Approved Auto Center of Lodi

Don’t despair… there are a few GREAT GUYS in the USED CAR business and you’ll find two of them SAM & JOHN here at APPROVED AUTO CENTER in Lodi, CA. These guys are PERSONABLE, HELPFUL, GENUINE NICE GUYS who bend over backwards to help in every way possible. It was a PLEASURE interacting with them. They are not at all what one would expect from used car salesmen. They WORK WITH YOU without pushing for a fast sale. They give you all the time you need and continue to be helpful and good natured even if you decide to buy an auto somewhere else. GIVE THEM A TRY.

These guys are very good at getting a person with questionable credit approved! And they have very nice (older/​lower priced vehicles) as well as more expensive very nice, higher priced vehicles.
In my case 2002 model 120,000 miles, $ 211 a month 48 months 5.9% thru wells fargo. which I thought was pretty good considering my recent bankruptcy and being self employed. Marty and John were super nice and courteous! The place was super busy for a Sunday afternoon which to me reflects a dealer making some pretty desensitized car deals! I was recommended to here be buddy Al. I can definitely see myself recommending them too!

Came here on a whim and was helped by Sal Victoria. Incredibly nice guy, super helpful, family man, and very genuine. Ended up getting a great deal on a better car than what I came in for TODAY. I’d recommend anyone come in and work with him, you’ll have a pleasant experience and be very happy with what you drive away with!

I had the best experience buying my first car! I came in thinking I was going to hear a no, but Sal & John made it happen! These are honestly some of the best people I’ve met, and everyone should do business with them! John is literally a magician, he made it possible even when it seemed extremely impossible. They also stayed all the way until 11pm just to make sure I got in that car that night! I’m ecstatic about my first car, and it’s all thanks to them! I recommend everyone going there for a new car!

I don’t leave a lot of Unilocal reviews, but when I needed to buy a new car it was the Sal & John at Approved Auto Center in Lodi that helped me out. My credit is not the best and was being told no or tried to sell me a lemon. Not Sal & John! I was able to get a reliable car at a great price. To top it off, a couple a days later my windshield wipers broke, & John fixed them with no questions asked. Thank you Approved Auto Center of Lodi. Your the best!!!

My sister had been looking for a vehicle for quite some time but with her credit getting dragged through the mud due to a bad divorce it seemed almost impossible for her to find a car loan. I was referred to approved auto center through a friend who had done business with them recently. Although hesitant to make the drive first I was reassured based on the info provided to them my sister would most likely be leaving in a car. It took a bit of back and forth with the bank rep but these guys were up to the task. A few hours later and shes on the road. Thank you for all that you did!

Nathan help me out. He was fantastic. Definitely ask for him when you are asking for a car he will get you the best deal.

Approved Auto Center had exactly what we were looking for! We were lucky enough to look through and test drive three different cars within our budget.
The staff was friendly, really understood our needs and made car shopping stress-​free. I truly felt like I was in good hands with the salesperson (can’t remember her name) and the guy who seemed to be the manager or supervisor (can’t remember his either).
I feel we got a great deal on the corolla… the BEST part is we were able to finance up to seven years but I hope to pay it off within 5 – 6.
Bonus points for playing country music!

Wish I could do no stars, they were beyond bad. I don’t expect a perfect car when buying used, but this is an awful business. Stay away!!! Brought a car they assured me had been completely gone through and checked out fine. Manager even told me that his wife and kids had used it, it was so safe and such a great car. New tires all around. One blew out less than a week later, and they replaced it with same type. Blew out again just a week later, and my husband insisted on using a different tire. Bought when it was cooler and complained that air conditioning didn’t seem to work but they assured me that it was fine. It died less than a month later. GO SOMEWHERE ELSE!!! They will tell you anything just to get the money, then blow you off. Bad service. I feel sorry for the young people working there. Crappy. BUY SOMEWHERE ELSE!!!

I usually don’t write Unilocal reviews unless the service is amazing or terrible. Today I am writing an amazing review.
I’m a big dude so finding a car that is comfortable yet economical is very hard for me. I’ve been looking for a slightly used car that would fit my needs for almost 7 months now. Things got so frustrating that I expanded my
search out of my comfort zone. I started seeing towns pop up in my search that I’ve only heard of in stories such as Stockton, Tracy and Lodi. Who even knew that these places existed?! I was so sick of dealing with craigslist scammers and pushy sales guys.
After a LONG and painful (lol) search, I thought I found the perfect car being advertised at Approved in Lodi. I called and John answered some questions for me. He assured me that my trip out there wouldn’t be a waste (coming from SF!). He answered all my questions honestly (which I didn’t think came naturally to a sales guy), and he even sent photos of the car and a video of it starting up. Really good stuff. He even threw out some financial numbers that sounded good even though I don’t have the best credit score. I’m kind of cheap but his numbers put me at ease so I made the trip out to see the car.
Long story short (yeah right!), John got me in the right car (2009 Chevy Malibu!) at the right price and was never pushy. He was always available by phone or would get back to me quickly. He even helped with the registration part and was really helpful with a couple of questions that I had after I left with the car.
I had such a great experience that I’ve already recommended this place to family and friends.

Friendly staff! I was referred by a friend here and it was the easiest, most painless place to buy a car. I didn’t feel pressured. We negotiated a fair price (they even let me leave without me signing anything) and then I came back the next day and drove off the lot with my new black 2013 Hyundai Elantra. I think that some of the posters on here need to do their research with their cars they’re buying. Check everything before you buy. It’s going to be a toss up at any used car lot, so you have to do your research and look under the hood!

Best car dealership ever! Clean !. Best place in lodi to buy a used car. Service is wonderful, sales is awesome. Family oriented. You really feel so loved and welcomed. Not like a regular dealership. Love it.

My husband was approved for a jeep commander here. The ambiance and salesmen were swift and efficient. We arrived a few minutes before their closing time but they made sure to take care of us even if it took hours into the night. Enrique and Manuel were amazing along with their finance guy John. I also brought my Aunt here and it was the same awesome experience. This place was an hr and a half to 2 hrs drive but it was well worth it. Hats off to the hard working team they have.

I was sold a unsafe vehicle. The car had 2 open recall parts. The car wasn’t given any maintenance! The car overheated on the 21^st day that I had it. The car was so unsafe, that the finance company walked out on the contract. The dealership has that death-​trap recalled, coolent system failed, antifreeze leaking car in their possession, along with all my $! They may come off as nice, but they are the worst of the worst! Never tried to make me whole! I lost so much in dealing with these unfair bad business practice liars! They endangered my family, and completely lied every time they opened their mouths! It’s sad to say that, this is a cold world, and dealerships like this one will risk your lives for that all mighty dollar. They have my, and the ! But I am definitely thankful that I am not driving a car that has 2 RECALLED parts!

PLEASE CHECK VINS NUMBERS FOR RECALLS!

Worst experience of my life… I have bought several cars in my life and never have I ever come across a worse dealership… I first went there to look at a car that was listed on their web site but had no picture. I was told that the car wasn’t there and was most likely on one of their sister lots… I was told by the salesman that he had seen that particular car and it wasn’t very good (this turned out to be a complete lie, he had never seen the car and it was in great condition) After I got the worst salesman I’ve ever met to stop trying to sell me other cars on the lot I got him to agree to get me some pictures so I could see it and decide if I wanted to test drive it… Long story short he never did get me any pics even though I called two more times to ask about them I finally tracked down the car myself, then after a ridiculously long pre approval process I finally was able to test drive the car more than a week later then I spent all day there while they tried to get me a deal (apparently I don’t understand how pre approved works, or maybe they don’t) any way I finally drove away in the car a 2010 kia soul… 3 or 4 days later the credit union that financed the car called me to ask some questions I have never had a lender do this before… A little while later the car lot called me and said that the lender was backing out of the deal and they either needed to find me another deal, which would most likely be a higher monthly payment or I needed to bring the car back. It turns out they lied about my co signers monthly income and it turns out that the lender they got for me has had trouble with them before and that’s why they were checking up on the application and they no longer do business with that car lot… They ended up finding me another loan but the interest rate went from 4.9 to 14.3 and the payment went up almost a hundred bucks I also had to have some kind of gps ignition disabler system installed on the car… I know what most of you are thinking, why didn’t I walk away and go somewhere else well I don’t really have an answer by the time I really started seeing how terrible of a company this is I was in too deep and just wanted to get it over with and move on but they have continued to try and screw me. I just found out that they still have not payed off the car I gave them as a trade in more than 50 days ago… The bank that I had that car through sent me a letter saying that I’m 2 payments behind and they’re going to send me to collections… well of course I haven’t made the payments, I don’t own it any more… So now I have to figure out what’s going on with this and I figure the best thing I can do is try and help other avoid this nightmare