BUYER BEWARE: "SECURE MARK" OPTION !
BUYER BEWARE: "SECURE MARK" OPTION !
Recently bought a used Toyota 4-Runner from this dealership. While the car early on is very good and was cleaned and buffed perfectly, upon taking possession, the buying experience was awful. I made the mistake of trusting the silky smooth talking salesman "Ever" and agreeing to pay a certain "Out the Door" price. I was given no explanation/transparency before signing about an added cost of $910.00 called "SECURE MARK", which turns out to be an insurance policy in the event the car is stolen.
If one has personal car insurance. your insurance will pay if your car is stolen, rendering this "Optional" coverage redundant. On the purchase agreement it says this $910.00 charge is optional, but not really in my case. The dealership/Ever, the sales person touts that Phil Long Honda does not, unlike other dealerships, charge a "Destination&Handling fee which is a great savings to the customer. When finalizing the purchase agreement with the finance person "Alex", I pointed out that it stated on the purchase agreement, that the "SECURE MARK" $910.00 was optional and I did not want to pay for this option. Very quickly "Alex" turned in to the possibly rudest individual I have come across in recent memory. He told me I had agreed to an "Out the Door" price and all their cars have this charge and he would only remove the charge if I then paid a "Destination & Handling fee of $910.00. I interpreted that as an old and tried "Bait & Switch" trick. Make you believe, that by not charging an D/H fee you are getting a deal, but then sneak in the Secure Mark $910.00 charge, without explicitly telling you, until you have signed on to a certain "Out the Door" price.....total lack of transparency in my opinion. The lesson I learned is not to trust any nice and polite silky smooth sales person or sales manager, to have your best financial interest in mind and READ ALL THE FINE PRINT, before agreeing on an "Out the Door Price".
I am surprised a local car dealership would treat a local customer this way, but perhaps I am being naive.
For further reading reviews about Phil Long dealerships, not neccessarily about the the one in Glenwood Springs, I suggest
looking up this review on Reddit: "Has anyone bought a car from Phil Long
Date of experience: February 12, 2025