Mojo Keeble

I am working on buying my first Corvette Stingray c7.

The dealer found the vehicle I wanted, a 2017 C7 LT2 Z51, the vehicle I want is at another dealer, and the dealer I am working with wants to charge me $500 for a deposit because it is a "Dealer Trade", is this normal or fair?

Baltimoron

I wouldn't have a problem with it. You're going to buy the car, and presumably put money down on it, so what's the harm? I'm sure dealer trades create hassles, so they just want some level of assurance that you're serious.

Rubiland

In the past, when deposit is required, I've always insisted it be refundable.

If you don't mind traveling to pick up a new car, why not do an inventory search and try to get a better deal purchasing from a dealer that has the car in stock?

breakskeet

I think that is fair because your dealer is trading an allocation or another car to get your car. If you back out after the car arrives then the dealer now has your car in inventory. In this circumstance I feel that it would be ok for a reasonable non-refundable deposit. I think $500 is fair.

sTz

I don't see any problems with the deposit.

fourmat

SOP for dealer trade He wants to make sure your serious before trading cars

JRYELLOWCORVETTE

If he is getting the vehicle from another dealer you will NOT get the best price deal. If price does not matter go for it.... otherwise shop around and deal direct for the best price.

NSC5

As others noted $500 seems reasonable as a deposit so that the dealer knows that you are serious. I have ordered a number of cars from a dealer in the area and they don't ask for any deposit when ordering but if I went to a different dealer who has never done business with me I wouldn't be surprised or upset at a deposit request.

How far away is the other dealer? If reasonably close I would try to deal direct and if the dealer isn't reasonably close do you really want some lot jockey driving YOUR new Corvette a long distance between dealers???

breakskeet

Not true. My father in law was dealing with one dealer and I called my good friend at my dealer. My friend was going do dealer transfer the car and give my father in law a better deal. It was a left over 2016 Z06 back in December of 2016. I couldn't for the life of me understand why his local dealer wouldn't work with him.

90sundevil

The 08 C6Z I wanted was at another dealer where I at first went and tried to make a deal. They would not give me what I thought was fair for my trade, 07 C6Z and they would not deal on the car. So I went to a another local dealer and they gave me a much better deal on the car and my trade. They had the car at their dealership within a few hours and no deposit.

Fireeagle

I believe it is pretty standard.

C82LT

In my experience you're typically going to get a better deal going straight through the dealer who has the car. You diminish your negotiating power by having another dealer trade for it UNLESS you can get them to agree to your price beforehand.

The deposit simply goes toward the payment fo the car, so you're not losing any money there. They just want to make sure you're serious. Most of the time if you give them your credit card info, they don't even charge you. That's what happened with my BMW purchase.

DWS44

Been in this spot a few times on other vehicles, and always made out better searching for the car to find the dealer that actually had it and dealing direct. Personally, I have no issue traveling a bit to buy the vehicle I want and/or complete a trade. Heck, I just drove from Charlotte to Atlanta to trade for the C7 I wanted.

If money is no object, then it may not be worth the hassle, but in my cases, it was worth a few extra hours of my time to save a little money and get exactly what I wanted, plus not worry about how it was getting delivered to the local dealer.

direct007

As long it's exactly what you want and you have negotiated the exact price you are going to pay and are happy with that price ahead of time, I could never understand why people have an issue leaving a deposit. You are going to buy the car and most likely put something down even if financed. A dealer wants the buyer to have some "skin in the game" to show they are serious and not wasting the dealer's time.

FLATJ

As long as you're sure what the bottom line is for the car you want, why not?

Classic-Chevy-Guy

I would make sure that the deposit is refundable if the car does not meet your "quality inspection".

This would keep you safe in case there is lot damage, etc.

RedC7AZ

One way or another the dealer is passing their cost of doing the dealer trade (transportation, paperwork, admin., etc.) along to you.

Whatever price you agreed upon for the car with the dealer is $xxx higher than it would have been had the car you wanted been on the dealer's lot.

You can bet the cost is about $500, since that is the deposit amount they wish to keep if you back out of the deal after the dealer trade transaction occurs.

Mojo Keeble

Thank You all for your advice...This has been extremely helpful!!!

bearphoto

You may as well get used to the proper terminology and the interior package you mentioned is a 2LT not an LT2.

I had a 2LT Z51 vert and it was a great car although I have sold it for a new Z06. In any event get the car and hang on for a lot of fun!

dbaker

Agree...the deposit,if refundable is fair.

FWIW....I was able to order a new '17 without a deposit.

\db2