Order status

JamieGeek

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To be fair, I think we've had a lot of buyers on these forums jumping the gun too early to get answers from dealerships before they even had a chance to absorb the info from Ford, especially for a vehicle that won't even start production until late-2020.

I get people being anxious, and I get people wanting answers. But from a dealership's standpoint, this is one minor model that most dealers won't even sell 5 of this year. Meanwhile they have many hundreds of other vehicles to keep selling normally.

Ford put dealers in a tough spot by announcing the Mach-e way too early, by taking reservations, and by creating a totally bastardized process relative to the norm (at least in the US).
To be fair to Ford, however: This is their first attempt at online ordering and they are handcuffed somewhat by the dealer friendly laws in each state. (Of course many dealers have done some form of "online ordering": E-Mail your salesperson and ask to buy a car.)
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dbsb3233

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To be fair to Ford, however: This is their first attempt at online ordering and they are handcuffed somewhat by the dealer friendly laws in each state. (Of course many dealers have done some form of "online ordering": E-Mail your salesperson and ask to buy a car.)
True, but it is Ford that imposed a different paradigm on dealers with this. If they'd have followed the normal process that both they and dealers have used for decades, there wouldn't be nearly this degree of confusion and frustration. Just make the vehicles, allocate them to dealers, and let people buy then first-come first-served.

I get why Ford did it (limited supply, and the need to gauge demand), but when they made that decision to basically fit a square peg into a round hole, it was destined to be messy.
 

eastern refugee

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find a dealer who has access and change the order to them. But make sure that they can do it.
 

ClaudeMach-E

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True, but it is Ford that imposed a different paradigm on dealers with this. If they'd have followed the normal process that both they and dealers have used for decades, there wouldn't be nearly this degree of confusion and frustration. Just make the vehicles, allocate them to dealers, and let people buy then first-come first-served.

I get why Ford did it (limited supply, and the need to gauge demand), but when they made that decision to basically fit a square peg into a round hole, it was destined to be messy.
Maybe it is the reason that Ford.ca didn't implement this online system and is working it out the same old way, except for the reservation.
 

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I have an order where the dealer has not hit the accept button - its 8 days now - and it has not reverted back to the reservation stage/status yet - not sure if it does -
I believe it‘s 7 business days before it reverts, not calendar days. At least, that’s what the MME help line told me. For what it’s worth, my dealer accepted the order on Monday, and it wasn’t updated on my online order status page until Thursday.
 


JamieGeek

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True, but it is Ford that imposed a different paradigm on dealers with this. If they'd have followed the normal process that both they and dealers have used for decades, there wouldn't be nearly this degree of confusion and frustration. Just make the vehicles, allocate them to dealers, and let people buy then first-come first-served.

I get why Ford did it (limited supply, and the need to gauge demand), but when they made that decision to basically fit a square peg into a round hole, it was destined to be messy.
Anything "new" and "different" is destined to be messy; can't make progress without making a little bit of a mess.

I'd rather they get a little messy and get with the current century than be left behind.

The question is: Will you be able to order an F-150 or a Bronco online in a similar fasion (now if you won't be able to then this is all a waste of time and $$). I think the Mach-E was just the perfect low volume vehicle to test out a messy online-ordering system.

The reall mess of this hasn't been on Ford's side anyway. Its been the dealers that haven't payed attention or decided that the Mach-E wasn't for them or just lazy.
 
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dbsb3233

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The reall mess of this hasn't been on Ford's side anyway. Its been the dealers that haven't payed attention or decided that the Mach-E wasn't for them or just lazy.
Because Ford undercut them by circumventing the hingepin of their business model -- dealers taking delivery (and control) of vehicles to then sell to customers at the best price they can get. It requires control of the vehicle for that business model to work.

I'm no fan of automobile dealerships and the negotiating process for buying a car, but I can absolutely understand how dealerships probably hold no love for this reservation/order process Ford imposed with the Mach-e. And aren't pouring a ton of effort into prepping for what will be 2 or 3 vehicle sales for most of them, without any effective ability to do what they do -- leverage the vehicle for the best price they an get. It basically bypasses dealers and relegates them to being no more than a drop-point. And all those salespeople they employ can't do what they're they're to do.

But once this "first wave" is over (reservations direct with Ford to bypass the dealer), presumably all Mach-e sales will be like any other vehicle. When we get to that point, dealerships will have much more motivation to treat the Mach-e like an Escape or Edge or F-150.
 
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JamieGeek

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Because Ford undercut them by circumventing the hingepin of their business model -- dealers taking delivery (and control) of vehicles to then sell to customers at the best price they can get. It requires control of the vehicle for that business model to work.

I'm no fan of automobile dealerships and the negotiating process for buying a car, but I can absolutely understand how dealerships probably hold no love for this reservation/order process Ford imposed with the Mach-e. And aren't pouring a ton of effort into prepping for what will be 2 or 3 vehicle sales for most of them, without any effective ability to do what they do -- leverage the vehicle for the best price they an get. It basically bypasses dealers and relegates them to being no more than a drop-point. And all those salespeople they employ can't do what they're they're to do.

But once this "first wave" is over (reservations direct with Ford to bypass the dealer), presumably all Mach-e sales will be like any other vehicle. When we get to that point, dealerships will have much more motivation to treat the Mach-e like an Escape or Edge or F-150.
Did they? The only thing taken out of the dealers hands is physical access to the vehicle before hand. The dealers set their own price (as shown frequently in this forum with dealers adding and removing additional costs/charges).

We're not all the way through the process yet, either. As far as we know the dealer may still be able to make adjustments before we sign on the dotted line and drive away with our shiny new car.

I think Ford will use this process for other vehicles: They've invested too much in it to simply throw it away on a one off. Customers will have the option: Purchase a vehicle (Mach-E included) the "old" way by stopping in the dealer and picking one off the lot or placing and order, or they can go to ford.com build and price their vehicle and then press "Order".

If they can get that working properly they'll have a leg up on all the other OEM's (aside from Tesla since that is how their purchase has been since day one).

We're just the ginea pigs.
 

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Thank you to those of you who are sharing your experiences. It is helpful, and I find it somewhat reassuring to know I’m not alone.

After much pressing from me, my dealer believes he finally figured out how to accept the orders on Friday. However, my account still does not show that it has been accepted. My hope is that there is a delay in the system due to the holiday weekend, and that tomorrow morning we all wake up to two big happy green checkmarks on our order pages.

I’m understanding that they are learning a new process, so long as they are open to feedback and can figure it out within the next week.

Best of luck to all who are still waiting, and keep us updated with the status of your orders.
 

dbsb3233

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Did they? The only thing taken out of the dealers hands is physical access to the vehicle before hand. The dealers set their own price (as shown frequently in this forum with dealers adding and removing additional costs/charges).
It's not just physical access to the vehicle, it's control of it. They lose most of the leverage when a customer can just take the reserved vehicle to another dealer instead, where the initial dealer then loses the sale altogether.

Normally the dealer "owns" the vehicle (not sure if it's actual legal ownership, or just assignment to sell, but either way it's theirs to control). If a potential customer decides they don't like a deal offered by the dealer, they move on but the vehicle stays with that dealer, which they just sell to the next customer. They still get the sale either way, and the associated bonuses and profit.

But with these Ford Mach-e reservations, the customer takes the vehicle with them if they decide they don't like the deal offered. That's a HUGE loss of control (and potential profit) for the dealership. It completely changes the equation.

Some dealers will try to add ADM anyway, hoping they lucked into an uninformed buyer that doesn't realize they can take their reserved Mach-e with them to another dealer. But anyone reading what they signed knows they can change dealers.
 

ClaudeMach-E

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Because Ford undercut them by circumventing the hingepin of their business model -- dealers taking delivery (and control) of vehicles to then sell to customers at the best price they can get. It requires control of the vehicle for that business model to work.

I'm no fan of automobile dealerships and the negotiating process for buying a car, but I can absolutely understand how dealerships probably hold no love for this reservation/order process Ford imposed with the Mach-e. And aren't pouring a ton of effort into prepping for what will be 2 or 3 vehicle sales for most of them, without any effective ability to do what they do -- leverage the vehicle for the best price they an get. It basically bypasses dealers and relegates them to being no more than a drop-point. And all those salespeople they employ can't do what they're they're to do.

But once this "first wave" is over (reservations direct with Ford to bypass the dealer), presumably all Mach-e sales will be like any other vehicle. When we get to that point, dealerships will have much more motivation to treat the Mach-e like an Escape or Edge or F-150.
I must agree in part with you, I'm no fan of dealership as well and like the dealing part and so forth, in Canada we are kind of stuck with the dealer that we made a reservation with unless ther's someting I don't know. Has for the price, well I don't think here they can go much out of the advertised price unless they add value to the car like some options they ordered the car with or something and I have seen like $250 dealers admin fee added to the invoice, but besides that I don't know.
 

dbsb3233

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I must agree in part with you, I'm no fan of dealership as well and like the dealing part and so forth, in Canada we are kind of stuck with the dealer that we made a reservation with unless ther's someting I don't know. Has for the price, well I don't think here they can go much out of the advertised price unless they add value to the car like some options they ordered the car with or something and I have seen like $250 dealers admin fee added to the invoice, but besides that I don't know.
And I don't want to make it sound like I *like* the dealership sales model. As a customer, I'd prefer just to order a vehicle online direct from the manufacturer, and use the dealer just for demos and delivery. But I can totally understand how that undercuts the dealers. If I were a dealer, I'd probably hate this.

(Although I'll admit to being ignorant of what kind of bonuses/commissions dealers will get for being the Mach-e sales point. I'm assuming they'll be smaller than the typical profit they make from an F-150 or Explorer though.)
 

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It's not just physical access to the vehicle, it's control of it. They lose most of the leverage when a customer can just take the reserved vehicle to another dealer instead, where the initial dealer then loses the sale altogether.

Normally the dealer "owns" the vehicle (not sure if it's actual legal ownership, or just assignment to sell, but either way it's theirs to control). If a potential customer decides they don't like a deal offered by the dealer, they move on but the vehicle stays with that dealer, which they just sell to the next customer. They still get the sale either way, and the associated bonuses and profit.

But with these Ford Mach-e reservations, the customer takes the vehicle with them if they decide they don't like the deal offered. That's a HUGE loss of control (and potential profit) for the dealership. It completely changes the equation.

Some dealers will try to add ADM anyway, hoping they lucked into an uninformed buyer that doesn't realize they can take their reserved Mach-e with them to another dealer. But anyone reading what they signed knows they can change dealers.
We'll have to agree to disagree here.

The dealer only "owns" the vehicle when its on their lot. If you walk in intent to order a vehicle you can walk out before putting a deposit down and go to another dealer if it isn't to your liking or the dealer won't let you back out--you still have the power. This process is similar, it is just adding the reservation piece. The person ording essentially "takes the vehicle with them" when they go and order from a different dealer...

Even buying a stock vehicle the person can walk out and find another dealer--sure the dealer still has the car but with mass production its too easy to find another one just like it. You can even go to another dealer and have them dealer trade for the car you saw on the original dealers lot (and the original dealer would be none the wiser--although I'm sure they'd have a clue).
 

dbsb3233

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Even buying a stock vehicle the person can walk out and find another dealer--sure the dealer still has the car but with mass production its too easy to find another one just like it. You can even go to another dealer and have them dealer trade for the car you saw on the original dealers lot (and the original dealer would be none the wiser--although I'm sure they'd have a clue).
But that's only looking at it from the customer point of view. From the dealer point of view, they still control that vehicle and still get the sale when the next customer buys it. That's not the case with a reserved Mach-e.

You're right about other ordered vehicles though. Same deal - if they walk, the dealer doesn't get to sell that vehicle at all. But I'm guessing that's a fairly small% of sales in the US. I'd guess the vast majority of new vehicle sales in the US are from dealer stock. Most people that get the urge to buy want that instant gratification of driving it off the lot that day rather than waiting 2-3 months for OTD (order-to-delivery) to play out.
 

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It's not just physical access to the vehicle, it's control of it. They lose most of the leverage when a customer can just take the reserved vehicle to another dealer instead, where the initial dealer then loses the sale altogether.

Normally the dealer "owns" the vehicle (not sure if it's actual legal ownership, or just assignment to sell, but either way it's theirs to control). If a potential customer decides they don't like a deal offered by the dealer, they move on but the vehicle stays with that dealer, which they just sell to the next customer. They still get the sale either way, and the associated bonuses and profit.

But with these Ford Mach-e reservations, the customer takes the vehicle with them if they decide they don't like the deal offered. That's a HUGE loss of control (and potential profit) for the dealership. It completely changes the equation.

Some dealers will try to add ADM anyway, hoping they lucked into an uninformed buyer that doesn't realize they can take their reserved Mach-e with them to another dealer. But anyone reading what they signed knows they can change dealers.
I agree. The power, at least for the first year, over mach-e inventory has been taken away from the dealers. Dealers can't just order Mach-Es to sell on their lot. Any they order placed for themselves will be at the end of the production line after all reservations have been filled. In the first few months of a new model is when the prime opportunity exists to charge higher prices (when supply is still low and demand is highest), but they are powerless to do so because cars move with the consumer, and if you charge more, they will just move the inventory to a different dealer. All it takes is one dealer in a region to offer a low price and that one dealership will get all the sales (assuming consumers shop around and compare prices). If each dealer is allocated an equal number of cars instead, then that would no longer the case (the cheaper dealers will run out of inventory and be no longer able to sell additional cars) and supply/demand pricing would go into full effect.

However, perhaps the biggest reason that dealerships would want to fight against an online order system run by Ford is that it could easily lead to a slippery slope where more and more transactions happen online and then the general public decides that buying online is a better method and then uses their political power to change the laws preventing direct sales. Soon after, dealerships go the way of Block Buster, becoming obsolete. Ford will then be allowed to adopt a Tesla-like business model with non-commission retail outlets scattered around the country where customers can test drive and service centers for recall work.

I think that will happen eventually regardless (as long as Tesla-like automakers are allowed to exist), but the quicker online ordering is adopted, the sooner dealerships will begin to fade away. It is in Ford's best interest however to try and speed up adoption of online ordering and direct sales because otherwise they are at a competitive disadvantage to new automakers like Tesla that don't have to follow the same rules and gets to keep all the retail sales commissions. That leaves us, the customers, stuck in the middle of the crossfire of their competing interests.

It is tricky though since Ford does need the dealerships. If dealers went away overnight Ford would be in a lot of trouble as their sales would plummet to zero and it is extremely expensive to build up their own retail infrastructure from nothing. Ideally, they would want a very slow transition to online or direct sales.
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