Toyota Logs 75k Prius Pre-Orders; Camaro Fans Left in the Lurch

Toyota’s third-generation Prius hybrid launches in Japan on Monday, with a European rollout scheduled for July, and already they firm has amassed 75k pre-orders worldwide. Of course, Toyota won’t confirm the number, which originated in a Nikkei report printed in Automotive News [sub]. Honda’s Insight has already become Japan’s top-selling car, the first hybrid to hold such a title. And all this despite oil and gas prices that are significantly weaker than a year ago. But, as GM is currently proving, pre-orders can sometimes be more trouble than they’re worth.

GM had about 15,000 pre-orders for its new Camaro, which was not a huge surprise considering the rabid fanbase, long absence of a comparable model, and two years of relentless GM hype. The only problem is that pre-ordering turned out to be little more than a GM exploitation of the fanboys for a little free marketing (and cashflow). Angry pre-order customers have flooded the “ Tour Of The New Camaro” thread at GM Fastlane, complaining that despite having made hefty deposits, their pony cars have yet to arrive.

Faced with a comment-thread revolt, Camaro Marketing Manager John Fitzpatrick tried to respond. “As much as we would like to accomplish the challenges provided in these posts, we must honor the dealer agreements and state laws that are in place that govern allocating products to dealers,” he wrote. “To build just orders with ‘R6P’ [pre-order] for the next two months (or for however long it would take) would put us in violation of these agreements and laws. Please be assured that does not mean we are ignoring these orders or not trying to build as many as we can.”

But hell hath no fury like a Camaro fan scorned, and several questioned what the point of a pre-order program was, if not to deliver the first cars to enthusiasts who put down over $1K for a car based on a prototype or magazine picture. “We wanted to determine demand,” admits Fitzpatrick. “We wanted to provide a realistic expectation of when vehicles would be produced.” But the Camaro kids weren’t mollified. “Look at these comments and think about what you have done to your most ‘Die Hard Camaro Fans’…. You treated us like lab rats. We as die hard fans lined up to support GM and give you our money for nothing to show for it,” wrote one. “’Priority 1’ has become the new version of ‘check is in the mail,’” fumed another.

Where does GM turn for friends when even the Camaro fanatics have had enough?