Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

I don't have a lexus ordering system in front of me, so I can't say.

However, since the original poster isn't asking about a manual 250 I'm still confused why you keep bringing one up.

The config the original poster is asking about CAN be done according to even Lexus.com.

Hence if it's not on any dealer lot today it can at worst be submitted as a normal special order anytime in the next 13 days and he should have it roughly 2.5 months later.

tex2670

I'm going to say you can't do this. ML (non-nav) is not an available option for the 6MT (it is available for 6AT). It's like asking if you can special order AWD for a 350--it is not available. Special order is to build a car, with available options, in a configuration that is not produced in your area of the country.

kennyserb

SeOuLiS250,
Hello.. .where did you see that 250 with the ML? and how much were they asking? I've been trying to find someone to order the 250 (auto) with the ML and everyone says it just can't be done. thanks in advance for any info....
Kenny

CRB

I think you're correct. It seems strange to me that this year, in the fourth year of production, the ML and NAV/ML have been stripped from the options list of only the 6MT model.

kalvano

It CAN take up to 6 months, depending on production schedules and volume. It's not likely to, but the further off the norm you go with options, the more likely it is to take longer. Especially with Lexus having cut production.

He's not lying, he's covering his ***. Will it take the full 6 months? Probably not. Will it take longer than 3 months? Probably. Why the hell would a salesmen tell a customer 3 months if he knows it isn't likely? Why not say 6 months to be safe, and if it comes earlier, great.

It's not lying, it's setting expectations. The last thing he wants to say is 3 months, then get reamed when it takes 4 or 5.

We had a guy order a weird combo LS 460, took 4.5 months to come in, and special-order IS took less than 2.5. Much safer to say 6...it's what I tell people.

CRB

Informative post, I'm waiting for Kurtz's rebuttal.

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

Why?


Again, a special order is a special order.

I keep waiting for people who are telling us "It can take longer if it's a really weird special order" to offer the slightest reason why.


If they're building a special order it takes exactly as long as any other.

It's not like that have to hand-craft the odd part out of unobtainium in order to build it or something.


This stuff is built in factories. On assembly lines. In many cases by robots.

They just pull a different part/parts when doing the build on the car.




Again- the part, specifically, I said the dealer is lying about is that this is somehow a "special" special order.

A special order is a special order when it comes to the 2IS. If the combo you want is possible but non-standard it'll take the same amount of time as special ordering any other combo that's possible but non-standard.


So far, assuming a competent dealer who knows how to order the vehicle, that has been 2.5-3.5 months depending on if you make it in before the 20th of the month or not.

All the stories we've ever seen here of any longer times on a 2IS order always ended with "Well, it turns out the dealer didn't actually DO a special order" or "Well it turns out the dealer spent 3 months trying to swap with another dealer before actually placing my order!"

Now, if Lexus decides going forward "We're just not going to build ANY 2ISes in March" that could obviously make it take an extra month, but it'd make -all- 2ISes take an extra month, not just some "special special" config of one.

tex2670

the only logical reason for it to take longer is human error--someone drops the ball placing the order. I suppose that if production is cut across the board, it could take longer--BUT I don't see how anyone would really be sure about that, because I can't image that the IS has seen a production cut during its existence, except possibly in the past 6 months.

kalvano

It's my understanding that, when Lexus builds cars, they basically set aside blocks of time at the factory to build certain cars. For instance, next Tuesday may be all Premium package Starfire ES's. It's one of the reasons they can keep costs low, the efficiency.

If you ask for something totally off the line, then they have to find a time to work it in, and the more outside the norm it is, the longer it can take. They are in far more of a hurry to build cars that 50,000 people are going to buy than 1 person.


And yet again, a large part of it is probably ***-covering by the salesman. If there is the slightest possibility it can take a certain amount of time, I know that's what I tell people. It's not a discouragement, it's simply setting expectations. Then, if it takes 6 months, I was dead on and nobody is disappointed. If it takes 3 or 4, even better. It's much better from my perspective for people to expect a long wait and not have it than to expect a short one and get a long one.

Cioffdaddy

Well I went in to the dealership and and talked to them about this yesterday. The sales manager came out and said he talked to his "rep" (the guy who helps coordinate inventory I suppose) and the rep said that the order wouldn't be made this quarter because the RWD + luxury combo was too odd of a combination, so it got bumped to the next quarter. He also said there's no guarantee that it wouldn't get bumped again. That sounds fairly in line with what kalvano is saying I guess. He is gonna talk to the guy on Mon and see if there is anything that can be changed that would let it get built sooner.

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

The explaination still isn't consistent with the actual results of what happened with my own order (nor the way the special order system was explained by my own dealer).

My option choices, sport package isn't often built to begin with, and ML without nav, is something they -never- build. Not ever.

And it still took 2.5 months.

Because when they were just building a normal IS350 they simply changed the stereo option during the build.

While it makes sense the assembly line would do things like build in batches I find it hard to believe they're building NO 2ISes with the luxury package this quarter.

I find it even harder to believe some dude at the local dealership knows what Lexus is planning to build at the factory for the entire next quarter.


I suppose it's possible Lexus has completely changed its production scheduling and methods since last year due to the economy, but as big a news as it is when even a crappy company like Chrysler shuts plants down for a month or more you'd think if Lexus were doing it it'd make the news.

It continues to sound like a dealer just trying to discourage you from ordering and instead buying something he has stuck sitting on his lot.

As I said from the start, find a better dealer.

Lets Drive

iTrader: (3)

3 months is about average, give or take. My car took about 4 months-- ordered in March, arrived in July (this includes searching for a car in various locations, before placing the actual order). A good bit of that time was also due to shipping by boat, then the actual transport to the dealership (east coast).

I'm not so sure about Lexus in specific, but I'm aware of cases where how varied your request is from the norm, can affect how willing some makes are to produce it. I'd speculate that factors such as the slumping economy (slowed but specific production), also come into play, as they'll want to make sure they can sell your odd car, should you back out on the deal.

I believe what kalvano mentioned is also true. I've read of cases where the factory will place your specific build into production, within reasonable time of when its most efficient to do so. I'd just keep in mind that many makes have been experiencing sales declines here, and would likely be putting more effort behind cars they're most likely to sell-- but again, I'm just speculating on that end.

Either way, depending on when the dealer actually places your order, they may just be giving themselves more of a window for when the vehicle actually arrives. As someone said before, they could be covering their @ss. You're giving approximate monthly dates, so are you sure they weren't spending the time between when you thought they placed the order and when they called you, looking for the car?

It appears they haven't placed your order yet, so I honestly wouldn't expect the vehicle by march/april, and instead guess closer to mid-june to july. Unless they've pushed back the July date, it would be less than 6 months, since they didn't actually place your order back in Jan., when you thought they did.

I wouldn't get too caught up in the 'special special' order stuff, but for various reasons, its at the very least a special order that will take some time to get there.