Please help: Dealer was sold, new dealer is extorting me

[yngwenli]

This is why manufacturers need to make it profitable and reward good dealers selling things at MSRP and view it more as a closer partnership with dealers in this order online, pick up vehicle at dealership model vs. have cars on the lot model and dealers who are only out for themselves as a franchise owner will have a hard time surviving now.

They are already selling Mach-E's in China direct from Ford and I can only seeing manufacturers like this model more to avoid the deep discounting. We just need to change our laws a little since we're are forced to use dealers currently.

https://insideevs.com/news/541704/ford-mache-enters-production-china/
"It will be sold directly, through Ford's stores"

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[SnBGC]

Thanks for all the comments. I have reached out to Levine but it's the holidays so hopefully I can hear back next week. Regarding the deposit, I paid the $500 but as part of the dealer change, Ford automatically refunded it saying I don't need to pay a deposit for the current order. For those saying to place a new order how long does a new order take now? I've been waiting for this car forever, would hate to go back in the queue. As part of ordering early I also have a $750 credit from Ford since prices went up from 2021 to 2022 and I wouldn't want to lose that. Every Ford dealer in San Diego takes xplan and won't charge ADM for website orders, trying to simply move the order from Aaron Ford to Encinitas Ford, but so far it's been a mess and no one can help.

To the guy saying it's not extortion, I'm no lawyer but looking at the definition it seems to apply here. They flat out said I either pay them whatever additional money they want that was never agreed to (no xplan, additional ADM, etc) or I lose the car and they sell it for even more to someone else. This is being done by force saying they know I have no choice and there is nothing I nor Ford Marketing can do about it... They are obtaining money I never agreed to through force and threats. If I don't comply to their demands, they obtain the car I ordered and sell it for even more money.

Crappy situation and I wouldn't wish this scenario on anyone. Unfortunately, the dealership went out of business and your order with it. I think this is the 2nd or 3rd case like this with a Mach-E on order that I am aware of. Same basic thing as if your local hardware store was out if stock of a certain item and asked you to check in later when their shipment arrives. In between that time the store is sold to a new owner who decided to change the pricing.

The new ownership considers the order to be an asset....even more so than your business. Luckily you have choices. You can order from a different dealer and a longer wait of course or select another EV brand. There are more choices now compared to this time last year.

Sucks the new ownership is so short sighted. Hopefully they won't stay in business very long....

 

[dml105]

Lawyer.

 

[Reign of Ravens]

Same basic thing as if your local hardware store was out if stock of a certain item and asked you to check in later when their shipment arrives. In between that time the store is sold to a new owner who decided to change the pricing.

It's not quite the same. Part of the difficulty is that this is new territory for car dealerships and auto sales. In this situation, we're not just sitting around waiting for the dealer to get in new inventory. We've made a request and put money down on it. The deposit does not seem to be legally binding and is more a barrier to show serious intent to buy; the dealership then makes the order on our behalf and Ford sends it to them. In this situation, Ford is still sending the vehicle to the new dealership, so it's still in play. And based on what I've heard, dealers can order some cars from Ford on their own, but if they want to order even more then they need to prove that there's a real person on the other end of that request. This part seems to vary by dealership, but my dealer and a few others mentioned on here required people to come in and allow a photocopy to be made of their driver's license before the order could be placed, presumably to prove to Ford that the dealership wasn't just faking it to get more cars to sell.

The issue is, what protections do we, as the interested consumer, have in this case? Clearly we can be harmed, such as if the dealership either changes the terms later on or decides to cancel the prior arrangement and just take the car for themselves, and the car was planned for and is critically needed. And if there are no protections, it seems more like the dealers have every incentive to just use us to order more cars, and then shake us off so they can turn around and sell the vehicle with markup added.

I've said it before on this board, I'll say it again: I am pretty sure there are cases going on now where legal action could be taken. The dealerships like to use loose language and dance around the fact that no legally binding agreements were signed. Ford has the disclaimer on their website that everything goes through the dealer, and yet they still use the words "order" over and over when you place a reservation on their website. Misleading advertising, bait and switch... call it what you want, but there are clear instances of fraud occurring to members of this forum. I am not a lawyer so I can't say how easy it would be to prove - probably the largest difficulty would be proving that it's not just "unfair" and that actual damages occurred as a result of these practices. I also don't know how much of the blame would be attributed to the dealer or to Ford. But I'll be very interested when someone does eventually get a lawyer's thoughts on this one. And if my dealer keeps pushing me, I might just pay to find out the answer, myself.

 

[SandDude]

I might be in the same boat as OP. I ordered mine in November. Very unfortunate that this is happening. I did just call them and the sales person said they are honoring the previous dealership owners agreements. And I luckily have text messages from the previous dealers sales person saying that they will honor the MSRP.

Now I'm asking them to send me an email saying that they will honor this and we'll see what happens. Fingers crossed. Cus re ordering would cost 2 - 3 grand more due to the price increase in December.

Edit: Just got the email confirmation. They will honor the MSRP. Maybe OP should call them again. Sounds like they might of had a change in attitude. Although in 3 days I'm not sure how.

 

[deadduck]

There's definitely harm done now. If you have to cancel the order you have to buy the vehicle at a higher price. Now, I'm not sure if that's a legal definition of harm, but it is a practical one.

The model was always a scam but I'm not sure why anyone would have expected better from Ford. This is the same company that gave us the Pinto, and did the math on lawsuits vs deaths with it.

Ford may be a more innovative company today, their new products do show that, and they deserve credit for that, but the sales model, the dealers, etc., and probably a lot of dead weight inside of Ford needs to go for it to really change.

 

[SnBGC]

It's not quite the same. Part of the difficulty is that this is new territory for car dealerships and auto sales. In this situation, we're not just sitting around waiting for the dealer to get in new inventory. We've made a request and put money down on it. The deposit does not seem to be legally binding and is more a barrier to show serious intent to buy; the dealership then makes the order on our behalf and Ford sends it to them. In this situation, Ford is still sending the vehicle to the new dealership, so it's still in play. And based on what I've heard, dealers can order some cars from Ford on their own, but if they want to order even more then they need to prove that there's a real person on the other end of that request. This part seems to vary by dealership, but my dealer and a few others mentioned on here required people to come in and allow a photocopy to be made of their driver's license before the order could be placed, presumably to prove to Ford that the dealership wasn't just faking it to get more cars to sell.

The issue is, what protections do we, as the interested consumer, have in this case? Clearly we can be harmed, such as if the dealership either changes the terms later on or decides to cancel the prior arrangement and just take the car for themselves, and the car was planned for and is critically needed. And if there are no protections, it seems more like the dealers have every incentive to just use us to order more cars, and then shake us off so they can turn around and sell the vehicle with markup added.

I've said it before on this board, I'll say it again: I am pretty sure there are cases going on now where legal action could be taken. The dealerships like to use loose language and dance around the fact that no legally binding agreements were signed. Ford has the disclaimer on their website that everything goes through the dealer, and yet they still use the words "order" over and over when you place a reservation on their website. Misleading advertising, bait and switch... call it what you want, but there are clear instances of fraud occurring to members of this forum. I am not a lawyer so I can't say how easy it would be to prove - probably the largest difficulty would be proving that it's not just "unfair" and that actual damages occurred as a result of these practices. I also don't know how much of the blame would be attributed to the dealer or to Ford. But I'll be very interested when someone does eventually get a lawyer's thoughts on this one. And if my dealer keeps pushing me, I might just pay to find out the answer, myself.

I get what you are saying, but legally speaking it is exactly the same as hardware store example.

The Ford system is a Reservation system. Says so in the fine print. The reservation is for the opportunity to place an order with the dealership.

Then it moves to an Order system which is with the dealer. That order is not a contract. You are not obligated to buy the vehicle and the dealer is not obligated to sell it to you.

I agree it is a crappy system and could use improvement. Right now we all are at the mercy of the dealership and hope they have good business ethics.

 

[RedStallion]

you'd think but the answer is no since the agrement isn't actually signed until you sign the contract with the dealership once they have the car, you can always walk away and not purchase the car if you want, which in this case is exactly what the dealership is hoping for knowing they can sell the car for far more if I walk away.

I would spend $300 on a lawyer consultation. I think when purchasing a business a new owner also takes upon themselves all the obligations. The agreement doesn't have to be signed or even written to be enforceable. Sometimes a threatening letter from a lawyer is all that is needed.

 

[RedStallion]

Then it moves to an Order system which is with the dealer. That order is not a contract. You are not obligated to buy the vehicle and the dealer is not obligated to sell it to you.

Everything written or spoken can be considered a contract for legal purposes. Though this agreement doesn't put an obligation, there must be some reasonable excuse for a dealer not honoring the agreement. If the only dealer excuse is that they hope to get more money I don't think the judge will accept it. I'm not a lawyer, that's why I recommend consulting one. I personally would go as far as losing a few thousand bucks just to teach those scumbags a lesson.

 

[dml105]

I would spend $300 on a lawyer consultation. I think when purchasing a business a new owner also takes upon themselves all the obligations. The agreement doesn't have to be signed or even written to be enforceable. Sometimes a threatening letter from a lawyer is all that is needed.

Qft and amplification.

 

[The_Boots]

I definitely think that if they want the extra money, then they deserve to pay for it in reputation. It might not do anything now, but people need to know that this is the treatment they can expect. Once this shortage blows over in another year, the internet will still have these stories plastered all over whenever anyone looks them up. So I say: contact your local news station and tell them how the new dealer in town put you over a barrel because of the supply shortage. Hopefully they'll understand that the short term gain of screwing over customers during a pandemic for a few extra quick bucks isn't worth the fallout, especially as a new owner.

 

[The_Boots]

I'm totally 100% serious. I think this makes a legit local news story. New owner reneges on prior owner's agreements so they can hijack car so they can inflate the price during the pandemic supply chain problems. It's got all the makings of a successful story and it turns the story around and gives THEM the headache. You're suffering too much. I think it's time to turn it around on them!

 

[CtsGTP]

tl;dr placed order through website, dealer that was taking delivery no longer exists, new owners refuse to honor the agreement with the previous dealership and wont take x-plan, want to charge a very high ADM and didnt even register for the ca clean air rebate. They flat our refuse to transfer the order to a new dealer and said there is nothing I nor Ford can do about it. Ford marketing agrees...

Details

I placed my order for a mach-e GT performance almost a year ago (been waiting for this car for two years), I got a build date of 1/10 and was incredibly excited until earlier this week when I logged on to see if there were any updates and I got a "Sorry to hit the brakes" message saying Perry Ford of Poway had been sold and there was a new dealer I needed to speak with before my order could continue. I talk to the new dealer Aaron Ford asking them to confirm they take x-plan, wont charge ADM, have registered for the CA clean air rebate, take ford options, etc. They refuse to answer anything saying don't worry about it, we can go through all the details once the car arrives, we'll take care of you... I send it in writing and after many calls they finally tell me no we dont take any a-z plan, no we have not registered for the ca clean air and we are looking to add a $10k ADM, we are also looking at installing a new alarm system, paint protection, fabric protection, etc when we receive the car...

I call up other dealerships in the area, they all readily say they do take xplan aren't charging any ADM and have registered for the CA clean air rebate, transfer your order through! They gladly send it in writing. I call Ford marketing and this is where the pain really begins. I am transferred from person to person and department to department wasting hours each day and with each person saying "sorry we cannot transfer any orders from our end". I get transferred to marketing, suv department, ford performance racing, customer relations, etc all to be transferred back to ford marketing. No one can help. Someone from Ford marketing flat out said, just cancel your order and place it with the other dealership... someone else said it has to be done via the new agency they cannot do anything by law... asked me to speak with the general manager of the new owners...

I ask to speak with the general manager of the new dealership to little avail, this morning the second in command to the GM calls me. I ask him to help me and before I can even start he cuts me off and says there will be no talk of transferring dealers and that they cannot do that. I ask if they dont know how or if it's that they wont and he flat out says that they wont, that they are taking delivery of the car and there is nothing I nor Ford can do about it. Absolutely unprofessional, I try to appeal to his sensibilities asking why they would treat their customers this way, that I have been a ford owner for decades, bought the 2005 Ford mustang the day it came out, etc and have been waiting for this car for two years. Didn't help at all, said they can do whatever they want and know that I have to abide by their terms or walk away and that they can make far more money on the car selling it to someone else than me. I ask to speak to the GM (whom I can hear is in the room and is telling this guy what to say) and they refuse saying he's around but busy and doesnt take calls. I ask to make an appointment with the GM and they say they'll take my info to see if maybe it's possible but that they'll just expect to see me when the car arrives in Jan... I ask them why they would ever treat someone like this and what do they expect will happen next? That given the position they are putting me in I will be posting my situation all over social media, leaving reviews of my experience, filing a complaint with the BBB and consumer protection groups, talking to the local media and bringing in lawyers given that this is extortion. His answer, we dont care, do what you need to do, we're telling you that we are taking the car in January and you can accept our terms or walk away...

I call ford marketing back and they say that unfortunately they are right, they cant do anything about it and that they have escalated the case but the answer will be the same... and that given the holidays I can expect to get a call back before new year's or in Jan.

I can't believe this is happening or that Ford or a new dealership would treat their customers this way, the car is being built 1/10, once the car is sent to the dealer I know there's nothing that can be done. I never signed anything with Aaron Ford, it was all through the main Ford website and with Perry Ford which no longer exists, I honestly dont know what to do, please help

Sorry you are having this issue, but If the dealer sold the new dealer does not have to honor the agreement unless the old dealer has agreed with the incumbent dealer for the sale of the unit. Not many dealers are signed up with the CA Rebate due to issues relating to the dealer and business ethics. Iwould recommend try buying the Mach E at a different dealer I got my GTP Grabber Blue with X-plan and ford options $2500 discount no ADM and the $750 rebate from Ca. Could not pass that deal up, after that went to buy a second one and was told they will no longer accept xplan for the Mach E and they now are adding a 15k mark up on all GTP models. Keep looking at other dealerships and get it in writing.

 

[ArthurH]

I'm totally 100% serious. I think this makes a legit local news story. New owner reneges on prior owner's agreements so they can hijack car so they can inflate the price during the pandemic supply chain problems. It's got all the makings of a successful story and it turns the story around and gives THEM the headache. You're suffering too much. I think it's time to turn it around on them!

Agreed. Other Mach-E Dealership Headaches have made into the news for less. This is worth sending to any news and social media outlets you can, and let them decide if it's worth a follow-up on the story. Add to Yelp and Google Reviews. Despite whether there is any legally binding contract from the reservation system, make it known that this dealership is scum.

 

[SuzzyQ]

Thanks for all the comments. I have reached out to Levine but it's the holidays so hopefully I can hear back next week. Regarding the deposit, I paid the $500 but as part of the dealer change, Ford automatically refunded it saying I don't need to pay a deposit for the current order. For those saying to place a new order how long does a new order take now? I've been waiting for this car forever, would hate to go back in the queue. As part of ordering early I also have a $750 credit from Ford since prices went up from 2021 to 2022 and I wouldn't want to lose that. Every Ford dealer in San Diego takes xplan and won't charge ADM for website orders, trying to simply move the order from Aaron Ford to Encinitas Ford, but so far it's been a mess and no one can help.

To the guy saying it's not extortion, I'm no lawyer but looking at the definition it seems to apply here. They flat out said I either pay them whatever additional money they want that was never agreed to (no xplan, additional ADM, etc) or I lose the car and they sell it for even more to someone else. This is being done by force saying they know I have no choice and there is nothing I nor Ford Marketing can do about it... They are obtaining money I never agreed to through force and threats. If I don't comply to their demands, they obtain the car I ordered and sell it for even more money.

The squeaky wheel gets the grease!

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