Price-Hiking Starts as New Mustangs About to Ship to Dealers

Tom Layton is anxiously awaiting the two 2015 50-Year Limited Edition Mustangs that he and his business partner have ordered, and is pleased they paid the sticker price for the collectible cars.

Ford is only making 1,964 of the 50th anniversary models that start at $46,995, but some are already being offered on eBay for as much as $70,000.

Layton said a dealer outside his home state of Florida claimed he sold some for almost $62,000, and he is upping the price for his last few models to nearly $70,000.

Layton, who lives in Clearwater, Fla., politely declined. Three weeks ago, he secured the only two 50-Year editions allotted to his local dealer with no extra charge.

It is technically not illegal to charge more than the sticker price for a car, but most automakers discourage the practice, said Jesse Toprak, chief analyst for Cars.com.

“It is typically a bad customer experience and takes advantage of those who want to be the first on the block with the new car,” Toprak said. There are exceptions when extremely few of that particular vehicle are produced.

Even if a customer is willing to pay a premium, he might be less likely to return to that dealer in the future, Toprak said.

National Automobile Dealers Association spokesman Jonathan Collegio compared the 50th anniversary Mustangs to very rare memorabilia.

“But in the end, it’s an arm’s length transaction where both parties are acting in their own best interests,” Collegio said. “Ultimately, it’s up to the dealer and car buyer to negotiate the selling price.”

Ford recommends that dealers offer all vehicles at the suggested retail price, said spokeswoman Elizabeth Weigandt.

As for Layton, his only complaint is the wait to take delivery after the dealer said there has been a material delay. Layton doesn’t know what that means, but his car is simply an order at this point.

Bruce Hettle, Ford Vice President of North American manufacturing, also does not know what a “material delay” means. But Hettle, who oversees the factory in Flat Rock, Mich., that makes the Mustang, said the first of the 2015 Mustangs are about to be shipped to dealerships, including some of the coveted anniversary editions.

The sixth-generation Mustangs have met quality targets and are being released to dealers “in the coming days,” Hettle said. Production is ramping up and the limited-edition cars will be built over the next few months.

Hettle said the launch has gone smoothly, adding that there have been the usual bugs associated with building an all-new vehicle, but nothing unusual.

The Flat Rock plant has built about 1,000 Mustangs so far, and the pace will continue to accelerate, Hettle said.

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2015 FORD MUSTANG STARTING PRICES

Mustang 50-Year Limited Edition: $46,995

GT: $32,925-$38,720

EcoBoost Mustang: $24,425

Base Mustang: $24,425

Prices include $825 destination charges.

This article appeared in print in the September 29th, 2014 edition of Hamodia.