[decormagic]

Veterans, please don't get mad- I'm a "newbie" too. I just got bit by the Solstice bug this week.... Went to the dealer yesterday to find out that they don't even have product brochures. I was offered a photo-copy of specifications. I was told I'd have to muster up $1,000. to order my Solstice, but from reading other posts here it seems that most only had to pay $500. to place their order. Is there discretion among dealers as to the deposit required, or is this a racket? The dealer also told me that only about 2,000 orders have been placed as of yesterday, but my reading this forum and other websites indicates more like 8,000 orders to date. Does anyone really know what the total is up to? I'm ready to order this vehicle today, IF I know I will have it in Sept. or Oct.- no one at Pontiac customer service or marketing division seems to know anything but "fall 2005". Fall is a season that lasts until a few days before Christmas- and I don't want to take delivery of my new Solstice when there is ice and snow on the ground..... I was also told that the pricing of the options has not yet been released. Is this true? Customers should at least have a "ballpark" figure when they place their order. Customers should also have an estimated delivery date. Manufacturing is all about schedules- if production of the first 1,000 has really started- surely Pontiac has some idea of a proposed delivery schedule- sure things can change but that is where communication is key. I realize that we are all at the mercy of Pontiac- but if any of you have answers to my questions- I'd sincerely appreciate them. If anyone at Pontiac reads this- Please communicate updates to your customers and potential customers! The enthusiasm and support for this vehicle from customers and potential customers is only going to continue as long as Pontiac keeps us informed of production, and is truthful about production, orders and delivery schedules. It seems unfortunate that we can order tshirts and jackets and diecast models of this car- and yet we can't even get a brochure on it, or definitive information about the price and delivery date.... :willy:

 

[mceb]

Welcome. We've seen GM quote the 8000 figure to the media around the post-Apprentice hype. No one really knows what the number is.

It will be touchy if you could get one by October. The "first 1000" group may be up against September/October themselves which would definately push you back some. A lot depends on things go over next month or 2 when they start building these puppies. If there are problems we'll all be delayed.

I assume your dealer has room in his first 4 month allocation? (some dealer have sold that out). That's a question you need to ask, how many did he get and how many are spoken for. That will also play into if you have any chance for October (for example if he gets 5 cars and you are the 5th you'd be at the tail end of the 4 months).

Deposits vary by dealer. Before the Apprentice $500 was common, after the Apprentice $1000 seemed more the norm.

Pricing of options are out on sites like carsdirect, KBB, carpoint etc. Dealers some times have trouble pulling it up in their system :lol:

 

[SolsticeWolf]

I was told I'd have to muster up $1,000. to order my Solstice, but from reading other posts here it seems that most only had to pay $500. to place their order. Is there discretion among dealers as to the deposit required, or is this a racket? The dealer also told me that only about 2,000 orders have been placed as of yesterday, but my reading this forum and other websites indicates more like 8,000 orders to date. :

:cheers:
To begin with, welcome to the forum. You've found the right place because most here except for those who began this board probably felt the same way you did right after the Apprentice promotion, saw a great car, rushed out to nearest dealer next day to get in line and found.. tada! Uninformed dealer!!

Here is the place to find as many answers as anyone else knows because we're all in the same boat. Sounds like you, in the great roulette wheel of life, found an either shifty dealer or a clueless one. Pontiac's confirmed as of May 16th, 8100+ orders. Strap yourself in to enjoy the ride with the rest of us!!! :lol:

 

[dengel]

Deposits are at the discretion of the dealership. Most of the people with lower deposits seem to be using more rural dealers, or have a good relationship with their dealer based on previous sales history. I put down a $1,000 deposit, and this seems to be standard for a lot of the more metropolitan dealers.

As far as order quantities, I believe the 7,000 to 8,000 number is from GM HQ, which tends to have more accurate info than most individual dealers.

There is no way to predict for you when your delivery will be. Saleable cars are not yet in production, and there are 1,000 cars that need to be built to fill the First 1,000 Early Orders placed during the Apprentice/Early Order Promotion before regular production deliveries begin. Rumors are that the First 1,000 Early Order cars will begin production mid-July. (You can learn more about this topic in the Forum titled Apprentice/Early Order Program/First 1000)

Those customers who were lucky enough to get their orders in as part of the First 1000 Early Orders have been told that they "should" see their cars by the end of October. Most people with regular allocation (not First 1,000) orders are being told fall or winter.

If you want to try and determine a better guess of when your car might be delivered, you can ask your dealer several questions:

What is his first four month allocation of Solstices?
Is your order in his first four month allocation?
Where in his four month allocation does your order fall?

To give you an example, my dealer has been allocated 4 cars for the first four months of regular production. My order is the #1 priority out of his four cars. So, barring any production scheduling adjustments made by GM, my car should be the first regular allocation order recieved at my dealership. I am expecting my car could be delivered anytime between September and December, but I am hedging my bets and hoping that it arrives by Christmas.

 

[dengel]

Wow, got called away from my desk for a work discussion before I could hit reply, and look what happens. Do any forum members get any real work done? :devil:

 

[SD SOL]

Welcome decormagic! Just my two cents coming here...

I was told I'd have to muster up $1,000. to order my Solstice, but from reading other posts here it seems that most only had to pay $500. to place their order. Is there discretion among dealers as to the deposit required, or is this a racket?

Generally, from what we hear, most dealers have been good about adhering to the $500 down and selling at MSRP. However, as you will read here on the forum, some dealers are playing the supply/demand game and looking for large mark-ups. The best suggestion is always do your research and shop around. If they won't give it to you for MSRP, find a dealer who will. Afterall, money talks and BS walks!

It seems unfortunate that we can order tshirts and jackets and diecast models of this car- and yet we can't even get a brochure on it, or definitive information about the price and delivery date.... :willy:

My assumption on this is (and anyone please correct me if I'm wrong), the models shirts etc. are a marketing tool whereas the brochure is usually a concrete representation of the vehicle being offered. In other words, there's no liabilty for Pontiac in putting a design and the name "Solstice" on a t-shirt. However, if you say that the car is equipped with certain features, drivetrain, options, etc. the final production car better damn well have everything you said it would or there's going to be an uproar!!

Now considering Pontiac still hasn't finished testing or determining things like estimated mpg, it would seem to me they can't print a brochure without incurring some possible liability issues.

Again - just my opinion :crazy:

 

[Sol-Brotha]

Interesting that they didn't have brochures? I ordered our car on May 21st and the dealer provided a great looking brochure package with specs, color options, and even a DVD (which by the way is awesome).

 

[mceb]

Wow, got called away from my desk for a work discussion before I could hit reply, and look what happens. Do any forum members get any real work done? :devil:

Friday afternoon...No :lol:

 

[dengel]

Interesting that they didn't have brochures? I ordered our car on May 21st and the dealer provided a great looking brochure package with specs, color options, and even a DVD (which by the way is awesome).

The brochure you received was the Apprentice brochure, designed during the Apprentice episode. My understanding was that these brochures would be of "limited" availability. Dealers would get one delivery and that would be it.

So it is possible that decormagic's dealer has run out of brochures. The more likely possibility is that they have them somewhere at the dealership, but the person decormagic spoke didn't know about them or where they are. If that particular dealership is out of the Apprentice brochures, you could always call around to see if another dealer has one left.

 

[SolsticeWolf]

Friday afternoon...No :lol:

Speak for yourself. I leave for work in 45 min. to go build Odysseys :lol:

 

[TeamFalk]

Delays due to problems

I hear There are problems with the manufacture of the car. Bolsters, front facia and a few other fit and leak problems. I cancelled my order because a July delivery date slipped out past October. I have listened to informed sources claiming delays in deliveries to the production line. Just food for thought guys

 

[sight unseen]

Interesting that they didn't have brochures? I ordered our car on May 21st and the dealer provided a great looking brochure package with specs, color options, and even a DVD (which by the way is awesome).

anyway to get that DVD posted? For those of us who haven't seen it? :yesnod:

 

[Fformula88]

The key is patience. Deliveries could stretch into the late fall or winter, depending on how long it takes for GM to get production going. If you have to have a car before then, it may be tough. However, if the Sol is really what you want and you can drive what you have until it is ready, patience is the key. This isn't the only summer, there is likely to be summer next year, and the year after, and the year after that.

 

[Sol-Brotha]

anyway to get that DVD posted? For those of us who haven't seen it? :yesnod:

Post the DVD? I am a basic fumbler and would need some serious directions to make it work.

 

[sight unseen]

Post the DVD? I am a basic fumbler and would need some serious directions to make it work.

Maybe the mods can help ? I mean, if its over an hour, it might be tough, but we have had someone pull down a half hour car show and post it b/c it featured the sol

 

[dengel]

Its definitely not a half hour. From what I remember, it had the top operation demonstration (same as the DVD's the dealers had that showed the top operation), some photoshop pictures of the various colors, and a slide show of Apprentice photo shoot photos. No real live action video of anything that I remember.

I am in no way a computer guru, so I couldn't tell you whether this makes it easier to download or not.

 

[SlySol]

Now considering Pontiac still hasn't finished testing or determining things like estimated mpg, it would seem to me they can't print a brochure without incurring some possible liability issues.

As other people mentioned, there actually are brochures out there ... so that's not the issue. But they printed a limited number of them and since they were so unusual and included a DVD, they went like hotcakes at dealers the day after the Apprentice. (You can actually see what the brochure looks like on the Solstice episode of the Apprentice.) Many dealers were out within the first couple of hours. People are already viewing them as collectible and they've been all over eBay.

 

[Drex]

Its definitely not a half hour. From what I remember, it had the top operation demonstration (same as the DVD's the dealers had that showed the top operation), some photoshop pictures of the various colors, and a slide show of Apprentice photo shoot photos. No real live action video of anything that I remember.

I am in no way a computer guru, so I couldn't tell you whether this makes it easier to download or not.

Eh, what better to do on a Friday night than rip a DVD. I took the file size on the 4 video's down to about 10 megs each. They came out pretty good, though I could probably shrink them more if needed. One would need the Xvid codec (www.Xvid.org) installed to view them. Would also need a host.

Videos:
Guided Tour
Convertible Demo
Colors of Solstice
Apprentice Photo Gallery