Prime buyers misled by dealers

Or they know and do not want to be involved with pre-orders or they hope to sell the customer something more tangible.

I've always figured that this is a side effect of commissions, so the trick for the consumer is to deal with people not on commission.

 

It also depends on the Toyota Sales Region policies. I had a firm order placed with my dealer in October, but they still don't have one available in this region.

 

The whole car sales process is getting really, really old. From getting bait and switched, lied to, etc. ok, i'm done venting.
blah.

 

Tesla is there for you.

 

But their service department is not.

 

Good to know. If a dealer said it, bimonthly would mean both. Or either.

 

I've heard they come to you.

 

Dealers are trying to make a profit and do not necessarily have your best interests in mind. That being said, the several I have dealt with have been pretty reliable and fair. With the amount of information available today, you can at least deal from a position of knowledge. I have no experience buying a car using the net, but there are a lot of opportunities to have some solid data take with you to the dealer.

 

Don't think "Dealer" think "Salesman".

A sale he does not make today is a sale he does not get a commission on today.

The fact that he could sell you a car in a month you would find ideal, is not on his radar, he wants to move cars NOW. So you find them saying out right lies to convince you to forget your goals and buy something today.

Remember this simple rule: He is only lieing to you when his lips move.

 

the internet is of no help in this situation. toyota is close to the vest with this stuff, and there's no way to know what the process is for ordering cars for each individual dealer. so you're at the mercy of whatever the dealer is spewing, out go ignorance, or lies.

 

I'm not sure what you mean, but your order is firm; deliveries to your region have not started yet.

I'll be surprised if the entire country is not covered within a month or so, although unspoken for inventory may be limited

 

A salesman at my Toyota dealer said that the Prime would never be available in Ohio and that Toyota was going to stop making it! I think that there are a lot of confused or misinformed sales persons out there (or that Toyota is playing a strange game).

 

If he can convince you of that, perhaps you will buy some other Toyoa today. It is as simple as that.

The fact that you are alienated from the entire dealership never occurs to him.

 

Well, I am calling and cancelling my order. I don't want this car if they are going to stop making them.

 

The Prime is a new model and may not be familiar to sales people who sell Toyotas for a living. Granted they can bone up but honestly they are going to sell a lot more Camrys, Siennas and Corollas to people and make a lot more of a commission off those sales. Now throw in a rookie Toyota sales person and you have even less knowledge. I spoke to what I think was a rookie salesperson in Brunswick, Georgia who showed me a car and started the conversation with, "This car has a double-wishbone suspension." I asked him what that was and he had no clue. Also do you really think any sales person will read a 700+ page manual to find out how the cruise control electronics, or drive modes work?

I think its safe to say that the easiest way to gather information from about the Prime is to read the manual, which is available on this site. I'd rather have the sales person move to the side, keep quiet and spend less time talking about the car, and more time doing the pricing.

 

agreed, but this thread is about the ordering and availability process. are you responding to some post in particular?

 

I see a bunch of Ohio Primes on Cars.com as I wait for mine in PA...

 

Try Luv Toyota in western New York, That's where I got my 2012 PIP and 2015 PIP, I think they had a Prime Plus in their lot

 

I'm responding to the comments such as "The dealer said this...", "The sales person said that..." and all the misinformation (BS) from them along those lines.