How screwed am I? - Maverick Custom Order Markup

[B. Maverick]

I wrote this on another thread. Talk to an attorney to find out legal advice instead of letting the dealer bully you. Ford would not have built that Maverick without your order and DL#.

I am not an attorney but I will say my opinion. Basic business law says offer + acceptance = contract.

A contract does not need to be 10 pages to be binding and hold someone accountable for an offer you accept. Contracts can even be verbal per the law. Someone posted that they won a court case based on text messages.

The dealer will have a hard time telling a judge why they can take your order and then unilaterally decide on a future unknown amount to charge you later while holding your Maverick hostage, is not extortion.

I am an attorney. A contract in California is offer & acceptance. You need consideration, but your promise to pay is the consideration you agreed to. Your problem is, of course, that attorneys are expensive, but you might be able to find a young, raw-meat-eating lawyer to lay it on them. But, as I tell my clients, get your paperwork in hand as soon as possible, and if they are giving you grief, consider talking to an attorney before your baby Maverick shows up at the lot.
I gather you are in California. You might want to call the attorney general's office once you get your paperwork. The AG is rough on fraud, and this sounds like, well, fraud.

Sponsored

 

[KimoCarew]

My experience with this dealer is not good. It’s too late now for the order, but for service (if you get your Mav) you might want to try Salinas Ford.

I had to buy my Mav in Salina KS and drive it out here. Good luck.

 

[pigsareus]

I went in to talk financing about my 2023 Hybrid Maverick XLT that is currently being built. Long story short, the dealer, Cypress Coast Ford, wants $5k over markup. They cite the original order form on which I signed a line acknowledging there may be dealer markups/add-ons. When I pushed them on this originally, they said they add about $1k worth of stuff like low jack and ceramic coating, etc. I reluctantly agreed as order banks were not likely to stay open very long.

I have filed complaints with Ford Corporate and got Mark Levine to receive my order information...hoping he gets back to me soon. I know I should not have signed that line, but nonetheless, I feel like this is still unethical and against Ford Corporate wishes. On top of that, they were super rude, and at one point, the guy I spoke with left to buy cigarettes and lottery tickets. I was so excited when I got my production date, but it has all gone sour now.

EDIT: The pricing is for a used car on the lot. They didn't use my VIN for some reason...Just another shady thing from this interaction. Nothing was signed, and no money has been changed yet. The truck should be here in 3 weeks or so.

it'll be a battle - looking at their Yelp reviews there are a lot of irate customers. Too late obviously but when that sales dude told you probably 1K$ on the markup you could have had his write that in and sign it and if he didn't you could have gone elsewhere. Interesting that they have the doc fees on this one reasonable, you'd think they would try to screw someone on that. That CA sales tax is rather shocking... I'd say even if you negotiate a better compromise - say 3k over, be sure to look over everything on the bill to make sure they didn't lump something else in there. Also...I'd go elsewhere for financing but if you do they'll likely not budge at all on their markup as they'd be losing money on not getting in on the financing fees. Good luck.

 

[juniorrthompson]

Well I ordered a 2022 XLT Hybrid in early November 2021 and of course mine didn't get built that production year. Mine was switched to a 2023 model and wasn't built until March of this year and delivered April 8th. Fortunately my dealer didn't try to hose me over plus I received a $2850.00 incentive on the 2023 model. I actually paid less for the 2023 model than the 2022 I ordered. Dealers are going to disappear if they don't stop screwing customers!

 

[zzbaluba]

I went in to talk financing about my 2023 Hybrid Maverick XLT that is currently being built. Long story short, the dealer, Cypress Coast Ford, wants $5k over markup. They cite the original order form on which I signed a line acknowledging there may be dealer markups/add-ons. When I pushed them on this originally, they said they add about $1k worth of stuff like low jack and ceramic coating, etc. I reluctantly agreed as order banks were not likely to stay open very long.

I have filed complaints with Ford Corporate and got Mark Levine to receive my order information...hoping he gets back to me soon. I know I should not have signed that line, but nonetheless, I feel like this is still unethical and against Ford Corporate wishes. On top of that, they were super rude, and at one point, the guy I spoke with left to buy cigarettes and lottery tickets. I was so excited when I got my production date, but it has all gone sour now.

EDIT: The pricing is for a used car on the lot. They didn't use my VIN for some reason...Just another shady thing from this interaction. Nothing was signed, and no money has been changed yet. The truck should be here in 3 weeks or so.

This dealership needs to be added to the list of Ford dealers that should be avoided.

 

[Travlegit]

This dealership needs to be added to the list of Ford dealers that should be avoided.

I agree. They recently had a lot of negative reviews left for predatory markups on custom orders but were removed.

 

[Travlegit]

Well I ordered a 2022 XLT Hybrid in early November 2021 and of course mine didn't get built that production year. Mine was switched to a 2023 model and wasn't built until March of this year and delivered April 8th. Fortunately my dealer didn't try to hose me over plus I received a $2850.00 incentive on the 2023 model. I actually paid less for the 2023 model than the 2022 I ordered. Dealers are going to disappear if they don't stop screwing customers!

You won the lotto on that! Just had to wait awhile.

 

[Travlegit]

My experience with this dealer is not good. It’s too late now for the order, but for service (if you get your Mav) you might want to try Salinas Ford.

I had to buy my Mav in Salina KS and drive it out here. Good luck.

I really do not want to pay markup but I do need a car. Debating waiting and placing a new order at a different dealer who does not do markups, like Morgan Hill or Salinas.

 

[Aspidochelone]

Yea, I was too frustrated to realize that (the different VIN and vehicle) in person and had no plan to sign and pay at that point. I would have liked to bring it up to them directly.

You need someone that is not as emotionally involved in the transaction, as many have said, emotions can cloud your judgement.

 

[Travlegit]

You need someone that is not as emotionally involved in the transaction, as many have said, emotions can cloud your judgement.

Yea, I won't be going alone next time. I did not expect anything other than what we had discussed when I went the other week, so I was caught off guard.

 

[PeteSJCA]

I ordered and bought my 2022 Maverick from Frontier Ford in Santa Clara, CA. absolutely no games, and they honored the $500 farm Bureau discount I got after I joined the Illinois (Cook County) Farm Bureau.

 

[Derek's Maverick]

Not to pile on, but perhaps some people should take an "experienced" person with them when they make a large purchase. From the limited information made available in this post, IMHO there no evidence of any contract/PO, etc that one can cite for adjudication. The fact that you state they have not used the VIN from your "order" to illustrate your finance options gives me great pause...

Just one of the many reasons buying a vehicle is such a daunting task. I spent basically the entire 18 month wait for mine reading and watching videos and still felt unprepared. They know how difficult it is to get this truck so it basically comes down to if they are honest or not. I agree having someone with experience will become very beneficial to you when you pick it up. Its a great feeling having someone with the "Don't F with me!" attitude on your side. Don't let them push you around. Best of luck!!

 

[yoyomav]

don't walk away from this dealer, run.

Since you don't have any kind of documentation / contract showing that YOU ordered the maverick, I doubt any lawyer would help. All you can do is file a complaint and move on, unless you are willing to pay the markup.

 

[Travlegit]

don't walk away from this dealer, run.

Since you don't have any kind of documentation / contract showing that YOU ordered the maverick, I doubt any lawyer would help. All you can do is file a complaint and move on, unless you are willing to pay the markup.

I have my signed order form dated September 16.

Sponsored