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Lack of availability - 2010 Honda Pilot
I live up in MA and from my experience the past 3 weeks can honestly say - Honda didn't make enough of the Touring trims.
Negotiated a fantastic price on a Touring model and an excellent value for our trade-in.
Problem #1 - couldn't find many Touring models with just NAV (don't need the DVD/RES).
Problem #2 - color selection is extremely limited: hardly any whites (our 1st choice) and not many silvers (our 2nd choice). Sure- we could probably grab one of the blue cars easily but that color just doesn't appeal at all.
Problem #3 - dealers are unwilling to trade for Touring models. I think they caught on early that alot of buyers would go for the Touring model over the EX-L with just NAV because it was only a little more. Now dealers are selling them like hot cakes.
So, we either have to travel 200+ miles to hope we can get one or just sit and wait. Both options are not promising. I asked 4-5 dealers about December inventory and between them they were getting in 2 Touring models. (of course neither was white or silver).
This is my 15th car and I can honestly say I have never had this type of difficulty buying a car. Back in the 1990's I ordered a custom configured VW Passat from Germany and it was delivered in just under 4 weeks. Besides that I have never had an issue with dealers locating and trading for a specific color. Maybe 1-2 days tops.
What's going on? Is Honda's production that low that dealers are hoarding?
Very frustrating! Going on week 3 and financing is good for 30 days - I really don't want to start all over again. And to make matters worse- the dealer we have dealt with has a deposit - just another bridge to cross should they (gulp) not be able to sell us a car.
Negotiated a fantastic price on a Touring model and an excellent value for our trade-in.
Problem #1 - couldn't find many Touring models with just NAV (don't need the DVD/RES).
Problem #2 - color selection is extremely limited: hardly any whites (our 1st choice) and not many silvers (our 2nd choice). Sure- we could probably grab one of the blue cars easily but that color just doesn't appeal at all.
Problem #3 - dealers are unwilling to trade for Touring models. I think they caught on early that alot of buyers would go for the Touring model over the EX-L with just NAV because it was only a little more. Now dealers are selling them like hot cakes.
So, we either have to travel 200+ miles to hope we can get one or just sit and wait. Both options are not promising. I asked 4-5 dealers about December inventory and between them they were getting in 2 Touring models. (of course neither was white or silver).
This is my 15th car and I can honestly say I have never had this type of difficulty buying a car. Back in the 1990's I ordered a custom configured VW Passat from Germany and it was delivered in just under 4 weeks. Besides that I have never had an issue with dealers locating and trading for a specific color. Maybe 1-2 days tops.
What's going on? Is Honda's production that low that dealers are hoarding?
Very frustrating! Going on week 3 and financing is good for 30 days - I really don't want to start all over again. And to make matters worse- the dealer we have dealt with has a deposit - just another bridge to cross should they (gulp) not be able to sell us a car.
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2010 HONDA PILOT TOURING Price $39,355 Color Silver Interior Color Gray
Vin 5FNYF4H88AB021765
Honda Gallery 260 Main Street North Reading, MA 01864
The other problem I have is that the dealer I have been working with has a $500 deposit of ours. We also negotiated a rock bottom price with them and I am concerned that if I take my business elsewhere I might pay more or perhaps be in the same ship- without a car!
Thanks for the heads up!
When there is not your choice why you deposited $500, don't understand. Must be dealer's bait and switch to something else and give you another price, of course higher profit. I bet they won't get the one you want and persuade you to buy something else, thus the rock bottom price will never apply. I can come up with many different stories, and I am sure they can too. They can offer you a car that never exist and significantly $1000 less than any other dealers can offer, you got hooked went down there and they start the slaughter.
As you know the choice of yours is so few the price won't be rock bottom, economy 101: supply and demand. You don't buy it, some one else will. Blame it on Cash For Clunkers.
I agree with what you are saying. They already tried to get me to buy the Touring with RES but I can't justify the extra $1600 just for a DVD player.
I actually had 3 dealers all agree to the pricing but it really came down to who would go the highest on my trade in. With the new Pilot they also give a lifetime power-train warranty so I thought that was a plus. They honestly said it was much more difficult to get the vehicle than they expected because other dealers weren't willing to trade.
I guess I'm going to give it a day or 2 as they said they would go into NY to get one if possible. If after the 2 days they cannot produce the vehicle I'll ask for my deposit back and just go hunting on my own again. I don't think getting the deposit back will be a huge issue because when we agreed t the pricing they did not have the car on the lot and said if they couldn't get it before Thanksgiving then the deposit would be refunded.
Of course that is a risk, but there is nothing else I can do at this point....
Unless someone else has some sort of alternate idea ???
The other common reason for asking for a deposit is because the dealer doesn't want to get stuck with a hard to sell car, but that's not the case here.
Maybe the threatened loss of a sale will increase their motivation. to find your Pilot. Or maybe they'll offer up a better deal on the RES one. Hard to say.
I'll have to discuss that with them - they know they are running out of time with me.
As far as getting a RES model, I told them they literally would have to lose money on the deal if they wanted to substitute it just to appease my color preference. They were wiling to go fairly low, but I still can't justify that much extra money for a DVD player!
Hey Dman72, I'll send a white Touring out your way if you send us back the Blue!!
Good luck with your continued search.
Not sure why the dealers are burning bridges with the Touring model. I think not trading now could lead to alot of dealer wars in years to come.
My other concern is that with Black Friday coming, the limited Touring models out there are going to be sold - no matter what color. The December outlook is also grim.
What was Honda thinking?
There is one dealer here in town that is sitting on five of the Touring models. The salesman gave us a quote $2000 more than any other we received knowing that they had the bulk stock within central Ohio. He still would not budge on price knowing he had the upper hand in stock. My wife and I were not happy with this and found a great dealership just outside of town that continue the search for our color combo.
The dealerships know the Pilot Touring models are in short supply and seem to not want to budge when it comes to trades. I'm hoping we don't have to long a wait until I get that phone call saying our model has been secured. Like you said, with Black Friday coming this week and the Honda financing deals currently available, the stock is going to deplete rapidly. You would think if Honda saw the demand for a certain model, they would start pumping more out to the dealerships. Here's hoping the best for both of us. Good luck.
BTW....in case you wanted to compare pricing....we have our quote for the Touring with NAVI and RES for $36,953, destination included.
$36,953 is an excellent price for the model. We of course want the non-RES model and we have it at $35,700 but it includes a lifetime powertrain warranty (added on by a third party company) - but still- we would be able to get the engine and other components covered serviced under the warranty anywhere in the US. Not bad.
Won't matter much if they can't get the car for us!!!
As '09 Inventories Deplete, Who Will Blink First - Carmakers or Customers? (AutoObserver)
Any suggestions? Should I ask for my deposit back and just go hunting for the Touring in the color we want elsewhere?
I just checked inventory for Boise and there are five 2010 Pilots at the one dealer here.
I don't understand the styles - one of the ones here is an EX-L with the RES. The other EX-L doesn't mention RES. Edmunds lists the Touring as a separate style.
If that link doesn't work, you can go up to the New Cars tab and drill down to the 2010 Pilot and then click on the View Inventory link. Then you could look around at some cities you'd be willing to fly to and see what's in stock there.
You've posted over in the leasing discussion here - I'm not following the Prices Paid one. So check in there for other recent deals. You may be able to draw out a lurcker who's not following this discussion or the leasing one.
If RES is a deal killer, then you're going to have to keep looking. At this point I don't know why you couldn't look while asking your dealer to trade for one, so they'll keep looking too. Maybe clarify with them that your deposit is refundable if you find a different car somewhere so you avoid any potential hassle there.
Since you want a white one, why not a trip to Florida? White has to be a popular choice there. Hit the beach and then enjoy a nice cruise home (don't call me when the Blizzard of 2009 hits though :shades: ).
We might just have to go for a RES Touring because it seems that would increase our chances of getting a white or silver model. Otherwise- we'll have to travel!
Make sure they are willing to refund your $500 and also be willing to travel!
It's a pain huh! Totally didn't see this coming....
I've extended my search to other dealers within 150 miles. I'll have to deal with getting my deposit back later....UGH!
I went to cars.com and emailed 4 dealers that had the exact model we wanted. The Touring model without RES. Within 3 minutes I received 3 calls and 2 emails. Out of the 4 dealers only one would guarantee the price- $35,600 in writing.
So looks like I'll get the exact car we wanted after-all. To be continued tomorrow....
And lets hope the original dealer gives our security deposit back as they promised!
I'm not thrilled with our dealer after hearing from them this morning. Our salesman called my wife this morning and had a discussion with her saying he would try his best to find the color combo we're looking for but we must decide fast if we want to purchase the current one they have in stock. Apparently he told my wife the Honda financing special ended on Nov 30th and we would only have a week to make our decision. I immediately told her that it wasn't true and quoted the dates directly from Honda's website, "through 1/4/2010". Can't believe he lied to her over the phone. With that said, I'm giving him until Wednesday then moving on, hopefully able to obtain the same price we were quoted. If my wife and I are spending $40K on a new car, we're going to wait or drive to get the car we want.
I'll keep you updated. Let us know how things go dman.
Actually saving $200 by traveling to a dealer that has a white Touring model on their lot. I sent out the email from cars.com (sorry Edmunds- cars.com was easier to search inventory) and as mentioned got responses by phone and email immediately.
I read reviews on the dealers that responded on dealerrater.com and the sales manager that contacted me saying he could definitely match our price and had the car on his lot just happened to be a highly rated dealer. (although 45 minutes away- not a big deal) I also found that reviewers all said the internet buying process was very easy. Great!
So we head out today to sign paperwork and hopefully will have the car tomorrow. (credit union check is being cut and FedEx'd from NY)
What I learned from this experience: buy off a dealer lot! I won't get the lifetime power-train warranty the other dealer was throwing in but then again- they didn't have a car....AT ALL!
The original dealer is only getting one Touring model in for December- a Bali Blue. Oh well....their loss.
I got the white Touring model (Nav but no RES) at $35,700 and negotiated up my trade in on the 2008 Element LX to $17,000. Pretty good deal overall.
As mentioned, I emailed several dealers and only one responded back confirming they agree to the pricing I wanted via email. I went in and signed paperwork in under an hour. Done deal.
I pick the car up today. The original dealer also had no problem refunding my deposit - they said they simply could not trade for the car we wanted so it was only fair.
Looks like everything worked out in the end.
The dealer also threw us a curveball at the last minute with a 2009 Pilot (white) with 11,000 miles and $3,000 in accessories. They said they didn't put the car online because it was a demo but they wanted $37K for it. We stuck with the 2010.
My wife and I picked up our new Bali Blue Pilot with Nav and RES yesterday. We were tired of the lack of communication and interest from our local dealer and decided to take matters into our own hands. We had to drive 140 miles on the busiest travel day of the year for the color combination we wanted. It was more than worth it.
Included were the premium running boards and all season mats for $37500. Apparently the manager of the dealer had been driving the car for a few weeks so they knocked down the price because it was considered a "demo". Car is in perfect condition. I'm happy the search is over and we have exactly what we hoped for.
Dman, I'm glad everything worked out for both of us in the end. It's amazing what you can accomplish when you do things on your own. Good luck and Happy Holidays.
We love the Pilot - it's a very nice ride and the features are outstanding. I'm still getting used to the NAV and other little bits of technology but I can already tell we will keep this car for a very long time!