Dodge's Markup Deterrent Dexterously Defeated by Dealers

Matt Posky
by Matt Posky

Even though we knew the limited supply of Dodge’s SRT Demon would drive up prices astronomically, Fiat Chrysler still made a valiant effort to reduce markups by prioritizing deliveries to dealerships offering the vehicle at (or below) MSRP. Unfortunately, the plan didn’t work as intended.

This was especially true after some dealerships found a workaround by having intermediaries on eBay auction off the right to buy one of their Demon allocations. Instead of selling the car above the $86,090 sticker, which forces Dodge to omit custom nameplates and other Demon perks, they’re allowing prospective buyers to bid on the “privilege” of purchasing a Demon at the manufacturer’s stipulated value — for thousand of dollars.

According to Automotive News, buyers are shelling out $10,000 to $70,000 to acquire SRT Demons at a “fair price.”

Last week, dealers in South Carolina, Louisiana, and Tennessee auctioned the right to purchase coveted Dodge with reserves set between $10,000 and $22,500. However, earlier auctions showed some customers hitting final bids as high as $75,000.

Ebay sellers have been clear that they are only tangentially related to the dealerships, specifying they have an “outside relationship,” as if they are indicating some kind of complicated romantic status via social media. One lister explained that “there will be somebody directly from the dealership contacting the winning bidder prior to any money being exchanged so that the deal is understood from both sides.”

If that sounds sketchy, it is.

Meanwhile, the majority of dealerships should be satisfied taking the honorable route of gouging customers upfront. Though a few have also decided to list regular Challengers at unheard of prices, in the hopes to subtly pass them off as Demons. We even spotted a couple of V6 cars carrying $80,000 totals online. Those examples appear to be anomalies, however.

In June, Dodge brand chief Tim Kuniskis explained the automakers allocation strategy while urging dealerships to play fair. “We know some dealers may be tempted to sell to the highest bidder,” Kuniskis said. “But we are encouraging them to leverage the Demon as a halo for both the brand and their dealership, to bring customers into their showrooms and see everything we have to offer.”

However, when you can sell something for thousands of dollars more than MSRP it’s difficult to resist the urge to do so. Finding a loophole that also permits you to adhere to the manufacturer’s stipulations is just icing on the money cake.

A few dealerships are attempting to reach a moral compromise, though. Bill Marsh Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram in Traverse City, Michigan told Auto News its sole Demon will be sold for one dollar below sticker price, with the right to buy it being auctioned off among existing customers for the “benefit of four local charities.”

According to Marsh’s marketing director, Mike Kent, the auction alleviated a problem for the dealership, “which [is] ‘How do you maintain the integrity of one-price when the value of the car goes beyond its MSRP?’ This gets us beyond that.”

FCA said it is monitoring dealer actions in selling Demons, but confessed there was little the automaker could do beyond encouraging dealers to sell their Demons at the manufacturer’s suggested retail price.

[Images: FCA]

Matt Posky
Matt Posky

A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.

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  • Since 100% of all new cars are sold at MSRP, selling one for over MSRP is totally out of line...oh, wait....never mind.

  • Bikegoesbaa Bikegoesbaa on Jul 24, 2017

    "How do you maintain the integrity of one-price when the value of the car goes beyond its MSRP?" Perhaps launch with a higher MSRP? Would it be possible to not specify one at all? Just put the cars on the showroom floor and let the market determine their value without even trying to establish a sticker price?

  • MaintenanceCosts It's not a Benz or a Jag / it's a 5-0 with a rag /And I don't wanna brag / but I could never be stag
  • 3-On-The-Tree Son has a 2016 Mustang GT 5.0 and I have a 2009 C6 Corvette LS3 6spd. And on paper they are pretty close.
  • 3-On-The-Tree Same as the Land Cruiser, emissions. I have a 1985 FJ60 Land Cruiser and it’s a beast off-roading.
  • CanadaCraig I would like for this anniversary special to be a bare-bones Plain-Jane model offered in Dynasty Green and Vintage Burgundy.
  • ToolGuy Ford is good at drifting all right... 😉
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