When Test Driving New Vehicles?

[Huggyd]

When Test Driving New Vehicles?

What are the limitation when taking a new car for a test drive?
-I have heard a number of different things, Like some dealerships will let you keep the car for a number of hours where other say your only allowed to keep it for little, I guess this means like 30min or 1hour?
-Is it as easy as asking a sales person to test driver that truck?
-Does the salesperson always go with you?
-Is it ok to test drive a car without buying it that day or from the dealership?
Is there any other things that maybe I’m taking for granted as common info I should know about when testdriving?

[Pritch]

Dress nicely because if you dont they tend to, well, ignore you. Show interest and hear the salesperson out. Go on a day when the weather is good. They dont always go with you but often times they do. It depends on the car and the dealership. Usually its just a matter of asking the salesperson though, yes.

Have fun, dont take it too seriously- it can be intimidating but obviously you want to drive something before you buy it. Or are you just looking to try something out with no interest in buyin?

[kilby]

Some dealerships will let you take the car by yourself or with your partner for a good ride, which is the best way to evaluate the car and discuss the business of purchasing it. Others will insist that because of "insurance requirements" that a salesman has to go along with you, the reason is that they can steer your conversation and bolster the one that is excited at the prospect of a new car as well as pick up on things such as: Will they be able to sell you extra warranty (very profitable), undercoating, upholstry treatments and other big profit add ons that most people don't need. I sold new upscale cars for 1 year awhile back and we treated everybody differently depending how competant they were as buyers. A great way to buy a new car is to go to several dealers and take a test ride (salesman or not) and when you have decided on exactly what you need, go home and e-mail all the dealers around your area and ask for a quote, many dealers have"quick quote" sections on their web sites, just add a note saying you want the BOTTOM LINE, the amount you write the cheque for as some dealers charge exorbitant documentation fees and other charges. When they give out a quote through the internet, they know they have only one crack at getting the sale so often the price will be very good...just hold them to it!

We are going to be purchasing a new car in the next two months, we will be looking at 3 different vehicles. I will honestly tell them what we are looking at and would like to test drive each before we make a decision. They will often give you a price right then, I will then e-mail around to see if it is the best, if not I will sometimes give them the chance to match..if not we go to lowest priced dealer, remember that with new cars they are all the same, different than shopping used. Remember not to get too excited over a specific colour or car as that gives them the upper edge in the emotional purchase negotiations, stay cool!

[jww]

I would echo Kilby's remarks. We just bought a new car 2 weeks ago, and used many of his suggestions. Instead of pitting like dealers against each other, I chose my 3 vehicles, and then went with dealer invoice cost information which is readily available for free on the internet (www.cybercars.ca).

There is lots of different things you can do with the negotiation, but one thing I would be sure you do is to make sure you stay calm, and are always prepared to walk away. This is crucial to be sure and do. I also agree that colour should be your last point of agreement. I like to find out what's in the dealer's inventory before I even test drive - that way I can know if I am willing to take on off of their lot (thereby saving them inventory carrying costs).

Our experience is well documented in the following threads:

http://www.auto123.com/en/community/forum/viewtopic.php?t=560
http://www.auto123.com/en/community/forum/viewtopic.php?t=574
http://www.cartalkcanada.com/forum/index.php/topic,42939.0.html

And remember one thing - car buying can really be a positive experience if you let it be.

Cheers.

JWW

[Huggyd]

all good info, thanks.

All thro, don't (basically) all dealer-ships buy their cars for all the same price from the manufacture? So going from dealer to dealer your kinda just taking the sales person commission?
+
I guess the length of time for a test drive don’t really madder eh?

[kilby]

The salesman will get a percentage based on the profit, but there is a "base" amount for a minimum sale, usually about $250 to the salesman. Big volume dealers can get rebates from the manufacturers, don't worry about them, they makes lots of money. Remember, you don't have to "grind" them either, there are horrible customers as well as salesmen, the ones who begrudge any profit and are terrified of getting ripped off, I knew salesmen who would not deal with certain professional groups as they can be difficult to deal with ,just get quotes from 3 or 4 dealers and take the lowest one offered, if the offer is within a couple of hundred dollars, consider who impresses you as a place you would like to return to for service or warranty repairs or a location that is close to your home or office.

[Huggyd]

I’m getting a little confused here.
From what I understand, the big dealerships are getting a better deal (lower cost per vehicle) when buying from (just for example) Ford, so the small dealerships you want to say away from?? But when I go and by a brand new vehicle I’m sitting down with the sales person and telling him what I want, type, manual/auto, colour, added options. He in turns places the order in at Ford and my vehicle gets delivered to that dealership with all my options in it right? Well then what is with all the vehicles laying around the grounds at the dealership? Can you buy them, do they give you a deal if you buy them, they have been sitting in the same spot for along time I would guess maybe turned over once a week (idling time) why would people want to buy them?

[kilby]

If you aren't too fussy about colour and not special ordering something you may get better pricing on vehicles in stock. Just make up your list exactly what you want and get quotes from three dealers, just be sure you get the BOTTOM LINE on the quote, that is, exactly what you will write the cheque for after all taxes, Pre delivery inspections, documentation fees, freight etc.....if you don't get it you can be pretty blown away. Use the internet to get "quick quotes" from the dealers websites, print them and make them stick to their quotes. Just remember the BOTTOM LINE, don't let them bump you up when you close the deal!