Darwin Brown

Marisol was amazing to deal with! The entire sales staff and finance team made my purchase a very pleasant experience! The entire sales staff and finance team made my purchase a very pleasant experience! More

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I normally don’t leave reviews, but my recent experience with Al Piemonte Chevrolet in Dundee, IL was so poor that I feel obligated to share, in hopes of sparing others the same frustration. It started w with Al Piemonte Chevrolet in Dundee, IL was so poor that I feel obligated to share, in hopes of sparing others the same frustration. It started with a simple online inquiry about a specific vehicle. I received an initial response from a representative named Sophia, but after that, communication abruptly stopped. By the end of the next day—with no further reply—I submitted a general inquiry to the sales team. That’s when I heard back from Manish. We exchanged a few emails, and I eventually made a fair offer on the vehicle. Manish replied, asking if I planned to finance, to which I responded that my offer was independent of financing. After that—radio silence. Multiple follow-ups to both Manish and Sophia were ignored. At that point, I assumed they just weren’t interested in doing business. (Pro tip: don’t ignore people trying to give you their hard-earned money.) About a week later, I noticed the same vehicle was still listed for sale. Still interested, I decided to try their “Buy Online” process to see if that would finally get someone’s attention. It worked—this time, I heard back from a sales manager named Darwin. To his credit, Darwin was responsive, and over the next day or so, we came to an agreement on purchasing the vehicle. I live in Wisconsin—about two hours away—so I planned to make the drive down that Saturday. Before making the trip, I wanted to double-check the final numbers. Unfortunately, Darwin was off that Friday. I called the dealership to speak with Sophia (who didn’t start until noon), and once again, communication dropped off during what should have been the final step. Eventually, I was passed along to another sales manager named Volkan Bulakbasi. By around 3pm, after several back-and-forths, we seemed to finally be on the same page. I had plans to drive down Saturday morning and complete the purchase. Then at 5pm Friday—just as I was finalizing everything—I received a call from Volkan stating that the vehicle had just been sold to someone else. His excuse? “First come, first served.” Never mind that I had gone through the GM credit checks, had a cashier’s check ready, had switched over my insurance, and we had a confirmed deal in place. To say I was shocked and angry would be an understatement. I sent an email to everyone involved, letting them know exactly how I felt about these shady practices. Then—about 45 minutes later—Volkan called me back, saying the other buyer “was no longer interested” and the car was now magically available again, but only if I put down earnest money immediately. I was already on my way back to cancel the cashier’s check. I told him, in no uncertain terms, that I no longer trusted the dealership or its practices. It felt like an underhanded tactic to either drive up the price or pressure me into a rushed, emotional decision. Whether the “other buyer” ever existed is anyone’s guess—but I wasn’t about to play games. To be fair, Darwin called me the next morning in an effort to salvage the situation. He offered some incentives and asked if I would reconsider. While I appreciated the gesture, it was too little, too late. The damage had already been done—my trust was gone. In the end, I found the exact same vehicle the following week at a local dealership and had a fantastic buying experience. No games, no pressure, no last-minute bait-and-switch. Bottom line: I would not recommend Al Piemonte Chevrolet in Dundee to anyone. The lack of communication, questionable tactics, and sheer disregard for a serious buyer's time and effort made this one of the worst dealership experiences I’ve ever had. Buyer beware. More

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