - Thanks for the suggestion. I wasn't aware that there was a dealer forum here. Next time, I'll know. All I could remember was that there was a woman in the South Bay that everyone seemed to like - but couldn't recall the dealer or her name. I did several searches in this forum and came up empty. BTW, one way to avoid being annoyed by repetitive subjects in threads - don't open them.
The reason why I opened this thread was to inform of what is already offered here, and hopefully help prevent from happening again. If I or others simply don't open them, you and others would remain unaware, and possibly even start more threads. No big deal though, at least this thread would add more resources to others in your same situation.
I'd normally be too far away from Longo Toyota as well except I work in downtown LA so the drive to and from work isn't too bad. It's great that Longo does free delivery within 100 miles and we can sign the paperwork in the comfort of our homes.
No sweat ... Because I own a 3rd gen, my browser shortcut goes straight to this forum and I rarely (if ever) venture out of it. I wrongly assumed everything related to 3rd gens would be in here. It didn't occur to me that there was a separate dealer forum. I have no problem with admins removing this thread if they think it's redundant.
Longo, I got tossed out of that place in 1990, I was buying a pick up, wanted them to match a OC dealer for the same price, they said "they didnt want my kind around" and told me to leave. I had been there maybe ten minutes and had the exact truck picked out. So I went to OC and bought my truck. I should have gone to manhattan beach, but commited to Torrance. No discounts or favors given.
Jeff Johnson at Simi Valley Toyota gave me a killer deal on a black IV. Very honest, and no nonsense. [email protected] tel. 805-426-6673
Did you at least complain to the higher managers or owners? That sounds shady as hell. Kinda like walking in the wrong neighborhood in the South pre-Civil Rights era.:bolt:
Got mine from South Coast Toyota in Costa Mesa...No real haggles. Showed them my quotes from Edmonds.com and said I would buy it , if they could beat the deal. They beat my best deal by $200 and I took it. Talk to Johhny Depp...( not the actor )
Bob Smith Toyota in La Cresenta was were I pickup mine. Overall great experience from start to finish. Their service department is also very good.