Court hears Buick dealer bid to kill Rivian service center

[BadKarma!]

I happened to be driving by the dealer in question last Thursday evening with a friend in my recently delivered R1S. Much to my astonishment they had a GMC Hummer SUV Launch Edition parked out front as well as several Cadillac Lyrics. With that said, I made an immediate u-turn and pulled into their lot. It was around 6:30pm and the showroom was closing up for the night but there were still people milling around as well as a customer picking up his new Denali.

I parked right in front of the showroom window and jumped out to see the Hummer SUV up close as it was the first one I have seen in the wild. I also had a reservation for one so I wanted to see what I was giving up. We then walked over to look at the Lyric's as I hadn't seen one of those in the wild also. We spend about 10 minutes in total looking them over and appreciating them for what they are.

Not one person came out to engage us. They completely ignored the both of us, and the irony is that my friend is a cash buyer and ready to jump when the right opportunity presents itself.

To me, it further solidified the correct choice I made by going with Rivian. I will never buy another vehicle using the dealer model again. It's not worth the headache.

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[danqsi]

Curious if there have been any updates to this? Saw the Buick challenge again, haven't seen anything since.

 

[Jac]

I’m signed up for email notification if there is any activity on the Buick dealer’s appeal of the Superior Court ruling that the Buick dealer had no standing. No updates yet. I know the next approval step is for Rivian to obtain a vehicle repair business license from the Connecticut DMV Commissioner. I would not be surprised if the pending Appeals Court action is holding that license up.

Here is the Appeals Court case online record link. The filed docs are worth checking out. On upper right of the linked page you can also sign up to receive email notification of any activity in the Rivian Connecticut Service Center case.

http://appellateinquiry.jud.ct.gov/CaseDetailPreAppeal.aspx?CRN=79522&Type=PartyName

Here is Rivian’s Appeals filing:

 

[BadKarma!]

Interestingly, the GM from the GMC dealer called me yesterday to offer me the Hummer SUV Launch Edition for "immediate delivery at only $155K". He was dialing for dollars and going down the list of reservation holders. When I balked at the $45K ADM, he questioned my current market knowledge and suggested I check around at other Hummer SUV LE sales.

I politely declined.

I'm still waiting for my $100 deposit to be returned. I love my R1S.

 

[Jamuso]

Interestingly, the GM from the GMC dealer called me yesterday to offer me the Hummer SUV Launch Edition for "immediate delivery at only $155K". He was dialing for dollars and going down the list of reservation holders. When I balked at the $45K ADM, he questioned my current market knowledge and suggested I check around at other Hummer SUV LE sales.

I politely declined.

I'm still waiting for my $100 deposit to be returned. I love my R1S.

nice way to make a sale by questioning your judgement......

 

[Smeek]

i didn't know about any of this, but now i am up to speed! i live about an hour east of Shelton (thank you for posting and updating!!)

Almost didn't buy an R1S because i was worried about having to go to NYC or Boston for service. Glad i didn't let these morons and their delay tactics prevent me from buying the R1S!

Just picked her up from NYC yesterday

 

[zymolysis]

the GMC dealer called me yesterday to offer me the Hummer SUV Launch Edition for "immediate delivery at only $155K"

Yeah, my Ford dealer called me (4 or 5 months ago) to offer me a Lightning for (IIRC) $135,000. I declined. Ford has since returned my $100.

 

[iforbes]

I recently had mobile service. My very friendly and efficient technician shared that his understanding is the legal challenges are done and the bids for work are coming in. He was guessing realistically spring 2024 opening date.
Very exciting news for Connecticut Rivianeers!
Edit: legal, not kegal

 

[godfodder0901]

I recently had mobile service. My very friendly and efficient technician shared that his understanding is the kegal challenges are done and the bids for work are coming in. He was guessing realistically spring 2024 opening date.
Very exciting news for Connecticut Rivianeers!

It's actually spelled Kegel...

 

[SDH]

Interestingly, the GM from the GMC dealer called me yesterday to offer me the Hummer SUV Launch Edition for "immediate delivery at only $155K". He was dialing for dollars and going down the list of reservation holders. When I balked at the $45K ADM, he questioned my current market knowledge and suggested I check around at other Hummer SUV LE sales.

Yeah, I had a similar dealer experience about 8 months ago ... I am a cash buyer and I had to drag the lazy old salesman away from his cigarette to come help me. I asked what they think they do to earn the additional profit they make by selling over MSRP and he just replied how folks like me "don't know the market". I said, yes, if you as a dealer bought the car with your capital and are now selling it 2nd hand, then fine, jack up the price, but you're not. The dealer is just a greedy gate-keeper.

Seriously, how is the dealer model allowed to survive. They need to be made extinct. I'm actually far happier with how Tesla changes its pricing than an arbitrary dealer mark up.

 

[Jac]

Buick dealer’s appeal denied. I have not heard any news about the Auto Repair License application - Rivian must obtain this from the DMV Commissioner - the last outstanding item I’m aware of.

 

[Smeek]

Buick dealer’s appeal denied. I have not heard any news about the Auto Repair License application - Rivian must obtain this from the DMV Commissioner - the last outstanding item I’m aware of.

Awesome news! is there any way to track the progress of that application through the DMV?

 

[Jac]

“Shelton and Rivian fought the lawsuit and won every ruling. The case has been extensively litigated with numerous motions filed, along with an appeal. The court gave a final ruling denying the plaintiff’s appeal on October 18th...

… Rivian has moved quickly to break ground. Originally, it had hoped to open its doors in the summer of this year. Starting around now, an optimistic time frame would be the second quarter of 2024. When we have more definitive information, we will provide an update.”

Here is the EV Club of Connecticut‘s complete article link: https://evclubct.com/rivian-ct-service-center-moving-forward/

 

[cmcintyre]

“….Rivian has moved quickly to break ground…..” As of 11/12, Yup. Interior walls moved, concrete cutters, office area.

 

[RivianPioneer]

It’s a joke that the court’s even entertain these dumb cases born from mafia-like deals made between politicians and dealerships designed to create a protectionist market with artificially inflated prices. Free market be damned!

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