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Old 15th July 2021, 10:49   #1
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Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

Hi all,
This is my first long post after being accepted as a member of this forum. I have just booked a Camry and would like to share my choice making process as well as the strange booking experience I had.

Present Scenario: I have a 35 kms (one way) commute to work. Half city and half highway. I am mostly driven to work in my September 2013 Innova. The car is running smooth and has clocked 1.95 lakh kms already. Logically, there is no need to change the car, as with my driving style and maintenance, I am sure it could go for 1.95 kms more !

In addition to this, we have a Nissan Micra and Honda Amaze Automatic, which are driven by my young sons. Finally, we have an fourteen year old Chevrolet Spark , which is well maintained by the friendly neighbourhood mechanic, which my wife uses for her 1 km commute to work!

Reason to buy a new car: A mix of YOLO feeling , wanting to break the ennui induced by these lockdowns and the midlife realisation of ‘If not now, when?’. Family egged me on with comments like ‘you deserve this’ and ‘gift yourself something nice for once’!

Choices: Instead of model specific choice making, my sons and I started with the type of vehicle. Did we want a Sedan, SUV or MPV?

Requirements were, in descending order:
Safety.
Ride Comfort.
Luxury.
No hassle ownership experience.
Low cost of ownership for at least eight-nine years.

With this, SUV of any type was ruled out. I drive and like to be driven sedately. Not big on dominating the road and pushing the vehicle. No chance of going off road ever. So, on grounds of back seat comfort and side roll issues, SUVs were not considered.

The only MPV we gave thought to was an Innova Crysta ZX-AT. It almost made the cut for me, but sons were reluctant to have the same(though massively upgraded and AT) vehicle again. It was proposed by wife that we could retain the present INNOVA for the times an MPV was needed and get rid of the Spark. That settled it in favour of a luxury sedan.

After reading reviews and comparisons on this forum for Camry, Superb and the newly launched Octavia, the list was shortened to Camry and Superb. However, a few ASS horrors narrated in this forum and experiences of friends who own Skoda vehicles finally made us choose the Toyota Camry.

Booking experience: There are two Toyota dealerships in Vadodara. One, Narmada Toyota, is very close to my home and that’s the one from where I got my Innova eight years ago. That also is where my Innova is serviced regularly. The other is Infinium Toyota, at the other end of the town, some fifteen kms away.
I went to Narmada Toyota first. They arranged a TD for me too, bringing the owner’s Camry one day for that! Needless to say, the car stole our hearts as it ticked all our boxes. I sat down with the sales rep to figure out a final deal. I was given a printed price-list and as is my habit, as I talked to the sales rep and asked him questions, I kept noting down his responses on the price-list. Any discount ? He just smiled. How much RTO? How about standard warranty? Extended warranty? Booking amount? I noted down all his responses. The booking amount was told to be one lakh and since the delivery would take 90 days, the cost at the time of delivery would apply. All fine. Also, if I change my mind, the booking amount would be refunded.

Imagine my surprise, when I messaged him after a couple of days, on Whatsapp, that I would be swinging by with a cheque of Rs. One lakh later in the day and booking my car; the sales rep responded by writing that the booking amount would be 5 lakhs, the price at the time of delivery would apply and the booking amount was not refundable. Not only this, when I told him that he had told me something else all together when I met him at the showroom, he flatly denied saying I must be mistaken and there is no way his dealership would accept a Camry booking like that. This was like presenting a fait accomply to me – if after paying five lakhs, if Toyota increases the price by say three lakhs and it’s not acceptable to me, I would either have to willy-nilly pay the extra price or forfeit my five lakh booking amount.

I was too riled to think straight and so, didn’t think of the price-list with my notes which I had with me. But when I checked later , I saw my notes said one lakh and refundable!

Anyway, I called the other dealership. The lady there told me the booking amount would be one lakh only, was refundable if I cancelled for whatever reason( in my case, the only reason would be a huge increase in price as I was already stretching my budget) and that the price at the time of delivery would be final; which was understandable. In any case, if there was a modest price rise of upto a lakh of rupees, I would grudgingly pay.

I went down the same afternoon with my cheque for one lakh. Worked out the extra charge for extended warranty, cleared all doubts again regarding the refundability of the booking amount and booked my vehicle.

It’s been a month now and I await the delivery of my new vehicle. So , my queries for the good folk here :

Aren’t booking amounts refundable? Or is it the prerogative of the dealership? How can two dealerships insist on different booking amounts? If the price prevailing at the time of delivery is payable, how can a dealer say essentially that ‘ pay this price or your booking amount is gone’ ?
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Old 15th July 2021, 11:15   #2
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re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

I believe the first dealer must have thought the facelifted Camry is on the way so let’s push the booking amount to 5Lakhs and deliver the pre-facelift Camry to the customer so that he doesn’t back out of the deal!

Yes, booking amount is refundable but do write a mail to Toyota India about this particular dealer, I am sure the next day you will get a phone call from them saying the booking amount is indeed 1Lakh and please book the car with us!!
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Old 15th July 2021, 11:29   #3
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re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

To answer the question directly - Yes, booking amounts are refundable. Generally they keep a 10% for processing and credit the rest of the money to your account. The general booking amounts for crossovers is between 25K to 50K. I have seen friends book cars for as low as 5K for MSIL cars. Legally, no dealership can hold our money and say it is non refundable. When you don't buy a product, the booking amount has to be returned. Congratulations for selecting such a gem of a car. Look forward to some pics after you take the delivery of the car.
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Old 15th July 2021, 12:04   #4
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re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

Congratulations on booking Camry!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Chanakya View Post
Aren’t booking amounts refundable? Or is it the prerogative of the dealership? How can two dealerships insist on different booking amounts?
Booking amounts are generally set by the manufacturer but given that very few manufacturers reign in their dealers hard and very few people bother to make some noise when dealers deviate, dealers tend to make their own rules. I doubt every manufacturer has an unconditionally refundable booking amount policy. Always best to drop Toyota Customer Care an email to get things straight.

For instance. The BMW Motorrad dealer in Pune also has a non-refundable booking amount and charges a significant "handling charge", and is more than happy to let go of a booking if you resist. Perks of being the sole dealer of an aspirational and popular brand.

Sad that Narmada Toyota chose fool around with you, especially given your ongoing business to them and that you're booking a premium car.
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Old 15th July 2021, 12:39   #5
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re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

Quote:
Originally Posted by Chanakya View Post
strange booking experience I had.
Aren’t booking amounts refundable? Or is it the prerogative of the dealership? How can two dealerships insist on different booking amounts? If the price prevailing at the time of delivery is payable, how can a dealer say essentially that ‘ pay this price or your booking amount is gone’ ?
I think this is nothing but usual dealer crap when they arent interested to make the sale. Instead of telling a direct 'No we arent interested' they throw all such statements at you to discourage you from booking the car. Since the camry is a slow moving product, they would want a confirmed booking from your end so that in case you cancel it when the car is almost in their yard, they need not undergo the pain of having to get that car off their hands. Hence, instead of that the salesman would have been told to not go ahead with your booking and he would give such excuses.

I think even with the Innova Petrol, dealers wont order the car until you fully make the payment so that they are more sure about you going ahead with the car, if not they would need to deal with it somehow.
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Old 15th July 2021, 18:07   #6
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re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

Could be a case of this particular dealer or salesperson trying to pull a fast one on you. Booking amounts are generally refundable and in certain cases may take time, but they cant hold onto that forever. However do report this as only such genuine feedback can help a brand know what is happening in their dealerships. What is sad to know is that you have been a customer there for the past 8 years and this is how they chose to treat you. Pity indeed ! They should learn a thing or two on how to retain customers.
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Old 16th July 2021, 14:29   #7
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Re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

I don't know about other brands ( some charge a small cancellation fee ), but 100% refund of booking amount is Toyota policy.

I know this because I booked a Yaris and raised a cancellation request barely 4 hours later. After a brief discussion next day with the dealer trying to convince us, the refund process was initiated next day and processed in 10 days. (The booking pamphlet says 7 working days)

I received the full booking amount of 50000 back . This, mind you was a dealership run by the kith and kin of the second citizen of the country (The Vice President). Kudos to Toyota and their service standards and processes. The process will lead me to consider Toyota strongly in the future whenever I am out to buy a new car.
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Old 16th July 2021, 15:38   #8
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Re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

Quote:
Originally Posted by Chanakya View Post
I went down the same afternoon with my cheque for one lakh. Worked out the extra charge for the extended warranty, cleared all doubts again regarding the refundability of the booking amount and booked my vehicle.
First of all, congratulations are in order on booking the Camry. Wish you millions of miles of happy motoring with the vehicle.

Quote:
It’s been a month now and I await the delivery of my new vehicle. So, my queries for the good folk here :

Aren’t booking amounts refundable? Or is it the prerogative of the dealership? How can two dealerships insist on different booking amounts? If the price prevailing at the time of delivery is payable, how can a dealer say essentially that pay this price or your booking amount is gone?
The dealer was definitely trying to bully you into making sure that you buy the vehicle eventually and don't cancel as Camry is a slow seller and not many dealers would want to sit on excess inventory of such a car.

He was definitely misguiding you. To answer your question, no, it is generally not at the prerogative of the dealer if bookings are refundable or not. These rules are set by the company only.

Regarding the amount, companies set a minimum booking amount for the vehicle and dealers can request you to pay more than that as a gesture that you are definitely interested in buying the car but in no way can they coerce you into paying more than that and even if they do, there is no way in hell that Toyota would allow them to forfeit this amount if you decide to cancel.

Want some evidence? You can go to the Toyota India website and make an online booking for the Camry with the same Narmada Toyota for just 50k which is refundable (only deductions are transaction amounts incurred which won't exceed 5k in any case)

Here are some screenshots regarding the same. You can concur with their website.

Online registration/booking for Camry is shown as 50k
Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience-whatsapp-image-20210716-3.27.52-pm.jpeg

Dealer selection allows you to select Narmada Toyota
Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience-narmada.jpeg

The cancellation policy clearly mentions that amount is refundable albeit with deductions for transaction charges,
Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience-cancel.jpeg

I understand that offline and online booking policies can be different but can they differ so wildly? IMHO simply NO. The dealer was taking you for a ride.

You skirted this scam as you were vigilant but I would suggest that you shoot a mail to Toyota regarding this along with necessary call recordings and WA conversations as proof. Drop a link to this thread too.

Toyota takes stern and quick action against such dealers.

Last edited by Shreyas Agarwal : 16th July 2021 at 15:40.
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Old 16th July 2021, 15:53   #9
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Re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

@Chanakya I have owned two Toyotas in the past (Fortuner and Innova) and I have never heard of non-refundability of booking amount from any Toyota dealer in Bangalore. The dealer (more likely the sales rep) was scamming you or trying his best to rope you into a no-win situation so his sales target wont slip away.
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Old 16th July 2021, 17:45   #10
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Re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

Quote:
Originally Posted by allinbalance View Post
@Chanakya I have owned two Toyotas in the past (Fortuner and Innova) and I have never heard of non-refundability of booking amount from any Toyota dealer in Bangalore. The dealer (more likely the sales rep) was scamming you or trying his best to rope you into a no-win situation so his sales target wont slip away.
Yes. I myself am a big fan of Toyota, after my experience with Innova. If I had chosen to buy an SUV I would have probably gone for the Fortuner. Hence my disappointment with the way the dealership behaved. Based on the comments by other BHPians, I am going to write to Toyota and bring this to their notice, for whatever it's worth.
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Old 16th July 2021, 22:38   #11
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Re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

Congratulations on booking the Camry. We also own a Jan’21 Camry.
Pls report the lying dealer to Toyota, even though you may not want to pursue further, it’ll bring attention to the slimy sales person. I believe Toyota is very strict about processes, so the dealer should get atleast a slap on the wrist, if nothing else, for indulging in such behaviour.

I’m surprised you’re told 90 days for delivery, we got ours in 12 days after placing order. Unless Toyota doesn’t have kits, I can’t imagine assembly taking so long.

Someone posted here about facelift coming in, do check and read-up on it. It’s supposed to come with Android auto/Apple car play. Even if the price is higher, it’s better to wait for the facelift, my opinion.

Cheers
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Old 18th July 2021, 13:02   #12
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Re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

These are nothing but fleecing tactics at the dealer-level. It's appalling that this particular dealer chose to take you for a ride, despite you being an existing customer of the dealership, thereby crushing all sense of loyalty. Hope you escalate this to Toyota Kirloskar Motors India and not let it just slide by. Dealers these days act arbitrarily without consent of the parent company which shakes the customer's confidence in the brand itself.

Congratulations on booking the Camry though, it's definitely a class-apart
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Old 18th July 2021, 13:46   #13
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Re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

If the salesperson at the first dealership had quoted One Lakh as the refundable booking amount and later denied it and said that it was Five Lakhs and non-refundable, whereas if the second dealership still quoted One Lakh and as refundable, then I guess that salesperson in the first dealership had a bad incident with the dealership management and was on the notice period and wanted to ensure that the dealership does not get the booking. Maybe, if you had connected with the GM or DP, then you would have known the truth.
In any case, the One Lakh booking amount for a ninety-day waiting period does not sound reasonable.
Now contractually speaking, if you have agreed to 'Price as applicable at the time of delivery then it is, and if the dealer has agreed to 'Price as on booking date', then so it is (however, most dealers would agree to this). The same logic holds good to the booking amount, whether agreed as refundable or non-refundable, and under what conditions. Further, if the delivery is delayed beyond the agreed period, then the booking amount could also earn interest.
For any difficulty or doubts at dealerships, please do connect directly with the GM at the dealership or the DP or even better the OEM, and most of them would be very happy to help you. This has been my personal experience for whatever vehicles I have purchased to date.
Finally, enjoy your new car!!!
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Old 18th July 2021, 17:05   #14
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Re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

Quote:
Originally Posted by Chanakya View Post
when I met him at the showroom, he flatly denied saying I must be mistaken and there is no way his dealership would accept a Camry booking like that.
While the reason for change of terms could be anything, I genuinely believe that the dealers go to any length to ensure leads stay with them. Faking commitments and lies flows through their veins.
I know how emotional a car buying experience is, but some crook dealers never bother about customers sentiments.
You should be happy about your new Camry (also the forum's favourite sedan) you'd be soon driving.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Shreyas Agarwal View Post
Toyota takes stern and quick action against such dealers.
I sort of agree to this, from all the auto manufacturers out there, the most sorted are Toyota and Suzuki, and the least committed one's - Volkswagen
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Old 18th July 2021, 21:55   #15
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Re: Booked a Toyota Camry | Strange booking experience

Quote:
Originally Posted by Chanakya View Post
It’s been a month now and I await the delivery of my new vehicle. So , my queries for the good folk here :

Aren’t booking amounts refundable? Or is it the prerogative of the dealership? How can two dealerships insist on different booking amounts? If the price prevailing at the time of delivery is payable, how can a dealer say essentially that ‘ pay this price or your booking amount is gone’ ?
I would get a refund and book the car through another dealer. If the booking is this shady, your delivery experience is bound to be much, much worse. I can clearly see stolen parts, downgraded components and maybe even an accident car in your future with this dealer. Stay the hell away from this particular dealer would be my advice.
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