Was advised by my salesman that his dealership "... should be getting allocations from the factory in November for 'Spring' arrival." I've already sent him my configuration. Just waiting for his call!

 

You seem to think that being in the Insider Program (particularly since 2018) actually makes any difference... Did you actually READ the General Terms and Conditions of the Taycan Insider Deposit Program? Particularly Paragraph 9 that says:

PCNA shall have no obligation to Prospective Buyer in respect of the Taycan Deposit Program. In particular, but without limiting the generality of the foregoing, by participating in the Taycan Deposit Program, Prospective Buyer shall not acquire (i) any right to purchase a Porsche Taycan vehicle, (ii) any claim against PCNA, Dealer or any other Porsche dealer, or the manufacturer for delivery of a Porsche Taycan vehicle, or (iii) any claim for preferential treatment respecting the purchase of a Porsche Taycan vehicle as compared to customers who did not participate in the Taycan Deposit Program.

So, in exchange for our deposit and participation in the program, Porsche basically agrees to provide NOTHING of any value. (However, I did get some nicely packaged advertising!)

Not only do we NOT get any positional advantage because of our entry into the program, but no one gets any ordering/allocation advantage of any kind! Porsche gets a nice fat list of folks who are seriously interested in purchasing the Taycan (motivated enough to lay down several thousand dollars) but we get NOTHING of any value. Cool, huh?

- Porsche is NOT providing any sort of DEDICATED allocations for Insiders...
- Porsche is NOT even providing any sort of positional (early access) to GENERAL allocations...
- Porsche, in fact, is NOT DOING ANYTHING about allocations for Insiders - you have to work that out with your DEALER.

and

- There is absolutely NOTHING preventing your DEALER from selling their first Taycan allocations to their brother-in-law, some guy willing to slip a couple of bucks under the table, or even folks who just walk in off the street.

Porsche will be the first to tell you (as they have me) that the assignment of allocations is purely up to the individual dealers...

What, exactly did you think you were getting for your "deposit"? Your "deposit" doesn't even guarantee you'll GET a car!

 

For what it's worth, I put my $1k deposit down in March 2018. I got a call a couple of days ago saying if I want an allocation, I need to put down another $4k and submit a build this week. Mid 2020 delivery. So far he says 9 out of 60 people who put down 1k have gone through with it.

 

Yeah, for what its worth... I put down $2000 back in Feb and my dealer is telling me I'll get their very first TurboS allocation as soon as they drop. He also indicated that they also have a bunch of other "deposit" holders that haven't yet decided to pull the trigger... I think I was number 10 on their list (not sure how that shakes out wrt specific Taycan models), but it appears that I'm now #1 in line for a TS allocation. (A portion of the reason I'm now their #1 is likely due to "attrition"...)

I did my config and put in a "demand order" in the second week of Sept and I have a commission number. Apparently this doesn't mean much without an actual allocation to match it against. But my dealer hasn't asked for any additional money (not sure why yours did) and appears to be treating me pretty well. I've even asked them if they needed/wanted any more of a deposit (since I am doing a lot of traveling currently and I don't want to pass up or miss an allocation while I'm out of the country), but they said there was no need. They said they will assign me the allocation based on my initial deposit and will only need to put any more down at the time an actual allocation is assigned. (I'm now hearing early Nov for US allocations but I forget where I read that). So far, it appears everything is being handled as well as can be expected! (This will be my first Porsche and first experience "doing the dance" with any of the brand's dealers).

IMHO: Porsche itself is the one who is giving us NOTHING AT ALL for putting down "deposits" for the insider program. It appears they are relying on the dealers to pick up all the slack and make sure allocations are "fairly" assigned. From a corporate perspective, this is a pretty $hitty thing to do to both the customers and dealers (IMHO)...

 

Great post. When I put down my $5k deposit for a GT3, allocation was in hand with contact executed that the deposit was consideration for purchase at MSRP. The Taycan is not a Speedster where you pay for a spot in line with just a chance to buy.

Dan (would negotiate a less than MSRP price with any deposit for high volume Taycan)

 

Your deposit was never consideration for a contract with Porsche. You gave your dealership a deposit, not Porsche.

Dan (thinks you misunderstood party relationships)

 

The deposit program was just Porsche's way of trying to get a handle on the demand for an electric Porsche. I'm sure they hoped that putting money down would be a better indication of real demand however many people thought they were going to get a Turbo S car for $80k. Coming our with the Turbo and TS models at $150k didn't help with demand and likely scared more than a few people off waiting for a more affordable version.

Evanevery, if you have a commission number then you have an allocation. There should be commission numbers out for the first Turbo cars by now? When your order request is accepted Porsche provides a commission number which follows the car through production. Your dealer would have a production schedule now then as well.

I was hearing that the first cars were not supposed to be sold but I'm not sure how they intend to control that.

 

I surely DON'T have an allocation yet and I've read (somewhere) that, although a commission number is important, the fact that mine is tied to a "Demand Order" is relatively meaningless.

Not sure if its safe/wise to post my commission number here so suffice it to say its 6 digits long, begins with "D19" and is clearly printed on my build sheet.. The build sheet shows the order type to be "KF - Customer Vehicle" with a status of "V070 - Order demand released for order" and dated 09/11/2019. (My build code is PLDS93N6) My dealer is also quite clear they are still waiting for allocations.

...anyway, just waiting for an allocation to come along. I believe my dealer is treating me very well, so no worries there. Just up to Porsche to release them and hoping my dealer gets one/some in the first round...

Also (hfm), I may have given the dealership the actual deposit, but I signed up for the "Insider Program" via the Porsche Website so they are very much part of the agreement. Regardless of who actually took possession of the deposit, the actual agreement for the "Porsche Taycan Deposit Program" is clearly designated as to entered into with "Porsche Cars North America, Inc" and NOT my dealer! The first paragraph of the agreement begins with "Porsche Cars North America, Inc. ("PCNA") offers prospective buyers..." (I have attached a copy of the agreement if anyone wants to review it.)

So, no, the agreement is OFFICIALLY with Porsche, not the dealer. Its just that they conveniently authored their agreement to ensure they owe us absolutely nothing. Although I knew this going in (as I read the agreement) I still think its pretty $hitty that they should not care to give us anything of value and effectively leave their dealers holding the bag. Additionally, there is nothing in the agreement which transfers any responsibility of anything to their dealers either... ("Any agreement regarding any deposit placed by Prospective Buyer shall be solely between Prospective Buyer and Dealer".) So, basically, the "agreement" is that there is "no agreement". Basically, "give your dealer some money and work it out with them should they actually get an allocation at some point"... Its truly an amazing corporate agreement to specifically say that this program is of absolutely no value to anyone who enters into it! Brilliant! Thank You!

Porsche has not created any special block of allocations for "Insiders", has not implemented any mechanism to reserve early allocations to "insiders", and doesn't even assure that a particular dealer will get ANY allocations at all regardless if they are holding "insider" deposits or not. If you gave your deposit to a low volume dealer you could really be screwed I think...

As a (potentially) new Porsche customer, this all seems pretty Cavalier on their part (and wasn't that a Chevy thing?).

 

Paragraph 8 clearly states any agreement between prospective buyer and dealer is solely between buyer and dealer and, that Porsche is not a party. This means, you needed to come up with any terms you wanted to have with your dealership for your deposit. If you wanted to be first in line, 2nd in line etc, you needed an agreement with your dealership in consideration for your deposit, not with Porsche. If all you did was pay a check without agreeing to terms for the deposit other than perhaps a refund if you choose not to proceed, then you're at the dealers mercy as to the timing of allocations.

I was asked summer of 2018 by my dealership if I wanted to put down a deposit. I declined. When ready, I’ll reach out to my SA, ask him to set up an allocation, will work out terms 5% to 9% under MSRP and, pay a deposit along with a written agreement for the pricing. Your situation maybe totally different. You may want to be the first guy on the block with a Taycan and, that may mean you pay MSRP or perhaps even an ADM. I could careless about being first so, I’ll negotiate favorable terms.

Dan (is just trying to help you with your Porsche buying experience and wishes you best of luck)

 

Yes, I clearly know that. (I actually quoted that statement in my prior message). The point is that our agreement with Porsche NA is specifically designed to say we have no agreement with Porsche NA. Kind of slippery don't you think? Especially when Porsche NA CORPORATE sets up this "Insider" Program to get people in a program which demonstrably offers us nothing and then offloads all the folks to the dealers with no thought/planning/caring related to the associated allocations.

...and yes, I knew that going in, but I really sorta thought they MIGHT do SOMETHING for us (but just didn't want to back themselves into a corner). Guess nothing like that's gonna happen...

My agreement (with my dealer) was/is MSRP and I don't care about "being the first guy on the block" . My block's not that big and I just want my car sooner than later... I've had my Model X for about 3 years now and I'm looking forward to a new DD EV to replace it.

This will also be my first Porsche so I'm also anxious to see what the brand has to offer. So far, my dealer is treating me pretty well, but I'm certainly NOT impressed with the company from a Corporate perspective...

 

Evan, it was your responsibility to negotiate allocation position with your dealership. If you didn’t do that, you don’t have any standing to complain Porsche isn’t doing something about it when they’ve been saying since inception that they don’t have anything to do with it. When you purchase the car, you are purchasing the Porsche from the dealership. You are not purchasing from Porsche directly as you did with Tesla. Perhaps that’s why you’re confused about your situation.

Dan (doesn’t have anything else to add)

 

You seem to think I'm confused? You also seem to think I don't understand what Porsche NA's position is? Maybe you also think I don't understand the agreement? ...or that I'm unhappy with my dealer or my position with them? NONE of that is true.

...and purchasing from Tesla directly has NOTHING to do with any of this.

I'm NOT confused...I understand Porsche's Position...I've read the agreement. I'm just completely underwhelmed by Porsche's position in all this!

Lets see if I can better illustrate my dismay:

A CORPORATE entity (Porsche NA) sets up a CORPORATE program ("Taycan Insider") to gather deposits on a product (to be collected/held by franchised dealers). Then that CORPORATE entity does absolutely NOTHING to help their franchises have allocations to meet any/all of the deposits they gathered.

Basically, "Here's our National Corporate Program to gather deposits on the Taycan, but, Oh, By the way were not going to do anything, or promise anything at the corporate level to help you get that vehicle. Just give your dealer a deposit and work it out with them. You know, kinda like the program never existed at all. We're not gonna even ensure they get an allocation to match your deposit."

Hell, I can start my own Taycan Insider program with the same kind of support and promises...

The Corporate "Taycan Insider Deposit Program" is like a program that doesn't really exist in any way. You don't really get anything from it. You just work out buying a vehicle from your dealer as if the program never existed. That's my point.

 

If you're not confused, then you are not understanding.

Evan = E
Middleman Dealership = D
Manufacturer Porsche = P who says in paragraph 8 "Any agreement regarding any deposit placed by Prospective Buyer (E) shall be solely between Prospective Buyer (E) and Dealer (D). PCNA (P) does not dictate the content of the contractual relationship between Prospective Buyer (E) and Dealer (D) with respect to the deposit and is not a party to any such agreement."
Taycan = T
Deposit = $

1. E contracts with D for the possibility of a purchase of a T by paying $.
2. E signs up online with P and gets the response that any agreement about $ is between E and D, not with P.
3. E now complains that P is not dictating to D the terms of $ directly contrary to the terms of 2 above.

E did not understand 2.

Dan (must prefer responding instead of working)

 

Nice math and I understand completely (not sure why you would think otherwise).

The "Taycan Insider Deposit Program" is NOT a program designed in any way to HELP get cars into the hands of early adopters in EXCHANGE for their advance deposits.

The "Taycan Insider Deposit Program" is merely an ADVERTISING campaign to get folks to place a deposit with a dealer regardless of if/when that particular dealer will get allocations. The Program specifically offers nothing to its "insiders" and it apparently delivers nothing to its "insiders".

 

Correct. If you wanted help to get your car in your hands as an early adopter, you needed to have negotiated that with your dealership. I understand how you think because Porsche set up the program that somehow they should be responsible but, they just simply, factually and actually are not. It's just you and your dealership regarding the issue of deposit / allocation.

If your dealership has been good to you as you say, you should reach out to your SA and, if you didn't negotiate in 2018 early allocation, try to do so now. At least try to get an idea of your placement and, the next time you buy a Porsche, remember before you cut any check, that you get whatever term you want for that money from the dealership or walk from the deal if they're not reasonable. Don't expect PCNA to do anything for you because, they wont.

Again, good luck.