Harwoods Group Reviews 

I brought my well cared for and low mileage Audi S3 to Southampton Audi for a recall service. As an engineer with experience in workshops, production, and repairs within the defense industry, I possess a direct understanding of field operations and after-service. Behind the sleek looking showroom and well-dressed personnel, I encountered grossly uninformed mechanics and substandard workmanship. Unfortunately, the recall service resulted in significant and costly damages. My car was in perfect working order when I brought it in for the recall, which involved removing the gearbox and updating an internal pump before this pump self-disintegrates (a global recall campaign affecting certain production year DSG gearboxes in VW and Audi). They assured me they had the expertise to perform the work to the highest Audi standards. However, they repeatedly made errors, transforming a one-day repair into a 50-day ordeal that involved removing the gearbox three times. After each return, new issues arose. Notably, the second gearbox removal resulted in a large oil leak from it, which I discovered only after it created mess in my parking spot. Despite numerous attempts to have the dealership address these problems, I encountered delays and a complete lack of accountability. I believe they were negligent in their workmanship and subsequently attempted to cover it up with the runaround and by obstructing any concrete resolution. I strongly advise against bringing vehicles here for major work involving engines, gearboxes, or complex systems. If you have no other option, meticulously document every interaction (request updates via email and when the faff happens don't leave without a paper invoice/full report accurately documenting your drop off concerns) and be prepared for potential issues. I escalated my complaint internally with their after-service managers and requested to speak with the head of business, but was met with excuses involving sickness and other evasions. I want to specifically mention Manager Simon Boats, who was extremely uninterested in assisting and condescending. I've reported their mistakes to Audi UK, but they appear adept at manipulating the system and covering up their errors. I suspect the team responding to negative reviews with the same boilerplate answer will do it on this review too. However, I want to emphasize that I expected Southampton Audi to conduct its business with integrity and honesty. While errors are inevitable, the manner in which they are addressed is what truly defines a company's character. I strongly object to the victim-blaming stance your affiliate has adopted upon my escalation to Audi UK and The Motor Ombudsman.
It is with disappointment that I write this review, as the Motor Ombudsman's report, just received recently, reveals significant discrepancies and misrepresentations in the business's version of events.

Very thorough repair, excellent support with the hire car & the text updates sent whilst the car was with Harwoods

Aidan from Southampton Audi has been absolutely brilliant. From start to finish, he’s made this such a great experience for me. He’s very efficient, helpful and professional. Very happy with my new purchase!

I drove my A4 to Harwoods Crawley Audi, to make an appointment to have light shunt damage to the rear bumper repaired.

Instead Zeb took the car straight away and did the most amazing job of polishing out the damage in just 15 minutes - it looks better than when it was new just three months ago,, and I could get on with my work day (at the driving range!)

Will definitely trust them to take care of all future services and source my next car with them (BTW: super friendly reception staff too)

I took delivery of a Range Rover Sport in September 2024. Aside from the issues I have had with it, each time I make contact with Harwoods, its like pulling teeth getting anyone to respond to me. They were lovely and attentive when the car was being ordered but afterwards, a shocking lack of interest in aftercare. I will not be getting another LR and if i did, i certainly wouldn't buy from here.

I was considering buying a car from Harwoods Assured in Chichester. The sales guy Danny was extremely helpful and accomodating. I told him that his car was one of two that were serious contenders. He wasn't pushy at all and allowed us access to the car for a long time followed by a test drive. Unfortunately age and colour of the car made us choose the other vehicle.

Danny was knowledgeable and a great help and a credit to Harwoods.

Oh wow, bravo! Standing ovation for the sheer brilliance of your coordination skills Harwoods! I was absolutely thrilled to receive a lovely little service and MOT reminder from your Crawley branch, because, of course, who cares about the minor detail that I actually live in Basingstoke and have serviced my Jaguar there? Honestly, top-tier personalisation from Harwoods. Clearly, your data management is worthy of a GDPR award!
Like any logical human being, I called your Basingstoke branch on the 24th Feb for a quote, left a message, and silly me I actually expected someone from Basingstoke to call me back. I know, I know… rookie mistake! Instead, in a truly inspired plot twist, Harwoods Crawley rings me two days later, enthusiastically trying to book me in there instead. Amazing!!
After a thrilling round of explaining, I was assured that Basingstoke’s service department would definitely definitely call me back. And yet… here I am. Still waiting. wallet open and trousers down, ready to part with an amount of money for an MOT, oil change and vehicle health check, equal to the newly revised increase in defence spending! Sadly the senior management at Harwoods won’t hear about any of the above.

Recently, I took my Discovery Sport to Harwoods Basingstoke for a service. The engine had a faint rev noise when it reached 2000 RPM or more, though it was barely noticeable. Even though a service wasn’t due, I opted for a voluntary check-up and asked them to inspect the noise. They diagnosed it as a DPF heat shield rattle and quoted £200 to fix it—on top of the already expensive service.
However, the noise persisted after the repair. They then suggested a timing chain stress test, which cost even more. After conducting the test, they reported that it had failed and also found play in the turbo, estimating the total repair cost at nearly £5,000. At this point, I was completely frustrated and decided to take my car elsewhere for repairs.
When I went to collect the car, it immediately made an unusual revving noise upon ignition—something that hadn’t happened before. I probably shouldn’t have driven it, as the issue worsened after the service, but I did. Within just 50 miles, the engine seized. I had the car towed back to Harwoods, only to be handed a staggering repair bill of £16,500 to fix the engine. Overwhelmed with frustration, I towed it to LC Auto Garage instead.

Luke at LC Auto Garage was incredibly helpful and gave me the best advice. While he provided a genuine quote of £8,500 to repair the engine, I ultimately decided to sell the car as-is. I highly recommend LC Auto Garage for all JLR owners in the Basingstoke area.

I went to audi portsmouth today to look at cars. There were probably 8 staff and half of them were with customers. There were 2 woman staff having a chat and 2 men just sat on their computers after leaving the chat with the woman. Not once did they acknowledge me and my husband or ask us if we needed information. It was like we were invisible. We decided to leave as we were not important enough to even welcome or say hello to. So rude and unprofessional, won't be spending my money there

The process of buying an excellent new BYD SEAL U DM-I. from Harwoods Coulsdon I compare to checking in to a 5-star hotel, with the Salesperson “Kaz” making my stay a delightful experience throughout. Yes, I would highly recommend BYD Coulsdon, and the “SEAL U DM-I” which you should definitely take a test drive

Lube up because you’re about to get shafted. The worst after sales experience I’ve ever known. After purchasing a car from them they refused to acknowledge there were any problems so I had to take it to an independent garage at my own expense even though it was under warranty.

Good team and were supportive in the process the salesperson Donna coordinated very well from Harwoods Audi Portsmouth

Very satisfied with my new car and the service and information supplied by sales executive, Dashty Azez.

Audi Chandlers Ford

Highly recommend these guys. Amazing service.
I’d recommend talking to Niel Batista. Very good.

Brilliant service from start to finish. Izzy and the team were knowledgeable, professional and kept me informed at all stages. Very refreshing for a main dealer in the UK. First time for an Audi and Harwoods n
Portsmouth Audi made the experience very pleasant

Having purchased many cars "over the phone" in the past I have to say that my experience earlier today was shocking ! The salesman - Mark was rude, argumentative and just would not listen to the point that I had to hang up. Having provided Mark with a range to aim for my expected cost of change, also provided the trade in price quoted by Motorway he finally succumbed to providing me with an outrageous offer which I duly thanked him for but unsurprisingly rejected

Update 7.2.25
Thanks for your follow up - I emailed and called Rehan Khan sharing the detail of the call and I’m currently waiting for a response from management at Harwoods Crawley

Update14.2.25
Follow up from Rehan Khan where he offered an improved trade in before they sold the car elsewhere. Just to close the review I subsequently used Motorway to offer my car for sale to other dealers and they secured a sale which was approximately £3k more than Harwoods final offer - lesson learnt 😏

I was going to purchase a Discovery Sport, to be fair the finance company took a while to approve but the problems began after. I was constantly told we’ve been trying to email/phone you…. Ok I’m on the phone now why can’t I come and collect. One excuse after another, we’re just getting it valeted and will call at 3pm, 3pm turned into another week, and after 2/3 weeks of this I’d had enough. I believe the customer experience is vital for repeat business and recommendations and I cannot honestly do either. Here comes the punchline, everyone person in Coulsdon that I’ve emailed for my deposit back has ignored me, they’ve illegitimately held onto this since September. I would stay well clear, I have now reached out to the directors to see if they really value their reputation because it’s gone to a point of being ridiculous.

Review for Harwood’s Land Rover Brighton

I purchased a used vehicle from Harwood’s Land Rover Brighton in October 2024, and the experience has been nothing short of appalling. The vehicle had significant issues, and during my ownership, it spent more time off the road than on it.

I had to contact Land Rover Assist multiple times, but despite the clear evidence of ongoing problems, there was no proper response from the dealer. The process involved endless diagnostics, but with no practical solutions or genuine commitment to resolving the issues. Instead of providing any meaningful customer service, the response was lackluster, and the lack of communication was completely unacceptable.

Despite sending numerous emails and making multiple phone calls to address these issues, my concerns were repeatedly ignored. It was only when I escalated the matter directly to the CEO that I received any real response.

After months of frustration, I had no choice but to reject the vehicle, and eventually, after significant delays, I received a refund in January 2025.

This entire experience has been incredibly stressful and disappointing. I would strongly advise anyone considering purchasing from this dealership to proceed with extreme caution. Beware.

Francesca in Audi Portsmouth Service was very patient and helpful assisting us to link iPhone to Audi A3 MMI on Friday 24th January 2025. Excellent service.