Delivery Time for Factory Order

rgb did pass the time by typing:

If they put your vehicle into production it should have a build sheet even if it's not off the line yet. Anything else just means the dealer is waiting on a delivery of something that matches what you want or waiting to trade with another dealer when that Jeep comes into the system.

I'd be calling and remind them that the order may be canceled if they don't get an answer that very day.

When I went looking, the dealer told me that the price would be agreed before the order is placed. If you don't have a price, then I certainly hope you haven't signed a contract and have the option of going elsewhere. I was told that sometimes it can take a few months for an ordered vehicle to arrive depending on production runs and the number of other (probably dealer) orders. Instead they found one at a not too far away dealer that was almost exactly what I would have considered ordering.

-D

i dont understand the price thing. i ordered an '05 rubicon just a couple hours ago see

and look at the order form. you should have filled out a similar order form and it clearly lists the price.

My thanks to the earlier reply that suggested calling DC Customer Service. I called and got the status and an estimated delivery date range. It looks now like the delivery time will be 11 to 12 weeks. That's quite a bit longer than the 4 to 6 weeks I was promised, but at least now I know what to expect.

On the price thing: Before placing the order, I had a print out of the options and five (5) total prices, labeled HB, FFP, EP, MSRP, and FWP - just like the web page referenced in the previous reply. My price was to be the FWP. But at the bottom of the page it said "The prices shown are for information only and are subject to change or correction without prior notice." When the jeep arrives I expect the dealer to honor the verbal agreement to sell at the FWP and the dealer expects me to honor my promist to buy at that price. I did not sign anything and my understanding is that the $500 is refundable.

I do not know whether such verbal promise-to-buy/promise-to-sell agreements are rare, common, or routine. I like the idea of a handshake deal, but it relies on trust. When the dealer did not keep me informed, that trust started to break down. I called the dealer at the time of my first post. Since then there have been five replies from the group, and no call back from the dealer.

i find this especially odd now. i wanted to get my financing lined up in advance so that when my new rubicon arrives i can write a check and leave with it. i dropped by my dealership today to see if they could give me a vin# to take to the bank and not only was my local dealer able to give me a vin# but he was also able to tell me that my jeep was in step "E" (being painted). he told me that next it goes to trim and then final inspection and that i could possibly have it in just a few weeks. i just ordered my jeep jan 27.

contact your local dealership, they are able to pull up your order and see the build status. i thought that was really cool, i just wish i could do it myself online.

ah thats cool....got the number? before i just told myself not to expect it before april. now that i know its been painted already im getting impatient. :-)

Yes, the wait can be unbearable!! :)

I just called the 800 Customer number below. I called roughly once a week to check on progress and made a log of updates for future reference. They were really good about fielding my calls and giving out the info.

Here is what I logged:

2003 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon Jeep 800-992-1997

VON# 1010XXXX VIN# 1J4FA69S03PXXXXXX

Base MSRP including freight $22,198 Destination Charge - $610

Customer Preferred Package 24U - $0

4.0L Power Tech I-6 - $0 4-Spd, Automatic, 42R1E - $726 Air Conditioning $788 Dual Top Group $1373 Floor Mats $26 Auto Dim Mirror w/Compass/Temp. $194 AM/FM/CD Radio w/ chgr. cntrl. $110 Sentry Key Theft Deterr. $66 Speaker Upgrade w/ Subwoof. $260 Deep Tint Sunscreen Dualtop $321

TOTAL $26,672

Information on build status:

DATE INFO. RECEIVED

10/03/02 Estimated ship date, Oct. 25th 10/10/02 In process of being painted, est. ship Oct. 23rd 10/16/02 In process of being painted 10/31/02 Built 23rd, moved to shipping yard on 28th 11/04/02 In rail transit 11/08/02 From Toledo via Railcar on Oct. 30th to arrive in Mesquite, Texas on Nov. 6th

D - firm schedule - dealer has allocation and all parts available

D - 1 gateline schedule - scheduled to be built

E - frame

F - paint

G - trim

I - built not ok'd

J - built ok'd

JB - shipped to body vendor

JE - emission check

JS - shipped to storage

KZ - released by plant , invoiced

KZL - released - not shipped

It can go from "D-1" to "KZ" or "kZL" in a couple of days. "D" means that the chassis and body are ready, waiting for the final assembly line schedule.

Nathan W. Collier wrote:

thanks. oddly enough my dealer told me that "E" was paint, i wonder if thats changed since you ordered yours or if he was mistaken.

Just wondering why you ordered one. There are so many on the lots around here I could not imagine not finding one already built with what you wanted or have them get one from a dealer swap.

Something that few people realize is that a dealer will ALWAYS be more willing to wheel and deal on a vehicle that is already on his lot than one that is ordered. Definitely. And that means that if you negotiate, you can usually get a better "enough" price on that vehicle on the lot, enough so that those extra options you don't want can be "free" if compared to what the ordered vehicle will end up costing.

A dealer will always prefer selling something he is already paying for that is taking up space on the lot and will, once again, always give a better deal on that than one he has to order and wait for. This is also true for one he can do a dealer trade or dealer locate since both dealers want to unload that vehicle already on the lot. Definitely.

Jerry

twaldr> This is Nathan's purchase, but I'm going to give my opinion anyway...

very true Jerry...you get the worst price if they "dealer trade" from somewhere else because the dealer loses the "holdback" money which on a wrangler is around 400-500 bucks.

although your message was in response to twaldrons post, ill assume it was directed to me and respond.

all the rubicons on the local lots here in billings montana had the grey tops with grey fenders. they also all had dual tops and manual transmissions. by ordering it im getting the exact jeep i want with nothing i dont. seeing "built especially for nathan w. collier" on the window sticker is a bonus. :-)

Yeah, the dealer here in New York (no, not New York /City/) told me the black top wasn't available with Patriot Blue. Of course if you order they'll put whatever color you're paying for on it. The grey actually looks rather nice with the blue. I was worried it would be too much grey with the grey interior.

At least you can scrape the ice off and run the defogger in the winter :-).

I'm itching to put the soft top on and then have some warm sunshine to go cruising without the top!

Who buys anything else? ;-)

Quite true (mostly). I thought about ordering ... but 1% below invoice and having a 4x4 with the snow coming convinced me otherwise. I think I would have lost that Chrysler incentive, and I wouldn't have had the Jeep in time for the snow if I had ordered. I did keep going over the features/options list and pricing before I decided.

The only "extras" I got were the floor mats and side steps (well, I guess the stereo upgrade too, but it does sound rather nice). I took both of them off weeks ago. Is it possible to order a Sport with the lower-grade stereo, I wonder?

-D

What is "holdback"?

-D