An open letter to Jeep/FCA

[NCIC105]

People need to understand they are buying a Fiat Chrysler. Tread carefully folks. These aren’t Toyotas.

Thank God, I wouldn’t want a Toyota

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[TopPinArcher]

I’m not sure what people expect when they special order a Jeep? FCA is breaking records with new orders. Customer care is doing their best to appease buyers/owners but what are they supposed to do when they see the same build status that the buyer can see, they can’t advance the status. Eventually supply will exceed demand just like what happened in 2006 for the 2007 model JK’s and again in 2010 with the new 3.6L.....

 

[DanFelix]

A long time ago I ordered a Scrambler (CJ8) while living in southern NJ. Months went by. Called many times and finally went to the dealer's lot. The car I ordered was sitting in the back lot, visibly there for weeks. Turns out the dealer was trying to sell it for more than our agreed price since my options selection had become popular. I suspect he was hoping I would give up and cancel the order. I confronted him, got the car prepped and left with my order. My conclusion was that car buying is almost exclusively a dealer controlled event.

My current JL Sport S 2-dr, 3.6l, hardtop was found by my searching a 5-state area from SoCal. The car I wanted was in SD, 200 miles away. Drove it off the lot. I do believe that the car a person wants is most likely 'out there' waiting. Car buying is a messy, often bloody, sport.

 

[Solidaxle]

If venting makes you feel better then mission accomplished you should feel better , if your hoping for anything more than that forget it. A letter like that to a company that is selling as many widgets as they can manufacture has no affect. the market demand is so strong letters like this fall on deaf ears. Now if sales were struggling and they were having trouble they might be more receptive to criticism. But it’s actually the opposite is happening , people love these jeeps they can’t get enough and every country wants more and more and more.

 

[RussJeep1]

If venting makes you feel better then mission accomplished you should feel better , if your hoping for anything more than that forget it. A letter like that to a company that is selling as many widgets as they can manufacture has no affect. the market demand is so strong letters like this fall on deaf ears. Now if sales were struggling and they were having trouble they might be more receptive to criticism. But it’s actually the opposite is happening , people love these jeeps they can’t get enough and every country wants more and more and more.

I liked this post for the accuracy I believe it conveys. I am not happy about this, and suspect that its author @Solidaxle, and many that read it aren't as well.

 

[Frostbit]

Unless you live at the North Pole I’m sure there is a dealership somewhere within a reasonable distance.

North Pole has a Jeep dealership.

https://www.bernardsnorthtown.net/north-pole/

 

[TrailTorque]

North Pole has a Jeep dealership.

https://www.bernardsnorthtown.net/north-pole/

Sweet!!

 

[iznthesky]

Buying from the lot is great if you want the 4 door automatic hardtop and are flexible on the color and options. But somewhere along the line the "traditional" 2 door manual transmission Jeep has left the dealer lots at least where I live.

Ditto; Manual Transmission Rubicon 2 Dr.....was a unicorn. Had to order it, but it was worth the wait and worth the huge savings $ $ .

 

[Sorbs]

Ditto; Manual Transmission Rubicon 2 Dr.....was a unicorn. Had to order it, but it was worth the wait and worth the huge savings $ $ .

Bingo, same here. Got it as I wanted it and saved big bucks. Didn’t need to haggle, pay extra for dealer add on’s or other shinanagins. I also find it rewarding to get calls from the other dealers I tried to give my money to asking what they can now do to earn my business. When I tell’m what I paid they all say the same thing. “Wow, that’s a great deal.”

I want to thank this forum for helping me out and pointing me to the right dealer and sales person. Very happy!

 

[nerubi]

A long time ago I ordered a Scrambler (CJ8) while living in southern NJ. Months went by. Called many times and finally went to the dealer's lot. The car I ordered was sitting in the back lot, visibly there for weeks. Turns out the dealer was trying to sell it for more than our agreed price since my options selection had become popular. I suspect he was hoping I would give up and cancel the order. I confronted him, got the car prepped and left with my order. My conclusion was that car buying is almost exclusively a dealer controlled event.

My current JL Sport S 2-dr, 3.6l, hardtop was found by my searching a 5-state area from SoCal. The car I wanted was in SD, 200 miles away. Drove it off the lot. I do believe that the car a person wants is most likely 'out there' waiting. Car buying is a messy, often bloody, sport.

Easy to say living in a highly populated area with lots of dealerships. I searched a 150 mile (most Jeep build site allows) radius of Omaha, Des Moines, Kansas City, Chicago, and Denver. And found what I was looking for - 2 dr Rubicon, black, hard top, 3.6, auto, LED, steel bumpers, tow, infotainment - 450 miles away in Cheyenne, Wyoming. One problem, it's a 2018. It also has $700 in other options I don't need. So they need to give me $4,000 off MSRP that I have on my 2019 order, plus take off the $700 for the options I don't need plus another $3,500 for it being a year old already (when I go to sell it all the dealer will care is that it is a year older than the year I bought it. It has been on the dealer's lot for 90 days so I'd think they want to sell it but they want me to drive out there before giving me a price. That's a no go.

 

[GlowingGhoul]

A petty and shortsighted reason to leave the Wrangler line. You obviously keep vehicles for over a decade. You already know what to expect with service from your local Jeep dealer. You say you have over 10 years of great memories thanks to your old Wrangler. An irritating ordering delay amounting to a handful of weeks, and therefore choosing some other vehicle to spend the next decade+ with sounds like an emotional tantrum, not a rational decision.

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