I think the sales guy was yanking my chain.

So I went to piece together my car yesterday and he stressed that they couldn't have a car with performance gauges on the lot.

He said that they would install them at the dealership once the car is paid for (thus costing the customer - me - an extra $200 or so in labor charges).

Has anyone heard of this? Why would this be a policy?

Aren't those always dealer-installed options with LGT?

In any case, just make that part of your negotiated price and installed before you sign on the dotted line.

Just bargain hard. The install is not the difficult. Took me 2-3 works but I was taking my time.

Note, the invoice cost of the gauge is somewhere around $500-550, so if they charging you over $700 (do they) they already making money on the gauges.

So I...blah blah blah

OMGHI2U!!!!!!

I work at a (non-Subaru) dealer. It's called pre-loading, installing accessories to make the car more attractive. They won't order them that way from the factory (if they're even factory options) because so few people want them. Performance mods only add value to people who are going to buy them anyway. They won't install them at the dealer until you've bought the car because it's even more expensive to do it that way- and until the car is sold, the dealer is doing it all with his own money and narrowing the niche of people willing to buy it.

Patience is the best answer. I know it isn't easy- If I were patient, I wouldn't be driving one of these things. Get the accessories you want included in the sale. Don't say "and throw in etc," say "and I also want to buy..." You won't get much of a deal (probably full list plus labor) and it will delay the delivery (they probably won't even have the parts in stock, and even if they do, Service will have to fit it in), but you will leave the dealer with the car you wanted in the first place. As an added bonus, all of its time in the shop will have been before you picked it up- you won't have to give up your baby once you've already got it.

unclemat- the invoice cost is only relevant when you're ordering the car that way from the factory. Check the accessory catalog. The package itself might cost you $600 over the counter. Dealers don't gouge people who've just bought new cars. Once you've bought it you're someone they want to keep happy. You're not just some guy trying to chisel the price down, you're some guy who's going to get a survey in the mail from the factory.

They won't order them that way from the factory (if they're even factory options) because so few people want them.

Yes, this makes the most sense - but my argument is that they shouldn't charge me labor for it when they specifically tell me the will not order it like that from the factory.

I think legally there is something wrong with that.

But then, at the same time - I haven't bought the car yet so I don't know what's going to happen when my stripped down model appears on their lot ( 2 - 10 weeks from now he said) and I decide I want them to put a bunch of necessary (to me) crap in it.

OMGHI2U!!!!!!

http://www.crawspace.com/web/wave.gif

Legally, they don't have to sell you a car. They're not going to order one with performance parts because they don't want to be stuck with it. If you want to buy a car from dealer inventory, then you only have their inventory to choose from. If you want them to get a car especially for you, remember that it's a one of a kind that appeals (in their eyes) only to one person. Face it- if they thought they could move cars with those parts, they would already have them.

If you offer to put down a big enough deposit to cover their risk before they order it, you might have a deal. Remember that it's not just the extra money that they'll be shelling out for the add-ons, it's the risk of the car itself. They consider it less salable. They're still sitting on 06 cars. This guy [http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=46923] is looking to buy a brand new 05. Your dealer doesn't want your 07 to still be on their lot when the 09s show up.

At the store I work at, nothing comes pre-loaded. We stock plenty of accessories, but the car doesn't even get sent to service to have the mudflaps put on until the papers are signed and it's your car. Basically, Sales won't risk an entire car, but Parts will risk the few hundred dollars to get the gauge pack.

The dealership isn't the monolith that you see from the street. Sales, Service, Parts. Sales would love to give away everything but the car itself, because they only care about that sale. Parts doesn't want to buy things that it won't sell (just like sales, in a way). On a special order part that I don't think I'll ever sell if you back out, I'll make you pay for it in advance. Service gets stuck in the middle. They want you to be happy with the store and come back for all your service, but they have to pay the guy who installs your gauges. Since Parts spent the money on the parts, they need to bill the parts or the parts never get taken off the shelf. Service is paying the technician, so that money has to come from somewhere, too. It could come from Sales, but why should they give away something you're willing to pay for? It gets back to the risk. They'd rather risk a few hundred dollars than an entire car.

It's not costing you an extra $200, it's the only way you're going to get what you want.

It should be about $935 + tax installed for parts and labor for the performance gauge pack if the dealer installs it. Probably $300 is profit.

You can order one from the factory with any and all available options you want. They can't tell you that they can't order one for you with the gauges. As long as you leave a deposit they can order it. Contact Subaru or go to another dealership if there is one nearby. That is shady right there. Trying to make more money.

They can't tell you that they can't order one for you with the gauges. As long as you leave a deposit they can order it. Contact Subaru or go to another dealership if there is one nearby. That is shady right there. Trying to make more money.

That's what I'm saying - the sales guy specifically told me that there will be no cars on the lot with performance gauges. I asked him why and he said "I don't know I just work here." etc etc... I tried to pry it out of him but was met with a brick wall.

All in all the price quoted is lower than what I see on the "Build your own" feature on Subaru's site so I'll likely just go with it (after baragaining of course).

However - something about this northern Virginia area - is that any mechanical work done on a car is by far the worst quality workmanship I've ever seen.

Right now (well - for the last 7 years actually) I drive a '95 Honda Prelude. Every single thing I've taken it into the shop for I've gotten it back with 2 more things broken. This is at multiple (~6) shops - multiple issues from clutch replacement to windshield replacement. The only place where I haven't been screwed is the Sears Autocenter (but even then I saw the guy take off spinning my tires turning a corner to "test drive" his work) when I had my brake pads replaced.

I'm very leary about getting work done and when things need to be installed at the dealership on a new car I get apprehensive.

If it's my only choice then it's my only choice. I really want this car.

It's under warranty I know - but it's the effort I need to put into getting things re-done (and finding more things broken afterwards) that I'm worried about.

If you want something done right, do it yourself.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Ok, let me chime in. I ordered my 07 LGT with a lot of options, one of which was the performance gauge pack. You may or may not be in the same situation as I was, but I'll give you some details on what I know.

First of all, the gauges are only a dealer installed option. They retail for $775+install. Because I ordered my car, I simply ordered it with the gauges (although they would be installed after the car was delivered) and bargained on the total price of the car.

In the end, you can definitely have them add the gauges to any car on the lot. You can also bargain on the price of the car that includes the gauges and install.

Like another member mentioned, I was very nervous about having anyone work on my new car (even for the gauge install). I was anal and took before pictures of the dash just so they couldn't claim any scratches, etc. were there before the install. I also got my hands on the install instructions, and will make sure when I get a chance, that the installation was according to text book (i.e. everything zip tied, routed correctly, etc.).