Mark G. W., Martinsville, Ohio

Well, I would just like to start this out by saying that I am used to dealing with one of the largest John Deere dealers in Ohio, but I will leave their name out. However, this dealership had taken advantage of me on a couple of different purchases and would not make things right. I began this last month searching for a garden tractor to replace my John Deere GT245. I wanted to upgrade to a heavier, longer lasting garden tractor with power steering and hydraulic deck lift. I found a couple at the John Deere dealership that I mentioned earlier, but they didn't seem to interested in finding me something or even helping me. I visited some other dealerships and just couldn't find anyone who was really wanting to sell me something, unless it was a brand new X320, which is lighter and not as strong as he GT245 that I already have. I am a picky person too and my GT245 was in mint condition, so I wanted to make sure that the mower I found was just as good or close to the cosmetic condition as mine. Well, I prayed about it and found Koenig equipment online and I read through the history of the company. I was very impressed with the history of the company and the people that made it what it is today. I found a 2001 John Deere 345 on the web site that looked pretty good and it was located at the Greeneville store. That was a long way from me so I wasn't sure about driving all that way to look at it and then having to drive all the way back to buy it if I was going to. I contacted the Greeneville store and spoke with a man by the name of Eric. He told me what he could about the 345 and said that it did have a broken hood and that it was missing two pieces of the front bumper. I offered him a price to include replacing the hood and front bumper pieces and to have his shop thoroughly inspect it and let me know of any issues. He agreed and he said that he would ship it to the Germantown store so that it was closer for me to go look at. I had my GT245 sold at one point and the guy backed out. I told Eric and he said that was not a problem and that they would hold it for me to see if I could get my GT245 sold again. Sure enough I sold my tractor and called and told Eric. He gave me the name of a salesman (Chris Brem) at the Germantown store. I was to do the rest of my dealings with Chris. I went and looked at the tractor and all the plastic had been replaced and it ran good. A friend of mine went and picked it up for me on February 23, 2013. I wasn't able to go get it or be there when he delivered it. When I got home, I started it up and was just checking it out. The main head gasket was leaking oil and the main drive belt on the tractor was shredded. I thought to myself, oh no, I just sold my GT245 that had nothing wrong with it for this 345 that had these critical issues. I called Eric the next day and expressed my concerns about these issues and the fact that he said that their main mechanic had found nothing wrong with it and I found this oil leak in the first five minutes. He said that they would pay for half of the repairs. I called Chris Brem and told him that I was going to take the rest of the day off work to bring it in. I took it to the Germantown store and was met by Chris and the service manager. They expressed how sorry they were and that this never should have happened. They promised that it would be fixed right and that I would have it back by the end of the week. I live about an hour away and Chris said that they would deliver it back to me with no charge. Well, I got it back on Friday, March 1, 2013 and everything seems to be fine with it. I was treated very well by Eric, Chris Brem, and the service manager. It was a pleasant transaction, even though it had its issues. No one got mad, no mean words were said. Everything was pleasant and smooth, and I can't thank the folks at Koenig enough. There is no doubt that if this was some other dealership, I would've had a totally different experience that wouldn't have been pleasant. Thank you Chris Brem for all of your help and assistance. I highly recommend Koenig for any purchases that you are thinking about making. Thanks again and God Bless, Mark