John Deere retail order on compact tractor?

[mechatgsk]

Hello, I recently ordered a compact utility tractor from John Deere. This was a new tractor direct from factory in Augusta, Georgia. I ordered it on a Friday around 12:30pm. The dealer said it had a delivery date of 14-JUL-09 or sooner. I decided on Saturday morning that I wanted a one size larger tractor. I called the dealer at 10:30am Saturday morning and they thought it would be fine. The salesman said I had 24 hours to change an order. Well..Monday goes by and I hear nothing from dealer. So, Tuesday I call dealer and I hear a different story now. They tell me the tractor shipped on Friday already. The dealer tells me he was wrong about 24 hour deal, he says that is for agriculture tractors only and not compacts. He then said there would be a penalty for not taking the retail ordered tractor. Possibly $1000.00 minimum or 2% to 3% of price of tractor. Can anyone tell me what the John Deere policy is?
I have bought and paid for a lot of equipment from John Deere in the past to be a home owner. I feel like this is way to much to pay for changing my mind and wanting a larger tractor. I would like advice on what to do? Thanks

 

[art]

I believe it is 72 hours, at least in ny. I can't figure out why it might be so difficult for you to buy the tractor you want from a dealer if they want to sell them.

 

[jenkinsph]

I would contact Deere directly since you ordered this way. I agree with Art too, most people are getting 10% or better discount through a dealer, I would not think Deere would sell direct unless you were paying list. I can't see Deere competeing with the dealers so you likely are paying too much.



Steve

 

[mechatgsk]

Steve, you misunderstood me. I am buying through a JD Dealer. I meant the tractor was ordered from dealer but coming from JD plant in Augusta, Georgia. Thanks

 

[Baucom]

Sounds to me like they're just trying to squeeze extra money out of you. How's ordering this tractor for you any different than ordering 1 for dealer stock? Unless you upped the price by adding a lot of uncommon options, they shouldn't have any more trouble selling this one from their lot than they would any other machine they get. Plus, it's not as if you decided you made a mistake and don't want a tractor now, you want to UPGRADE. The dealer should be happy because if you want a larger machine, it likely costs more and they should stand to make more money as a result. Is this a large dealer with a decent selection of tractors on the lot?

 

[BleedGreen]

Unfortunately your dealer is not trying to "squeeze more money" out of you - they are simply trying to recoup the penalty Deere will charge them when they sell the tractor you ordered to someone else. If a dealer orders a tractor "Retail Sale" the customer name and address must be included in the order and if the tractor is sold to anyone else, the dealer is charged a penalty. The reason for this is that "Retail Sale" orders go to the front of the line - in front of any "stock" orders that have already been placed. In the past, dealers would order something "Retail Sold" (when it wasn't) to get it in quickly and then say the sale fell through and put the unit into stock inventory. Also, a "Retail Sold" order comes with no terms, so if they don't sell your original ordered tractor almost immediately, they will start to pay interest on it... Not trying to defend the dealer or Deere's policy - just hoping to inform.

 

[Baucom]

Thanks for clarifying that on the order terms--the dealer's stance makes a little more sense now, though it probably isn't going to do much for customer loyalty.

What size tractor did you order, and what size did you change your mind and decide you wanted?

 

[MessickFarmEqu]

that seems absurd. Any company that we deal with would reinstate the tractor and give the dealer their stock terms back.

 

[BleedGreen]

Thank you for your insightful reply.

 

[Baucom]

that seems absurd. Any company that we deal with would reinstate the tractor and give the dealer their stock terms back.

Agreed. If it were me, they could either drop that talk of a penalty and work something out with JD themselves and sell me the larger model that I wanted, or I'd let them keep their tractor and the knowledge that I was buying a bigger tractor and buy that bigger tractor elsewhere.

 

[LBrown59]

Agreed. If it were me, they could either drop that talk of a penalty and work something out with JD themselves and sell me the larger model that I wanted, or I'd let them keep their tractor and the knowledge that I was buying a bigger tractor and buy that bigger tractor elsewhere.

That sounds like a winner and I might even go with a Kubota to add insult to energy.

 

[CinderSchnauzer]

Reading posts like this make me appreciate the store where I bought. During the sales process that dragged over about a 16 month period, I was always given written detailed quotes, including fairly reasonable discounts.

Negotiated a final deal November 2007. Tractor and equipment ordered - not a penny requested as deposit - no signed contract - just handshake. Tractor came in mid January 2008 and after PDI staging was delivered Feb 01 / 08.

By then currency exchange values had changed and not in the dealers favor, but they still honored the original deal. Only had one warranty item since - handled quickly.

 

[ctlguy]

Wow, just baffles me that a guy would sign a legally binding contract, ie purchase order, etc and have a dealer place an order and then want to change it after the fact. This day and age a business cash flow is incredibly important to staying afloat. Now this dealer gets a tractor with stub terms that they will have to pay for in 30 days and will not be able to floor plan the tractor. I personally would probably waive fees if they where to buy another tractor but these kind of glitches lose dealerships money. Deere is incredibly strict on retail orders on consumer equipment and once released you can not change or cancel that order nor will Deere give the dealer floor plan options.

 

[Baucom]

I do agree that the OP should've done his homework better before ordering, but given that he changed his mind in less than 24 hrs and wants to purchase a larger machine, the dealer should eat this cost and just consider it an unfortunate cost of doing business.

However, I'm still interested in knowing what size tractors we're talking about here...if he ordered a 2320 and decided he wanted a 2520, that's a fairly significant jump in terms of % difference in hp. OTOH, if he ordered a 4320 and decided he wanted a 4520, that's not such a big difference. In other words, on the small end of the scale there are many things that a tractor w/ 5 more hp can do better, but on the larger end of the scale, not so much unless he's buying a cab tractor or was already going to be marginal on PTO hp for some task such as running a pump.

 

[mechatgsk]

The tractor ordered was a 4320 with open station, eHydro, R4 tires, Dual mid SCV. This tractor has 48 engine hp and 39.9 pto hp. I wanted to upgrade to 4520 equiped the same. This tractor with new tier 3 engine specifications has 60 engine hp and 50 pto hp. Thanks to all advice!

 

[jenkinsph]

mechatgsk,

If it helps let me say that my 110 tlb which has a 3pt hitch does a good job and is the same size as the 4000 series tractors. This tractor is 43 hp with e hydro and the same R4 tires as the 4320 it does a good job with a 1250 lb boxblade. My new 4520 with cab has more power and speed but everything considered I think you will like the 4320 which will fall between the two mentioned above.


Steve

 

[CinderSchnauzer]

For me, the dealer side of the story tugs at my skeptical side. So the tractor is ordered at 12:30 Friday - gets shipped by end of the business day - a Friday no less. When did it actually arrive at the dealer?

If it was me, I'd be looking for documented proof the tractor was on the road before the 10:30 call on Saturday.

 

[Baucom]

That thought crossed my mind as well--wouldn't surprise me at all if the dealer waited until Monday to attempt to change the order, if they even tried to change it. That seems like awfully fast shipping on something as large as a tractor ordered after noon on Friday. Maybe I'm just a skeptic.

On a different note, if the dealer won't deal on that 4520 or budge on the "penalty" for not taking the 4320, I doubt there would be a noticeable difference between the 2 unless the plan is to run an MX8 or some other implement that demands high pto hp. The tractors are the same size and wt, and either 1 will run out of traction before it runs out of power.

 

[Shantycoke]

Wow, just baffles me that a guy would sign a legally binding contract, ie purchase order, etc and have a dealer place an order and then want to change it after the fact. This day and age a business cash flow is incredibly important to staying afloat. Now this dealer gets a tractor with stub terms that they will have to pay for in 30 days and will not be able to floor plan the tractor. I personally would probably waive fees if they where to buy another tractor but these kind of glitches lose dealerships money. Deere is incredibly strict on retail orders on consumer equipment and once released you can not change or cancel that order nor will Deere give the dealer floor plan options.

If changing his order was going to cause the dealer a problem, or have the buyer pay an extra fee for upgrade, this should have been brought up by the dealer prior to the deal going through. Also, to have a dealer tell a customer that he has a 24 hr. window to change his order,and the next day say that was a mistake and the buyer has to pay at least $1,000.00 fee is pretty shady. If a guy is dealing tractors from Deere or anyone, you would think he would know the rules of the company he represents. I'd tell this guy to stick the tractor where the sun doesn't shine and go to someone else and get what you want. I'm sure he's not the only John Deere dealer you can go to.

 

[mechatgsk]

The plan is to get a 400X loader, MX6 rotary cutter, JD 673 Tiller with the tractor. Down the road I want to purchase a Woods RM990 finish mower, 72" box blade and 72" scrape blade.