[adroit]

well its indeed sad to learn about the incident and its unfortunate that in our country we abuse vehicles so badly in the name of testing them before actually even making a deal.

I sold my Santro last year which i was used for almost 5 years with a lot of care... and i ensured that i know enough about the guys taking test drive on my car and they also know very well that i really care about my car too. So its very rare that the other person would like to abuse the car in front of you.

Though i had a very bad experience getting its valuation from Mahindra First Choice & Tata Motors as they were offering almost 60% to what it worth for. I had very heated discussion with Tata guy for the same....

I guess the best way to sell or buy any used car is through a personal reference in my opinion.

[500ContyCruiser]

Very unfortunate incident!

This is the reason, I was very hesitant in entertaining individual buyers when selling my car (Esteem '96 model) couple of weeks back.

Even though I may loose few grants, still decided to sell at exchange offer. Luckily got a decent price at Skoda dealer. Those guys really did very well inspection and car went off without any headache.

Also hassle-free from all post-purchase transactions, as compared to individual buyers.

[blackbeast]

Originally Posted by ajmat

What do I do if I am test driving?

I first show respect by driving slowly in moderation. I make it a point to say what I am doing and why. I tell them i am going to accelerate then brake. I then then them I will gently lug the engine to assess clutch. The secret is to be open and give no shocks or surprises besides respecting other peoples property.

I have not received any complaint about TD and hence you must be good at dealing with it. However he said you tested the car thoroughly. He must have not seen such a thing.

Originally Posted by noopster

Tsays "Saab aap normally truck chalate ho kya?"

It does get a bit embarrassing when you walk out of the deal after pushing.

How would you test an AT car with no paddle shift for the gear box

[kaushal21fb]

Originally Posted by Warwithwheels

Let us not bring in the TD experience of new cars at dealerships into the ambit of this discussion.

While am not trying to justify the abuse of a new car TD at a Dealership, it is important to note that such an abuse is well factored into while calculating the business risk of the trade. It is a part and parcel of their business operation without which they cannot survive. We cannot expect ever dealer to conduct a driving skills workshop before allowing a prospective buyer to TD.

Moreover the dealer has all the resources at his disposal that are necessary to indemnify himself from the losses arising out of such routine wear and tear.

Why talk about prospective buyers abusing the new cars at the dealership? Have you ever noticed the way their paid employees handle brand new cars and cars that undergo scheduled maintenance at dealerships? Absolutely never wracking experience.

What Arunu, the thread starter had to undergo is really unfortunate and painful. And the act of those potential buyers is unpardonable. Trying to draw a parallel between TD at Dealership and the instant case would be totally out of context. Period.

Wow pal...I think you did not understand the context. By saying this I'm not trying to solicit any dealerships or behavior. I'm rather pointing to a mentality that most people in this country have and don't understand "you can't mess with anything that's not your's", and the dealerships/service centers doing that with customer cars points to the same thing.

Forget about test drives, how many times you leave your car in the parking and walk back to her to find scratches and dents. Has happened to me N number of times. I have a habit of folding the rear view mirrors (so that nobody messes with them) after parking. Once this dude came right in front of me opened my car's mirror to comb whatever overgrowth he had on his head, and then left it like that. These are the small examples that happen to us all the time.

I

[drbones]

arunu, thats very rude on the buyer part .

You did the right thing by kicking them out of your car.
No person has any right to abuse our beloved car. No jerk is an expert in assessing our own car. There is no excuse to be silent and watch the drama. All people who come to test drive a car must be strictly ordered , abuse is not going to be tolerated. any damages during the test drive will be paid buy the guy who came to buy it.

arunu a very valid point to be noted by you, every one here should take it .

[dip27in]

While selling my OHC 1.5 Exi (http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/vbpicg...do=view&g=4495), I had experienced a similar abusive buyer who thought he was the fastest driver! He agreed on the price initially but after the drive, he started finding faults which never existed with the car! I like bargaining, provided it is done in the right spirit.

Times, I think it is better to deal such buyers rudely since they don't treat your baby nicely. They will atleast think twice before repeating the same saga.

[DueLLeR]

Had one such experience today. I've put up my 2008 Palio Stile 1.3 Multijet on our classifieds and one Mr. Imran (not a forum member) responded to it. From the outset, I was suspecting him to be a dealer because of his questioning style and over-the-top assurances. However, he went one step further to give me a copy of his driving licence after the sale, even without seeing the car.

This morning, he called me up and unsuccessfully haggled with me to lower the asking price by almost a lac, quoting that dealers told him that was the right price. I reasoned with him that there are other cars of the same model, age and mileage and my asking price is not unreasonable.

We were supposed to meet at Powai, but he changed the location at the last minute. We agreed to meet on JVLR, near a major residential building. As we met, he quickly glanced the car and asked for the keys. I handed him the keys. He cranked the engine and turned it off as soon as it started. He cranked it again and the car wouldn't start to all our surprise! I tried starting it and it wouldn't budge. Fuel level okay, battery supporting the cranking properly, but the car wouldn't start!

It's then that I saw the plethora of garages in the vicinity. He helpfully said he'd summon a mechanic, an offer I refused. I told him I'd rather call FIAT roadside assistance. I apologized to him and told him my car probably doesn't like him. He then asked if I had any of my other cars for sale! Totally a dealer question! I told him No, and after a round of good bye's he left.

Meanwhile, I was trying to figure out what went wrong with my car all of a sudden. I had just driven from Vashi to Jogeshwari. I remembered the old GM case study on vapour lock and instinctively opened the fuel lid and cover. As I opened it, I heard air gushing in/out. Left it open for a minute and cranked the car and viola! It started in a single crank and I drove back home.

Had I agreed to his offer of calling a mechanic, I'd have spent a couple of hundreds, if not thousands and given him reason to further bring the price down.

Cheers!
DueLLeR

EDIT: Dear TBHPians, beware of dealers pretending to be individual buyers. Your beloved car is worth a lot more.

Cheers!
DueLLeR

[zwift1819]

What has happenned to arunu is a very sad story.

I don't believe in letting anyone drive my car when it's up for sale. These days it's mostly dealers who turn up as individuals to buy cars. Never entertain anyone to test drive the car. If they insist too much it's better that we take them for a short spin that too after they have finalized the price aspect.

[dip27in]

All though slightly off topic, there has been several occasion while buying a new car, a prospective owner does many things with a new car, which he will actually never do it in his life with his own car!

I strongly feel in the name of checking the dynamics and suspension set up, many people tend to over do with a test drive car. It really does not make any sense for such hair raising experience, especially for a sales guy who can't say a word against a prospective buyer!

[Maverick0129]

Originally Posted by DueLLeR

He cranked the engine and turned it off as soon as it started

What did he do that for? Was he trying to create a situation in order to haggle with you over the price?

[Agarwaka]

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan

A colleague needed help with his new car purchase. I had to accompany him for the test drive of the Honda Jazz. Now, I am not sure if all dealers do this. When I got in to the drivers seat, the lady gave me a form to fill and sign. It basically said I will be accountable for any damages to the car if something were to happen during the test drive.

I too have encountered this indemnification business only at Honda and never at Toyota, Maruti, Chevy, VW, Ford, etc - wonder why one particular OEM perceives this to be such a big issue when others don't. Given that a TD vehicle does undergo some amount of abuse, wouldn't I as a potential customer be put in a compromised situation by driving a sub-par (IMO) vehicle?

[DueLLeR]

Originally Posted by Maverick0129

What did he do that for? Was he trying to create a situation in order to haggle with you over the price?

I'm not sure if this is a trick to cause the engine to not start. However, his behavior seemed very suspicious. Why would anyone ask for the car keys with the intent of driving the car and then allow the car to start and turn it off without even letting go of the key? The entire thing would have taken 1-2 seconds at maximum. But the engine started immediately after I opened the fuel lid and the air gushed in/out. Perhaps, expert members can comment on this?

This individual further went on to add that the Palio (my car put up for sale) and Polo (my newly acquired car) are "fail" models and won't fetch any price. He wanted to buy my 1.5 yr old i20 CRDi Asta!

Cheers!
DueLLeR

[ron_9191]

I think you should probably ask who is the one who's gonna buy the car and make him drive it even if Mr. Schumacher accompanies him as the expert adviser. And again, you really don't need to trash the car to find out what may be wrong with it. And if at all if you need to do so, you should always do it with the owner's permission. It is very "Indian" to have absolutely no concern for others and what belongs to others, and that is such a terrible attitude. I really feel sorry for the owner of the car who was at the receiving end.