How much should I demand from a dealer who screwed up?

Greetings everyone. Long time lurker, first time posting as I'm about to buy my first Tacoma. Up till now it was 2 Dakotas in a row. Apologies for a long post.

In September I ordered a '23 SR5 V6 w/ tech package and some add-ons (roof rack, running boards, bed mat) put down a $500 deposit, and was told it'd be there in 2 months. I didn't haggle much, got them to come up $500 on my trade in, from $3.5k to 4k.

Fast forward 3 months, no word. I was willing to live with it for a while, but I stopped by the dealership to check. My salesman is now in financing, and no one has any record of my truck order.
They find my old salesman who is all apologies, their mistake, says they'll find me a truck right away. Then the new salesman starts playing the same old dealer games. I say no bueno, I'll just have to talk with the GM of the dealership, and I identify him by name.

I leave and soon get a call from the sales manager also apologizing and says they've found me a vehicle. He sends me a spec sheet for one that they can bring in, and it's basically what I want. Next day I get a boilerplate email from the GM assuring me they value my business.
I talk to the sales mgr next day and I say the truck is good, but I have to get $6k on my trade in. He won't commit. I text him later for the pricing sheet and he stalls, saying they have to see my trade in first (they don't have a record of the first time they checked it). About 4 days ago he says the new truck will be in any day now.

On top of this, my wife bought 2 cars there last year (one was short term) and one in 2008. I'm a loyal customer.

So what/how much should I fight for with this new sale? They F'd up, and I want to make the most of it. I have no problem walking if they won't do me right. What are realistic terms to require from them on a new sale?

Thank you for reading.

 

huh?

 

$1.50

 

I'm not sure they owe you anything but the 500 deposit. They ain't gonna go 'up' on your trade desires you talked them into 4k and now you want 6k?

I don't think they'll do that. That 2023 SR5 will sell in about 20 minutes... soon all 2023's will be gone.

 

Simply put, they forgot to order you your truck.

Tough shit, mistakes happen. I would just go through a different dealer.

 

I’d fight all the way to a new dealership.

On a side note, I can’t blame the dealer for not committing on a trade-in price.
I wouldn’t commit to anything I wasn’t sure of either.

 

Not only that, vehicles depreciate.

He should be happy that he'd be getting what was originally offered after the initial appraisal.

 

i think it's some sort of banjo song

 

They owe you your deposit. That's it. You do not have them over a barrel and they will sell every Tacoma they get. Not trying to be a dick, but you need to manage your expectations and have a realistic stock of what you mean to them, and that is very little.

Best case scenario for you is if you have any of the previous stuff with the first salesman in writing and can show it to them. Then, purely at their discretion, they may be nice to you. Personally, I wouldn't budge much in their position because you come off as confrontational and trying to demand extra because you can name drop. From a business perspective that type of customer is usually more problematic than their business is worth. Unless you own a company and are buying a few new fleet vehicles from me a couple times a year, I'm just going to be polite and let you walk.

 

Soooo, do you have anything in writing or signatures for an agreement of any sort? If not, you're just sol

 

ask for a your 500 back, and move on.Or do a trade in

 

It’s been two months like promised and they can get you a truck that is pretty much the same as what you originally wanted. Make the same deal you already made or get your $500 back and go somewhere else. If you don’t have it in a written contract you don’t have a leg to stand on.

 

So, if I understand correctly, you want to buy a Dakota from Toyota and trade in an '08 you bought last year for $500 and chip in $6k. The answer is yes, maybe.

 

Where did you get that he wanted to buy a Dakota?

 

exactly

 

The entire problem is that you... just like 99% of people, "don't haggle much" and train dealerships that you are all fish to be reeled in. Once you've done that, they have your number. Then you pay a premium every time you buy again.

There are people in the world that spend some time learning the tricks that dealerships use to increase their profit margins at the expense of customer's lack of effort. They buy vehicles for 10 to 20% less than people that "don't haggle much", and probably make more money per hour doing it than they make at a job by several times.

Sorry you "don't haggle much", because now you get whatever they will deign to give you.

 

The negotiable PPW fee needs to be waved . That’s about all I got .

 

I don’t haggle much.
I tell the dealership what I’m willing to pay.
They either accept my offer or they don’t.

Do I over pay?
Maybe.

Have I driven out of the dealership in the same truck I drove in with?
Numerous times.

 

Meh, haggling used to work when dealers had vehicles on the lot waiting to sell, because they're paying interest until the vehicle is sold. If they need to order one for you, there's no pressure on them therefore no incentive to go below MSRP.

 

Yup. I ordered a WRX back in 2017 because I couldn't find one with the right packages and without the extra crap I didn't want. Worked with the sales manager directly, and he was very up front that on special orders they charge MSRP. In part because there is no financial incentive to discount it, and also because a specific set of options may limit the vehicles ability to sell to the next customer. That second one doesn't really apply to Toyota because you can't actually "order" a vehicle. You just state your preferences and hope the dealership gets an allotment that fits, but they certainly have no incentive to discount when there isn't a bunch of inventory.