Does an ordered vehicle still count against a dealer's allocation? With all the talk about many dealers not accepting X-Plan, I wonder if special ordering a vehicle will give me a better chance at a dealer accepting the X-Plan. The dealer I purchased my F150 from last year said that he doesn't think the dealership will accept X-Plan on the GT because it is in such high demand.

 

Ordered vehicles come out of rht same allocation pool as the rest of the vehicles. The only difference is how a dealer prioritizes his orders. RTetail orders usually get a lower priority number which is actually a higher priority.

 

We ordered our 05 GT convertible on March 5th. In Mid April our Salesperson told us in early April that we may not get an 05 and instead it may be an 06. We got a phone call on April 28th from the dealership. They stated that they had more orders then the amount of their allocation. We missed getting an 05 by 5 orders. They said we would be 5th on the list of an 06 but no dates for when we would get the car - probably September or October. We kept the order on the list. I checked with a few dealerships in Michigan and there were none around. Finally I looked on line and saw one 2 1/2 hrs away. I called and it was gone. The salesperson looked on their system and found one in Indiana. I called and it was available!!! It was the exact color we ordered - red fire metallic and a gt premium. The only differences were the parchment instead of charcol and it didnt have the iup. We bought it over the phone right then and there. Picked it up Saturday. It was worth the 3 hour drive (one way). The car is awesome. We couldn't get the xplan as we were going to at the dealership we ordered (supposidly). But I think that is why they screwed us. They can sell them at retail so most dealerships are not accepting any discounts. Its well worth paying retail. I will post pictures later in the week. Good luck with everyone getting theirs.

 

This same dealership accepted X-plan when I ordered an '04 F150, but may not accept it for the GT. I guess it all boils down to supply and demand.

I've already told him if he doesn't accept X-Plan, I'll be checking all the other dealerships in VA and NC until I find one that does. So, if he wants to lose any commission at all on the sale....

I know, this isn't much leverage, especially if Ford drops the ball again for '06 and doesn't make enough GTs to satisfy demand. I sure hope that Ford makes enough GTs in '06!

 

What's to stop dealers from refusing to order GTs altogether, unless someone is willing to pay some markup over MSRP? That appears to be what's happening here in New England. My dealer already told me that he is only allocated 2 GT convertibles for 2006, and one is already taken by a 2005 order that didnt get fulfilled...How can a dealer increase his allocation, if he isn't given the cars to sell in the first place? And even if he could order more, what incentive does he have to do so, if he can charge 20% more for each car if he orders less of them to keep the supply down?

You know, a few years ago, Ford tried to open up their own dealerships in some parts of the country and the dealer's associations in those states lobbied their legislatures hard to prevent it from happening...I can see why now...

 

Free market - it's great if you can play it right.
It seems like allocation is based on some secret equation utilizing bureacratic processes and political weighting with associated rituals.

Are there any macroeconomic wizards out there that can explain supply and demand specific to the market for Mustangs? Seems to me that the optimal supply level just lags demand by three to eight weeks of orders, even when accounting for lost sales from order fulfillment delay. The pent up demand is sustained by the perceived value (it must be a good deal because people have to wait to buy one).

The fact that it is left to the dealers discretion whether they accept A/X/Z plans is tough to accept. We should be afforded consistent expectations as loyal customers.

 

Fix is to take some time to research and call other dealers.

You can drive a few hundred miles if it means getting a GT sooner right.

Hopefully it will work for me to get an 05