Customers in two states are reporting that their Ford dealers sold their custom-ordered vehicles out from under them. In at least one case, the customer says they waited over two years to take delivery before finding out their Bronco was gone.
There’s no doubt that Ford’s Bronco and Maverick are both selling well. Demand is so high that custom ordering either model can be a more reliable way of ensuring one gets the vehicle they want. Of course, in the case of at least three folks, that turned out not to be true.
A report from 7 San Diego says it found two such cases just 20 miles apart from one another in California. In the first case, customer Andrew Gierz says he paid a $500 deposit to Mossy Ford in Pacific Beach. He then waited a year for his Maverick before the dealer told him it had made a mistake and sold his pickup to someone else. According to the dealer, Gierz’s truck was accidentally placed into the stock inventory and then sold.
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In a separate case involving Aaron Ford in Poway, Allen Movahed ordered his truck online without ever going to the dealer. He says that corporate told him to wait about two weeks after the truck arrived at the dealer before going to pick it up. The dealer says that it tried to contact him but then sold the truck when it failed to reach Movahed.
In a third incident, one member of the online forum Bronco6g.com says that she ordered her Ford Bronco Outer Banks over two years ago. She put down a deposit and her full down payment too. After all that time, her dealer sold the SUV out from under her and gave her the runaround. “I’m getting a different story daily,” she said.
Over the last week, she’s found out that indeed it was long gone and that she’ll have to reorder another if she wants her specific options. After getting Ford itself involved she says she’s now getting a priority build slot at cost with no upcharges or dealer fees. At least that’s a semi-happy ending.
We’ve reached out to both the Bronco customer and Ford itself for further comment and will update this post if we hear back. For now, Ford issued a statement that’s about as lukewarm as it could get.
“Although Ford dealerships are independent businesses, Ford Motor Company will work with its dealer network to make sure they’re aware of customer issues. Most times, when dealers become aware of issues, they work with customers to quickly rectify them – they understand the importance of delivering an industry-leading customer sales and ownership experience,” the statement read.
Here’s hoping that may undo the brand damage done by dealers that either intentionally or unintentionally mess up the customer experience this much.
