Fusion Rebates - Dealer said rebate only applies to cars on the lot

[jmac760]

They lowered the rebate to $1,500 on Dec 3rd. Now I have to get a loan for 3 mos. to get the $2,000 I expected. Dealer stated can't get the rebates applied until the car shows up. Anyone know if this is true?

Edited December 6, 2013 by jmac760

[ChrisFra]

As I understand it, the applicable rebates ARE determined by the date you take possession of the vehicle, BUT if you're factory ordering a car, they have a rebate guarantee policy. If there are better rebates in place when you take possession, you get the better rebate. If the available rebate is less, you get what was applicable when the order was placed.

[ChrisFra]

BTW, I got different stories from different dealers when I ordered my car, but most seemed to agree on the policy described above.

[Triple-Tap]

As I understand it, the applicable rebates ARE determined by the date you take possession of the vehicle, BUT if you're factory ordering a car, they have a rebate guarantee policy. If there are better rebates in place when you take possession, you get the better rebate. If the available rebate is less, you get what was applicable when the order was placed.

 

This is pretty much spot on from what I've heard/experienced. You can "lock" in those higher rebates at the time of signing your initial paper work (even initials on the dotted lines would suffice as a lock). Or they'll give you the higher rebates at the time of delivery. This is probably because they don't want people rejecting the car and then reordering it at the higher rebate.

 

The only thing that seems to be in the air is the $750 cash coupons. Some people could lock those in even if delivery is after expiration date and some people can't. This part can be frustrating lol

[akirby]

Dealership paperwork doesn't "lock" in the rebates - that has to be done with Ford because the rebates come from Ford not the dealer. The dealer has to lock them in with Ford. The rules are different between the U.S. and Canada also - Canadians have had the choice of rebates for years but that was only made available to most dealers in the U.S. the last 2-3 years.

[ReadySetSmoke]

Dealership paperwork doesn't "lock" in the rebates - that has to be done with Ford because the rebates come from Ford not the dealer. The dealer has to lock them in with Ford. The rules are different between the U.S. and Canada also - Canadians have had the choice of rebates for years but that was only made available to most dealers in the U.S. the last 2-3 years.

I can verify that. I've been given the choice of rebates and financing and other incentives at time of order OR time of delivery on the 3 vehicles I've ordered since 2005. I could take the better option, but it had to be the entire deal, I could not choose the finance rate at time of delivery and the rebate at time of order, it had to be package A or B. Typically they offer a lower interest rate with a lower rebate, or a higher interest rate with a higher rebate, so in the end it usually works out to be a very similar price. It all depends on how they want to run the commercials. They can brag about 0% financing, but don't mention the $500 rebate, or can brag up the $2500 in price adjustments, but don't mention the 5.9% financing. It's just a game played by the marketing folks, and everyone does it, not just Ford.

Edited December 6, 2013 by ReadySetSmoke

[phil1336]

 

This is pretty much spot on from what I've heard/experienced. You can "lock" in those higher rebates at the time of signing your initial paper work (even initials on the dotted lines would suffice as a lock). Or they'll give you the higher rebates at the time of delivery. This is probably because they don't want people rejecting the car and then reordering it at the higher rebate.

 

The only thing that seems to be in the air is the $750 cash coupons. Some people could lock those in even if delivery is after expiration date and some people can't. This part can be frustrating lol

Usually the Special Cash Coupon Offers that are mailed to Individuals and are only good for the Person named on the Coupon have an expiration date that the Vehicle must be purchased and the Buyer must take deliver by. The Dealership must enter the Special Code into their VINCENT Report# for getting credit by that expiration date. The only wiggle room is if the Vehicle is expected within a day or two of the expiration date, that Sale/Delivery/Warranty Date is (sometimes) used to process the Cash Coupon and the Car actually leaves the Curb of the Dealership a few days later. I had that experience back in July of 2010 taking delivery of my 2011 Fiesta. Monday was the date of expiration and I actually drove the Vehicle home 5 days later on Saturday. Lost 5 Days of the Warranty for $750 LOL

[akirby]

The coupons are good for anyone in the household so you can use a coupon in your spouse's name or child's name.

[Hydro]

If you were going to pay the car off anyway, take the extra FMC cash by financing at a higher rate. Then pay the loan off the next day. You DO NOT have to wait 3 months. That is only the dealer telling you that so they get a kick back. I did that with my F150. They threw an extra $1000 incentive for financing at 4.9%. The next day called the FMC and asked for a payoff quote. Done deal and took their $1k

[akirby]

Same here but I waited 3 months to help out the dealer. But it's not required to get the rebate.

[Scott Carlton Windell]

Has everything to do with the dealer. Mine offered me the thousand dollar cash rebate then called me to offer a new rebate for 495.00 or something. I used the rebate to ad cooled seats to my car at no charge! My Dealer ROCKS!

[ismo]

When I leased my 2012 Focus I was able to "choose" between the rebates that were available when I ordered my car and the rebates that were available a month later when I picked up my car. Obviously, I chose the ones that saved me the most amount of money.

 

I am financing my new car (still waiting for delivery) and the dealer was very uninformative about whether or not they would honor the newer/better rebates.

[akirby]

Has everything to do with the dealer. Mine offered me the thousand dollar cash rebate then called me to offer a new rebate for 495.00 or something. I used the rebate to ad cooled seats to my car at no charge! My Dealer ROCKS!

 

While that was nice of them to notify you, that's not something they control. When they put the vehicle and your info into VINcent it tells them the available rebates. Since those are direct from Ford to you the dealer has no control over them.

[akirby]

When I leased my 2012 Focus I was able to "choose" between the rebates that were available when I ordered my car and the rebates that were available a month later when I picked up my car. Obviously, I chose the ones that saved me the most amount of money.

 

I am financing my new car (still waiting for delivery) and the dealer was very uninformative about whether or not they would honor the newer/better rebates.

 

The dealer has to lock in the rebates at time of order when your order is placed with Ford. If they didn't do that then Ford may not honor it (whether the dealer does or not is up to the dealer).

[ismo]

 

The dealer has to lock in the rebates at time of order when your order is placed with Ford. If they didn't do that then Ford may not honor it (whether the dealer does or not is up to the dealer).

Thanks for the info.