Daytona INFINITI

If asked to sum up our experience at Daytona Infiniti, the word I would use is “shady”. My husband and I already own an Infiniti QX80 which we were looking to trade in for a newer model. We have never own the word I would use is “shady”. My husband and I already own an Infiniti QX80 which we were looking to trade in for a newer model. We have never owned a certified pre-owned car before (or any pre-owned car) and weren’t sure what to expect. We went to Daytona Infiniti specifically to look at pre-owned QX80 they had advertised. At first, our experience was good, the salesman knew we were coming, had the keys ready and we took it for a test drive. The inside of the car was immaculate and it drove well. Once we returned to the dealership, we happened to park under a bright light and noticed that the car had several large scratches across the windshield as well as several obvious drip marks in the paint along the doors, mirrors and door handles. Upon closer examination, it became clear that although the carfax (which we had already checked) was clear, the car had sustained some sort of major cosmetic damage and been very poorly repainted. Our salesman, having no idea what to say promptly got his manager, who also happened to be the owner’s son. When we asked him how a car that had been through their “certified pre-owned examination process,” could possibly have damage this obvious, he apologized and said he wasn’t the one who checked in the car but it should have been caught before the car was ever put on the lot. He assured us that the windshield would be replaced and the entire car wet sanded and repainted without a problem. He just needed a couple of days and would let us know when it was done so we could see it again. Two days later, the salesman contacted us and said the car was ready for us to see and even offered to drive it to our house (over an hour from the dealership.) We agreed but said that we were still very unsure about what had actually happened to the car and would expect them to lower the price due to the damage that the car had clearly sustained. The salesman said he would talk to his manager and get back to us. Within an hour, the manager texted us explaining that they had suddenly had an extreme amount of interest in the car and he was sorry to inform us that one of his salesmen had just taken a deposit on it. My husband and I were surprised (and suspicious) so we responded that the manager was welcome to sell it if he in fact had a customer who wanted it badly enough to put down a deposit. The manager texted right back explaining that there had made an error and there actually was no deposit on the car and it was ours if we still wanted it. We arranged for them to drive the car to our house later in the week so we could look it over and see if it met our standards, even arranged for them to take our trade and sign the papers there so we didn’t have to drive all the way back to the dealership. My husband said that was fine but to be clear, we would not agree to buy the car unless it had been completely repaired, repainted and had the windshield replaced. The salesman agreed. On the day that they were supposed to bring the car, my husband received a call from the salesman. He said he was really sorry but upon seeing the car today, he noticed that the windshield was still damaged and had never been replaced. When he asked his manager about it, he said that the windshield would only be replaced at our expense. The cost was $500. The salesman called us right away and said he knew this was not what we were originally told and was not sure why they were now refusing to the replace the windshield as his manager had originally promised. At this point, my husband was so disgusted and exasperated from all of the conflicting information, that he told the salesman we were no longer interested in the car. He also asked if the salesman could please have the manager contact him directly to explain what had happened. We never heard from the salesman or manager again. In the meantime, we have been working with both Sanford Infiniti and Orlando Infiniti. Both dealerships have so far proved to be efficient, friendly and most importantly honest. Quite the opposite of the shady experience we had with the dealership in Daytona. More