Ask a Ford salesman anything (Incentives, Inventory, etc)

[imccrea]

Originally Posted by NowIknow

Hello everyone. Thanks for having this thread, it’s been very informative.

This weekend we bought my wife a 2012 White Platinum Titanium w/ Nav and Handling package on x-plan pricing (which I found out about here) and I thought I had all my ducks in a row but I forgot about the warranty portion of the sale. Normally I never buy warranties but this car has so much in the way of electronics that I just wanted to be safe, plus my wife would feel a lot better about it. I don’t mind so much but I feel like I got ripped off by the finance guy because I hadn’t done my homework beforehand. So, I just want to know if I paid way too much and what I can do about it.

Here’s what I got: PremiumCARE extended warranty w/$50 deductible (not $100 standard deductible), no rental options, 72 months/100,000 miles for $2600. Also, Premium Maintenance Plan w/ 5000 mile intervals (not standard 7500), 72 months/ 100,000 miles for $1995. We live in Southern California, BTW.

I know I have 30 days to cancel for $75 fee each, then prorated after that. I have called a few dealerships around and been quoted $1550, $2090, or $2400 for the same extended warranty. The guy who quoted me $1550 told me that their cost was $1250. Online a Ford dealer quoted $880, but that seems too low like maybe it wouldn’t be a Ford plan.

For the Maintenance plan I was quoted prices of $1865, $1935, and $2065 (w/$500 discount if I bought both maintenance and warranty for this dealer). However, I’m thinking I don’t need service at 5k if Ford recommends 7500 miles, which drops the quotes by $330 each.

Can you tell me what would be a fair price for these plans? I don’t mind the dealer making a profit, just hate to be taken advantage of.

First off you selected the right warranty, buying any other warranty besides premiumCare is a waste of money IMO.

Now according to the Ford warranty website than anyone can access:
7/100 for a Focus in California with $50 ded. is $1,359 before discounts if you get any promo codes. Most dealers mark up about 50% on warranties because it's difficult for customers to get their pricing. If I were you I would cancel and go to http://fordwarrantys.com. You can actually get a 7 year 125k warranty with $0 ded. for $2,289.

As for the maintenance, same can be said. I would see if there are better deals. As for if you should buy them, with MFT I say get the warranty. The maintenance can be passed on imo.

[cappa]

Originally Posted by imccrea

Cappa-
Sounds like a sweet car, based on what I'm seeing it has an MSRP of around $27,235 and an invoice of $25,523. I think you could have done a little better, at least under $26,000 but as some have found here dealers will not negotiate off of MSRP in Cali.

What's crazy is that they actually were trying to sell me the car for $27,333 and trying to justify it somehow which was ridiculous.... I am essentially only going to be paying $26,300 though as I did not want the Navigation but my parents offered to get it for me as a birthday gift.

[Shorty Long]

Can anyone else confirm what was posted in another thread...that a "stop shipment" has been placed on the 2012s at the assembly plant?

Poster said his dealer told him this.

[Ohuigin]

Originally Posted by imccrea

Cappa-
Sounds like a sweet car, based on what I'm seeing it has an MSRP of around $27,235 and an invoice of $25,523. I think you could have done a little better, at least under $26,000 but as some have found here dealers will not negotiate off of MSRP in Cali.

Totally true. I've talked to a dozen dealerships over the past few months, and only 1 (Galpin Ford) went under MSRP for me, and not by all that much either. Before I got the $500 from the financing rebate, and the $750 from private cash, the most I was able to squeeze out of them was $900 under MSRP, and the only reason I even got that, is because Galpin is the #1 volume dealership in the world. They have 12 pages of incoming 2012 Foci on their online inventory. None of the dealerships in the Autonation (Power Valencia, or Power Tustin) would budge off of MSRP. Neither would a dealership in Fullerton, Santa Monica, Torrance, or Long Beach. In fact, dealerships in Long Beach already started adding premiums on these, and I don't think they'll be the only ones to do it.

I guess it's all about the regional markets.

-B

[NowIknow]

Originally Posted by imccrea

First off you selected the right warranty, buying any other warranty besides premiumCare is a waste of money IMO.

Now according to the Ford warranty website than anyone can access:
7/100 for a Focus in California with $50 ded. is $1,359 before discounts if you get any promo codes. Most dealers mark up about 50% on warranties because it's difficult for customers to get their pricing. If I were you I would cancel and go to http://fordwarrantys.com. You can actually get a 7 year 125k warranty with $0 ded. for $2,289.

As for the maintenance, same can be said. I would see if there are better deals. As for if you should buy them, with MFT I say get the warranty. The maintenance can be passed on imo.

Yeah the PremiumCare does cover all the electronics (it pretty much covers everything) which is what I'm most concerned about. The engine was also a concern since this is a new model. I know Focus reliability has been pretty good the past few years but this is a completely new car as far as I can tell so I want to make sure I'm covered. I believe you're right about the maintenance plan, I will cancel it.

BTW, the link you gave is actually to a specific dealership, Lombard Ford in Connecticut. There are other dealers that sell on-line as well and they all seem to offer way better deals than what I got.

Advice to anyone else if you plan to buy extended/repair warranties with your new car: shop around beforehand with other dealers or internet, then you can really have numbers to deal with. Or, if they won't give you a good price you can always buy afterwords, even years later, though it seems preferable to buy within the first year or at least while it's still under the original warranty. Also, you then can't add the warranty to the financing, it's cash price.

Anyway, hope someone else can learn from my mistakes.

[Ohuigin]

immcrea got another question for you sir!

Figured out (with the help of this forum) that my car has not been built yet. I learned this a week after my dealership told me that at maximum, the car would be delivered to me two weeks from now. I know this now, not to be true. My $1,250 worth of rebates will be expired as of June 4, which I'm sure will roll around before my car does. I went into the dealership, made a deal that included these rebates, and put down a $500 deposit on the car. My question is, does my $500 deposit just reserve first right refusal, or does it also lock me into the deal I made? I sure hope that they'll honor the rebates, because I made the deal based on the information that he gave me (car 3 weeks out at most), and have subsequently stopped pursuing any other Focus.

Thanks!

-B

[imccrea]

Ohuigin-
At our dealership it locks you into the deal you made, just doesn't guarantee trade-in or finance rate if applicable.

If I were you go in June 4th, if they have a VIN number you can contract with your rebates that way you don't lose your rebates. To be honest they will probably not give you the rebate if you contract after the 4th. It's your rebate not the dealerships and they cannot give you a rebate that you don't qualify for.

However, if you do have in writing they will guarantee rebates then you have that to fall back on if and when they decide to say you don't qualify.

Originally Posted by Ohuigin

immcrea got another question for you sir!

Figured out (with the help of this forum) that my car has not been built yet. I learned this a week after my dealership told me that at maximum, the car would be delivered to me two weeks from now. I know this now, not to be true. My $1,250 worth of rebates will be expired as of June 4, which I'm sure will roll around before my car does. I went into the dealership, made a deal that included these rebates, and put down a $500 deposit on the car. My question is, does my $500 deposit just reserve first right refusal, or does it also lock me into the deal I made? I sure hope that they'll honor the rebates, because I made the deal based on the information that he gave me (car 3 weeks out at most), and have subsequently stopped pursuing any other Focus.

Thanks!

-B

[cappa]

Originally Posted by Ohuigin

immcrea got another question for you sir!

Figured out (with the help of this forum) that my car has not been built yet. I learned this a week after my dealership told me that at maximum, the car would be delivered to me two weeks from now. I know this now, not to be true. My $1,250 worth of rebates will be expired as of June 4, which I'm sure will roll around before my car does. I went into the dealership, made a deal that included these rebates, and put down a $500 deposit on the car. My question is, does my $500 deposit just reserve first right refusal, or does it also lock me into the deal I made? I sure hope that they'll honor the rebates, because I made the deal based on the information that he gave me (car 3 weeks out at most), and have subsequently stopped pursuing any other Focus.

Thanks!

-B

Unless you signed a contract that says the 500 deposit is not refundable due to lateness(which the one I signed does) then it should defnitely be refundable

[BabyDavid]

Dear imccrea,
we're weighing different financing options. If we finance through Ford we'll get that $500 rebate. Is it true that we can take that money and then 3 months later refinance the loan - if we find better rates elsewhere?
Thankyou.

[imccrea]

Originally Posted by BabyDavid

Dear imccrea,
we're weighing different financing options. If we finance through Ford we'll get that $500 rebate. Is it true that we can take that money and then 3 months later refinance the loan - if we find better rates elsewhere?
Thankyou.

That is correct.