What Happens To Vehicle Deposits?

[Sethodine]

I doubt Elio would try to sue anybody who backs out upon test driving the car.

The entire point of this little exercise is to show the DOE that Elio has a strong likelyhood of turning a profit. So IF Elio Motors gets the ATVM loan from the DOE, and IF that leads to the eventual production of the vehicle, than the purpose of this "commitment" will have been met and EM no longer needs your actual purchase of the vehicle any more than they needed it before you signed the commitment.

 

[slinches]

On top of that, it will probably be beneficial for Elio Motors if you back out last minute. In that case, your locked-in price is no longer applicable and they can sell that vehicle to someone else at $7300 or whatever the non-reservation price ends up being.

 

[Rachelalana]

I think the timing for the OP is what confused her. If she put in a $100 "All-in" deposit yesterday and then a few hours later got the email about locking in at a higher price, she may have misunderstood that email and thought it was sent to her alone.

Like typical scam fashion, you give a little money, they ask for more, then more, then more... So this may have just been a misunderstanding on her part. Her reaction was pretty severe, though.

If I seemed severe that is a fault on my part, I was just trying to point out an important financial consideration. I've been an all-in for years, and I dare say there must be a dozen others who are because I spread the word. I was in high end sales for decades, and have executed hundreds of P&S agreements. The worst case scenario is that Elio Motors, who I want to succeed in the best way, produces an inferior product. If they enforce signed sales agreements, we might be stuck with something we not only don't want but can't resell. These agreements bind us to a $7000 commitment, not $1000 or whatever. I'll stay all in, I'll wait in line, I'll test drive a finished production unit when it's available, and hopefully everyone will LOVE them. I was just trying to emphasize the reality of a $7000 P&S to anyone that might not have seen this clearly. Thank you guys for responding!

 

[Coss]

I think the timing for the OP is what confused her. If she put in a $100 "All-in" deposit yesterday and then a few hours later got the email about locking in at a higher price, she may have misunderstood that email and thought it was sent to her alone.

Like typical scam fashion, you give a little money, they ask for more, then more, then more... So this may have just been a misunderstanding on her part. Her reaction was pretty severe, though.

I can see that and agree.

 

[booboo]

I think it's a scam. Before going to bed last night, I made a $100 deposit for this $6800 car. This morning, I woke up to an email stating that since my deposit is so little and the fact that they are in need of money for production, my cost will be $7300. That is NOT what I agreed to. No wonder they state that the deposit is nonrefundable. They reneged on this contract and will not refund my money, so I went down to the bank and closed out my account before they were able to take out my money. I wish you guys all the luck in the world getting this car, but please be prepared to lose the money that you gave them already.

Like they say, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

That is what I used to think too, but these are strange days indeed. http://pictures.dealer.com/b/bergerchevrolet/1162/46c82e0fb1b4f6afd4401825c1890581x.jpg

 

[wizard of ahs]

If I seemed severe that is a fault on my part, I was just trying to point out an important financial consideration. I've been an all-in for years, and I dare say there must be a dozen others who are because I spread the word. I was in high end sales for decades, and have executed hundreds of P&S agreements. The worst case scenario is that Elio Motors, who I want to succeed in the best way, produces an inferior product. If they enforce signed sales agreements, we might be stuck with something we not only don't want but can't resell. These agreements bind us to a $7000 commitment, not $1000 or whatever. I'll stay all in, I'll wait in line, I'll test drive a finished production unit when it's available, and hopefully everyone will LOVE them. I was just trying to emphasize the reality of a $7000 P&S to anyone that might not have seen this clearly. Thank you guys for responding!

Thank you for your insight

 

[Julie K]

LOL ... seriously? What a hoot. You put down $100 on a car that was going to be "about $6,800" and when they came back and said they were going to lock the price in at $7,000 IF YOU WANT TO, you assumed it was a scam? PLEASE. If you had been rational and just not done anything, you'd still have a deposit on a car that you apparently wanted.

Little math lesson for you... If inflation went up just 1% which is VERY LOW historically speaking, your $6,800 Elio would cost you $6,868 next year when it is finally built. So, your frustration is that they want to lock in the price at $7,000 which is only $32 MORE than you thought it would be... from a startup car company... that's maintained a $6,800 target price for SEVERAL YEARS...

Wow, that's a really really hard line in the sand you've drawn there... and pretty stupid to close a bank account over $32... not to mention you'll now get hit with overdraft charges...

Wow.

Please don't give math lessons!!!! I never said $7000. You're happy with your deal. Good for you!!! I'm not happy with receiving a $500 increase overnight.

 

[pistonboy]

I think it's a scam. Before going to bed last night, I made a $100 deposit for this $6800 car. This morning, I woke up to an email stating that since my deposit is so little and the fact that they are in need of money for production, my cost will be $7300. That is NOT what I agreed to. No wonder they state that the deposit is nonrefundable. They reneged on this contract and will not refund my money, so I went down to the bank and closed out my account before they were able to take out my money. I wish you guys all the luck in the world getting this car, but please be prepared to lose the money that you gave them already.

Like they say, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Take two aspirins and call the psychologist in the morning.

 

[W. WIllie]

Julie K:
Have your eyes checked, didn't you see the (*) by the price.

 

[Ocean9000]

Just a bit of perspective, Julie saw a cost increase of five times her buy-in in a matter of days... bad timing? Absolutely. I would have been POed too. And perhaps she did not have the long view that many who have been here a while have. Do I think she should have bit the bullet and said, "damn, the Elio I like is going to cost $500 more than I thought..." yep - but she did not, and that is her business, her choice - let's not be so quick to pile on.