- Thread starter
- #1
Hi everyone, I’m James, the guy who almost became a Bronco owner yesterday. My wife and I drove our 2018 Toyota Sienna to Town East Ford to trade it in and buy a 2024 Ford Bronco Badlands. We spent hours negotiating in the afternoon and finally reached an agreement. But since we had to pick up our daughter from school, we put down a $1,000 deposit and planned to come back later to finalize everything. That evening, back at the dealership, we mentioned to the salesperson that we forgot about the $750 College Grad Offer. He said no problem and started preparing the paperwork while checking our credit. Then things took a turn.
The finance guy came in with new paperwork. The deal amount was the same, but the interest rate jumped from 3.9% to 8.19%. We pointed out that 8.19% must be a mistake—it should be 3.9%. Then the finance manager stepped in. He explained that we have great credit scores, over 800, but because we don’t have a long loan history, Ford Credit spit out an 8.19% rate. He offered to shop around with other lenders for maybe 5% or 6%. We were totally confused. After ten minutes of back-and-forth, the finance manager finally dropped the bombshell: per Ford’s rules, if you qualify, you can only pick one incentive—either the $1,000 cash back or the 3.9%-4.9% APR for 72 months.
We were floored. We explained that throughout the entire sales process, neither the salesperson nor the sales manager ever mentioned this “one incentive” rule. The sales manager even wrote down the deal amount with a 3.9% rate on his paperwork! But the finance manager insisted he’s the only one who knows the loan details. We were stunned. We asked if this was a Town East Ford policy, because if so, we could choose not to buy from them. He firmly said it’s Ford’s policy. When we asked him to show us Ford’s official documentation proving this, he couldn’t.
So, I’m turning to you all for help. Is it true that Ford’s policy limits you to just one incentive if you qualify—either $1,000 cash back or the 3.9%-4.9% APR for 72 months? For those who’ve bought a Ford this year, have you run into this? Should I even deal with a dealership I can’t trust? Thanks for any advice!
The finance guy came in with new paperwork. The deal amount was the same, but the interest rate jumped from 3.9% to 8.19%. We pointed out that 8.19% must be a mistake—it should be 3.9%. Then the finance manager stepped in. He explained that we have great credit scores, over 800, but because we don’t have a long loan history, Ford Credit spit out an 8.19% rate. He offered to shop around with other lenders for maybe 5% or 6%. We were totally confused. After ten minutes of back-and-forth, the finance manager finally dropped the bombshell: per Ford’s rules, if you qualify, you can only pick one incentive—either the $1,000 cash back or the 3.9%-4.9% APR for 72 months.
We were floored. We explained that throughout the entire sales process, neither the salesperson nor the sales manager ever mentioned this “one incentive” rule. The sales manager even wrote down the deal amount with a 3.9% rate on his paperwork! But the finance manager insisted he’s the only one who knows the loan details. We were stunned. We asked if this was a Town East Ford policy, because if so, we could choose not to buy from them. He firmly said it’s Ford’s policy. When we asked him to show us Ford’s official documentation proving this, he couldn’t.
So, I’m turning to you all for help. Is it true that Ford’s policy limits you to just one incentive if you qualify—either $1,000 cash back or the 3.9%-4.9% APR for 72 months? For those who’ve bought a Ford this year, have you run into this? Should I even deal with a dealership I can’t trust? Thanks for any advice!
Sponsored
