[BgsDks]

So I spoke to two dealers and the second or third thing out of the salespersons’ mouths was that a special order requires a $5K nonrefundable deposit. This was in Riverside CA.

Is this par for the course? That seems kind of steep and harsh. Or maybe it’s normal. I don’t know.

And if anyone can point me in the direction of a dealer less demanding, I’d appreciate that. Thanks .


Addendum :

Nonrefundable deposit is illegal in CA

“Per California Code, Vehicle Code - VEH § 11736, section C: "It is unlawful for any dealer licensed under this article to do any of the following when brokering a retail sale: Fail to refund any purchase money, including purchase deposits, upon demand by a consumer at any time prior to the consumer's signing of a vehicle purchase agreement with a selling dealer and taking delivery of the vehicle described in the brokering agreement.”

[ednir98]

I spec’d mine to just shy of 80K (no individual paint) and only paid a $1500 deposit that is refundable (in writing). I would never pay a non-refundable deposit, anything could happen with the car during transit or they could tack on 5k ADM at the last minute knowing you’re locked in.

[JABCAT]

No. The only non-refundable deposit I've ever given was $1k on a '23 Grand Cherokee order & that was after the order was submitted & we received the VIN. We were also getting the vehicle for 4% below invoice ($7,500 off MSRP).

Other than that, I've never given a non-refundable deposit on any vehicle I've ordered, even specialty vehicles.

[MineralGreyMetallic]

For my G87, they never even asked for a deposit.

I believe it took me 3-4 weeks of calling and e-mailing nearly every dealer in SoCal to find a good CA.

[Jeenius]

I ordered mine through BMW Irvine. They only asked for a Credit Card with a $1000 deposit but they never charged. Five thousand bucks is way too much. I believe Riverside is also still doing ADMs on 2024 M2s in the showroom. They had one with a 15,000 ADM.

[CJ421]

$5k nonrefundable ...I'd walk away.

My dealer requires a $500 deposit (refundable) but they forgot to charge my card for the last two cars I ordered.

Charles

[two_three_two]

dealerbreaker. id laugh my way out of the showroom. lots of cali commentary in this thread, suggest you read: https://g87.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...994403&page=11

[ednir98]

Originally Posted by two_three_two

lots of cali commentary in this thread,

Atp we should make a forum called “how to survive as a car guy in cali”

[Carefree]

Tell them GFY.

Emphasize your position is non-refundable.

[Dave07997S]

I only put down $1k at Crevier BMW. I would pass.

[mike@x-ph.com]

i thought its no longer legal to take a non-refundable car deposit? or maybe that's a CA specific law only

[Mike_H_]

Any dealer or CA that starts off with dishonesty should be avoided, it will just be a frustrating game from that point forward.

This is coming from someone who's brother owns 6 new car dealerships in the DC metro area.

His dealerships are all high volume, and all receive the top-level manufacturer awards in sales and service, every year.

He hates the stereotypical and dishonest dealer tactics; all managers and employees are aware and anyone who does it is fired.

It's a mystery why any business would believe that dishonest, unethical business practices is the way to operate.

[sammytothe]

I saw a range of deposit requirements when I was placing my order.

1)I had a $1000 deposit down at a local dealer, but they kept stringing me along with the allocation timeline so I didn’t end up ordering with them.

2) A different local dealer said they could get me an allocation immediately but it would be a $5000 deposit which I thought was way too high…

3) The dealer I ended up ordering with in Missouri required a $3000 deposit. I thought this was a little high but since I was an out of state buyer I figured they wanted piece of mind that I was serious about the purchase. They also didn’t pull my credit at all until the car arrived to them which was a plus.

[dinanm4]

Illegal! Cannot do non-refundable. Their way of saying they dont want to work with you.

[Squidget]

1k deposit should be your expectation, MAAAYBE up to 2k. Refundable is non-negotiable.

Walk away.

[MG20i]

Wow, no. My dealership needed a refundable $1k deposit on any custom order M car. I walked away from 2 others closer to me that wanted $3500 and $2000.

[JMcLellan]

My two local dealers had different processes. 1 did not require any deposit saying that it's a limited car and will sell if I backed out.

The other dealer asked for a refundable $1000 deposit to be on their wait list for an allocation. I did initially back out of the wait list, and got the refund back. Then a few months later they contacted me saying there was an allocation and they required a $1000 non-refundable deposit to secure the allocation-- told me it was because my previous history of backing out. Made sense to me.

[Montaver]

All the BMW’s I have ordered I put down a refundable 1k deposit to secure the build slot. They have limited build slots so to some degree you need to show you are serious.

[beren]

I put down a deposit and it was refundable.

[BgsDks]

Originally Posted by MineralGreyMetallic

For my G87, they never even asked for a deposit.

I believe it took me 3-4 weeks of calling and e-mailing nearly every dealer in SoCal to find a good CA.

Persistence - thanks.

[BgsDks]

Originally Posted by Montaver

All the BMW’s I have ordered I put down a refundable 1k deposit to secure the build slot. They have limited build slots so to some degree you need to show you are serious.

I have no problem with that

[BgsDks]

Originally Posted by mike@x-ph.com

i thought its no longer legal to take a non-refundable car deposit? or maybe that's a CA specific law only

You are right (at least in CA) - as I have subsequently found out.