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Ford Forces Dealer To Remove Mach-E Markup After Twitter Revolts

Anytime a new, desirable, or hard-to-get vehicle launches, it’s a safe bet that a number of dealerships will slap them with a markup. Nothing irks consumers more than this greedy practice, and yet, it continues to happen all over the U.S. with vehicles like the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500, most recently. However, 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E markups are also being discovered in various places, including by Twitter user John Voelcker recently.

Voelcker posted a picture of a window sticker showing a whopping $10,000 Mach-E markup on a First Edition model at an Illinois dealership with the caption “Why Shoppers Hate Car Dealers # 4,522. A Ford dealer in Illinois has this Mustang Mach-E #EV on their showroom floor. It’s 1st Edition Premium, no extended range, mfr Oct-2020, $10K markup. Shopper was allowed to sit in it, NOT to have a test drive. How long it will sit unsold?”

The post generated quite a stir across the internet, as one might imagine, and word of the markup obviously got around to Ford. The very next day, Ford North America Product Communications manager Mike Levine replied to Voelcker’s tweet by simply saying, “The markup has been removed from this Mach-E.”

This is particularly interesting because dealers are their own separate entities that aren’t obligated to do everything Ford tells them to do. Plus, Ford, along with every other automotive manufacturer, generally doesn’t bother to step in and ask dealers to remove markups, as we’ve seen many times in the past.

However, it’s worth noting that Tesla operates on a fixed price model, so perhaps The Blue Oval wants to ensure that potential Ford Mustang Mach-E buyers aren’t put off by the sort of dealership pricing funny business we’ve simply become accustomed to over the years.

We’ll have more on the Mach-E very soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for more Mustang Mach-E news and ongoing Ford news coverage.

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Brett's lost track of all the Fords he's owned over the years and how much he's spent modifying them, but his current money pits include an S550 Mustang and 13th gen F-150.

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Comments

  1. The same thing happened with the Thunderbird in the early 2000’s. Ford did not step in, customers stopped buying ,and the car went away.

    Reply
  2. It also may be legal for Ford to treat dealers they like with various incentives, and remove those same incentives if dealers are not in line with Ford principles and goals. My dealer mentioned that if the Mach E order conversation to sale rate at a dealership falls below 70%, dealer will lose status and $$ with Ford. Sure, the dealer can do whatever greedy things it wants to do, but there can be consequences.

    Reply
  3. ‘aren’t obligated to do everything Ford tells them to do’. Absolutely correct. But, and this is a big BUT, the factory can and does control the supply chain. Those who play by the rules get allocation, those who don’t follow the rules don’t get any product. And, no, it does NOT violate the franchise agreement. It’s the Golden Rule, he who has the gold (product) gets to make the rules.

    Reply
  4. Mike says….. I am probably the dinosaur in the room, but if my Ford dealer pulled this stunt I would end my Ford loyalty pretty fast. If you can’t win the first 30 seconds you will likely never be able to get it back. Ford has in the past let this stuff slide, not any more I hope. You cannot claim the mantle as best if you don’t prove it with every customer, every time. PS..has anyone seen or heard of a dealer charging for nitrogen filled tires on new product? It is right right up there with tire and wheel insurance.

    Reply
  5. I recall when Chrysler introduced the PT Cruiser. Dealers were taking outrageous markups with “Adjusted Market Value” stickers at $5grand and above. When Chrysler stepped in and made noises at the dealers about it, they started “selling” the cars to dealer personnel, then “taking them in trade”. Used cars can be sold at any price; there is no factory control on those. “Used” PTs with 40 miles were going for king’s-ransom prices, and there were people so desperate to have one, they’d pay the price.

    Two years later, new ones were being sold as loss-leaders just to move them.

    Reply
  6. When we wanted to buy an EV we went to our local Ford dealership. We’re told the price would be $10,000 over MSRP and they didn’t have a car for us to test drive. A few days later we drove to our local Tesla store. They let us take a car out and test drive, answered questions, let us know they honor the price at time of order without mark up, very, very easy. We ordered a new model 3 RWD, received 3 months later, easy transaction. Delivery without going to a finance department was refreshing. Love our Tesla. Still like the Mustang Mach E when I see them. It’s also a great car.

    Reply

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