🤬 Naughty Bad Dealerships Hall of Shame ("Surprise ADM" List)

[Richtor]

I do not understand how this is not a legal problem for Ford. When I made my reservation I made it on the Ford website and gave them a $100 therefore I started a deal with Ford then they stick these sack of shit dealerships as middleman who are trying to strong arm people.

Ford needs to consider the Tesla model of getting Ordered vehicles to their customers. That way you could walk up to a warehouse pay your MSRP plus delivery and walk away without some sack a shit liar trying to Swindle money out of your pocket.@fordmotorcompany

I can’t stand the Tesla model. If you want to go ahead and pay msrp for any/all mass produced models go right ahead. We won’t even talk about buying at msrp then having one man say they are $5k cheaper the next week.

Id rather buy at invoice or below on mass vehicles and msrp on special vehicles. Find the right dealer and build a relationship with the owner.

Stop buying from large dealers!

Sponsored

 

[phocion]

I do not understand how this is not a legal problem for Ford.

The fine print on the reservation system commits Ford to nothing. It's basically an email marketing list that funnels your name to a dealer. The actual Broncos are sold by Ford to the dealers and by the dealers to you.

It doesn't make any sense in a modern world where large companies have the capacity and the communication abilities to directly manage relationships with millions of customers. But the system has 100 years of inertia behind it (and some laws freezing it in place).

 

[taguirre]

Really sad to hear some of these stories. I got mine from Bowen Scarf in WA state at MSRP and the experience was amazing. Dealers already make 16-18% plus dealer holdback of 2%. a deal at MSRP is a good deal for the dealer.

 

[Virtual-Chris]

Wow. What a shit show!

 

[NORCALGXP]

First off I don't work for them, just a customer and with all the discussions going on about ADM wanted to post.

The Ford Store Mogan Hill from what I understand is the largest volume dealer in the Bay Area. They have four Broncos listed with this statement,

"TFSMH prides itself on transparent pricing below MSRP. Simply click our Get Bottom-Line Sale Price Quote button to learn more about how we do business and receive our bottom-line sale price!"

The MSRP price shown has line through it. They show only stock orders not like some dealers that show the reservation orders also.

The Ford Store Morgan Hill was fast and easy. I locked in my price last year in writing. The price was 450.00 over invoice which was about 1,400.00 under MSRP. I had my reservation at Downtown Ford in my home town of Sacramento and there pricing was fair at straight MSRP, but I happened to see an add on my cell phone when I was in Morgan Hill last year and called them, changed my order to them once I found out the pricing. When I went to pick the Bronco up I was done in less than hour no BS at all. Call and ask for Carlos Fernandez, Sales Consultant, The Ford Store Morgan Hill (408)782-8201.

Hope this helps.

 

[Bronco wannabe]

Thanks for all the work and care involved in putting this together.

I am wondering about one other thing. Remember Ford offered Ford-funded incentives of up to $1,000 per customer for dealers to dispense to reservation holders who were inconvenienced or disgruntled by the excessive production delays?

Did anyone actually get anything out of that in combination with an MSRP transaction? Either by way of a price reduction or in-kind (e.g. service or parts credit. or some kind of gift)? Just wondering if anyone bothered with this. I asked my dealer about it, they basically laughed at me and I'm pretty sure its not worth pursuing.

I got $50k of those funds. I've given it to every customer thus far as a reduction in price from MSRP unless they were an a/z plan buyer. Claimed it through co-op and all have been approved and paid so far.

 

[FoolishClub]

This is crowd-sourced... please link me to the applicable sources and details, and if you see any discrepancies or have any recommendations let me know -- thanks!

Spoiler: Index by state/province

California

Fremont Ford (Newark) - multiple time offender​

Future Ford of Sacramento (Sacramento)​

Hansel Ford (Santa Rosa)​

Sunnyvale Ford (Sunnyvale)​

Georgia

Billy Cain Ford (Cornelia)​

Illinois

Al Piedmonte Ford (Melrose Park)​

Napleton Ford (Libertyville) - multiple time offender​

Maryland

Koons Ford (Annapolis)​

Lindsay Ford (Wheaton) - multiple time offender​

Minnesota

Superior Ford (Plymouth)​

New Jersey

DCH Ford (Eatonville)​

Haldeman Ford (Trenton)​

Woodbridge Ford (Woodbridge) - multiple time offender​

New Mexico

Carlsbad Ford Lincoln (Carlsbad)​

New York

Don's Ford (Utica)​

Pennsylvania

Moon Township Ford (Moon)​

Texas

Autonation Ford Gulf Freeway (Houston)​

Grand Prairie Ford (Grand Prairie)​

Westway Ford (Irving)​

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please investigate the details of each story for yourself. This is a compilation of reported issues, but it's only as good as the information B6G was given.

Westway Ford (Irving, TX) - AKA "Worstway Ford"

• At delivery, @sadiki2527 was charged $24.5k over MSRP ($4k supposedly for tint and other dealer add-ons)
• Customer was an early reservation
• Customer apparently signed a form generated by Westway with MSRP.
• Dealer has not budged yet.

Fremont Ford (Newark, CA)

• At delivery, @94becerra was charged $15k over MSRP.
• Dealership never agreed to pricing with customer, kept telling customer to wait for delivery before talking price.
• Dealership agreed to "lower" price to $8k over MSRP, and @94becerra walked.
• Attempted to charge @stratego $5k surprise ADM; he walked and they listed it for $30k over MSRP.
• Informed @bman3000 in August that all Bronco orders would be $5k over MSRP. Fremont had been evasive about price until then.

Lindsay Ford (Wheaton, MD)

• At delivery, @Smeagolsaur was charged $10K over MSRP.
• Dealer had previously agreed to MSRP in March (when customer also put down a deposit).
• Situation was resolved to the customer's satisfaction after online pressure from B6G.
• Same dealer: At delivery, @Dan303 was charged $3k "market demand" fee over previous agreement, and engaged in other fee and financing shenanigans.

Don's Ford (Utica, NY)

• At delivery of a Dirt Mountain Bronco, @Jack1080 was charged $20K over MSRP -- they later agreed to lower this to $15k over MSRP "for being a good customer".
• Dealer had earlier verbally committed to MSRP; had been providing vehicles to customer's company for 10 years.
• Customer told them to ram the Bronco up their ass, and walked.

DCH Ford (Eatontown, NJ)

• At delivery of a Dirt Mountain Bronco, @Sherminator was charged $10K over MSRP.
• Dealer had a customer-signed DORA with MSRP.
• Situation snowballed badly, involving social media and Mike Levine, and the dealership ultimately refused to sell the MY21 Bronco to the customer.
• Highly toxic situation was resolved to the customer's satisfaction, but ultimately did not result in him acquiring his original Bronco. New order was placed for MSRP.

Billy Cain Ford (Cornelia, GA)

• Upon MY22 reorder of a MY21 reservation, @Luv9rove was charged an extra $13k ADM.
• Customer walked.

Hansel Ford (Santa Rosa, CA)

• Upon MY22 reorder of a MY21 reservation, a deleted user was charged an extra $2.5k ADM.
• Customer walked.

Haldeman Ford (Trenton, NJ)

• When @HadEnough switched from a FE to a Badlands, Haldeman attempted to give the early FE reservation to someone else and generate a new, late reservation for the Badlands.
• With the help of Ford corporate, the original reservation was converted to a new dealership, and Haldeman lost the FE reservation.

Al Piemonte Ford (Melrose Park, IL)

• At delivery, @ChiPlJam10 was charged $20k over MSRP, later lowered to $10k.
• Customer did not have a negotiated price with the dealership.

Koons Ford (Annapolis, MD)

• At delivery, @MRuby was charged $20k over MSRP, later lowered to $7.5k.
• Customer did not have a negotiated price with the dealership.

Woodbridge Ford (Woodbridge, NJ)

• Formerly Bell Ford, this dealership came under new ownership, refunded order deposits, and used this as an excuse to ignore previous price negotiations.
• While in production, informed @Kamikazi_bronco that his Bronco would be $15k+ over MSRP, and that the final price would not be discussed until delivery.
• Informed @broncusmaximus that the written, negotiated MSRP pricing would be voided and "100% guaranteed you'll pay over MSRP".
• At delivery, informed @Bob 07064 that his Bronco would be $14k over MSRP. Customer walked.
• Complaints to Ford corporate were not fruitful.

Grand Prairie Ford (Grand Prairie, TX)

• At delivery, a Facebook user was charged $21k over MSRP.
• Dealership was apparently using reserved Bronco to provide test drives to other customers.
• Not clear if she had a previously negotiated price with the dealership.
• Situation was resolved to the customer's satisfaction after the customer's posts went viral.

Autonation Ford Gulf Freeway (Houston, TX)

• At delivery, @BRBlue was charged MSRP instead of previously negotiated, in-writing X-plan pricing.
• Dealership did sell at X-plan to @TXAG96 but griped about it incessantly and added $548 of unwanted accessories.

Moon Township Ford (Moon, PA)

• Shortly before delivery, a YouTuber who had previously worked at the dealership for 19 years was charged an extra $10k over MSRP.
• Not clear if they had a previously negotiated price with the dealership.
• Situation was resolved to the customer's satisfaction ($5k over MSRP) after the customer's posts went viral.

Napleton Ford (Libertyville, IL)

• At delivery, @amccue90 was charged $5k over MSRP after the dealership made a firm agreement in writing to X-plan pricing.
• Customer ultimately paid $2.5k over MSRP.
• Shortly after scheduling, @Ledbetter was charged $5k over MSRP. Only previous discussion of price appears to have been the order previews (listing MSRP) and failed attempts by the customer to get the dealership to produce a formal purchase agreement.

Sunnyvale Ford (Sunnyvale, CA)

• At delivery, @Paloaltoicu was charged $15k over MSRP.
• Dealer had previously made verbal assurances of MSRP.
• The dealership record on B6G is mixed. For examples of happy customers at this dealership (no mention of pricing) see this thread and this one.

Carlsbad Ford Lincoln (Carlsbad, NM)

• At delivery, @Ralphramst was charged $10k over MSRP.
• Dealer would not commit to any price prior to delivery.
• Situation was resolved (customer bought at $5k over MSRP).

Superior Ford (Plymouth, MN)

• At delivery of an FE Bronco, @SirViper was charged a record $56k over MSRP.
• Details of this story are vague and open to interpretation. Dealer was claiming the customer cancelled and the truck was being sold off the lot at market prices. Customer claimed to never have cancelled.
• Situation was resolved to customer's satisfaction after intercession by Ford corporate and outrage from B6G.

Future Ford of Sacramento (Sacramento, CA)

• At delivery, @JMP4 was charged $9,995 over MSRP.
• Customer had prior agreement to MSRP in writing from dealership.
• Future quickly backed down to MSRP when the customer escalated to the sales manager.
• Same dealer tried the same markup to @Therackmount. This case was slightly different, in that the customer did not attempt to convert a 2020 reservation to an order until MY22 order book opened up in October 2021. Customer was informed of the ADM at time of ordering.

=================================

Is your dealer trying this with you? Go through the steps in this thread.

Is your reservation with a bad dealer? You may have a tough time getting it moved, so be prepared to place a brand new order at another dealer.

=================================

Let's be clear about the scenario this list is for:

• Customer reserved/ordered Bronco and agreed with dealership on a price (in writing or verbally).
• Sometime later, especially after scheduling or upon delivery, the dealership informed the customer that "additional dealer markup" is now being applied above the agreed-upon price.

A few special circumstances will also be included:

1. Dealerships that "steal" a reservation (sell a reserved Bronco to a third party without the customer abandoning the order). Even if this is by accident, it's severe enough to make the list.
2. Dealerships that applied new ADM to MY22 reservations when rolling over orders for MY21 (i.e. punishing the customer for having to wait longer).
3. Dealerships that came under new ownership and "changed the deal".
4. Customers who assumed the Bronco was selling for MSRP, but never actually came to any firm pricing agreement with the dealership, and were later surprised by ADM. This will be very clearly indicated, since some readers will not find the dealer to be entirely at fault in this scenario.

If a dealership later comes to an acceptable arrangement with the customer, that will be clearly noted, but the dealership will not be fully removed from the list. Also, dealerships will not be removed from this list as part of a deal. Customers have no power to directly modify this list and it can't be part of a negotiation.

Additionally, we aren't concerned with what constitutes a legally binding purchase agreement here. If a dealership lies or misleads the customer about ADM, that's enough to make the list.

Inclusion on this list is not a recommendation to avoid the dealer. You can read the details of each case and decide for yourself whether you want to risk a similar experience. The information here is only as good as what the customer provides us; you can read the linked threads and decide for yourself whether the information is accurate and complete.

What this list explicitly does not include:

• Dealerships that are selling marked-up Broncos from their lot (including mannequins) to new customers. Yes, even if it's $50k over sticker.
• Dealerships that have been transparent with their reservation customers about above-MSRP pricing from the beginning.
• Dealerships that surprise customers with dealer add-ons like VIN etching, nitrogen in the tires, etc. that they charge customers for. If you do not want these things, tell your dealership not to do them.
• Dealerships that are rude, dumb, messed up the order, gave priority orders to their friends, or aggrieved customers in any other way. This list is specifically for dealerships using deceptive pricing tactics with Ford's reservation/ordering system.

This is actually a great idea as its a signal to dealers that they can't F around and that what they think might be a single, individual case of poor customer treatment has a ripple effect on their business as a whole. More dealers should know that they can't get away with such unethical business practices without risking damaging their reputation and appearing on the wall of shame in a public forum where valuable prospective buyers from a very vocal and supportive community are sharing their experiences for each other's benefit. Well done and thank you for those who are sharing their experiences despite the headaches!

 

[ZipZit]

Been waiting on this list. Please add AutoNation Ford Gulf Freeway in Houston. They offered me an X Plan equivalent discount to move my day 1 reservation to them. I made sure to get that offer in writing and signed by management before placing the order in March. Just took delivery in December and they refused to honor the agreement. They even threatened to not sell me the Bronco if I didn’t pay MSRP. They pulled this with some others as well.

Clearly gaming the system to get more allocations. I realize MSRP is a good deal in today’s market and others are seeing large ADMs but it doesn’t make me feel any better having been lied to and taken advantage of by this dealer.

I reached out to the GM with all of the details and a copy of the signed agreement and his response made it obvious that this comes from the top down and it’s not just a bad sales team/rep running rogue. They claim that “Ford no longer offers X Plan on the Bronco” and therefore they can’t honor our agreement. Funny thing is I pointed out to them that Ford wasn’t honoring X plan when placing the order and they assured me I would still see the equivalent discount.

Hmm. I'm thinking pay the MSRP, then ask a non partial, third party for their opinion on the matter. What non partial third party? Your local small claims court judge. Keep it simple, make it easy. Most states allow up to $5000 claims in small claims court, generally a $25 filing fee. No lawyers involved. My guess is immediately upon your filing, the dealership will pay up. They don't want to show up in public on an obviously broken written agreement.

Good luck

 

[SoK66]

As a Ford retiree my blood starts to boil when I read this stuff. Never underestimate the automotive industry's retailers' lack of scrupples. All this will settle down as the supply pipeline fills and the lots get full of them, the floorplanning costs start adding up, etc. Then they'll be back to begging people to buy. The poor Bronco program has just been plagued with bad timing and unkept promises.

 

[yogi_stvl]

Folsom Lake Ford in Folsom CA, said 10K markup for Base models going forward and 20-30K for higher end models. I feel really lucky that I didn't have to pay a markup at Elk Grove Ford. The salesman even said he was slightly mad because "he didn't make any money" on the sale. This was back in August though.

 

[MooseF15]

I never had a relationship with a dealer, and I didn’t place an order for a Bronco through a dealership. I got excited about the product because of the product Ford produced and their marketing. When I ordered through the Ford site, I was referred to the closest dealership.

If dealerships are not honoring MSRP, Ford should stop referring customers to them when the car is ordered and deposit paid through the Ford website.

 

[coupon_ninja]

@phocion

Sorry this is a long one, skip to the bottom if you want--
I haven't posted anywhere yet. My issue has been with Koons Woodbridge Ford in Woodbridge, VA (DC suburb)

I placed my reservation in Feb with Cowles Ford (a standalone long time area dealer), and was notified by Ford to place my order before the cutoff in March. I placed my order with the initial salesperson, signed the wbdo, paid a $900 deposit, and settled in for the long wait. Once the hard top email came out, I emailed to change my order to soft top. I didn't receive an answer, so I called the dealer and spoke to another person who entered my order change and confirmed the updated price.

In the next month we sold a vehicle to this dealer, and shortly after that I changed the color option and had the wbdo reprinted to reflect the soft top change and the color change. At this point I was hearing rumblings of last minute markups, and I questioned the salesperson, who confirmed that my signed order confirmation and existing deposit was the agreement. At this point the dealer had been purchased by Koons and was transitioning, and I had recently received an unexpected refund of my reservation fee. I had already looked that up, and confirmed with my salesman that nothing had changed, other than their processing fee was $100 more.

About a month later I was in for an oil change on another vehicle (that, by the way, took 3 hours because their service dept (is -still- in shambles), and asked my salesman for a test drive, since I hadn't taken one that had been offered. The sales man seemed a bit off, but we still had a chat, and I went back to the sales desk for another printout of the wbdo because I had misplaced my copy. I also commented to that guy about price hikes, and he responded with disbelief.

When my delivery date was approaching, I emailed my salesperson and got no response. A week later I called the dealer and was told that he was no longer the "Bronco Specialist" but had been "promoted" to buyer, but would still call me back. I still talked to him even though he didn't have much to tell me, because the guy who had been attempting to answer my questions was a complete buffoon who, I learned later, had recently been transferred from commercial sales and basically knew nothing.

My Bronco arrived sortof unexpectedly because it was still showing in production. My husband was out of town that week, so I went in for my test drive and to get paperwork started. As the new green salesman was turning to get the keys, he just "let me know" that since there had been quite a bit of time that elapsed and "things have changed", that there was a bit of a market adjustment, but since I was a VALUED CUSTOMER, the adjustment was ONLY 5k instead of 10K. I said "well, THAT'S not gonna happen, and you're gonna witness some serious fireworks if something doesn't change. His eyes got big then he starts apologizing all over himself 'OH! NO WORRIES no worries, we'll work something out don't worry I got ya I got ya."

I had the test drive and went back to his desk, and was greeted with another sales offer of 5k over. I demanded to have his manager come out, and had it out with him for a few minutes. He could not stop saying how "that was Cowles, this is Koons" and there was nothing he could do. I repeated myself about how
A: my money and name secured the reservation
B: my money secured MY order for the last 9 months
C: this is not your inventory and you made no attempt to break the contract and refund my money when the change was made
and finally how they are now on the list of shitty dealers that everyone had been compiling over the last few months. He claimed that he would need to talk to "the regional manager" to approve changes, I said call the president for all I care, this is bullshit and you know it.

He came back with my original price and a smug look like he did me some giant favor, with a passing comment how he hopes everything goes well and doesn't want to have a bad rep online. I continued the evening getting paperwork started. The finance guy was "positive" that they could get me a better rate than the credit union check I had in my bag, so I agreed for them to run my credit and give me an offer. I went into his office after like 45 mins of waiting, and sat through his warranty schpiel, then said, "ok, so what umm... this monthly payment - what apr did you come up with... 2.29%? You claimed you could beat 2.19%?"

"Ohhhh, well... I mean, haha, it's like <tap tap tap> like *$3* more a month so..."

"Yeah. Only $3 more a month? So if it's only $3 more a month, then someone else can pay that $3 more a month, right?"

"Well, 2.29 is really the absolute lowest anyone is offering right now... so... here, here lemme check this one last one - yeahh.. no that's 2.29 also"

"ok. So I told you I didn't want my credit run unnecessarily when I literally have a check for more than I need, RIGHT HERE, from MY bank. Why would I be inconvenienced opening an account, for MORE money, at another institution, when my most convenient, cheapest option is already ready to go?"

""

So yeah I think I'm gonna pass on all ... this ... so you can just wrap that up

Let me also add that before he ran my credit he was questioning my 60mo term. I thought he was insinuating that it was long, but the 48 mo had no apr advantage. No, he wanted me to go 72, cuz that makes the monthly payment look better with all the service and warranty lumped in.

He begrudgingly put the new numbers back in the system and we wrapped up. When my husband was back in town we went in and Mr. Finance man was a totally different, sullen robot. He had a small hiccup calling in the authorization to the credit union (they didn't have the vehicle code in correctly and the bank wanted additional options added to the vehicle to justify the price). Once they had the correct code identified for the trim level, everything was finished up. He was highly put-out with the 3 min phone call he had to make to process his commission-less transaction.

My salesman gave me the keys and attached the tags, and boldly requested a 5 star review of him when it was sent by Koons. Haha ok buddy! Guess what I haven't received yet, 4 weeks later?

TL;DR placed an order and paid deposit in march, dealer got sold, salesman assured me of my price, truck delivered, 5k adm, new salesman didn't help, sales manager caved, finance tried to play games.

A couple weeks later I realize my side mirrors have different covers hahahha

 

[Whiskey_06]

I've lurked the forums without an account for a while, but my recent experience pushed me to make an account.

Like many, I reserved my Bronco on 13 JUL 20. When the time came to convert my reservation to an order, I was ready with everything picked out. 4 door Badlands in Carbonized Grey, Sasquatch package, High option package, MIC top....everything exactly as I wanted it.

My dealership is Chino Hills Ford, in Chino Hills, California. When I ordered, I specifically asked my sales person if Chino Hills Ford was going to charge any dealer mark up. I was assured that no mark up would occur for reservation holders, so I placed my order. I got an emailed .pdf of what I ordered, reflecting the MSRP.

The inevitable long wait happened, and I was excited to see the email from Ford this past November that my truck was being built. It's due to be delivered this Wednesday, 5 JAN 22. I went in to my dealer this past weekend, to get everything taken care of ahead of time so I could finally take delivery of my Bronco this week. Imagine my surprise to find out the dealer wanted to charge me a $45k ADM! MSRP is $56,310, so they are essentially asking for an 80% markup.

I told the salesman that was not going to happen. I produced my earlier email, promising me that there would be no mark up. His reply is that, since the dealership had new owners, they were not beholden to the earlier deal made with me. He then (after "consulting" his manager) graciously offered to come down to ONLY $20k over MSRP.

I'm at my wit's end. They seem as if they aren't willing to budge. This new price puts the truck well outside my price range. I'm furious that I've waited a year and a half for this truck, that I built out to be exactly what I wanted, only to have it yanked out from under me at the last minute. I honestly don't know what to do at this point.

Chino Hills Ford 100% needs to be on the list of "dirty" dealers.

 

[pfbz]

This thread just makes me sick to my stomach...

While Ford Corporate crows on Twitter that "Ford beats out Tesla to become the auto industry's top growth stock", customers who have been waiting patiently almost 18 months for their Broncos get screwed by franchise dealers. And make no mistake, Ford Corporate has tremendous ability to "convince" dealers to do the right thing.

While my dealer is thankfully not on the list, I feel for those that have been treated so poorly and wonder what surprises might be in store for me on delivery day?

 

[North7]

This thread just makes me sick to my stomach...

While Ford Corporate crows on Twitter that "Ford beats out Tesla to become the auto industry's top growth stock", customers who have been waiting patiently almost 18 months for their Broncos get screwed by franchise dealers. And make no mistake, Ford Corporate has tremendous ability to "convince" dealers to do the right thing.

While my dealer is thankfully not on the list, I feel for those that have been treated so poorly and wonder what surprises might be in store for me on delivery day?

I think Ford has earned a boatload of newbies reading this thread and will never reserve or buy a Ford due to the BS Ford allows their dealers to get away with. My post from July still holds true.

At the rate Ford is building customer ill will, by not laying down the law so dealers don't pull this crap, the introduction of the Bronco is going to leave a really bad taste in the mouths of many consumers, at the time Ford wants to build conquest sales (win customers from other brands). Can you imagine the number of customers who had reservations and placed an order, that are not part of Bronco6g, who will get screwed and swear off Ford forever.

Please don't try to tell me all about dealers being independent businesses, first an foremost they are a Ford Franchisee, subject to Ford's dealership franchise agreement. If Ford wants to improve their reputation, they have to get serious and crack down on these shady, dishonest, unethical dealers. It will only take a few to get the message across to all dealerships.

Here is an overview of what a dealership is obligated to when agreeing to become a Ford dealer.
How to Open a New Ford Dealership
Once approved as a franchisee, you’ll be asked to sign legal documentation agreeing to Ford’s terms. Among other things, this agreement outlines Ford’s right to terminate its relationship with you at any time should your dealership prove unsatisfactory. This means that you must ensure strong sales and a commitment to a positive customer experience, among other obligations.

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