does allocation mean the dealer is seeing what is being shipped to the states and all dealers can see the list

on another note... can dealers see what other dealers have? because i'm hearing different things from different dealers... they're telling no one has that color combo right now, but another dealer says they have one on the lot

so the thats where i'm confused

thanks

 

i'm not completely sure about this, but this is what i know....

the dealers have a manifest of all the cars shipped/being shipped to the area (ex. west coast). also, when a dealer has a certain car on hold, or when they are waiting for an order, the car is considered sold. dealers supposedly get cars and priority based on how much they sell so sometimes they will consider a car sold when other dealers look at it, but in reality it may just be a potential sale. someone correct me if i'm wrong, this is a combination of what i've heard from two different lexus salesmen.

 

I was wondering this very same thing. When I was shopping for my car, I went to 2 dealerships and asked specifically for a blue onyx/black interior 350 and both dealerships searched the state and did not find any matching vehicles. Then I called up a 3rd dealership, asked them the same thing, and they said that they had that very car on the lot. Needless to say, I went up there the same day but it seemed strange to me that the dealers could check on other dealerships, yet this car was not shown. I'm wondering if dealerships can choose which cars they're willing to give up and which ones they don't want to advertise, kind of like what jsquared said. It very well could be that they did not have this in the inventory because it was a special order and the guy backed out of it and they never remembered to put it back in the system. Lucky for me they didn't

 

Allocation list are are the list of vechile that will be ariving at a certin dealership only. Dealers do not get an allocation list for each dealer in their area. They also can not see what everyone still has on their lot. Plus they dont want to tell you another dealer has the one you want. They are to affraid you will run to the other dealer. They can only call and ask just like you can. Allocation lists all consist of negoations. The dealer requests certin vechiles also. But they are also forced to take a certin amount too. As far as request go they will give the high volume dealers more of their requests and then they take turns. If a dealer requests a certin vechile in one shipment and dont get it, chances are they will get it out of the next 1 or 2 shipments. Best thing to do is call or email all the dealers in your area and youll find that their allocation lists come in all with in 1-3 days of each other. Next let them knwo what you want and to cal you when it shows on their list. Next call them the day their list comes in and check if what you want is on it.