The Automaster

Great Service

The folks in the BMW department of The Automaster were timely with my service request, provided complimentary shuttle service to and from the dealership and washed and vacuumed the car on top of everything else. Great experience.

They don't seam to care about the average person, no...

They don't seam to care about the average person, no service or parts department open on weekend. When asked why they replied that's how we have do it for 40 years if you need to come in take time off from your job. Bought one new car there never again. loose to much $ in taking time off for service. WTF

I have been a customer of the Automaster Honda dealership...

I have been a customer of the Automaster Honda dealership for 30 years - primarily because of their service department where they are ALWAYS friendly, competent and they understand that I know little if anything about cars - they don't treat me as if I am an idiot (I am not - I just don't know about cars) and they always find the time to assist me, even when what I am asking about can be taken care of in a very quick inspection by them. I appreciate their service more than I can say....

I have been buying Hondas from The Automaster since...

I have been buying Hondas from The Automaster since 1986.One time I bought a car from another dealer because the salesman (no longer with Automaster)would not look for the car I wanted). I brought this car in for it's first scheduled service,at which time I told the owner the entire story. From that point I was treated as if I had bought the car at Automaster. This dealer in its entirety and the service department in particular could conduct seminars on how to do business. Several dealers in this area would be well advised to attend.

Been an Automaster customer for 10+ years, noting but...

Been an Automaster customer for 10+ years, noting but praise for The Automaster. They are great, I've purchased numerous cars, and had experience with both the Honda and BMW service departments. Best dealership around! Randy Adams in BMW Sales is great too!

I had my state inspeection done there and by mistake the...

I had my state inspeection done there and by mistake the guys messed up the plastic cover above the diagnostic hook and below the steering wheel. Somehow, I didn't notice it until a bolt came off after many months. When I went back to them just to figure out where the screw(bolt) came from, they said the screws from the outer panel and the hook area for the state inspection are interchanged. I have this free state inspection coupons from Austomaster so I never use any other dealer and anyway I don;t use any other dealer as I have a warranty for my car(honda pilot 2006). They are denying the accusation and not ready to pay for the part they broke. It is only $14.99 , but it is not about money it is about the trust. I am 100% sure it is their fault. But when I asked the service manager can you give me something in writing stating this wasn't caused by Honda Service while doing the state inspection. He said they wouldn't do it as it is not necessary. Guys beware of these people check your car immediately after anything you get done thru them(even a car wash). They may break something and not take responsibility.I don;t know where else can I report them. But I will make sure they get reported to the right authority.

I have been doing business with the Automaster for years...

I have been doing business with the Automaster for years on my Mercedes Vehicles. They have always been good to deal with. They are not the cheapest, but I have found them to be competent and friendly. The recent remodel of the MB service facility is amazing and brings the service experience to a new level.

I do not recommend The Automaster for service. Bought a...

I do not recommend The Automaster for service. Bought a used Honda and brought it in to get it looked at, and found no real problems, saying that the car was in "excellent shape". About 2 months later there was a problem with the axle and turning so the car made a clunking sound when it was moving slowly. They supposedly fixed this but soon after the car made a different sound under the same circumstances. Essentially it was a problem with the same general area of the car that did not exist before it was brought in. This being the third time it was looked at, they "discovered" years of rust that had built up on the brake line and was going to cost $2,500 to fix. This issue clearly would have been noticeable the first two times, but it seems that the Automaster tends to discover additional things that are wrong every time a car is brought in for something else. The other issue with the Automaster is their prices. Decided to sell this car and the cost was going to be $950 to fix the noise and a simple brake issue. Done for less than $450 elsewhere. Less than half of the price they quoted. They also offered only $1000 for the car after determining it was not worth getting fixed, but the car was sold for more than 3 times that privately, as clearly it was worth much more. Avoid this service department at all costs, they overcharge and discover new things wrong with your car just to rip you off.

The Automaster Monopoly Today May 6, 2011 I was...

The Automaster MonopolyToday May 6, 2011 I was scheduled for an appointment for my BMW at Automaster on Shelburne Road in Burlington Vermont (tire change and check on a check engine light that was on and was now off, possibly 3 hours of total service time). I happen to live in Montpelier, VT and Automaster is the dealer I purchased my car from as it is the regional dealer and about 45 minutes from my home. My appointment was scheduled for 830 am and as I was running late due to repaving on Interstate 89. So I called at 815 from my car to let the service department know that I was going to be 15 minutes late. Much to my surprise I was told that I may have to wait up to an additional two hours for my car to be serviced. I asked what the point of an appointment was, and the service member who was very nice, but not customer focused in my opinion, said we do not schedule appoints for waiting customers at 830, we have cars waiting and we take them in as the bays open. The point of making an appointment was quickly brushed aside and I imagine if you live closer to the dealer it is not a problem to have your car sit all day at Automaster while you are at work or at home. I asked for the service manager and again a nice person but no sense of the challenges someone who purchases a car from a distance away from the dealership faces. I felt pretty much like we do not need you as a customer as we have enough of them that live close by. That may not be the message they wanted to send but they did. This is the second negative experience I have had with service at this dealership, so will not purchase another vehicle from them and I will not recommend them to anyone. The motto here is great car lousy service to clients who live outside of the Burlington area.On a side note at 840am this morning on the way to the service appointment I puller into Willie Racines Jeep dealership and bought a new Jeep.

I've used Automaster to service two Hondas and an...

I've used Automaster to service two Hondas and an Infiniti over the past 10 years and have been very satisfied with their service.While the service desk can get a little busy, the staff there are courteous and helpful, and seem knowledgeable enough about the service being performed. I've never had any complaints about the work done on my 1995 Odyssey or 2003 Civic Hybrid, nor the now-deceased 1993 Infiniti G20.Automaster parts generally has necessary repair parts in stock, or gets them quickly. Quotes are accurate and few surprise add-ins after the fact. Pricing is fair, though not anything special. They do offer express oil changes for a very reasonable price.Lobby is comfortable, there is a 3-station Internet workspace if you're waiting, and a courtesy van that runs often enough to make connections okay.All in all a class operation.

I bought a Honda Odyssey quite some time ago at The...

I bought a Honda Odyssey quite some time ago at The Automaster and overall the buying experience was positive. However, the experience with the service department was such that I would avoid ever buying a car that would need to be serviced at Automaster again. First let me say that the Honda Odyssey for me was my least reliabile vehicle (numerous mechanical problems, plastic parts breaking off sooner than a reasonable lifetime, indicator lights burning out is places near impossible to replace, etc.). I have brought the car into Automaster numerous times for repair and in more that half the cases, the car was returned with an additional problem that it didn't have when I brought it in... or some additional problem was found that also required service at the same time. In the beginning the car was under full factory warranty so it didn't matter financially to me, but I certainly became suspicious that problems were being "created" such that the service department could charge the factory for the service fees. However, when the warrenty expired, this practice still persisted. One example is that I brought the car in for some transmission issue, and after the transmission was repaired, it would come back with the steering wheel no longer in a neutral position (such that the car would turn if the steering wheel was held in a neutral position). The dealer insisted that they did not cause this issue, that we must have brought it in this way, and charged me for an additional repair. However, I think it is fairly obvious to know if you brought in a car that did not steer straight. I was both offended at being called a liar and violated that I felt I was being robbed. If this was an isolated event I could chalk it up to random incompetence. However, it was not a singular event and coupled with the percieved excess repairs under warrenty, I feel deeply suspicious that this service department has an ongoing policy of inducing new service problems in order to increase service revenue. For the record, the only way to prove this would be to have an independant service garage inspect the vehicle before taking it in to Automaster for service and then comparing their diagnostic against the independant party. I did not do this so I can not prove that my suspicions are correct. But I would recommend caution when using this service department, or an independant first examination. I can say for certain that when I started using an independant service garage for this vehicle, the number of problems went down and the quality of the vehicle improved.

We had a CRV leaking oil everywhere after an oil change...

We had a CRV leaking oil everywhere after an oil change at the Automaster in Shelburne Vt. Their response: At least a month before the possibility of an opening. The service rep did not care that the engine might burn up.Ended up going to a local garage that same day who discovered that the oil filter was barely on. Did not even charge us.Will not ever buy again from The Automaster in Shelburne Vt.

We're the only game in town. Deal with it. Porsche,...

We're the only game in town. Deal with it.Porsche, BMW, Mercedes Benz, Land Rover, and Honda.If you have one and need dealer service in Chittenden county, there's only one place to go. Prepare to wait, be treated disrespectfully, condescended to, and overcharged.If you're in the market for a car, prepare to be "curb qualified" and ignored if they don't think you're worth their time.This is how we have been treated. Both when we were in the market for our Mercedes (we bought it elsewhere), and when we've taken it for service. Now it's time to get a new car, and we want a Land Rover, but had to ask for help when we went to look.We've never had a good experience with the service department. With the highest hope, we make the appointment. Arrive on time, are greeted courteously, and sent to the well-appointed waiting room. For hours. When it's time to pay, we continue to be astonished at the cost. "$67 in labor to change two light bulbs and you didn't have time to look at the initial cause for our visit?" And when we call it to their attention, there are excuses and explanations but no apologies.It's like what Daryl Hannah's character in Crazy People said in an ad for ATA&T: "You may think phone service stinks since deregulation, but don't mess with us, because we're all you've got. In fact, if we fold, you'll have no damn phones."Do business with The Automaster if you must, and be prepared for the attitude.

My buying experience at The Automaster was 100% positive....

My buying experience at The Automaster was 100% positive. I walked in knowing what I wanted and knowing quite a bit about the vehicle. The salesman Nathan was very friendly and very knowledgable. He didn't try to oversell, just answered my questions quickly and honestly.I walked away without buying because I wasn't ready to buy that day. No problem. I visited a few more times without buying just to look at the car, test drive (they let me go out alone), and to ask questions. Each visit was quick and easy.The actual buying experience was a breeze. The initial offer was below what I was expecting. Not the lowest price I found, but the location was important and I was very comfortable dealing with this particular dealership. We did most of the paperwork over the phone and the car was ready for me the next day.Without hesitation I would recommend The Automaster, and Nathan the salesperson, to family and friends.

my limited service experience and reputation indicates...

my limited service experience and reputation indicates that the bmw service is pretty poor (poor diagnostics/repair requiring multiple trips).

however, i have found the sales people, especially randy adams, to be very good and working hard to sell cars. selection is usually pretty slim for bmws.

Phone for Automaster is 1-800-639-8033. I hit enter by...

Phone for Automaster is 1-800-639-8033. I hit enter by accident before I finished the information.

I had the Automaster service my X5 during an emergency breakdown. They fixed what they thought was the problem, but when I got the car back home, the problem showed up again. The service shop was extremely busy (they deal in any number of car brands) and I think I was just stuck in and then hurried through to open garage space for people who had scheduled repairs. All I can really say is they got me going on my way.

I bought my first 1995 BMW M3 from the Automaster and...

I bought my first 1995 BMW M3 from the Automaster and enjoyed exceptional service on all levels. From sales to service this is a top notch dealership. I highly recommend it to everyone in the North-Eastern United States and to others from other areas of the US as well!