The Donalds Group Avis 

Donalds group recently took over this Mazda franchise from the previous independent family owners and its gone down hill .

Vehicle was in for second service was charged for parts NOT used some would say this is a scam or dishonest rip off business practice !
Warranty recalls failed so had to make another 60 mile round trip to the dealer to get this resolved.
Numerous completions deadlines missed at great inconvenience and promises of follow up actions by the service manager Tracy Revell which went unanswered and ignored ,my complaint got escalated to group aftersales manger Simon Gibson who wanted to offer me a goodwill gesture of a free tank of fuel BUT i would need to complete that same 60 mile trip back to the Norwich dealership so they could use there fuel card to refuel my car .....Farcical,embarrassing and feeling disappointed especially as i planning to change my vehicle in the new year for a Mazda 3 Takmuri automatic but sadly this dealership has lost Mazda me as a customer !!

Please avoid Donald's KIA Bury St Edmund's. Paid over £400 for service. I was charged for brake fluid replace but all bleed nipples don't show any marks from spanner. I did only spot that because reservoir cap was still dusty as not touched for weeks. Fastener was missing for the under tray of the engine, when i asked about it they wanted proof that it was there when the car came in for the service. Who would risk their name and reputation for a 10p screw? If they do it for big transport companies they will be sorted very quickly by loosing huge contracts but someone with one car can be ripped off day by day. I wonder how many customers pay for nothing. I'm still not sure what else was not done. My question is where is the workshop manager, quality controller, supervisor? When I express my concern to CSR I was showed some pictures which proof nothing to me. Job not completed, money and time wasted.
All I get for sure is stamp in warranty booklet. I can valet my car for less.

Hi, I still waiting for answer, few weeks after concern reported directly to The Donalds Group.

XC90 serviced ok. Then they said I need new front brake discs and pads for £650. Went to check the brake discs myself, asked the service engineer if they were safe and he said yes. There was a small lip on the edge of the disc but certainly nothing that warranted new discs. Had front brake pads changed at a price of £255. Checked with my local tyre garage and had a price for the same job for £127 !
Used to trust Ipswich Donald’s but not anymore.

Had a fault with the ADBLUE system on my Mazda 6. Rang Donald's in Bury St Edmunds and spoke to Brad in the tech team. Discussed the problem and agreed to bring the car in later in the week. Met Brad on arrival who was excellent and resolved what was a slightly obscure fault very promptly. Brad is very knowledgeable on Mazda. I would highly recommend Brad and Donald's if you have a Mazda or KIA vehicle.

Brought my 2019 Mazda from Donald’s at bury st edmunds 5 months ago had nothing but flat battery problems there after sales service is appalling there arrogance and couldn't give a damn attitude is breathtaking

As planned I booked my Mazda CX5 following a dashboard warning lights. As usual the "Service Desk" were more than helpful, gave me clear details of work to be carried out, the cost, time scale, etc. and the work was carried out professionally and with in the time. I have been a customer both buying and getting my cars serviced since the 90's and as usual, Donalds Service at Peterborough have always been very helpful. I cannot thank them enough. I will continue with my customership as ever. Dr. V.M

Massive thanks to Paul for helping me buy my dream car! I cannot fault the service given at all, it was all fantastic. You all made us feel comfortable and welcome Thankyou for that! And thankyou for being so patient:)

I purchased a new Kia Sportage car from Donald’s In Bury St Edmunds and was very pleased with the service. I picked it up last week and dealt with Philip Tye who was very helpful and took the time to show us all the features of the car. It had been valeted perfectly.

It seems the same old story when buying the car everything is rosy and they can't do enough for you.The thing that disappoints me is the aftersales and this is what sorts the good garages from the average ones.Since I bought the car from Donald's Kia I have had nothing but stress from my old car finance saying that the settlement hasn't been paid and now I will have to pay another payment to get them off my back.Donalds despite numerous calls and assurance that its been paid it still hasn't. What was originally a pleasant experience has now been soured and wouldn't use again. I'm out.

Avoid Donalds - Mazda, Ipswich as salesmen not interested.
I was looking to purchase a new Mazda CX5 GT Sport at around £34,000 and had travelled over 30 miles to this dealership.
I was greeted by a gentleman on the front desk who said that he knew nothing about cars and both salesmen were busy so could we come back in an hour. This was not a problem and my husband and I both agreed, we went for a coffee and came back in an hour. We were then told by one salesman that he was about to go out on a test drive so too busy to see us and the other salesman didn't bother to even acknowledge us, he just mumbled that he was busy too. I explained that this was our second visit of the day and that we were specifically asked to return in an hour when someone would be free. He just looked at me and shrugged. At that point I told them to forget it and that I would go elsewhere. I went to the Hyundai Dealership (Turners) in Ipswich and was met with the complete opposite reaction. The salesman could not have been nicer, he listened to what I was looking for and even moved a car so that I could sit in the model I liked. I have booked a test drive and have now decided not to spend my hard earned money with Mazda. The 2 salesmen at the Mazda dealership are to blame as I have had my current CX5 for 5 years and was about to order a new one on that day. I hope their loss of commission was worth it and their lack of customer service dealt with accordingly. Lookig forward to my new Hyundai

Bury St Edmunds
Im my opinion the worse garage l have ever had to deal with. As per previous comments very quick to take your money - but( in our case ) any issues are dealt with contempt and rudeness and dismissed as nothing important - have reported to ombudsman/trading standards meantime

I cannot find any fault with the service during and after our car purchase. Simon from the start offered honest and quick advice on our budget and a realistic valuation on the car we were trading in.

The whole process was made easy and gave us reassurance in the lead up to buying the car. Simon kept in constant contact and all this on a used car. The service recieved was better than I've experienced elsewhere when buying a new car!

Their after care service is also second to none. Mike has touched base a number of times making sure everything is going well.

This car will see us for a good few years but we will certainly be returning when it comes to needing a second car!
Thanks team!!

Very saddened by this review.
My son reached out to Donalds (Mazda) Bury St Edmunds this week regarding purchasing a car, with money he has earned from working hard and saving, he also has a car to trade in that he paid for 2 years early.
Given that we are in the middle of a pandemic and the economy isn't great, you would think that a car dealer would actually be interested in helping. My son's experience highlights that this dealer must be doing really well as they are willing to judge him as a potential customer over the phone instead of working with him and providing good customer service.
Following his very poor experience I have advised him to take his business to a dealer that is actually interested in providing a degree of customer service, and not imply that he is only interested in test driving cars! Had that been the case i'm sure my son would have spoken to the local Mazda dealer rather than Donald's Bury St Edmunds which is a 2 hour drive away!
Don't use this dealer unless you are old enough to remember Eldorado on the BBC, they won't understand or appreciate your choice of shoes or your hair cut, and they are utterly convinced that you are not worth the effort before you get out of your car.
Online advertising from this dealer is also misleading as you can't hold a vehicle unless your going to buy it within a few days. How do you know if its the right car if you can't test drive it (they think that's all your interested in) under the current restrictions?
Donald's answer is just buy it, we guarantee your like it. I assume that's not a money back guarantee though?
Shockingly bad customer service, thankfully its come to light before he parted with any money.

I thought going to a main Volvo dealership Donald’s volvo Ipswich I would get good after sakes service, well how wrong I was! The car having done only 26000 (12000 since I had the car) miles and less than 3 weeks out of warranty I contacted them to check the problem out, first they charged me £99 to look the car over then told me I would have to pay £1700 to get the car repaired!! No offer of help towards the cost and no offer of a hire car, thirdly they wouldn’t be able to do the job for another three weeks so now I have no car and no support after only a year! I have never known customer service like it, great while they are selling you the car but once your out the door....your on your own. Beware of this company and avoid.

We had a very bad experience with our recently purchased Mazda, we had several issues with it. Our car got taken to Donald’s Mazda in Ipswich to get it repaired. Richard has been very helpful and the whole team was great. I can highly recommend this place to anyone.

Customer service was fair. Sales advisor was friendly. On day of purchasing my car I was expected to sign my paperwork in the boot with the sales advisor in a mask whilst the guy who's driver had driven him there in his convertible was delt with face to face and in the showroom. The fact that I had asked for any kind of discount as I work at a Covid centre clearly made me a risk to him which he was not prepared to deal with me like a normal person whilst the customer with a driver was welcomed with open arms. I had passed my driving test as a key worker that week and even the examiner wasnt wearing a mask and he was sat next to me and not behind a screen. Clearly discrimination at its finest

Took my Cx5 to Peterbourgh for its first service . Not a great experience . Mazda wants to be a premium brand but let down by poor dealer network.
They stated that rear shock absorbers had failed in a year . When I looked at home there is no sign of a leak .This is a very old trick to get you to part with your money.
Not to be trusted .Will not use again.

Sam Coulter at Donalds Garage, West Street , Stamford, Lincolnshire, PE92PR. Was absolutely outstanding in handling my new car for me. He was outstanding on all levels of customer service, help and understanding for my needs. Above all he was so professional and friendly in the handling of my Motability Car. The day of the handover he could not have made me feel more relaxed. An absolute credit to the Stamford Car Sales Team . Thank you

We dealt with Paul Cox in Ipswich who was more than happy to give advice and even allowed us an extra hour for a test drive to see if the MX-5 fitted in our sneakily tricky garage.
Very friendly, no pressure and very informative. A pleasure to visit.
PS car fitted the garage, but ultimately we decided we needed a car that fitted the whole family not just mum & dad 😔