Yesterday afternoon on my day off of work, I received a call from Fremont Toyota telling me that a 2004 Prius (Silver #9) was en route from the Port of L.A. and if I wanted it, I would have to high-tail into the dealership to start the paperwork before it arrived.
I can’t tell you how long I’ve been looking for a Silver, # 9 Prius and although Fremont is a good hour and a half drive, I jumped at the opportunity.
The salesman (I’ll call him Mickey) greeted me with a big smile and a friendly handshake when my wife and I arrived at the dealership. We spoke of the long waiting list for a Prius and that there more buyers than there are Prius but that he hoped this will change because Toyota had increased the amount of Prius’ being produced by 50% for the 2005 models.
I had already given Mickey all of my credit information and he ran it before my wife and I left for the dealership so we knew before-hand that we qualified for financing and Mickey knew how much I was planning on putting down. Under normal circumstances, this is a big no-no due to the fact that you’re giving the dealer more of an advantage when it comes to the price of the vehicle. However, I’ve also learned that MSRP is what you’re going to pay for the Prius due to the high demand of the car so I felt there was no need to hide this information since I was not going to be able to haggle the price down at all.
While his finance officer (I’ll call him Bruce) worked his magic in another room Mickey, myself and my wife discussed how long it would take for the Prius to arrive and in which he estimated by September 2nd or 3rd. Just a few days away!
I was so caught up in the excitement that I didn’t catch on to something Mickey said: He stated that when the car arrives in the dealership, they would have to prep it and get it ready for me and that it would take about 4 to 5 hours because my Prius is having special “two-tone leather seats” being installed when it gets to the dealership. I thought to myself, “cool! Leather seats”. Mickey went on and on about the type of leather seats (coach) and how beautiful they are and how much they will increase the appearance of the Prius and that it’s much better looking than the cloth material being installed by Toyota.
When Bruce was finally ready for us to go over the financing, my wife and I stepped into his office. As he got the paperwork in order for me to sign, I noticed his computer screen where the finance numbers were located, I was shocked to see how much the Prius was going to cost. His computer screen displayed: $29,850!! My eyes widened and my wife’s mouth fell open.
I looked at Bruce and I asked him why it was so high when MSRP is only $26.055 via Toyota’s website. (I knew this due to the many times I used Toyota’s website to build the car I wanted.) Bruce had a look of confusion and asked me if Mickey had gone over the price and I told him no, I assumed it would be MSRP. He called Mickey via the intercom and he arrived shortly to explain that the leather seats being installed are why there is a difference between MSRP and his price.
I said, “Well, don’t install them than we’ll take the Prius as it arrives with the regular seats.” Mickey smiled apologetically and stated that this specific Prius coming in is “scheduled” to have the leather seats installed and assured me that I would love them when I see and feel them. I agreed with Mickey that I was sure I would “love them” however I would prefer my Prius not have the leather due to the big price difference of almost $4,000 and asked that the Prius be unscheduled to have this work done. Mickey stated that he cannot un-schedule the installation of the seats however if I was willing to be placed on the waiting list, he would stop the paperwork on this Prius and contact me once he received a Prius that was not going to have leather seats installed.
I asked, “so you’re telling me that when the Prius arrives, it will have the standard seats in them however you will take these seats out and replace them with coach leather seats?” Mickey nodded. I continued, “But you can’t NOT install these seats because it’s scheduled and you can’t un-schedule it.” Mickey nodded again but this time he added, “and I have a buyer that wants the leather seats.” BINGO. I realized that it’s not that Mickey won’t un-schedule the seat replacement, it’s that he has a buyer for the Prius with the leather installed meaning, if I don’t buy it with the leather, he has someone that will.
I did the math in my head, $3795.00 on top of MSRP, the seats are probably costing him $1000.00 at most, and he pockets the difference. So, on top of the commission he makes on MSRP, he’s getting an extra 3 grand for the leather seats.
I looked at Mickey and I said without blinking, “You know it’s illegal to charge above MSRP in the state of California?” Mickey smiled and he stated he wasn’t’ charging above MSRP, the costs of the leather seats is an addition and it's not considered charging above MSRP.
Mickey had me. He knew it; his finance buddy Wayne knew it too. I could see it in their eyes. I’ve been waiting for months for this car and here it is, just a few short days away but at a price I was not expecting.
I thanked Mickey and Wayne for their time, and my wife and I walked away. I can’t tell you how ticked off we both were. I’ll put it this way, we stopped at a nearby bar and had a drink while we vented about the whole experience before heading home.
So that’s why I’m here in this forum. To find out if this is common practice with other dealers and if other users have experienced the same thing.
I can’t tell you how long I’ve been looking for a Silver, # 9 Prius and although Fremont is a good hour and a half drive, I jumped at the opportunity.
The salesman (I’ll call him Mickey) greeted me with a big smile and a friendly handshake when my wife and I arrived at the dealership. We spoke of the long waiting list for a Prius and that there more buyers than there are Prius but that he hoped this will change because Toyota had increased the amount of Prius’ being produced by 50% for the 2005 models.
I had already given Mickey all of my credit information and he ran it before my wife and I left for the dealership so we knew before-hand that we qualified for financing and Mickey knew how much I was planning on putting down. Under normal circumstances, this is a big no-no due to the fact that you’re giving the dealer more of an advantage when it comes to the price of the vehicle. However, I’ve also learned that MSRP is what you’re going to pay for the Prius due to the high demand of the car so I felt there was no need to hide this information since I was not going to be able to haggle the price down at all.
While his finance officer (I’ll call him Bruce) worked his magic in another room Mickey, myself and my wife discussed how long it would take for the Prius to arrive and in which he estimated by September 2nd or 3rd. Just a few days away!
I was so caught up in the excitement that I didn’t catch on to something Mickey said: He stated that when the car arrives in the dealership, they would have to prep it and get it ready for me and that it would take about 4 to 5 hours because my Prius is having special “two-tone leather seats” being installed when it gets to the dealership. I thought to myself, “cool! Leather seats”. Mickey went on and on about the type of leather seats (coach) and how beautiful they are and how much they will increase the appearance of the Prius and that it’s much better looking than the cloth material being installed by Toyota.
When Bruce was finally ready for us to go over the financing, my wife and I stepped into his office. As he got the paperwork in order for me to sign, I noticed his computer screen where the finance numbers were located, I was shocked to see how much the Prius was going to cost. His computer screen displayed: $29,850!! My eyes widened and my wife’s mouth fell open.
I looked at Bruce and I asked him why it was so high when MSRP is only $26.055 via Toyota’s website. (I knew this due to the many times I used Toyota’s website to build the car I wanted.) Bruce had a look of confusion and asked me if Mickey had gone over the price and I told him no, I assumed it would be MSRP. He called Mickey via the intercom and he arrived shortly to explain that the leather seats being installed are why there is a difference between MSRP and his price.
I said, “Well, don’t install them than we’ll take the Prius as it arrives with the regular seats.” Mickey smiled apologetically and stated that this specific Prius coming in is “scheduled” to have the leather seats installed and assured me that I would love them when I see and feel them. I agreed with Mickey that I was sure I would “love them” however I would prefer my Prius not have the leather due to the big price difference of almost $4,000 and asked that the Prius be unscheduled to have this work done. Mickey stated that he cannot un-schedule the installation of the seats however if I was willing to be placed on the waiting list, he would stop the paperwork on this Prius and contact me once he received a Prius that was not going to have leather seats installed.
I asked, “so you’re telling me that when the Prius arrives, it will have the standard seats in them however you will take these seats out and replace them with coach leather seats?” Mickey nodded. I continued, “But you can’t NOT install these seats because it’s scheduled and you can’t un-schedule it.” Mickey nodded again but this time he added, “and I have a buyer that wants the leather seats.” BINGO. I realized that it’s not that Mickey won’t un-schedule the seat replacement, it’s that he has a buyer for the Prius with the leather installed meaning, if I don’t buy it with the leather, he has someone that will.
I did the math in my head, $3795.00 on top of MSRP, the seats are probably costing him $1000.00 at most, and he pockets the difference. So, on top of the commission he makes on MSRP, he’s getting an extra 3 grand for the leather seats.
I looked at Mickey and I said without blinking, “You know it’s illegal to charge above MSRP in the state of California?” Mickey smiled and he stated he wasn’t’ charging above MSRP, the costs of the leather seats is an addition and it's not considered charging above MSRP.
Mickey had me. He knew it; his finance buddy Wayne knew it too. I could see it in their eyes. I’ve been waiting for months for this car and here it is, just a few short days away but at a price I was not expecting.
I thanked Mickey and Wayne for their time, and my wife and I walked away. I can’t tell you how ticked off we both were. I’ll put it this way, we stopped at a nearby bar and had a drink while we vented about the whole experience before heading home.
So that’s why I’m here in this forum. To find out if this is common practice with other dealers and if other users have experienced the same thing.
