Order Updates Clarification
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 84
Likes: 0
From: Brooklyn, NY
2014 ML350 BlueTEC
Order Updates Clarification
I was wondering if you guys who have ordered your cars could clarify the order process step-by-step for me.
I ordered my car at a local dealership on September 14.
I was given a print out with all the options for the car. That paper has a line that says: Inquiry By PO: and is followed by a 10 digit number.
The sheet also states that the current status is A4 and has 3 more dates:
Decade Planned: 13/11-2
Decade Scheduled: 13/11-2
Est. Prod Date: 2013/11/2D
Does that mean that everything is in order and I should not get any updates until the middle of November? Or is my dealer going to give me some more information before that date?
Should I just be patient and wait until November and everything is in order? It's just hard to wait for so long, so I want to make sure that everything is moving as it should be.
Thank you!
I ordered my car at a local dealership on September 14.
I was given a print out with all the options for the car. That paper has a line that says: Inquiry By PO: and is followed by a 10 digit number.
The sheet also states that the current status is A4 and has 3 more dates:
Decade Planned: 13/11-2
Decade Scheduled: 13/11-2
Est. Prod Date: 2013/11/2D
Does that mean that everything is in order and I should not get any updates until the middle of November? Or is my dealer going to give me some more information before that date?
Should I just be patient and wait until November and everything is in order? It's just hard to wait for so long, so I want to make sure that everything is moving as it should be.
Thank you!
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 361
Likes: 1
From: Maryland
2014 GLK250 BlueTEC, 2012 BMW 335is Conv.
There aren't many steps. You order the car, you wait, it's produced, you wait some more, then you pick it up. 
You won't get any formal updates until the car is actually produced, which will happen in mid November according to your decade. You also won't have a VIN before production; the PO is the identifying number before then. After it's produced, your dealer will have a better idea of when it will arrive at the dealership and might have tracking information for you. When you order from Germany (or any other factory overseas), the dealer can tell you what boat your car is on and you can actually track marine traffic online. I'm not sure if they have similar information for ground transportation from Alabama. All of my orders have been German-built cars.
Depending on the sales person, he or she might contact you when the build slot turns yellow in the system. That means time is running out to make any configuration changes. It will turn yellow about two to three weeks before production. So you might get that phone call just as a last confirmation that you're happy with what you ordered, but whether you actually get the call or whether you make any changes are both optional. If you do want to make changes, don't wait for them to call you; call the dealer as soon as possible. After yellow, it turns red and then no changes are possible.
The good thing about ordering in the Fall is that, for most people, this time of year seems to fly by. One of my orders was in January and the wait was like a slow and painful death. My August/September orders seemed much faster. Labor Day through New Years is a rush and it's gone before you know it. It won't be long before you're driving your new car. 
You won't get any formal updates until the car is actually produced, which will happen in mid November according to your decade. You also won't have a VIN before production; the PO is the identifying number before then. After it's produced, your dealer will have a better idea of when it will arrive at the dealership and might have tracking information for you. When you order from Germany (or any other factory overseas), the dealer can tell you what boat your car is on and you can actually track marine traffic online. I'm not sure if they have similar information for ground transportation from Alabama. All of my orders have been German-built cars.
Depending on the sales person, he or she might contact you when the build slot turns yellow in the system. That means time is running out to make any configuration changes. It will turn yellow about two to three weeks before production. So you might get that phone call just as a last confirmation that you're happy with what you ordered, but whether you actually get the call or whether you make any changes are both optional. If you do want to make changes, don't wait for them to call you; call the dealer as soon as possible. After yellow, it turns red and then no changes are possible.
The good thing about ordering in the Fall is that, for most people, this time of year seems to fly by. One of my orders was in January and the wait was like a slow and painful death.
My August/September orders seemed much faster. Labor Day through New Years is a rush and it's gone before you know it. It won't be long before you're driving your new car.
