Bogus Dealer Doc Fees Explained

[realshelby]

All I know at least in NJ the dealer has to charge everyone the same. However you can negotiate that off the price of the car.

I don't know NJ law on the subject. If the Dealer told you that, then I would beg you to have them show you an actual NJ law that backs it up. Doc Fee is and always has been pure profit. Saying it has to be the same price for everyone is exactly like saying the Dealer has to sell at the same price to everyone.

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[Potatomafia]

Yep, FL sucks for dealer fees. There is no cap to what the dealers can charge. It's 100% profit. There are a few dealers that do not charge a fee but they are rare. The dealer fees are non-negotiable and many dealers have "value added" services such as PPF, window etching, interior protection, etc that they add to EVERY new vehicle, no matter if it's a stock or customer order. Below is a snippet of the website from the closest Ford dealer to me. I did not order from them.

The dealer I ordered my '23 XLT hybrid from has a $1,295 dealer fee but they accept the X Plan, which limits the amount they charge to $100. This dealer is the largest or second largest in the state (I forget which) and have a ton of allocations. I knew I'd have a much better chance of getting my Mav by ordering through them versus a smaller dealer that does not have dealer fees.

It pays to do your research

 

[TheSEARCH]

There are a few dealers here in FL....very few...that don't charge insane amounts on dealer fees. If someone down here can't find a dealer that doesn't charge an arm and leg, then going out of state is an option. I'm doing X-Plan on my Maverick, $300 - $400 savings off MSRP, $600 off my dealer fees.

FL legislature last session just reinforced protections for the major OEM dealers. Only one manufacturer gives the consumer the ability to bypass a FL dealer and order direct from OEM.....Tesla got an exemption.

Can't buy new car extended warranty with a FL zip code on line unless you go thru a Florida dealer.

Notice what I said regarding extended warranty...."FL zip code". Thankful that I live 21 miles away from a Georgia post office box!

Yikes I didn't know about warranty BS.

Yep, FL sucks for dealer fees. There is no cap to what the dealers can charge. It's 100% profit. There are a few dealers that do not charge a fee but they are rare. The dealer fees are non-negotiable and many dealers have "value added" services such as PPF, window etching, interior protection, etc that they add to EVERY new vehicle, no matter if it's a stock or customer order. Below is a snippet of the website from the closest Ford dealer to me. I did not order from them.

The dealer I ordered my '23 XLT hybrid from has a $1,295 dealer fee but they accept the X Plan, which limits the amount they charge to $100. This dealer is the largest or second largest in the state (I forget which) and have a ton of allocations. I knew I'd have a much better chance of getting my Mav by ordering through them versus a smaller dealer that does not have dealer fees.

It pays to do your research

Makes me wonder why they are the biggest dealer as they seem to be a rip off dealer. Do people just not pay attention? I guess the classic "your Payment will be" and don't bother to look at the actual price they paid.

Now I have to ask, did it work out and did you get a Mav delivered from them? I hope so as it would turn my stomach dealing with them even though xplan stops there bad practices.

 

[skadizzle]

Smart people in FL go to Mullinax. No dealer fees. Only taxes plus $170 for tag/title fees. Got mine at X Plan price and College discount and private offer so it was $4500 below MSRP.

 

[Potatomafia]

Yikes I didn't know about warranty BS.

Makes me wonder why they are the biggest dealer as they seem to be a rip off dealer. Do people just not pay attention? I guess the classic "your Payment will be" and don't bother to look at the actual price they paid.

Now I have to ask, did it work out and did you get a Mav delivered from them? I hope so as it would turn my stomach dealing with them even though xplan stops there bad practices.

When I wanted to order a Maverick, I researched every dealer within a 200 mile radius. All of them except Mullinax had a ridiculous dealer and some had mandatory dealer add on packages on top of that.

The dealer I quoted is Ford of Port Richey. I ordered through Brandon Ford. I knew Brandon Ford has a $1295 dealer fee but made sure they accepted the X Plan before ordering and made sure they wouldn't add an ADM to customer orders. Brandon Ford is massive so I knew they would have a larger allocation than the smaller dealers. It worked out great as I received my '23 hybrid XLT in 208 days from ordering it. No games, no BS. They called when it was delivered and bought it the next day.

 

[Redneck Garage]

It is amazing that CA of all places has one of the lowest doc fee's. After all everything else is typically more money in CA. The video is right that in the past and maybe now on more abundant vehicles you could get the dealer to lower the price by the doc fee amount. BUT no way on high demand vehicles like the Mav.

If I lived in FL I would travel out of state to buy a new vehicle. I don't think there is any limit on it in FL. I think FL dealers mark it up as high as they think they can get away with it. Reading hear i have seen a grand. Insane amount FL user fee, lol.

799.00 for my dealer here in Middle TN

 

[TheSEARCH]

799.00 for my dealer here in Middle TN

Yea some states the Dealer Association bought off the politicians not to put a reasonable limit on doc fee's.

 

[Nolichucky]

I just saw on line a 2023 Maverick XL Only options Full Size spare and trailer hitch. .. Dealer upped it $6,000 over MSRP and had a $600 Document fee.. I'm in Kansas and was surfing dealers in OK and MO..

Check the Ford dealer in Silina,Kansas

 

[nobbyv]

This is a bit of a zombie thread that just got resurrected, but the first two dealers I reached out to, in addition to a $550 doc fee, also wanted a $250 “Consumer Data Protection Fee”. I asked for an explanation of this fee, and got some poorly-written boilerplate that basically made it sound like if you DIDN’T pay it, they’d give all your info to hackers. Needless to say I didn’t order from them.

To repeat: these fees are 100% cash grabs. They are not “required” to charge them. They can’t get sued for discrimination if they don’t. It’s all BS that’s been perpetuated for decades.

 

[Ozarkbeard]

Check the Ford dealer in Silina,Kansas

Salina, Kansas. Their doc fee is several hundred dollars. I initially ordered from them, but canceled after I found a dealer in my state, Whitson-Morgan, Ozark that charges $129 doc fee. They mention it up front on their site at the bottom of the landing page. I placed a phone order and no deposit was required.

So I ordered from them, and yes, the doc fee was on the paperwork. I gladly paid it though, because even including doc fee, they discounted over $1500 off MSRP. They also honored Price Protection to cover a mid-year price increase. So the MSRP was based on the day I ordered - more than a year before delivery date. Extended warranties were offered, but prefaced with "these are strictly optional, and you can buy one later if you'd like." No pressure at all and I was in & out of dealer in about 30 minutes.

Choosing a dealer is one of the most important things to research if you order a Maverick.

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