$15000 mark up..help!!!

[Logal727]

A big difference is you have a purchase agreement with Best Buy to purchase the TV for an agreed price. When you submit the order request through the Ford web site you are not establishing a purchase agreement with the dealer.

If you get a purchase agreement with the dealer and then the dealership tries to add ADM, then you have the same situation as with the TV from Best Buy. The OP didn't do that so your analogy isn't relevant.

Do you own a dealership or something? Stop defending what should be a normal ordering process from start to finish.

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[Cm12]

In my opinion, since the dealer does not have a signed purchase agreement with the buyer, they cannot keep the deposit. They have nothing in writing from the buyer that says the buyer agrees to purchase the car from them. It is a two way street: both buyer and seller are protected with a purchase agreement, and since there is none, the dealer cannot keep the deposit IMO.

For the sake of OP, I hope that’s how the deposit contract was written, but I doubt it was. The deposit is a contract in itself. The deposit contract is that buyer pays $500, or whatever amount agreed upon, in order to have the ability to complete a subsequent sale, take delivery of a vehicle, or whatever language the dealership’s legal team determined to be most favorable to the dealership. The dealership has no legal reason to make the deposit refundable, unless the state requires refundable deposits (not sure if any states actually require this, but I could imagine some like CA doing it). If the buyer doesn’t end up completing the subsequent purchase/take delivery/whatever language used by dealership, then the buyer has simply not exercised his/her option to do so. In the simplest terms, that’s exactly how a nonrefundable deposit for goods or services is legally enforceable. Since none of us have access to OP’s deposit contract, we’re only speculating, but that’s the deposit contract that would best protect a dealership.

Remember that back before prices went absolutely crazy and cars were readily available, it would not necessarily be good for a dealer to have to have a custom order on their lot. It might be a basic car like a Ford Fusion with a non-desirable package or color and be harder to sell. If a customer backed out, it would be totally reasonable for the dealership to keep a $500 deposit considering they now have extra inventory that they may have to discount to sell - and perhaps even lose the opportunity to sell a more profitable version to the buyer who now took this custom order at a discount instead.

Again, in this market it’s a different story. I definitely hope the dealer at least gives the OP his deposit back. But unless they’re just being nice since they’re gonna make a huge ADM by taking advantage of him OR if they had a crappy lawyer draw up their deposit contract paperwork, I think he’s probably out the money. And personally, I think that sucks for OP and the Ford brand, given these particular facts here.

 

[ridgebackpilot]

This situation is why I never do any business with dealers that mark up cars above MSRP. Look for advertising like this:

 

[blkadr08]

Do you have a signed purchase agreement with the dealer that specifics the price they agreed to sell it for?

Unfortunately, if she simply went to the dealer and made an open-ended order without a contract, or any written agreement as to the price of the car when it arrived, I believe that she is stuck.
I would be very surprised if the dealer would increase the purchase price agreed upon at time of order, if the price was in writing on a purchase agreement or sales contract. In fact, without a vin, there most probably was no sales contract.

 

[agoldman]

I am so sick of this.... dealers got to go! These more than a few, are going to ruin the dealer model for all of them. On the other hand, the buck stops with Ford.

 

[jrstinkfish]

Cars are not an investment, at least not a good one. Looking for the return is not a part of consideration at all.

The "return" I am talking about is how much someone who paid MSRP would get for the car versus someone who paid ADM, investment (hell, probably even "return") was probably the wrong term to use. Someone who paid $65k for a $52k Mach-E is not going to be as happy as the MSRP person when it comes time to sell/trade/get reimbursed for a totaled car, that was basically my point.

Any car I buy, I always consider how much I can get for it down the line.

 

[mkhuffman]

Do you own a dealership or something? Stop defending what should be a normal ordering process from start to finish.

Facts are facts, and buyers have a responsibility to understand what they are buying.

I certainly would not operate a business the way some of these dealerships are operated. I would insist on a signed purchase agreement with every order that contains the "out the door" price so the buyer knows all the costs associated with the purchase. I would want happy buyers, not pissed off buyers.

That said, not all dealers operate the way I would operate them. But some are. I ordered two MMEs from two different dealers in different states, and both required me to sign a purchase agreement. I didn't take delivery of the first one, and they still refunded my deposit. There are ethical and honest dealers out there, and they are a pleasure to work with.

But that does not excuse the buyer from failing to do due diligence on a $60k+ purchase. It is OK to criticize the dealer but not the buyer who failed to protect themselves by getting a signed purchase agreement? I disagree.

I could have been one of those people, so I know the ordering process is not very clear. I thought I was ordering my car through Ford and the dealer was simply the mechanism for me to receive what I ordered. I was wrong, and luckily, my dealer was honest. I learned without all the pain, and I am trying to help others learn as well.

Ignorance is no excuse. I was ignorant, but it is no excuse. If I failed to get a signed agreement, I would blame myself. I would be mad at the dealer, of course, but it is still my responsibility to understand what I am buying and how much it will cost.

 

[mjs020294]

In fact, without a vin, there most probably was no sales contract.

Is the correct answer !

Once the vin and sticker are available you can get a legally binding purchase agreement. Prior to that its basically a gentleman's agreement.

 

[Seriously]

my sister-in-law ordered 2022 mach e grey select basic.,ordered in November and delivered yesterday .Arriving at the dealership to pick the car up or to do the paperwork The dealer was putting on a $15000 mark up top of the MSRP.we need help!!! She wants the car but not the mark up.. My dealer is in another city hopefully I will not run into the same problems.
Any one else have similar storie.

This absolutely happened to me as well. The sales manager wouldn't budge and I was treated very rudely. It benefits the dealership if you walk from your order. They can turn around and sell it with the markup to someone else. I reported this tactic to corporate and contacted the person that had originally helped me with my order. In the end, I was able to purchase my car at MSRP after complaining, but my POC did share with me that we should have had a signed purchase agreement on top of my order form. It does seem shady. The reason I pursued it is because I asked multiple times if I could avoid the markup if I waited for an order to come in. They repeatedly told me "yes." If I was going to pay that markup, I would have bought the one they had in stock when I test drove it. I waited 6+ months for a clone of what was on the lot so that I could avoid the $10K upcharge. I followed the instructions they gave me and it still didn't protect me. I'm thankful that that person remembered me and verified what I claimed so the dealership relented.

 

[narmstrong79]

my sister-in-law ordered 2022 mach e grey select basic.,ordered in November and delivered yesterday .Arriving at the dealership to pick the car up or to do the paperwork The dealer was putting on a $15000 mark up top of the MSRP.we need help!!! She wants the car but not the mark up.. My dealer is in another city hopefully I will not run into the same problems.
Any one else have similar storie.

Their is no car, and no level of Mach-E that is worth any mark-up. Unless you are in desperate need of a car, hold off on buying one of these. A couple $k mark-up maybe since trade values are up too.
Keep looking around or maybe find another brand

 

[mkhuffman]

Once the vin and sticker are available you can get a legally binding purchase agreement. Prior to that its basically a gentleman's agreement.

I don't think this is correct. I had a signed purchase agreement from my dealer that specified my "out the door" price the day I created the order request on the Ford web site. They never once tried to change that agreement, and I don't think they can legally. I gave them $500 in consideration and they accepted it based on my offer and their acceptance documented in the purchase agreement.

 

[ponEpwr]

Can't state it enough to have a signed purchase agreement immediately after ordering. Attached are my 2 signed agreements for reference. Order agreement and sales agreement. These documents will only help you. Please get these for anyone placing an order. My dealer went though a complete turnover in staff and the car went through a 21 to 22 conversion with 2 price increases so who knows how it would have went down without these documents. Also you shouldn't have to step foot in the dealership to obtain these. All was done through email. If you're dealership won't put it in writing I'd look at moving your order to one that will.

 

[Jim54]

My order came in with an unexpected regional discount of 2K off MSRP. The buyers agreement is at the higher amount and it looks like I'll end up paying the 2K over sticker. There's also the discount for not having the park assist installed.

 

[Mach-Tony]

Can't state it enough to have a signed purchase agreement immediately after ordering. Attached are my 2 signed agreements for reference. Order agreement and sales agreement. These documents will only help you. Please get these for anyone placing an order. My dealer went though a complete turnover in staff and the car went through a 21 to 22 conversion with 2 price increases so who knows how it would have went down without these documents. Also you shouldn't have to step foot in the dealership to obtain these. All was done through email. If you're dealership won't put it in writing I'd look at moving your order to one that will.

Regarding the top picture... Today, my dealer said they would not honor my signed copy because pricing changed since it was put in and Ford would not consider price protection. This is an Escape Plug-in and not a Mach-E but it still does not sound right. Why provide my ID and a signature on the page if it was just for an order that was not fixed at a price. They used the "this is not an invoice" as a reason to why the price isn't protected. Shady.

 

[ponEpwr]

Regarding the top picture... Today, my dealer said they would not honor my signed copy because pricing changed since it was put in and Ford would not consider price protection. This is an Escape Plug-in and not a Mach-E but it still does not sound right. Why provide my ID and a signature on the page if it was just for an order that was not fixed at a price. They used the "this is not an invoice" as a reason to why the price isn't protected. Shady.

I'm not sure how the escape price protection is working but on the mach e Ford sent the memo that stated price protection up to pl220. This is for ordered placed prior to price level 220 (and maybe including). That first page shows my price level as 125 making it less than 220 and eligible for price protection.

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