Leasing vs Buying

Extremely disappointing experience with Toyota of Anaheim. I’m sharing this review because I believe customers deserve to know how my service issue was handled and so hopefully this situation does not happen to someone else. I brought my 2024 GR86 in for service at Toyota of Anaheim, and afterward the car developed a persistent metal-on-metal rattle whenever I drove over uneven roads and railroad tracks. After returning and struggling to get the issue diagnosed by a technician there, I took it to Toyota of Buena Park, where technician David took the time to ride with me, immediately heard the noise, and found the cause: a Toyota service tool clipped between the brake caliper and spring of my vehicle. I want to give a huge thank you to David for actually listening to me and taking the time to find the problem, and to Joe, my service advisor at Buena Park, for being extremely helpful and guiding me through the process. They were both professional, attentive, and took my concern seriously. Unfortunately, my experience with Toyota of Anaheim, particularly Linda, the service manager, was the complete opposite. When I initially brought the issue to Linda’s attention and requested reimbursement, I was made to feel as though I was unreasonable for believing the tool could have been left on my vehicle. I was told that their location did not use that tool and that I “must’ve run it over on the road.” Thankfully, a technician was brought in who immediately recognized the tool and confirmed that Toyota of Anaheim does use it. The dealership then reviewed their own service records and technician videos and found footage showing the technician working around my brakes at the time the tool was left there. At that point, I was told I would be reimbursed. Unfortunately, the reimbursement process was almost as frustrating as the original issue. I was told on July 10 that the check would be mailed within 5–10 business days and that I would receive a call once it was approved. That timeframe came and went with no call, no confirmation, and no check. I followed up multiple times, was promised callbacks that never happened, and ultimately had to return to the dealership three days in a row just to make sure the reimbursement was actually processed and sent. The fact that I had to repeatedly chase the dealership for a reimbursement they had already agreed to provide was completely unacceptable. What is most frustrating is that this entire situation could have been handled very differently. Mistakes can happen, but how a dealership responds when a mistake is discovered matters just as much. Being dismissed initially, being told I may have picked up the tool from the road, and then having to repeatedly chase the dealership for weeks afterward made this an extremely poor customer service experience. I am very grateful to Service department at Toyota of Buena Park for taking me seriously and ultimately getting this resolved. Unfortunately, based on my experience, I cannot say the same about Toyota of Anaheim’s service department. I am posting this so future customers can be aware of my experience and so that better accountability and communication can hopefully prevent something like this from happening to someone else. My goal in sharing this is not to reopen the matter or receive a response, but to make other customers aware of what happened and encourage better customer service moving forward. I hope Toyota of Anaheim takes this experience seriously and improves both its communication and the way customer concerns are handled.