Yeah, it'd be a good thing to catch the open allocation window. Honestly, the most shocking thing was the indifference to a sale that I ran into. A guy at work said it might be a race thing, but I don't go 'round thinking that way--it's the Hawaii in me.

That others have gotten shoddy treatment around here just reinforces for me, in an oddly comforting way, that it's what I thought; simple laziness and car salesman douchebaggery.

When the significant other goes shopping for a new Escape hybrid, I'll definitely make Bleakley my first port of call. Thanks Red.

BTW, I'll stop hijacking the thread now.

 

My understanding is that the wait times will increase for any dealer that has already met their allocation of two FFH - The only dealers that have them on the lots are those with hybrid certification and the others can order them only. So, that is why they can bargain the way that they do. Jim Tidwell wouldn't give us the time of day, which is disappointing and I am sure someone else was stupid enough to pay $5,000 over MSRP. It is exhausting as I just think that Ford doesn't keep tabs on their dealers. I am sure that more will fold as the recession continues which can only mean good things. My fiancee was very Anti-Ford, but now it looks like we are ordering two FFH. Very painful decision as I really love our service advisor at Honda.

 

State franchise laws protect dealers from interference from the manufacturers. Dealers are free to set any pricing they want without factory control. Customers buy their vehicles from the dealership - not the manufacturer. Do dealers do stupid things? Sometimes, but they are protected.

I had not heard that dealers were limited to two Hybrid orders. If so, Bleakly still has one to order, as of last week.

 

My understanding is that Ford extended the open allocation program through the end of June. So during that time, a dealer can order a hybrid for a customer (pending verification) without it affecting the dealer allocation.

The open allocation was initially supposed to end in March, but due to demand or what have you, they extended it.

 

Does the Hybrid Factory in Mexico close at all during the summer? I would think that would depend on the wait time as well. I know that the Escape is manufactured in MO, but according to the sticker of the FFH, it is manufactured in Mexico with the transmission being from Japan.

 

Yeah, the FFH is hecho en Mexico, and delivered by rail. Aisin makes the CVT. I don't see why they'd shut down production as long as demand is within range of their projections.

Somewhere I read that as of April 6th or so, the hybrid made up 90% of Fusion orders. Makes sense given the March cutoff date for the more attractive of tax credits. It'd be interesting to see how long that lasts.

 

I have heard mixed reports that the tax credit will be extended - but who knows until anything is official. So, part of the inspiration for buying the FFH was to buy "American" and support the economy, but if the car is not manufactured in the U.S., are you really supporting the U.S. Economy? I am surprised that it isn't manufactured here in the U.S. The FFH is getting rave reviews - not sure if anyone saw the CNET review where they said hands down it was better than the 2010 Prius, Insight, etc. That should fuel demand as long as people have jobs and have the money to spend. Demand would be a lot better if this had happened a few years ago.

 

What really does (pending verification) mean? I asked my dealer when I made my order a week ago and he said he did not need anything from me. Now when I ask them for an update they say they will check the computer in 3 weeks. just kinda worries me a bit. I called Ford this last friday and asked them to check on the order. I gave them dealer number, order number and body code and she could not pull anything at all. ????

 

From what I know, all of these retail orders need to be verified before Ford will schedule them. By verifying, Ford is confident that a real customer-buyer exists. My guess is that this is meant to prevent dealers from getting cars ahead of other dealers by forcing them to provide customer documentation (driver's license and proof of insurance of a current vehicle). I believe customer-ordered cars have been prioritized for delivery ahead of cars ordered by dealers for themselves.

http://www.blueovalforums.com/forums...howtopic=30564

To my knowledge, the program has been extended from Mar 31st to June 30th.

 

There is a lot more to supporting an American Company than looking to where the vehicle is assembled. Direct labor makes up about 15% of the price of an automobile. When Ford assembles in Mexico, even with an imported transmission, the bulk of the expense to design, tool, stamp, support the dealer network, provide benefits, warranty, account and pay taxes takes place in the U.S. of A.

When Toyota assembles a vehicle in the U.S., the majority of the revenue goes to the East. They can jack up the price of the parts sent to the plants so that they pay little or no U.S. taxes and the states give them property tax breaks. It is good that they employ American workers, but the U.S. impact is small compared to the parent company's profit. American means Ford and GM in my book.