How to Avoid Being Screwed by the Dealer on Your New Bronco Order

How to Avoid Being Screwed by the Dealer on Your New Bronco Order

Brian and Tara Phillips thought they had done everything right. They reserved a Bronco over a year ago, put down a deposit with a dealership Brian had worked at on and off for 19 years, and agreed to pay MSRP or, if it worked out, employee pricing. That was back in March. Yet last week, three days before delivery, he got a text that the dealer was adding a $10,000 markup to the Bronco. How to Avoid Being Screwed by the Dealer on Your New Bronco Order

It came as a side note to the appraisal offer that Moon Township Ford was making on Brian's Tundra. A little side note, snuck in at the last minute, to change the deal. This was supposed to be the first big purchase Tara had planned for herself after re-entering the workforce, a reward earned over eight years of sacrificing to be at home for her kids. With that $10,000 markup, it was about to slip away. They couldn't afford it. How to Avoid Being Screwed by the Dealer on Your New Bronco Order

In the end, as the couple explains in their video on the Pipsburgh Views YouTube channel, they were still able to purchase the Bronco. It didn't come easy, though. In addition to the markup, the dealer had low-balled Brian on the Tundra. How to Avoid Being Screwed by the Dealer on Your New Bronco Order

Eventually, they were able to make a competitive offer on Tara's Toyota Sienna and reduce the markup to $4000, but it still left a bad taste in Tara's mouth. Brian had put two decades of his life into this dealership and they still were forced into a negotiation long after they had verbally agreed on a price.

Everybody keeps saying we should have put a deposit down. We did. Oh, you should have signed the price sheet. We did. You know, you should have only gone with a dealership that you trust. We did," Tara told Road & Track.

Brian is adamant that he's not trying to steer people away from Moon Township Ford. He values that relationship, believes they have typically treated him fairly, and does not want to hurt his friends and colleagues there.

But the experience is so outside the norm that he has to share, with both he and Tara noting that they don't want anyone else to go through this. So yes, sign all of the paperwork, work with a dealer you trust, and get a verbal commitment. But most importantly, get a firm final price—not a quote—in writing as soon as you order.

So How to Avoid Being Screwed by the Dealer on Your New Bronco Order