Cancelled dealer orders

[melvimbe]

Saw this mentioned in a sales thread, but didn't want to derail the thread with my stupid question that had nothing to do with the specific sale.

NEW RAPTOR FOR STICKER? Details inside...

Orders for the Gen 3 officially open up June 10th. Anyone who's ordered one before then has a dealer holding their order so they can put it in on 6/10. Some dealers are even 'selling' trucks without the allocation, or over-selling their allocation. Ford doesn't care, Ford just sells trucks...

www.fordraptorforum.com

--There will be a $1000 deposit paid to the dealer NON REFUNDABLE. When they order YOU a truck YOU get a VIN assigned to you. If anyone tells you they've ordered a truck already and they don't have a VIN, they're full of it. That's how Ford does it. You will know you VIN once the order is processed. Your deposit will be taken. Your truck will arrive whenever Ford sends it. The deposit is because if you back out for ANY reason, Ford penalizes the ordering dealer. Yes they can finance and yes they'll take trades.

The bold part is what I wanted to discuss. It's reasonable to me for a dealer to want a deposit, whatever the market allows. I'm just surprised that a dealer would cancel the order, rather than just let the order continue and sell it on the lot. Unless, you the order was some weird combination no one in their right mind would want, you'll surely be able to sell it, perhaps even for more than the original deal.

Or is the case where the dealer wants to maximize their allocations for customers who special order for relationship sake, and thus would rather cancel and fulfill the waiting list rather than put it on the open market.

 

[Chainsaw]

Unless, you the order was some weird combination no one in their right mind would want,

Yeah I can see that, like if someone picked a combination of orange stitching with an all-blue interior for their order.

Oh wait...

 

[NHDude4]

Reality is that a dealer will sell as many as they stock. Doesn't mean they won't hold on to your deposit anyway if you back out. I'm pretty sure in most cases if you make enough of a stink you'll get it back, but their point is that they ordered the truck and it's easier to sell it to the person who spec'd it. They don't want it sitting on the lot for 1-6 weeks waiting for someone to want the spec you ordered. Especially true with trucks that aren't completely loaded, because almost no one wants them.

 

[SilverBolt]

You do not get a VIN at the time of order. The VIN comes much later after your truck has been scheduled. Most dealers want a deposit. They typically range from $500 to whatever they want. The deposit is 100% up to the dealer. Ford has nothing to do with that. Ford builds trucks, dealer sell them. Ford's customers are the dealers. The dealer's customers are you and I.