Downside Of Buying From Distant Dealer

[Shutterbug57]

I am considering buying a truck from an out-of-town dealer about 250 miles from home. What are the downsides of buying from a remote dealer?

 

[USMUSL]

I did similar this time, and on other occasions throughout my tenured existence

The pros to going long distance: You get exactly what you want. Further, you have more leverage to make a deal, as they know they have to be aggressive to entice you to go the distance. That changes, of course, if you don’t come to a deal ahead of time — they will have all the leverage if you drive there first.

The biggest downside is service after. Assuming you get service at a local dealer, they won’t bend over for you the way they would if you buy from them. This often manifests itself with loaners …. while you can sometimes get loaners from a dealer you didn’t buy from, I have found getting one more difficult.

The dealers you buy from often have other incentives, like free oil changes and state inspections …. you won’t get your take advantage of any of those.

 

[vincentw56]

I am considering buying a truck from an out-of-town dealer about 250 miles from home. What are the downsides of buying from a remote dealer?

None. You can take it to any dealer for warranty work. I lot of people on here have bought from Mark Dodge and I know of some who traveled more than 1000 miles to get theirs.

 

[1791]

if it's new it don't matter. a manufactures warrantee is good at all ram dealers. if it's used it still don't matter because they will say whatever to get you out the door then it's yours....
i drove 100 miles to get the best deal on my RAM.
i got a 2011 used camaro ss from warner robins ga cdjr and they brought it 250 miles, met me in my work parking lot i signed the paperwork using the trunk as a desk. it had a dent in the door and a deep scratch on the bumper. i called the sales manager before i signed he said get a estimate and he would split the cost with me. he lived up to his promise and sent me a check for 800. i did not pocket the money i got it fixed. awesome dealer i recommend them to anyone in GA.

 

[jbonnot03]

Only advantage to using your home dealer is for service. Not sure if all would do this, but had some lights come on today while in town and drove straight to my dealer(746 miles on truck). Checked codes, tried to clear(they wouldn't), and had to do a reflash. In and out as a walk in in 45 minutes. Shout out to Victoria Dodge.

 

[Jako]

Only advantage to using your home dealer is for service. Not sure if all would do this, but had some lights come on today while in town and drove straight to my dealer(746 miles on truck). Checked codes, tried to clear(they wouldn't), and had to do a reflash. In and out as a walk in in 45 minutes. Shout out to Victoria Dodge.

You are a

Outlier - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Gren71]

I’ve both traveled a long distance for a purchase and used the deal from a long distance Dealership to get the deal at my local dealership in the past

The downside is definitely that your local dealer could be reactive if you looked at them first and then ultimately come to them later with a new truck from another dealership. How that manifest itself he’s really just luck of the draw…

Another downside is if the deal isn’t locked in before you get there. For example, some places could entice you with a specific interest rate or other incentives and then all of a sudden it could change by the time you get there. If you’re going to travel, my suggestion would be to lock in your deal ahead of time and even put money on it to ensure that it is locked in before you arrive.

I was very happy when my wife and I traveled to a Carmax two states away for a purchase because it saved us a lot of money. And thankfully, I already have a good relationship with my local service department so they gave us a new issues.

When it came to her most recent purchase, we leveraged the deal offered by a dealership one state over with our local shop and they beat that price on the same model they had on the lot.

 

[Biga]

Another issue if you get the truck home and then realize their is an issue with the truck, paint defect, something out of wack. Sure you could take it to a local dealer but may not be as willing to take care of the issue.

 

[Driver]

The Ram warranty pays dealers the same for warranty work, no matter where you boight it.
Ive gotten loaners 4 times from my local dealer even though I haven't bought there.

Local dealer claimed he'd lose $3k if he matched the Mark price. While i never believed that, I bought from Mark anyway. $900 in shipping cost was worth it to me.

 

[Ram1500OwnerMaybe]

Disadvantage???
Driving 250 miles to find they sold the truck or it had paint chips, scratches or dents.
Sure, you can lock it in beforehand, but it wouldn't be the first time a dealer has done something like this especially if the buyer is willing to pay $3K more than your price.
You arrive, truck is not in the condition or is sold and now they have a huge advantage over you as most people would end up making a bad deal to leave with a truck and not feel a 250 drive was a total waste.

 

[cerbo]

I buy vehicles often from out of my area. Have t had an issue yet with service department . If I don't like one dealer I move to the next.

 

[toejam]

Wife and I made a vehicle purchase 4 hours away - closest dealer that had exactly what we wanted. Called, and went to see the vehicle. Left with it shortly after. Purchased a warranty afterwards.

 

[disarm]

I bought my truck from a dealer 330 miles from home and it was the best car buying experience I've ever had...would gladly do it again for the $15k I saved.

 

[cerbo]

sometimes I think dealers treat you better under those conditions of not being local. they know they have to earn the sale.

 

[Bighorn Chuck]

I bought from a local dealer and got screwed. I talked to 3 local dealers before buying the truck and the first two were even worse.

 

[cerbo]

also sometimes (selling) prices can be different in different areas. Pays to look.

 

[arod412]

Been thinking about this for my next ram purchase for either ram ev or ram ramcharger.

I know mark dodge in Louisiana has great pricing and would easily beat any NJ dealer in my area. But I'm going back and forth on especially on the pre purchase inspection, especially when I am not there. It's about 1500 miles away. Not afraid of a little road trip but if I decide to go the ev route, infrastructure isn't there yet. I know here in the northeast, the ev structure is very good.



2022 Ram Big Horn Back Country
2016 Dodge Charger scat pack
2021 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara

 

[Shutterbug57]

Thanks for all the replies. I was working on a deal with the remote dealer, but when I got the pics of the payload sticker, that blew up the deal. 1231 was not enough payload for what we need. I am still waiting for the truck I ordered to get here. It finally made it to production, light at the end of the tunnel.

 

[CapeCodChris]

I live in Massachusetts and I bought my truck in Connecticut. It's about an hour drive from me. When I called my local dealer for an issue I had, they asked me if I had bought it from them. They then told me that there is a wait and that people that purchased from them had priority. I think Stellantis should forbid that.

 

[Shutterbug57]

I live in Massachusetts and I bought my truck in Connecticut. It's about an hour drive from me. When I called my local dealer for an issue I had, they asked me if I had bought it from them. They then told me that there is a wait and that people that purchased from them had priority. I think Stellantis should forbid that.

They are making a mistake. Most dealers make the lions share of their profits in the garage. Chasing you off now will likely chase you off forever. The value of repairs over the years far exceeds the hassle of dealing with warranty claims now. Plus, they take a hit by word of mouth…