Advance Vauxhall Reviews 

# Never buy a Vauxhall again!

Our Mokka X is now at the Romford service centre for the 3rd time in less than 3 years for the same coolant related issues. Having already spent a few thousand pounds, we are now being quoted over £4K as the head gasket has blown.
They claim that none of the previous work is covered by the warranty and they did not offer up access to their complaints policy or disclose that they are members of the Motor Ombudsman scheme. Instead they rereferred me to Vauxhall customer care who sent me straight back to the Romford branch.
I highly recommend that you locate another Vauxhall repair centre as you cannot trust these people with your car! I am convinced that on both previous visits, the car was given a 'sticky plaster' when they knew full well the problem was going to come back even worse. If we had replaced the relevant parts on the first occasion, it would have saved thousands.

Faulty car with multiple major issues sold to me last year. Since then the car has been in for repairs constantly with one incidence of them having the car for over 4 months to ‘repair’. Awful customer service and you have to chase them constantly and through multiple pathways just to get an update or response. The Warranty they sell through SpotiCar is awful too with parts order and quotes often declined which leads to the repairs taking forever. They will find any loop hole to charge you or exclude something from the warranty also. Having bought the car for over £10000 last year I should not have to fork out more money just to have a usable car. No courtesy cars are ever available which leaves you weeks on end without transportation but they seem to not care at all. They have caused me untold stress and financial worry over the last year and I have had to contact the Motor Ombudsman for legal support now. Do not buy from this dealership and avoids any service or repair work here like the plague. Absolutely awful.

I have had my Leapmotor B10 for 4 weeks and because I have enjoyed it so much, I have forgotten to write this review 🤣. Thank you Ahmed Fazli from Advance Motors Watford for all your help from the start of my order until the day I picked Gilbert Grape up, I would highly recommend him for his service and experience.

I had an absolutely fantastic experience at Vauxhall Advanced Romford. Ben, the salesperson, was incredibly polite, helpful, and friendly throughout the whole process. He made everything so easy, and I’m really happy with the car I purchased. I highly recommend them—five stars all the way!"

Very very disappointed with Advance Vauxhall Hemel Hempstead today. I have paid over £400 and my car has exactly the same problem as before, I feel like I have been seriously ripped off.
I took my Zafira there because of a rattling / knocking noise. To be fair, two local garages had taken a look and failed to find the issue, however they did not charge me much or carry out unnecessary work, unlike Advance.
Halfords charged nothing to take a look, and a local St Albans garage charged £90.
Advance told me they would charge £174 just to do the investigative work. This seemed very steep anyway, but I had decided that these guys must be the absolute experts because they are a Vauxhall main dealership and are bound to have looked at hundreds of Zafiras.
A few hours after dropping off the car I was called and told that they had found some movement in the brake calipers, but that my £174 was only for the first hour of investigation. I would need to pay another £174 for them to remove the calipers and look further. At this point I should have cut my losses and realised that they were not the experts I thought they were. However, they were very persuasive and convinced me that the problem would be found if I agreed to part with this extra money, so I reluctantly agreed.
I was then told later that the investigation had found that the brake pads were worn 'at an angle', causing movement, and the noise I was hearing. Again, I should have cut my losses at this point and taken my car away to get a second opinion about this as it seemed like an incredibly unlikely explanation for the noise I hear. But again, they were very convincing, and they are the main dealer experts so I was persuaded that this was highly likely to be the cause, so I agreed to pay £121 for this work to be carried out.
Surprise, surprise, when I went to collect the car I was told that the noise was still there and it might actually be suspension related, something inside a sealed unit rattling, which they can't open up to look inside.
I feel as though the charges for the investigation are basically a license to print money. How can it be right that I still have to pay the full price despite them coming to the wrong conclusion about the brakes and then charging me for that unnecessary work?
How can so-called experts charge such a premium hourly rate to carry out investigations, and then fail to find the actual problem?
As I was so unhappy with the outcome, I requested a discount and was given a measly 10%. But I have basically paid over £400 for nothing today, despite having to arrange my entire working day around this visit to Hemel. Advance couldn't even provide a lift to the station after drop off.
I have no idea how good a job Advance do with the other aspects of their business - sales / servicing etc. They might be great. But when it comes to investigating an unknown problem, I would definitely not recommend and will be sticking to Halfords.

We recently purchased a Vauxhall Crossland X from the Romford dealership and had a excellent experience from start to finish.

A special thank you to Joshua Sumner, who looked after us throughout the process. This is the second car we have bought from Joshua, and once again he provided outstanding service. He listened carefully to what we wanted, communicated clearly at every stage, and made the whole experience straightforward and stress-free.

The handover was quick and efficient. Joshua's friendly, professional approach and excellent knowledge made buying our new car a pleasure.

We are delighted with our Crossland X and would highly recommend Joshua and the team at the Romford dealership to anyone looking for a new car.
Thank you again for another fantastic experience!

Avoid Maidenhead branch like the plague, took car in for service. Got it back in a right state, complaints go unanswered from site manager and head office.
And forget about contacting them call center is I believe not in UK. Will never use this company again

Very helpful and not pushy to buy. Talked through all details and gave me plenty of time to think without being pressured. Would highly recommend vauxhall london road Romford if your looking for a friendly service and a lovely motor

This is what Vauxhall replied to my last Review in April, we are now approaching JUNE and I have received no resolution, update or even acknowledgement from this special email..

Dear Mary
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience. We’re very sorry to read about the issues you’ve encountered and understand how frustrating and concerning this situation must be, especially given the time that has passed and the nature of the recent letter you’ve received.

This is certainly not the level of service we aim to provide, and we take your concerns seriously. The letter you’ve received may relate to a manufacturer recall, and we want to ensure everything is addressed properly and as quickly as possible, if it hasn’t been resolved already.

Please could you email us directly at ***********email******** with your details so we can investigate this further as a priority and work towards a resolution for you.

We sincerely apologise again for the inconvenience caused and appreciate the opportunity to put things right.

————
UPDATE: Still unresolved months later.
The vehicle is now sitting undriven at my in-laws’ house because I no longer feel safe using it due to unresolved faults and a recall notice. Despite being told collection would be arranged, nobody has collected the car and nobody seems willing to take ownership of the situation.
Calls are ignored from Advance management, promised callbacks never happen, voicemail boxes are full, and managers are constantly “unavailable”. The 8-week FCA complaint period is now almost over and I am preparing to escalate this to the Financial Ombudsman.
This has been an appalling experience from Vauxhall and Advance Vauxhall Slough for what was supposed to be a brand new £24,000 car.

Shaq was amazing in supporting me to find the right car. He was really understanding of what I needed and very patient with my anxious self. He was so professional and took time to explain everything to me and answer any questions. Very happy with my purchase and very grateful for such a positive shopping experience! Thank you so much

I bought my Leapmoter B10 from Josh.

Didn’t try to oversell us. Wasn’t pushy. Kept us informed.

Car’s great.

Very good sales specialist (Josh) and very good car.

We visited the dealer on Saturday morning with the idea of looking at a Leapmotor B10. Bradley Norris welcomed us and quickly made us feel at ease. He was knowledgeable and gave us all the answers we needed. After a 40-minute test drive, we were sold and quickly proceeded to order the car. Brad was fundamental in helping us make the decision, and we would give him 6 stars if that were possible. Thank you, Brad.

Absolute LIARS & cowboys they really are rogue traders. They have replied to me below. But trust me they never ever got back to me.

I am extremely disappointed to be updating my original positive review.

I purchased a used car from Advance )Hemel Hempstead)Motors Vauxhall in mid-January 2026. When I washed the vehicle properly for the first time, I discovered significant damage to the rear passenger-side wheel arch. The repair work is very poor and clearly historical. It appears the area had been deliberately covered with heavy wax or product to conceal the defect.

This was not disclosed at the point of sale. For a dealership, this is unacceptable. Customers should be able to trust that vehicles are honestly presented and not cosmetically disguised to hide previous damage.

I have contacted the company regarding this issue and, so far, have received no response. The lack of communication only adds to my disappointment.

I feel completely misled and would urge others to inspect vehicles extremely carefully before purchasing.

NOT how you treat people just wrong‼️

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Reply from Advance Vauxhall
Mar 10, 2026
Dear Jamie
Thank you for updating your review and for bringing this to our attention. We’re very sorry to read about your experience and understand how disappointing this must feel, especially after your original positive experience with us.

This is certainly not the level of transparency or service we aim to provide. Please be assured that your concerns have been raised with our Group Sales Managers and Sales Managers so that they can review the situation fully. We will also be forwarding your review directly to them to ensure it is looked into as a priority.

We take feedback like this very seriously and would like the opportunity to investigate what has happened and respond to you properly. If you have not yet been contacted, please feel free to reach out to the dealership directly so we can ensure the relevant management team reviews your case and works towards a resolution.

Thank you again for bringing this matter to our attention
Review of Tractive

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Tried to book my car in for a repair on 4 separate occasions, the garage workmen informed me they had forwarded my emails on to the manager who didn't have the decency to contact me back. If this is how they run a business then I am sure their practices are of the lowest level. Avoid........

I purchased my Vauxhall Mokka from Advance Motors Watford in January 2026. From the outset of the purchase, my experience has been nothing but positive. It experience was enhanced by the professionalism of the sales representative, Martin Diep. Martin was excellent and everything was explained to me step by step. Martin's attention yo detail and customer care was exemplary and many could learn many lessons from his approach, his friendly manner and his ability to make you feel like your custom is appreciated. A very big thank you to Martin - please keep up the good work. I will be back in the future.

I bought a 2017 Ford Kuga from Advance Motors Watford and the experience since the sale has been unacceptable.

The car developed faults almost immediately, starting with a tyre pressure warning the day after collection. I reported this straight away and returned the vehicle twice, only to be told everything had been checked and there were no issues. This was clearly incorrect, as a later inspection found that a sensor was missing entirely.

Within weeks, further problems appeared including issues with the start/stop system and an engine warning light indicating a misfire. The car has now been off the road for over three weeks and is still sitting with a Ford dealership awaiting instruction, with no resolution in place.

The bigger issue has been the complete lack of ownership and urgency. I have had to chase repeatedly for updates, been given deadlines that have come and gone, and there has been no meaningful progress. Even after escalation within the business, communication has been virtually non-existent and the situation has been allowed to drag on unnecessarily.

It is extremely frustrating to be left without a vehicle for almost 5 weeks with no clear plan in place.

I would strongly advise against buying non-Vauxhall vehicles from this dealership. Based on my experience, they do not have the capability or processes in place to properly diagnose or resolve issues on vehicles outside of their own brand.

If you decide to purchase anything, be aware that their communication style is ignore and avoid.

I previously left a positive review, but unfortunately my experience after the sale has gone from good to worse.
I purchased a Suzuki, and since then the Android Auto has been faulty. The service team inspected it but said they couldn’t find any issue, so they were unable to fix it and have not offered any further support. I explained that the problem is intermittent and cannot always be replicated on the spot.
I escalated the matter to the manager, but have yet to receive any response. After chasing a few times, I am still waiting to hear back from both the service team and the manager. The car is still under warranty, and Suzuki has advised that the dealership should be assisting me in identifying the root cause.
Overall, I’m very disappointed with the lack of follow up and support.

UPDATE: After I added a review I had an email from a lady that I would be contacted that was a week ago.
Nothing yet.

I recently purchased a Vauxhall Crossland X from Advance Vauxhall in Romford and had a great experience with the customer service, thanks to Josh Sumner. He handled all my enquiries and the sale from start to finish, which made the whole process feel smooth and straightforward. Josh was very friendly, provided excellent service, and took the time to explain everything clearly, covering all the details I requested. I would highly recommend the dealership to anyone looking to buy a car.

Excellent service from Martin who took time to talk through our options and discus our concerns.

The whole process of buying a car was made easy. An excellent experience. Thank you!