AMV8 deposit - 'avin a larf
Discussion
Well it's time to *almost* name names here. I'll tread carefully Ted.
In case you've missed the 'other' thread - some people have been asked just for a letter of intent for the possible AMV8, some have been asked for a cheque for £5000 - which will not be cashed until the car is confirmed, and a few (from only one dealer I think) have been asked for £5000 which will be cashed, and 'refundable' if the car is never built, or is built in such few numbers that the wait will be LONG.
I phoned up my ASTON MARTIN dealer in the NORTH MIDLANDS today and was told that the £5000 cheques that they have requested WILL be cashed - 75 of them (£375,000 into their account) - and have been told that neither credit nor debit cards would be accepted as the car 'does not exist' - so this would not be an acceptable form of payment. I'm still trying to work that one out.
I have also been told that they will ONLY let me know when I have stumped up the £5000 cash if I'm 1st on the list or 75th (i.e. have little chance of ever seeing a car let alone in the first few years).
So I phoned Aston Martin HQ and spoke to *a VERY high ranking official* (Ok Ted?) who informed me that Aston Martin can't tell dealers what to do but they HIGHLY recommend that dealers do not cash cheques for models that are not confirmed for production. So I phoned the dealer back and they told me they would be cashing every cheque that was sent to them.
Some questions that spring to mind:
1. Why can't I pay by debit card when a cheque will be cashed and end up (I guess) in the same account?
2. Why is this the only dealer that seems to be cashing cheques?
3. How can this dealer FROM THE NORTH MIDLANDS justify sitting on £375,000 of customers money for months and possibly years, possibly many years - when the car may never be built, and if it is, the drip feed will last a long, long time?
Steve
>>> Edited by GetCarter on Tuesday 13th July 15:34
In case you've missed the 'other' thread - some people have been asked just for a letter of intent for the possible AMV8, some have been asked for a cheque for £5000 - which will not be cashed until the car is confirmed, and a few (from only one dealer I think) have been asked for £5000 which will be cashed, and 'refundable' if the car is never built, or is built in such few numbers that the wait will be LONG.
I phoned up my ASTON MARTIN dealer in the NORTH MIDLANDS today and was told that the £5000 cheques that they have requested WILL be cashed - 75 of them (£375,000 into their account) - and have been told that neither credit nor debit cards would be accepted as the car 'does not exist' - so this would not be an acceptable form of payment. I'm still trying to work that one out.
I have also been told that they will ONLY let me know when I have stumped up the £5000 cash if I'm 1st on the list or 75th (i.e. have little chance of ever seeing a car let alone in the first few years).
So I phoned Aston Martin HQ and spoke to *a VERY high ranking official* (Ok Ted?) who informed me that Aston Martin can't tell dealers what to do but they HIGHLY recommend that dealers do not cash cheques for models that are not confirmed for production. So I phoned the dealer back and they told me they would be cashing every cheque that was sent to them.
Some questions that spring to mind:
1. Why can't I pay by debit card when a cheque will be cashed and end up (I guess) in the same account?
2. Why is this the only dealer that seems to be cashing cheques?
3. How can this dealer FROM THE NORTH MIDLANDS justify sitting on £375,000 of customers money for months and possibly years, possibly many years - when the car may never be built, and if it is, the drip feed will last a long, long time?
Steve
>>> Edited by GetCarter on Tuesday 13th July 15:34
GetCarter said:I'm guessing that some of the consumer protection measures that are provided with debit/credit card transactions could potentially make life uncomfortable for them.
Some questions that spring to mind:
1. Why can't I pay by debit card when a cheque will be cashed and end up (I guess) in the same account?
GetCarter said:That was rhetorical, right? Nice business if you can get it, just not ethical or justifiable.
3. How can this dealer FROM THE NORTH MIDLANDS justify sitting on £375,000 of customers money for months and possibly years, possibly many years - when the car may never be built, and if it is, the drip feed will last a long, long time?
Stick with the 996 Turbo until they actually produce something; I'm sure you'll be able to pick up a very new example for close to list when they do appear. Either that, or get a DB9 now.
Ta for the comments and advice.
As for another dealer - well I registered the week the car was announced and think it 50/50 as to whether I'd get one before 2007 - If I registered now - I guess the chances of ever seeing one are minimal.
Most dealers are now refusing any 'letters of intent' (I phoned two earlier) as they know Aston are over-subscribed and have bookings until 2010
I'm still trying to work out why I'm interested in a much slower car (!)... but it just looks so good, I could almost forgive the stats for lines like that.
Steve
As for another dealer - well I registered the week the car was announced and think it 50/50 as to whether I'd get one before 2007 - If I registered now - I guess the chances of ever seeing one are minimal.
Most dealers are now refusing any 'letters of intent' (I phoned two earlier) as they know Aston are over-subscribed and have bookings until 2010
I'm still trying to work out why I'm interested in a much slower car (!)... but it just looks so good, I could almost forgive the stats for lines like that.
Steve
Hmm - tricky situation, and quite sad really - I'd have thought that with this sort of car, you'd not be involved in this sort of situation
Have you asked Aston whether they could assist in moving your order to another dealer, so that you wouldn't lose your position in the queue?
Also, has your dealer said how many cars they will be allocated every year? 75 orders seems very small compared to the 250-300 that some other dealers have.
Have you asked Aston whether they could assist in moving your order to another dealer, so that you wouldn't lose your position in the queue?
Also, has your dealer said how many cars they will be allocated every year? 75 orders seems very small compared to the 250-300 that some other dealers have.
GetCarter said:There's a short article in this month's Top Gear mag, which suggests that there may be a quicker version at some point, to match the 911 Turbo! Apparently, 100bhp/litre is easily achievable from this engine without supercharging, and even more with!
I'm still trying to work out why I'm interested in a much slower car (!)... but it just looks so good, I could almost forgive the stats for lines like that.
ehasler said:
Also, has your dealer said how many cars they will be allocated every year? 75 orders seems very small compared to the 250-300 that some other dealers have.
That seems a lot of cars for one dealership. Particularly when at the AM factory last year we were told they were only intending to build 3,500 of these cars for worldwide distribution per year.
DAZ
dazren said:
Also, has your dealer said how many cars they will be allocated every year? 75 orders seems very small compared to the 250-300 that some other dealers have.
That seems a lot of cars for one dealership. Particularly when at the AM factory last year we were told they were only intending to build 3,500 of these cars for worldwide distribution per year.
DAZ
Spoke to my dealer yesterday. They have 290 letter's of intent for the AMV8. If your 291 , you're talking at least 2010 if no one drops out. They also speculate a 50% take up rate. So it is still worth putting your name down.
ehasler said:
Have you asked Aston whether they could assist in moving your order to another dealer, so that you wouldn't lose your position in the queue?
I tried that, but it would miff all the people in the queue of the new dealer - so a no-go I'm afraid.
hmmmmmm £5k ... could DMS chip the turbo and have a week in the Seychelles.
1/2 price Vanquish!!! 
dazren said:How does this number compare to cars like the 911, 360, DB9 and Tuscan? When I saw that figure, I thought that was rather a lot of cars!
they were only intending to build 3,500 of these cars for worldwide distribution per year.
>> Edited by ehasler on Wednesday 14th July 10:15
ehasler said:
they were only intending to build 3,500 of these cars for worldwide distribution per year.
How does this number compare to cars like the 911, 360, DB9 and Tuscan? When I saw that figure, I thought that was rather a lot of cars!
>> Edited by ehasler on Wednesday 14th July 10:15
Eventually around 5000 DB9's a year I think. Two thirds for export to U.S.A and Asia, the other third for Europe.
ehasler said:
they were only intending to build 3,500 of these cars for worldwide distribution per year.
How does this number compare to cars like the 911, 360, DB9 and Tuscan? When I saw that figure, I thought that was rather a lot of cars!
Annual production estimate (Source - Errrrr, ME!)
911 - 28,000
360 - 2,600 (Ferrari only build a total of 4,000 cars per year)
DB9 - Refer below
Tuscan - Don't know, probably less than 500 though.
At the AM factory in March last year we were told the medium term aim was to build 3 different cars with the following numbers per year:
Vanquish - 200
DB9 - 500/700
AMV8 - 3,500
Objectives may well have changed and I know shadytree will be a lot more upto date than I am.
DAZ
Annual production for Aston is as follows:
AMV8 - 3,000 - 3,500 pa
DB9 - 2,000 pa
Vanquish - 350 pa
This is for the world market, and just under 1/3 stays in the UK.
At the moment AMV8 is mooted to arrive with us at the beginning of 2006, and most dealers have around 300-400 letters of intent for the car. Usually about 50% go forward to a full order.
AMV8 - 3,000 - 3,500 pa
DB9 - 2,000 pa
Vanquish - 350 pa
This is for the world market, and just under 1/3 stays in the UK.
At the moment AMV8 is mooted to arrive with us at the beginning of 2006, and most dealers have around 300-400 letters of intent for the car. Usually about 50% go forward to a full order.
Hmmm, got told a similar thing yesterday by the local dealer (i.e. well over-subscribed with pre-orders).
This was going to be my medium-term plan but I guess you'd now be looking at mid to end 2006.
Daz, not sure you could get a second-hand Vanquish for £75k though. More like £100k I would've though. Could be wrong though...
This was going to be my medium-term plan but I guess you'd now be looking at mid to end 2006.
Daz, not sure you could get a second-hand Vanquish for £75k though. More like £100k I would've though. Could be wrong though...
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