Banner Chevrolet

The title of this review includes the word "modern" and to be more precise "remote" is what I mean to convey. With only four reviews and a 5-star rating, I do not feel there are many interested participants in such a worthwhile forum. I'll save it and also express my concerns elsewhere to get this message out. I live about 90 minutes away from this dealership and wanted competitive pricing on a 2018 Silverado 1500. I called in early May 2018 and asked for Fleet Sales and specified my interest in a vehicle shown in their inventory. The manager I spoke with was courteous and seemingly knowledgeable. I noted the many current offers from Chevrolet and also my desire to deal with one person rather than hop on the "merry-go-round" (his words to describe the sales team and process). I received a polite return call once it was determined that vehicle remained in stock. I made it clear that I have reached sales agreements for vehicles over the phone pre-internet and in recent years have used the internet to help me find what I'm looking for. I asked for a competitive price for this mid-level LT Silverado 1500 and was told the price is as published on the internet. I had watched this vehicle online and over several days the price had increased around $4000. The day I asked for a price, the posted price was $38,000. I looked elsewhere, had a couple of detailed phone conversations and drove to Houston to buy a truck. The vehicle I bought had the same equipment but was a Crew Cab ($2400 mark up) and premium paint (usually a mark up of $1000) for $31,100. In all fairness to Banner, Chevy was pricing Crew Cab LT Silverados only about $400 higher than "double cabs" one of their current offerings at the time I was shopping. In conclusion, I got a truck that should have cost about $1500 more than the one priced in New Orleans for $6900 less. I shopped a couple of other local dealerships as well and was told that they were having trouble "getting adequate inventory" in light of the generous clearance incentives Chevrolet was offering. Banner Chevrolet seemed to have one of the largest inventories around, but for some reason or other, they were not offering competitive pricing to a serious inquiry. I guess they are simply a "merry-go-round" dealership. Just for information sake, other dealerships were within $2500 of what I paid in Houston. I am retired and decided that the road trip and a one-night motel stay were worth the effort to get what I wanted. The last vehicle bought before this was from a dealership in Jacksonville, FL where I thought spending $250 for a plane ticket and $80 on a motel room for one night was worth the $4400 savings on a vehicle. I have local friends who have driven to Texas for several vehicles over the years and I believe that in these modern times of internet shopping, some dealers are simply "missing the boat" by being stuck on the merry-go-round of yesteryear.

This car purchase was #36 for me so let me start by saying I'm fairly experienced with dealership and sales antics in pressuring a person to purchase a vehicle. I live in Beaumont, Texas and Banner Chevrolet is in New Orleans, Louisiana, a good 250+ miles from home. I made a late evening online inquiry about a vehicle and immediately received a response from Myron Grogan regarding the car. I gave him the information he requested of me and with my marginal credit he had me approved for purchase the next day. He told me it was a "done deal" and I didn't believe him thinking they would pull their dealership antics when I get there. Let me say I chose this dealership for the online price which was a minimum of $4500.00 les than I could purchase it in my area and including Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio, but I was still hesitant to drive to N.O. I finally made up my mind a week later to go ahead and go and to my surprise everything was exactly as Mr. Grogan said. I was in the dealership maybe an hour and a half including the test drive, signing all the paperwork, him filling it with gas, and then sending me on my way. The terms, payment, and interest rate were exactly what was agreed upon and Myron handled the deal every step of the way, no one else for any of it. I don't think you can receive any better service than that and two years later I am still amazed at how smoothly everything went. William Carrington

My first experience of Banner was in the summer of 2010 when I traded in a “Cash-for-clunker” work truck and a 2007 Chevy impala SS for a 2009 Silverado crew cab XFE to consolidate to one vehicle (on the last day for cash-for-clunker). The XFE model was the only model that qualified me and Banner was one of few that had one on the lot. Their sales team was fair and a deal was made. I never used their service department or body shop until I had a wreck in January of 2012. The truck was towed their and after a brief conversation with the body shop I inquired about an oil leak that I was intending to bring the truck to be looked at under warranty. Banner’s body shop communicated with the service department and the leak was identified and fixed while the insurance adjuster and body shop prepared for repairs. It has been only 7 days and during that time frame New Orleans hosted a Sugar Bowl, Saint’s Wild Card Game, and the BCS Championship Game. I cannot stress enough how impressed I am with Banner’s performance.

This is the third Corvette I bought from Banner Chevrolet. John Touhy made the process very simple for me. No muss-no fuss. He got me into the car I wanted,informed me of all the incentives and all the avenues of financing. He handled all of the paperwork. There was no pressure put on me at all. Ronnie St. Germain took care of working with my insurance company to get me the top dollar for my totaled vehicle. This too was a no muss-no fuss process because handled everything directly with my insurance company. Louis Luma assisted me in getting a new car glitch repaired. Again, this was a no muss-no fuss situation. Louis went out of his way to put nitrogen in my tires and personally clean the floor mats. The owner, Mr. Flick, and manager, Mr. Soullier, should be commended for hiring customer oriented staff in all departments. Banner Chevrolet is the sponsor of the Crescent City Corvette Club,one of the oldest Corvette clubs in North Amercia, having been founded on March 06, 1964.

Service team is fantastic!! They are always friendly and helpful. They recently found a safety problem on my car, pointedly out, and did all the repairs in a very tight time frame. I know my car is in good hands at Banner. The staff always goes the extra mile to ensure a great job is done and my satisfaction.