Dealer Allocation

[LondonPride]

Just been told by a VW Commercial Vans dealer that they think the allocation for the year for VW California's is extinguished and might have to wait till the new allocation in Jan. I might have misinterpreted this but do VW only have a set number of vehicles they send to the UK each year?

 

[2into1]

This has been speculated on before, without any conclusive answer.
I think it is most likely to be a negotiation tactic (to keep you from pushing for as big a discount), and a reflection of the obvious that delivery leadtimes have been long all year, so anyone asking now, will be looking at delivery well into 2017.

I'll believe there is really an dealer allocation when a particular dealer refuses an order at list price.
I'll believe there is a UK allocation when ALL UK dealers are turning away orders.

 

[LondonPride]

Thanks T4WFA. When I said are you saying I will have to wait till Jan, he then relented and said might be something they can do. So doesn't quite seem true.

Also implied all dealers are linked together and there is no distinction between them all. Again this was slightly different from what I thought it was.

 

[larrylamb]

Just been told by a VW Commercial Vans dealer that they think the allocation for the year for VW California's is extinguished and might have to wait till the new allocation in Jan. I might have misinterpreted this but do VW only have a set number of vehicles they send to the UK each year?

Contact Guy Vincent at Volkswagen Van Centre Lancashire 01772 280452. He sells Calis at good prices to people all over the country. Straight talking, no messing and about the best discounts you will get on a new order. He sells loads so will be upfront about UK allocation.

 

[Geezso]

I would speak to the guys in Glasgow. Very honest and realistic.

 

[Smiffy4bikes]

When I ordered my Cali I was told I'd just managed to 'grab' the last build slot that the dealer had for this year (2016). And that was because of a cancelled order, supposedly.

My impression was that each dealer gets a quota of build slots, some of which are automatically allocated to their demonstrator vehicles.

I ordered my Cali on the 18th of May, and currently I still have an unconfirmed (!) build date of week 42.

Scary thought that build slots run out so early in the year!

I joked at the time that it will be Christmas before I see the Cali in the flesh, maybe I should have been careful about what I wished for...

 

[Geezso]

If its week 42 that should be confirmed. It can still slide.
All this talk of unconfirmed build weeks generally means no build week. As soon as a week is allocated its confirmed.
No such thing as unconfirmed week 46, unless your dealer is guessing based on averages of supply. In reality I will still be without build date.

 

[Grey one]

Hi Smiffy4bikes, not sure we will ever establish the truth. My order was 5 days after yours but my unconfirmed build is 12 weeks (nearly 3 months) after yours and it's a manual not DSG! This suggests it's not quite as simple as an order takes the next available slot? So if it's not that simple, exactly what are the criteria that define a build date?

 

[Smiffy4bikes]

Who knows!!!

There seems to be no rhyme or reason to it, pretty rubbish frankly. I've given up asking how or why it works, even the dealer seems to have no idea. If it wasn't for the fact that interest rates on any savings are beyond stupid, I'd be tempted to ask VW for a refund on the interest for my £1000 deposit.

Given how many of us have paid a deposit though, I'm sure VW are getting a better return on all those deposits than we would individually.....

 

[Amarillo]

Just been told by a VW Commercial Vans dealer that they think the allocation for the year for VW California's is extinguished and might have to wait till the new allocation in Jan. I might have misinterpreted this but do VW only have a set number of vehicles they send to the UK each year?

I have been Googling to try to work this out.

This is my best guess for how dealer allocation works:

Dealers are given an allocation of build slots for new cars calculated on a number of factors including production line capacity and past sales. When you order a new vehicle, it is either from an allocation or not. If from an allocation you will be given a confirmed build date. If it is not from an allocation, you will wait for a confirmed build date from the production line's surplus capacity or from the dealer's next allocation.

It might be that VW give unconfirmed build dates based on the dealer's next free allocation and/or surplus capacity. If the dealer gives a later order an allocated build slot, it would cause your unconfirmed build slot to slip. The implication of this to the customer is that it would be worth pressing the dealer for build information in the hope that they wouldn't prioritise another buyer above you, or would prioritise you above other buyers. It also implies that if you are not given a confirmed build date, you should ask for a contractual long-stop date for delivery - 3 months after the latest date the dealer advises you should receive the vehicle would not be unreasonable.

I cannot stress enough that much of what I have said is pure speculation on my part, and I may be far from the reality.