Carsa Reviews 

Very disappointing experience – vehicle not as advertised

Unfortunately, my experience with Carsa has been very disappointing.

I recently purchased a Jaguar I-PACE from Carsa, registration LD22 DMZ. The vehicle was specifically advertised as having a Head-Up Display (HUD), including the wording “HUD & Adapt Cruise & Carplay” in the advert. This was therefore a feature I reasonably expected the vehicle to have when I purchased it.

After collecting the car, I discovered that it does not have the HUD hardware fitted and there is no HUD option within the vehicle settings.

I contacted the branch and raised the issue with the store manager, Rosie. Unfortunately, despite providing evidence that HUD was specifically advertised on the vehicle, her position was that Carsa would neither retrofit the HUD nor offer any compensation. The argument was that the vehicle had been viewed before purchase and that Carsa’s terms state specifications can vary.

I find this extremely frustrating. I understand that mistakes can happen with vehicle advertisements, but if a specific feature is advertised on a car and the customer purchases the car based on that specification, I believe the reasonable thing to do is acknowledge the mistake and find a fair solution.

I was particularly disappointed that the responsibility was effectively put back on me for not identifying the missing HUD during the viewing, despite it being Carsa who specifically advertised the vehicle as having the feature.

There were also issues with the handover, including the vehicle being supplied without floor mats, although I have decided not to pursue that issue further.

To be fair to Rosie, the showroom was extremely busy and understaffed on the day of collection, and we could see she was doing her best in a difficult situation. We actually gave her a 5-star review at the time because of this. Unfortunately, the way the subsequent HUD complaint has been handled has completely changed my view of the experience.

Rosie has now told me that her position is final and directed me to Carsa Customer Care, so I have escalated the matter to them and will see whether they are willing to resolve the situation reasonably.

I really hope Customer Care can put this right, because I don’t think asking for a vehicle to either be supplied with a feature it was advertised as having, or for a reasonable adjustment where that isn’t possible, is unreasonable.

At this stage, 1 star is unfortunately reflective of my experience. I would be happy to update this review if Carsa Customer Care resolves the matter fairly.

Took way to long to complete the process of buy a car,
They tried to force my father in law into purchasing every additional item.

Only bank transfers which caused a drama and quiet frankly were not the friendliest or most helpful

Visited the Portsmouth to collect my iX3. Excellent service from Byron and Russell, the manager. Great service - recommended

All good, but the warranty package is pretty expensive. Good services anyway.

Excellent service when I went to purchase a used car. Very happy with the result. Mo was very good and friendly!

We traveled from Banbury to Northampton to reach Carsa for our car. The reception staff was friendly, offered us water and candies, was ready to answer questions and quick to admit when the questions were not properly addressed. We spent more than 4 hrs before we could drive off to our home. It was a good experience even though we spent a lot of time.

Great service from the team, over the moon with my new car!

The first visit was a little chaotic, I had an appointment to test drive a vehicle but the staff were that busy I didn't get to drive the car and left.
Second visit was better the salesman was courteous and very helpful and couldn't do enough for me. The collection of the car was also a good experience.

I wanted to buy a car from Carsa - it was perfect for my needs. I arranged to travel over from the Isle of Wight to Portsmouth. I booked the ferry and train tickets and the night before was told that the vehicle did not make it on the transporter to be taken down to Portsmouth. The odd thing is that on the listing it said the vehicle was "Portsmouth" which I one of the reasons I selected it. Apparently they're held in a pound and transported to the dealership for test drive/sale. Anyway, that was not to be. We arranged another visit later in the week and when I arrived was met with some nice guys, good vibe, fun etc - they eventually got the car out (despite it being blocked in and knowing I was arriving that day to test drive and potentially collect) I noticed the charging flap was open, so I pushed it closed and it wouldn't open again, despite many staff members trying to open it. Whilst the young sales lad was on ChatGPT I looked around the vehicle, looked nice, but the seat wouldn't fold forward, suffice to say the cable had snapped and that's why (I've been in the auto trade for 30 years). so it was decided that these two things needed to be fixed. I drove it and it was lovely and to be expected but needed those two things to be rectified before I bought it. I came home empty handed having waste another ferry and train journey. I'd already paid a reservation fee of £39 btw. 2 weeks later they still haven't got the parts in from Fiat and I'm carless which is not ideal on the IOW. I spoke to them this morning regarding the reservation refund and the refund for the two wasted trips (I did my part by turning up intending to buy) - the "PREP" department failed in their obligations with regards to checking the vehicle over ready for sale. They have refunded me for the reservation fee, but I'm out of pocket by £60 of my travel costs. It's their fault 100% that they can't run a business efficiently by a) ensure the vehicle meets the transporter on the first trip an b) ensure the vehicle is in a sales worthy state and not require a new cable for the drivers seat to fold forward, and potentially a new solenoid for the charging flap. The communication has been poor and it's as if they don't really care. Well, they've lost a customer for life now, as i've just bought a new car online and it will be delivered to my home on the IOW in two weeks. I've never had such a dreadful customer service experience as this, and I wouldn't recommend them to anyone. I will pursue the £60 through legal avenues, as they were responsible for me being out of pocket and me acting in good faith by turning up with a view to buying the car. Just be careful if you attempt to buy something from them and you need to travel at quite a significant expense to yourself (which I was happy to pay should the car be fixed and available) - I was not happy to wait for an undeclared period of time before it was ready - Fiat couldn't give a timescale for what was essentially off the shelf parts, and neither could the dealership. Poor from one end to the other.

Amazing experience nice and easy great cars

Wayne was a great guy. I appreciate he was new to Carsa but he was great 👍🏼

Great customer service from Jamie and Scott helping me to purchase my new car, thank you so much

I bought a car from Carsa and within a week problems started appearing. They told me it had been checked by their internal team and everything was fine. I kept fixing things myself thinking each one would be the last, but the issues just kept coming. Now I’m wasting money and time going back and forth to garages, and sitting without a car for long stretches while it’s being worked on.

What’s really annoying is Carsa won’t take my calls. Every time I ring, an automated machine just tells me to email them and then hangs up. I hav already sent two emails and got zero reply. Wish I’d known all this before. I never would have bought the car from them.

I just drove a round trip of 300 miles to the Durham branch to be told when I got there that the car that I had booked to test drive a '''WEEK'' ago (car registration LM72VUE) was not there. I was told by the salesman that the lorry with my car and others had broken down ''TODAY'' on the way to Durham. So despite me checking with Carsa on WhatsApp on the 11th August and Carsa sending me a reminder yesterday the 12th and another Today the 13th August, - the car was never at Durham at any time.
Am I angry at Carsa’s incompetence? You bet I am. What a disgrace.
On top of all that the person at reception before any problems transpired was very offhand. His welcome greeting was "Are you alright mate?" That may be a local colloquial Durham way of greeting but it is not the way to greet customers. The poor sales person who gave me the bad news, never at any time apologised. Was I offered compensation or even a cup of coffee? The best Carsa could offer was that If I could wait around for a ‘’FEW HOURS!’’ on the chance that they ''MIGHT'' be able to get the car here. They however could offer no guarantee of that happening. Flabbergasted and dumfounded at that point I headed home. What is even more bizarre is that after getting home I found out that they had similar cars of the type in stock that I was looking for. At no time did they suggest that I might be interested in an alternative. What way is that to run a business?
Would I consider Carsa as a good venue to purchase a car? Not on your life and never again will Carsa see any of my money.
I might add that the booking fee of £39.00 was easy to process but has proved difficult to organise a refund. Apparently you have to "APPLY" to get your money back! It should be automatic if they make a mistake. But no you have to apply. I tried doing just that and all you get is the run around as no one is available to speak to you. These people just do not deal straight with you.
The sad thing about this company is that they could be good and the way they trade is a great idea. The apologies made to one star reviews are just useless platitudes. They apologise constantly and say they will investigate internally but nothing seems to change. Try clicking the search facilty for Durham on here and it is embarrassing to read just how bad that branch is. I feel like a fool for not looking at their customer feedback in the first instance.

I was very happy with Steve and russ buying my JAECOO7 and selling me a Audi A6 avant and how they help with everything no pushing and no hassle I was very happy with their service and experience thank you

An extraordinary failure of customer service

My experience with Carsa Gloucester was so poor that I feel compelled to share it.

I travelled approximately three hours by train from South West Wales after taking a day off work specifically to view and test drive a vehicle I had booked in advance.

Despite having a confirmed appointment, the vehicle was not properly prepared and was still dirty. More concerningly, while inspecting it myself, I discovered that the driver’s-side front tyre was almost flat. Staff subsequently confirmed that it had a slow puncture and required replacement.

I was told the vehicle would be ready by approximately 12:30–1pm, so despite the considerable inconvenience I decided to wait.

I returned to the showroom around 12:15pm and waited for approximately 40 minutes without a single member of staff providing an update.

Then, while sitting in the showroom, I witnessed the vehicle being driven around the front of the dealership and colliding with another parked vehicle, causing damage.

Again, nobody came to explain what had happened or apologise.

By approximately 1pm I had been at the dealership for over three hours. The branch manager appeared unaware of my situation until I approached him myself.

At approximately 1:15pm, the original tyre was still flat and I was given yet another delay, with the replacement supposedly arriving at around 2pm.

The eventual “goodwill gesture” offered was £75 off a £12,735 vehicle.

After travelling three hours, taking a day off work, arranging emergency childcare and spending more than three hours waiting for a vehicle that was neither ready nor roadworthy, I found this offer completely inadequate.

I appreciate that unexpected problems and accidents happen. My complaint is about how Carsa handled them: poor preparation, almost no communication, a lack of ownership and an extraordinarily poor level of customer service.

I have submitted a formal complaint and will await Carsa’s response.

Based on my experience, however, I would not recommend Carsa Gloucester and would not purchase another vehicle from Carsa.

Potential customers should think very carefully before travelling a significant distance to this dealership.

Marius was very helpful and helped answer any and all questions I asked and was very friendly

Staff were great helpful friendly understanding car wasn’t charged but paid towards charging

Great service, really friendly and efficient. Would definitely recommend.
Can’t wait to drive my new car home

Jay was fantastic, very helpfull.