Questions on factory ordering a car

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by extrashaky

For whatever reason, my dealership didn't require a deposit. I was expecting to have to pay one and had my checkbook ready, but they told me they didn't need it. The guy said, "We just have a handshake deal." I was a little nervous about that, but I watched him enter the order and print the order sheet, so at least I knew it was in the pipeline.

Based on all the other posts about putting down deposits, I guess that's pretty unusual.

We had to order the wife's 17 Impreza since she had to have the top trim in a certain rare(ish) colour. They didn't want a deposit either and like you that made me a bit nervous. All went off without a single hiccup though.

[bkharmony]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

We had to order the wife's 17 Impreza since she had to have the top trim in a certain rare(ish) colour. They didn't want a deposit either and like you that made me a bit nervous. All went off without a single hiccup though.

Obviously, Toyota and Subaru are different, but the process Veloist explained was pretty much the same for me. At some point the VON became a VIN and I got a text from my sales guy for that. The car arrived nearly a week early, too.

They didn't even ask me for a deposit, which I now know is kinda rare. Perhaps because I was an established customer, I was ending a lease, or because they simply wanted another 86 on the floor if I backed out (they only had one in stock).

And yeah, like someone mentioned before, you're probably not going to get any rebates or incentives on this car. I had to fight to get the special financing rate that was offered on Toyota's own site. The salespeople just don't sell enough Twins to really know them. I went to two Toyota dealerships and two Subaru dealerships, and no one could answer a single question about the damn car except how much it cost.

[spike021]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

We had to order the wife's 17 Impreza since she had to have the top trim in a certain rare(ish) colour. They didn't want a deposit either and like you that made me a bit nervous. All went off without a single hiccup though.

Same here. I had a check ready when I placed my order, but the salesman said it was unnecessary and to just let him know in advance if I decided I didn't want the car anymore () so they could make it open to any buyer.

All I needed were two things. One was like the actual order form (like what I explained earlier and Veloist mentioned), and a separate paper that had the options and stuff listed with a big bold "PRICE AGREEMENT" thingy on top (probably a dealer-specific form). Once those were both done I was good to go.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by spike021

Same here. I had a check ready when I placed my order, but the salesman said it was unnecessary and to just let him know in advance if I decided I didn't want the car anymore () so they could make it open to any buyer.

All I needed were two things. One was like the actual order form (like what I explained earlier and Veloist mentioned), and a separate paper that had the options and stuff listed with a big bold "PRICE AGREEMENT" thingy on top (probably a dealer-specific form). Once those were both done I was good to go.

Those were exactly what we had for the Imp. We did have a tentative agreement on the value of the trade in hand written and initialed on the Price Agreement form. That was the trade in value that we did get at the time of final sale.

[Veloist]

In my dealership, I do put the order in as the salesperson and I don’t take a deposit. I will print out the order sheet and email the same sheet as a PDF. In that email I will also give them the agreed-upon sale price and the taxes and fees.

I don’t take a deposit because just like Spike said some people change their mind. It’s quite a hassle to refund a deposit believe it or not so we just ask the customer to let us know if they will not go with the purchase.

[Geese1]

Thanks for the additional info guys!

I don't have a problem putting down a deposit, but I'm not sure if they'll ask for one. I am an established customer, as well as having worked at the dealership from 2004 to 2015, but on the other hand the last BRZ they sold was probably back in 2013 or 2014, so they may want something just to be sure they're not stuck with one (no demand for the twins in my area).

Originally Posted by trippinbillies40

Lead times on '18s in NW PA right now will probably be 6-8 weeks if you get the order in before the end of the month.

That would be perfect. I was hoping for mid to late April, but on Monday when I spoke briefly to the sales manager who would be ordering the car he was figuring at least 10 weeks.

Originally Posted by Tcoat

Those were exactly what we had for the Imp. We did have a tentative agreement on the value of the trade in hand written and initialed on the Price Agreement form. That was the trade in value that we did get at the time of final sale.

This is exactly what I'd like to get. A firm price on the BRZ with a tentative trade-in value based on the expected arrival date.

Originally Posted by bkharmony

And yeah, like someone mentioned before, you're probably not going to get any rebates or incentives on this car. I had to fight to get the special financing rate that was offered on Toyota's own site. The salespeople just don't sell enough Twins to really know them. I went to two Toyota dealerships and two Subaru dealerships, and no one could answer a single question about the damn car except how much it cost.

I know there's no rebates right now, although they do have 2.9% financing according to Edmunds. I'd just like to make sure that if there are any rebates/special offers at the time of delivery, they'll be available to me as well.

Again, thanks to everyone for all the help!

[finch1750]

Originally Posted by extrashaky

For whatever reason, my dealership didn't require a deposit. I was expecting to have to pay one and had my checkbook ready, but they told me they didn't need it. The guy said, "We just have a handshake deal." I was a little nervous about that, but I watched him enter the order and print the order sheet, so at least I knew it was in the pipeline.

Based on all the other posts about putting down deposits, I guess that's pretty unusual.

Originally Posted by Tcoat

We had to order the wife's 17 Impreza since she had to have the top trim in a certain rare(ish) colour. They didn't want a deposit either and like you that made me a bit nervous. All went off without a single hiccup though.

When I got my FRS I didn't have to put down a deposit and it almost bit me in the ass, granted I didn't have anything in writing either. It was the first shipment of FRS upon release and all they did was take a carbon of my CC. When the cars got delivered a day early to most dealers I called asking about mine to find out it was there. Originally they told me it would take a couple days so I asked when I could get it and they said today or we will sell it to someone else tomorrow. I was on my way home from a 2.5 hours commute at 7PM to get to the dealer at 8:50PM to do all the paperwork. They paid for it though because I forgot my checkbook and had a hard time putting the deposit down with my debit card since it was over my daily limit. Had to wait to reach someone at my bank by phone to get an approval. Didn't leave the dealer til 11:30 since I made them go fill it up with gas too.

TL;DR get something on paper at the very list, deposit or not

[Geese1]

Just a quick update:

Just got back from the dealer and we should be all set. We agreed on numbers, but I do need to go back in Monday after work to have him actually put the order in the system. The manager was a little confused on the way Subaru does the cars with the Performance Package, as it seems like it's its own separate model code rather than being an option you can just add on to the limited models. We're 99.9% sure we've got everything all set to order, but he just wants to check with his Subaru rep on Monday to make sure this is correct (you've got to remember that this dealership never orders BRZs so they're not used to the way the model codes work).

So yeah, should be all set to go, but I won't be able to fully rest until the order gets put in on Monday, at which point I'll get all the paperwork and so forth.

[Geese1]

Well, should be all set.

Stopped in to the dealership after work today and the order was completed and I got all the necessary paperwork. Now the waiting begins!

Only hiccup was that I noticed they printed my email address wrong when they put the order into Subaru's system. They were calling to change it, but since everyone who could do this at Subaru was gone for the day they were getting in touch with their Subaru rep who apparently also can get into the necessary system. Hopefully they get it corrected, although I have a feeling I'll have to call Subaru myself if I don't get any sort of confirmation email within the next day or two.