“Avoid.
Bought a 22 plate XC40 from them with low mileage expecting it to be reliable and on average have had it to garage every 7000 miles with something that’s conveniently out of the warranty. Service plan and warranty is not worth the paper is written on. Expect you to rebook the following week, like you can just afford to take days off because they fail to order the correct parts in due to their incompetence - this then resulted in the car breaking down again.
Whenever there is a fault you must find a VAT registered garage, payout for the diagnostic then and only then will they decide if they’ll cover it. From this review you’ve probably worked out they don’t.
I’m complained through customer service who can only acknowledge it must be frustrating but fail to take any accountability.
I will never ever buy a car from these again.”
“Would not let me to chose less than one star.
Had very bad experience with them. Went all the way to Doncaster from Worcester to buy a mini bus worth £420000 the fuel light were on I asked asked to put some fuel say say no then when I got home I needed the wheel change after a month I noticed the jack and all other stuff were missing I emailed them they treated me like a shitt and accusing me of lying.
People be more careful with this bullis.
I am still waiting for reply to my emails.”
“Very disappointing experience with Arnold Clark Vauxhall East Kilbride.
I booked my service and MOT around two weeks in advance and asked for a courtesy car, but was told only manual vehicles were available. I drive an automatic, so I accepted this because I expected my car to be returned the same day, as had happened previously.
Instead, my car was repeatedly delayed — initially same day, then the following day, and ultimately several days. I was left without transport and without a reliable timeframe. When I contacted the branch because of the delays, I found the customer service interaction particularly upsetting. Rather than feeling listened to or reassured, I felt dismissed and was accused of being abusive when I was frustrated and had raised my voice. I strongly dispute that characterisation.
I was also concerned about the presentation of the advisory tyre work. The tyres were not an MOT failure, but I ultimately authorised replacement of all four without being provided with clear objective information such as individual tread depths. Once I approved the work, I could no longer access the online information that had been presented to me.
I raised a formal complaint with Arnold Clark Customer Services. They acknowledged some of the communication failures but ultimately offered a complimentary valet as their goodwill resolution. I did not feel that this adequately addressed the concerns I had raised.
The car itself was eventually returned with the MOT passed and repairs completed, but the overall experience has seriously affected my confidence in this branch. I have time remaining on my service plan, but I will be looking for an alternative branch or independent garage for future servicing.”
“Bought a Kia niro ev 2033 for £2145 on September 19 th from the Morcambe branch which was a lot more than other similar cars on Autotrader I live 85 miles from the branch on driving home in heavy rain the car was tending to act strange on checking when i got home i found the car had 3 different make of tyres and i had a problem with battery running flat .I reported this to AC which they arranged a check to my local Kia dealer
They did report the tyres were feathering and would need the car in for several days to chech the fault on the battery .AC despute the tyre finding stating they are within the legal limit and they were trying to sell new tyres.I have made a formal complaint to head office but dont hold out much hope”
“Purchased a Scirocco from Burton.
Advisories should have been removed as discussed at sale.
Car has had brake issues to which we were told go away it’s wear and tear.
Car had damaged bonnet insulation and was fitted with tape which has caused debris to fall onto hot engine parts causing a burning smell.
Knocking noises when driving and now engine is making horrible noises upon start up and whistling. Car is now being investigated and I will update on my findings.”
“Ridiculous prices, i wanted a basic service, they gave me aptitude, charging me £359.00 just for the air filter, they didn't even change my oil, top up water anything . Then tried to get me to buy 2 new tyres at £240.00 each on a car with 14k miles on it”
“I purchased a 26 plate Kia EV3 on 11 July 2026 from Arnold Clark Kia, Seafield Road.
I did not drive the car from then until 29 July as we were on holiday.
On 28 August I required to replace the passenger front tyre. I had parked the vehicle and nudged the kerb.
Returning 4 hours later to a flat tyre, I called out AA services - the tyre could not be repaired. Tartan Tyres replaced it. In all this took 7 hours. The cost was £180.
Post replacement, a warning notice on the screen in regard to tyre pressure indicated 44,44,45 and the passenger front 35 psi. Both in the handbook, and within the vehicle, it says the pressure should be 36psi.
My husband made contact with Arnold Clark Kia Service Department to inform them of his concern,which was that the new 26 plate appeared to have over inflated tyres. He wondered that this may have been why a nudge to the kerb effectively burst the tyre.
Contact was made with us 2 days later.
Unfortunately , the female who made contact did not give her name. Her tone and attitude during phone conversation were disreputable. She initiated the conversation by straight away providing detail of expected tyre pressure, speaking loudly and aggressively.
The member of staff then accused me of shouting. I take offence at this would have been disrespectful. She spoke over me on several occasions. There was no interest or concern expressed in regard to the initial tyre incident. She said the car must have struck something or hit a pot hole. Neither of which is in any way accurate.
She replied to my information that she had not witnessed it and had not been in the car at the time. These responses are nonsensical.
She repeated that a 26 plate car could have it's tyres inflated up to 50psi.
She referred me several times to the internet to confirm this information. I use the handbook for reference to the vehicle.
It instructs for the tyre pressure to be set at 36. This information is available inside the vehicle also.”
“Very poor experience with Arnold Clark.
I bought a car in January, and within months problems started appearing. The front bumper came loose, and instead of checking the issue, they immediately blamed me, saying I must have hit the car.
Even worse, the gearbox failed at under 4,000 miles — completely unacceptable. Again, they refused to take any responsibility.
When I went to speak to them, they were dismissive and unwilling to even continue the conversation, which was honestly embarrassing.
Blaming the customer for everything instead of investigating genuine faults is unprofessional and pathetic.
The car was not fit for the purpose when arnold clark sold it, they hide the truth from me.
I would not recommend to go no where near Arnold clark ever.”
“Very poor experience with Arnold Clark Perth Citroën and Arnold Clark Customer Services.
I bought a 2020 Citroën C5 Aircross from Arnold Clark less than a year ago. The car developed AdBlue/emissions faults and Arnold Clark Perth Citroën replaced the AdBlue injector under warranty. Shortly after the repair, the same warnings returned.
I am now being told the DPF is “at end of life” / normal wear and tear at around 52,000 miles, with a repair quote of approximately £1,849. I repeatedly asked for proper technical evidence, including soot loading, ash loading, differential pressure readings, regeneration history, and confirmation that replacing the DPF would actually fix the fault. I still have not received a clear proper answer.
There is also a Parking Assistance System fault which was reported and still has not been clearly confirmed as repaired.
The worst part is the customer service. Arnold Clark tell customers to contact Customer Services by email, but in my case Customer Services / Head Office have not provided a proper response at all. The Perth branch has said they are waiting for Customer Services because they cannot speak for Arnold Clark as a whole — but Customer Services still do not answer.
So the customer is left stuck between the branch, warranty, Citroën, finance company and head office, with no clear accountability.
I have kept all emails, dates, diagnostic reports and complaint records. Based on my experience, I would not recommend Arnold Clark Perth Citroën or Arnold Clark Customer Services. A main dealer should not sell a car and then leave the customer chasing for basic answers less than a year later.”
“I recently had my car serviced at Arnold Clark Volvo, Stirling. The vehicle was dropped off with no damage. When I returned to collect my car, the windscreen was cracked from top to bottom. Given it was raining at the time I picked the vehicle up I only noticed a few minutes after leaving the dealership. When I returned, the staff checked the service report which noted no damage to the winscreeen during the service and health check. A note was added the day following the service to say that the windscreen was now broken. Whilst Arnold Clark knew that damage had been done to the windscreen and the vehicle was unsafe to drive, they made no mention of it at all when I collected the vehicle. The service manager insisted there must have been minor existing damage to the screen when they took ownership of the vehicle which had mysteriously worsened over the course of the 2 days in the dealership. He assured me that he would check CCTV to see if there had been anything which could have caused the damage, unsurprisingly there was nothing found. The response from the manager was that Arnold Clark took no responsibility and I should make a claim on my insurance for the damage clearly caused by them. After further investigation I received a call from the service manager to let me know that as a gesture of goodwill they would cover the excess payment on my insurance claim. As the vehicle is unsafe to drive and Arnold Clark accept no responsibility, I’ve reluctantly had to make a claim on my insurance. Really shady behaviour on Arnold Clark’s behalf.”
“I purchased a vehicle from Arnold Clark after being assured that it had been serviced prior to sale. Wanting peace of mind, I booked the car into Audi for an independent health check shortly after purchase.
To my surprise, Audi identified several issues requiring attention, with estimated repair costs of around £980. One of the priority items highlighted was an oil change, which raised immediate concerns given that I had been told the vehicle had already been serviced.
I would like to acknowledge that the sales team were professional, courteous and helpful throughout the purchasing process. Unfortunately, my experience after the sale was very different.
After contacting Arnold Clark and raising my concerns, the vehicle was booked in and the issues were eventually rectified. However, it is important to note that these repairs were carried out under the warranty provided with the vehicle and were not a goodwill gesture. The process still required me to spend additional time arranging repairs and being without my vehicle for a full day, causing unnecessary inconvenience.
My main complaint remains unresolved. Despite repeatedly raising the question of why an oil change was identified as necessary so soon after a supposedly completed service, Arnold Clark has not provided a satisfactory explanation and has simply maintained that the vehicle was serviced. I found the manager's response dismissive of my concerns and felt that he refused to take any responsibility for the shortcomings of his team or the inconvenience caused.
As a goodwill gesture, I requested only a six-month extension to the warranty supplied with the vehicle. Given the circumstances, I felt this was a reasonable request. However, this was refused, leaving me with the impression that customer satisfaction and accountability were not being taken seriously.
While I appreciate that the repairs were eventually carried out, the overall experience has left me disappointed. Customers should be able to rely on assurances given at the point of sale, and I do not feel that happened in my case.
Based on my experience, I cannot recommend Arnold Clark without reservation.”
“To whom it may concern
After speaking to the sales manager from Lynnwood Hyundai yesterday.
Regarding a car that is in Inverness registration SD 21XUO that should be a silver Volkswagen golf line.
An inspection of the vehicle yesterday at Hyundai Inverness they were scratches up the driver side rust that I could see on the driver side sale just above with the black part, and there is a big chunk arrest on the passenger side rear as you open the door.
The sales manager in question a gentleman called Steve who called my partner.
His conduct on the phone to my partner was disrespectful, highly unprofessional, and in her words, he was intimidating and left her scared and upset, and this is her first time having dealings with Arnold Clark.
After which she asked him to call myself and during this phone call, he proceed to hang the phone up on myself when I asked him a question. I had to call him back and I got nothing but attitude, disrespect, and his exact wording is either you want the car or you don’t want the car I’m only fixing the door regardless of the fact that none of the scratches and all that were put into the video which was in my words, gender discrimination because of the way the video was pointing out. This is where the fuel goes. That’s where the oil goes. This is how you check your oil. This is where you put your screen washing when my partner started the deal it was for myself, and she told Andy the salesman that it was for me and that I was a big petrol head so and my partner is the same so she knows exactly where I put the petrol and the oil and all that to conclude the whole general situation regarding the sales manager, Steve, and in my opinion, he should not be a sales manager in the way that he speaks to customers as myself myself have been a long serving Arnold Clark customer along with my family and they’re seven of us so and it’s myself that deals with the cars and finding them and getting the deals done and it’s at the stage now where I have lost all faith in Arnold Clark because of this one sales manager. I was in the branch in Inverness at 1 PM yesterday. It took someone from Lynnwood till nearly 7 PM to get in contact with myself and my partner.
I feel this matter, needs to be addressed by an area manager or a regional manager as for the sales managers could have conduct was disrespectful, downright rude, plus has also affected my partners, Mental Health and her medical condition and I want a call back from an area manager or regional manager regarding this complaint about the sales manager and the person who did the video who was called Andrew corney.
As as for the sales manager and salesman could’ve conduct in relation to the sale we’re not sure we wish to do business with Arnold Clark again cause we’re still on the shelf about if we wish to go ahead with us purchase.
Customer service don’t see a problem with this”
“I purchased a 2019 Nissan Juke from Arnold Clark Stoke-on-Trent in November 2025. Within around 5 months, the vehicle developed a major gearbox fault. I later discovered the gearbox had already been replaced before I bought the car.
The sales process was excellent, but my experience after reporting serious faults has been extremely disappointing. I would advise anyone purchasing a vehicle to carry out thorough checks and research before buying.”
“I purchased a 2023 Kia Niro EV in Sept 2025, through the Arnold Clark Stretford branch. The car was faulty from sale, and both the Stretford branch and Arnold Clark aftersales and customer services have been an absolute nightmare to deal with since.
Within the first month a coolant alert light started coming up intermittently. The car was under warranty with Arnold Clark, and I had to take this back to the Stretford branch several times. The branch ran a diagnostic and initially said the car had no issues and was safe to drive, despite the alert continuing to come on! I then had to take the car to a Kia garage who carried out their own diagnostic and found the EV battery to be leaking, which is apparently a massive safety risk. The mechanic advised that he wouldn’t put in writing that the car was safe to drive due to the risk of fire or combustion from the leak. Despite this, I had to repeatedly argue this point with Arnold Clark Stretford who continued to try and tell me it was safe to drive.
The car went to the garage in November, and I called for an update on the battery replacement a couple of months later and was informed that the Stretford branch hadn’t even authorised the replacement. I was then told that it was likely going to take another nine months to replace the battery and offered what I believe to be some very poor replacement options. At no point have the branch been apologetic or offered a refund.
The car was eventually repaired, and I picked this up at the end of March, six months after the fault first arose, having only been able to drive the car for only a few weeks since purchase. The interior of the car was covered in mould from the time it had been in storage at the garage, no attempt had been made to clean this. Then, the coolant alert started coming on again and an additional alert light parking distance warning system, which now only seems to be working intermittently.
I emailed Stretford, their sales manager Jack, and aftersales, in early April regarding the alerts and despite chasing received no response. I emailed again copying in their CEO, Russell Borrie in early May requesting a refund back on the car, due to the faults since purchase, again they’ve completely failed to respond. I called aftersales a couple of weeks ago and was assured the Stretford branch manager had been instructed to contact me within a few days. Yet I’ve still heard nothing. From my experience their aftersales is basically not to reply and hope that you just go away and it's right through the company not just the branch.
I’ve incurred loads of costs due to all the issues I’ve had with the car, not to mention all the stress and massive inconvenience this has caused me. Arnold Clark don't care at all. I raised this earlier in the year, and Arnold Clark acknowledged that their service had: ‘fallen far below the standard of service they aim to provide... and this had been escalated to management to provide a fair resolution.’ However, when I chased this up after having again received no response, I was told this had been dealt with internally through their HR policies and that I would be getting no further response! Not sure how they think dealing with it internally helps me in any way. It doesn't address the losses or propose any kind of resolution, it's just a complete sham of a response to get me to go away.
My complaint has now been promoted through the motor service ombudsman so hopefully I will get somewhere that way. But all in all it's been a dreadful experience with Arnold Clark, still having fault issues with the car and considering how untrustworthy their aftersales are, they are definitely not a company I’d recommend or would purchase anything through again.”
“Seafield motor store branch is an absolute shambles . Car sold not fit for purpose .
50 calls and emails to get to speak to one staff member . Stay clear of this branch”
“Avoid Arnold ckark st helens. Absolutely appalling company. I bought a car last year £10000 +. They persuaded me to buy a 2 year warranty and 2 year service & mot plan.
Had my mot 2 days ago and it passed, I asked them while it's in to check the rear window wiper not working.
So the same mechanic who do the mot,said its a broken wire in the tail gate and that it's wear and tear so not under warranty. He charged me £82 for checking that wire. He than said do you want me to replace the wire for £131.
How is a wire inside a tail gate a moving part and therefore wear and tare.
Will never go near them again.”
“My elderly parents purchased a car in July 2025. Unfortunately, the service and quality of the vehicle have been far below acceptable standards, especially given the loyalty my family has shown to Arnold Clark over many years.
To summarise the key issues:
1. The initial sales experience was poor. The car was purchased for £6,000, yet when I insured it, the insurer advised a valuation of only £4,500.
2. When I queried this discrepancy shortly after purchase, I was told there was no cooling-off period because my parents had paid a cash deposit, leaving them with no option but to keep the car.
3. Despite being driven only around 2,000 miles since purchase, the vehicle has experienced multiple serious failures.
4. Within one month of purchase, the car broke down. Arnold Clark replaced the battery free of charge, which we appreciated, but this was only the beginning of the problems.
5. A few days ago, the car broke down again. The AA recovered it to a garage where an oil filter issue was identified and replaced.
6. However, within four miles of leaving the garage, the car began smoking heavily. The AA attended again and advised my dad that he believed the engine had failed.
This is entirely unacceptable for a vehicle that has been driven so minimally (2000 miles to be factual) and purchased less than 8 months ago.
I contacted Arnold Clark and spoke with the Sales Manager, who confirmed he would ask the Service Manager, to call me. I had to chase up as I did not receive a phone call!
What makes the situation even more disappointing is my parents’ long-standing loyalty and significant spend with Arnold Clark, most recent purchases were:
1. A Toyota £22,000 purchased Jan 2024
2. A £25,000 car purchased in June 2025
3. The above vehicle £6,000 purchased in July 2025
Total spend: £53,000 with Arnold Clark in the last 2 years.
Given the repeated mechanical failures, the low mileage, the financial impact, and the poor customer experience, we expect this matter to be handled as a priority due to the safety concerns and the loyalty shown to the business.
I’ve had to chase for a response, the General manager Alex just repeated the same message. No understanding of customer loyalty or the fact that a car has been sold and now needs a brand new engine!!!
They have completely dismissed it and wanted my father to pay to get the car towed to Arnold Shark, then charge to look at the car and then they MAY decide to help out!
The engine has failed after 8 months and 2000 miles!!!!!!
Arnold Shark are sharks and I would NEVER recommend this company to anyone!!!!!!!”
“If I could give 0 stars, I would.
Extremely disappointing experience with the Arnold Clark Linwood SEAT/Skoda service centre. My car has been in for warranty repairs for several days, and I have been repeatedly told it would be ready “tomorrow.” This has clearly not been the case, and I have yet to receive a clear or honest explanation for the delay.
Communication has been poor throughout. I have had to chase for updates myself, only to be given vague responses and shifting timelines. There appears to be little regard for the inconvenience caused to customers.
To make matters worse, I have been left without a courtesy car while my vehicle remains off the road, despite relying on it daily and continuing to make finance payments.
This level of service is unacceptable. Customers deserve transparency, realistic timelines, and basic support when their vehicle is in for repairs—none of which have been provided here.
Based on my experience, I would strongly advise others to think carefully before using this service centre.”
“Recently took the car into Vauxhall Sighthill for a recall regarding the timing chain and add blue system. I have owned the car for over 2 years now and never had any problems with engine management lights whatsoever!. They had the car for around 3 hours and returned it to me, saying that's it all done!
Well, about 10 minutes into the journey home, the engine failure sign came on I telephoned them and reported this. They replied that there had been a few issues in the past with this, that there might be a need for adjustments to the software, and asked if I could bring it back in, which I did at greater time and expense to myself, as I live around 40 miles away.
They had it for a further 2 hours and concluded that it had nothing to do with the so-called update, and there must have been an underlying issue there all along, even though it had been on a diagnostic machine in the past, which showed NO faults whatsoever! THEY came to the conclusion that it must have been a coincidence that it happened 10 minutes after they had been pottering around with their so-called upgrade. The chances of this are very slim to none, but Vauxhall will stand by that excuse because they have no other reasonable one to offer. They asked if I would like to pay them to further investigate the problem, which in their opinion could be the DPF or a sensor Which would have thrown up an engine management light long before now if that were the case, Which I obviously declined they clearly caused, this problem but won't or refuse to take ownership I refused to let them go near it looks to me like a hard upsell in my opinion. I am now having this matter checked by competent, unbiased mechanics to get their professional evaluation of this debacle.”
