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Call the number on the website and they can connect you with the right people.
VIP Order From Beginning to End
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Hi, wondering if you all could help answer a question for me.
Background Part 1 I was wavering between an Ascent or a new Outback for awhile and was reading both forums to learn about the cars. I ended up getting the Outback - the Ascent was great but just a big too big for my needs. I learned about the VIP program through you all on this forum. I confirmed with the dealer they would honor it for the Outback Touring XT that I ordered from the factory through them. I did all the steps to do invoice -2% through the ASPCA. All good.
I love my new Outback and have been reading the Outback forum for tips /tricks / and generally learn. (I'm not a car person but Subaru is making me one!) In one thread people were posting what they were able to get their cars for vs. MSRP, etc. I know deals vary but I didn't really think VIP Program did (or did much) but I noted several posts from people who also went through the VIP program had a different amount listed for the invoice on the exact same model car (Touring XT) which made me dig deeper and want to look into things.
Background Part 2: I picked up my Outback on the 27th. The dealer confirmed they got the VIP Authorization Form etc. The dealer had the price of the car, fees, accessories, etc. all rolled into one and was more focused on selling me the different warranty packages. I did the best I could to get line by line pricing of things so I understood where we were with things. I was able to tell that they were charging me for MSRP for all the accessories on a pretty loaded car. I questioned it and was told VIP pricing didn't apply to accessories. While they were prepping the car for me to take home, what they said didn't sit right so I looked up the letter and confirmed I was correct. I brought the issue up while there and they ended up having to refund me $699 they charged me in error.
Everywhere I've looked for the Outback Touring the dealer invoice is $37,011. Destination and delivery is $1,010. Total $38,021. The dealer is saying their cost is $38,569 which includes invoice and D&D. There seems to be roughly $500 difference. If I got hosed a bit by a dealer who charged $500 more in dealer fees I guess it is my fault for not being able to crack them for clear info on pricing at the start but I thought that is what the VIP Program was for. (Yes, I know you still have to keep your guard up - I thought I had.)
Question: the VIP coupon says "Retailer Invoice Cost Minus 2%" Ignoring my dealer costs who seems to have a higher D&D fee than anyone else, is the Invoice $37,011 or $38,021
Background Part 1 I was wavering between an Ascent or a new Outback for awhile and was reading both forums to learn about the cars. I ended up getting the Outback - the Ascent was great but just a big too big for my needs. I learned about the VIP program through you all on this forum. I confirmed with the dealer they would honor it for the Outback Touring XT that I ordered from the factory through them. I did all the steps to do invoice -2% through the ASPCA. All good.
I love my new Outback and have been reading the Outback forum for tips /tricks / and generally learn. (I'm not a car person but Subaru is making me one!) In one thread people were posting what they were able to get their cars for vs. MSRP, etc. I know deals vary but I didn't really think VIP Program did (or did much) but I noted several posts from people who also went through the VIP program had a different amount listed for the invoice on the exact same model car (Touring XT) which made me dig deeper and want to look into things.
Background Part 2: I picked up my Outback on the 27th. The dealer confirmed they got the VIP Authorization Form etc. The dealer had the price of the car, fees, accessories, etc. all rolled into one and was more focused on selling me the different warranty packages. I did the best I could to get line by line pricing of things so I understood where we were with things. I was able to tell that they were charging me for MSRP for all the accessories on a pretty loaded car. I questioned it and was told VIP pricing didn't apply to accessories. While they were prepping the car for me to take home, what they said didn't sit right so I looked up the letter and confirmed I was correct. I brought the issue up while there and they ended up having to refund me $699 they charged me in error.
Everywhere I've looked for the Outback Touring the dealer invoice is $37,011. Destination and delivery is $1,010. Total $38,021. The dealer is saying their cost is $38,569 which includes invoice and D&D. There seems to be roughly $500 difference. If I got hosed a bit by a dealer who charged $500 more in dealer fees I guess it is my fault for not being able to crack them for clear info on pricing at the start but I thought that is what the VIP Program was for. (Yes, I know you still have to keep your guard up - I thought I had.)
Question: the VIP coupon says "Retailer Invoice Cost Minus 2%" Ignoring my dealer costs who seems to have a higher D&D fee than anyone else, is the Invoice $37,011 or $38,021
PKU, I think you need to give SOA a call and have them input your VIN to get the invoice for your particular vehicle including accessories. Prices/costs do change, so going by the VIN is important. They also need to know that you had problems with your transaction like you describe. (I remember reading your post in the Outback forum recently about this)
The VIP program isn't pegged to a specific model...it does exclude a small number of models, however, like the BRZ.
The VIP program is either "at invoice" or "2% below invoice", depending on the program sponsor. ASPCA and PHS the the most often cited for the 2% option...I used the latter. Note that there can be a waiting period between when you join and when you can obtain your VIP authorization letter. That's the case with PHS unless you contribute $500. I believe that the ASPCA program requires a $500 contribution, but I've never looked at it specifically. PHS was better for me and, well...Philadelphia Flower Show tickets.
Checked the PHS site it states you can join for $60.00 and after 6 months qualify for the VIP program, do you know if that would be the Invoice less 2% or do you have to join for the $500 to qualify for that discount, which way did you go Jim in PA
At the time for both of my buys, the VIP with PHS was 2% below invoice. I have not heard of any change to that. They did change the requirement to qualification to add the waiting period because so many folks were doing "one time memberships" just to get the deal in two days and then disappear into the night. So PHS now requires a minimum $500 contribution for "immediate" participation in the Subaru VIP program. That was a reasonable decision on their part given they offer a lower cost option for folks to get the benefit while still providing a way for people who "need" that quick fix to get it for the same kind of contribution that's required for another popular partner program, ASPCA.
We bought our 2020 Touring through our local dealership not through a specific program, but we did contact them through TrueCar (I think it was TrueCar). Anyway, our dealer was claiming he was giving "$1,500 under invoice". If this is to be believed, invoice must be about $43,400 because we paid $41,900 plus TTL. If $43,400 is the "invoice" on a 2020 Touring, then 2% of that would be $868 off, or about $42,500.
How does that compare to the price under the VIP program? Was my dealer misrepresenting the actual invoice or were they just hard up for sales at $1,500 under invoice (which is closer to 4%)?
How does that compare to the price under the VIP program? Was my dealer misrepresenting the actual invoice or were they just hard up for sales at $1,500 under invoice (which is closer to 4%)?
Some dealers do better than 2% below invoice. VIP's discount, whether the 2% below invoice or at invoice, depending on the program partner, may not be the lowest price available but it's certainly hassle free which some folks prefer. I used it with my local dealer for that reason for my Ascent, but when we bought the Forester in March, they didn't even want the letter...they just gave us the price without it and actually worked with us on the trade number to complete the deal.
Add me to the successful VIP list. I have 2 dealerships in my area. One did not want to do the VIP route; the other did. I think you can guess who I went with. I did donate as a Founder to the ASPCA. It took them about 4 days to get their ducks in a row. I chose to call in my donation vs do it online. From there I went to their Subaru VIP web site and filled out the form. Again, four days later and I had the VIP paperwork: Invoice - 2%. For tax reasons I also got the ASPCA to send me a receipt come income tax time. When I called ASPCA, I did ask for a case number for my donation, just in case I had problems getting the VIP paperwork and/or the donation receipt.
Going into the dealership was really a no haggle experience. Some of my options did need some dealership installation; for example, the seat covers. Apparently they need to take the seats apart or something like that to get them installed - who knew. We opted to just get our own sometime later.
I did utilize Costco Auto's web site as they have a good break down of invoice vs MSRP. That gave me a good feel for what prices to expect at the dealership. Costco prices were pretty much spot on to what I ended up at the dealership with; maybe, a hundred off. With the paperwork, my dealership however did not list the invoice price. They listed the MSRP with a larger discount. Again when comparing to what Costco listed the invoice numbers at, it all added up at the end of the day. Each dealership may do it different I imagine. For me, it ended up being 10% off of MSRP.
2021 Ascent Turing Brilliant Bronze with Java interior ordered. Expected delivery November.
During our shopping we did test drive a Outback 2020 XT. I now need to somehow talk my wife into letting me trade my 2018 2.5 Limited in for the XT
Going into the dealership was really a no haggle experience. Some of my options did need some dealership installation; for example, the seat covers. Apparently they need to take the seats apart or something like that to get them installed - who knew. We opted to just get our own sometime later.
I did utilize Costco Auto's web site as they have a good break down of invoice vs MSRP. That gave me a good feel for what prices to expect at the dealership. Costco prices were pretty much spot on to what I ended up at the dealership with; maybe, a hundred off. With the paperwork, my dealership however did not list the invoice price. They listed the MSRP with a larger discount. Again when comparing to what Costco listed the invoice numbers at, it all added up at the end of the day. Each dealership may do it different I imagine. For me, it ended up being 10% off of MSRP.
2021 Ascent Turing Brilliant Bronze with Java interior ordered. Expected delivery November.
During our shopping we did test drive a Outback 2020 XT. I now need to somehow talk my wife into letting me trade my 2018 2.5 Limited in for the XT
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I'd love to see some good pics of this. All I've seen are renders and promo photos of the new color.
The seatback protectors go on with velcro and a few stretchy cords...
Pretty much a no-brainer. I just installed the second row captain's chairs seatback protectors and it took my maybe ten minutes because of the close quarters for the stretchy cords at the bottom.That said, congrats on your purchase! You'll enjoy your new Ascent when it arrives.
BTW, VIP includes the discount on accessories when you order at the same time as the vehicle is ordered. They will also be port-installed which means no dealer labor is required.
Dealer claimed installation on their part was required for the covers and that the factory did not do that. It was about $700 including covers and installation. We figured we could just get something from Amazon if we were really desperate. They made it sound like this whole we have to disable the seat bolt by bolt type process.The seatback protectors go on with velcro and a few stretchy cords...
That said, congrats on your purchase! You'll enjoy your new Ascent when it arrives.
BTW, VIP includes the discount on accessories when you order at the same time as the vehicle is ordered. They will also be port-installed which means no dealer labor is required.
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13,580 Posts
Some accessories aren't installed options (eg: covers, roof rails, etc), and some few accessories are no longer installed at "port" (the list varies).
Go to Subaru's web site and build an Ascent. The white Subaru branded seat covers. They don't appear that difficult. I think they are 200 for each set without installation obviously. The dealership wanted to charge me $350 a piece for the cover and installation.
Just got the email that it has arrived at the dealership for pickup Friday! Wahoo!!!
Question: Do the current finance offers apply to VIP pricing? For example, the 0% for 63 months on '21 Ascents. Or is that just for "retail" pricing only?
Question: Do the current finance offers apply to VIP pricing? For example, the 0% for 63 months on '21 Ascents. Or is that just for "retail" pricing only?
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