I've been taking my 2006 Azera to Arapahoe almost since the day we bought it from another dealership whose service dept was, let us say, less than stellar in its performance and less that trustworthy in the integrity area (that dealership no longer exists in Denver). From the first time I pulled into the service bay at Arapahoe Hyundai and was greeted by Paul Grace, I knew this place was different. Paul smiled, shook my hand, took a detailed history of what was going on, and then assigned me/my car to Andrew – a decision that proved to be fortuitous, as eight years later, Andrew is still "my" tech, and has done more to solve very difficult problems with my car in less time while saving me as much money as possible than any other tech I’ve ever had in my 40+ years of driving. And when it's not possible to take care of a problem without spending considerable coin, he always – ALWAYS – tells me that upfront, too, and explains why before doing ANY work, where I’d otherwise be stuck to do the work, a tactic some dealerships use, mentioning no names. And if I cannot take care of covering an expensive problem that day, there is absolutely NO pressure, and the service management team – led by Mike Dyer – tells me if and/or how long the problem can be put off for without causing more or permanent damage, and we go from there. They work with me on scheduling when that's a problem ... in other words, basically doing all they can to make my experience as pleasant as spending money on fixing a car can be.
They recently completely a much-needed upgrade to the pull-in area, and especially the customer lounge, they offer free wifi (and coffee!), and they just recently purchased property behind the shop to make exiting a snap so getting onto Arapahoe Rd is now a breeze – something that in the past was anything but, being only a little more than a block from I-25. So they are also always looking forward as to how they can improve the customer experience.
Are there any negatives about the service experience there? The only one I could point to might be that parts are a bit too often not available so you have to do a return engagement to get things fixed, and that's a drag – although in fairness it may just be that parts for a 2006 Azera are a lot less likely to be stocked than for, say, a 2013 Sonata.
Finally, even when you get ready to leave after having made that painful move of paying your bill, Paul or Mike or one of the other service writers will explain everything that was done (even bringing up the tech if necessary to explain something at that level if requested), advise you of the next time you should bring the car in if you were having scheduled service done, and even offer sympathy if you took a heavy hit this time, which feels good.
All-in-all, these are good people, nice people, people who maintain a good disposition no matter how gnarly you might get when you have to pay your bill, and that counts for a lot in an industry where it is almost guaranteed when you roll in that you are going to have to spend money – and maybe a LOT of money – on something you will want to hold them (or at least the company they work for) accountable for being messed up in the first place most of the time.
I urge you to give Arapahoe Hyundai a try. And when you call in that first time, ask for Paul Grace in Service. And your first time in, look up Mike Dyer, who runs the show, and introduce yourself. Good guy to know, and a good guy, period. And I'm assured by Paul that ALL the techs there are just as good as Andrew Johnson, so you can't go wrong no matter who works on your car (but I'd ask for Andrew anyhow – HA!).
Final rating? 5 STARS. (Note: This does NOT include the Parts area, which would pull the rating down by at least one star.)
more