General Australian Delivery Delays

[Sprite1962]

Ordered a 500C a couple of weeks ago and have just been contacted by the dealer to say delivery will not be until well into 2016.

Has anybody in Oz been given better news?

 

[Bella500]

Ours took 19 months to arrive. Where are you?

 

[ahmett]

chirst alive arent there specalist importers?

 

[alexGS]

It is shocking. I'd want the depreciation to start as soon as the car is ordered - i.e. pay the new price less 12 months depreciation... as it won't be a new car by the time you get it

Most people in NZ just select a new car from the stock available at the main dealers, which is why there are only a couple of options for colour, trim, etc.

-Alex

 

[Bella500]

chirst alive arent there specalist importers?

Yes ahmett - FIAT and they still can't get it right

 

[ahmett]

Yes ahmett - FIAT and they still can't get it right

i wouldnt expect fiat to get it right. i mean companies who import from existing EU stock and put it in a boat that takes a month to get there. Good idea for a business in Aussieland, import cars and tell customers they get their cars in 2 months not over a year. you walk into the office, you say what car u want, they find it from stock and then they ship it over to Aussieland and take care of the importing!

 

[Sprite1962]

Located in Victoria, but did ring some out of state dealers and told the only way to get a quicker delivery was to get a car that was already in country. There is virtually no Lounge stock here and none with the colour/interior combinations I was after.

 

[Joseph500]

My Abarth was a special order - it took 8 months. Yes, it was frustrating but I have no regrets and would do it again.

Speaking to the then importer their first propriety is to get the price as competitive as possible – which means limiting the batch runs destined for Australia to a limited set of popular combinations of colour and trim (with occasional oddity). So if you want a specific combination then you will need to wait until the next production run is programmed for Australia. Being a small market, I assume that there are not many production runs. This is the prime reason that wait will be long and the actual delivery date is vague at best

IMHO – well worth the wait

 

[Sprite1962]

A bit of an update...

Rang the dealer at the end of May to see what was happening. Salesman rang me back to say the car was in country awaiting customs/compliance but anticipated delivery of around June 10.

Rang back about a week after the 10th to be told the salesman that I had spoken to no longer worked there and he had lied! No car in country and, in fact, no actual order placed. They claim Fiat Australia are currently not taking orders on Lounge variants (and others) due to factory supplier issues.

Bottom line is they have no idea when an order will even be placed.

Has anybody is Oz managed to order a 500C Lounge in recent history?

 

[ahmett]

A bit of an update...

Rang the dealer at the end of May to see what was happening. Salesman rang me back to say the car was in country awaiting customs/compliance but anticipated delivery of around June 10.

Rang back about a week after the 10th to be told the salesman that I had spoken to no longer worked there and he had lied! No car in country and, in fact, no actual order placed. They claim Fiat Australia are currently not taking orders on Lounge variants (and others) due to factory supplier issues.

Bottom line is they have no idea when an order will even be placed.

Has anybody is Oz managed to order a 500C Lounge in recent history?

fly to europe, buy it there EXW (ex-works without any fees paid except the bare car), put it on a container, and import it yourself. a sailing boat would get your car quicker to you than Fiat Australia.

 

[44sunsets]

Rang back about a week after the 10th to be told the salesman that I had spoken to no longer worked there and he had lied! No car in country and, in fact, no actual order placed. They claim Fiat Australia are currently not taking orders on Lounge variants (and others) due to factory supplier issues.

Bottom line is they have no idea when an order will even be placed.

WTF. This is just ridiculous beyond belief. Have you raised this issue with FIAT Australia? I'd love to hear what they have to say about this.

 

[Sprite1962]

I can't even find an email address for Fiat Australia. Their 1300 number is just for spares/roadside assist etc...

 

[UFI]

fly to europe, buy it there EXW (ex-works without any fees paid except the bare car), put it on a container, and import it yourself. a sailing boat would get your car quicker to you than Fiat Australia.

Australia is a closed market, private imports are only allowed in specific instances. Hopefully, when local manufacturing closes in 2017, the rules will change. In NZ they can import whatever they like (almost), but the flip side is horrendous depreciation on new vehicles.

 

[Piccolo Nero e Bella]

I can't even find an email address for Fiat Australia. Their 1300 number is just for spares/roadside assist etc...

The FIAT customer service number I still have on my phone is;
1800 786 885 - have you tried that?

They don't have a public email - probably don't want people having anything in print...

 

[moes]

A bit of an update...

Rang the dealer at the end of May to see what was happening. Salesman rang me back to say the car was in country awaiting customs/compliance but anticipated delivery of around June 10.

Rang back about a week after the 10th to be told the salesman that I had spoken to no longer worked there and he had lied! No car in country and, in fact, no actual order placed. They claim Fiat Australia are currently not taking orders on Lounge variants (and others) due to factory supplier issues.

Bottom line is they have no idea when an order will even be placed.

Has anybody is Oz managed to order a 500C Lounge in recent history?

Wow that's shocking. I put down an order for a 500C S in May as well and was told the same story by 3-4 different dealers in Melbourne - that the next delivery was due in early July. These would be 2015 build cars.

Eventually decided that it was too long a wait and went for a 14 build/15 comp 500C Lounge instead. Signed, sealed and delivered within a week

I was initially concerned that a non-existent order would be placed (folks these days do just about anything to get you to put money down!), hence my cancelling of the initial order.

 

[ahmett]

Australia is a closed market, private imports are only allowed in specific instances. Hopefully, when local manufacturing closes in 2017, the rules will change. In NZ they can import whatever they like (almost), but the flip side is horrendous depreciation on new vehicles.

wow i thought australia was an advanced economy = ) if that changes soon Fiat australia will have a hard time telling their customers 14 months!

 

[44sunsets]

You can also try posting about your problem on their Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/FiatAUS

 

[Sprite1962]

The FIAT customer service number I still have on my phone is;
1800 786 885 - have you tried that?

They don't have a public email - probably don't want people having anything in print...

Thanks but tried that. Parts and roadside assist only. Refused to give me a number for anything else...

 

[Bella500]

A bit of an update...

Rang the dealer at the end of May to see what was happening. Salesman rang me back to say the car was in country awaiting customs/compliance but anticipated delivery of around June 10.

Rang back about a week after the 10th to be told the salesman that I had spoken to no longer worked there and he had lied! No car in country and, in fact, no actual order placed. They claim Fiat Australia are currently not taking orders on Lounge variants (and others) due to factory supplier issues.

Bottom line is they have no idea when an order will even be placed.

Has anybody is Oz managed to order a 500C Lounge in recent history?

Your situation is the same as ours when we first place our order in May 2013. Pick of our car, last day of December 2014. Negotiate hard with them as they are close to breach of contract. We ended up paying $23,500 for a built to order 500c TA, full leather, 16" rims, bonnet spear, floor mats and a sat av thrown in for free, but no slot to plug it in.

Worth the wait but very frustrating.

 

[Bella500]

Thanks but tried that. Parts and roadside assist only. Refused to give me a number for anything else...

FIAT corporate number +61 3 8698 0200. Good luck.