Website: https://www.ashridgevehicles.co.uk
Phone: 01442 843884
Address:
Fourways Corner
Little Gaddesden
Hertfordshire
HP4 1QP
Email: [email protected]
About Company:
We are a family-run business with over 20 years’ experience in all aspects of the motor trade. You’ll find a range of quality used cars that have been handpicked from around the country, with unique specifications and desirable features. We pride ourselves in providing a welcoming and personal experience to our customers’. Our experienced sales team will guide you through the buying process and help tailor the best deal to suit your requirements.
We are one of the largest independent Jaguar & Land Rover specialist in the UK, with over 50 JLR products in stock at any one time. Whether it be a sports model or SUV, we have something to suit you. Every one of our vehicles goes through a meticulous mechanical inspection which includes an ECU scan and thorough road test.
Don’t even think about visiting this second hand car lot, they don’t work without a forward booked appointment. After being asked by the salesman, to phone him in order to place a deposit before a forward booked test drive. I phoned twice, on the allotted day (he had my number in his phone, as I previously watched him put it in) no response, no call back so can you guess what happened next….. I walked away and took my business elsewhere. Poor arrogant behaviour, unhelpful and disinterested, they’re obviously so busy and sell so many cars, they don’t need the business. AVOID
The car I bought from Ashridge Vehicles has left me upset, disappointed and considerably out of pocket. After collecting the car I found that both sides had been repaired badly. The list of problems includes runs and debris in the paintwork on both sills, poor application of stone chip and overspray where it shouldn’t be. There was a foil, which is a clear piece of plastic stuck to the body to protect areas that are prone to stone chips, missing from one side and various pieces of trim falling off including lower body moldings, an inner door handle and a molding along the top of the door. Also various pieces of trim have been damaged due to careless removal and broken clips, which should have been replaced during reassembly, were not replaced. The list goes on and on… As the weather got warmer (the car was purchased in January) another problem reared…. One of the lower door moldings becomes separated from the door leaving a gap of at least 5mm when it gets hot in direct sunlight. When it cools it goes back to what looks like its normal position. I suspect that they tried to remove it without first undoing the two screws that hold it from behind which has damaged it. There is no way that I could have known about this issue because it is only apparent when the weather is hot. When I viewed the car it was late on a December afternoon so the light wasn’t great, there was also another customer looking at the car who told me that if I didn’t buy it he would so I had to make a quick decision under pressure. When I collected the car I was asked to walk around it and check that I was happy with it, which I did. If I had noticed anything I would have discussed it then, but I didn’t. New car day is special, and I was super excited, maybe blinkered, and maybe naively expected a car with only 9700 miles on the clock at what seemed to be a reputable dealer, would be in good condition, or dare I say it, close to perfect. My mistake it would seem. In Ashridge Vehicles own words “Vehicles are cleaned and maintained to the highest standards by our highly experienced valeting team” so I cannot help but wonder if the ‘highly experienced valeting team’ might have noticed the repairs, or certainly the missing foil, and forgotten to mention it to me? Had I known of all the problems I would not have bought the car and as it stands I don’t consider the car to be in the condition in which it was described. I have spent hours on the phone, and sent many emails, and don’t think it unreasonable to ask for a contribution towards the cost of repairing the car again, this time to a reasonable standard. Some of the problems are minor and I can sort them out myself, but not the paint work, or the parts that are falling off. To repaint both sills, and the lower sections of the front and rear fenders is going to be in the region of £800. All four door moldings need to be removed and re-attached properly with one potentially needing to be replaced at approx. £300. New clips, grommets and the correct (3M) double sided tape will cost £130. When I first discussed the situation with manager Luigi, by phone, his exact words were that he didn’t have an open chequebook and did I know someone in the trade who could do the work, which I took as an encouraging response. I asked for a contribution of £1200 which wouldn’t cover everything, but would cover the major work that I couldn’t do myself. That was when Luigi’s initial positive response changed to a negative one and he pointed out that most second hand cars sold have had some kind of bodywork repair. And that is an interesting point…. I wonder how many people who have bought used cars actually know if their cars have had any repairs? In many cases the staff at the hand car wash probably know more about the condition of the cars than their owners. Luigi also reminded me that they did supply me with the missing foil (but didn’t fit it), they did re-fit the molding on the rear quarter panel that was hanging off and they also tried to refit the interior door handle properly, and in doing so damaged it. He even made a point of telling me that they had done all that ‘Free Of Charge’! As well as that Luigi also reminded me about a couple of things I had questioned about the car which I turned out to be completely wrong about, which I found patronising. As a result of the inner handle being damaged they did agree to supply a new one (£17.95 on eBay) with clips and the corresponding piece that it attaches to on the door panel. After 23 months of waiting the handle did arrive, but no corresponding bit or clips that had been agreed. Recent emails asking where the missing parts are have been ignored. Ashridge vehicles reply to some reviews left here and I have no doubt they will try and turn this all around on me. They might point out that I inspected the car so it’s my fault, and they would be right, and I beat myself up every day that I didn’t notice anything. They might ask why it’s taken so long for me to leave my review and that would be partly down to waiting 23 months for the replacement door handle and also not particularly enjoying writing negative reviews. It’s the sort of thing I find very easy to put off. But, the pictures don’t lie… the truth is the truth. I will have to spend well over £1200 to put the car right and even then it will never be perfect, it will always be a repaired car. If I ever have a need for VW’s Body protection warranty they will take one look at the repairs and send me on my way. There is nothing I would like more than to edit this review with even a hint of positivity, but nothing could fully make up for the stress, upset, cost and wasted time caused to me by this car.