The last few cars I've bought here in AZ have either not had the dealer badge or it was easily peeled off as soon as I got the car home. I remove the dealer plate frame, too. Why should I give them free advertising? My $0.02 worth, anyway.
This is SUPER common up here in Canada. I know for a fact that my next new car will state clearly in the contract that the sale is void if the vehicle has any permanent dealer labels attached.
License plate frames are fine though.
Very common in NY, both for new and used dealers to have plate frames, tape attached plastic badges, decals and stickers.
I'm trying to get an idea of how common a practice it is for auto dealers to affix permanent badges or plaques to the vehicles that they sell.
Where I live (Washington State) the practice is rare. More like nonexistent. License plate trim rings with dealer's names and adverts are common. But nothing one can't remove with a screwdriver.
I've seen quite a few vehicles with what appear to be permanently affixed badges. All appear to be from out of state. I don't know if its a difference in the markets, but most people I know around here wouldn't put up with such a permanent defacement.
Its a mixed bag around here (Austin TX). Most dealer badges are small and tasteful. I wouldn't ever consider removing the "Jay Smith Chrysler-Plymouth" badge from my '73 Satellite- to me its part of the history of the car and a dealership with a good bit of local history for that matter. Plus its an actual, chromed metal, screw-on badge, not just a sticker.
Some of the new era dealers, though, go overboard. There a number of import dealers around here whose badges are as big as the name brand on the car, or bigger. I've also seen them applied crooked and with wrinkles. There'd be hell to pay if a dealer ever did that to a car *I* bought!
IME it's near universal, but in the last 10 years or so the badges have been replaced with vinyl stickers. Some "luxury" brand dealers still use chrome badges though. I do remember the one new car I've bought in my life didn't have one on it, although most of the cars in the parking lot at work do (my company car included.)
nate
It depends on what you consider 'permanent". Here in Louisiana, it's uncommon to see a vehicle without a dealer badge/marking of some sort. Most are applied with double sided tape, while some are decals or vinyl stickers. Most are relatively small in comparison to the manufacturers info, but there is the occasional out of proportion appliqu. I think you would be hard put to find anyone who would take the time to drill mounting holes or screw a logo to any new, or used for that matter, vehicle. John
here in Winnipeg, Manitoba, it's 90%+. Blech. The dealer I bought my Trans Am from (Melnick Motors) was nice enough to listen to my request NOT to install decals on it, so I mention that Shawn at Melnick was very good to deal with. When my 18 year old truck needed an immobilizer installed, we had them do it.
Ray
My wife's 93 Eagle doesn't have one. When we bought the car in March of
93, it was via a dealer trade with a dealership in Houston. We showed up at our dealer about the same time as the car arrived from Houston, and I intercepted the prep guys before they could slap a sticker on it ;-)I do still have the dealer plate frame, but it came off the car as soon as the dealer plates came off.
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