jeffko

OK gang, i am looking for some advice from the group about my dilemma. Like many of you, i have been waiting for what seems like an eternity (over 3 months) and i am still in D status with my 6 spd R/T. Since i live in central Ohio, the end of October will typically mean the end of any chance to drive anything nice for the remainder of the year. That means the car will be parked until May when the weather becomes somewhat tolerable in Ohio. Assuming i make D1 in the next week or two, i would be lucky to see the car by the end of October. I called my dealer today and told them i am considering getting my deposit back because i am so disappointed with the way this is moving along. They completely understand, and also consider themselves "victims" of Chrysler's inept ability to produce cars that are already "sold" orders, while they continue to crank out hundreds of unsold SE models. They told me they would cut me a check immediately should i choose to withdraw my order.

Here's the questions...

Do i hang on and get my dream car just before winter, considering i may only get to drive it a few times before putting it away for 5 months? Of course i will have to make loan & insurance payments on it while it sits!

Or do i cancel, and re-order in March when they (hopefully) have made enough to satisfy all orders from 2008. By then shouldn't turn-around on an order hopefully be quicker? Shouldn't all this "over MSRP" crap be gone by then?

What would you do?

mopar2ya

Very tough one jeff. For me the decision was based on pure passion for the car... there wasn"t an ounce of "practical" involved other than I could come up with the money to pay. Actual waiting here was more like 2-1/2 years... as opposed to months. My personal level of passion for the car enjoys just being able to say goodnight to the car as I close the door to the garage each night. As for payments... you can start now and you will be paid off that much sooner. As for insurance... I save $75 a month over my regular payment when not actually driving it. As for practical... well... I guess I never considerd that or I would probably never own an SRT8 Challenger.

Good luck with your decision... I am sure there are so many dynamics to everyones particular situation that there is no "one size fits all" answer. Cheers!

eslickness

Geeeeeeee I would cancel ittttttttt.
Screw the dealer,I am sure he knows he will not get the car because of his allocation.
Get your money back and wait till the spring and get one at invoice off of your dealers lot...
I am sure there are many dealers that will have 2009 RTs when spring rolls around.
And I Know you will get the RT at Invoice if you look a tad and maybe there
will be rebates also..........I would cancel instead of waiting for something that might not come in......

Andre@Edge

Good points Jeff,
I had the same problem living in Alaska, and buying a car in the fall. I look at winter as a great time to do mods, and customize. Sure you have a payment but everyone gets you closer to being an owner.
You will still have those rare days when you will drive it before spring, and time to work on it. The car will show low miles for a long time because of winter storage.

Chris (mopar2ya) is right... no perfect answer. I waited 2+ years and didnt want to bet on what next year would bring.

Phantom

Jeff... I too was having second thoughts. You can only stay frustrated so long. But then TODAY, I finally got the built status. My car goes thru the immigration process tonight and gets on a rail car tomorrow for SoCal.
Now you get the feeling that it was all worth it, even if it is going to sit in the garage for a while while you pamper it and figure out how you are going to put something special on it that will make it your personal statement.
I think Chrysler knows that they need to fulfill the Sold orders now and are starting to do so.
My opinion is: 1) Orders are now moving and 2) If you cancel now, you will have to start over and possibly buy a car later that someone else ordered. Just Not The Same.

Zoomin

The smart thing to do would be wait, pocket the money you save on payments and insurance and apply it toward a car you will no doubt be able to buy cheaper in the Spring. The dealer won't cancel the order, you could have them give you a call when it shows up if no one has bought it and see how you feel about it then.

wrongway

buy it now, it could be a mild winter, and lots of good driving weather. Awesome car, I want another one in the spring - B-5 Blue Classic for sure.... wrongway

kidcharger

I understand what you feel.My friends laught at me because they see 2008 Challenger rolling & some already at used auto seller.We are many people waiting.I visited my dealer today (to see my status once a week) & my SRT 6 speed is still in BG status since order June 23rd.All depand on option you ordered as per my salesmen.2 2009 sxt 1 2009 R/T & 2 2008 SRT are in the dealer lot & lot.Multiple letter from buyer to Chrysler would improve their bussiness i hope.It look like Chrysler improvise....
A Chrysler product is very very hard to get as per my experience.

SKiDs33t

If you plan to Re-order:
Personally, I would just go ahead and get the car now. But I am also impatient, and have already been waiting for 3 years. Otherwise you may be waiting until late summer for your new spring order to be built. Besides, going through the whole process again would be utter agony.

If you plan to buy from dealer stock:
Who knows what the market will be like in Spring. Yes, there may be more cars on the dealer lots, but it may be hard finding exactly what you want for the right price. The SRT8 Spring Special and R/T Classic edition Challengers should be ramping up then as well. If they are, then the price gouging may have abated a bit on the standard R/T models sitting on the lot.

That being said, it all comes down to what is best for your situation. If you dont mind waiting and possibly not getting the exact options you want, then I say more power to you. It would be the more responsible way to go IMHO. You can save your money in the meantime and put a bigger down payment on your car when you are ready to purchase. If you are particular about options and have the "got-to-have-it-now" bug (like me), then keep your current order, or risk even more delays.

Carbon

I got sick of sitting at BG status for 4 weeks.
I canceled mine and bought one exactly what I ordered, minus the wheels, at a dealer 40 miles from here that had one.
got a better deal too.....8)

Plus, the longer you wait, you won't have all the people running up to you "What the Hell is that? What year is that? hehehe