I put down a non-refundable deposit, and my dealer gave me the VIN. When I asked about the estimated delivery, he just said it was “off the boat and being processed” and should arrive in a few weeks.
I’m a bit paranoid that he might be stalling or has sold the car to someone else for a higher price.
I saw that the VIN lookup loophole was closed recently, but some RAV4 owners mentioned they could track their car’s progress through the Toyota app. I added my VIN to the app, and at first, it showed “Odometer: N/A” and no charge status. But now it shows “Odometer: 4 miles,” “194 miles to empty,” and “0% Charged.”
Does this mean someone else has already driven the car, or is this just part of the normal shipping process? Could this mean it’s being loaded onto a train?
Sorry for the long post! This forum has been an amazing resource, and I appreciate any insight. Thanks!
Kale said:
They have to drive the cars on and off transport trucks and ships. A few miles on the odometer is totally normal.
That’s a relief! So does that mean the “processing” step is done and it’s on the train now? Shouldn’t the dealer have a more specific delivery estimate at this point?
It took about two months from when I placed my deposit to when I got my Prius Prime. Since they ship them from Japan, there’s always a bit of a wait. They gave me a VIN right away too and originally told me it would be just a couple of weeks.
I got my car about two or three weeks after the odometer first appeared in the app. I think the car moved twice during that time, and the mileage went up to 9 miles before delivery.
My salesperson actually called me a week after the last move—before the app even updated to show the car had arrived at the dealership. So while the app helped give me a rough idea, it wasn’t super precise when I used it a couple of months ago.
@TundraTitans4
I called my dealer, and they told me 1.5-2.5 weeks from when the app updated. That gives me about a 50% chance of getting the extra $500 rebate that expires on August 1st.