Factory Order - My Full Experience & Timeline

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terelllarry316

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GTYankee, it was ready 3 days after the order. The original document they gave me was without the VON/VIN (Nov 26). I reached back out on the 29th and had the VON/VIN already. I was surprised to see it with a VIN that fast based on others posts.
 

GTyankee

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Usually the 1500s get delivered to dealerships in the USA at 12 weeks from the order date

Heavy Duty Rams can take up to 16 weeks, because they are built in Saltillo Mexico

The only way those times change, that i can figure out, is the dealership placed an order for their own sales lot.
Then a customer walks in & fills out what they want & by chance, that order matches the customer order.
OR, another customer placed an order & before the order was delivered, they backed out of the deal for one reason or another.
The dealer does not stop the build, because they know it will sell
 

Joe442

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Excellent info here. Will be ordering a 2500 or 3500 soon. Been playing around with the build and didn’t take into account the destination charge. Is this added at the time of delivery? And when ordering do you have to show any pre approval for a loan?
 
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MMiller

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Excellent info here. Will be ordering a 2500 or 3500 soon. Been playing around with the build and didn’t take into account the destination charge. Is this added at the time of delivery? And when ordering do you have to show any pre approval for a loan?
All Rams have a standard 'destination charge'. If I remember correctly, this is a fee ($1,695?) that Ram uses to account for delivery costs of getting the truck from the factory to the dealer. The destination charge is the same for all dealers to help spread the cost out evenly. Some dealers are obvisously closer to the factory than others, but Ram spreads that cost out amongst all the dealers so the furtherst away are not disporportionatly charged. Regardless, you should see it included on the website in your cost breakdown after you do a 'build'. And ultimately, it's part of your overall cost that is negotiable with your dealer. So if your build comes out to $60,000, you can expect that extra $1,695 tacked on. You'll also need to account for tax, tag, title, etc... everything you need to get your truck out the door. The Ram website should give you a good starting point, some websites give you an idea of what people are actually paying for your particular build of truck, and then your local dealer can give you all of the other information. Just remember that aside from tax, tag and title, pretty much everything is open to negotiation. And if they tell you they can't discount a particular cost (like the delivery charge), they can make up for that discount elseware.
 

Bigdawes

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I know factory orders are a topic of frequent discussion on the forum. I decided to document my experience for any considering going that route. I'll start with the timeline, which seems to be the biggest question for most, then dig into the truck and other details.

Timeline: 10 Weeks and 4 Days from Order to Delivery
3/29/21 - Placed Initial Order w/ Dealer
4/12/21 - Received email from FCA Customer Care confirming order, giving me a VIN, and giving an estimated delivery date of the week of 6/4/21.
5/5/21 - Truck built. I had been using the FCA Equipment Listing Search Tool everyday. When the truck is built, the full equipment listing pops up on that site.
5/7/21 - Dealer update that truck was in the 'body shop' to be painted and should ship within a week.
5/20/21 - Dealer update saying truck was on a railcar headed across the country.
5/28/21 - Dealer update saying truck was scheduled to arrive in Baltimore on 6/8. Expect arrival at the dealer (in Harrisburg, PA) the following week.
6/9/21 - Call that truck had arrived at dealership!
6/11/21 - Took delivery of the truck! 74 Days after my initial order. 10 weeks and 4 days of much anticipation.

The Truck: 2021 Ram 2500 Big Horn Crew Cab 4x4 6.4L Hemi. Bright White Paint and Night Edition. 4.10 Axle Ratio, Tech Package, Protection Group, Bed Utility Group, Level B Equipment Group, Anti-Spin Rear Diff, Power Sunroof, Cab-Length Side Steps, Rear Wheelhouse Liners, Mopar Rubber Floor Mats.

More Details and Why We Factory Ordered: We purchased a camper in the summer of 2020. We parked it at a campground and have been able to utilize it, but we want to actually travel with it. To do so safely, we needed a truck upgrade. We had driven a Ford F250, checked out a Chevy, but ultimately settled on a Ram 2500. At this point, the manufacturers are all pretty close in capability, but the Ram felt like the most luxury and technology for the price. We briefly considered buying used. But with the shortages and delays in the industry today, used trucks are at an all time premium. We we're finding that it wasn't too much more expensive to just buy new than to buy a used truck in good condition that suited our needs. We just needed the patience to find the right truck or wait out an order.

There is virtually no new inventory in our area. When we went to test drive a 2021 model, the dealer only had one 2500 on the lot. There were several 'on order' or 'in transit', but only one on the lot. That particular truck was a Cummins. And while we loved the truck, we didn't need the diesel or the extra cost that comes with it. I had already spec'd out a truck online and knew exactly what we wanted. The dealer searched inventory within about a 250 mile radius for a truck matching what we were looking for, but no luck. At that point, we made the final decision to factory order. It was a fairly simple process, we we're able to get exactly what we wanted, and we we're still able to negotiate on price.

At the time of order, the dealer set an expectation of 8 to 10 weeks until delivery. I was a bit skeptical of that timeframe and was prepared to wait longer. Ultimately, that ended up being pretty accurate at 10 weeks and 4 days. I was pleased with the experience and the dealer. I would recommend the factory order process to somebody that has specific requirements for their truck.

Finally, for what it's worth, I've averaged 15.0 MPG over the first 600 miles with the truck. That's a combination of highway and 'around town' driving. No towing yet.

I'll try to answer any questions that might pop up on this thread. Thanks!View attachment 462410View attachment 462411
Which dealership did you use? I’m in Harrisburg area and my dealership are mute! They act like they know nothing!
 
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MMiller

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Which dealership did you use? I’m in Harrisburg area and my dealership are mute! They act like they know nothing!
I used Heritage Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram. They provided fairly regular updates. Maybe not as often as I would like, but whenever there was something to report.
 

ChesterJack

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Beautiful truck, enjoy it with your camper and safe driving.
 

Bigdawes

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I used Heritage Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram. They provided fairly regular updates. Maybe not as often as I would like, but whenever there was something to report.
I used Faulkner in mechanicsburg. I’ve had one update that was incorrect, I had to ask for that. Hoping for delivery by end of month.
 
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MMiller

MMiller

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I used Faulkner in mechanicsburg. I’ve had one update that was incorrect, I had to ask for that. Hoping for delivery by end of month.
We bought a Honda Ridgeline for my wife through Faulker Honda in Harrisburg. We had a good experience there, but we didn't factory order, just bought it off the lot. Good luck with the new truck!
 

CrazyTrain62

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My 2c ...

I kinda used MMiller's posted experience as a guide on what to expect on a factory order before I placed mine.

My dealer told me to expect 18 weeks.


01/31/2022 - placed my order with Mark Dodge in Lake Charles, LA

02/02/2022 - received my VIN

02/14/2022 - JS - shipped to storage

02/24/2022 - KZT - 2nd rail departure

02/28/2022 - arrived by rail in Baton Rouge, LA

03/11/2022 - arrived at the dealer

03/12/2022 - drove over from Houston to pick it up with 16 miles on the odo

40 days from order to dealer - less than 6 weeks.

I trusted the Ram website to inform me of active incentives before I went to go buy it - seemed like I was eligible for $500 cash back.

When I bought it the dealer informed I was eligible for $2750 cash back - woohoo!



I hope the rest of you have similar luck.
 
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Dean2

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My 2c ...

I kinda used MMiller's posted experience as a guide on what to expect on a factory order before I placed mine.

My dealer told me to expect 18 weeks.


01/31/2022 - placed my order with Mark Dodge in Lake Charles, LA

02/02/2022 - received my VIN

02/14/2022 - JS - shipped to storage

02/24/2022 - KZT - 2nd rail departure

02/28/2022 - arrived by rail in Baton Rouge, LA

03/11/2022 - arrived at the dealer

03/12/2022 - drove over from Houston to pick it up with 16 miles on the odo

40 days from order to dealer - less than 6 weeks.

I trusted the Ram website to inform me of active incentives before I went to go buy it - seemed like I was eligible for $500 cash back.

When I bought it the dealer informed I was eligible for $2750 cash back - woohoo!

View attachment 489569

I hope the rest of you have similar luck.
Very pretty truck. Congratulations.
 

CrazyTrain62

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Thanks, Dean - looks like you must be the president of the 'Red Rams Club' :)
 
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Nickx86

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I did the whole dealer build process the other day after my truck got T ***** and screwed up the cab. However after pricing out the exact truck I want, it was cheaper to buy the one truck they had on the lot and it was a larmine vs I was buying a big horn. Go figure
 

RamGuy110

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Well, something showed up for me this weekend after an over 6 month wait!
 

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