Toyota Escondido

Tried to buy 3 vehicles here. Walked away each time empty handed. Several thousand dollars more than all the other local dealers. Even gave them the opportunity to match. They told me the other dealers prices are just a teaser to get you in and would be different when you got there. Each time I actually got the vehicles cheaper than what they were showing. Service is possibly the worst in san diego. Wife made an appointment for oil change because the previous time it took 3.5 hours. After 2 hours she asks what’s up. She was pretty upset when 2.5 hours later she leaves. Just so you know there is only 1 or 2 actuall mechanics there. The rest are just toyota technicians making 16 an hour. Its to expensive for a dealership to have master mechanics on site. I think there hourly rate maybe 95 an hour which is great if you have a master mechanic work on your vehicle but you wont.

Jun and Isaac were great! I shopped several dealerships and chose Toyota Escondido for their accommodating customer service.

So I buy a car and pay for the extended warranty. Plus I pay a service contract for free oil changes for 3 years. I bring it in for an oil change and state that the air conditioner is not blowing cold air like it use to. I realize I have to pay for freon but they inform me that it’s going to be about $ 250 for diagnosis. I stated I have a warranty. They said the warranty doesn’t cover diagnosis. Wow. So you pay thousands for the wArranty but if you have to figure out what’s wrong with the vehicle, you have to pay out of pocket. They didn’t tell me this when they made the warranty sound so appealing. I drove from Upland to Escondido to have my oil changed and air checked. I guess I’ll settle for just the oil change. They really need to explain how limited the warranty is when it’s supposed to be «bumper to bumper». Doesn’t seem right

We had a great experience here (a rare comment for a car-​buying experience). After a few hours, we decided to purchase a Prius and did so with the help of Roberto. Roberto was helpful, genuine and attentive, and didn’t pressure us the way other car salesmen would. He also worked with our budget and stayed pass 10pm until we drove off the lot. Anyone looking to get a car should come here and ask for Roberto!

If you want to have a stress free car buying experience I definitely recommend coming to Toyota of Escondido. They helped me finance my very first car, I had to go to a couple places before coming here and I wish I would have came here first. They helped me even though my down payment wasn’t ideal and my credit not being the best. They still treated me like I was a million bucks either way. They made sure I was aware of all my options and made sure all my questions were answered, I’m super happy with my car and the salesman. If you’re looking to buy talk to Rigo!

Bought a brand new rav in may. Awesome experience. Had problem this a. m with the car starting. Took it straight to Toyota of Escondido after work and Felipe Rodriguez jumped right on it!
It was the end of the day but it didn’t matter… Felipe acted like I was the first customer of the day!
Found a simple problem, fixed it and returned my rav within 45 min!
I have bought numerous cars from a number of different dealers but have never received first rate service like this before!
Thank You Felipe Rodriguez for making this my most positive service experience ever!
Keep up the Good Work!
Signed
Satisfied Repeat Customer

I feel the need to write this review to express my gratitude to Toyota Escondido and my salesman Santiago Garcia. I had been looking for a highly sought after, 4 Runner, Trail Edition. Although this model is advertised on many dealer websites, they are in fact usually pre-​sold before they ever make it to the dealer. After becoming frustrated with other dealerships in my area I decided to make the drive north. They had the exact model and color 4 Runner Trail I had been looking for. Santiago was everything you would want in a salesman, knowledgeable, patient, «no pressure «and very accommodating. Shane in their Truck Center has been equally great. He is currently handling the installation of the lift kit, nerf bars and tires and wheels. My experience with Toyota Escondido has been nothing but wonderful.

I have always come here for my cars needs. Don’t bother making an appointment, it will still take 2+ hours for simple Maintenance. Maybe I will try Carlsbad.

Great service by Chris Marino and everyone at the dealership. They had the best price on the truck I wanted and even beat Longo Toyota in LA, which saved me a trip up north.

Called in yesterday and was told a price for having rotors machined and new pads put on. They were $ 40 – 70 more than other places locally that could do the work, but hey, it was at the dealership with all their warranties right… Go in today to get the work done and they quote me an additional $ 120… Bu-​bye Toyota of Escondido. You failed me.

Great place, great staff. Got my new 2016 Corolla S at the price I wanted. Ask for Alex!

I had my car serviced at the Toyota of Escondido. I had a wonderful experience. Ray was really helpful and even my 2 year old that is shy was happy and talking to him. The service was done quickly and I feel like they really cared. I would recomend this dealership to my friends and family.

Wow, what a GREAT experience. Me and my little sister were in market to buy her a new Toyota Camry. We knew of the perfect place to go. We have had great experiences in the past Toyota Of Escondido.
From the moment Thomas Parr sales professional greeted my sister with a warm and genius smile it went great. Thomas was excited to show her all the great features and benefits of the new 2016 camry. I could tell from minute. NO the second my sisters hands gripped the steering wheel she was in love. The car performed flawlessly. The best part I think was how quiet the cabin was on the test drive. We could easily hear each other clearly due to the good construction of the car. It does a great job keeping out road noise. We also were fortunate to be able to meet and work with Wais Zamar he is the main sales manager of the entire dealership. He took the time to personally go over purchase options and gave us great advise on how to purchase the car. Based on his great advise we went with a 72 month term to keep her payments comfortable with 0.00 out of pocket. I have to say that gentleman was very helpful. And lastly we finished with a very pretty finance manager by the name of Loren Collins.
She fixed us up with a nice new alarm system, a ding, windshield, and tire insurance coverage package for her new Camry. These options barle raised the payments less the 10 bucks. Mskes me feel better the my little sister has all that protection for less 10 bucks a month :-) You guys ROCK T.O.E keep up the good work.

Every single time I get my car service I swear 3 different people ask if I’m being helped, and of course I always already am. They do such a great job and make you feel like it matters to them that you are here. Ray took great care of my car and communicated with me exactly what was going on and how they could handle it. They even picked me up from work a good 20 minutes away when my other ride fell through.
This is the type business model that builds lifetime loyalty.

Don’t waste your time. They only care about you when you are going to spend a lot of money. I have wasted over $ 1,500 here and when both my Toyota and my Gf’s Toyota had re-​calls, we were told a few weeks for replacement parts. Never got any follow up, I have called several times. It’s been ten months now. What a joke!

They get one star for being local. The service department is just a scam and totally over priced.

I live about 5 minutes away from this place so makes it very convenient. However, this will be the last time I will be returning here. After numerous visits I’ve never had a pleasant experience here after dropping my car off. There are a couple service agents that are friendly, professional, and knowledgeable but other than that there is not much here to say good things about. I’m here now still waiting on my car and its been 2 hours already for a half service after bringing my car in for a 5k service but was told did not have to do a full since I had an oil change 5k miles ago. So just tire rotation and fill up liquids were suggested. Was promised to get my car back an hour ago. I even asked a representative to check on my car and still have yet received a response. I will not even bring up the other times I’ve been here that had led me to stop the service and leave without one. I will now be late for work so I’m just trying to be patient and not lose my cool.
So just got talked to by the service representative and a lug not has broken, a belt cracked, engine mount broken, a brakes worn beyond limit. Shouldn’t at least some of these been caught at least at my last service, brand new tires installed, and when my brakes were done? Weird how my one set are at 10 mm and the other set at 2mm…

Después de muchos días buscando en San Diego y los Ángeles, nos tomamos un día para pasar por escondido y ver las opciones de compra que teníamos ahí y después de un día largo viendo todo tipo de DEALS llegamos a Toyota of Escondido y nos toco sin duda el Mejor vendedor de todos, MANNY SÁNCHEZ.
Desde que se presentó fue muy amable y le dijimos exactamente lo q podíamos ofrecer que no era mucho ya q nuestro crédito no era bueno y no contamos con mucho de Down Payment. Todo fue tan rapido y nos ayudó tanto que conseguimos la camioneta de mis sueños, TOYOTA HIGHLANDER 2016.
Con pagos increibles, gracias Manny Sanchez.
Si quieren un great deal Pregunten por MANNY SÁNCHEZ.

I bought my 2016 Tacoma with this guys and they were very friendly!
Anthony and Vicente were very Courteous!
Thanks Toyota of Escondido to be Honest!

I don’t know where to start. Alex Badillo I highly recommend him to anyone in the market for a car. I have been car searching for the right car and person I can trust on selling me a car. I couldn’t have been any more thankful for his help. He wasn’t just a sales person he actually helps you succeed in getting the car you want and makes sure it’s affordable for you. After I bought my car through Him, he made sure I left the dealership with a smile on my face. The finance department wasn’t to organized, But without him helping me on getting an amazing deal I wouldn’t have bought a car that I wanted all year long. The experience went so well. I highly recommend to all my friends. Thank you Alex !!
Maile Freitas

Won’t ever buy another vehicle from this place… I get free services at the service center, and still won’t take my truck in here.

My rating for their Service Department still stands at 5-​stars. I am updating my review since I finally bought a fuse from the Parts Department. I sent an email to the Parts Department through the Toyota Escondido website checking if they have it in stock. RJ responded to my message within the same hour I sent it. He told me they have the part in stock. I drove there from Oceanside where I work. RJ was still there but with another customer. Once it was my turn, I told him who I was and he got the part from the back. I replaced my fuse and now my cigarette lighters work again. Thank you RJ!

Took in my 2015 4Runner for routine maintenance and an intermittent creaking and snapping noise in the drivers’s seat.
The sound is annoying and happens whenever weight is shifting during normal starts and stops. Toyota said they couldn’t replicate the noise so they refused to remove the seat base panels to thoroughly inspect the seat brackets and mechanism as requested. They said since the technicians cost was not covered under warranty they would not do that level of inspection unless they could hear the noise.
Disappointed in the lack of thoroughness and customer service… and of course the seat is making the popping noise a few miles down the road.

I noticed yesterday morning that my rear vent window on my Sienna was missing the bolt that helped the closing mechanism work and thus my window was flapping around a little. On my lunch break, I drove to the Toyota Escondido parts department where not only did they have the part I needed in stock, but the parts salesman helped me install it on the spot! I was so relieved and so thankful for such a quick, helpful and painless transaction. I’m happy I drove to this location. Thank you!

SERVICE? Depends on what you mean.
One definition of «service» is «to mate with». Or, coarsely, «screw». (This usually refers to animals.)
Yesterday, I got «serviced» by this dealer. I took my 2000 Tundra in to have three engine hoses replaced, because a smog shop told me they were bad. T of E also performed a routine checkup. When I picked my truck up, I checked under the hood. The TE mech had «repaired» two of the hoses by clipping off two of the 16 YEAR OLD hoses’ split ends and then jamming those 16 YEAR OLD hoses back on their fittings. I guess he thought that that made them (the 16 YEAR OLD hoses) new again. The third hose hadn’t been touched. It, too, was split, disconnected, and hanging loose. I asked the mech why he hadn’t replaced it. He said that it wasn’t really needed. (You can learn SO MUCH from these guys!) I encouraged him to replace it, which he did, for free.
I just noticed that they charged me $ 120 (for one hour) to flush the brakes and $ 30 for a quart of brake fluid. Now, THAT’S SERVICING!
Wrapping up, I gratefully paid them the $ 60 fee to replace a fuse, but declined the $ 640 (parts) and $ 240 (labor) costs they wanted to replace the front brake rotors and pads. I can get those parts for $ 78 online (total cost, free shipping!) and can do the labor myself.
I’ve purchased two Tundras from these clowns. Can’t wait to buy the third… somewhere else.

As it turned out I went to the place after I got a call from the Manager on duty — he was very apologetic and he asked me to come in and he would order me a Tacoma and as a bonus he would honor a truecar price on it. I went in and spoke to Michelle who clarified my truck options and needs (I knew exactly what I wanted). The Manager who contacted me came-​in and explained that the truck I wanted would be around $ 40,000 (actual is $ 33,800) and to leave a deposit and they would get a manufacture date to me within days. They would honor the price on truecar the day it came-​in. They asked for a $ 500 deposit and offered only a handwritten receipt with pretty much nothing on it except a truck model number. I asked if there was some other document of understanding or something to memorialize that the pricing would be dictated by the truecar price on the day of its arrival — but the answer is an emphatic No. Hmmm I thought, a $ 40,000 truck that’s really $ 33,800, but I’ll give you the truecar price when it comes in (at this point the waits are running 2 months or more), but no way will I put that in writing… The senses are tingling and I think I am a fool if I do this (I freely admit I am a fool at this point, folks. If the shoe fits…). How about a refund of my deposit if I find another dealer? «Oh yes», says Michelle «we have no interest in keeping your money, call immediately and it’s done». SO I LEAVE THE DEPOSIT. Well don’t you know I get home and another SD dealer gives me a VIN # and guarantee truecar price on the truck I want two days later — so I take it. It takes me 3 more days to settle everything and everything is in writing — go figure. It is due to come in in about 7 weeks.
–Call to Michelle 2 days later at Toyota of Escondido — «Sure I will process the refund, basically nothing has been done on your vehicle (big surprise, Michelle)»
–3 days later after nothing posts I call Michelle again — Michelle says «I don’t know why it hasn’t posted but I have a day off today and will check on Monday».
–2 days later I Email two Managers of the dealership asking if they can intervene to get me my deposit back, and that I would be out-​of-​town for 2 days, but will be happy to come-​in to talk to them about this personally when I come back from that trip. No response — crickets chirping…
–Two days later I get a call from Michelle who leaves a vm message — «Your refund has posted». (I am traveling at this point)
–The next day I get back home and check my pending credit card transactions — nothing has posted — we are now 15 days in to this. I call Michelle and tell her my payment wasn’t posted — «I have a receipt in the office that says it was refunded.» I will be in the office this morning and check. It is now that I see the response on Unilocal from Cindy the Customer relations manager. As I think we can all see, they surely could use one (how bad a job that must be there!). I call at the number listed and leave a message and she gets back to me in minutes. She notes that refunds to a credit card take longer than charges and to give it another day… She also comments that there is a receipt so I am thinking good thoughts…
–The final day I see the refund has posted.
–BOTTOM-​LINE. After this episode I think we can conclude that they’re not bad people. I just think their entire business is focused on the «old fashioned» model. (1) come in, (2) pick and test-​drive your car, (3) buy your car. All happens in neat order, all happens the same day. In today’s market place with the volumes of research available on-​line and elsewhere, the use of the internet sales and car-​buying services, I think this is an establishment that is simply not built to handle different car-​buying strategies and customers outside of their «model». They obviously have a lot of rich people in Escondido, as I would think this dependency on the «classic model» of car-​buying is not going to cut it as the years go on… It’s clear they don’t have the communication skills either within their own organization as well as with the customer. If you run a business as read a story like mine — obviously a potential customer not just for today, but for a long time (I buy A LOT of cars) — who is basically never going to consider that dealership ever again, you would need to re-​evaluate how the overall customer experience goes at your establishment. As I read the Unilocal reviews, there are good ones — but it seems to also track to the folk who come in and follow the classic pattern (nothing is 100% I understand). So this means that they are missing an entire element of potential customers who don’t follow that model. My honest opinion is that unless you are going in to buy that day, you will be totally and completely disappointed. You will end up wondering how they ever find two socks that match when they get up in the morning.

We bought a new Toyota Tacoma from Toyota Escondido It has 44,000 miles on it and the top, hood, and wheel wells are rusted out. Regional Manager tell poor service rep to call and tell me they don’t care about the defective paint job because it is out of warranty.
Hope they enjoy the signs in the Windows — Paint By Toyota of Escondido — Too bad About The Paint, Out of Warranty — Love The Paint? Shop Toyota of Escondido!
Run — any other brand would do better standing behind their trucks.

I’ve had 3 experiences here. None positive. First, went to buy a car. Stood in the lobby for 30 minutes. Not one person acknowledged me. Left for Toyota of Carlsbad. Second, took my car for its routine service. Extremely disorganized. Took over 2 hours even with an appointment. Third and final experience I will ever have here, made another appointment for service. Waited 20 for anyone to even notice my existence. Then they said it was going to take 3 hours for my oil change. No thanks. See ya.
Figure your stuff out. Terribly run operation. Poway or Carlsbad for me. Never Escondido.

I’ve never been here for service but bought my car from here through the Internet sales department. Awesome experience. Car was located and held without any deposit. No run arounds. Deal as they said. Promptly received check for my trade in. All great. Again, Never been here for service so can’t comment on that

I recently bought a certified pre owned Toyota Tacoma from this location. I knew exactly what I was looking for and we all know Tacomas fly off the lot. I won’t get into details about my deal because we all negotiate to the terms of our agreement to what we feel comfortable with. I will talk about the buying experience. That and I don’t care to know if someone got a better or worse deal haha.
I started with Victor Santiago as my sales rep. He was extremely helpful and professional. Worked with me on what I wanted. Little give and a little take and we were able to come to a quick and easy agreement on the truck. I had a trade in available and they gave me a very competitive trade in price. Negotiating on a Tacoma price is a lot harder because they are a very sought after truck. A certified pre owned one especially. Victor was great in every way and never pressured me into anything I didn’t want, straight forward from the beginning saying we will do the best for each other and if we can’t agree, no hard feelings. I also drove and hour and a half to this location. Well worth it.
Second I moved onto financing. Working with Mir Sadat. He was able to get me a killer interest rate and explained everything to me in detail. I knew exactly what every dime I was paying was going towards. Very cool guy and personable too. None of those awkward moments of silence with a finance guy who makes you feel like your just a paycheck and doesn’t feel they need to talk to you. You all know what I’m talking about.
Overall very professional staff, huge selection of new and used cars. I would definitely return to this location for a new car. If it’s still around in 20years because Toyotas last forever.
Thank you Toyota of Escobdido.

Only for the service department.
Lady working the service department here talked to me and treated me like a child. She referred to me as «honey» and gave off a very condescending tone.
Paul, another guy working in the service department, made me feel like he was doing me a huge favor when he was simply doing his job. I didn’t expect this sleazy salesman attitude from the service department. He even talked to the guy from the tire shop that I went to the day before and he was so rude to him. I later called the tire shop guy to apologize on behalf of Paul. I felt so embarrassed that someone would talk to another human being with that kind of pretentious attitude.
Never ever will return again. I advise you not to either.

Went in yesterday to have my car serviced & was met with exceptional customer service! Victoria, in the service dept., was super friendly and informative. She was able to answer all my questions and had my car ready before I knew it!

I had an ok buying experience, but once I started returning for my oil changes/​services I had a completely different and negative experience. I know for a fact that Toyota recommends synthetic oil, however, Toyota of Escondido doesn’t use synthetic oil for their services you paid for when purchasing your vehicle. The reason I got from the service department, «Synthetic oil is too thin and will cause leaks prematurely.» At the time, I bought this load of hogwash.
Another thing, I found out that when they service your vehicle they quite often don’t close/​latch engine air filter and cabin air filter housings correctly which leaves them ineffective.
They’re obviously hiring the cheapest/​laziest service techs they they can. Maybe paying these same techs better might make them feel better about doing a better job.
What ever you do, avoid this place. Don’t trust them with your investment. We purchase Toyotas cause we want them to last long. Toyota of Escondido Service Department will destroy your car.

Best Experience I’ve Had. Never Thought I’d Get My Car The Day I Went Asking For Quotes.
Lee Made The Purchase Go By Smoothly. Everything Turned Out Great & I’m A Happy Customer With Her New 2015 Scion FR-​S

Just purchased my first brand new car from Hector and Monique. I have been shopping around for a couple of weeks now and the service was amazing. I drove all the way from The North Park area to purchase the vehicle. I have dealt with every type of car salesman in the last two weeks and everything here was genuine and authentic.
This isn’t my first time buying from a dealership either. I definitely recommend these guys.
I purchased the Scion IM and look forward to buying my next car here as well.

Thank you Toyota of Escondido, especially to Dominic. Just bought my brand new 2015 Camry and I LOVE IT!!! I had gone to other dealerships but none met the excellent customer service Toyota of Escondido provided. Dominic expalin the entire process and was very realistic with me. I am VERY satisfied #HappyCustomer. Thanks again. –AJ

I came here yesterday just to look at their Scion FR-​S in stock, but never expected to drive one home the same day! It made me so happy, the transaction was painless and pretty straight forward. They also have a lot of cars to pick from, so you won’t feel short of choices.
Special thanks for Perrin Um, for making it possible. He was informative and patient throughout the process. He help me every step of the way analyzing my options in hand. He wasn’t pushy and very straight forward on things I should know. Before I drove off with the car, he made sure I know all the functions and where everything was. Overall, he did an exceptional job catering to what I was looking for and my budget.
I definitely recommend Toyota Escondido to everyone!

This is one of the biggest toyota dealership in San Diego. Alex Rangel is the man you wanna talk about if you decide to get a new toy. He is honest and very straight forward, compared to others. This dealership offers good deals online. I suggested to check their website first before you go. About the location, they are easy to find just take CA-​78 east from I-​15.
Also, i suggest to call for an appointment because they are so busy.
Overall, we are happy for our 2015 rav4. Happy client for the first time buyer.

Since I live in Valley Center, I get my service done here for my Corolla. When I first started getting service here, I was really bothered by the service provider saying additional things needed to be done. One visit they would say a certain thing needed to be fixed. I would decline. Then the next visit, it didn’t need to be fixed. So I figured, if things aren’t consistently recommended, I wouldn’t do it. Recently, the service providers have not been shady like that. I get my oil change and they let me leave.
They offer the car to get washed. Don’t expect a nice hand washed car. One time they said the car was ready. I got my in my car and the steering wheel was dirty with oil. Luckily I didn’t get any on my clothes or white purse. If it did, I would have made a big fit. The service provider was apologetic and they cleaned it up.
They offer shuttle service if you would like to go back home instead of waiting for your car to be done. It can take long so I just bring work to do at the waiting area. They have a 2 person desk if it’s available. They have coffee and tea for free. They have a vending machine with drinks. The workers said if I need water, just ask them for a bottle instead of buying it. That was nice!
Not a bad place to get your Toyota serviced. As expected, it’s more expensive here that say a Pep Boys. Look for coupons on the website and get a punch card for oil changes!

Este lugar NO SIRVE especialmente un vendedor Jorge Muñoz y Sterlling de financiamento estos dos lo unico que les importa es la commission por lo menos dicimularan tantito. DO NOT GO HERE THIS PLACE SUCKS!!! Nunca volveria a ir a este lugar y mucho menos recomendar aqui, el servicio al cliente es una basura al igual que el dealership y los que trabajan ahi. Para que me pudieran hacer caso tube que hacer una queja al BBB porque el manager al igual que ellos no le importa nada