[richard13]

So I think I'm pretty close to knowing exactly what I want for my new Volt. Unfortunately, the dealers in my area do not have a mostly loaded Volt in any of the colors I would find acceptable. Since I don't have a truly pressing need (I have a very well running Prius) my initial reaction is to just sit, wait, and hope something shows up on the dealer's lots eventually.

The dealers I have spoken with say they can do a dealer swap to get me what I want but I'm concerned they will find one like 200 miles away and they will drive it over. I don't want a brand new car with a couple hundred miles already. Maybe this is not a big deal?

Another option is to do a factory order. However, I've been told this could take anywhere from 6 weeks to several months. At that rate, my initial strategy seems better.

I'm thinking that if I try to go with either of the two latter strategies that I won't get a good deal. With these strategies they know I want the car and will have little motivation to negotiate down from MSRP.

What did you do to get your Volt?

Thanks!

 

[realdb2]

I ordered from the factory and FWIW if I could do it over again i might wait to buy something off the lot. Ordering from the factory takes a minimum of 6 weeks which is exciting for the first 2-3 weeks and then frustrating for the rest. My $0.02

I'm currently finishing up week 6 and I'm still 1-2 weeks from getting my Volt. I know several others on this site waited much longer but I still feel like it's taken forever.

 

[G-PA]

The dealers I have spoken with say they can do a dealer swap to get me what I want but I'm concerned they will find one like 200 miles away and they will drive it over. I don't want a brand new car with a couple hundred miles already. Maybe this is not a big deal?

What would be wrong with that? Very common for dealer to do. Most dealerships have some retired guys they use to pick up cars/trucks for this purpose. Won't hurt your Volt at all and your warranty "clock" will be adjusted to reflect the 200 mile odo before you took pocession. Rhe sooner you get your Volt, the sooner you begin enjoying all the benefits. Good luck.

 

[Joule]

The way I see it, it's worth a road trip to get the right car at the right price, so I shopped a radius of about 150 miles.

It's imprecise because the data isn't always fresh, but I monitored the Volt inventories on the Chevy website for several weeks. When I found dealerships within 150 miles that had a car that matched my needs and then negotiated directly with them, then selected the best deal. I ended up with the exact car I wanted.

 

[telveer]

but I'm concerned they will find one like 200 miles away and they will drive it over. I don't want a brand new car with a couple hundred miles already. Maybe this is not a big deal?

At a minimum, this will mess up your MPG stats for some time

 

[richard13]

The way I see it, it's worth a road trip to get the right car at the right price, so I shopped a radius of about 150 miles.

It's imprecise because the data isn't always fresh, but I monitored the Volt inventories on the Chevy website for several weeks. When I found dealerships within 150 miles that had a car that matched my needs and then negotiated directly with them, then selected the best deal. I ended up with the exact car I wanted.

Yea, I'd be willing to do this. Too bad you can't adjust the radius on the Chevy website. I'll have to poke around with zip codes of adjacent counties.

Did you negotiate over the phone or internet? I'd hope so, rather than driving all around to those far off dealerships.

 

[richard13]

I ordered from the factory and FWIW if I could do it over again i might wait to buy something off the lot. Ordering from the factory takes a minimum of 6 weeks which is exciting for the first 2-3 weeks and then frustrating for the rest. My $0.02

I'm currently finishing up week 6 and I'm still 1-2 weeks from getting my Volt. I know several others on this site waited much longer but I still feel like it's taken forever.

Oh my gosh! Yea, I could see me feeling the same way. First the excitement and anticipation... then the frustration and the feeling like time is moving so slow. Good luck to you and I hope you get your Volt real soon!

 

[Ron in Omaha]

I had mine delivered through a dealer swap from 200 miles away. It showed up with 180 miles of gasoline miles and lifetime MPG of 45. If that's important to you, then avoid it. If not, it's a great way to get the exact vehicle you want.

BTW: The next 18000 miles only raised my lifetime MPG to 220, so I'm obviously in no danger of breaking any "all ev" records. Still, I'm much happier with having the exact car I wanted rather than settling for what was on the lot. If I bought what was on the lot, I'd be on a Camaro or Silverado forum right now...

 

[SharkVolt]

If none of the dealers near you have a decent selection of Volts (with the options you want) to choose from, it is unlikely that waiting will change that.

Check some of the high volume dealers in California, they may have exactly what you want, and at a lower price than your local area dealers.

And you could either fly down and drive it back (cool experience) or have it shipped back (no mileage on the car, way less waiting) , still for less money than buying local.

 

[voltone]

Honestly I don't see the big deal with buying a "new" car with a couple hundred miles. I know some people have hang ups about that kind of stuff but I would have absolutely no issues with doing a dealer swap even with a Volt 1000 miles away if they can give you the price you want.

 

[Carmelsteve]

My advice is don't waste your time with the regular sales guys. They can't do anything on their own and have to go through the sales managers, who are often jerks. Go through the Chevy site, fill out a request for information and get hooked up with the internet sales managers. You want to get several going so you can get leverage. You should start getting calls within an hour or two. Just say to them that you're buying this week and the person who gives you the best deal gets your business. Period. Make sure that if they quote you a verbal offer that you have them send you an email with that price.

I would definitely spend a little time and money to expand your search into California. Volt sales have really slowed the last couple of months, so I've got a feeling you might be able to get some deals, especially on 2013's.

This is the way I have bought my last several cars and it's very effective. The old days of showing up at multiple dealers and doing the "sit in the sales guy office while he goes to talk to the sales manger" is ridiculous.

Good luck-once you get your Volt, all the hard work will be worth it.

Steve

 

[deekster_caddy]

I wouldn't worry about having a couple hundred miles. Mine had 288 when I bought it, but it was "new". They offered me a great deal on it, I suspect they drove it in for another customer who backed out on the deal.

I emailed 7 local dealerships that the Chevy site said had the minimum options I was looking for. I wasn't worried about what color it was. It turned out to be the closest dealer to me that made me the best offer.

Don't be afraid to have the car shipped from a dealer far away either. I know there are several dealers people talk about here who have lots of inventory and ship to anywhere. Shipping might be a few hundred dollars, but sometimes the deals you can get make it worthwhile.

"New" is new, so don't worry too much about the odometer either.

 

[Oldertech]

Yes, on my car I dealt with the internet sales people. They were WAY more no-nonsense and cut to the chase. The good ones responded to my questions right away. The bad ones did the cut/paste text blocks and form letters. If you ask a specific question and it gets answered right away, it's a good one. I used Cars.com as my search source. I've bought several cars that way. I found the Chevy site a bit too cumbersome.

 

[stilcrazee]

So I think I'm pretty close to knowing exactly what I want for my new Volt. Unfortunately, the dealers in my area do not have a mostly loaded Volt in any of the colors I would find acceptable. Since I don't have a truly pressing need (I have a very well running Prius) my initial reaction is to just sit, wait, and hope something shows up on the dealer's lots eventually.

The dealers I have spoken with say they can do a dealer swap to get me what I want but I'm concerned they will find one like 200 miles away and they will drive it over. I don't want a brand new car with a couple hundred miles already. Maybe this is not a big deal?

Another option is to do a factory order. However, I've been told this could take anywhere from 6 weeks to several months. At that rate, my initial strategy seems better.

I'm thinking that if I try to go with either of the two latter strategies that I won't get a good deal. With these strategies they know I want the car and will have little motivation to negotiate down from MSRP.

What did you do to get your Volt?

Thanks!

Mine was a dealer purchase or trade, not on my behalf, came from a dealer 125 miles away and had 214 miles on it when I bought it, no issues and didn't bother me at all. I had previously bought another brand vehicle that was a "demo" that had 16k miles on it..it was a $65k vehicle and to make the deal they took $16k off the "asking price".

 

[Upper5Percent]

So I think I'm pretty close to knowing exactly what I want for my new Volt. Unfortunately, the dealers in my area do not have a mostly loaded Volt in any of the colors I would find acceptable. Since I don't have a truly pressing need (I have a very well running Prius) my initial reaction is to just sit, wait, and hope something shows up on the dealer's lots eventually.

The dealers I have spoken with say they can do a dealer swap to get me what I want but I'm concerned they will find one like 200 miles away and they will drive it over. I don't want a brand new car with a couple hundred miles already. Maybe this is not a big deal?

Another option is to do a factory order. However, I've been told this could take anywhere from 6 weeks to several months. At that rate, my initial strategy seems better.

I'm thinking that if I try to go with either of the two latter strategies that I won't get a good deal. With these strategies they know I want the car and will have little motivation to negotiate down from MSRP.

What did you do to get your Volt?

Thanks!

Order what you want from the factory...

It will be here before you know it...

 

[40545]

Honestly I don't see the big deal with buying a "new" car with a couple hundred miles. I know some people have hang ups about that kind of stuff but I would have absolutely no issues with doing a dealer swap even with a Volt 1000 miles away if they can give you the price you want.

A high performance car needing proper break in would be different. As long as your final inspection determines if you purchase then I don't see a problem.

 

[Joule]

Yea, I'd be willing to do this. Too bad you can't adjust the radius on the Chevy website. I'll have to poke around with zip codes of adjacent counties.

Did you negotiate over the phone or internet? I'd hope so, rather than driving all around to those far off dealerships.

Yeah-- I kept a list of zip codes handy for searching and checked often. You have a stronger negotiating position when it's for a specific VIN that is in stock than for a vehicle that needs to be located and tranported.

I corresponded with the Internet Sales people, and for Keye's Chevy I worked directly with the manager, Rick.

For me the best deal was 138 miles away, with Keyes and they offered to have their finance guy deliver the car to me at my office as long as I dropped him back off at the train station. It was a perfect deal: I negotiated over text and email, got what I wanted, and then they brought the car to me. It had 146 miles on it from the drive down. I signed everything in my office, all the paperwork was done right, no last minute offers or BS. The in-person transaction was done in less than 20 minutes. Perfect.

 

[NHVolt13]

My advice is don't waste your time with the regular sales guys. They can't do anything on their own and have to go through the sales managers, who are often jerks. Go through the Chevy site, fill out a request for information and get hooked up with the internet sales managers. You want to get several going so you can get leverage. You should start getting calls within an hour or two. Just say to them that you're buying this week and the person who gives you the best deal gets your business. Period. Make sure that if they quote you a verbal offer that you have them send you an email with that price.

I would definitely spend a little time and money to expand your search into California. Volt sales have really slowed the last couple of months, so I've got a feeling you might be able to get some deals, especially on 2013's.

This is the way I have bought my last several cars and it's very effective. The old days of showing up at multiple dealers and doing the "sit in the sales guy office while he goes to talk to the sales manger" is ridiculous.

Good luck-once you get your Volt, all the hard work will be worth it.

Steve

I went the way of internet sales. It was virtually painless. I was looking at the Fusion Energi also. I really like the Fusion, but the deal I got with the Volt was no comparison and the Volt has about twice the range and a bigger tax rebate.
The sicker on my '13 was $40K+, I got the $5k rebate and about a $3500 dealer discount. No haggling. I bought it off the lot, the only thing it didn't have on it, that I wanted, was nav, but then 99% of the time I don't use it anyway. Besides, I can use my cell phone for it when I *need* it.

 

[Eugene_C]

Prices for new Volts are going to come down, and/or the technology is going to keep getting better. So, I think leasing at this point is the best strategy until the price levels out. Electric cars are going to be more like electronic devices in this regard, at least that's the feeling I have.

 

[richard13]

Wow! Thank you all so much for sharing your experiences! This thread has given me a lot of food for thought. I will try to go the internet route if at all possible. I really have no interest in driving around and talking to a bunch of sales people anyway. I also dread the conversation with the 2nd sales guy that wants to sell you coatings, protection plans and extended warranties. I feel like... look, I gave you my money, can you just give me the keys so I can leave? LOL.

I'm also a little less apprehensive about getting a car from a dealer further away now. Whether they bring it to me or if I have to go and get it. For those of you that did this, did you have a trade in? If so, how did that work?