Triathlonkid

I remember going through this very annoying process when I bought my car. There should be an option to pay with a cashier's check.
I didn't want to wire funds before inspecting the car. Getting a cashier's check could also be annoying as you may have to physically go to the bank and depending on your job you may not be able to just randomly leave to go to the bank between the hrs of 8-5 when they are open

silvertige

Completely normal, reasonable, and quite common.

Triathlonkid

My experience with buying cars has been that the request is common, but not necessarily required aka I have always either ended up writing a check or in the porsche situation, pay with a cashier's check. I've never wired a payment for a car before.

20C4S

You don't just wire money for the amount they tell you to wire. To get there, you must already have a contract ready with the final amount on there. Money sent prior pick up is completely normal. site unseen is your choice. New car just landed with all factory protective tapes still on it I wouldn't worry too much.

CubsFan1

OP - lots of info thrown around here. And I believe someone already mentioned this. At least as I interpret this, the dealer isn’t forcing any type of “pre-payment”. It’s your sole discretion whether you choose to wire the funds before looking at the vehicle and take it for a test drive. Suppose 1.5hrs is an inconvenience for some, understand. But your choice.

Why not drive down Friday, look over the car, which appears to be new and take it for a drive. Once you’re 100% clear this is the one then execute the wire and pick it up another time.

There is nothing nefarious about asking for a wire, as this is standard these days. This takes 15 min to execute sitting next to an associate at the bank.

Good luck and enjoy the new 911.

AlexCeres

Indeed, you can sign all the contracts either electronically or by fedex and have a final invoice (itemized too) before wiring funds. I’ve bought a couple cars without seeing them first in person. CPO or new, and from a reputable dealer. If you don’t trust the dealer, life is hard. They aren’t going to let the keys go until the funds have settled. If you’re unknown to them, a same day wire or even certified check may be unacceptable. There are a lot of ways to defraud dealers. Wires can be reversed. Checks forged. They’ll have seen it all.

If you’re a regular customer, they may cut you some slack. Or not. Up to their discretion, and the GM’s policy.

AlexCeres

Honestly, if you were really bothered, a balloon lease or no prepayment penalty loan is another way to go. You get pre-approved for the loan, and then it’s the dealers problem after you sign to get the bank funds transferred. Their bank talks to your bank and it’s not your problem. You can pay off the loan the next day or whatever.

Res Ips

I wire transferred payment of my car. Its common.

What I did do was have them set the car on a lift so I could see the under side, because it's frequently damaged in transport.

They really balked at that and I told them point blank that I wouldn't process the transfer unless they did.

So they cleared a bay and lifted her. All good.

Then I checked the body and interior for damage, etc. All good there too.

Only problem I noted (and they thought I was crazy0 was the Porsche crest bottom apex on the right front wheel wasn't pointed toward the air valve.

When they straightened it out I pressed the "OK to transfer" icon on my iPhone and the dealer received their payment 12 minutes later.

Obviously, they are on a typically slow Windows based system.

Icegrill

Agree! Get a bank certified check after inspecting the car. This is how I bought mine. The sales advisor drove me to a chase and waited out front in a new 718 we took! Pretty funny experience.

double-o-seven

Firstly, I would advise getting the OTD price clearly written in the contract, and both you and the finance manager should execute the contract first and foremost, either remotely or in person.

Also, make sure to review the contract so that there are no weird pitfalls or hidden costs that you never agreed with.

Then, ask the finance manager or another responsible employee at the dealership to provide the wiring information in writing by email. Also, REQUIRE him to cc that same email to his manager, or you can directly call or email his boss to verify the authenticity of the wire account information. This is for your legal protection in the unlikely event in which the employee who provided you with the wiring information is rogue.

When it comes to wiring a six-figure amount to a car dealership, there is a theoretical risk of a rogue employee providing a scam wire account with a sham Inc or LLC wire account name that sounds like the dealership name, but it may not be. The rogue employee can only pull this trick one time before he/she attempts to flee, but it has happened in some rare instances in US car dealerships.

stonekutter

My dealer initially asked to wire the money before pickup. I said no and they agreed to a cashiers check.

I spent less than 30min at the dealer on pickup day as the paperwork was done online and ahead of time.

null

I don't think common or not common is the issue. The issue is poor customer service. A good dealership should offer customers the option to pay how they want, not an "our way or the highway" approach.

The number of folks trying to pass this off as reasonable (as with the slimeball ADM games many played) and suggesting workarounds, rather than acknowledging that dealers should be working for customers and not the other way around, is a bummer. It's like I'm in Soviet Russia.

Porsche apparently has its customers very well trained.

AlterZgo

So you think it's reasonable for the dealer to release the car to you before you send them the money? Good luck with that.

iheart9k

I paid for my 992T with personal check on a Sat. Since Friday is last biz day of Jun, maybe they cant register the sale before their month/Qtr end if the funds arent deposited? Personal checks will take days. Cashiers Check is usually next biz day.

pitt911

Just did this a week ago, wired money to dealer, , docs signed online
dealer shipped car to me enclosed as dealer is 2 hrs away , saved me a trip
I suggest to op , see if dealer will throw the shipping and job is done. Much better to be in your driveway looking at the car being unloaded as compared to driving couple of hours back and forth
then take car for a nice drive