Toyota Santa Monica

I’ve been meaning to start an account to write reviews and I just never came around to do it until now thanks to Thomas Soveg and the crew at Toyota Santa Monica. I upgraded to a TRD exhaust with my 2016 Tundra and I am more than pleased with the responsiveness and service from Thomas and the quality work done on my truck! Oh and the exhaust sounds awesome! Thanks guys!

Wow the reviews on this place are really really split! I bought my Prius at Longo, but I moved, so I take it here for service. As everyone knows, taking your car to the dealership for service is never cheap. However, I have had experiences with shady independent car mechanics and I will never go back, because their rip offs are worse in quality than any dealership I have been to.
I want original Toyota parts and I want the peace of mind, which is why I take it to the dealer. My service guy was Dale Strauf. He explained the items that my Prius needed like no one else has in the past. He pull up my service history from the contiguous 48 states and proceeded to go over each item and whether I needed it or not. It’s funny, because he has a «women certified» magnet by his desk from a class he took a long time ago. As a woman, I have been treated like I am a moron when they talk cars with me. Dale did the exact opposite. I would take a class from him to learn about my Prius if I could. I learned a lot of Prius-​specific service items from Dale. Make an appointment with him!

I had bought a certified pre-​owned Toyota from Ventura Toyota. The key code was missing and I needed a special key cut so I went to Toyota of Marina del Rey because it’s very near my home. Big mistake. The parts department there has two men working there that try to do as little work as possible. I actually had a key cut there by the parts man that didn’t open my car door. He told me to go to a lock and key business and they’ll get the key to work. What?! After going to two lock and key places with no success, I went to Toyota of Santa Monica and talked to Rudy M. in the parts department. Rudy cut the key I needed in no time at all and at a nominal price. I asked also for a key code for my vehicle and he was able to get that for me too. Thanks Rudy and thanks Toyota of Santa Monica.

Always very pleased with the service and turnaround! Dale was very helpful and communicative.

Meh I just moved from San Francisco where I was used to the outstanding service I had received for years from the Price family dealerships. This place just ain’t that nice and feels like a used car dealership. Being my first visit, it was hard to trust they were telling me the truth when I walked in for basic 140k maintenance and left with a $ 1,000 tab. Who knows, maybe the car really needed all that, I’m not a mechanic and I want her running great-​all good. Anyway, when I picked it up they whipped it around and the car looked like they’d rinsed it off with a freakin hose, soaking wet, not wiped off, within hours the exterior was filthy and I had to take it to get washed. Boo Toyota SaMo

I worked with Mayer Kohan on my recent purchase of a Toyota Prius V. He was excellent, game me a ton of options for finance and offered some great suggestions on how to maintain the vehicle long term. I would highly recommend your next Prius come from Toyota of SM.

Always good customer service. And they seem to do good work. I haven’t had an issue. I just wish they did a quick wash after service like they do at other dealers but that would just be a cherry on top :)

I have been here recently and had the pleasure of working with Mark Lewis. Very patient and fair. He definitely makes me feel comfortable and it feels like he is on my side. Good service guy to ask for on the days I don’t need him first.;)

I worked with Adrian and he was professional, the point and courteous. My wife and I wanted a prius and had previously called a few dealerships. Adrian was the only one that appreciated my no BS approach to buying a car and assured me the the two models I wanted to look into would be ready when we arrived.
Once we arrived the cars were ready and we test drove them. Adrian was not pushy or «salesy». The sign of a good salesman is knowing when to speak and when to be quiet. The rest of the staff was just as friendly and professional. We drove off with the car and deal we wanted.
Call and ask for Adrian whenever you want to buy a new Toyota.

If I could give this place zero stars, I would. When my brakes started squealing like crazy on my 2003 Toyota, I thought, hmm, maybe it’s time to take it to the dealership instead of my usual mechanic: after all, the dealership was right down my street, and, with such an old car, maybe it’s time for a Toyota mechanic to take a look at everything. Wrong. So, so wrong.
When I dropped my car off before going to the gym, I was wearing a tank top. As I was waiting for the associate to fill out the forms with my information, he looked over at me, and asked, in the creepiest way possible, «Are you wearing sunscreen?» I think my jaw actually fell open. Sure, I’m pale, and sure, LA is pretty sunny, but… what? I ignored the question, told him my information, and left.
Hours later, I got the call from the same associate with the quote for my car. Of course, like so many others on here, I was quoted for WAY more than just new brakes — basically, they wanted to overhaul my car, which I explained I was trying to sell soon so didn’t want to invest so much into it, and how I just wanted the brakes done for now. The associate then asked if he could «speak to my mom or dad» to explain the situation.
*Begin my internal meltdown.* SPEAK TO MY MOM OR DAD? I was absolutely shocked. Calmly, I explained I was 24 years old and have been living on my own, enjoying financial independence, for 6 years. I then promptly walked to the dealership, getting my car and leaving. Unfortunately, I had to pay a $ 100+ fee, which was the dumbest thing I’ve ever agreed to and was my mistake (the $ 100 was upfront and would be applied to the repairs of the car, and at the time I thought, sure, that’s not a bad deal! How wrong I was.)
The next day I took the car to my normal mechanic with the papers from Toyota. With one glance at the paperwork, he laughed and shook his head, explaining they were trying to fix things that didn’t need repair yet, overselling me by thousands. Yes, thousands.

This place has the poorest customer service I’ve ever received in buying material goods. One, being a first time car buyer can be scary and stressful – this place did nothing but add to that stress.
When I came in to look at the cars, there was already an email conversation explaining my situation on what I could afford with the resources I had, which would be the cheapest car on the lot. However, I was shown the most expensive one they had, strike one.
I go to run my credit application and they come back with a proposal, great, I’ll take it.
A week later I get an email saying my application for a loan was declined despite having income as proof and being a recent college grad. Later I go to find out this dealership is owned by LA car guy, which seems to be why they don’t care what situation you are in, they just want their money. If I knew this was going to be the case, I would have gone elsewhere to save everyone the trouble, it ended up being a lack of communication and honesty on their part – strike two.
We then go into the dealership to then deal with giving more money and a cosigner because the bank they deal with won’t do it now unless that happens although I was told something different when filling everything out and driving the car off the lot the first day. Behold it’s about 7:30p.m and no customers are there – it takes about two hours to sign a handful of papers – no sense of urgency or respect for another’s time – strike three.
And to top it all off, I was given a car with a missing license plate and the salesman instructed I would be getting a new license plate in the mail within a couple of weeks. Well about two months had gone by and nobody even knew what I was talking about and the receptionist would point out I need to lift the paper and the plate would be there. Funny thing is, I told numerous people of this issue but nobody seemed to keep track of it so the plate could be in my hands as soon as possible.
I’ve been to other Toyota dealerships and I’ve received much better service from them.
Do not go here unless you have an endless pocket book to spend on them, because then they will treat you like a proper customer, otherwise you are just a bother to them and aren’t worth tending too.

The 2^nd coming of the Messiah will not be as good as this place is.

Great service! No pressure, no judgement on my lack of knowledge. I would return again. Thank you to Corey and Dane!

Bought a Rav4 SE today. My sales guy was Mark Ashtini. Now, I buy a car about every 18 months or so and in all the time I’ve done this, with everything from Audi’s to Porsche to Toyota I’ve never had such a pleasant experience with any sales person. He took so much time explaining everything to me about the vehicle, financing options, setting everything up with the very advanced electronics… I was just astounded at his level of knowledge and attention to detail. I guess this is why he had so many awards hanging on the wall.
This also applies to the finance guy (can’t remember his name) who was totally low pressure and didn’t try to pull any tricks (as I’ve encountered in the past) whatsoever.
Best experience I’ve had in the last 17 or so cars I’ve purchased.

If I could give no stars, I would. I had a horrible experience here. My dealer was Cameron if you could even call him a dealer. He didn’t even have business cards and he had no name tag. Yesterday, when we went to see the Prius, he was nice and seemed like a good guy. But I did think it was odd that he insisted that he photocopy my driver’s license before he would even take the time to show us the cars.
But when I went to Toyota Santa Monica to seal the deal, he changed. He was no longer the dealer I was dealing with yesterday. He had already written up a contract, and had already «picked out a car» that was «going to be mine.» A pearl white Prius. I didn’t even want that color. And I might add that that color made the car even pricier.
He refused to negotiate, and insisted that I pay $ 32,000 for a Prius 2, which is crazy. That was $ 10,00 above market price. I am no idiot. So I walked out on him. So I went to Longo Toyota which is even further away from where I live. And you know what, I bought a car there that I am very happy with. I bought a Prius 2 and at a fair price. And you know what, I will buy my next car at Longo too. Santa Monica Toyota is a horrible place, and if you want to pay more money then by all means go there. They also add extra bs items to the price to inflate it.
Not only did Santa Monica lose a chance at selling a car, but you also lost me as a customer of the Service Department. I’m going to take my car to Longo for service, even though it is one hour away from where I live. Santa Monica is a horrible place that takes advantage of people, and thinks they can get away with it because they are located in prime real estate. Such horrible experience. I would NEVER recommend them for ANY reason. Horrible horrible.

Leased a 2015 Prius with Mark Ashtini (with Eric’s assistance as well) this past weekend and had an excellent experience. Mark was forthright and considerate of our needs, and helped us weigh the pros and cons of my lease choices and additional options.
Highly recommend working with the ‘internet sales’ dept if you’d like to speed up the lease or purchase process and already know what you want. Really streamlines the process — my car was literally waiting for me with a ‘sold’ sign on it when I arrived. In and out in 4 hours.
Great experience.

I went with my father-​in-​law to purchase a Toyota Camry today at Toyota Santa Monica. It was a night and day difference to some other dealerships we had the misfortune of visiting. Please is modern, and clean. Salespeople are dressed professionally. There isn’t the stink of desperation.
Aaron DeSouza («sales foreman») was our salesperson, and arrived at a deal that agreed with us, and with a minimum of the BS that sometimes happens when attempting to come to a deal. Aaron was personable and straightforward (no frequent trips to the managers office, etc). A pleasure to deal with.
With dealerships, it is frequently the salesperson you «draw» that sets the tone for the transaction. We got lucky.
Aaron, and Santa Monica Toyota are recommended. Also, my in-​laws have had a few Toyota’s and had them serviced here with nary a problem.

I am reluctant to update my previous review of Toyota Santa Monica, but the truth is, their standards for customer service, efficiency, and honesty have gone downhill dramatically since I started going there. They no longer provide a complimentary car wash with the regular service /​oil change, as they used to do every time. They no longer make an effort to be fast and efficient; oil changes and regular maintenance now take over 2.5 hours, even during slow hours of the day. Frankly, they overcharge (with the lure of «I’m giving you 10% off cause you’re special! — they give this to everyone…) and it seems as if they are always looking for additional work to do on the vehicle, or any potential excuse to jack up the total price and get some more $ out of you. I really wonder whether their ownership or management has changed recently.
I visited in April or May of this year for a full service, and they found some way of doubling the cost of a typical service by insisting I needed this, that, and the other thing. Then, this week, they claimed my brake pads were in bad shape and quoted me close to $ 700 for the repair! Now of course they know I’m not going to walk away from the threat of dysfunctional brakes, so I felt compelled to comply, but they could have sat me down and explained the options, rather than calling me and putting me on the spot. Also, how does that add up to ~$ 700? For reference, I drive a 2011 RAV-​4 with VERY low mileage; how is it possible all of these things are going wrong in a 6-​month period?
My boyfriend has been a loyal KIA customer (he goes to their Sherman Oaks location) and they complete regular service /​oil change in just an hour, even during busy times, and they always provide a complimentary car wash. They are always honest and straightforward with him. Maybe it’s just apples vs oranges, but I had always been proud of TSM for their level of service, and often recommended them to friends and coworkers. Now that I’m about to move out of state, I’ll find a new Toyota dealership, but if I were staying in LA, I would take my business elsewhere.
*One «pro» that still stands is their text message feature. They text you updates on your vehicle’s service while you wait, which is very cool. Still, it would be nicer to wait less and just get a phone call. Three hours is too long for an oil change!

Definitely a fan of Toyota Santa Monica and I give David Gray 5 stars.
No nonsense, straight to the point service. I went in with an well-​informed idea of the lease terms I wanted for my 2015 Prius and David was completely transparent about everything. I had a short window of time in which I could handle all the purchase logistics. We agreed on terms and basically closed over the phone, and I walked in to sign paperwork and left in my car 1.5 hours later. It could not have been more efficient.
The finance team and the general manager were very informative and helpful when talking about extras like GAP insurance and excess wear and tear insurance. It didn’t feel like a sales pitch, it felt like an educational overview of the additional services I could include as an add-​ons to my lease payment. In addition to talking about extras, they were also very educational about the specifics of my lease terms and common pitfalls to avoid (not properly documenting maintenance, for example). As this was my first lease, I definitely appreciated that.
I did my homework and spoke with 5 or 6 different dealers/​brokers before signing with these guys. I felt very comfortable throughout the process.

Everyone at Toyota Santa Monica is so nice and friendly. They really take the time out of their day to show you around, answer all your questions and concerns.
They have all the newest and latest models as well as plenty of pre owned and used vehicles to choose from.
They also have a service center.
I am looking to get a Prius soon so I will definitely be back to check out the 2016 models when they roll in.

Joanna Morgan,
The best !!! Toyota es un buen carro y la verdad creo que todos sus consecionarios se preocupan por ofrecer un buen servicio al cliente, pero tengo que reconocer que Toyota Santa Monica y las personas que trabajan aqui hacen la diferencia !!! Joanna Morgan la conoci hace ya algun tiempo y ella es un ser humano que te aconseja que tip[o de servicio necesitas y la atencion es única. La verdad que gente como ella hacen la diferencia !!! Muchisimas gracias Joanna