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Drivetime

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Kimberly of Inglewood, CA September 23, 2009

This company does not fix, at the least, the major items wrong with the used cars they sale. If they are doing tuneups then they are aware of all issues wrong with the cars. So either the don't check make sure things are in working order or don't bother to disclose any potential problems found giving the buyer an option to fix based on affordability. And the limited warranty is so shady leaving out many of the common problems that are associated with used cars.

I mean what's the point! There is no security in a useless warranty. It's all about the sale and screw the buyer. I have car with that takes SUV $$$'s worth of gas and that may or may not start often because they didn't bother to fix a fuel actuator. Maintenance (they call it)that should have been done during the tuneup they supposedly did before I purchased the car. I don't know how long I have before it just won't start at all and they say it's not major. If the car doesn't start that is major. So basically I will be paying for a parked car. That's so foul! To add insult to injury sometimes the trunk closes and sometimes it don't. It closed the day I bought but wouldn't the day after. Disclosure is everything! My whole purpose for reporting this is to let others know that DriveTime is not the honorable company they claim to be, please don't get suckered like I did.

anita of palm coast, FL July 31, 2009

i bought a car and it was damaged from day one my service engine light came on the next day the cd never worked the car shut off on me twice when i called them they send me to a mechanic in palm coast the estimate was 591.00 the car was still under warranty and they said the parts were not civered under the warranty they said they would deffer a payment if i paid the labor and they paid for the parts so i agree when the mechanic took out the ac module he discovered the coil behind the raidiator was leaking coolant onto the ac module he said i would have to replace the coil when i nsend them the estimate for the doil they refused to pay so i told them to pick up the car when i asked about the payment that was going to be deffered they said it was not gonna be deffered and it was going on my credit as a voluntary repo if i did not pay the balance they also said the car was never in an accident nor was it reported stolen i have paperwork that says different

Caly of Tampa, FL February 6, 2009

In December 2007 I bought a PT cruiser 2002 from Drivetime in Tampa FL. The car was running good when a week later I start hearing a very low noise everytime I turned the car off and my AC will stop working after running the car for more than 20 minutes. I called DT services to make an appointment for the AC to see what was wrong with it and they refer me to Auto Clinic which is the repair place in my area.

The first time I explain this to them, they couldn't find anything wrong with the car because was not doing it at the moment. He recommends me to bring the car in when it was actually acting up and I did. Two days later right after dropping off my daughter at school I go by there and show them what the AC was doing and for them to listen the noise the car was making after I turn it off. This is without counting that they had to keep the car all day and get an approval from Drivetime before they could do anything to it. I had to find my way around there because this is the only vehicle I had, I only had few friends (just relocated to Tampa)and 3 kids to take care, was very hard for me to do but I did. They called me and told me that they could not find anything wrong with the AC but that was few other little things wrong with the car but not to worry because Drivetime was going to take care the bill. He also mentioned that it was a lots of rust in the car but nothing to worry about (but what do I know about cars). Well that was ok I got my car back but the AC problem and the noise was still there. I'm working 60 hours a week, I spend my only day off every week at that Car repair place and they could not find what was wrong with the car. The noise in the car is getting louder and it sounded like boiling water.

Once again I called this place and nothing was done about it. Few days later, at this point I only owned my car less than a month, I come home from work and my car just shake and starts smoking/steaming from the hood. Next day I called this place again, they tell me to bring the car in and at that point they said "Oh my the radiator blew up, you shouldn't be driving this car". They fixed the car after two days and off course Drivetime paid for the repairs but not for my rental that I had to get for two days. My AC still doing the same thing but I just let it go because at this point I didn't have the time to spend in there every week. Few months later I had to spend 500.00 in new tires because the tires were never good from the beginning, I called them and they said "thats maintenance and is not included in the warranty". I understand is maintenance and it was not part of the warranty but when you have put less than 3000 miles in this car and already needs new tires is called your responsibility. I needed my car so I spend the money and put the new tires in. Now we are in the middle of the summer in the sunny Florida and My AC still doing the same thing. My brakes start acting weird and I think is the pads (but what do I know about cars) and don't pay to much attention to it. I called again but they said "no thats maintenance" and I said ok I will wait for some money and I will take the car in to fix the pads.

I took the car to a another company because I moved and I didn't live by Auto Clinic anymore. I tell them that my brakes were not working properly and they did a full check up of the brakes. They called me in and they said "your pads are ok" and I was like cool "but the whole breaking system is bad and blah blah blah" and thats all I heard after the whole breaking system is bad. The repairs were more than $2500.00. I called Dt services, again, in a depression, panicking stage because I didn't have the money and my brakes need it to be fix. After 20 min of arguments all they could said to me was that my warranty was over after 6 month and to bad but it was nothing they could do about it. I only fixed the breaking system for around $1500.00 and the other blah blah I couldn't fix because I didn't have the money to do it. While I'm struggling with the payments and into fixing the other problems a new symptom emerges. Now we are close to Christmas and I don't have money to put into the car. In January I go back to my car repair place to start looking at those things that needed to be address because I was going to get my tax refund and I could fix some of those things. The day I got my refunds, Jan 30,2009, at 430p my car died. I took the car back into my car repair place and they tried and they tried, they keep giving me the car back over the weekend but the car keep stalling until they said to me "take it to Chrysler because we don't know was wrong with the car". They fixed part of it but they end up giving me my 1000.00 back because none of that fixed the stalling in the car. By the way the check engine light was on for like 5 month and Drivetime keep blaming the gas cap.

Now I take the car to Chrysler in a Tow truck paid by my insurance and Chrysler tells me that my car repair place was close to what it was but it was a combination of things and the repairs were $2025.00, on top of the 1000.00 my car repair place put into the car, just to make it run and that it was other issues with the car that needed attention in the future. I have been talking with DT services and Drivetime and they all play me around and nobody cares to help. My car still at Chrysler, me with no money to fix it and on top of that I have to rent a car because I have to go to work and take care the kids. Is now 400am and I'm still up because I'm stressing out about my car. All I wanted from the beginning it was for them to give me another car and at three weeks all they keep saying is that I had the vehicle for 3 weeks and it was nothing they could do about it. Now I'm stock with the payment, the bill, the not knowing if I fix it if it will break or not again and with the stress and the helpless feeling of not knowing what to do. PLEASE HELP. By the way till this day the problem with the AC was never fix.

Alvinya of Los Angeles, CA July 23, 2008

I bought a car from this dealership alomost a year ago. When I first bought the vehicle, less than two months I had to get a new transmission, a month later a had to change the catalytic converter. When I called the dealership they had nothing to say but if it's under warranty they would take care it. I felt that I was given a lemon and not told about it. The car still cuts off from time to time now. I felt like the deal I was made for the car was a price gouge. I'm paying double for what the car is actaully worth and they played on my emotions of being 8 months pregnant and needing a car at the time.

Rhonda of Stanton, CA June 13, 2008

They sold my car unfairly. They said I was behind in my payments and I was NOT. This is what happened. I could not afford to pay for the registration. Because they added parking tickets to the total. When I first moved here I was not used to living somewhere that you had to move the car on a specific day for street cleaning and I was taking care of a sick daughter and was not working at the time. I could never remember to move the darn thing and I got several tickets before it finally sunk in and I would remember it was Wed. and that I had to move my car!

Because I was not working I could not afford to pay the tickets so they added fines to the registration fee, which made the situation worse! The car was parked on the street and it got towed because of no registration. I was not driving it, I was afraid if I got caught I would end up in jail for driving with no registration or insurance. So like I said I was not driving it. However, I had no place to park it but in the street. The tow company called the finance co. and they (DriveTime) came to get the car. DriveTime stored it somewhere. Even though I did not have the car in my position I still made the payments on time. Daniell called me. Told me she could redo the paper work on the car. That they had it etc. I took the bus down there and did the paperwork although now I do not know why she wanted to redo the loan because at this time I was not behind in the payments.

I thought it was because of the reposition. I just thought that is what they had to do for me to get the car back. She said they repossessed it because they got it from the tow yard. She said I would need 685.00 to start the paperwork to get the car back. I got a job getting signatures for the election and got the money together to pay the 685.00. Which I did. She redid the paperwork and I made the payments. But I could still not afford to pay the registration or get insurance because the signature place got all the signatures they needed so that job ended. She said they would keep position of the car until I got the money for registration and insurance. She did not tell me of any time limit. Evidently I had to have it all taken care of by the 31st. She did NOT tell me that.

She called me to see how things were going. She said she would call me back in one week to check on it, to see how things were going. I told her I was looking for a job, which I was. She called me the next week but I had been to the dentist and was not feeling well and was sleeping. My son-in-law gave me the message. It was about 3 or 4 days before I called her back because I thought she was just checking with me and I didn't have any thing new to tell her. When I called her back she was not there and whoever I talked to said they had sold my car. I repeatedly called back to talk to Daniel to find out why in the heck they sold it, without even telling me. When I got in touch with her she did not answer me satisfactorily so I asked to speak to the manager. When he got on the phone he told me I was 45 days late making the payment which was NOT true. He also said I did not check on my car in 10 days. I had to check back with them every 7 days. Daniel told me that, he said, because they tell everyone that. She did NOT tell me that. He said they sent me a certified letter. They did NOT. I never signed for or receive any certified letter. I had no warning or any idea they were going to sell my car! I would not have let them do that. If it came to that I would have gotten a job in a fast food place if necessary to pay what was needed instead of looking for a permanent job. I loved my car.

I am allergic to something in most cars but not in that one. I could even use the air conditioner and I can never use the air in any other car I have ever had!! I still do not know why they sold my car when I was making the payments ON TIME. The manager said it was because I did not check with them within 7 days. He said it was my responsibility to call them. Daniel said she would call me. He said she did not say that because they tell everybody they have to call them. She did NOT. Just like she did not tell me I needed to check with them every 7 days. Daniel did not do her job and I lost my car because she messed up!!

Sandra of Encinitas, CA January 8, 2008

Sandra of Encinitas CA (01/08/08)
I made some payments late (maximum 2 weeks late) due to economic hardships. I was only once informed there was a late charge, and I paid it with the payment. Now I have 2 payments left, and when I called to inquire about payoff, I was informed there was a $1000 late charge!

They wanted me to trade in and purchase a new car from them. When I found better terms elsewhere and purchased a new car, this charge appeared. I have a purchaser for the old car, and am now unable to transfer as I can't get the clear title. I offered to negotiate on the late charges as suggested by one of their agents, and the other one said they would not do that. I have received several harassing phone calls from Drivetime. My ex-husband answered the phone in one instance, and the agent fully discussed the past due with him. It is my understanding that this is a violation of the laws protecting the consumer. They only asked his name, before disclosing the details of the account. This violated my right to personal privacy and has caused substantial stress and embarrassment.

Robert of Stone Mountain, GA November 5, 2007

I purchased a 2004 4 door Toyota Camry in February 2007. On October 24, 2007 the car started making this weird noise and then it started smoking under the hood and died. The car would not start at all. I came to the conclusion that the car was over heating however I had no idea that it was over heating until the car completely stopped running.

Marisol of Port Richey, FL October 12, 2007

i brought a ford.which they clam only had 70,000 miles on it well i did not have it a year i had to replace the alternater, the tires, a new battery,and the trasmission.now the engine is bad and i have damage tires because of the way the tires sit.i can not get any help with the repairs they want $200.00 every two weeks on a car thats not worth two pennies. every time i try to talk to some one they give me a new storie. they just want me to pay.and i refuse to pay until they help me i will give you more info if you need it.

Jeffrey of Littlerock, CA September 15, 2007

I fell behind on my payments after losing my job. I filed for my unemployment benefits, and informed drivetime of my situation. They agreed to defere the two payments that were behind to the end of my loan. I told them when I submitted my unemployment, and also informed them that it was pending a phone interview and that I wasn't sure when I would be getting my first check. I didn't collect my first check until a week after my next payment due date. The next time that I spoke with their representative(James M.) I was told that the revoked deferring my payments because I was not able to make the next payment on time, and that I now owed them $806.00 and that my truck had been turned in for repossession.

They also told me that in order to keep my vehicle I would need to make a payment of at least $1000.00 that day(9/6/2007), and that they could not make any other arrangements. They proceeded to call me everyday afterwards threatening me that they were going to repossess the truck and take legal actions to claim the entire amount of the loan, and that they will attach my wages, etc. I recieved a letter today(9/15/07) stateing that my account is delinquent and my past due amount is $604.50. This is an amount that I would have been able to pay. But now that they've been threatening to repossess the truck and the other amounts owed, I had told them to take action and do what they said they were going to do. They still haven't taken action, and I've used the money that I could have applied toward my loan towards other bills.

Dee of Las Vegas, NV April 5, 2007

I purchased a 2004 Kia Rio from the location listed above, January 24,2007. In February through the end of March, the car has been in 2 different shops for the same problem a total of 11 times. Eight have been at Drivetime and 3 at a dealership in the Las Vegas area. The problem with the car is that it has a rough idle and each of these times, the "check engine" light has came on. On three of these occasions, there were 2 stalls in the middle of traffic which nearly resulted in me being rear-ended and 1 which just completely cut off. I have only paid for the car 4 times, had a rental car twice in two weeks (March 16-21 and March 28-April 4), had to pay out of pocket for car rental insurance the first time and at no time did I ask them to rent the car. They just couldn't fix the car. It was becoming an inconvenience.

It was and still is a nightmare because I am driving a car which may eventually be very unsafe. They have driven the car,allowed the rough idle, which is still there, have had the car a total of 10 days and feel that just because they stppoed the light, that it may be the last time. This was said 10 times prior.The last visit to the dealership resulted in it sitting there. They adjusted a sensor which, they say was the culprit but they also said, it had 'bad gas'.I drive the car everyday and know what is going on with it. The service manager has never apologized until the next last 5 day shop visit and that was because he had avoided me so many times before and almost did again when I went in on April 4th to get the car from its latest visit.

Up until then, it was frustration and avoidance. The customer service is poor, even when you call or send emails. No one responds. I was told that I would be reimbursed the first amount I spent on rental insurance because I had missed work and crucial doctor's appointments. When I went in on 04/04, the second stint in the shop, it went from "why didn't you ask to be reimbursed" or "you should have told me" to "I'll see what I can do." I left receipts showing I paid 83.00 and some change. I guess they were never taught that the customer is always right and I will do what I can to keep this customer happy because I am in the business as well and I never let a customer go away unhappy. I fight to get them what they want because my stores do not like complaints. I actually referred a customer to them and now I worry that they may have a problem with their car. I have never told the person about this because I would feel bad and never be able to live it down. For a company to be as large as this and have such a nonchalant attitude about the safety of a customer is beyond me. I rarely travel in the car for fear, the light comes on again and that is no way to live. I am paying for a car that I no longer am happy with.

The service is uncaring and when I left my last service visit and the service manager said they couldn't find anything wrong, I asked what happens if the light comes on again? He said to either take it back to the dealership they sent it to or PAY OUT OF MY POCKET to take it somewhere else. There is a six month/6000 mile limited warranty on the car. Why am I going to pay for this? They sold a potentially bad car and them driving it, trying to get it to stall won't completely alleviate the problem especially if the light comes on again. I won't do business with this company any longer, no more than make the payments and hopefully the car won't have the same problem again. I have filed 2 complaints with the Better Business Bureau which I don't think the company is listed with. When you have management that doesn't care and you are patronized and you are made promises that are nearly broken, then you have been bamboozled. The money and the time lost which no one wants to compensate for is by far the worst. If any other and all other mechanical problems occur with this car, I will file complaints and take it as far as I can. I don't want anyone else to spend their lives in the service repair shop of any Drivetime location. Their corporate offices are unaware of how they treat their customers because if they were, I would hope something would have been done by now. Please address the corporate office as well. Drivetime 7300 E. Hampton Ave Suite 101 Mesa, Arizona 85209.

Maybe the management there may have the ideology that customer's problems Do come first at no matter the cost. I don't think that I would ever want to have my location constantly complained about because to me, that would mean that someone(s) not looking out for the customer's best interest and that as usual, with most car lots, it is about the dollar not the safety and that could be a lose-lose proposition.

Joann of Endicott, NY June 9, 2006

Co-signed for son on used car.He made weekly payments.Started with pick up payments which was balance of down payment,(4).He was charged ineterst on this down payment.I paid two late pays plus late charges.Drivetime added interest to the late charges...Son was injured and out of work for three weeks.I have tried to pay off the car.Have asked for payoff.Was given pay amount 3 times.Stayed the same for six months.The car was $8,000.00.

We have paid $21,000.00 so far for this car.The odomitor stopped at 89,000 miles.Do not know why.Had it checked by shop,they said there is no telling how many miles are on this car, even when purchaged due to tampering.learned the car was wrecked after purchase.Tried to get money back.No luck.Suffer fraud, misrepresentation and excessive interest payments and charges.

Jennifer of Kissimmee, FL February 9, 2006

I purchase a 2004 Dodge Neon from Drivtime of Kissimmee back in Aug. of 2005. My husband went with me, and has a pretty good knowledge of cars, unfortunately he also has a disease of his eyes and is severely visually impaired. I picked the car and drove it and everyting seemed o.k.(it was also night and very dark). The next morning when I started the car to go to work, the engine was jumping and racing. I took it to a mechanic and had it examined and they found:

1: The car had been in major head on accident and the welding work could be observed from the inside. Keep in mind that drivetime gave me a title check that stated that the vehicle had never been in an accident and if it did I had a title buyback warranty, which meens they would buy the car back if that form was incorret.

2: The airbags were not functional which means if I were to get into an accident they would not deploy.

3: The hood would not properly shut and latch, it was just something temporary on there which means I could have been driving and have it fly open.

4: There was a missing motor mount? That's why the engine was trying to jump out of the car.

5: My power steering fluid compartment was glued back together or epoxied. And Much more was wrong with the car! This is after the 52 point inspection that drivetime did on the car before it was sold to me(yeah right). I fought for 3 months with them and finally got tired and threatened to get a lawyer, the news, the BBB, and anyone else who would listen to me. Especially since now there was contactual fraud with the title buyback warranty. I finally was forced to get another car from them, because they would not let me out of the contract. I was told they would apply the money I had given towards the Neon in down payment and monthly payments would be applied to the new car. Another LIE.

I got a 2003 Chevy Cavalier and when I called about the other money being applied I was told that they were not going to give me any money, that they were keeping it for the time I used the Vehicle, like it was my fault that they sold me lemon. So I lost over 1000.00 dollars.

A Couple of months after getting the new car the Chevy It would not start on New Year's Eve as I was going to a party, believe it or not! I had to get a rental and have it towed to Chevy where they found that the battery that was installed, was done so very badly with the wrong nuts, bolts, screw, etc. My car was not getting enough power and it caused all my gauges in the car to stop working. My car was also shaking badly and when they checked that they found that I had horrible tires on my car and none of them were rounded. So now I need 4 new tires, when Drivetime supposedly had put 4 new tires.

I would never recommend them to anyone, not even for the bribe they try to give and I would never purchase another car from that company. I wish I didn't have to keep the one I have now.

April of Las Vegas, NV June 6, 2004

I bought a car from DriveTime,INC (1997 Toyota Rav 4) in 01/04. The car was sold to me at the cost of $11,382.34 with a finance charge of 29.9% which put the cost of my car at $18,382.79. I figured out the cost of the car and at a finance charge of 29.9%, $11,382.34 does not equal $18,382.79, it equals $14,785.66. I have sent letters to Sen. Harry Reid and Sen. John Ensign on this and they told me to send a complaint the DriveTime's customer service, I then sent a letter to the company regarding this matter (04/04) and I have not recieved a response in this matter.

I also sent a complaint to the Better Business Bureau of Southern Nevada and I was told by them that they could not help me because I signed a legal contract and in Nv when a contract is signed there is nothing that can be done to break it (I guess that also applies even if the company is cheating you, which is what I firmly believe). The only thing I was asking for in the begining was an investigation into my account to find out why the finance charge raised the cost of my car by $6,970.45. I cannot afford nor justify paying $400.02 per month for a car only worth $4500 (per Kelley Blue Book) when I could have bought a brand new one for the same price of $18.000.

Michelle of Burbank, CA February 28, 2004

Bought F-150 ford triton v.6, 4.2 liter engine blew less than yr after purchasing Been in repair shop for 30 days now, still make paymts $400.00 month for vehicle unable to drive or fix, no one wants to fix or unable to fix Impossible to get triton v.6 engine no mechanic wants to take engine apart to fix stating too much work

Erin of Maplewood, AL February 17, 2003

Ms Salazar @ Drivetime told me via telephone that my car payment due date would be changed from 2/14 to 2/21. and then every other Friday from 2/21 until the car is payed off in November. On 2/17 I received a call from Ramona at Drivetime informing me my payment was late and when would I be able to make it. The money order was put in the mail on 2/14 so that they would receive it by 2/21, the due date I understood was to be accurate. When I told them this, there was no record of it and they said they would change it on the next payment date but this payment would still be considered late. I was blatantly lied to.

I have also received calls from Drivetime at home and work, the latter being a place where I am not allowed phone calls of this nature, for payments that were en route to Drivetime. There have been times when I have received numerous calls a day, each person saying there was no record of anyone calling me before them. They were told by myself on numerous occasions not to call me at work. Each time I was told it would be noted and the calls would stop. Still they continued. I was told there was no record of my saying I was not allowed harrassing phone calls at work.

They have left numerous long and rude messages on my call notes, sometimes even pleading my boyfriend, who has nothing to do with my car loan, to get me to call them. Even when payment arrangements have been made and everything has appeared to have been worked out, there phone calls have not stopped.

I originally purchased the car in February of 2001 when the company was Ugly Duckling. It was later bought out by Drivetime. I never had these problems with Ugly Duckling and would never had bought a car with a company like this.

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