Since the sale is ongoing and may resolve itself in my favor, I'm not going to disclose the name of the dealership or salesman unless SHTF.

I bought a new GTS last sunday (2/6/11) but since they didn't have the car on the lot I said I would take delivery of it at a later date. As of now I have not returned to the dealer to pick up the car but I have already signed all the paperwork on 2/6. One of the verbal contracts I had with the salesman was to have the front license plate installed off center like the EVO. The salesman showed me that all of their GTSs on their lot are not drilled so I can have whatever choice I want. As most of you know, once the install is made there are permanent holes in the bumper that cannot be patched cheaply.

Fast forward to today(one week later), the salesman says he as received the car from storage but they installed the license plate in the center against my wishes. He acknowledged this and apologized but now hes in the **** because the VIN of that car is all over my paperwork and while he says he's talking to the manager to get me a new car I'm not sure if thats feasible although I'm hoping it is.

Now, since I haven't picked up the car at all, what are my options if I need to cancel the sale with respect to CA laws?

Essentially what this boils down to is that the car they are trying to deliver does not match what I agreed to but the difference lies within a verbal contract. However, there is plenty of physical evidence that my request is not outside of reason (they have 100s of cars on the lot not drilled) and they have previous customers who they have honored the same request.

Should I try to get the salesman to admit to the agreement and record the conversation?

 

Lol sorry but this seems silly, and if you didn't get it in writing to begin with, a verbal agreement means nothing. At this point your best bet would be to ask to have the bumper swapped with another on the lot assuming they have another of the same color in stock. Otherwise if it bothers you that much, go ahead and try to cancel your sale.

 

Well in hindsight I should have gotten it in writing but it didn't occur to me since EVERY lancer on the lot was not drilled and the salesman was very confident it wouldn't be a problem and he said most of customers request it as well.

 

What did the dealer say about putting a new bumper on with an offset license plate install?

 

I asked about that but they said the Bumper is tagged with the VIN so they didn't want to do that. I'm not sure if that's BS or not.

 

Sounds like it to me.. there is no vin on a bumper... maybe they could put a sticker on the inside, but that is a bunch of BS

 

Hmm. Can anyone else verify there's no VIN on the bumper?

 

Ask them to show you where the VIN is on the bumper. Seems like a simple request that can help ease the tension. I know my brother's Supra has the VIN number EVERYWHERE, but I've seen very few other cars that do the same thing. Sounds like BS on the VIN on the front bumper to me though.

If there is no VIN I would just try to have the bumper swapped. If not, like someone else said you can try to cancel your order. And don't listen to people if they say it doesn't seem like a big deal. You're the one paying for it so it should be exactly as you were (realistically) expecting.

 

well i know the vin is on my hood and rear bumper, never checked front but im going to guess its on there.

try to get something else out of them like all weather floormats or a cvt shift knob ($150 accessory) it may not be much but its better than nothing.

 

I'll echo the need to get things in writing the next time you have a request like this, but it sounds to me like the dealership is doing what they can to get you a car with what you asked for. If they can't switch out cars, would they pay to patch your holes? I'm not fond of that option because once you start repairing/repainting things, it'll rarely look 100% as it did from the factory. Honestly, the new bumper or different car sound like better options to me.

People surely make mistakes on paperwork all the time, so I would think the dealership/other powers-that-be over registering your car know of a way to swap out the mentions of the car you're not getting (if they decide to trade it out) for one you would be.

That bumper VIN excuse sounds like BS, though. I know there's a couple flaps in the carpet on the inside that have the VIN underneath written into the metal, but I wouldn't think they'd put it on an often whacked into/changed out piece like the bumper. (I can't confirm anything, though, because I've never heard of or looked for a VIN number on the bumper.)

 

I don't see how that matters, if they put what they did in writing and a receipt, if anyone did buy your car and question the different bumper vin you would have proof. Not that anyone would even look, if it is even on the bumper somewhere. Mistakes happen but the dealership should right the wrong in my opinion.

 

The bumper does have a vin on the side near the crash bar on the inside which does not affect the mounting of a side license plate. If it did, why do all Evo 10's have side mountings?

 

I'm not sure I understand your question.

 

I'm assuming the dealer mentioned it because if a bumper has a different vin on it, someone would assume the car was in an accident or something. Which if you have in writing from the dealer of why the bumper was replaced I don't see a problem.

 

Well a new replacement bumper shouldn't have a VIN at all right? Does anyone know how much those run for a 2011 GTS? How much labor would something like that take to install?