Stargard & Cata Etching Scam

Been talking to a few dealerships for a new tacoma. The initial price they quote me never talks about having to buy their options for stargard (gps) and the catalytic converter etching totaling $1500 until i asked for the out the door price and it suddenly gets lump in there.

This seems like an outright scam. The stargard doesnt cost the dealership anything and it’s installed for their inventory management. The cata etching is even more useless as I believe in 2024, toyota moved the part to the engine bay.

Is it really true that I cant opt out of these options? This is what the sales rep is telling me.

 

Yes. I opted out of both. But my dealer actually mentioned it.

 

That's nothing new. Dealers have been trying to charge extra for this kind of things for decades. You can opt out by not purchasing the truck from them.

 

Just walk out the door to opt out.

 

What the hell is that? (And BTW, the new Tacos will be the least targeted by cat thefts.)

 

A money sucking scam. The grift is someone will etch your VIN into your cats and suddenly the thieves will think twice before cutting it out and the recycling centers are supposed to report it. They forgot to realize that no one cares and the VIN can be erased in two seconds with a grinder.