EchoPark Automotive

I am a qualified reviewer as I previously worked in this business at a «traditional» store within walking distance of this one. You might not know that Echo Park is part of NC-​based automotive retailing giant Sonic Automotive. In 2014 Sonic decided to experiment with a new «customer-​centric» automotive sales process, a model on which Echo Park is based. Pricing here is no haggle, and it is competitive.
An accident that totaled my daughter’s car put us in the market. I found the listing online at the Thornton location. The first delight was that they offered to move the car to the Centennial location, set up an appointment for us to see it and put the car on hold for 24 hours. This latter point is huge, as the traditional guys wanted a $ 500 non-​refundable deposit for a hold when I helped a friend find a car for his daughter recently.
Parking here is easy, and the front of the store is graced by a gas fire pit (nice touch). The inside is a cross between an Apple store and the lobby of the emerging hipster hostel/​hotels. Ipads are hard-​mounted (wish they swiveled) on bar stool desks, pre-​loaded with all the automotive links you would need to check inventory, reviews and competitive pricing. Echo Park used inventory is nicely balanced and the vehicles are top shelf; it is obvious that they have good wholesale buyers.
Forget the term salesperson; here you are greeted by a non-​intrusive (and non-​commissioned) «experience guide» who is your primary point of contact throughout the process. The odds are good that your guide won’t have an automotive sales background which is both good and bad. Where I found this falling short was in product knowledge. I am accustomed to and appreciate a thorough walk around of the vehicle, highlighting features and benefits. This takes some training and time to get to know your inventory. Yet, I believe most buyers have done their homework online and know what they are looking for. Such was the case with us.
In spite of the one point of contact in the process, it was still a bit tedious to buy. One is handed an iPad to fill out credit app and loan application, there was some finance manager interaction (although we were not barraged with buying add ons, all of which are available to you) and in spite of a financing glitch, the Echo Park team quickly came up with a solution. All were accommodating and nothing felt pushy or rushed. There are no dealer fees or surprises; the price is the price. You pay the sales tax and registration (which still comes as a surprise to some).
The car was detailed to a good standard, but the paint was like sandpaper and was in bad need of clay bar (most people don’t know what this is/​does). I would have gladly paid a bit more for this, as would most customers (Echo Park, take notice). Still, no one can detail a car like I can, and I spent 3 hours on the weekend «making it right.» You can’t beat a 7 day/​300 mlle return policy and a 90 day powertrain warranty, and LIFETIME free car washes– YES!
I returned to the store a few times after I found a few minor issues with the car. The service department was exceptionally courteous and properly diagnosed and cured the issues. The service area is spotless and I love that it’s all visible from the waiting area with floor-​to-​ceiling glass walls.
This was a a great car-​buying experience.

Spectacular customer service, excellent modern décor and vibe, very friendly and efficient. Best experience ever! Would strongly recommend and I will repeat.

I spent a few weeks working on trading my old Audi in for a Jeep. I did my homework, drove several, got a few bids, talked to my bank about financing, etc. Pretty standard prep for buying a used car. The thing I hate the most about buying a car is walking in, telling everybody that you’re not there to negotiate and you want the best price and best rates for loans. When I don’t receive those I always give them one more chance to cut the crap (because I’ve done my work and know the market) yet they always try to play hardball. So then you walk out, having wasted hours of your time just to have them call you back the next day or two with some sort of new development where the price got better or the rate improved or whatever. Basically you always have to walk out to get the best deal. Echo Park isn’t involved in this type of garbage. No price negotiations, no back and forth, no nonsense. The price is the price, they gave me the best rate on the loan that I had seen on their first bid, and they gave me a market-​value trade in price immediately. They even had a minor stumble on some of the paperwork and ate the mistake which cost them a few bucks because ‘a deal is a deal.’ Good luck finding that somewhere else. I dealt with Lee as a salesman and Dominique as my digital coordinator (the jeep was north but they shipped it to the closest dealership to me for my convenience) and they were both awesome. If you like the negotiation stuff and love to try to ‘get one over’ on a dealership, this isn’t your place. However if you want to get a deal done without wasting many hours, this is the spot. Huge selection, lots of options, etc. I believe this is the future of used car buying. They don’t have to screw around because they have economy of scale and technology to aggregate market prices in an instant. There is no attempt to use some sort of asymmetry of information to arbitrage a few dollars out of the buyer. They rely on good prices and lower margins to drive volume of sales. Gonna be hard for traditional dealerships to compete, in my opinion. Kudos to Echo Park.

I’ve purchased five cars prior to my most recent purchase here. Those dealerships don’t compare to my experience at Echo Park.
After a week long search I finally found my Chevy Cruze on their website, but it was at their Thornton location. I chatted with a representative via their website. I just wanted to schedule a test drive to see how it drove and if it was the right car. I was prepared to make the long trip up to Thornton, but much to my surprise they offered to transfer the car to Centennial. Not only did they transfer the car, but they also put a hold on it for me. It was off the website listings shortly after I scheduled my test drive.
When I got to the dealership my «guide» Parco (goes by Patrick) was waiting at the front desk w/​my name & car waiting and ready to go. Even offered water/​coffee before we started the test drive. He was friendly and knowledgeable. There was no pressure, no hidden fees, a lot of options when it came to doing the extended warranty, which he explained to me and let me look over on their I-​pad. The price of the car was the same as it was on the website listing — no changes or mark ups or «market based pricing».
I was surprised to learn that you get free car washes for the life of the vehicle. I pointed out that the windshield had a small chip in it, and with no questions asked, they threw in a free windshield replacement. They called a couple of days later and we got it scheduled no problem.
The coffee machine they have is amazing… tons of choices, almost like a mini Starbucks in there, which was great while I was waiting on the windshield replacement to dry. The financing was fast, much faster than I’ve ever gone through before.
I highly recommend them!

This was an all round great experience. Echopark has a very modern showroom. As I walked in with my wife and 2 year old boy they greeted us and offered us water. I was then introduced to our salesman Mike B. who was a true gentlemen. We found a vehicle we liked and also advised we wanted to trade in one of our vehicles. Echopark gave a very reasonable offer for our trade, much better than CarMax. Our experience was very good and I would recommend Echopark to my friends and family.

Just wanted to update this review with more positive feedback regarding the service department. We’ve been using Echopark for most of our service needs over the last several months and their prices are always very competitive. I wanted to specifically share our experience with having leather patch work done on one of the seats because the leather repair man they used to complete the work did an immaculate job on something I never anticipated to turn out so good. The pictures say it all.

I always imagined my first time car buying experience would be stressful and overwhelming, but Fred at Echo Park made my experience far from it. Hands down most stress-​free, fun experience ever. The morning I found out my car was totaled I made my way to Echo Park and left a couple hours later with my new ride that I love. They have the best selection of used cars and the easiest, cool system of finding the right one in your price range with NO pressure and without feeling overwhelmed.
Fred took care of me like he was taking care of his own daughter, which means a lot having gone in there alone, as a single, young girl not even knowing exactly what I need. The rest of the Echo Park team was so kind and caring as well, going above and beyond to meet my needs and make sure I was getting the best value possible.
I cannot speak highly enough of Fred and the rest of this team. Oh, and free car washes for life?! They’ve made this being an adult thing a whole lot easier for me.

Despite the headaches we are very impressed with the urgency shown in correcting the mistakes made since our first review.
With that said, our initial experience when we bought our vehicle was great. We arrived late in the day to look at a specific vehicle we had researched and the staff could not have been more hospitable. Our salesman was awesome and I apologize for not being able to remember his name; he and his wife had twin girls on the way so I wish him luck with that .
And as I said before, we could not be happier with the Nissan Rouge we purchased. It was an unfortunate set of events that lead to us needing a new vehicle in the first place, but we are very satisfied overall with our experience.

Bought our new car here. Very hesitant since we have had bad experiences with the same business model (carmax). We bought a 2012 outback and it was one of the best car buying experiences we ever had. Serious no pressure, amazing and fair price for my trade in, awesome price on the new car, and unlimited car washes for life. You would be nuts to go elsewhere.

We just popped in here looking for a new vehicle and was excited to find two we really liked. The facility is nice and modern and overall had good customer service. The appraiser surprised us with the amount on our truck too! We thought everything was going well until… We had someone inexperienced trying to sell us a car.
She was stuck in this position due to understaffing on a Saturday morning, I know, but do not put someone in sales with no experience. We were quoted a payment around what we were looking forward to and was ready to buy the car. Then the salesmen shift switched and we got the actual salesman. He quoted us almost double than the original quote and completely smashed our hopes. We don’t blame him, but the lack of knowledge she had. She made us think we were going to get this wonderful car, and was forgetting to factor in our trade in equity. It was a let down. Sorry guys, but this turned us so fast we weren’t wanting to look at anything else. Sad day :(I give four stars because the customer service was overall very good, but I’m very particular about the knowledge someone has.

The car buying experience with EchoPark was a step above anything I’ve had to date. They offered to have a car brought over from another location. I was nervous to confess that I didn’t want the car after seeing it in person. I was so relieved when they assured me that it was no problem and that they didn’t want me regretting my purchase. I felt zero pressure to purchase. How refreshing.
The EchoPark facility is so inviting, and clearly they have brought on only the best talent. No one can beat the perks either-​Free carwashes for as long as I have the car? Who does that?
It’s my pleasure to recommend your checking out EchoPark when considering your next auto purchase.

I cannot believe the turnaround from Jeff and his team from EchoPark! Fabulous job! All good this time!
–Contacted immediately by the Regional Manager (sorry if this isn’t his title!)
–Made everything right.
–Apologized profusely.
–Took immediate action.
–Transported the car to a closer location so it was easier on me.
–Had the car waiting inside, clean, full of gas with a bow on it! And did all the paperwork that could be done in advance.
–I was out of there in less than thirty minutes with no waiting, a great sales team and a great document team.
Needless to say, I now have the 2008 Ford Mustang Convertible I wanted! Way to go EchoPark, I will definitely be looking at my next vehicle through you!

I had the pleasure to purchase a vehicle from this location last week and I must say that it was the easiest, stress free and enjoyable car buying experience I have had so far. The staff is great and nobody is chasing you around and pushing you into a vehicle you don’t want. Jennifer Tran worked with me on my purchase and she was very knowledgeable and pleasant. Her team was able to get me an interest rate that was literally half of the rate we thought I would get which was absolutely wonderful. It only took two hours to test drive the vehicle, get all the paperwork done and drive the car off the lot. This is hands down a wonderful place for your next car purchase with great staff. Echo park has definitely got a customer for life!

My wife and I were in the market for a new/​used car and after an unpleasant experience at AutoNation Nissan we made our way across Arapahoe Rd. to Echo Park. Patrick A. made us feel welcome. The Echo Park way of selling cars is very new and different to me and I had my defenses up 100%. Patrick A. made the process very enjoyable and made us feel like he was there for us and not like we were an inconvenience to him. Patrick was awesome! He earned and deserves all 5 stars! truly enjoyed buying a car at Echo Park and I will probably look there first next time I am in the market for a car. Free car washes all time is great especially in Colorado!

Purchased a 2012 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited at Echo Park and it was the best car buying experience ever. Nicholle Bowman is the best «experience guide»! Went in knowing the deal I wanted and after a very brief discussion and some paperwork we were in the Celebration Room taking pictures next to our new Jeep!
John A — Castle Pines, CO

This place is hands down one of the most professional, curtious and we’ll run dealerships I’ve ever been to. To add, their service department is top notch.
From the moment you arrive to the time they hand you your keys you couldn’t feel more comfortable in all aspects — highly recommended!

This place is fab! I bought an Audi Q5 from Dave Fosco last week. He typically works at the Thornton location, but they had two different Q5’s that I really wanted to see and Dave brought the Thornton Q5 to Centennial so I could check them both out. Centennial is also closer to my house. Great customer service! Serious, I’m very particular and hate everything about buying a new car, but this was the best experience I’ve had. They do a 100 point inspection. They even knew what percentage of break pads were left, so I know roughly when I need to do the next break pad upgrade. They have a no-​hassle no-​negotiation policy. They just price everything as low as the can. Everyone is super nice. The office space is very modern & equipped with multiple tablet stations, so you can see and search their entire inventory and find exactly what you want. Plus they have video games available for the kiddos. They provide an all around excellent car buying experience. While you’re signing the papers, they take the car into the detailing shop for a detail and fill it with gas. I LOVE my new car! Ask for Dave Fosco…

Finally Unilocal!has the correct location :)
Christmas day, our son totals his car. He was ok, but the car was toast! We needed to get him a ‘new’ one quick so he could get to work. We didn’t want to spend much, but we wanted something reliable.
A day or so later, we called our friend Lee at Echo Park and explained the situation, and he said «I’ll se what we can do». Within minutes, he called us back and said he might have something, less than we expected, and he would have it ready for us to look at in about an hour. (He had to get it brought down from the Thornton location). He called us early, said it was ready to look at, and we went.
We’ve known Lee for a while, but we have never purchased a car from a facility like this. It was so clean, bright and everyone was so friendly. The process of looking at, reviewing and purchasing a car is like nothing I’ve seen before. I’ve bought new cars, uses cars from used car lots, and through brokers, but this experience was like something from the future.
We were able to review all the data on a tablet, and you can even browse other cars in their tablet ‘kiosk’. Everything is there, and the number of photos they take is unreal!
We purchased the car, and almost all the paper work was on a tablet. No fuss, no muss. Quick, easy and actually a pleasure.
I would definitely go there the next time I need a car. They have all styles, configurations and price ranges. You want good and basic, they have it. You want high end luxury, they have it!

As I am personally not in market for a new car at the moment I was however checking things out for a friend looking for some new wheels. I was fortunate enough to come in at time where there was ample assistance.
After a short tour of the facility including the fastest garage door I have ever seen. We sat down at the Imagine Bar and began to look at the available inventory. I thought it was awesome that it was larger than life on the screen 3 screen high and 9 wide.
We had a bit of interest in a car which was up north at another location but were immediately advised it could be here shortly if we wanted to take a look. They will even appraise your car for purchase and guatentee the price quoted on it for 14 days.
With Tax Returns coming soon it’s a good time to start looking. They also take all major credit cards including Discover. I like that you don’t have to go sit in a finance guys office. The person you deal with is your guide start to finish.
I also found out that the pesky «Dealer Handling» fee doesn’t exist here.