Novasadog t1_je4mi81 wrote on March 29, 2023 at 11:46 AM

I guess it depends on what area you are living in? We have used autos at the orchard in Barrington for over 10 years now. When we were looking for a used car for my oldest, I walked in to 5 different garage's in my area and asked for recommendations on a used car place. Every single one of them said Autos at the orchard. The couple who own it is solid, very reasonably priced, and has a full 30 day warranty. They actually stand by that warranty, out of the 6 cars we bought from him over the years, we had to use the warranty twice, and let me tell you, he did not make any profit on those 2 vehicles, but he did make it right, he absolutely honored that warranty, and I cannot say enough nice things about them.

WickedAmbiguous OP t1_jecbhqc wrote on March 30, 2023 at 11:41 PM

Very much appreciated! Thank you!

I noticed their website says you can bring the car to a mechanic for a 2nd opinion (which is a great offer). If you don't mind giving some more insight, are there any recommendations for a mechanic in the area?

Novasadog t1_jedls4c wrote on March 31, 2023 at 6:34 AM

Ok, this is going to be longish, so bare with me.

First off, we've been using Matt Scott's auto (rte 125 in Gonic) since we moved up here from Kingston 24 years ago. Unfortunately, matt Scott's is quite popular and very busy, other places that I can think of are: tri city auto, Hervy's tire (not sure if they do auto repair, but they are an inspiration station, and Rochester radiator.

With Autos at the orchard, the price of the vehicle includes title and inspection, Pete (the owner) does all of his inspections at Rochester Radiator (just letting you know, so keep it in mind when choosing a garage for an independent inspection).

Pete is a very laid back car salesman, he may come and greet you, ask if you're looking for anything in particular and offer a few suggestions, but that's the extent of it. He doesn't try to push any vehicle on you, and he encourages you to test drive as many cars as you want. He doesn't go with you for the test drive, and tells you to take your time. (One of my kids spent hours trying different cars-I was so bored that day 🤣)

Pete will fix anything that's wrong with the vehicle, before he lets you take possession. Sometimes that can take a week or so, after the sale is made. Also, as I previously mentioned, he offers a full 30 day warranty after you take possession, and he will call you within that 30 days to make sure everything is ok. As an example of the warranty, my son paid 4700 for a car, and the first week of driving, the AC went out. Pete paid to have a new compressor installed, as well as a few minor repairs, he did not make any money off of that car sale, and I actually felt bad for him.

His inventory changes more often than he updates the website, the best way to get a current list is the box at the end of the driveway-he keeps print outs of his current inventory there, it's just to the left when you drive in, you can't miss it.

Lastly, and you probably saw this on the website, he does not finance. He will take a deposit, but be prepared to pay in full, before a bos is written up. He's old school, he does everything on a typewriter, but he's very prompt with filling the paperwork, we get our titles before the 30 day warranty is up.

Hope this helps, and good luck with your search.!