The new wrong van !!!!

[bounty40]

I ordered a new California in September 2014 - 180 Blackberry dsg and a few extras - I wanted to pick it up March the 6th all ready for the summer - The van arrived in the uk January this year all ok, , brilliant .

I had a phone call today 26th March to inform me the van they have is a 140 bhp not a 180 bhp !! - The dealership I have been dealing with said I can have that van until the new one (the right one turns up ) another 16-18 weeks time.!!

Things happen I know this , but the van I have ordered has clear glass, (factory privacy glass is too light ) I had every intention of tinting the windows b pillar, side rails, bike rack, front spoiler and a kenwood sat nav as theses are after market items and a lot cheaper to buy independently rather than from VW. - The dealership wants me to pay in full amount for the 140 (not my van) use it then pay the extra when the 180 arrives. -

Now I don't know if I'm being out of order here, we all know it's the thick end of 50 k - 50k !! for a new van, so I want what I want , I don't want to have a van that has clear glass for 18 weeks and none of the extras I have wanted to fit to it .

I don't want to cause upset as I did get a cracking deal 10% off list price .

But I'am fxd off

What's the solution ??

 

[AlanC]

It is not what you ordered so the problem is the dealer's.

I woudn't pay for anything until they fulfilled your original order.
You put a deposit down on the right vehicle and thereby enter into a contract with the dealer. They would soon jump on you if you didn't pay for the right vehicle.

I suspect if you spoke to a lawyer this would be the case.

The parts are all retro fit by the dealer so these are not an issue. The glass is, but you can put the films on the privacy glass to make them darker should the 180 come with it.

They had better order a replacement quickly though!

Alan

 

[motacyclist]

I take it they've made a mistake and offered you another van while the one to your specification is made, then you will get a full refund when you take delivery of the correct spec van?

If so then you

a. do without for 18 weeks
b. use the one offered.
c. go elsewhere

Bit of a dilemma, but firstly I would go for (b) and try to get some more discount in recompense. If not then (c); I would avoid (a) because I wouldn't want to wait that long

 

[calicasas]

First and foremost they haven't given you details of the 'deal'. If you take the 140 and then pay the difference for the 180 later, I can't help thinking there is a catch here. Will they make you pay the difference for the original 180 price? Or the new 180 price? Will they devalue the 140 after having 'owned' it such that the difference you pay is large? Either way it seems you may lose out.
This is a lot of money, if I were you I would take legal advice for sure.
Good luck and hope it goes well.

 

[GrannyJen]

Take the offered one, wait for your new one, be ever so magnanimous whilst bitching like hell ... "I do understand it is not your fault but for goodness sake I have been so desperately let down that 20 percent discount is not unreasonable, you bunch of unprofessional half-wits, but thank you for working so hard on my behalf, I really do appreciate your remorse and efforts to put an appalling situation right, tossers ...".

 

[BerndRos]

Mistakes happen.......

Seems they are being very fair and accommodating you if as you say you can use the 140 and then pay the extra for the 180 providing the total that you pay is no more than the 180 you originally ordered.

 

[Raggedroy]

Whatever you decide to do make sure you get the deal in writing. I would insist in a signature from the salesman involved and the branch manager. I would agree all payment amounts and terms now. If the dealer doesn't want to do this I would walk away.

will there be a charge for wear and tear on the 140?
will the dealer be able to order a new California when we are told the T6 is soon to be released.
try for compensation such as free servicing
try to get the 140 for free, why should you finance the mistake of the dealer.

 

[Riofer]

I'd ask them to cover the insurance on the temporary van too.

 

[Jaydub]

The dealer could register the 140 as a demo and loan it to you allowing you to keep your money in your bank and only part with money when you get what you ordered.That way they get a bit of impossible to get used stock to sell in the summer and you get 3-4 months of depreciation free motoring.Your only costs would be insurance and fuel.That option is possible.

 

[reserves]

Can you use it to your advantage? Use the140 and see what the T6 looks like? As stated above maybe a chance for depreciation free motoring.

Personally, I'd be wanting more than 10% discount after all the hassle.

 

[Bramco]

The same happened to us. Well almost...

We ordered in March last year. Incidentally never paid a deposit - which I found odd at the time. Anyway after much pestering I finally got a build date of September some time in July and by pure luck happened to notice that the number of options on the build documentation was different to the order. They had lost the auxiliary heater. Actually the one we ordered had been dropped from the options and so the factory had simply left it off the build.

3 weeks of blind rage later and emails to Alex Smith at VW (he was the director of Comm Vehs when we ordered) and we had to reorder although they said they would prioritise this new order. VW threw in a bike rack which we would have bought later and 2 services. The dealership gave us a loan vehicle FOC until we took delivery in mid November. So we had 4 months of free motoring - tax, insurance, depreciation etc.

I don't think the prioritisation really made any difference and the old order only arrived a few weeks before the new one. I had simmered down by then and had reverted to weekly calls not hourly.....

Anyway if you have paid a deposit I would not part with any more money until you have your order. I would use their 140 and enjoy it. Make them do the window tint, our dealership also did this for free but wait with the other styling bits and pieces. I would also try to get some more out of them, like a bike rack, services etc. as compensation.

 

[andyinluton]

Try and do as Jaydub suggests - not on the same scale money wise but I had a similar problem years ago with a Ford Puma at the time when there was a waiting list for them, I was persuaded to pay for & take a car that had been ordered wrong whilst waiting for the right one to turnup. You can imagine my horror to find the dealership boarded up a few weeks later.......

If you've got their van they have a reason to look after you.

 

[Skylark2.0]

Whatever you do you need make sue the right one is ordered today. Today is the last day to order the T5 apparently.

 

[snowy55]

You could buy the wrong Cali at a huge discount and then get this fitted

http://vwcaliforniaclub.com/threads/dtuk-dte-systems-tuning-boxes.8588/#post-86153

 

[Kirk]

Factory privacy is plenty dark enough, go any darker and you are at risk of it feeling very gloomy inside due to all the grey. We have never had a problem with people being able to see in.

 

[holliers]

Very disappointing. I empathise completely. Any alternative to what you had your heart set on is not ideal.

Re: what JayDub says (and I don't want to give any names / dealers away) but I had my van for nearly six months as a "rental" van. I didn't pay a penny during that period, then signed the paperwork six months later. Obviously the dealer got enough commission from the rental and the sale to make this worth their while, but I mention this only to say that anything is possible. Your dealer may have to swallow some commission, but they have screwed up so that seems fair.

I'd get the dealer to loan you the van for 16-18 weeks as a rental (free of charge), keep your money in the bank, and then pay for your van when it arrives.

You get a van for the summer / spring, and the dealer gains a significant incentive to get the problem resolved as quickly as possible.

Plus, what GrannyJen say. Magnanimous pain in the arse is always the favoured approach in my experience.

I hope this works out for you

 

[bounty40]

thank you for all your comments - right all sorted - dealer is going to tint the windows , loan me the 140 California until the new one arrives, and insure it for me, and deliver it to me (dealer is 300 miles away) - 19 weeks at the moment then I pick the new one up on a camping trip . Not ideal but the upside I get free use of the van for however long the new one takes to turns up.

 

[calikev]

Glad you got it sorted

 

[andyinluton]

have a look at the Pan-American thread for ideas where to go in a dealers borrowed van

 

[slowcoach65]

Glad you got it sorted too. Just a word of warning, make sure you know what the excess is if they are insuring it - you might be surprised!

Andy

 

[motacyclist]

Factory privacy is plenty dark enough, go any darker and you are at risk of it feeling very gloomy inside due to all the grey. We have never had a problem with people being able to see in.

Us neither, we often have people trying to peer in and not actually realising we are inside

Glad it's sorted.

 

[holliers]

Good to hear you got it sorted. Enjoy.

 

[Bramco]

Result!! Congratulations.

When I signed for the insurance there was a £25 or thereabouts amount I could pay to get the excess reduced to almost nothing. So do read the small print.

Enjoy!

 

[pjm-84]

Glad you got it sorted Glenn. Up there on Friday to pick ours up. Fingers crossed its right.

 

[calicasas]

The dealer could register the 140 as a demo and loan it to you allowing you to keep your money in your bank and only part with money when you get what you ordered.That way they get a bit of impossible to get used stock to sell in the summer and you get 3-4 months of depreciation free motoring.Your only costs would be insurance and fuel.That option is possible.

Great idea, there's always more than one way of skinning a cat. Making you purchase the 140 van just rings alarm bells! Whatever deal they offer do, do, do get it all in writing. If they don't, as people have said above, just walk away...