Howards Motor Group Reviews 1.034

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I had such a wonderful experience buying my new car from Peugeot Taunton, thanks to Martin. He was so thoughtful and genuinely took all the pressure off the process. Everything was made so easy — from the paperwork to the regular updates, he kept me fully informed every step of the way. I especially appreciated the short video he sent on the day my car arrived — such a lovely personal touch! Martin simplified everything and made the whole experience enjoyable and stress-free. Thank you so much, I absolutely love my new car!

My car went in for MOT, service, this car runs smoothly, I was advised by Howard Peugeot Taunton to do a Timing belt which is due when the car is 10years old, all this with one other repair amounted to £1700ish. My car came back with an “engine fault needs repair” at almost every start of the vehicle the sound of the car has become so bad you can hear something making a weird noise. I called to ask the receptionist told me I will have to pay again, my question is how do I trust that when I take it back in and make another payment which is not cheap, will all the issues be fixed….. my trust for Howard group Taunton is broken,

I went in to Howard Hyundai in Weston super Mare to look at the new Inster. Steve was incredibly helpful and friendly. I was able to test drive this delightful little car and have traded in my Kia Sportage (much too big for my lifestyle). My new car will arrive within the next couple of weeks. Thank you Steve and Hyundai!

We paid a £99 holding deposit and travelled 45 minutes each way to view a Citroën DS3 at Howards UCC Yeovil. That alone should have demonstrated how serious we were about purchasing the car — yet what should have been a straightforward viewing of a reserved vehicle turned into the worst dealership experiences I’ve had in over three decades of car buying

Unwelcoming and Dismissive from the Start

From the moment we arrived, the salesperson made it clear she didn’t want to entertain our time unless we were already committed to buying the car. just a cold, transactional energy. She was abrupt, defensive, and showed no willingness to understand our position or build any kind of rapport. Honestly, I think she was completely out of place in a sales role. Her colleague seemed to have the same “couldn’t care less” vibe, which suggests a potential cultural issue.

Misleading Pre-Sale Presentation

A walkaround video was sent ahead of the visit — but it conveniently skipped every notable issue we later spotted in person:

All four diamond-cut alloys were lacquer-peeling and water-damaged

A dent in the passenger-side sill

Paint damage on two panels (rear right and front left)

And most worrying of all — engine coolant clearly below the minimum level

The issues with the body and paintwork damage were not disclosed in advance, despite being obvious and were certainly not reflected in the advertised price. When we raised the coolant issue, we were told it would be “looked at if we bought the car.” That’s despite being told the car had already passed a full inspection, including a wet belt replacement. If low coolant is missed during that full inspection, what else was?

No Test Drive Unless You’re ‘Committed’?

This was the real shocker. We were told — repeatedly — that we couldn’t test drive the car unless we were already “committed to buying it.”

That line genuinely blew me away. It’s not a Ferrari. It’s a used Citroën DS3 in yellow.

I’ve bought cars from Porsche dealerships, independents, and private sellers across the UK — never once have I been told I need to make a buying decision before I’ve even driven the car.
It’s not just unusual — it’s completely backwards.

How on earth are you supposed to know if a car suits you until you’ve driven it?

Walked Away With Zero Confidence

In the end, we walked. Not because of the price (we had the cash in the bank and we were ready to make a deal if the car and the approach felt right) but because of how the whole thing was handled. Hopefully the deposit is refunded quickly and smoothly (but that's not happened as yet)!

Summary

We lost trust. Between the undisclosed damage, the low coolant, and the saleswoman’s pushy, dismissive attitude, we had no confidence in the vehicle, the process, or the people.

What should have been a straightforward purchase turned into a frustrating, dead-end experience. Yes, I opened with a low offer — as any buyer would when clear cosmetic and mechanical issues are present — but rather than engaging in a reasonable discussion, the saleswoman completely blindsided it and resorted to pressure and intimidation tactics to force the sale. It was like being strong-armed rather than attempting coming to an agreeable deal.

We won’t return — and I’d strongly advise others to avoid wasting their time here, (unless of course you enjoy being talked down to, pressured, and strong-armed into a sale).

Looking at the wall of 5-star reviews, maybe I caught them on a bad day — but that still doesn’t excuse the dismissive attitude, the pressure tactics, or the fact I left with zero confidence in the car or the people selling it. They won’t be getting my money — or my family’s — anytime soon.

Travelled from Birmingham to this dealership and spoke to Matt Huxtable who arranged a test drive in a 600e & 500e abarth and we purchased the 500e and he was very helpful from the start the the finish with the process the car was fully charged and ready to drive home to Birmingham on the Saturday afternoon when we collected it. Thank you to Matt for all his help & support.

We spent a solid few hours with Steve at Howard's in WSM, and came away with an i10 ready for collection in a few days. We had 2 test drives, all our questions were answered and there was no hard sell. A very productive morning. Thanks Steve.

From the very first phone call when looking for our new motorbilty car we had a wonderful experience. Marcos was very polite, knowledgeable and kind. He kept us informed about the delivery date of the car and then when we went to collect the car, went through everything with us. Marcos has since rang us to confirm that everything was OK. My husband has terminal cancer and Marcos was sympathetic without being patronising. An asset to the company. If you are looking for a Peugeot then ask for Marcos.

Great experience at Howards Toyota WSM when I took my car for an MOT and service recently. The drop off process was easy and, because I intended to work while I was waiting, I used the new desk seating area which was really comfortable. Nice to have hot drinks and biscuits there too. Becky was incredibly helpful, kept me informed throughout and checked in on me from time to time. A very pleasant experience all round. And I was very happy with my car too. The video explanation of what's going on with it is brilliant

Update from the Manager has apologised and has now changed the process regarding buying a car from Howard's .so it would not happen for new purchased from Howard's group.

Very unprofessional service , visited site in Weston today , we were shown a car ,took it for a test drive,we agreed on a price with the salesman Inc all the extras with the car .
Me and my daughter waited 15 mins to be told the car was not available .in total I waisted a hour of my time .
I was so angry,Howard's have lost a £9000 sale .

The knowledge and help of the staff. Excellent service. In particular Mark Atkins

Jack Dennehy (sales representative) fully explained all the details regarding the car and was extremely helpful at each appointment we had. Impressive service

We own two hyundais neither more than a year old. Recently something happened to the charging of the battery on our all electric ioniq 5. The resultant effect was for us to have to have the car recovered back to Howards in taunton. Obviously as the car is less than a year old we essentially expected some level of customer service. No. The reality is you can buy a brand new Hyundai, and within a year you may be left carless (with all the complications that causes in life) and then essentially blamed for something that to any reasonable or rational person is a warranty issue and should not be happening to a brand new vehicle.

Based on this experience we are now hugely regretting owning 2 Hyundai's, and can only warn that Howards have no desire to demonstrate even moderate customer service and not only will they certainly not be 'going the extra step' to help, they literally don't want to take any steps at all if they can avoid it!

Purchased a used Nissan Navara from Howards and cannot praise them, particularly Jack Casali-Burdge enough for his professionalism, communication & overall customer service.

I had a very helpful, informative and pleasant conversation with The Manager at Howards Kia Taunton about a 2 star review concerning 4 days needed to rectify a front sensor problem with my EV6.
It seems that in those 4 days a fault with the wiring loom was discovered, so the whole front bumper was removed and a section of the loom was replaced, and the bumper refixed. Then an additional problem with the Sensors was also discovered. The bumper was then removed again to replace all of the front sensors. If I had realised that scale of work had been done I would never have written the first 2 star review. I now believe that the only real problem was one of poor communication concerning what had to be done to my car.

Had a great experience with Sam in Weston. Really put us at ease and made the whole experience of buying a car a pleasure. Will definitely return.

Excellent service

Just had my Honda Jazz mot at Honda Taunton ,Rhys at the Service Reception, was very welcoming ,very friendly very obliging, showed us to the waiting area, for drinks&biscuits whilst we were waiting ,had a nice chat with Mark,both very customer orientated ,thank you Gents ,the showroom was impressive, showing once again the professionalism of Honda and it's personnel, thank you so much, looking forward to the next time !

Took my Yaris in for its service and MOT - the team were so friendly and helpful and Richard went above and beyond in terms of customer service and care. The car was cleaned, recommendations were explained clearly and thoroughly without any pressure to commit to advisories at this point.

Excellent service and friendly