my "special order" '07 4R arriving wrong!!!

Buckfever said:
My only concern would be price. It's my understaning that there is not as much leverage on price when "special ordering".

I dont buy that argument. Dealers will negotiate on anything. I paid over $800 below invoice (before the rebate) on my special order.
 
Yeah,

If you are going to accept the truck, then I wouldn't let them 'tear' into it just to install the AC plug.

The AC plug is located in the center console and the switch is located on the lower dash panel...so they'll need to take apart the center console and part of the dash.

If they mess with it, it might never be the same as 'new'...might be scratches, misfit parts and maybe even a rattle from not assembling all the parts correctly. If that's the case, it might 'eat at you' for a long time. Not worth the stress if you ask me.

If you don't want to wait for exactly the right truck, then I would get credit on the AC plug, get them to fix the DRL and rehaggle the price. I don't think it is unreasonable to ask for credit or even something like a free extended warranty or service plan.

When I special ordered my 4runner...we had an agreed price of 500 above invoice, but it came in the wrong color...galatic grey instead of silver. It turned out to be a good thing since I had changed my mine about the color anyways...there were already 2 silver 4runners at my work, and they seem to be everywhere. Ended up getting it right at invoice and the rebate on top of that.

good luck.
 
Thank Christ we don't do any of this "special order" BS in Canada....what a pain in the ass to build vehicles where you can check off each individual option. No wonder stuff gets missed and you wind up with odd-ball vehicles. How the hell do they even let a 4Runner go out the door without that AC plug?

I'd take it anyways....but I'm easy
 
Northof49 said:
...what a pain in the ass to build vehicles where you can check off each individual option. No wonder stuff gets missed and you wind up with odd-ball vehicles.

lol

Reminds of the "Build your own pasta" menu at Macaroni Grill restaurants. Your given a pasta bowl menu and you literally check off which options you want in your pasta bowl. If only it were that easy.
 
Northof49 said:
Thank Christ we don't do any of this "special order" BS in Canada....what a pain in the ass to build vehicles where you can check off each individual option. No wonder stuff gets missed and you wind up with odd-ball vehicles.
I dunno.. I would have really liked side impact airbags in my Sport Edition. :(
 
You could ream the dealer, but it is probably not the dealer's fault. In other words, you'd be shooting the messenger. As mentioned, DRL is easlily taken out, and the 115 V AC switch can be installed in place of the "dummy" switch that is in my vehicle. So your dash won't need to be torn up. Edit: Sorry, yes it will.
Squeeze them good. If they offer the stereo shop option, tell them you want a few more minor upgrades installed (or major, test the waters). Heck, their mistake could turn out to be your benefit if you threaten to not take the truck and whatnot:rant: :cursin: :headslap:
 
Last edited:
Your best bet is to just take the vehicle. Chances are you dealership knew from the beginning that getting you the power outlet from the factory was going to be a major pain. They've just waited until now to tell you that the feature has been left off. As soon as your vehicle came into their database (about 30-45 days before the the vehicle comes in) they have the specs on your vehicle.-What options/etc it has installed. They've known for atleast this amount of time.

BTW there are over 30 sport V8's with side airbags (GY) in my region (CAT.) We even have one on our lot.
 
Earlier today I let the dealership "have it". I ordered it for one reason.. .to get the packages I wanted! The sales manager started off saying what you guys were saying, that the dealership can't control what toytota Japan puts on. Then later after grilling him and telling him "why would you let me order a 4Runner if you knew that they wouldn't get it right?". He then later proceeded with that he forgot to put it on the order. So not only was he trying to lie he was trying to get me to settle.

Right now I've left them with a fair proposition; They order me a new 2008 with EXACTLY the items I want, for the same price as the 2007 they just ordered AND they guarantee me the 0% financing since I was going to be eligible for it and was counting on it for the 2007.
 
Last edited:
ssmtsx said:
Your best bet is to just take the vehicle. Chances are you dealership knew from the beginning that getting you the power outlet from the factory was going to be a major pain. They've just waited until now to tell you that the feature has been left off. As soon as your vehicle came into their database (about 30-45 days before the the vehicle comes in) they have the specs on your vehicle.-What options/etc it has installed. They've known for atleast this amount of time.

BTW there are over 30 sport V8's with side airbags (GY) in my region (CAT.) We even have one on our lot.

yeah I was told by 5 dealerships in a 3 state area that there were ZERO silver 4x4's with the v8 around in the US on or about 3/29/07. that is why we special ordered.
 
CNI said:
yeah I was told by 5 dealerships in a 3 state area that there were ZERO silver 4x4's with the v8 around in the US on or about 3/29/07. that is why we special ordered.

He "forgot" to order? BS. Sounds like the guy was just lazy about. That answer alone would get me to walk no matter what configuration came in.

You should come to Cali, tons of silver V8 4WD Limiteds on the road. Tons of silver 4runners period.
 
i think ur justified in being angry...you did not get what you paid for, end of story. When you are droppin that kind of money...everything has to be perfect, no ifs ands or buts. I bought my 4R used from an infinity dealer. Even though i pretty much got a free supercharger and TRD exhaust, i still told them i refused to buy it unless they replaced the windshield and patched a minor ding in the leather.

It's not a matter of milking them for an "honest mistake" as others have said. Its a large business transaction and they damn well know what they are doin. You'll be suprised how much they can do for you if they know you are pissed off and thinking of refusing the vehicle. keep us posted
 
You CAN special order, in any region (including Southeast Toyota (SET) ). I'm proof of that...I'm in Atlanta (under SET) and special ordered one back in Sept. I received it in January. And yes, I'm 100% positive that it was a special order because I ordered it with a very specific set of options, and a lack of one option. Mine was a Limited 4x4 V8 WITHOUT a sunroof. (try finding one of those -- VERY rare...nonexistant in the SET region :D ). My exact configuration was:

V8 LTD 4x4 (Shadow Mica)
Nav system
X-REAS
Rear Air Suspension
NO sunroof

Now, granted...the first time I ordered it they sent me a confirmation with the WRONG configuration. I had to go back and forth a couple of times before they re-ordered with the right configuration. I was INCREDIBLY skeptical as to whether or not it would ever arrive. I kept on the dealership for status about every 2-3 weeks...POLITELY.

Finally, in January I got a call that it was in transit, and at the end of January it finally arrived at the dealership.

Now here's the thing. The manager I went through had to very carefully lock the thing up. Its apparently not uncommon for special order vehicles to "disappear"...nice way of saying they get accidentally sold to other people who see them and decide they have to have it at any price.

Long story short, you CAN special order. However, many dealerships don't want the hassle with vehicles made in Japan because of the long lead time. They don't want to devote that much time tracking the vehicle. Plus, every special order takes one allocation slot they have. So if they feel they could make more money by NOT ordering and using that slot for something else they'd sell right away, that's what they are going to do. Then, they'll often say they are ordering something when in fact they are just checking the incoming inventory for something "close" to what you wanted.

Generally you'll have better luck special ordering from a dealership that's fairly high volume. That way the allocation they have is fairly large and it isn't as big of a deal for them to do the order. This is not a set rule though.
 
LP_4Runner said:
You CAN special order, in any region (including Southeast Toyota (SET) ). I'm proof of that...I'm in Atlanta (under SET) and special ordered one back in Sept. I received it in January. And yes, I'm 100% positive that it was a special order because I ordered it with a very specific set of options, and a lack of one option. Mine was a Limited 4x4 V8 WITHOUT a sunroof. (try finding one of those -- VERY rare...nonexistant in the SET region :D ). My exact configuration was:

V8 LTD 4x4 (Shadow Mica)
Nav system
X-REAS
Rear Air Suspension
NO sunroof

Now, granted...the first time I ordered it they sent me a confirmation with the WRONG configuration. I had to go back and forth a couple of times before they re-ordered with the right configuration. I was INCREDIBLY skeptical as to whether or not it would ever arrive. I kept on the dealership for status about every 2-3 weeks...POLITELY.

Finally, in January I got a call that it was in transit, and at the end of January it finally arrived at the dealership.

Now here's the thing. The manager I went through had to very carefully lock the thing up. Its apparently not uncommon for special order vehicles to "disappear"...nice way of saying they get accidentally sold to other people who see them and decide they have to have it at any price.

Long story short, you CAN special order. However, many dealerships don't want the hassle with vehicles made in Japan because of the long lead time. They don't want to devote that much time tracking the vehicle. Plus, every special order takes one allocation slot they have. So if they feel they could make more money by NOT ordering and using that slot for something else they'd sell right away, that's what they are going to do. Then, they'll often say they are ordering something when in fact they are just checking the incoming inventory for something "close" to what you wanted.

Generally you'll have better luck special ordering from a dealership that's fairly high volume. That way the allocation they have is fairly large and it isn't as big of a deal for them to do the order. This is not a set rule though.

Exactly. Although I was uncertain about the SET region and special order. Thanks setting that straight.

Special orders can get lost because the rep/dealer has to pay attention to when that vehicle is allocated and heading to the dealer. This is when the dealer can find out what's enroute to them and another dealer and have a vehicle traded without the additional miles. If they miss the opportunity to lock that vehicle in that was destined to their lot another dealer can jump on it and have it diverted to their dealership. Once my rep found out my special was allocated, he had me go in and sign paperwork and began the titling process locking in my VIN. My VIN was removed from the available allocation before it arrived to port. :)
 
I am in the South East as well and had a similar issue. I ordered a 2007 limited 4x4 v8 and it didnt come with what i ordered at all. I figured they just looked around long enough and finally found something remotly close to what i was looking for and said my 4runner arrived 4 months after i ordered it.

I was told that if i held off on the x-reas and the air susp that it would knock off some time so i said ok and did that. They also said that i couldnt get the spoiler with that lip on top and i said ok and settled for the flatter one.

The 4 runner arrived and it did have the x-reas and the air suspension along with the spoiler I initally wanted. I wanted the lower end audio and not the jbl system since i was going to go aftermarket and i liked the mirrors in the back but it came with that and rear seat headrest monitors. The only other thing they managed to screw up were the mirrors because i wanted signal ones and they put on the 18" eneki wheels which i really liked anyway.

The invoice was about ~$47,600 and i paid almost $44,000 all said and done.

I think the additions were nice since i did want the air suspension and the x-reas but was talked out of it by them ironically. If nothing else the monitors will be nice when the time for kids comes along and i can add the mirrors. BTW the side airbags were one of the main reasons for me ordering the 4runner because they just were not on any of the vehicles here. Not to mention a limited black 4x4 v8.

I wonder if your dealer would consider changing to the seats with side impact airbags at the dealership. Im not sure if the rest of the system is there though.

Major
 
The DSL are a valuable safety aide.

Two solutions:

1. Slightly depress the parking brake pedal, and the DSL's go off: Stealthy hunting at the push of a pedal;
2. Hook up a bypass switch.

Having it both ways has its benefits!

The AC power outlet is a rip, good for an electric razor or TV. Don't sweat that one.

H
 
JP4RNR said:
Do you think Toyota would build a Limited with Cloth seats if one wanted to order it this way?

I doubt it. A special order allows you to pick options that's normally not chosen by the regional distributor.
 
henboy said:
The DSL are a valuable safety aide.

Two solutions:

1. Slightly depress the parking brake pedal, and the DSL's go off: Stealthy hunting at the push of a pedal;
2. Hook up a bypass switch.

Having it both ways has its benefits!

The AC power outlet is a rip, good for an electric razor or TV. Don't sweat that one.

H


well, I guess all my complaining did some good. I did end up settling for the one they ordered wrong, 1. due to needing the 0% financing and 2. needing a new vehicle. I did not have them do anything to the vehicle. I only settled due to the fact they they did show the effort to make things right and they compensated me enough to make the deal worth while. Yeah I realize I was being a bit petty on the two things that were wrong but I did have a strong case of "why order when I have to settle" also. In the end it was very close to what I wanted and honestly how many times am I really going to use the power outlet. I'll try the emergency brake trick if I ever really go hunting again. I have the power converter that plugs in the cigarette lighter if I really need AC.

I should be taking delivery next week.

Thanks for everyone's input, I sure appreciate it!!!! :D :hello:
 
If you really don't want the DRL's have the dealer disable them when you pick it up. It's a pretty simple procedure, they just hook up a scan tool, select a few options and it's done. I've attached the TSB on how the dealer can do it. It's the least they could do in my opinion.

Congrats on the new 4Runner!
 

Attachments

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
278,312
Messages
3,554,089
Members
248,016
Latest member
Advally Service

Trending content

Back
Top