NPKR

Hello,

I ordered an 2015 S7 with AE color Nardo Gray in April. Order was turned over to manufacturer on May 1, but from what my dealer tells me and email from AoA it has not been built yet. I initially planned on doing the usual dealer pickup but then heard about ED last week and did some reading on it. Sounds amazing... both my wife and I really want to do it. Thinking of taking delivery in Germany in late July/early August.

My question is, does anyone think the dealer will give me a hard time about changing to ED? I understand it involves a bit more paperwork on the dealer's end and some dealerships are not very familiar with ED. I already negotiated 6% off MSRP and Audicare at half-price, which is a bit better than the usual ED discount of 5%.

I want to see what others think before I call my sales rep tomorrow and break the news to him. I'm just hoping he doesn't shut me down and say he can't make any changes now that it's ordered. From what I can tell, changing to ED shouldn't be a problem, but if anyone knows or thinks otherwise please comment.

Thanks

alatsacto

I don't foresee it being an issue, since you are still so early in the process, plus your dealership could always sell that car themselves unless you had some odd colors or upgrades. Here's a question, would you be willing to pay the "higher price" to do ED? Let's say they let you change your mind, but what if they say our previously negotiated price is no longer valid if you want ED. Will you pay the extra 1% to do ED? An S7 starts at around $80k, so you are talking about at least $800. Good luck.

gforaker

I still just can't understand this. If the dealer charges an extra 1% for an ED car wouldn't he be making an EXTRA 6%? The ED 5% discount comes from Audi and does not come out of the dealer profit and since ED cars do not come from the normal dealer allotment, his needed profit is less. This just sounds like dealer games to me.

NPKR

The update is that I will not be taking ED as my dealer refused to change the order from dealer deliv to ED. The manager said that the deal was not negotiated as ED and this is certainly understandable.

Yes, I would have paid the upcharge of 1% to make the discount the usual 5% off MSRP but that was not offered. They just did not want to do ED. Everything I've read indicates dealers generally like to avoid ED at all costs. There is definitely more paperwork and follow-up necessary on the dealer's end of things compared to dealer delivery, but as gforaker says, they SHOULD be making more money on ED. So, why does a dealer not want to make more money? Obviously doesn't make sense.

Then I read this a few days ago....

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/200...very-programs/

It indicates that the dealerships don't get the holdbacks and incentives on ED cars....I believe there's the answer as to why dealers don't like ED. They make less money on the deal and have to do more work as well (arrangements, scheduling, prepayment, etc).

gforaker

Yes, there is still a lot unknown about the pricing. BMW is much more upfront and has a richer ED plan. 7% on top of healthy dealer discounts and no destination charge. MB is similar.

None of the local Audi dealers will budge a penny off of the Audi 5%. They say their normal discount is 2.5 to 3.5% so the 5% should be enough for me. What am I, greedy?

Oh well, the wife has decided upon the S4 so the deal is secondary for her now.

speedylev

Do you know if your order has been released for production yet or is it still in the factory order bank? If it was released for production, do you know when?

Thanks.

alatsacto

Did you make a deposit when ordering the car? You can't simply cancel your order? If you could, I would cancel it and deal with a dealership who WANTS your business. At least you got a good price on your car, but they don't really seem to understand customer service. You could potentially escalate this to Audi of America if you don't mind potentially ruining this relationship with that dealership.

Richard Solomon

I've not seen this to be significant vs ordering for US delivery - I would have "hassled" my dealer about the same amount for an ordered car. Most of the extra paperwork appears to have been directly between me and AoA's ED group. My dealer appreciates another S6 sale without loss of an S6 allocation - and the opportunity to still sell me on extended warranties, fabric protectors, blinker fluid, etc.

My salesguy said it was no skin off their backs to do an ED and he was happy to have the sale either way.

I agree that getting the car in Germany was fantastic, but you will get yours sooner this way, so there are compensations.

[Goes back to infinitely refreshing the BLG site hoping for tracking info.]

gforaker

I think you really need to cancel the order and buy from another dealer. If you do this before delivery I believe they can only hold a "reasonable" amount of your deposit for their inconvenience. Maybe a lawyer here can confirm this. Anyway, I think most dealers would refund everything.

alatsacto

Right unless its already in production and you ordered one with some odd features, which they won't be able to sell, most dealerships would be willing to let you walk away. When I ordered my car for ED, the SQ5 pricing wasn't available yet, but since I needed to lock in my delivery date ASAP, they allowed me to order one Q5 and one SQ5. Then once pricing became available, they allowed me to pick the one I wanted. They weren't that experienced with ED, but they were more than willing to work with me through the process. But I guess it's much easier to sell a Q5/SQ5 than it is to sell an S7. Since you said you are willing to pay that extra 1% to do ED, then I would consider taking this up to Audi of America and/or even Audi European Delivery to see what they can do for you. Customer Service should be your dealership's first priority, but it doesn't sound like they are treating you all that well.