Things to consider before putting down a deposit

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was trying to do this on a new generation car for 2023. Dealers will take $1000 deposit and it is refundable- but they will not provide a signed price. They use the word “market adjustment” for marking up over msrp and they are waiting for the 2023 model to arrive to determine what people will pay. They were honest that the mark up may be 15k if that’s what people will pay; or it could be 5k.
It is crazy.

F that. Nothing about this is hinest. It’s them saying we haven’t figured out how much we want to screw you yet. They have a pretty good idea how much demand there is because most manufacturers stopped producing 2022s. And try to avoid buying a new flavor of the month model. Give it a year or two so some of the kinks can be worked out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was trying to do this on a new generation car for 2023. Dealers will take $1000 deposit and it is refundable- but they will not provide a signed price. They use the word “market adjustment” for marking up over msrp and they are waiting for the 2023 model to arrive to determine what people will pay. They were honest that the mark up may be 15k if that’s what people will pay; or it could be 5k.
It is crazy.

K00ns Toyota in Arlington asked for a $3K refundable deposit with no price. They said they would mark it up at least $6K over MSRP when it came it. How sleazy and predatory. These greedy dealers stain Toyota's good name.

[Anonymous]

All the Toyota dealers are asking for that amount of deposit with no promises at their end.

[Anonymous]

OP - you can do better!
Took home a brand new Volvo this weekend. Put down a 1k refundable deposit in June, with no markup on MSRP.

I would have been tempted to stick with a Toyota but with all the dealer markups and stock issues.... if you are going to pay through the nose, why not get the nicer car?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was trying to do this on a new generation car for 2023. Dealers will take $1000 deposit and it is refundable- but they will not provide a signed price. They use the word “market adjustment” for marking up over msrp and they are waiting for the 2023 model to arrive to determine what people will pay. They were honest that the mark up may be 15k if that’s what people will pay; or it could be 5k.
It is crazy.

Wow - that is crazy

[Anonymous]

I would not put down a nonrefundable deposit on a car I'd never seen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was trying to do this on a new generation car for 2023. Dealers will take $1000 deposit and it is refundable- but they will not provide a signed price. They use the word “market adjustment” for marking up over msrp and they are waiting for the 2023 model to arrive to determine what people will pay. They were honest that the mark up may be 15k if that’s what people will pay; or it could be 5k.
It is crazy.

Could you please state the dealer? I'm trying to work out a deal with a dealer who seems good and says they won't mark it up for the market adjustment if we order directly, but if it's not true, I want to know.

[Anonymous]

I put a 500 (refundable) deposit down. And when the car came in, there were certain features that weren't installed due to parts shortage. So I am glad I was easily able to get my deposit back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was trying to do this on a new generation car for 2023. Dealers will take $1000 deposit and it is refundable- but they will not provide a signed price. They use the word “market adjustment” for marking up over msrp and they are waiting for the 2023 model to arrive to determine what people will pay. They were honest that the mark up may be 15k if that’s what people will pay; or it could be 5k.
It is crazy.

Could you please state the dealer? I'm trying to work out a deal with a dealer who seems good and says they won't mark it up for the market adjustment if we order directly, but if it's not true, I want to know.

Ourisman

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was trying to do this on a new generation car for 2023. Dealers will take $1000 deposit and it is refundable- but they will not provide a signed price. They use the word “market adjustment” for marking up over msrp and they are waiting for the 2023 model to arrive to determine what people will pay. They were honest that the mark up may be 15k if that’s what people will pay; or it could be 5k.
It is crazy.

Could you please state the dealer? I'm trying to work out a deal with a dealer who seems good and says they won't mark it up for the market adjustment if we order directly, but if it's not true, I want to know.

There are only a few manufacturers which allow a customer to place an order for a bespoke vehicle. E.g., BMW and Porsche. You should clarify with the dealer. Honda and Toyota dealers work on an entirely different type of allocation system:

https://www.tundras.com/threads/toyota-allocation-ordering-transporting-system-explaination.107512/

You should clarify with your dealer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Deposit for an ordered car should never be non-refundable. I would look at other dealers. There can be issues when the car arrives like damage during transport or missing features because of current supply chain.

+1. Keep looking OP. We ordered a subaru with a $500 refundable deposit in May (came in July). We were allowed to test drive the car before we paid in full. No way would I put down a non-refundable deposit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Deposit for an ordered car should never be non-refundable. I would look at other dealers. There can be issues when the car arrives like damage during transport or missing features because of current supply chain.

+1. Keep looking OP. We ordered a subaru with a $500 refundable deposit in May (came in July). We were allowed to test drive the car before we paid in full. No way would I put down a non-refundable deposit.

Yeah, I also got a subaru at MSRP. Paid 500 deposit. Whoever is paying 5k over MSRP for some toyota is getting played by the dealers.

[Anonymous]

Don't put a deposit down without getting the price in writing or at least getting it in writing that they will sell at MSRP.

I put a deposit down on a limited edition vehicle, and ended up giving my business to a dealer 8 hours away from here as they agreed to honor MSRP. I'll give my money to honest dealers.

[Anonymous]

Outside of EV, the market seems softening. If you put cash down, get a locked in interest-rate and out-the-door price. Or just get in in writing that it is refundable. Now some EVs are super hot, but that is a different can of worms and price point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Outside of EV, the market seems softening. If you put cash down, get a locked in interest-rate and out-the-door price. Or just get in in writing that it is refundable. Now some EVs are super hot, but that is a different can of worms and price point.

Auto loans don't normally do locked-in interest rates so far in advance. Even for mortgages, they usually only lock it for a month or two.
But I agree on locking down the price.