Seeking Wisdom

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MandoForSenate

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Jan 10, 2024
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I dont have much experience with the process of buying a car let alone making a deposit to be on a waiting list.
I have a few concerns I hope I can get sound advice for
  1. Are all deposits refundable or is it a dealership policy ?
  2. How can I protect myself from being "scammed" by the dealer marking up the price.
  3. Can a dealership turn away people from buying if they are previous Lexus owners?
Scenario Specific: Currently no car
I have not had a car for 1 month (totaled) I realize I need to get my self some wheels as a daily driver. How can I play this situation to my favor i.e save money (lease?) I drive to and from work a rounded total of 25 miles a day.

First Attempt:
Unfortunately, I did not have a positive interaction on my first attempt to put down a deposit. I was told it was non-refundable, which was not a total deal breaker, so I pressed on. The salesman then informed me that he has people waiting since 2022 for a totally different car. It was kind of odd that he would mention this after telling me it's non-refundable, as if that information was meant to convince or comfort me.

We began the "build" process for the car via the Lexus website. I chose the absolute basics; I just wanted Overtrail with Incognito, not that picky on the interior. He informed me that Lexus does not do custom builds. Okay? I wasn't making a custom build? He made sure I was aware that it may come with more accessories or individual options. That's understandable. I don't expect them not to try to make money by "forcing" add-ons that they claim cannot be removed from the vehicle, such as a tow hitch.

"We don't do MSRP markups." That's good, right? Next thing he says: "But we do dealership accessories that start at $9,985." He says that they come standard with all new cars for first-time owners. I am not interested in that, especially since all it was is a special type of paint protection and edge guards.

His attitude and posture to it didnt seem like he was willing to budge so I suspected a "scam" I say that lightly.
 
Last edited:
Not super knowledgeable, last time I did this was with Ford & a great dealership. I’d expect Lexus to far exceed what my experience has been, but it still probably varies. A lot.

1. They should either be refundable if you choose ultimately to not purchase the car, or put towards the purchase price if you do. That could easily vary by dealer however so make sure you have it in writing & get a receipt for any deposit left. Last time I did it, dealer assured me the deposit was refundable and though it wouldn’t ultimately be applied to the purchase price of the car, it would then be refunded. Which didn’t happen. Took a bit of chasing & of course I’d saved my receipt as proof. Not dishonest necessarily, but they don’t always keep good track of their transactions either.

2. Again, last time I did this, I had MSRP agreed upon in writing at time of order, with any discounts (Ford X-Plan for example) to reduce the cost once the vehicle arrived. In Ford land, they don’t know the X-plan price until invoiced for the vehicle. Fair. Again, they were completely honest about it all, but asking ahead of time & having something written down should prevent the dealer from keeping your desirable allocation to sell to somebody who walked in the door & offered $5K over MSRP.

3. Dealer shouldn’t be turning anyone away, but if they’re previous Lexus owners I’d think the dealership must get most of its repeat business that way. There’s probably far more of their customers lease something new every 2-4 years, giving them a steady stream of business. Now if you’re not a previous Lexus owner they should still welcome you as you have the potential to be repeat future business. My dad felt ignored at one 20 years ago & has gone on to buy multiple Acuras since. But a smart dealer wouldn’t turn anyone with the funds or credit away.

Good luck with the purchase! Being in a large city without a car isn’t always feasible, certainly not out west anyways, unless your living & working situation is specifically designed with that goal in mind. A lease might save some on the monthly payment, though I’m always of the notion that buying & holding saves the most money long term (something I haven’t done with my last couple cars). You might save some money waiting for a 25 or going the LandCruiser route since the hybrid option is in the LC & should be in the GX for 25. But though you’re getting by for now it sounds like not having a car wouldn’t really be workable for much longer. A 2nd / fun summer car might get you through & be ultimately a keeper, but then you have the expense ultimately of buying & maintaining 2 cars. I ran an 89 mustang along with my 07 F150 in summer for awhile, but ultimately to buy another one would mean that’s money not spent on my primary car.

Hopefully someone else has more to offer for Lexus, or Toyota at least even, specific advice. Does anyone know, can you get your Lexus serviced at a Toyota dealer? Does it cost any less? I may need to ask that in a thread one day.
 
MandoForSenate said:
I dont have much experience with the process of buying a car let alone making a deposit to be on a waiting list.
I have a few concerns I hope I can get sound advice for
  1. Are all deposits refundable or is it a dealership policy ?
  2. How can I protect myself from being "scammed" by the dealer marking up the price.
  3. Can a dealership turn away people from buying if they are previous Lexus owners?
Scenario Specific: Currently no car
I have not had a car for 1 month (totaled) I realize I need to get my self some wheels as a daily driver. How can I play this situation to my favor i.e save money (lease?) I drive to and from work a rounded total of 25 miles a day.

Open to any questions to clarify budget/goals.
Click to expand...
1. Dealer policy, mine and I think most, have a refundable deposit. Mine took my info Cc info and will only charge when I order. No order, for whatever reason, card is not charged. Its a win-win.

2. Lexus is not going to scam you, your 1k really is not worth their hassle.

3. No, why would they? Never seen a dealer turn down a sale.

Last, your going to spend 70k+ with tax....you know that right?
 
Sixgun95 said:
1. Dealer policy, mine and I think most, have a refundable deposit. Mine took my info Cc info and will only charge when I order. No order, for whatever reason, card is not charged. Its a win-win.

2. Lexus is not going to scam you, your 1k really is not worth their hassle.

3. No, why would they? Never seen a dealer turn down a sale.

Last, your going to spend 70k+ with tax....you know that right?
Click to expand...
Im sorry?

1. My dealer the only one within 150 miles of me has told me to my face was non refundable and the deposit would not be applied to the final sale of the car. So thats why I asked since I didnt know before hand?
2. How can I protect myself from being "scammed" by the dealer marking up the price.
While at the dealership the salesman told me to my face that they don't do MSRP markups but they do dealership accessories at $9,985 that involves Nano paint, Edge protection.
I told the salesman I am not interested in the dealership accessories, in which he claimed all first time owner vehicles and waitlist vehicles require it.
3. I asked this question because I noticed on this forum and other fan pages of people posting and claiming they have been turned away since they have not owned a Lexus before.

I am not sure why you think I wouldn't know the price of a vehicle I intend to buy especially one that isnt even out yet?

Thank you for your well informed peer reviewed educated response.
 
That's not a scam my friend, that's a business decision for the dealer. Same story on the accessories, I would ask they don't do anything, all dealers do this but most will honor your requests. My experience anyway! Good luck.
 
Sixgun95 said:
That's not a scam my friend, that's a business decision for the dealer. Same story on the accessories, I would ask they don't do anything, all dealers do this but most will honor your requests. My experience anyway! Good luck.
Click to expand...
WOW I had no idea.
Thanks for letting me know.
 
I know it happens at a lot of Dealers, not just Lexus. Apparently the Ray and Zach You-Tube guys talk about this extensively. Ray & Zach are trying to bring "transparency" to Dealerships. They are worth watching for their buying tips, negotiation skills, etc...They even show dealers that don't charge above MSRP.
 
Gunner said:
I know it happens at a lot of Dealers, not just Lexus. Apparently the Ray and Zach You-Tube guys talk about this extensively. Ray & Zach are trying to bring "transparency" to Dealerships. They are worth watching for their buying tips, negotiation skills, etc...They even show dealers that don't charge above MSRP.
Click to expand...
 
MandoForSenate said:
I dont have much experience with the process of buying a car let alone making a deposit to be on a waiting list.
I have a few concerns I hope I can get sound advice for
  1. Are all deposits refundable or is it a dealership policy ?
  2. How can I protect myself from being "scammed" by the dealer marking up the price.
  3. Can a dealership turn away people from buying if they are previous Lexus owners?
Scenario Specific: Currently no car
I have not had a car for 1 month (totaled) I realize I need to get my self some wheels as a daily driver. How can I play this situation to my favor i.e save money (lease?) I drive to and from work a rounded total of 25 miles a day.

First Attempt:
Unfortunately, I did not have a positive interaction on my first attempt to put down a deposit. I was told it was non-refundable, which was not a total deal breaker, so I pressed on. The salesman then informed me that he has people waiting since 2022 for a totally different car. It was kind of odd that he would mention this after telling me it's non-refundable, as if that information was meant to convince or comfort me.

We began the "build" process for the car via the Lexus website. I chose the absolute basics; I just wanted Overtrail with Incognito, not that picky on the interior. He informed me that Lexus does not do custom builds. Okay? I wasn't making a custom build? He made sure I was aware that it may come with more accessories or individual options. That's understandable. I don't expect them not to try to make money by "forcing" add-ons that they claim cannot be removed from the vehicle, such as a tow hitch.

"We don't do MSRP markups." That's good, right? Next thing he says: "But we do dealership accessories that start at $9,985." He says that they come standard with all new cars for first-time owners. I am not interested in that, especially since all it was is a special type of paint protection and edge guards.

His attitude and posture to it didnt seem like he was willing to budge so I suspected a "scam" I say that lightly.
Click to expand...
The 'Dealership Accessories' game is pathetic - when he said "they come standard with all new cars for first-time owners." You should respond with 'Oh, so you have prison sex with new customers - but cuddle with 2nd time buyers?"
 
Ok. Here’s the scoop from somebody who bought one. Every dealership I’ve ever dealt with give you the deposit back if you don’t buy a car. The deposit is to get you in line to buy the car. I’m from CA and every dealership I talked to were charging $5000 -$20,000 over MSRP depending on the model and color. Forget about picking accessories because they come “as is” with certain factory and port installed options. Then some dealers add other stuff as “dealer add ons”. Then the markup pricing over MSRP is “market adjustment”. So I searched all over the country and bought the 550 I wanted and paid MSRP +$1200 ( ceramic coating and nitro tire warranty). Paid $2000 to have it shipped 3000 miles in an enclosed truck. The car I bought was Nori green pearl OT+ and everybody in CA who could get one was charging $15,000-$20,000 over MSRP. Got my car 2 weeks ago and am super happy. If you are interested I can give his name and dealership to you.
 
Dr Bob said:
Paid $2000 to have it shipped 3000 miles in an enclosed truck. If you are interested I can give his name and dealership to you.
Click to expand...
I don't mean to hijack the thread but how does such a remote sale work.
You dont get to test drive before you take ownership ? Also whose insurance covers the car when its being shipped to you i.e. does the sale happen before the car starts the journey to you or when it reaches you ?
 
I didn’t test drive
I just purchased with seeing pictures and window sticker. Added it to my insurance which gave me an overlapping time of new car and old boom delivered and drive with the temp plates
 
- my deposit was refundable and applied to final sell. I’d walk if any dealer you deal with says otherwise

- i paid msrp. Seek out a different dealer if they charge a “adjustment” markup over msrp

- it is true there is no custom build; however, you can give them a very specific build, but you may wait a LONG time if you’re not willing to budge on any port installed or factory options

- i had my salesman delete some port installed options BEFORE it got to port, and they simply didn’t put them on when it got off boat from Japan. If they tell you this is not possible, they’re incompetent, lying, or lazy. Im proof it can be done

- $9k in dealer add on’s is ridiculous. I’d tell the dealer if its mandatory, you’ll take your current and all future business to a different dealer. My lexus dealer didn’t force ANY dealer add ons. As a matter of fact, they tinted the front windows for free and gave me contact info to a PPF guy that could do it for cheap if I wanted paint protection film

- it is true lists are long, but i’ve never heard of a dealership stating you must be a prior owner. When i was calling multiple dealers in the tri-state area, some told me that “locals” had dibs before out of towners, but they by no means turned me away
 
luxpow said:
I don't mean to hijack the thread but how does such a remote sale work.
You dont get to test drive before you take ownership ? Also whose insurance covers the car when its being shipped to you i.e. does the sale happen before the car starts the journey to you or when it reaches you ?
Click to expand...
I was able to test drive the vehicle at several local dealerships with them thinking I might buy the car. The remote was great. I told the salesperson the car I wanted and he went on his computer and found the car that was coming in 2 mos. I locked it in with a $10,000 refundable deposit. Then we started the paperwork about 2 weeks prior to the car arriving at the dealer once we had the VIN. When the car arrived and I was making the purchase with the vin # I insured it through AAA before the transport. The transporter also insured it. The sales is completed before transport. Sales tax was paid to CA through the sales contract. I paid the registration and license to them and they use a national service to pay all the fees to CA. Most of the paperwork was done through e sign. Several documents were sent through overnight FEDEX and they would always send me a prepaid label. About 2 weeks prior you need to arrange with a carrier to transport. Most of the top carriers charged about $1500 for open carrier and $2000 for closed carry. Car delivered to right in front of my house. I got my CA plates 2 days ago and they said CA will mail my title in about 60 days. The dealership and salesman I dealt with were very honest, professional and helpful. I could tell they have done this a lot. The dealership is one of the top rated on google. I can give you the name of the dealership and the salesperson if you would like. I am very happy!
 

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Call MARCELLO directly on his cell. He is very experienced in out of state sales. What is your name? I’ll give him a heads up. Tell him Bob from CA sent you. I don’t get any commission or anything. I just really appreciated how he helped me get my car!
 
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