OH997

I ordered a 997 S in July and was told by my dealer that I would get my car in September. At the time I ordered it he told me some time in August I would have a better idea of the timeframe.

Each time I ask him he says nothing has changed and I can't get an update. Should it be this hard to find out when a car will be built and ship? I know it's a new model. but is this standard with Porsche?

I realize it's only September 1 but if they can't tell me when it will be built then I have a hard time believing the car will arrive this month. My friend ordered a 02 C4S a couple of years back and went through the same thing. It seems some on this board know exactly where their car stands and others, like me know nothing.

Thanks for letting me vent and I am interested in opinions.

ScottS

Quite simply you are not getting the service you deserve for a 100K Car. They do receive confirmation on each step. Did you get an order confirmation for your options and colors? When I ordered my C4s I was given updates all along without asking. All calls were returned promptly. You may want to speak to the GM or move your order elsewhere. of course at this point thats cutting your nose... Good luck.

OH997

I have a confirmed order and I am told at this time it can't be changed. If I move the order I get in the back of the line. Dealer does not call back and it's frustrating. yesterday I insisted that he escalate things so he emailed the Porsche rep but as of the close of business today I have no information.

ScottS

I would speak with the GM and relate your dissatisfaction. Having no update from PCNA is one thing. Good customer service despite this problem is another. Remember, high demand in the beginning may have low demand at the end of the production run. The dealer should be thinking about your long term repeat business as well. Many porsche owners upgrade within the model run as features are upgraded- especially first allocation owners.

If you are not getting service with the order what happens when there is a problem?
Getting in the end of the line may save you a couple of bucks and get the service you deserve. I will pay a premium for time/allocation/availability but I expect premium service. I acknowledge we pay more but they need to deliver some added value for the added monies. I refuse to accept anything less. I vote with my wallet. And you should politely tell the GM that "Your perception of the customer service did not meet your expectations. IF PAG does not communicate with the dealer, that is not their fault. But the .....( fill in specific faiure here) lack of communication/lack of return calls/bad attitude of their sales staff is their responsibility. If this is the experience they find acceptable, you will have to rethink .....this purchase/or future purchases." This gives the dealer a chance to remedy your dissatisfaction and possibly make it up to you on the delivery. SOMETHING to say we know customers who spend 100K on cars do not grow on trees and we appreciate your business.

You are not lucky to buy their car, they are lucky to sell to you no and in the future

Good Luck
( My father is a New Car Dealer- not Porsche)

Poursha

I assume when you say you have a confirmed order, that you've seen the printout from the PCNA system with your car configured with the options you ordered, showing a September production month, and your name associated with it. If not, your dealer can very easily print it out for you while you wait. If they won't, I'd be very suspicious at the least. No reason for dealer to call the Porsche rep--they have online access to the order status of all orders accepted for production. Ask for the order status report.

jcnesq

I agree with both ScottS and Poursha.

While the diplomatic approach with the GM should be the first attempt, if you are still getting the run around then I would tell the GM in no uncertain terms that you will go directly to PCNA and raise hell about your dissatisfaction. The dealers are extremely sensitive to being criticized to PCNA. Have you ever wondered why, after a sale is completed, most dealers will kiss your toenails trying to get you to give them high marks on the PCNA survey about how the dealer treated you?

As Poursha said, the dealer should be able to call up on their computer the exact status if, in fact, your car has been ordered. Search the GT3 board - you will find a lot of detail about what the various codes mean. On the other hand if you were told the car was ordered and it turns out it wasn't, then I would really raise hell. OTOH, possibly there has been a recent delay in updates on cars pending build due to German summer holidays.

MJones

Do you have an order number?
It only takes moments on the dealers EDcs computer to see its status, and all salespersons should be able to do this.

Read the link below for a great overview of the order process
Order Process

rjl

Wow, i ordered back in June. My dealer kept me in the loop the whole way. Lots of emails back and forth. Originally they told me Sept build (as a best guess) but the car has already been built and just arrived at the port in Georgia. They said I should have the car in about 2 weeks. I have a print out with all the options, VIN number etc.. from the dealer. He invited me to test drive their 997s launch car last Sat before they opened. Overall its been a great experience. Like the other posts suggest .... its time to talk to the general manager.

PDQ PDK CAYMAN S

The factory is on vacation till September 3rd or 6th (not sure) after a 22 day shutdown. My car has shown 8 in production for that entire time. The scale is 1 thru 10 to complete. 11 is on the way to the port and waiting for a ship and 12 is on board. This may not be entirely accurate but my dealer related this information to me. I am leaving on vacation and will not see my car till after the first of October. I wonder where my mind will be while on vacation?

OH997

The information I have was printed on 7/15.

This is what I have:

Order reference number - xxxxxxxx
Order Status - mfgcnf
Order Type - stock
No VIN

I have not asked for a new printout so I don't know if anything has changed.

At this point I am disgusted by the lack of information.

I have dealt with this because the service department treated me great when I had my 99 C4 cab.

Alfie, I wish I would have done something with you back in July.

My plan is to contact the dealer today and if I don't get an answer I wil probably pull the plug.

OH997

Latest information. After asking for my sales rep and being told he was "out", I asked for the GM. I was told the dealer had no true GM so I told the other rep I needed to hear from my sales guy ASAP. Magically I got a call back minutes later from my sales guy saying the car would be built in October! I'm pissed and considering pulling the plug. If this dealer had allocation for customer cars and I was truly first in line as promised, could this happen?

Since I live in the midwest an end or October delivery might as well be March 05.

My rep claims he played no games and did not slide anyone in front of me but I am finding this hard to swallow.

Alfie, are you out there?

ScottS

Well you have your info.
Where in the midwest are you?
I used to deal with Concours in Milwaukee and then were good but I have no purchase experience with them. My friends all used Minneapolis based dealers and were happy.

One last factor : how unusual is your car- color/options. A couple of calls may get you a September car if you are somewhat flexible.
Alternatively, cancelling your order may leave them with a car that will sit the winter waiting for a buyer if it is very unique to you ( sunroof delete, F/S Yellow) highly optioned etc. They will work harder not to lose your sale. Factor these in when you approach them again.

Decision time:
If the order is in, then you will get your car as scheduled. But on the other hand ( having lived in the UP in MI) no one wants to pay for a new car that sits until April.
I would simply state my dissatisfaction clearly and ask to be placated.

The opportunity cost of the car for five months has a value to you. Calculate what it is and do not settle for less. What about service credit, techequipement vouchers etc. People respond to reasonable requests when there has been an issue. Remember , in the midwest, there are likely many open slots for Dec-Mar builds. This dealer should try to avoid losing you because the person who takes your Oct Build spec car would likely be another of his customers from Dec-Mar or so.

BTW that is why I always write the details on the terms/bill of sale/order write-up that you and they sign- such as "promised September Build" the same as " mats, colored crests at no charge."


Let us know and good luck.

clubracer6

What city is this dealer in? As a P-car seller myself, I'm pretty ashamed of the service your getting. Perhaps you have a September production slot. If that's the case then your dealer really can't tell you much more than it's going to be built in September. We don't know actual dates until a couple weeks before it actually starts getting built. That being said - no way would a September prodcution car make it for delivery in the same month. October some time depending on the actual production date. I find it hard to believe there's no GM - thats an oddity for sure. This is a lot of money you're spending and you need to get the service you deserve or go elsewhere.

clubracer6

If it's a smaller dealer they might not have had allocation for a customer car until October- it's possible. We had our black demo, but did deliver our 1st customer 997S on Tuesday -but again every dealer's allocation is different.

OH997

I prefer not to list my city since there are so many dealers that I don't want any of them to be guilty by association. The dealer is large so I believe they had the allocations. They received 4 launch vehicles. I was absolutely told when I placed the order that the car would arrive sometime in September, possibly the first week or two.

It's interesting because for the most part I like these guys. I have a dealer who is about 5 miles from my house and i chose to work with this dealer even though they are about 60 miles away(close to my office). The local dealer would have given me the same or a biggger discount and wanted my business, but I felt I owed it to my dealer since the service department had been so good.

I don't want to say that I was lied to because I don't know all the facts. I am not a Pcar dealer so I don't know what should have or shouldn't have been known. It just seems inconceivable to me that I asked once a week since July for my car status and I get nothing until this bomb gets dropped today.