South Valley Auto Wholesale

I found SVAW on craigslist when shopping for a used car. I was so relieved to see they had a lot of the style of vehicle I was looking for (I was already tired of trying to meet up with people from craigslist only to have the car be a piece of crap). All The vehicles where in good condition, but the best part of the experience was the dealer. Daryl was upfront and honest about the quality of the vehicles, gave me a fair price and didn’t try to manipulate me to make the sale.
Our last car got totaled by the insurance after a small accident and I was dreading having to shop for a new car. I’ve had some bad experiences in the past when shopping for vehicles. I was very happy with my experience at SVAW and I have been telling everyone who asks about my car where they need to go for an easy purchase.

I recently purchased a car from Daryl and I’m so pleased I did. He helped me to find a great loan and set up my dmv papers and sent them out so I wouldn’t have to make that trip to the dmv. Everything has been reliable and I trusted him instantly by the way he runs his business. I could see Daryl is a true family man and he was very genuine.

This review is for 2005 Honda Civic that I bought from SVAW couple of years back. I know it’s late but better late than never. Daryl handled complete process from showing cars and papers. May be my lack of expertise in this field and my desperation to get a car ASAP, I was easy fish for him to catch. On day of purchase, everything went normal with test drive and paper work except one thing. Instead of Carfax report, Daryl showed some 50 states government report which has this particular car’s detail. Big mistake from my end (again may be lack of knowledge) that I didn’t pulled Carfax report before buying.
After that, me and my wife drove that car back home. And after couple of miles of driving I figured out there was issue with front brakes. First flag. Called Daryl back, he agreed to fix it without any additional charge. The only positive experience that I had in this whole deal.
Couple of days later I pulled Carfax report just out of curiosity and there was minor accident reported on this car. When I called him back that very moment regarding this, he assured me that he will call back in 5 minutes after checking Carfax report from his end. It’s hard to believe that this accident just got on carfax in 2 days (that too over weekend) and he didn’t knew about this before. Anyways, he did called back in 5 minutes with option of replacing the car instead of returning my money. I was surprised instead of being apologetic. He took it like it’s no big deal. In the end, I just chose to keep this car. Again big mistake from my end. As car engine started to give trouble after just 2 months. Again it’s hard to believe that there was issue with engine and he didn’t knew about it.
After continuous minor fixes on this car. I had to go for major engine repair in the end.

This review is for our experience at SVAW.
After much research, I decided to purchase a used Honda Element that I saw on CL. I called Daryl and he advised me that he has about 5 of them! That same day we test drove two Elements and finally decided on the «dog friendly» edition. The financing process was painless Daryl even waited and waited until the rates came down! Daryl is a straight shooter with the condition of his cars, no price haggling, no hard sell, no BS and what you see is what you get. If you are a picky «tire kicker» then I would suggest that you should buy brand new off the show room, but if you can accept that you are buying a used car for a fair price then SVAW is the place to be!

I have purchased a Honda civic 2004 and i was fully satisfied with the car initially. But as lack expertise in the field found out that A/​C don’t work and engine belt need immediate changes. I paid for those as soon as purchased the car. Place is fine, just keep in mind to check these stuff before you buy as seller not going to tell about this.

My husband and I bought a car here on October 11. The car came with 30 days warranty. First month, car broke and we took it there and they fix it. I thought the car would spend at least a day or 2 there so they could work on it but they fix it very fast. Ok. I think they should have spent more time on it. About 3 weeks after that, car broke again and they don’t answer our emails. I understand that the warranty is over but we pay $ 4,500 for a car and 2 months later, the car is broken. So, what can we do? I feel like I throw 4,500 in the trash.

I was not expecting to be buying a car but when my 2000 Civic was stolen I needed to find a vehicle within the price range of the insurance money and would have to get a used car. I tend to keep things for a long time so this was only my third car and I had only ever bought new cars from a dealer so was apprehensive of getting scammed by some used car salesman sending me off with a poor product. I was still hesitant when I drove up to South Valley Auto as it was in an industrial area and did not have the glamorous appearance of a Honda or Toyota dealership with all those new cars in the lot and fancy showrooms with flat screen TVs and snacks. But I was interested in the 2002 Honda Insight and those cars are harder to find which put me at South Valley Auto. Daryl quickly put me at ease with his manner, no pressure environment and deep knowledge about Hondas and particularly Insights. The 2002 insight he had was in great condition and in the end I trusted him and made the purchase. I concur with other comments that he would rather do things the right way than make an extra buck. My Insight can hit 60 mpg, as advertised. I recently had the car in at the Honda dealership for an oil change and inspection and the Honda mechanics found the car to be in excellent shape, just as Daryl said. If you are looking for a used car, I recommend South Valley Auto. Ignore the appearance because it is the people that matter.

Daryl was great from start to finish. Every question I had was met with complete honesty and genuine desire to help. The viewing process and the buying process was very easy and he explained each step thoroughly to make sure I knew exactly what was going on.
He never hesitated to take my call or postpone buying the car at a later date and never seemed to lose his patience. Overall he’s an honest professional but also a genuine person who cares about people.
I’d recommend going to him over a standard dealer any day. Not only are the prices better or the same, the service is faster and more friendly.

Just there today to look at What was available and I wanted to post how nice the owner of this business is! Will be keeping In touch with this business. I like the Low-​key and very helpful Attitude

I found SVAW through a coworker who has purchased two cars through them. She loved her cars and recommends SVAW to everyone, including another coworker who also bought and loves her car.
They have a decent selection of cars with new stuff coming in regularly, so I recommend watching their website until you find something you love. I watched for several weeks and researched the cars I was interested in until I found one I was very interested in.
They only show cars by appointment, but Daryl pretty much told us to come down whenever, so it wasn’t a hassle. The process of buying a car was much faster than when I bought one from a dealer, and they took care of the title transfer. Plus, the car came with a 30 day warranty. So far, I love my car and think it was a great purchase.
This would be 5 stars, but this is a very no-​frills dealership. I took off a star because 1) they really could use a second person to handle paperwork or test drives. The longest part of buying our car was waiting for Daryl to get done with his previous customer. 2) I wish my car was detailed before I bought it. The engine is in great condition, but I missed the feeling of a new-​to-​me car with a sparkling clean interior.

This is a dealership that only sells used cars. I was trying to find my first ever car and I don’t have much money so I decided to come for a look.
Before coming, I paid for carfax reports of cars I was interested in. After confirming the clean records of the cars I was interested in, I finally I decided to look at a 2001 Honda CRV with 130,000 miles on it selling for ~5900 $, and a newer (forgot the year) Honda Civic Coupe with 98,000 miles selling for ~9000 $.
After I arrived I noticed that this dealership is totally taken care of by Mr. Daryl Monk. We test drove both cars and I finally decided to go with the old CRV. Something I’m a little unhappy with: the test drive was just driving around a block so you probably cannot really speed up the car to over 40mph.
Daryl was very patient with my questions about the cars and we did the paper works. We later found that my debit card can only allow max payment of 2500 $, so he charged me 2500 $ out of my debit card, and trusted me to let me drove the CRV to a nearest bank for a check of the rest of the amount that I should pay.
About 4 weeks later, I received my title registration and my new sticker. Daryl took care of all the title transfer and registrations works with DMV. The out of door price of my CRV was 6800 $.
Of course you cannot expect too much from a 13 year old car with 130,000 miles on it. After driving my car for a week I took the car to a Honda dealer for an inspection. Several issues were found with the car and I spent another 1400 $ to replace the oil pan seal, engine oil and coolant, engine belt and timing belt, and resurfaced the breaks. It felt quite different to drive my car after the fixes.
Still, totally 8200 $ for a useful car at the bay area, not bad for me.

Is the Sales Manager name Dickhead? Because he sure talk like one. What a complete total douche he was. He was just rude period. First thing that came out of his mouth before even greeting me…“Are you gonna be financing?” Fool, i got money to cash the damn car out. He walked off without saying thanks or bye and went inside even before I finished checking out the car. The car was crap in person and charging way more for what it’s worth. It’s beyond me how this Racist Tool stays in business. Move on People, Don’t waste your time like I did. He doesnt deserve anyone’s business.

I have had good experiences with Daryl on three occasions of buying and selling Hondas with him. He is fast, honest, and reasonable. I would recommend anyone to at least go look at his inventory and talk to him.

If you had asked me last year what I thought about this place I would have said maybe 4 stars, but I went to sell my car that I bought through South Valley Auto Wholesale today and realized that Daryl (probably) faked the Carfax report he showed us when we bought it.
The report he showed us for the car showed no accidents, but when I ordered my Carfax today I found one accident on the car in 2007. It is very unlikely that in the last year (2010 – 2011) the accident suddenly appeared on the Carfax. My only explanation is that we were showed an altered report or a report for a different car.
He seemed very trustworthy at the time but today I feel totally betrayed. I see other reviews where similar things have happened, so it appears that this isn’t an isolated incident. Now I have to try to sell a car with a vastly different value than the one I bought. Beware of this place!

My lovely ’99 Honda CRV was totaled about 2 months ago. I found South Valley Auto Wholesale on Craigslist and thought he had a great selection of Honda’s to look at. I went with my dad yesterday to look at a ’99 CRV, but the second we got there he said he doesn’t negotiate. That immediately was a turn off for us. The car was in great shape on the inside, but need a major tune up as well as a new timing belt. He wasn’t willing to g down on the price for all the mechanical needs I would have to invest in it, so we decided to leave. Daryl seemed like a nice guy, but he really won’t drop his prices, and that’s fine. Just be prepared to pay the list price and you may walk out with a car, unlike me. It’s time to keep looking.

If you are in the market for a used honda or acura, I highly recommend going here. I needed to buy a car in April, and after a lot of research I decided I wanted a civic around $ 5−7k with manual transmission. After weeks of chasing cars on craigslist to no avail, I went to a used car sale at a mall parking lot. The salesman at the car lot quickly tried to get me to test drive a $ 14k Mazda 3, ignoring the cars he had that were closer to my price range, and saying he could bring the price down to something I could afford. Then after I said I didn’t want to buy something on credit, he just kept asking me how much I could pay per month and tried to get me to fill out a credit application. I walked out of there after an hour feeling completely disgusted with car salesmen, but decided to try South Valley Auto Wholesale since I really needed a car and it seemed like at least he had good selection.
The difference between SVAW and the other used car lot was like night and day. It took us 2 tries to find the place because there’s no bright flags and balloons and blow up gorillas advertising their location, just a couple cars parked out front. Daryl immediately asked me what I wanted, and actually listened. Then he told me what he had that most closely matched my ideal car, and didn’t even show me the more expensive ones. After discussing the pros and cons of 3 or 4 cars, he ended up convincing me to get an older civic for $ 4K — so I actually wound up spending LESS than I was prepared to. He has a policy with all cars that if you don’t like it within 7 days you can take it back, and if something breaks in 30 days he will fix it. I took it in to a mechanic the day after I bought it, and didn’t find anything major besides what you would expect from a 13 year old car. I just took it to another mechanic and he said the car was in really good condition and well cared for. It has treated me really well for the last 4 months.
If you want actual honesty, no gimmicks, and someone who will listen to what you want (and tell you to walk away if he doesn’t have it), go to South Valley Auto Wholesale.

Based on my professional experience with Daryl at South Valley Auto Wholesale in Santa Clara, I am in SHOCK of the 2 and only previous reviews!
On 9÷25÷2009 I came on here looking for help in finding a trustworthy used car dealership.
Link to thread:
I totaled my car and was in need of buying a USED car for the first time in 20 years.
On my own I stumbled upon South Valley Auto Wholesale.
Daryl Monk is the nicest person I have ever had the pleasure of chatting with; he loves to talk. NO, not about his cars, or getting you to buy from him… Daryl just loves to talk about anything, and actually listens to you. I was really scared about being in the market for a used car, and the accident and being without a car for the first time since I was 17 was traumatizing to say the least. Daryl listened, without ever asking me to look at any vehicle.
Daryl listened to my babbling, talked about his history in the car business, and how things have changed. We must have spoken for well over 30 minutes before I actually asked to look at his stock.
I knew what I wanted, and had several cars that looked good to me. BUT I was scared, and did not trust any used car salesman. I thanked Dary after telling him I was going to look at other dealerships. As I was leaving he called me back and took me around his stock and pointed out small details in two of his cars that had been fixed by his mechanics, that could signal possible, (i stress the word possible) future issues if not looked at. He told me to call him anytime if I had any questions. NO PRESSURE at all!
Several days later I went back, but could not make up my mind between 2 Honda Civics. Daryl advised on the older one, 1998. Deal made!
I had a rental with me, no one to help me take it back, Daryl was late for a family issue, but drove me to the Economy car rental at the airport, and back to his shop so I could take my car. All the while chatting about his family, and life in general.
Long story short… the 2 previous reviewers have done an incredible INJUSTICE to this man, and I had to set the record straight, even though I hate writing reviews.
Follow-​up as to my car… I LOVE IT!!!
Acura Honda Connection mechanics told me I had made a FANTASTIC buy!!!

I would like to just lend other consumers a helping hand. This «operation» is run by a man who is either not honest, or completely inept. I would never purchase a car from South Valley Auto Wholesale for the following reasons.
One– Not only was the first letter letter correct, without a test drive it is impossible to even make a clear choice when going through the small inventory SVAW has to offer.
Second, you have a shop which seems a bit off. if I were running this business not only would the cars tires be inflated to correct levels. Moreover, I would never allow a customer to take a car home which was not mechanically sound.
Do yourself a favor and cross South Valley Auto Wholesale off of your list of places to visit.

This review is strictly based on a phone call (and that is as far as I would correspond with these people). I believe I spoke to Darryl. There was a car listed from this dealer on
that stated the vehicle had only one owner. Upon verifying this on
, it revealed that there were two prior owners and 12 service records. When I brought that to Darryl’s attention, he said
reported only 1 owner and 9 service records. Hm… I don’t know, but from my used car buying experience,
seems to be superior as I have been through multiple used car purchases. The guy just seemed stand offish and after asking about whether the price was negotiable and thanking him for his help, he abruptly hung up. Well, looks like they just lost a potential customer.
I also saw another review of them from another site. That person had a pretty negative experience as well, but it was in person; they didn’t let him test drive it because he didn’t have insurance and would not let him have a mechanic inspect it. Isn’t that part of a normal buying process? Anyways, if you find something in their inventory that you’d be interested in, expect crappy customer service unless you are willing to be ripped off.