Hey Moo, I'm not going into a half empty/half full sort of thing with you, I'll just say the container is about twice as big as it needs to be. Yes, Toyota does like to get information about what will sell. Do Asian manufacturers in general, as recognized by automotive writers of natonal standing, build it and tell America it is what we want? Yes, according to some sources (Consumers Reports included)
It is easy to sit at the edge of the circle of light cast by the fire and find examples of where SOMEWHAT general but within normal usage comments may have exceptions.
With a lot more specificity: Do you think or have evidence that so called orders are more than stated preferences to your local dealer? There can be a hard contract written and real $ put down but so what? That is just putting window dressing on a statement of preferrence which is not connected directly to the manufacture of a vehicle for you. Try to get a dealer to promise color and package by any particular date.
Of course, if Toyota is anywhere as good as we like to think they are, they will OF COURSE collect preferrence information to be folded back into the build process to be able to make cars for distribution through allocation more likely, in the aggregate, to fit what is being asked for. This is a macrocosmic feedback to improve the "fit" of what is built to what is being requested, again, IN THE AGGREGATE. Statistically, over time, it increases the odds of folks getting something closer to what they want. On a case by case basis as regards any specific buyer wanting a specific color and package, especially early in this ramp up phase, no real effect is noticed as regards what you ask for and what is built. They are not building to order!
I'm not saying that this is bad or wrong, just the way it is, and they have good reasons for doing it. There might be less frustratiion on the part of potential owners if they really understood this and divested themselves of the idea that they or the dealer were actually ordering a car for them in the sense of what that has historically meant. Your pref is a statement of conditions that if filled will likely result in your buying a car. That is a handy thing for the dealer to know, however, given the cycle time for the "macrofeedback" loop to take effect, it will not influence the outcome of your particular transaction.
Are yo old enough to remember Col Sanders and the "We have a constant frying schedule", ads? They did not cook to order, they just cooked according to a statistical analysis that showed them aggregate demand vs time of day, day of week, season, etc. If you wanted something not precooked you were out of luck or in for a long wait Of course fast food has reduced this practice due to food poisoning suits.
Hold the pickles, hold the letuce, special orders don't upset us? Toyota deviated widely from the fast food analogy here, they don't have special orders for Prius, they don't really have orders at all for the Prius.
Maybe we should be comforted that in the aggrgate we are drawing closer to what we want as a group although individually we may not.
Me, I'm just trying to buy what I want, specifically.
This distrubution scheme works well for both supplier and customer when there is enough of each variation available but really sucks from the consumer side if your bin is empty and your second and third choise bins are empty. Eventyually, hopefully faster than the advance and withdrawal of glaciers, production will catch up and pref feedback will have taken effect and all the bins will be filled according to demand. In the meantime all you 44 regulars should be happy to accept either a 48 long or a xxs short as there are plenty of those. Color, yes they come with colored paint, We have lots of Dayglo Orange but better to have that than not have a hot mover like the Prius. I mean... Beautiful plumage the Norweigan Blue, eh, squire?
Pat
