[mkaresh]

I've been trying to test drive one of these for months, but dealers never have them in stock where I live. But then I'm near Detroit.

Is the situation the same or different elsewhere?

 

[Admin]

I just went to test drive a Camaro at lunch today and they had exactly ONE Equinox on the lot, being test driven as a matter of fact, in Leesburg, VA. Coincidentally, I actually asked how sales were on them. Sales girl said there was a LOT of emails/calls/interest in them, but surprisingly not a lot of sales (in comparison). That's just one salesperson at one dealership, so take it for what it's worth...

 

[Terrain_fan]

Funny thing, one of our local Chevy dealers (biggest one) only has two Equinoxs showing on their website, but at the dealership we got our Enclave, they have a good selection of Terrains showing on their website, take a peek:

http://www.glennbuege.com/VehicleSe...&model=Terrain&quickSearchSubmitButton=Search

NOTE: This link may only work for a certain lengh of time, depending on if the dealer changes their website, or vehicles are added or sold. Website home is: www.glennbuege.com

 

[mkaresh]

I think the online inventory will display customer ordered units that are on their way to the dealer, and units that were recently sold. So for the Equinox and Terrain it often won't be accurate.

 

[badpenguin]

I looked in Memphis, Tennessee and the central Arkansas area for several weeks beginning mid September. Every once in a while I could find one or two in a local dealership, but they were the low end models, and they were sold literally within hours of arriving. Couldn't find any terrains whatsoever. I wanted a 2LT with leather interior, didn't need the power liftgate, chrome package, etc... I finally had to order the car and it took almost two months to arrive.

Kind of surprising considering the heavy advertising of the nox's. Why saturate the TV networks with ads about a car you can't even get yet?

 

[cheddar11]

It's all about supply and demand. GM finally figured it out. They have 2 vehicles in the Nox and Terrain that have received great reviews, probably the best reviews in the past decade besides the Corvette. (Tidbit - the guy that design the C5 vette, designed the Terrain). People are clamoring to dealerships for test drives, but there are few if any on the lot. Thus when they do find one that fits their needs in terms of trim level, color etc, it's scooped up. Or you can order one and wait weeks.

If there were dozens of cars in every color, trim available on the lot you wouldn't be as rushed to buy one, as you know that it will probably be there next week or another dealership will have it.

This is a fine line though, demand can't outweigh supply too much as consumers will get irritated and might go to a competitor. Especially if they have a timeline of purchase. Right now the demand is great, by the new year the supply should meet the demand, but don't expect to see more than 6 on a lot at a time.

We were lucky, as we found the one we were looking for in the showroom. Drove it right off the show floor!

 

[badpenguin]

If there were dozens of cars in every color, trim available on the lot you wouldn't be as rushed to buy one, as you know that it will probably be there next week or another dealership will have it.

This is a fine line though, demand can't outweigh supply too much as consumers will get irritated and might go to a competitor. Especially if they have a timeline of purchase. Right now the demand is great, by the new year the supply should meet the demand, but don't expect to see more than 6 on a lot at a time.

That doesn't make any sense. If GM wants to drag itself out of bankruptcy, they need to be able to actually sell something. I would imagine most people wouldn't be willing to wait 6-8 weeks to get the car they actually want.

 

[cheddar11]

That doesn't make any sense. If GM wants to drag itself out of bankruptcy, they need to be able to actually sell something. I would imagine most people wouldn't be willing to wait 6-8 weeks to get the car they actually want.

If someone "really wants" a Terrain or Nox they will wait. It's marketing 101. Supply can't outweigh demand. that's how GM got into trouble in the first place. They had 8 brands with god knows how many models. They just kept rolling cars off the line and they sat on lots untouched because there were so many of them. Most of them were rebadge jobs that shared the same platform. Yes the Terrain and Nox are essentially the same vehicle, but they have entirely different bodies, not just a grille.

By limiting the supply, the demand will increase and this is how you properly launch a product. They'll then ramp up production to meet demand and everyone will be happy. Think of the latest iPod or iPhone launch... the first shipment is scooped up within hours thus leaving thousands of people without one, and when they do find one, they don't hesitate to buy it, even if it's at a premium price.

 

[bravoman]

Does anyone know when the supply will meet the demand with these Terrains? I've noticed the ones that come into dealerships are either loaded SLT-2's or general base SLE-1's. I'm not sure I want to order one directly from the dealer. This brings me back to supply meeting demand......I heard January or February that the demand will drop and there will be more Terrains on lots. I really want one, but am willing to wait to get a little more negotiating power at the dealership.

Also, anyone who ordered their terrain from the dealer, did you get to negotiate your cost or have to pay full sticker?

Thanks to anyone who can help!

 

[cheddar11]

If your order one, your negotiating power goes out the window. You are essentially custom ordering a product and for that you'll pay a premium. Unless the dealer is in a world of hurt and needs the sale that badly. I bought mine off the floor and didn't get much of a deal besides the $1000 holiday bonus, but I knew that going in as I researched the invoice and found the mark-up on the Terrains are very small compared to the past. They are only making a couple grand off each vehicle.

I would suggest negotiating the dealer add-ons, such as undercoating, mudflaps and oil changes. These are dealer provided services that they have room to move on.

 

[mkaresh]

They aren't even making a couple grand--the margin between MSRP and invoice is very tight.

That said, I'm not aware of your negotiating power being worse when ordering. This is a car they'll have to pay zero inventory costs on--their cost will be less.

 

[Islander]

I was able to negotiate about $1K off MSRP on an ordered vehicle...SLT-1 w/nav. I've found that to be the case on Terrains on the lot and for ones on order. Any GM incentives available at time of delivery will also be applied to the price. I would have bought off the lot if trim/color were close to what I actually wanted, but inventory is virtually non-existent.

 

[badpenguin]

If your order one, your negotiating power goes out the window. You are essentially custom ordering a product and for that you'll pay a premium. Unless the dealer is in a world of hurt and needs the sale that badly. I bought mine off the floor and didn't get much of a deal besides the $1000 holiday bonus, but I knew that going in as I researched the invoice and found the mark-up on the Terrains are very small compared to the past. They are only making a couple grand off each vehicle.

I ordered a 2LT with the leather, 18" wheels, and cargo package. I got $1,500 in rebates and another $500 off the top because the dealer had promised me an additional rebate that ended up being "not compatible" with the $1000 rebate.

 

[scottyyyc]

Dealerships around here (Calgary) have stock, but not tons. I wanted the jewel merlot (red) color, and apparently virtually nobody has them in stock in Western Canada. So I factory ordered (SLT1)...

Dealerships don't mind factory ordering, they'd just rather sell you dealership stock, because it's an immediate sale, not a sale 2 months down the road. Dealerships are all about now now now. I was still able to bargain a fair bit on mine, even though it was a factory order. But that said, if they have hard metal on their lot, they want you leaving with it and will probably dive a bit deeper.

 

[2010 Owner]

I've been trying to test drive one of these for months, but dealers never have them in stock where I live. But then I'm near Detroit.

Is the situation the same or different elsewhere?

It certainly is true in the Vancouver area. We started looking seriously in November. We had a 30 minutes opportunity one evening to test drive one becasue there were two customers with appoitnments wanting to buy this LS model. We ordered an LTZ November 23. I kept a casual check and at no time since then until now (late January) has there been one on the local lot. The 8 week wait was well worth....Love this vehicle!

 

[Narg]

I'd just like to put in my experience with this topic. We would have purchased a 'Nox about 4 weeks ago instead of 1 week ago. We found the perfect model at a local dealer that had all the features we wanted. But the dealer would not sell it too us. It was the last one he had in stock and didn't expect to get more for a few weeks. He wanted to not sell it in order to have one in stock for test drives, etc. So we waited, and thought we had missed out on this one. But the dealer called us back and said that a previous potential buyer had refused delivery, so we got our chance to buy it. The dealer at that time said he expected a couple dozen to be delivered in mid Feb. Anyway, that was a frustrating experience.

 

[topgun]

I'd just like to put in my experience with this topic. We would have purchased a 'Nox about 4 weeks ago instead of 1 week ago. We found the perfect model at a local dealer that had all the features we wanted. But the dealer would not sell it too us. It was the last one he had in stock and didn't expect to get more for a few weeks. He wanted to not sell it in order to have one in stock for test drives, etc. So we waited, and thought we had missed out on this one. But the dealer called us back and said that a previous potential buyer had refused delivery, so we got our chance to buy it. The dealer at that time said he expected a couple dozen to be delivered in mid Feb. Anyway, that was a frustrating experience.

Absolutely true as a frustrating experience. But think how good this is for GM that the demand is so high.
It is SUPER IMPORTANT for all of us that the New GM gets as many of these new models on the street as soon as they can to start the good buzz!

My dealer had 10 come in and sold 8 in 3 days! I checked other dealers inventory in my area and it was like that at every single one. I hear that GM has plants working overtime to get these hot items out. I was lucky. When I shopped my dealer had 3 left and one was the exact one I wanted... jet black LS FWD 4 cylinder with the black & white two tone cloth interior. Price was unbelievable for a good size SUV with the standard LS features.

Saw it... drove it home to check out the interior lighting sitting in my garage... brought it back and bought it immediately before someone else could steal it from me...lol!

Congrats on finally getting yours.

 

[Steve A]

There seems to be a fairly good supply in the Dallas area presently.

 

[JonTon]

The only Terrains in the Houston area for the past few weeks have been base model SLE's.........kind of weird that no higher trims have been on the lots. There have only been about 1 or 2 terrains per dealer in the Houston area, FYI

 

[Cdnboy]

In the Toronto area, they are rare to find, however the 6 cylinders seem to be more in stock than the 4's. I wanted an LT with a 4 DI, so I had to order it, been two weeks, hope to have in another 4 weeks.