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Questionable dealer tactics, starring Killeen Auto (Killeen, TX)

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I have been on the hunt for another Bronco, an F150 lightning, or a Hybrid Mav.

I make one statement and ask one simple question every time and it is ridiculous that I have never received an answer:

"I want to buy your Bronco/Lightning/Maverick - will you sell it to me at MSRP?"
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I've never heard of a dealer forcing you to purchase any protection plans as a contingency of a sale. Super shady. Good job walking away and sharing this experience.
 

h20mxracer222

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Totally agree that was a BS move on the dealership! Good for you on walking out. I had a similar situation when I was trying to order my '23 Mav. The day order bank opened I called a few local dealers in my area. Franklin Ford in western N Carolina told me point blank they're charging $5k right off the rip over MSRP. He didn't even know order bank was open and was extremely rude. How they're still in business I'll never know. Another larger dealer I called Keowee Ford in western S Carolina promised me MSRP. I asked him specifically before I drive 90min each way that there won't be ANY add on dealer fees or markups. He said absolutely not! Soon as I sit down and he says there will be $1k add on to order the truck because it's a Maverick. I immediately walked out the door after a few harsh words. Luckily, HOPEFULLY, my local Ford dealer in town was able to order my XLT. I made him sign my order form that absolutely no other charges or dealer fees will be added to the price above MSRP. That I will only be paying sticker price plus tax. Now I wait and see if it actually happens or there will be a Maverick for sale on their lot if it gets built.. I'm sure there's alot more of these stories out there.
 

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BOY, I have seen some real CROOKED dealers in my 67 years, but they seem close to the top of the list !! I have gotten super peed- at just them trying to add $800 to $1100 dealer fee, when it would come down to paper work I would say ,then you have to take that much off the vehicle price , or I'm leaving, problem is now days they know the shortage on almost all makes models ,most our lots here are still very low stock.
 

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Last week I flew air support for my son who needed a new car. We ended up at a Mazda dealer near us and found a CX-30 that he liked. As we were working out the deal, I reminded him that he could pay cash if he wanted to avoid having a payment.

At that point, the salesman told me that they require at least $10K of each deal to be financed, because the inventory slowdowns have reduced their volumes to the point that they need all available revenue streams on every deal in order to stay profitable.

I didn't complain because my son can just pay it off in 6 months if he wants and I liked how open and direct the salesman was. Plus, the car wasn't originally listed as a CPO (they threw that in for free when I asked for it) and they discounted the extended warranty by about $800.00 and included 5 free oil changes.

If only the dealers like Killeen would realize the benefits of treating people right. Of course, being outside a military base, they don't have to rely on repeat business because the population turns over constantly.
 

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There are a couple reasons I prefer not to finance when I am in a position to pay cash at time of purchase: They do a hard pull credit check that stays on credit report a couple of years, lender requires full coverage on your insurance resulting in much higher rates for me, and your title shows a lien holder as the owner. Then do some or all of it again to refinance + likely paying sales taxes and transfer fees again. No thank you on all that! Cash is King in our household 👍
Not saying what you should or should not do, but a hard credit pull generally will knock your score down 5pts or so for a month or two- not really a big deal. And opening and subsequently paying off the loan will boost your score waaaaay more than 5 points. Basically, if someone offered to loan me 20k (no truck or product involved), and they had to do a hard pull, and I would just give them the money back in a month... credit score-wise, that would be a very smart move.

And a month of difference between comp and liability is chump change. And your title will be free and clear in a month (when the loan is paid).

So if a dealer offers a better price, or better terms, contingent on you taking a loan from them, it is not a bad idea at all to consider it.
 

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Always kind of confused by people's abject fear of "hard credit pulls".

If you have great credit, it doesn't matter.
If you have good credit, it doesn't matter.
If you have marginal credit, you shouldn't be financing a new pickup truck.
 

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Thanks to bringing that to everyone's attention. Hopefully most dealers will realize that in the age of social media it is not worth a short term gain to ruin your reputation
Most dealers are so greedy they don't care. The attitude is "if I don't get this money NOW, someone else will".
 

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Killeen Ford knows they will get what they want for the Maverick, The original order guy likely is still there, yes military does have turn over but the equipment those guys use only moves off base in times of actual war. The equipment could be In Poland but our guys are officially not there ’wink-wink’
There is a solid core of active Army that have been there for a decade. There is HQ and a great hospital ( had been there almost 9 months for treatment, even before getting employed and moving to Killeen )
But it would be foolish to not plan to sale the Maverick like he was still around, too much time has elapsed and then Ukraine happened.
 

CTYankee

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There is a solid core of active Army that have been there for a decade. There is HQ and a great hospital ( had been there almost 9 months for treatment, even before getting employed and moving to Killeen )
I guess it's a bit different for the Navy (which is what I was). Most of those assigned to the base only get 2-3 years of shore duty before being reassigned to sea duty, so there is a relatively small percentage that stays on a base long-term. The dealers outside the base work that turnover to their advantage.
 
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OP, check out Mac Haik Ford in Georgetown if you're in the Austin area. Got our XLT from them two weeks ago with no wait (they had two XL, one XLT, one Lariat) available when we walked in. They charged MSRP + $2000 for protection package which was Lowjack, tint, silly clear little door edge guards. Last week when driving by, they had about 10 Mavericks parked on the lot.
 

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Not saying what you should or should not do, but a hard credit pull generally will knock your score down 5pts or so for a month or two- not really a big deal. And opening and subsequently paying off the loan will boost your score waaaaay more than 5 points. Basically, if someone offered to loan me 20k (no truck or product involved), and they had to do a hard pull, and I would just give them the money back in a month... credit score-wise, that would be a very smart move.

And a month of difference between comp and liability is chump change. And your title will be free and clear in a month (when the loan is paid).

So if a dealer offers a better price, or better terms, contingent on you taking a loan from them, it is not a bad idea at all to consider it.
is this your personal experience or theoretical? My wife and I refinanced our house 2 years in a row (when rates were rock bottom) and the credit check stayed on my record 1.5 years and 2.0 years. Same with last new credit card offer I accepted 5 yrs ago. We also bought our 2018 F-150 brand new and financed from dealer and paid off in full after 6 months- and our FICO scores did NOT go up- the main factors used are how much of your available credit you are using on a monthly basis and on-time payments. These are variable by the month due to CC usage and we always pay them in full every month.

Don't know what insurance you have, but there's more than a $200.00 per 6 month term moving up to full coverage with my Progressive- even as a 12 year member and perks. Then figure in the time & hassle of going to DMV more than once and paying fees/taxes on the same item. I don't see ANY benefit $, Credit, or timewise when I can pay $ and be 1 and done. Maybe you like making monthly payments on stuff and think you are winning if you get a low interest rate loan- but we're retired and value a very predictable low monthly budget over a few $ here and there when all our expenses are paid easily on guaranteed retirement income. It was different when we were younger and climbing career ladder and building credit - but not at this stage of life 🤷‍♂️ Constantly scrambling for tiny 1 time gains aint what retirement is all about for us. YMMV
 
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JimParker256

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OP, check out Mac Haik Ford in Georgetown if you're in the Austin area. Got our XLT from them two weeks ago with no wait (they had two XL, one XLT, one Lariat) available when we walked in. They charged MSRP + $2000 for protection package which was Lowjack, tint, silly clear little door edge guards. Last week when driving by, they had about 10 Mavericks parked on the lot.
Mac Haik had an identical Maverick on the lot that was declined by the person who ordered it. They told me it would be $2K over MSRP. I was going to go there, when Killeen Auto lied and said they would sell theirs to me for MSRP. When I walked out of Killeen, I went straight to Mac Haik to buy that one. It had just sold, and the buyer was in the finance office finishing the deal. That's part of why I was so pissed off at Killeen's tactics. They kept me from getting the other truck. Story of my life.

How is anyone finding ones on the lot?? The dealer websites are worthless as they show mavericks BUT there already sold ones. Same for places like Cars dot are also worthless. as they list cars already sold. its like the internet for looking for cars is worthless.

Are you just calling on the phone asking dealers if they have one?
Yep, that's pretty much it. I look on various selling sites (including Ford.com) and see who has one similar to what I want, then call the dealer to see if it's a customer's vehicle (99% of the time) or available. If it's available, I ask what they are actually asking for the vehicle. Other than Killeen Auto, every dealer I've called has been honest and upfront about their ADM or "protection package" deals. I'm OK with either approach, as long as they acknowledge it up front.
 

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I've gotten jerked around enough in the Austin area (not just Ford dealers) where I just don't do business unless they email me a purchase order with the final out the door price. I don't step foot in the dealership unless I have the PO I can bring to my credit union and get a check to finish the deal. I've heard the "we sell at MSRP" and then have garbage mandatory packages added on for thousands of dollars way to often to trust any dealer.
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