G R Auto Gallery
3851 Model Ct Se
Grand RapidsMI49512
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Description
Consign with GR Auto Gallery – we make it simple. Our knowledgeable staff, extensive marketing capabilities, and local 25,000 square foot showroom gets your vehicle the exposure and representation needed to maximize its global value. No hassles and no surprises. Decades of professional experience gives us the ability to represent your interests.
Member Reviews
Buyer Beware - Recent Transaction with GR Auto Gallery (Traverse, Michigan):
Buyer beware. During the month of May 2017, I purchased a 1982 Mercedes Benz 240D from Gr Auto Gallery. The car was advertised as being in Excellent Condition. Since I have friends that have purchased cars from Gr Auto Gallery and after reading many reviews from the internet, I decided to trust Cory Wade from Gr Auto Gallery. Cory assisted me with the purchase. There were various deal breakers including whether the vehicle had a functional AC that blew cold air. I was informed by Cory that the car did in fact have a functional AC that blew cold air and informed me that the vehicle was in fact in Excellent condition. Through the transaction, communication with Cory was almost non-existent which was a Red Flag. I should have walked away from this transaction due to the poor communication with GR Auto Gallery. But again, I gave them the benefit of the doubt.
After transmitting the funds, the real nightmare began when they made arrangements to have the car transported to me in Southern California. They made the arrangements with a transport company called Prestige Transport Inc. and this company was God aweful. I can't tell you how many times I had to call this transport company to try to get any kind of update on the transport of my vehicle to Southern California only to get yelled at by the driver or the main POC at the Prestige. The people at Prestige are obviously foreigners who can barely speak English. And don't get them upset because they have very short fuses. Anyhow, the car ended up getting dropped off at my residence and I was glad to pay Prestige to get them quickly out of my life. That was probably one of the most stressful experiences I've ever had in my life. Again, this is the sort of company that GR Auto Gallery highly recommended which reflects poorly.
Anyhow, I was obviously happy upon the arrival of the car. I figured, that I could now enjoy the vehicle. To my surprise, the car had a lot of issues which included the following: 1) driver's door regulator was broken and so the window could not be opened or closed, 2) power booster pump was completely dead (i.e. would not hold suction) making the vehicle a huge safety liability driving it on the road, 3) the speedometer was not functional nor was the odometer and mileage counter, 4) the fuel gauge indicator was stuck and the empty tank light was on although according to GR Auto Gallery, the tank was full, 5) all of the oils in the vehicle including the engine oil, transmission oil, power steering oil, and coolant were all at dangerously low levels, 6) a number of vacuum lines were leaking air in the engine, 7) the main vacuum line that connected to the power booster pump was cracked and had to be replaced, and 8) the AC blows air but not cold. Those are some of the issues that have been identified by my mechanic as needing to be repaired to again make the car safe to drive. To get the AC to blow cold air, the mechanic noted that the AC system would have to be upgraded and that alone would cost an additional $1,200.
So needless to say, the car I purchased from GR Auto Gallery was not in the Excellent condition it was advertised in. The car I purchased was not worth what I paid for it. At best, it was probably worth only half of what I paid.
I immediately contacted GR Auto Gallery and again, my calls to Cory were not promptly returned. Therefore I spoke with Chris who is the owner of GR Auto Gallery.
I asked Chris for a refund which he said was clearly out of the question for him. I asked if they could pick up the car and I could pick a different car which again was out of the question. Chris asked me to take the car to a mechanic to get it diagnosed and get it repaired. Chris noted that he was willing to work with me and would consider reimbursing me $250 if the repair costs were within $1,000 which they are now. I have acted in good faith and have done everything that GR Auto Gallery has suggested but they are leaving me holding the bag alone. I have not heard back from them noting that they will be helping to cover the $250 minimum on their behalf to make the car safe to drive. So GR Auto Gallery doesn't really give folks too many options if you're not happy with the car.
To date, I have emailed Cory and Chris all of my receipts for repairs done to date and again, I have not heard anything from either Cory or Chris.
To anyone on the internet thinking about purchasing a car from GR Auto Gallery, I am posting this review for your benefit. Buyer be ware. If you do decide to purchase a vehicle from them, either fly out there in person to see the vehicle else get it inspected before purchasing any car from them.
Like I said, I have done everything possible to remain professional but my efforts have not been reciprocated by the people who work at Gr Auto Gallery. My transaction has been a nightmare from beginning to end. And it's been two weeks since I got the car and it's still at with the mechanic.
After transmitting the funds, the real nightmare began when they made arrangements to have the car transported to me in Southern California. They made the arrangements with a transport company called Prestige Transport Inc. and this company was God aweful. I can't tell you how many times I had to call this transport company to try to get any kind of update on the transport of my vehicle to Southern California only to get yelled at by the driver or the main POC at the Prestige. The people at Prestige are obviously foreigners who can barely speak English. And don't get them upset because they have very short fuses. Anyhow, the car ended up getting dropped off at my residence and I was glad to pay Prestige to get them quickly out of my life. That was probably one of the most stressful experiences I've ever had in my life. Again, this is the sort of company that GR Auto Gallery highly recommended which reflects poorly.
Anyhow, I was obviously happy upon the arrival of the car. I figured, that I could now enjoy the vehicle. To my surprise, the car had a lot of issues which included the following: 1) driver's door regulator was broken and so the window could not be opened or closed, 2) power booster pump was completely dead (i.e. would not hold suction) making the vehicle a huge safety liability driving it on the road, 3) the speedometer was not functional nor was the odometer and mileage counter, 4) the fuel gauge indicator was stuck and the empty tank light was on although according to GR Auto Gallery, the tank was full, 5) all of the oils in the vehicle including the engine oil, transmission oil, power steering oil, and coolant were all at dangerously low levels, 6) a number of vacuum lines were leaking air in the engine, 7) the main vacuum line that connected to the power booster pump was cracked and had to be replaced, and 8) the AC blows air but not cold. Those are some of the issues that have been identified by my mechanic as needing to be repaired to again make the car safe to drive. To get the AC to blow cold air, the mechanic noted that the AC system would have to be upgraded and that alone would cost an additional $1,200.
So needless to say, the car I purchased from GR Auto Gallery was not in the Excellent condition it was advertised in. The car I purchased was not worth what I paid for it. At best, it was probably worth only half of what I paid.
I immediately contacted GR Auto Gallery and again, my calls to Cory were not promptly returned. Therefore I spoke with Chris who is the owner of GR Auto Gallery.
I asked Chris for a refund which he said was clearly out of the question for him. I asked if they could pick up the car and I could pick a different car which again was out of the question. Chris asked me to take the car to a mechanic to get it diagnosed and get it repaired. Chris noted that he was willing to work with me and would consider reimbursing me $250 if the repair costs were within $1,000 which they are now. I have acted in good faith and have done everything that GR Auto Gallery has suggested but they are leaving me holding the bag alone. I have not heard back from them noting that they will be helping to cover the $250 minimum on their behalf to make the car safe to drive. So GR Auto Gallery doesn't really give folks too many options if you're not happy with the car.
To date, I have emailed Cory and Chris all of my receipts for repairs done to date and again, I have not heard anything from either Cory or Chris.
To anyone on the internet thinking about purchasing a car from GR Auto Gallery, I am posting this review for your benefit. Buyer be ware. If you do decide to purchase a vehicle from them, either fly out there in person to see the vehicle else get it inspected before purchasing any car from them.
Like I said, I have done everything possible to remain professional but my efforts have not been reciprocated by the people who work at Gr Auto Gallery. My transaction has been a nightmare from beginning to end. And it's been two weeks since I got the car and it's still at with the mechanic.
Car is not what they say it is! Misrepresentation, crooks:
I've been dealing, buying and selling cars for 15 years, after buying and selling hundreds of cars this is by far one of the worst buying experiences ever. I bought multiple antiques vehicles - 1920's Fords over the phone, in person and Internet and the people who own them usually are very straight forward and describe every single detail and are in general very nice folks to deal with.
I've been dealing, buying and selling cars for 15 years, after buying and selling hundreds of cars this is by far one of the worst buying experiences ever. I bought multiple antiques vehicles - 1920's Fords over the phone, in person and Internet and the people who own them usually are very straight forward and describe every single detail and are in general very nice folks to deal with.
I will describe my personal experience at this beautiful place and it just puts a bad taste in your mouth. I am sure some folks are very happy with the cars they bought, or maybe they just can't see well enough to notice all the issues from 2 feet away. How can you do business like that and expect return customers/referrals??? Vehicle is totally misrepresented by sales staff. My guess is that every vehicle is described to be in very good condition and "you going to be very pleased when you receive it". When in reality the staff doesn't even look at the car or not familiar with a vehicle you are inquiring about. Dealing with Rob Vendelt before buying the car is not what you would expect when paying $18500 for a vehicle.
When asking questions about vehicle condition you only have one chance to ask one question as Rob VanDealt will get quickly frustrated and annoyed with a customer when you ask simple questions about the condition of the car to get a general idea of the condition. He will tell you the car is in excellent condition, no scratches, doesn't need touch up, tires are in great shape, no rust, basically anything to make you feel comfortable and send them the money. If you second guess the condition or ask the same question, Rob just gets annoyed and tells you DO NOT BUY THE CAR as he will have no problem selling to someone else for more money. Here are some of the emails from Rob "Thanks. No Deposit Needed. I am a man of my word and i will hold the car. I will let you know when I see the funds." "You can ask me a question 1 time and I will give you an honest answer about the vehicle." You keep asking me the same questions over and over and I am going to get upset. I came down a lot on this car (overinflated asking price was $19900, sold for $18500. That's fair enough on an "excellent 1929 Ford Model A Tudor") and then you asked me questions after the deal was made. This is not how we do business. After a deal is made is not the time to ask questions. If you do not want the car I understand and I will have no trouble selling it. It is as nice as it looks."
So i double check the simple things, and call Rob - the man of his word, the man who will give you an honest answer the first time, to ask how are the tires, are they dryrotted/cracked? The answer is of course not, they are fine! Next thing you ask, is there any RUST on the vehicle, are there visible imperfections? Rob will reassure you that the vehicle is free of rust and doesn't need any touch ups. So you feel pretty comfortable after talking to the seller, you feel like you did the right thing, these folks seem like they know what they doing, they strive on their reputation and looked over the car and provided you with 350+ pictures from every possible angle and light setting. You have have no second thoughts and decide to skip the inspection by a third party, - WRONG, you should always do inspections, even if you are buying always garaged Model A from your grandpas brother! In the end "The car is not a brand new vehicle but is exactly as we described it," as Rob would say in the event you are not happy with this excellent piece of automotive history.
So all this talk and confirmation that the vehicle is nice and pretty is before the money is wired to the GR Auto Gallery. This should have been the first warning sign that the deal might be sour. After the money is wired in good faith and vehicle is shipped, I had to constantly call and remind to mail out the title. That's the way to go guys at GR AUTO GALLERY/WHEELZ SALES & LEASING! motto: "sign the bill of sale, get the money and move on to the next deal"
So you wait for the vehicle to arrive, really happy that you made a deal with Rob, and he assured you there is nothing to worry about, you gonna love the car and it is as good as he has ever seen them. To make a long story short, the car came in on a transporter 3 days later and what a surprise!!
The vehicle is totally misrepresented, to the point where you need a blindfold not to see all the IMPERFECTIONS - DRYROTTED/CRACKED TIRES, CRACKED RADIATOR HOSES, RUST ON DOORS AND BODY, CHIPS AND PAINT/BONDO PEELING OFF, CRACKS IN PAINT, INTERIOR TRIM NOT SECURED, SCREWS MISSING, CHIPS AND SCRATCHES IN GLASS, SEAT UPHOLSTERY COMING APART, MISMATCHED SCREWS, IGNITION CYLINDER LOOSE. So overall the vehicle will need couple more thousand dollars just on cosmetic things, things that Rob assured are fine. And I didn't even look at mechanical and suspension parts of the car. What a nightmare.
When addressed all the issues with ROB, you would expect some kind of customer service or understanding or price adjustment. Usually the dealer will make it right, they want to sell multiple cars to you and your family, not just one car, one deal, right? Well folks - wrong, you will get the usual response from ROB "If you would like to ship it back we would be happy to sell it for you on consignment. The car is not a brand new vehicle but is exactly as we described it. It is in very good condition just as I said. We talked about the undercarriage. We talked about everything. I told you not to buy the car it did not matter to me. You are a dealer. I told you to have it inspected. End of story."
So my overall experience is below average. You would expect this kind of attitude from a small time BUY HERE/PAY HERE dealership but not from an GR AUTO GALLERY, this is overall very unethical and unacceptable. Makes used car dealers look bad.
Thanks ROB!
I've been dealing, buying and selling cars for 15 years, after buying and selling hundreds of cars this is by far one of the worst buying experiences ever. I bought multiple antiques vehicles - 1920's Fords over the phone, in person and Internet and the people who own them usually are very straight forward and describe every single detail and are in general very nice folks to deal with.
I will describe my personal experience at this beautiful place and it just puts a bad taste in your mouth. I am sure some folks are very happy with the cars they bought, or maybe they just can't see well enough to notice all the issues from 2 feet away. How can you do business like that and expect return customers/referrals??? Vehicle is totally misrepresented by sales staff. My guess is that every vehicle is described to be in very good condition and "you going to be very pleased when you receive it". When in reality the staff doesn't even look at the car or not familiar with a vehicle you are inquiring about. Dealing with Rob Vendelt before buying the car is not what you would expect when paying $18500 for a vehicle.
When asking questions about vehicle condition you only have one chance to ask one question as Rob VanDealt will get quickly frustrated and annoyed with a customer when you ask simple questions about the condition of the car to get a general idea of the condition. He will tell you the car is in excellent condition, no scratches, doesn't need touch up, tires are in great shape, no rust, basically anything to make you feel comfortable and send them the money. If you second guess the condition or ask the same question, Rob just gets annoyed and tells you DO NOT BUY THE CAR as he will have no problem selling to someone else for more money. Here are some of the emails from Rob "Thanks. No Deposit Needed. I am a man of my word and i will hold the car. I will let you know when I see the funds." "You can ask me a question 1 time and I will give you an honest answer about the vehicle." You keep asking me the same questions over and over and I am going to get upset. I came down a lot on this car (overinflated asking price was $19900, sold for $18500. That's fair enough on an "excellent 1929 Ford Model A Tudor") and then you asked me questions after the deal was made. This is not how we do business. After a deal is made is not the time to ask questions. If you do not want the car I understand and I will have no trouble selling it. It is as nice as it looks."
So i double check the simple things, and call Rob - the man of his word, the man who will give you an honest answer the first time, to ask how are the tires, are they dryrotted/cracked? The answer is of course not, they are fine! Next thing you ask, is there any RUST on the vehicle, are there visible imperfections? Rob will reassure you that the vehicle is free of rust and doesn't need any touch ups. So you feel pretty comfortable after talking to the seller, you feel like you did the right thing, these folks seem like they know what they doing, they strive on their reputation and looked over the car and provided you with 350+ pictures from every possible angle and light setting. You have have no second thoughts and decide to skip the inspection by a third party, - WRONG, you should always do inspections, even if you are buying always garaged Model A from your grandpas brother! In the end "The car is not a brand new vehicle but is exactly as we described it," as Rob would say in the event you are not happy with this excellent piece of automotive history.
So all this talk and confirmation that the vehicle is nice and pretty is before the money is wired to the GR Auto Gallery. This should have been the first warning sign that the deal might be sour. After the money is wired in good faith and vehicle is shipped, I had to constantly call and remind to mail out the title. That's the way to go guys at GR AUTO GALLERY/WHEELZ SALES & LEASING! motto: "sign the bill of sale, get the money and move on to the next deal"
So you wait for the vehicle to arrive, really happy that you made a deal with Rob, and he assured you there is nothing to worry about, you gonna love the car and it is as good as he has ever seen them. To make a long story short, the car came in on a transporter 3 days later and what a surprise!!
The vehicle is totally misrepresented, to the point where you need a blindfold not to see all the IMPERFECTIONS - DRYROTTED/CRACKED TIRES, CRACKED RADIATOR HOSES, RUST ON DOORS AND BODY, CHIPS AND PAINT/BONDO PEELING OFF, CRACKS IN PAINT, INTERIOR TRIM NOT SECURED, SCREWS MISSING, CHIPS AND SCRATCHES IN GLASS, SEAT UPHOLSTERY COMING APART, MISMATCHED SCREWS, IGNITION CYLINDER LOOSE. So overall the vehicle will need couple more thousand dollars just on cosmetic things, things that Rob assured are fine. And I didn't even look at mechanical and suspension parts of the car. What a nightmare.
When addressed all the issues with ROB, you would expect some kind of customer service or understanding or price adjustment. Usually the dealer will make it right, they want to sell multiple cars to you and your family, not just one car, one deal, right? Well folks - wrong, you will get the usual response from ROB "If you would like to ship it back we would be happy to sell it for you on consignment. The car is not a brand new vehicle but is exactly as we described it. It is in very good condition just as I said. We talked about the undercarriage. We talked about everything. I told you not to buy the car it did not matter to me. You are a dealer. I told you to have it inspected. End of story."
So my overall experience is below average. You would expect this kind of attitude from a small time BUY HERE/PAY HERE dealership but not from an GR AUTO GALLERY, this is overall very unethical and unacceptable. Makes used car dealers look bad.
Thanks ROB!
Information from the business
Monday - Friday 8 AM - 5 PM, Saturday By Appointment
GR Auto Gallery (Grand Rapids, MI) houses the talents of Hoekstra LTD and Wheelz Sales and Leasing. This enterprise utilizes our combined resources, a common venue for cars and a shared passion for the industry. Together we will maximize all efforts to help you achieve your automotive goals. With years of experience in sales, acquisition, vehicle placement, and select services, GR Auto Gallery...
GR Auto Gallery houses the talents of Hoekstra LTD and Wheelz Sales and Leasing. We always have interesting vehicles available.
High-end classic, muscle and exotic cars for sale from dealership and consignment services, with many other automotive-related services offered as well.
