Purchase from Granger Ford in December Title Delay

[buckstop515]

I don't post here, so please forgive me. Background: I ordered my '26 Maverick Hybrid AWD on Oct 27th and was scheduled to pick it up on Dec 29th. Everything went great until Late Friday before picking the car up on that Monday morning. If I had not read the email and closing statement I would not have known. Our numbers did not match. I called Granger to clarify the discrepancy. Granger did not follow their titling process as the agreement stated. The process as they originally explained to me was that I would get the sales paperwork at time of delivery documentation to take title and registration in my state and I would file there. Instead, they explained to me that they have a new process and now use a 3rd party to process the paperwork in my state. In addition, this was the first time that I was told that they would not take my personal check and needed to bring a cashier's check. I had literally 4 hours on Saturday to get to my bank and get a cashier's check as I had to leave at 6AM on Monday morning to get to Granger.

Moving forward, at delivery I paid them for tax, title and registration and their additional fee of $105 above what it would have cost me to file by myself. I received a 15-day transit permit. As of 1/13/26, that has expired. I went to my DMV and they say my vehicle is not in their computers yet. I cannot get a temporary plate without the vehicle being in their computers. I am getting no response from phone calls and emails at Granger on where my paperwork is hung up. They say I cannot get another transit permit but I should simply drive the Maverick with the sales documentation on the expired permit. My DMV says I cannot drive it, which makes sense legally.

So my question is, has anyone else run into this documentation hiccup since Granger changed their out-of-state titling process in mid-November? And if so, how long did it take you to receive your state's temporary tags? Or did you just drive on the transit permit and hop you wouldn't get pulled over by your police?

I just went through this with a class A motor home f53 ford chassis. We purchased on 10/4 2025 and finally got the plates on 12/31/2025. Same as you my paper work went to a 3rd party who sat on it for ever before submitting it. I then received a temp title because it needed to be hand processed. My purchase was in arkansas and I reside in Missouri. I had 2 temp plates expire in the process. This has to be a money making scheme. Make sure Granger pays the title penalty fees.

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[CRS]

I wrote the below last night. I expected that Granger would want to get this taken care of quickly and call me first thing this morning with some good news. No such luck. No phone call. No email. I really feel like a sucker giving them the benefit of doubt so many times. Maybe it is them. Maybe it is their 3rd party. Maybe the delay really is in my state's hands. I currently have no way to verify where the holdup is or how to get my truck legally on the road. Regardless, it should be handled more professionally by the dealer who took my money. If they would have abided by the original process as explained at the time of ordering, I would have had my state temporary plates the day after delivery.

Here it is, Monday evening. It is after business hours at Granger. I have to say that we may have made a small forward progress. Granger finally returned my calls. They said that my state has had all the paperwork for "a while" and that it is in their court. Also, they will overnight me another 15-day permit. But that will only get me 2 weeks!

At this point in time, I want to “trust but verify”. I called my state and they still do not show it in their computer. They could track it somehow if they had a tracking number. I called Granger asking for that. They don’t have it. I asked for them to get it from the 3rd party by the end of the day which they said they would try to do.

Now Granger has closed more than almost 8 hours since my last contact with Granger and I still don’t know for certain if I will have a transit permit and/or tracking number tomorrow. I left a message at ~ 6:45PM asking for a status phone call.

 

[Glen Baker LLC]

Come on Zach at Granger, work with this customer to get his title !

I just sent Zach a DM concerning this thread.
If the title is in the state of Illinois hands, there's not too much the dealer can do.

 

[CRS]

I just sent Zach a DM concerning this thread.
If the title is in the state of Illinois hands, there's not too much the dealer can do.

I agree with the "if". My issue is verifying where it is so that I can expedite the process and drive my truck legally. That requires getting information from the dealer.

I was just contacted by the dealer. Supposedly, the new in-transit permit was ready to overnight to me yesterday but was ready by the time UPS picked up. I have a tracking number for that. It hopefully will be picked up today and delivered to me tomorrow. The 3rd party offices were reportedly closed or at minimum staffing yesterday. The dealer is hoping to get that tracking number that they used to send the app to my state. With that I can go back to my state. I continue to check a few times a day on their website to see if it miraculously shows up in their computers. Once it does, I can move forward with 90-day temporary plates on my truck.

I will keep everyone updated as the story continues.

 

[Granger Ford]

I don't post here, so please forgive me. Background: I ordered my '26 Maverick Hybrid AWD on Oct 27th and was scheduled to pick it up on Dec 29th. Everything went great until Late Friday before picking the car up on that Monday morning. If I had not read the email and closing statement I would not have known. Our numbers did not match. I called Granger to clarify the discrepancy. Granger did not follow their titling process as the agreement stated. The process as they originally explained to me was that I would get the sales paperwork at time of delivery documentation to take title and registration in my state and I would file there. Instead, they explained to me that they have a new process and now use a 3rd party to process the paperwork in my state. In addition, this was the first time that I was told that they would not take my personal check and needed to bring a cashier's check. I had literally 4 hours on Saturday to get to my bank and get a cashier's check as I had to leave at 6AM on Monday morning to get to Granger.

Moving forward, at delivery I paid them for tax, title and registration and their additional fee of $105 above what it would have cost me to file by myself. I received a 15-day transit permit. As of 1/13/26, that has expired. I went to my DMV and they say my vehicle is not in their computers yet. I cannot get a temporary plate without the vehicle being in their computers. I am getting no response from phone calls and emails at Granger on where my paperwork is hung up. They say I cannot get another transit permit but I should simply drive the Maverick with the sales documentation on the expired permit. My DMV says I cannot drive it, which makes sense legally.

So my question is, has anyone else run into this documentation hiccup since Granger changed their out-of-state titling process in mid-November? And if so, how long did it take you to receive your state's temporary tags? Or did you just drive on the transit permit and hop you wouldn't get pulled over by your police?

Hello Chuck,

I was looking into your purchase and your paperwork.

I want to apologize that you were not informed that we have started working with a 3rd party to handle all customers registration. We did start this is November getting everyone on board can be a delay, but I assure you, all documents have been updated now and customers will be aware of that moving forward. When we made this change, customers who already placed an order (there were alot) were not informed either so it has been a process to get everything situated and in order. We had to make this change to ensure vehicles are getting registered correctly and properly as we have been into trouble with Ford as customers were not registering where we are told which we relay to Ford.

I did talk to finance and Shelby is the one on top of this for you. She stated that she called you and your wife yesterday to follow up and keep you in the loop. We did purchase another In-Transit tag that will be overnighted to you, so you should receive it tomorrow. When I spoke with her, she was waiting until later in the morning to update you a little more. She did inform me that with the holidays and the winter storms, offices have been closed and delays have occurred so there has been pauses, but I ensure you that Shelby, our Title Clerk and our 3rd Party are doing all they can to ensure everything is completed with your DMV.

She will continue to update you as she receives updates and hopefully a tracking number soon!

I am sorry for any miscommunication or delays.

 

[CRS]

Zach, thank you for your explanation. I certainly hope that Granger has the internal communications straightened out for new and potential buyers, at least with the process of purchasing and what to expect. I did speak with Shelby yesterday and got a tracking number for the in-transit permit.

This morning, I received that 30-day transport permit. Thank you for getting that done. I hope that 30 days covers the necessary timeframe to get settled here in my state. As of this writing, I still have yet to get the tracking number from the 3rd party on the documentation they sent to my state. And my VIN does not show up on their website. I plan to rattle my state once I get that tracking number.

 

[CRS]

I received an email from Granger. While I didn't get the tracking number that I asked for, in it was a copy of the title application and plate registration forms as submitted to my state. In addition, there was a copy of the state's paper registration with the plate number that was assigned dating this morning at 8:40 local time. According to Shelby at Granger, I should see it on my state website tomorrow and receive my plates in a week or so.

I wish to thank Zach and Shelby at Granger for helping me thru my issues and expediting the application. Also, thanks to all the members who responded and gave me a sense of camaraderie. I will call this item resolved. I can now drive my Maverick.

 

[Glen Baker LLC]

Dealerships use third-party companies to handle paperwork to reduce labor costs, increase efficiency in titling/registration, and ensure compliance with complex, ever-changing regulations (like FTC Safeguards or state-specific laws). These specialists streamline the process, reduce errors, and allow dealers to focus on sales rather than administrative burdens.
Managing the pace of business at leading auto dealerships can be chaotic and overwhelming, especially during peak sales periods. One of the most time-consuming tasks in the sales process is managing the title and registration paperwork. This is where titling companies can help.

 

[Glen Baker LLC]

New car dealers increasingly send documents like registration, title applications, and sales contracts electronically to state DMVs and lenders, often using systems like Electronic Dealer Report of Sales (EDRS). Over 20 states accept digital submissions, although many still require "wet" signatures for certain documents. This process reduces paperwork, speeds up registration, and enhances accuracy.

Thankfully, the days of sending physical paperwork back and forth are almost over.
If people were still carrying actual paper to the DMV. Making appointments, sitting for hours .....etc
They would be complaining about having to deal with DMV OR They lost some of the paperwork

 

[buckstop515]

The dealers are making money on doc fees. Mine charged in the neighborhood $475. The dealers point at the 3rd party claim it's their fault and of course you can't speak to the 3rd party. We are being scammed. I can carry the paperwork to the DMV and have it all done in 30 minutes or less

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