I'm having the same trouble here in LA. I searched all around for a 2015 Honda Fit LX Automatic in White and couldn't find it at any dealerships in the area, so I signed a deal on 10/4 and put down a deposit on one that the Vehicle Status Report showed as arriving at the dealership between 10/4 - 10/8. And my salesman told me right before we left that at the VERY LATEST it would arrive by 10/10.

Of course, it never showed up. It still hasn't. What frustrates me is not the timing so much as the blatant lying by both my salesman and the service manager. I was guaranteed it would arrive by the 10th. And then, when it didn't arrive on the 10th, they told me that it would arrive by the 13th. It still hasn't shown up. Each day I call and each day they tell me that it "should arrive tomorrow." It's obvious that told me it would arrive between the 4th and the 8th so they could make their sale. I'm very frustrated by this.

Does anyone have any recommendations on what I should do? I'm considering canceling and going to another dealership, mainly due to the fact that this one has been stringing me along with false promises, most likely because I'm a "small blonde girl". Is it worth the extra paperwork and time? Or is this really so common that it might happen to me all over again? Thanks!

 

Hey Nymeria,

It's HondaGeek here in NJ. Sorry you are having such a bad experience with your local dealer. Personally, as a Honda salesperson, I would never give a customer an exact date for the arrival of a car. Why? Because Honda only gives dealers an ETA, not an exact date.

Somethingstupid recently picked up his Honda Fit from me. He wanted a Modern Steel EX-L, which took about 6 weeks to arrive. He was fine with that because I gave him a realistic expectation of a possible two months.

Did you get a VIN for the car you put a deposit on? If they have the car In-Transit, they will have a VIN in their inventory already. If they didn't, then they might just be waiting for one to be allocated to them.

If you didn't get a VIN and they've be giving you nothing but empty promises, then you might want to consider a different dealership. In NJ all deposits are refundable by law. I'm not sure if it's any different for CA, but unless they put thousands of dollars worth of accessories on a car in stock for you, they should refund your money.

If you do decide to go with another dealership, make sure they have a VIN for the car if it's in transit.

PM if you have any questions. More than happy to help you out.

 

Hey HondaGeek,

Thanks so much for your help. The dealership did give me a VIN number and I put a deposit down. As of yesterday it was 11 days since I signed the deal and 9 since they promised the car would be there.

My problem with the dealership, Honda Hollywood, was that they strung me along and told me it would come "hopefully tomorrow" or "definitely will be here by this day." And then nothing ever came. And they offered no solutions whatsoever despite my constant calls and inquiries about finding one. I felt lied to, scammed, and completely disregarded. At one point my salesman told me that if the car didn't arrive by a specific day, he would find me the car somewhere else no matter what. That day came and went, and I later found out that my salesman was in Vegas and never actually intended to help me on that day. Frustrating!

Anyway, when the car still didn't show up yesterday I went over to the dealership and cancelled the deal. I got my money back and went straight to another dealership, Honda of Downtown Los Angeles. The difference between these two dealerships was night and day. I walked in, was helped immediately and there was no haggle at all. The manager was very kind and offered to do the same deal that I received at the other dealership on an EX instead of an LX which I was originally getting (with a higher monthly payment of course, but the down payment was the same). I felt so well taken care of every step of the way. They got me in and out of there happily and I'm so glad I made the decision to cancel with Honda Hollywood.

I've learned a lot of lessons with this, but I love Honda. I'm SO HAPPY with my new Fit! It's amazing, and I'm quite glad I went with the EX

 

Super glad things worked out for you at the new dealership and you got your new Fit. It's an awesome car.

And if you ever have any questions in the future I am always willing to help. Take some pics with the Fit. Would love to see. PM me anytime.

Congrats!!!

 

I have been watching the LA area on Cars.com. Honda of Hollywood has continuously shown Fits in stock as they have come and gone for other dealers. Obviously they are being less than honest about what they really have.

 

Hey George,

Yes, please don't believe them when they say they have something in stock, specifically the Fits. When I called them originally they told me they told me they could get me the car on that very same day. Once I was at the dealership they informed me that it would be an additional $500 fee to get the car there, or I could wait until the car came in on its own which they guaranteed me would be within 3 days. It didn't show up for 11 days and still hasn't, which is why I cancelled.

Had they just been honest with me I may have considered the deal, but they were dishonest from the very beginning.

I do know that Honda Downtown has a few Fits on their lot, I saw them with my own eyes last night...they had a black LX, an orange and a silver Fit (not sure the trim), a white LX with a special edition kit on it...