Ford unconcerned about Ranger scalpers

Ford Australia says it’s not concerned by the increasing number of new Ford Ranger buyers who are cashing in on long waiting lists by selling their near-new vehicles at highly inflated prices.

Shortly after its release in August, there were seven near-new examples of the new-generation 2022 Ford Ranger advertised at carsales – all of them premium dual-cab 4x4 variants – with an average mark-up of more than $21,000.

Fast-forward two months and today there are more than 100, including several examples of the new Ford Ranger Raptor with asking prices as high as $129,000 (almost $45K above the retail price of $85,490 plus on-road costs), and dozens of Wildtrak V6s priced as high as $95,000 – almost $25K more than retail ($70,190 plus ORCs).

Customers who quickly ‘flip’ high-demand vehicles with exorbitant mark-ups to make an easy profit – many of which place multiple orders and then cancel all but the cheapest deal – extend waiting times for new and existing orders and push up prices for others.

But many argue that scalping is simply a market reality that reflects the current state of high demand and low supply, and that many buyers are prepared to pay well over list price to avoid long waiting times.

Ford Australia is currently quoting a May 2023 delivery time for new Wildtrak V6 orders, and June 2023 for new Raptor orders.

However, those “approximate” dates have not been updated since September, may be accompanied by pricing and/or spec changes and are much sooner than what many prospective buyers are reporting to carsales and via forums.

And unlike Toyota, which is looking for ways to discourage opportunistic resellers who “short-cycle” their near-new vehicles to make a quick profit, Ford says it’s not concerned with price gouging by Ranger scalpers.

“Customers buy their vehicles independently and that’s the market,” Ford Australia and New Zealand president and CEO Andrew Birkic told carsales recently.

“I don’t know about all the individual scenarios, we’ve just got to focus on what’s ahead of us.

“We’ve got a strong order bank. We’ve got a loyal fleet customer base, we’ve got a lot of amazingly loyal customers that want Rangers, whether it’s an XLT, Wildtrak or Raptor.

“Our job is to get them their vehicle, give them a great delivery experience, explain all the new tech and safety features, and let them enjoy their vehicles, so that’s our focus.”

Asked whether Ford would consider measures to identify and exclude Ranger scalpers in order to ensure a fair allocation of new vehicles to dealers and genuine customers, Birkic said: “We work with our dealers on that and we try to be [as fair as possible], so that will work itself out.”

As the global supply chain crisis continues and new-vehicle wait times blow out amid strong demand, a similar situation exists for many popular models including the new Tesla Model Y, no fewer than 128 examples of which are currently listed at carsales with prices up to $95,990 – almost $24,000 more than the retail price ($72,300 plus ORCs).

The same supply versus demand issue continues to affect several Toyota models, leading to long wait times and exorbitant asking prices for near-new examples of both the Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series and 300 Series. More than 170 of the latter are currently listed at carsales at prices eclipsing $180K.

Speaking in relation to the new Toyota GR Corolla hot hatch, just 500 examples of which will come to Australia in 2023, Toyota Australia sales and marketing chief Sean Hanley said recently that the Japanese brand would get tough on scalpers.

“It’s disturbing to think we have a few short-cycling our cars to make money. We need to protect our customers as best we can from those types of behaviours,” he said.

“We want this situation changed. We want customers to pay a fair and reasonable price based on the manufacturer’s retail price.”

Hanley said Toyota Australia is investigating different mechanisms “within the legalities of Australian consumer and competition law” to ensure bona fide customers pay fair prices for their new vehicles, and also urged authorities to take action.

“We’re looking at a whole load of processes now,” he said. “We intend to investigate everything we can within the legalities of Australian consumer and competition law.

“I urge governments and authorities to please consider this proposition and what’s happening in the market now, because we’re all about protecting consumers. Yet we’re seeing this going on, so we’ve got to work together to say ‘hey, this has got to stop’.

“It’s important we take a leadership on this now as we’ve spent decades building trust around our brand.

“That’s why it’s so deeply important we take that leadership position [to stamp out] any sort of price gouging, any sort of price scalping. We’ve got to stop that. Not only at Toyota, but as an industry.”

Some car dealerships in Japan and North America require customers to sign documents agreeing not to on-sell their vehicle within a certain timeframe for a quick profit, but similar arrangements are illegal in Australia.

General Motors recently asked its US dealers to ban customers who resell certain high-demand vehicles – such as the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 and GMC Hummer EV – within 12 months from placing reservations and orders in future.

GM said it would limit the transfer of certain warranties in order to “ensure an exemplary customer experience, to ensure our brands remain strong, and to help prioritise ownership by brand enthusiasts and loyal customers”.

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