the combination of a white-hot new car market, a slew of delays, and an incredibly sought-after product has worked out in ford dealers' favor. across the country dealers are adding thousands if not tens of thousands of dollars of markups to broncos on the lot. those who want one today will have to pay up or get in line. but when you finally get to the front of the line, don't assume you're safe: some shady dealers are trying to add huge markups to pre-ordered broncos just days before delivery.
that's what happened to the couple that runs the pipsburgh views youtube channel. after about a year of waiting for their bronco 4-door outer banks—which they ordered from a dealership that the husband used to work at—the couple was notified six days before delivery that the dealer was adding $10,000 markup over the msrp they had agreed to. their $52,810 truck became a $62,000 hostage overnight. they countered with $5000 over sticker, already a wild concession, but the dealer isn't sure whether to accept. after all, the business knows if the couple denies delivery they can sell it off the lot for a wild price.
unfortunately, this doesn't appear to be an isolated incident. another user in a thread on the bronco6g forum says his dealer tried to pull the same thing, forcing him to move his order. another in a facebook group spotted by automotive writer zerin dube says that his dealer is trying to squeeze another $5000 out of him at the last minute. others say that their dealer will not commit to a price until the truck comes in, reserving the right to add markups and effectively negating the purpose of ordering directly. and in these situations, many expect a call from ford will clear things up. according to ford spokesperson mike levine, that strategy might not get you far.
"msrp is msrp," levine said in an email to road & track. "dealers are independent franchises and ultimately the final price a customer will pay for any vehicle is agreed between themselves and a dealer that’s at, below, or above msrp. if a customer isn’t happy with their dealer experience, our team can help them find a different dealer that’s a better match."
these markups are nothing new. american auto dealers have a history of adding money to hot, anticipated cars. but it's particularly weird and predatory to add markups to special-order cars, especially when the original order was for a vehicle at msrp. we must reiterate that you should never pay above sticker price for a vehicle that is not highly limited in production and even then you may not ever make that money back. the bronco is good, but few cars ever have been worth tens of thousands over their sticker price.
from: road & track