topgun

Not sure if this has been discussed but I had an allocation question. If a small dealer is having trouble getting a car allocated this year because of last year's sales, how will he get any cars next year since he didn't have any to sell this year?

This whole ordering and allocation process is in dire need of a reworking. I can understand rewarding the higher volume dealers somehow but to leave the little guy with sold orders out of the loop is just not right. Ford needs to come up with some sort of blended allocation plan which takes into account sold orders vs ones for dealer stock.

wifewantedaGT

I was wondering the exact same thing. BTW.......Way cool avatar.

TexasMom05

We ordered a GT Convertible from a extremely small dealership in a small town end of Feb and it came in the middle of April. I know he also sold at least 2 GT Coupes, one in January (it was ordered) and one in March, only one he had on lot. I hope they still let the small guys have them....this man was great to work with and very fair.

NolanzDad

yeah, it's because you're in Texas, try getting any up here in New England.

moc1976

Ding Ding, we have a winner. Ford's allocation process is quite flawed. Of course, you're going to get a bunch of people here saying that there's nothing wrong with it, and that Ford has to have some type of process. I just think that retail orders for CUSTOMERS should be filled before dealer stock, regardless of the size of the dealership. Maybe some day, Ford will understand the importance of customer service

WISCWBGT

I've learned a bit about allocations - ordering a Mustang from a small dealer may hose you out of getting your car. They are stuck in a 'catch-22', no allocations and no real way to build them.
I also found out that the big guys aren't willing to give up their allocations either - I was told by a sales manager at a large dealer that he wasn't gonna let some small dealer who sold a couple of Mustangs last year cut into his allocations. He said he sold 100 Mustangs a year and he was using his 'clout' as much has he could to hang on to allocations.

Why Ford uses this system is beyond my understanding- I wanted to do business locally, but to get a car, I need to go to some big dealer where I'm just another schmoe.

Guess this is like Wal-Mart vs. the main street department store- they squeeze out the small guy to build their business. And Ford encourages this.

Brad

Scarpi

Too bad Ford doesn't care about the most important thing. MAKING THEIR CUSTOMERS HAPPY. They can do this by building all the orders first, in the order they received them no matter if they were ordered at a small dealer or a large dealer.Then building dealer cars for their lots. Isn't customer satisfaction the most important thing? What Ford needs is some good competition for the Mustang. Good competition gives us better cars and better customer relations. I think I won't get my car because of dealer allocation. When I asked my dealer about their allocation they basically told me it is political. What the heck does that mean?. Instead of a great fun experience of getting my first Mustang even though I'm old enough to remember the first ones, this has turned onto a sour experience that I think stinks. But unfortunately there is no other "American" sport muscle car you can buy now in the price range of the Mustang.

mmoonshot

Ding Ding, we have a winner. Ford's allocation process is quite flawed. Of course, you're going to get a bunch of people here saying that there's nothing wrong with it, and that Ford has to have some type of process. I just think that retail orders for CUSTOMERS should be filled before dealer stock, regardless of the size of the dealership. Maybe some day, Ford will understand the importance of customer service
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Flawed, you are being to easy on them, I am sick of the excuses, retail orders should come first for sure !

mmoonshot

Couldn,t of said it any better myself, I agree totally Don, I personally think GM is going to have something in the mix soon, very soon.

I will not forget the crappy experience with Ford you can bet on that !

Rondosa

tell me about it. :bang:


here i am, pateintly waiting for my SOLD car to be built, meanwhile Ford allows some dealers near me to order 20-30+ cars for their LOT!


edit: i just discovered that Summit Ford near my house has SIXTY TWO 05 mustangs on their lot. siiiiixty two. rarrrr




i dunno if it's just me, but i don't get it.

mmoonshot

Me either, and the worst part is those smaller dealerships are not filled with land sharks looking at you like a wounded fish waiting to take a bite, they have you over a barrel and they know it, the smaller dealers represent the customer much better in general.

Its a total shame, customer orders first FORD !

holderca1

Ding Ding, we have a winner. Ford's allocation process is quite flawed. Of course, you're going to get a bunch of people here saying that there's nothing wrong with it, and that Ford has to have some type of process. I just think that retail orders for CUSTOMERS should be filled before dealer stock, regardless of the size of the dealership. Maybe some day, Ford will understand the importance of customer service
[/b][/quote]
Only problem is that dealerships would put there stock orders in as retail orders.

TomServo92

I don't think the allocation system is particular to Ford. It's just so much more in the forefront due to the popularity of the '05. Back in when the Acura TSX first came out, I talked to my local Acura dealer about them. I was told that they were only allocated two per month and that they had a waiting list to get one. If I wanted one it would probably be about a 6 month wait. Sound familiar?

Stang_123

Granted this debate is purely academic, but we as customers should be able to log into Ford's site and order a car, at some fixed price, and that car be shipped to are nearest dealer for us to pick up. Like ordering a large item from Sears.

Granted you would probably be stuck paying MSRP but at least you could get the car in your area and not pay over MSRP.

TomServo92

[/b][/quote]

Wasn't something like this tried already? It seems like there were some type of legal issues that killed it. Anybody remember? :scratch:

TomServo92

Check this thread out:

http://www.300cforums.com/forums/showthrea...ight=allocation

Sounds eerily familiar doesn't it?

holderca1

What you have to understand though is once a car is shipped to a dealership, Ford has already sold it, the dealer owns it now, so whether it's ordered by a customer or for dealer stock, Ford gets the same amount of money, and they get it when they ship them out the door. Last time I checked, Ford had no problem selling Mustangs, so if they sell every one that they make, then they are completely satisfied and may try to increase production the next year to increase profits. I know some of you have been waiting a long time for a car and in turn blame Ford and say how do they expect to take sales away from the competition. Well, quite frankly they are, if they meet or exceed their goal for cars sold, then they are happy, even if there weren't enough cars to go around to satisfy everyone. Then on the other hand, you have the Pontiac GTO, which has fallen well below the numbers that GM projected and thus, the car was a partial loss for them. Bottom line though is, if you have the patience to wait it out, you will have no problem getting the exact car that you want, it may be a year or so down the road, but just think of it this way, longer time to save up for a down payment or pay off some other bills you need to get paid off. This isn't something unique to Ford, most car companies not named GM (with the exception of the C6) have this "pleasant problem" when they launch a new body style or car.

Stadifer

I sense an angry Grantsdale looming about.

stoic21

Yeah, many companies have long waits for cars, even crappy ones.

moc1976

Only problem is that dealerships would put there stock orders in as retail orders.
[/b][/quote]

Yes, if they stuck with the current system. With the technology available today there are certainly ways to insure that a retail order is, in fact a retail order, and not a dealer stock order.