PiP - Hayward Toyota dealer demanding $595 over negotiated pre-order price

That is what you need to print out and take in to them. That is your/their agreed upon price. They might wish to be buttheads about this, but you have the contract.

 

If you don't already know yet, I would find some reason to get your VIN. The car with that VIN is yours; the dealership cannot try to sell it to another party unless you give it up.

 

Another sleazy dealer for the list...

 

sounds like Hayward Toyota sucks.... I never even heard of a TDA fee until this thread... if you aren't going to buy it.. they're going to wait until someone else does..

either way.. i don't know if i would want to bother dealing with that dealership..

 

Same thing happened to me @ Hayward Toyota. I talked the GM and finally he let me purchased the vehicle with the the price we agreed upon on 6 months ago after wasting an hour there. It wasn't a pleasant experience at all! I think the whole situation was unethical and I will think twice to shop with them again. It's sad!

 

PiP are extremely hard for dealers to get their hands on.

I have seen them go for 4k over MSRP just because of demand.

 

Exactly! They're just trying to scare you into passing on it so they can sell it to someone on their undoubtably long waiting list for a much inflated price. Don't cave!

 

if its normal then wy not tell this upfront? to the buyer?

 

I would contact the Attorney general in your state, Toyota and media outlets for consumer rights. If they all say it is ok for the dealership to do this then just payup and enjoy a great car. If not, then by all means go after them and also put this on every sociol network. They will think about this for a long time after that. Good luck.

 

FWIW, I didn't pay a deposit and had no issues picking up my car.

 

My car was also on the same ship as yours and took a week to get from Benicia to Berkeley. I am sure that there is an order as to how long it takes to get from the port to the dealer.

 

Vine, I suggest you let the dealer know that shafting you will cause them more trouble than it's worth.

Tell them to google "Hayward Toyota Prius." The sixth hit is a link to this thread. (It's the first link that doesn't go to their site.) "Hayward Prius" gets on the first page too. So educate them that they are hurting their reputation by continuing to pressure you.

Tell them you are going to file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. Then go on line and do it. Hayward Toyota is rated A+ by the BBB and they probably want to protect that. (It seems misleading - they had 13 resolved complaints in the last three years. My dealer, Putnam, isn't rated although they only had 4 complaints.)

Tell them you're posting a negative review on their Yelp page. Then do it. Minori, you should do that also. Might keep them from doing this to some other folks.

You could also file a complaint with the DMV. The actual complaint won't do you any good but it'll add to the pressure on the dealer.

All of our pre-orders "required" a $500 deposit. AFAIK few if any of the dealers bothered to collect them, because it was just another chore for them and there was no downside to them from a cancelled order. Since they confirmed the order without the deposit, I doubt that this pretext will hold up.

They are just trying everything they can say to get you to back down. So don't bother to argue those points. You will get your car by either going up the line at Toyota - and you have great access here through the Prius Team - or making the dealer understand that you will make more trouble for them than it's worth. Whatever they argue, just tell them that all the other dealers are sticking to the agreement and they will have to do the same or suffer the consequences.

Good luck! Don't back down! We're here for you. :cheer2:

Putnam Toyota is one of the dealers in the PriusChat Certified Dealer Program which included $500 off MSRP and "A no-hassle purchase process where our Certified Dealer has agreed to not require add-ons or warranty programs.." So I got the $500 off - and the no hassle.

If memory serves, there may have been one other poster during the order period who got $1000. Maybe that was you.

There's obviously a pattern here. Don't let them get away with it.

 

Hi All, I have a pre-order for the base plugin, also at Autowest Toyota, in Hayward. I received confirmation from Toyota via email that it has arrived at the US port on 04/20/12. It's good to know about the bogus fees in advance ... Has this been resolved? Any tips? I should hear from them in soon. Hope you're enjoying your plugin otherwise!

 

First off, IANAL

I doubt OP has a legal leg to stand on, but he probably has a good PR case

Why ? So far as I know, pre-orders can be cancelled by the customer without penalty. This suggests strongly (but does no prove) that a binding contract does not exist. Some contracts have cancellation clauses, but if the reason amounts to 'I changed me mind,' there is a penalty. Typical would be forfeiture of a deposit. No contract, no legal standing.

ok, how about false advertising ? '$1000 under msrp' does not preclude additional fees. People do not make a fuss over TTL, even though that is added on top of the car price.

OToH, this (presumably) deal was through the Toyota pre-order system, and I doubt Toyota wants its dealers to make a mockery of the 'negotiated price.'

Go through Erica.