allocation process explained

When I was shopping for my Tacoma last September, my dealer was able to change the allocated truck to remove the PIOs and FIOs that I did not want. They can also add things. This can only be done before the truck is built, so if you go that route you’ll need to wait a while for it to come in.

If the dealer tells you that changing the options isn’t possible it’s because they’d rather sell you those extras. Tell them that another dealer is willing to do it for you and they will quickly change their tune.

 

The dealer isn’t selling you the extras. The port add ons are all on the ports that handle the trucks prior to dealer delivery. Options are packages like premium package. Option Packages are dictated by what Toyota builds and puts out. Then they ship to ports. Then ports add roof racks, side steps, tonneau covers, and all that accessory shit you get stuck with.

Ya a dealer can ‘change options’ but that just means they go back and try to find a listed build or allocation they can get their hands on and you wait longer. And ya they can do the same with port add ons, but they have to find a truck that wasn’t built yet and you wait longer. Once a truck is built and has a final VIN, no dealer is changing the port add ons that go in it. They have no control of the options and port ads other than finding another vehicle. It becomes a game of how long you can wait. Or you puruse listings in a 1,000 mile radius to find your exact specs and drive for it. A biz plan that requires the customer to wait 3-6 months and/or drive 1,000 miles to take possession. Very unconventional to say the least.

 

What? Unless your current vehicle gets totaled or the engine blows up there’s no rush to buy a new one. Most people buy new vehicles just because they want something new and shiny. If you can’t wait a few months for that then I can’t help you.

 

Wonder if they will add the next 4 Runner to those facilities to decrease production costs?

 

Probably. Toyota will build it for 10% less but sell it to us for 10% more than the current model. There’s going to be a high demand for the last of the Japanese built 5th gens.

 

Maybe 1 in 4 folks i know wait on an ‘order’ for a vehicle. And that wait is 6-8 weeks, maybe. Most walk on a lot and buy what they see. Waiting 3-6 months is unconventional and not in tune with American ‘now’ consumerism. I’ll stand by that.

 

I don’t believe that. I don’t think that most people wake up on a Saturday and decide to buy a car today and just go out and get one.

 

The clock we are talking about starts when the buyer of a new vehicle contacts a dealer. You cant discuss the options and add ons and associated quirks until you talk to dealer(s). Time spent researching the internet or advertisements isn't in that time. Tacomas it trends to 3-6 months.

https://www.finn.com/en-US/blog/car-buying/how-long-does-it-take-to-buy-a-

Purposely designing your biz practices and supply so the customer waits 3-6 months after talking with dealers is unconventional to modern American auto sales practice.

 

I remember telling my friend, Im no rush, but I want a DC SB TRD O/R in army green. I thought it would take him a few months...he calls my a day later, hey your truck will be here on Saturday.

 

Thats actually what I always thought it was supposed to be, drive in, trade, drive out.

 

Exactly!
Thats pretty much what it was (COVID supply chain issues aside). Finding a Taco that fast isn’t the norm and luck. Good on you for sure. But this Toyota MO is odd. I don't even think Toyota worked this way 15-20 yrs ago - limiting and controlling inventory so closely.

 

Ok. If you say so.

 

No research, no test drives, no checking prices at other dealers? Just drive in ask for the shiny red one over there and leave.

 

Where I live, the biggest Toyota dealer rents parking lot space at a mall to hold their excessive Tundra inventory. Why are Tundras being indiscriminately cranked out to such excess, but not Tacomas? Anyway, I have never gone through the allocation / ordering process til now. In my situation I can wait. If I needed a vehicle today, I'd be forced to look for something different because there just aren't any on the ground where I live that aren't already pre-sold.

 

It’s a brand new model and they just came off a quality control hold. Don’t worry there will be hundreds of thousands of Tacomas soon and more on the way for years to come.

 

Who said that? “Time spent researching the internet or advertisements isn’t in [this] time.” How long does it take to talk to and/or visit multiple dealers about the vehicle (any brand) you want after your research, haggle between dealers for the best price, and settle? A week? Two weeks? After that most people have a vehicle in a day or two because it’s sitting there. See the poster with his army green truck. With this designed tacoma process your likely haggling over an allocation, settling on one thats close but not exact, then waiting 3-6 months. I doubt they actually want people waiting that long. But the biz plan is NOT to have trucks sitting on lots en mass. They would rather have there be a consumers wait and reduce their costs on inventory. And I'm sure plenty of people bought a vehicle after walking into a dealership because they were sold a car by a guys who’s job it is to sell product sitting right in front of his intended victims. Thats how auto sales traditionally worked. Toyota is purposely designing their business counter to that. It’s not how people traditionally bought new cars. The complete opposite now is buying a vehicle 100% online. That’s completely counter to the Toyota wait. Once you find your purchase (after researching what you want) it takes how long? A snap. And thats without even seeing it. America is a have it now consumer society.

There may in fact end up being lots of trucks on lots at some point soon as the inspection and delivery process is mucked up and it may end up being like a dam break. But only if all these clogged up trucks aren't already purchased by people that will have waited 3-6 months already for something close to their specs. Or the 4th gen ends up poorly received by consumers like the Tundras, and cant be sold.

 

I’m not even sure what you are talking about. Are you referring to all vehicles or just the new 4th gen? There seems to be no shortage of vehicles on lots near me other than brand new redesigned models.

 

automotive press is such a joke

 

Im talking about what the avg american new auto consumer does and expects vs what this Toyota Tacoma biz allocation inventory control practice does. Most people that purchase a new car arent into making a deal with a dealership and then waiting 3 to 6 months for their car. Toyotas biz plan to control supply and reduce inventory is not what mainly everyone else does and not what an american consumer wants or expects. Its risky. Im sure they lose sales over that. You might enjoy your 4 months of anticipation. But marketing studies say most new car buyers dont experience or expect that. I dont think Toyota intends to have full lots of Tacomas. They want them to be almost empty. Deliver straight to sale. Its a very bold and unconventional biz plan and operating plan.

Hard to be any plainer than that.

 

I thought Toyota only used Newark for east coast Tacoma distribution?