Word of Warning for the Charlotte, NC Area

[TomD]

I ordered a new XLT Maverick back in February through Capital Ford of Charlotte. They agreed on doing X-Plan. Five months later, the truck was delivered. I requested the final price to get a check cut which listed a $800 document fee. Then a back and forth email thread ensued as they would not budge. The guy just kept saying that everyone pays the fee (said he even paid the fee using D plan...). I even contacted the support line for X-Plan (who offered to clarify for the dealer) to triple check. The dealer refused (the discussion was with the sales manager) saying they "checked with the owner and corporate lawyers" and then flipped to "we don't have to accept X-Plan at all." (which is true). So, now I'm stuck having wasted 5 months waiting for this truck to come in just to start back over. During this escapade, my dad ordered a Maverick through another dealer that's about 45 minutes from me a month after I did using X-Plan with $150 dealer fee and got the truck a month earlier than my order came in. I'm sure that's in part because of options (he picked up a Lariat).

I remember when it used to be fun buying a new vehicle. The anticipation of what will the new models look like etc. Now I would rather go to the dentist than go to a car dealership.

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[Tiger Dude]

Everybody pays a document fee. They aren't ever going to give that up.

 

[uga]

Nope! There are some dealers that have NO doc fees !

 

[Bill K]

Those of us planning on ordering a Maverick need to seek out the ford dealers who don’t charge a doc fee. They are out there! My doc fee=$0.

 

[Edge Haley]

Everybody pays a document fee. They aren't ever going to give that up.

I paid no documentation fees...a month before delivery I emailed dealer that I would do tag, title transfer, and all my own paperwork and taxes and paid Zero documentation fees and needed the exact amount for me to pickup the Maverick. I showed up with a pre-printed check for the exact amount I was quoted. Tag and Title transfer took 10 minutes at the DMV.

My next Maverick will be bought from the same dealer - Horstrom Ford in Pennsylvania, not that far from North Carolina.

If a dealer would not provide a signed contract price, even with no deposit I'd walk to another dealer.

 

[KevCuRaoi]

I'm honestly not sure what the deal is. I find it hard to believe that they are hurting for sales bad enough to make a big deal out of $650. I don't think I would've had such a negative response if it wasn't for the sales manager being so hostile and belligerent about it. He didn't for once think about entertaining a discussion on it.

When I asked about the $800 doc fee, his initial response was:


So, I sent over a screenshot of the X-Plan agreement that shows that they cannot charge an admin fee. He responds with copying half of a sentence from the agreement:



and saying that they "have" to charge all customers the same amount. The problem is that the full section is:



In NC, the law is that any dealer fees are at the discretion of the dealer per sale. Meaning the sentence he quoted isn't even applicable. I replied to his email showing this and providing a link to the NC law. I'd also called the hotline to make sure I wasn't missing something and they confirmed that I was right and offered to talk to the dealer about it if someone would just call.

30 minutes later, the guy calls me and is immediately scrambling to excuse why I had to pay the fee. He tried to tell me it said that everyone has to pay the same amount again. I refuted restating the line from the agreement. Then he says that my last email made his point because of the "dealer discretion" part....except that was from the state law and not the X-Plan agreement. That's when he flipped to "I don't even have to offer X-Plan." At that point, my mind was made up that I wasn't folding and told him I'd just order through another dealer and hung up.

The part of the matter that bothers me the most...this truck is for my kid and his spoiled arse. Long story short, he lives with his mom about 2 hours away so I wanted to put him in something that I wouldn't have to worry about breakdowns. The plan is to get him the truck and pickup the ESP and maintenance plans from Zeigler. I ordered in February with his birthday being in September so it'd get here ahead of time...now it'll likely be a few months after.

They might not be actually submitting these as X-plans..... if they aren't claiming the "x-plan commission", but just selling at that price, they may be getting around Ford's rules about the X-plan. The x-plan profit is so small on Maverick, that they probably make more money that way.

I work at a Ford dealer. I agree that your interpretation of Ford's rules is correct.

But FYI to everyone, Ford did adjust the allowable doc free for plan pricing in January 2024:
Beginning in 2024, the doc fee allowance for all AXZD Plan sales will be increased to $150, unless dictated by state franchise laws in a particular state. Previously, Dealers could charge a maximum doc fee of $100 for X/D Plan sales, and $75 for A/Z Plan sales, unless dictated by state franchise laws in a particular state.

 

[new to maverick]

Around here in metro Detroit, plenty of dealer stock, I’d think dealerships would be willing to sell at x plan with the established doc fee

 

[jbrown9889]

Go to Tindol ford in Gastonia NC, they have one 2.0 Ecoboost maverick hot pepper red XL just become available for sale to everyone went it. Because of customer order it doesn’t went it. And also they have some stock on coming in soon XLT, go in see Nathan Hanley
They also have shadow black hybrid XL
They just Sold it… sorry about it..
They still have the red one

look be low
https://www.tindolford.com/new-Gastonia-2024-Ford-Maverick-XL-3FTTW8A98RRA95265

 

[Boosted]

The simple answer is that others should be forewarned before placing Retail orders with this dealership. It's not about what the OP should or should not do. It's about reasonable expectations, and the terms of the Ford X-plan are pretty straightforward. This dealership chose to charge a fee in violation of these terms. Thus, others should be forewarned when dealing with this dealership to avoid encountering a similar problem.

At no time is anyone saying, "Don't buy from them." The idea is to flag dealerships where the Retail ordering process didn't go as expected or agreed upon. As a result, people are better prepared when placing orders with this or any other dealership on the list flagged with a warning.

There are several dealerships on the list with both recommendations and warnings.

I found this club “after “ buying my Maverick and some useful info and interesting build upgrades etc, this list seems to be the first thing thrown out there when someone doesn’t negotiate their deal prior to ordering and making a purchase. I find the list useless as a person can look at several review platforms out there before deciding who to buy from. The list came up after I bought a Maverick and joined the club but I didn’t need it because I did my own research…. People should always DYOR. Good luck and have fun with your list

 

[prsncat]

I found this club “after “ buying my Maverick and some useful info and interesting build upgrades etc, this list seems to be the first thing thrown out there when someone doesn’t negotiate their deal prior to ordering and making a purchase. I find the list useless as a person can look at several review platforms out there before deciding who to buy from. The list came up after I bought a Maverick and joined the club but I didn’t need it because I did my own research…. People should always DYOR. Good luck and have fun with your list

It seems to me that you made my argument for me. You found the list after your purchase instead of doing your own research, finding the list, and using it before making your purchase.

I have received numerous direct messages from people who used the list to help them find dealers with allocations to fulfill their orders. The goal was to provide an additional resource for people when beginning their Retail order journey.

Tim Bartz's (Long McArthur Ford in Salina, Kansas) YouTube channel was the best information I discovered. I started as a subscriber and quickly became a member. His videos have helped countless folks like me.

In conclusion, we are all on the forum for various reasons. The list is one small way I thought I could give back to this club.

 

[jbrown9889]

Go to Tindol ford in Gastonia NC, they have one 2.0 Ecoboost maverick hot pepper red XL just become available for sale to everyone went it. Because of customer order it doesn’t went it. And also they have some stock on coming in soon XLT, go in see Nathan Hanley
They also have shadow black hybrid XL also, but I don’t know if it’s available to buy or not, don’t hurt to find out link below for it to
https://www.tindolford.com/new-Gastonia-2024-Ford-Maverick-XL-3FTTW8A37RRA93745

look be low
https://www.tindolford.com/new-Gastonia-2024-Ford-Maverick-XL-3FTTW8A98RRA95265

They sold the black one sorry for the inconvenience, they still have the red one

 

[dlhort1955]

I'm honestly not sure what the deal is. I find it hard to believe that they are hurting for sales bad enough to make a big deal out of $650. I don't think I would've had such a negative response if it wasn't for the sales manager being so hostile and belligerent about it. He didn't for once think about entertaining a discussion on it.

When I asked about the $800 doc fee, his initial response was:


So, I sent over a screenshot of the X-Plan agreement that shows that they cannot charge an admin fee. He responds with copying half of a sentence from the agreement:



and saying that they "have" to charge all customers the same amount. The problem is that the full section is:



In NC, the law is that any dealer fees are at the discretion of the dealer per sale. Meaning the sentence he quoted isn't even applicable. I replied to his email showing this and providing a link to the NC law. I'd also called the hotline to make sure I wasn't missing something and they confirmed that I was right and offered to talk to the dealer about it if someone would just call.

30 minutes later, the guy calls me and is immediately scrambling to excuse why I had to pay the fee. He tried to tell me it said that everyone has to pay the same amount again. I refuted restating the line from the agreement. Then he says that my last email made his point because of the "dealer discretion" part....except that was from the state law and not the X-Plan agreement. That's when he flipped to "I don't even have to offer X-Plan." At that point, my mind was made up that I wasn't folding and told him I'd just order through another dealer and hung up.

The part of the matter that bothers me the most...this truck is for my kid and his spoiled arse. Long story short, he lives with his mom about 2 hours away so I wanted to put him in something that I wouldn't have to worry about breakdowns. The plan is to get him the truck and pickup the ESP and maintenance plans from Zeigler. I ordered in February with his birthday being in September so it'd get here ahead of time...now it'll likely be a few months after.

Why don't you just check out what XLT's other dealers have and purchase something in stock? Save you a lot of hassle.

I would also call another dealer and ask them for the phone number for the Regional Office. IF they ask, tell them another dealer treated you poorly. No dealer ever wants to have a complaint filed at a regional office.

 

[Boosted]

I found this club “after “ buying my Maverick and some useful info and interesting build upgrades etc, this list seems to be the first thing thrown out there when someone doesn’t negotiate their deal prior to ordering and making a purchase. I find the list useless as a person can look at several review platforms out there before deciding who to buy from. The list came up after I bought a Maverick and joined the club but I didn’t need it because I did my own research…. People should always DYOR. Good luck and have fun with your list

Actually not true, your post/spreadsheet did not show up when I Google searched Ford Dealership Reviews near me nor does it today. I found LM Ford on YouTube a few months after purchase (around same time as MTC) really enjoy their podcasts and I recall a mention of the list so I’ll give you that. Anyways, you will not be able to compete with the likes of DealerRater, Cars.com Autotrader consumer reports Google reviews and so on as they pay big bucks for SEO and managing AdWords.

 

[Ponyprez]

I ordered a new XLT Maverick back in February through Capital Ford of Charlotte. They agreed on doing X-Plan. Five months later, the truck was delivered. I requested the final price to get a check cut which listed a $800 document fee. Then a back and forth email thread ensued as they would not budge. The guy just kept saying that everyone pays the fee (said he even paid the fee using D plan...). I even contacted the support line for X-Plan (who offered to clarify for the dealer) to triple check. The dealer refused (the discussion was with the sales manager) saying they "checked with the owner and corporate lawyers" and then flipped to "we don't have to accept X-Plan at all." (which is true). So, now I'm stuck having wasted 5 months waiting for this truck to come in just to start back over. During this escapade, my dad ordered a Maverick through another dealer that's about 45 minutes from me a month after I did using X-Plan with $150 dealer fee and got the truck a month earlier than my order came in. I'm sure that's in part because of options (he picked up a Lariat).

They only marked yours up 800, what a deal. I'm being sarcastic of course. I ordered my 23 Lariat Lux package in 22 and after a 10 month wait, I get the call from my salesman that mine was in. I went to my credit union and got a draft made in the total I was told, went to inspect it and test drive, and then into finance to get everything settled and found out the total didn't add up right. I was still responsible for tax and reg fees outside the amount of my check and it turned out they had added additional dealer mark up of 4K. I had to chase down my salesman and he was apologetic but stated the owner does that to all hard to get, in demand vehicles and it was take it or leave it. I should have just made them cut me a 1K check on my deposit and walked but I would have had to wait another year or close to it and who's to say that another dealership wouldn't do the same. (I was told they didn't do that when I put down my deposit and ordered) I feel only slightly better that if I had waited, the packages have changed and the prices have gone up substantially so that helps a bit but the Ford dealership has lost my business and I will never buy from them again.

 

[FriedCheese2006]

To hit a few of the replies without going through and quoting everyone:

1. The dealer agreed to accept X-Plan...not just that they would match X-Plan pricing. The terms of X-Plan set the document price to no more than $150.
2. Yes, me being a stickler about the $650 difference is arbitrary and more about the point of it all rather than the price difference. I'm paying cash so the monthly payment is moot.
3. My dad ordered his truck after I did and is in a different city, hence the difference in dealers.
4. I've already looked at inventory from other dealers to buy something off the lot. No one has a hybrid XLT available with the options I want....that's non-negotiable. I've also found a number of dealers have add-on options they require for in-stock vehicles (e.g. Ford Protect) that are non-negotiable and not something I'm interested in.
5. To the comment about buying through them using X-Plan...I'd like to see the invoice. If they're making the sales manager pay the doc fee, I can't fathom they're giving anyone a break.
6. X-Plan can be combined with other rebates, so I was still looking to get the $500 veteran rebate in addition to the X-Plan discount.
7. Could I have done things differently to try to hold them accountable, sure, but that's not the point of this post. As someone else has already pointed out, the point here is to forewarn folks about expectations when going through this dealer. I made the assumption in the beginning that their acceptance of X-Plan meant they were actually going to accept X-Plan. Rookie mistake I guess.
8. I have the signed DORA that shows the vehicle price. It has no line items for the dealer fees, taxes, tags, etc. What I now know is that a DORA for X-Plan vs regular order is different.

Non X-Plan:

X-Plan

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