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Another noob question ...

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by qlanus, Jul 13, 2009.

  1. qlanus

    qlanus Junior Member

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    I've recently placed a deposit for a particular vehicle as shown on a Vehicle Inquiry Report. The ship's name (Kentucky Highway) was also noted. Additionally the report showed a "Category" status of "A". Doing a bit of research, I've determined that the ship is now headed back toward Japan after a recent port visit in the US.

    Am I to conclude that the vehicle was on that ship, unloaded (somewhere) and is currently under some sort of preparation for shipping inland to my dealer? - That might jibe with the dealer's stated expectation of seeing the vehicle by the end of the month (or early August). - Or, is the vehicle still being built and is destined for the particular ship upon its arrival in Japan?

    Just trying to set proper expectations....
     
    #1 qlanus, Jul 13, 2009
  2. CAR4TWO

    CAR4TWO New Member

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    From the date of your order, it will be 4 to 6 weeks before you will be kicking the tires of your new Prius. They are telling you right that it will be toward the end of August. Until then, busy yourslef by learning all you can about the best car on the planet!

    Your car has yet to be built unless you get lucky and your dealer can trade with another dealer that has your exact car.
     
    #2 CAR4TWO, Jul 13, 2009
  3. damack1

    damack1 Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
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    Unlike car4two (unless you gave him additional information not shown in your original post), I think your car arrived at port and is waiting to be dispatched to your dealership. I think car4two misread your dates, since you said the dealer expected to see the car at the end of the month or early August, not "toward the end of August."

    When I placed a deposit on my car, it took several weeks for the car to leave the port and arrive at the distribution center, and some additional time before it finally arrived at the dealership. I'm not sure if things have changed in the past month or so, but back then it seemed cars were being parcelled out a few at a time to each dealership.

    You might ask your dealer if he has a VIN#. If he doesn't, you can't draw much of a conclusion, but if he does, you'll at least know for sure it has been built.
     
    #3 damack1, Jul 13, 2009
  4. qlanus

    qlanus Junior Member

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    Thanks. Your response is encouraging and provides a bit of support to my expectations. I'll give the dealer a ring tomorrow and hope they can dig up a VIN.

    To that point - at what point does the dealer become aware of the VIN? You'd think it would be known as the vehicle rolled off the assembly line.
     
    #4 qlanus, Jul 13, 2009
  5. stream

    stream Senior Member

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    The VIN is input into the system when the car is offloaded at the port.
     
    #5 stream, Jul 13, 2009
  6. Blind Guy

    Blind Guy New Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
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    V
    It is my understanding, from reading several posts on this very subject, by Jabber, DeadPhish and Diane, that your car is probably already built and unloaded in Portland.

    The "A" on the Vehicle Inquiry Report stands for "Allocated", and they aren't allocated until their built and on the ship.

    Also, VIN's aren't assigned until the vehicle is built and in transit. BTW, our car was also on the Kentucky Highway, and we watched it all the way from Japan to Portland, Or., where it docked 7/6/2009 and unloaded the next day, when it then departed for British Columbia, Canada. I suspect your car was on that ship as well, since ours is reported due at the Dealer in Kansas on or before 7/27/2009, and we've had our VIN from day one.

    There are 3 letter designations on the Vehicle Inquiry Report:
    "A" = Allocated
    "F" = Freight (in transit from the Port to the Dealership, Train, Car Hauler etc.)
    "G" = Ground (on the Ground at the Dealership)

    Keep checking with your Dealer for the current status of your vehicle, A,F or G.

    Hope you see it soon!

    David (aka Blind Guy)
     
    #6 Blind Guy, Jul 13, 2009
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