I noticed our regional dealer, Gulf States, is adding $795 for Dealer Prep on the sticker! I thought this was a verbotten practice? Has Scion changed its mind?

 

I'm in SET and every single car from NC-FL has a $675 delivering/processing fee on it. Its always been that way. There are regions that don't have any fees. If you were to find the sticker of an older model you'd see that charge too, but it may have been less. Its a Toyota thing, not just Scion

 

I bought a brand new '05 xB and there was no such charge on the sticker. That's why I asked. I thought they weren't supposed to do that--obviously, it must be okay.

 

Mine had like a $535 charge on it... Utah.

 

Mine had 0 charges (on the sticker anyway). Destination's the only thing that should be charged.

Otherwise, my dealer was great. Only $55 doc fee + TTL

 

Ok, every single car sold in the US, bar none, has a freight charge on it. They vary from region to region, and they may even use slightly different terminology, but I promise you, it's normal.

Look at this way, can you mail a post card without a charge? No. Why should a 1.5 ton vehicle be delivered for free? The trucking companies, just like the dealers, are not charity outfits.

 

It may not be on the sticker but it is on the sales ticket

 

Yep. Just to clarify, the only fees added to my vehicle (on the sticker) were: "Delivery, processing, handling" of $580 (or destination as referred to by others)... this matches what scion.com would say or what edmunds or whatever else...

Other charges added were just TTL and a $55 doc fee for me. (Yes, I just double checked my sales ticket)

 

SET (South East Toyota) charges $675 apparently, seems to be the highest in the dang nation. :-/

 

Hmm.. wierd, i live in alaska, and they didnt have anything like that on ours.. and im sure shipping is outrageous to get it here. I did get a doc fee, and a registration fee, though.

 

And going up to $715 for all vehicles processed after July 14.


It's there somewhere. It's either itemized on the window sticker, or built into the base price.

 

I think some of us are talking about two different things. Delivery charge is on the window sticker, and is part of the total MSRP at the bottom right corner of the sticker. "Dealer Prep" sounds like some kind of bogus version of a markup. I believe prepping the vehicle is factored into the MSRP according to manufacturers. So, if dealers are adding figures above and beyond the MSRP, thats crap.

 

I really do dislike SET, JM Family and AutoNation...

 

You are correct. Gulf States and SET are independant distributorships, and they can set prices however they choose.

You are talking about two different things.

Every Toyota and Scion has a destination charge. On Scions, it has been $580, and is about to go up to $620.

A dealer prep fee is what would be known as an "ADM". This stands for additional dealer markup. They may give you a service for that money (window etch, dent repair, paint sealant), but not all do.

As for the covenant, they can charge what they want, as long as it is what they post, and EVERY customer pays the same price. Most dealers won't ADM Scions, because they would just price themselves out of the market versus the competition. In the case of the independant distributors, they set the prices for their whole area.