order from a small dealer or large dealer?

[photomatt8]

I am about to order a '13 Explorer. I have never ordered a new car before, I just always tried to find something on the lot and settled for it. Now, I want to order exactly what I want.

I live in a really small town, and have a really small local Ford dealership. I also work in the big city and work right down the road from a large Ford dealership.

Any advice about which dealership I will get the best deal from and the quickest delivery time? What is this I hear about dealer allocations? Will that impact my experience?

Thanks
Matt

 

[RonJrSVCMGR]

I also live in a town with a small dealership and have a big dealer down the road. I would buy the vehicle from the dealership you are likely to service at. If you have an issue, the dealership you bought it from is more likely to help you out (they are allocated only so much goodwill money and spend it on their loyal customers). A lot of stores allocate their loaner days to the customers that bought from them (again, only so many days allotted). Get a deal written for both and then bring the better deal to the other store to see if they will match it. See what each store offers for customer benefits and ask the small store if allocation is going to be an issue (wasn't for our small store).

 

[JUtecht]

I'm not sure, i have heard both but it seems to be something that doesn't matter much from what I have gathered. One piece of advice I have for you when negotiating price. Know what you want and how you want it, have a print out from Ford.com on your specs. Go to Edmunds.com and get the TMV of your vehicle, exactly like you built it. Show the dealer both, work quickly and remind them of their carrying costs of your vehicle-none bc it will not sit on the lot, it already has an owner! If they hassle you too much remind them of how much of their time your taking-took us about 20 minutes start to finish to order....etc. We ended up getting our XLT with $1000 Rebate, $500 Incentive for being a student at below the Dealer Invoice price because we were prepared! We also had test driven one elsewhere so we knew we were for sure. It all worked out really great! I personally liked my smaller dealership, but I wont be overly happy if it takes longer to build but from what I'm hearing, that theory is Urban Legend and could amount to a couple days if any. I'm waiting in anticipation and "fingers crossed" mine will hopefully be here Mid-July!! Good luck, it was my first NEW car purchase too, I made sure to educate myself...they kept wanting to sell to my hubby but he kept saying, "its her car, talk to her" after we were finished in the dealer he told me he couldn't belive how I "owned" the dealer and couldnt believe how much I knew! Go to Edmunds.com and there's some great info!! Helped me tremendously!!

 

[FischerRA]

I agree about getting a price from both but, personally I would lean toward the small dealer. Many times you're just another lost ball in high weeds at a large dealer. I also live in a small town with a small dealer. I visited both but, in the end the small dealer was way more helpful and willing to do what ever he could to get my business. So I placed my order last week. I've already had two calls from him giving me status updates. The other factor is the convenience of the small dealer when it comes to service. My dealer assured me that any time I need service that I could leave it and be driven home and picked up again when completed. Or given a loaner if it would be more than a day to complete.

 

[FordService]

I am about to order a '13 Explorer. I have never ordered a new car before, I just always tried to find something on the lot and settled for it. Now, I want to order exactly what I want...

It’s great that you’re going with your very own customized Explorer, photomatt8! I see there’re already a few recommendations from the community; my suggestion is to shop around and find the dealer you feel most comfortable with. When you submit it, be sure to get the order number and dealer code; forward the details to me and I’ll keep an eye on the latest status.

I also live in a town with a small dealership and have a big dealer down the road. I would buy the vehicle from the dealership you are likely to service at...See what each store offers for customer benefits and ask the small store if allocation is going to be an issue (wasn't for our small store).

I'm not sure, i have heard both but it seems to be something that doesn't matter much from what I have gathered...

RonJrSVCMGR & JUtecht,

Thanks a bunch for taking the time to help out, guys!

...I also live in a small town with a small dealer. I visited both but, in the end the small dealer was way more helpful and willing to do what ever he could to get my business. So I placed my order last week. I've already had two calls from him giving me status updates. The other factor is the convenience of the small dealer when it comes to service. My dealer assured me that any time I need service that I could leave it and be driven home and picked up again when completed. Or given a loaner if it would be more than a day to complete.

It sounds like you don’t even need my help, FischerRA.

Cory