[Kosfactor]

Looking at the places where the vehicle is rusted it appears that the vehicle was water washed and left in the same place without use , it dint go anywhere for the vehicle to dry properly, therefore the rust spots where we see them. The dead battery as well as the AC not working can be clues of a vehicle that was left without use for a long time.

Either the dealer pressure washed these areas and left them as is or the customer who bought it afterwards has not taken care of the vehicle properly. Surely one has to be blind to take it home from a showroom if it wasn't looking like a new car.

Having said that if the vehicle is in warranty these things should be taken care of by the dealer, either this dealer or another one.

[clevermax]

Originally Posted by ChiragM

Car bought on 2 February 2020 - Manufactured in May 2018

Your friend should first get all the official service records of this car (as recorded in the Honda's online service system). He can get it from another after sales service center too, since everything should be available online. Then he should go and file a case against the dealer who sold this car to him, in the consumer court.

[sarav100]

Such obvious damage could have been easily seen in PDI, if conducted. I believe buyer is at fault here buying a 2nd hand vehicle in which damage is directly visible and don't think it is a fault of dealer(who explicitly mentioned DEMO on sale deed), leave alone the manufacturer.

It is a well known fact that test drive / demo vehicles are abused 99% of the time and buyer should have avoided buying it in the first place.

[Asif 6959]

With the current condition of Honda Cars India Ltd. I doubt there would be any response from the company.

After visiting the dealership for a new car and seeing their poor response I made sure I would not recommend Honda cars no matter what. Its simply poor ownership from the Japanese and worked in a Japanese organization their downfall in India is simply pitiful.

The rust damages looks like a quick cheap job on an accidental car and the dealership trying to wash away his hands. Demo cars are usually used as scavenger for parts and no doubt the batteries and other parts would have been interchanged. The buyer should have taken the warranty for these parts at the time of purchase.

If the owner has the patience & time they have no other way but to go legal and file a complaint against the dealership before they shut shops and go away for good.

[saisree]

Voted NO.

I doubt whether this car has a service record. There is no need for the dealer to add any info on the services done to this car if he has the intentions of selling it to an uninformed customer. Customer has fallen for the discount not knowing(?) this car is discounted in all terms. As advised by many here, filling a legal case in consumer forum is the only option to get some relief. Please stay away, if you sense the overall cost is going to be more than the discount obtained. Second best option is to accept the loss, take it to a FNG and get it completely repainted and maintain it outside of the dealer.

Please don't call this car a LEMON. I'm saddened comparing this rust bucket to a fantastic fruit LEMON.

[rahulskumar]

You should file case with consumer court. Even though this was a demo car, you have purchased it from the Honda dealer itself and not from any third party website. Dealer will have the service records and looking at the cracks inside bonnet seems like the vehicle had major accident history. Within 2 years no car will rust like this, Honda should take this matter seriously. I know you have made a mistake but you should fight with Honda, tell them about the rust issue and I hope your vehicle is still under the manufacturer warranty

[S2K]

I have voted No despite buying a Ford Freestyle demo car recently.

But a big factor in my decision was the lockdown due to pandemic.
The dealer offered good discount and extended warranty with he car which got me interested but I was still unsure.
But considering that the car was manufactured in Feb 2020 post which even the demo cars were not used during the lockdowns and even test drives and overall restricted movement meant less usage and less wear of the car, I decided to take the plunge.
Mind you, despite all these factors, it had still run 5k KMs by November. I bought the car on conditions of two extra free services and complete pre delivery inspection and multiple test drives before delivery.
Everything else in the car seemed fine and the sales advisor even talked about following engine run-in norms, etc. Though I would take it with a pinch of salt, my inspections and test drives didn't bring any obvious issues to notice.
Now that I have used the car for over 1200 KMs in just a matter of month with people and luggage at max capacity and haven't faced any issues, its given me more confidence but I am still going to be very vigilant about it.
One issue I do have is about engine cranking which, frankly, can happen with a new car as well and I am receiving satisfactory support for it.

I have been fortunate that in my ownership of two months and given my usage on really bad roads, the car has proven its build. Hope it goes on like this for several years!!

But if you cannot be thorough and careful and bargain hard while buying the car and if you do not want to be bothered with looking after your car day to day, you shouldn't go this route.

[AZT]

They gave me an extended warranty in writing but are not honouring it

This is the biggest red flag. Please name the dealer not sticking to promised extended warranty.

[HornNotOkPlease]

It looks like an accident damaged vehicle was left to rot in the open for an extended period, its a disaster even 4-5 years old second hand cars are in a better shape than this. What confuses me is how come the owner failed noticing rust in such obvious places, it cant just appear overnight!!

Buying demo cars are a big no for me no matter how sweet the deal is, well maintained second hand cars are a better buy any day.

[ASP007]

That's an emphatic No from my side . No matter how sweet the deal is, I wouldn't dare to touch a demo car with my hard earned money. Just like GTO said, they're abused and you'll never know the gremlins hiding underneath. Before buying, one has to do extensive PDI, test drives and service record verification of such vehicles.

Most likely this vehicle was flood affected, and it's a rusting lemon! Since the dealer offered extended warranty, they should honour it and alleviate the concerns by conducting the required repairs. Once done, sell it off!

[TrackDay]

Voted NO. By the way, can one tell how much the discount was ? I couldn't find it anywhere ! Going by the rust seen everywhere it is most likely to be flood affected.

Other than the A/C and battery, the only issue I see is rust. If other critical components like engine, gearbox, steering, suspension and electronics are not compromised, I would suggest trying to get the whole car repainted in a booth. Perhaps that can bring things around. But what really surprises me is that most of these so called rust spots are easily visible and could have been noticed while inspecting the car before the purchase.

[phamilyman]

Originally Posted by Vinod_nair

This is life, we all make mistakes, and learn from it.
You were tricked into buying a LEMON.
Sell it and move on.
All the best.

100% agree!

Sometimes the hunter gets hunted - the player gets played

Someone thought they were getting a crazy deal but they got a crazy swindle.

This is emblematic of absolutely zero PDI - now absolutely nothing can be done if the said owner bought it with their eyes open as a willing adult

Time to move on, friend

Cars are just appliances beyond a point - from now on, you're paying for it with your TIME, which is invaluable

Stop and just move on. Cut your losses

PS: I feel for you and send you my best wishes - but I'm just calling a spade a spade.
PPS: Time for the mods to put up a thread titled "Why you should never accept a dealer demo car even if free"
Text
----

Step 1: There Ain't Such a Thing As A Free Lunch (Bought a Honda Amaze CVT Diesel demo car | Innumerable problems | Now what?)
Step 2: Still in doubt? Go to sleep, wake up sober, fix a coffee and go to Step 1 and read the link again!
----
That's it!

[Sanidhya mukund]

Originally Posted by Durango Dude

BTW how much did you pay for this??

Going by the sales contract attached in the OP, he paid about 8.5 lakhs for it.

Originally Posted by AZT

This is the biggest red flag. Please name the dealer not sticking to promised extended warranty.

The sales contract attached in the OP says "Landmark automobiles PVT LTD" and going by the Gujarati text on top, I assume the dealer is LANDMARK HONDA in AHMEDABAD.

Originally Posted by TrackDay

Voted NO. By the way, can one tell how much the discount was ? I couldn't find it anywhere ! Going by the rust seen everywhere it is most likely to be flood affected. .

Going by the sales contract, he paid 8.5 lakhs for it. According to Carwale, the onroad price for this Amaze model is 10.65 lakhs, so that translates to a discount of roughly 2.15 Lakhs.

[advenk999]

Demo cars may have tempting discounts with 15%-20% right off the shelf.
But many a time, this is playing penny wise, pound foolish as you never know when a surprise could be thrown at you.
Looking at OP's car, as the others mentioned, excessive rusting could probably mean a flood damaged car and going by the pictures, the paint work is part patched with putty and over spray. Repaint at any level will resurface this issue over a period of time. The only way out is to use a paint stripper, re-sand and reapply primer, putty and clear coats which is an expensive affair.
I highly doubt if the dealership is capable of redoing the body work, let alone honouring the request of the OP.

Sincere advice to OP is to cut his losses and get rid of the car. He could get much better deals (and cars!) on the pre owned route upon getting rid of this lemon.

My Vote is a big definite NO!

[amol4184]

Voted yes with a *. We have two Renault Pulse diesels in the family, both were fully loaded media cars before being sold.
One of them has crossed 80k kms, another one at 1.25l kms since then and ownership has been fuss free. No major replacements except clutch on one of the Pulses.

Will I again buy a vehicle like this? Probably not. But mayyyyyyy be if its nothing like the car in OP and has substantial discount.
What are the chances of getting a good media car and dealer not cheating me? Very low.
Looking at overwhelming votes for "no" I have to say we got lucky.