A few days ago, AZJIMBO posted a note with info about a service Nissan offered for those of us who did not order our Z from a local dealership. He said Nissan would divert the car to a local dealer for a $150 fee while one completed the paperwork with the remote dealer.

$150 sounded much better than the $750 to 800 I was being quoted to transfer my Z from Illinois to California so I contacted my dealership. Initially, they were not aware of the service but reported they would contact their regional manager. Here is their response:

Nissan does offer such a service at NO CHARGE. The local dealership receives both the car and the CO (Certificate of Origin). While they are morally and ethically bound to deliver the car, there is no legal reason that would prevent them from accepting the car and selling it to the higgest bidder.

My dealer strongly recommended to me that I not alter the order as they do not have a relationship with my local dealer.

Does this seem feasible or just dealerspeak?

 

This solution (if this is really true) is simple. Write out a simple contract that you and your local dealer sign stating that they will only sell the car to YOU and no one else. They may be willing to do this for the sake of getting your future business and any maintainence/repairs (God forbid) on your car in the future.

 

That's pretty interesting stuff Tim, and has the potential to be quite a cost/time saver for many on this forum.

From your post, it appears you have only spoken to the dealer you purchased from (in Illinois). I'd recommend contacting one of your local dealers to discuss this possiblity. Like Bonz says, a simple contract should alleviate any problems, but I really can't see your local dealer screwing you over by selling your car to someone else. I'd also think there would have to be legal ramifications if he did.

I wonder why your dealer would say it is possible, but then try and convince you not to do it. Because they don't have a relationship with the dealer near you? What kind of relationship do they need to have? Maybe the Illinios dealer doesn't get the profit from the sale if he doesn't take receipt of the material?

I wonder why Dan from Smithtown Nissan in Ny (Bluefish on this forum) hasn't mentioned this possiblity in his posts, where he is trying to generate out of state sales. He always mentions that he can ship the car wherever, and it's not too expensive. If Nissan does it for free, he should be using that as part of his sales pitch.

The fleet manager from where I purchased is on vacation till Thursday, but I will ask her about this situation, and see if she can shed any light.

 

$10-12k markup? I see a very real possibility of the dealer putting it on the lot for a few hours and makin some EASY cash.

 

possible that some dealers would throw in a 500-800 dollar "fee" for transport to a new location and pocket that as profit?

I mean, if you didn't know about the free service from Nissan, Fives bills doesn't seem like much when you are buying a 30K dollar car.....especially if the local dealers near you are sold out of pre-order slots.

just an idea.

 

...but I didn't consider a simple contract.

I will talk to the local dealership this weekend. I have tried to avoid them since they asked for a 10k dealer mark-up on the Z. With that kind of attitude, I'm a little reluctant to mention my out of state purchase/transfer possibility.

I would be interested in more information as my350z members talk to their dealerships about the transfer service.

 

And don't forget to inquire with other dealers in your area, if the 'local' (closest to you) dealer was a flake to begin with.

I think there are about 1000 dealers between you and Illinios.

Heck, maybe my dealer will take shipment of the car, and then you could have a nice drive back up the coast.

 

Pointfivezero.I actually did not know this was a service of Nissan.I just happen to inquire about the possibility of doing so and got lucky.The 150$ is for the dealership to prep the car for me,install my options as per my order and handle the state taxes,license and registration.In the long run the 150$ has saved me a lot of time and money.Good luck!