[Jeroen]

Originally Posted by ashwin49

Having spent quite some time in the US, I often wonder why the cars in US were cheaper than Indian versions and there was also never a waiting time, you go to a showroom and drive away. .

One big difference between Europe and the US; In the USA all cars at the dealers lot will be fully loaded. Every available option will be installed. The only difference will be the colour. In Europe people like their car individualised, so they will order a basic version with a number of options. Everybody wants different options. Every car owner in Europe wants to feel unique.

The Americans take a much more pragmatic/functional approach to cars. You need a car and you better make it as convenient and luxurious as the manufacturer allows it.

Jeroen

[King_pin09]

If possible I would not even wait for a day either.

Given the marketing principles adopted by the Car dealers such as,

a) Prices and taxes at the time of delivery shall be applicable.
b) Pass on all commercial risks to the consumer, and et-al.

Considering the uncontrolled inflations and the attitude of our Governments who just love to alter commercial policies, introduce new taxes, and modify regimes perpetually, I would rather pick up my car right now at a known cost than wait for a longer time and risk the eventuality of paying up higher costs to buy the same car and for no fault of mine.

Did I forget to mention that by having a very long wait period I may end up buying a face lifted / updated model at higher retail price but with stripped features.

[SJM1214]

Voted for 1-2 months.

I waited for MS Vitara Brezza for four months.

Booking date: 19/05/2017
Delivery date: 17/09/2017

[SR-71]

I have a renewed take on this. While I used to be the impatient lot who would prefer driving the car out of the dealers lot the day I decide to buy a car, the current day horror stories of dealers taking customers for a ride has changed my mind. I don't want to buy a car that has been sitting in the dealers lot more than a week. I would rather pay, wait for it to be shipped from the factory and get it delivered, over all 2 - 4 weeks time depending on various factors. While not 100% bullet proof, this gives me the illusion of dealer not having too much of an opportunity to take me for a ride - like using my car for test drives, showroom displays and other shady practices.

[StarrySky]

I don't want to vote on this thread. Ideally, I would not like to wait to get my hands on a new car. However, this doesn't always work out. So, to answer the question - how much waiting period can you handle? The answer is 4 months, since I have had to wait this long to get my car last time, and I handled it pretty well I will probably set a new (longer) threshold with the next one.

[joy_swift]

Ideally I would not want to wait.But if you have a waiting period,it also means the car you are purchasing is selling quite well and thats a positive assurance.

The waiting period of my purchases :
Swift - 6 months
SX4 - 3 weeks
Compass - 6 weeks(and still waiting)

[zaveed]

I am willing to wait for any where between 2-3 weeks,but if its more than that time then i kind of start loosing interest in the car. Deciding on the car itself after reading a lot on TeamBHP will consume good amount of time after this the waiting starts.

Accent (2001) -- 3 weeks
Santro (2007) -- 1 Week
Scross (2016) -- 1 Week

[sridhar24]

I voted for less than a month, as an enthusiast to be frank even that is too much i feel.
I hate to wait once I have decided on a particular car from your head and heart, after doing the extensive research from the various sources. I believe its natural human tendency of getting impatient when you are very passionate and want to get your hands on as soon as possible.

[voldemort]

Less than a month.

Here are the waiting periods for the cars we previously owned:

• 2005 Chevy Optra 1.8 LT: 15 days.
  Not a single phone-call or update from the dealer for 14 days, and on the 15th day, somebody from the showroom calls us and says "Your car will be ready for delivery today evening".
• 2005 Hyundai Santro XO. 4 days.
• 2010 Ford Figo 1.2 ZXi. 5 days.
  The car I was most excited about; literally gave me sleepless nights.
  Was initially told 3 months, but within a day of booking, we got a call saying somebody else cancelled their booking and we could take that car.
  (The car turned out to be a lemon of sorts).
• 2015 Honda City SV (i-dtech). 4 days.
  Booked it on Tuesday, was at home by Saturday, complete with actual registration! (In Kerala, you can take delivery after temporary registration).
• 2016 Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI. 7 days.
  The dealer had white E250 (the color we wanted) in stock that could be delivered immediately. Makes sense, as I suppose at the time Mercedes was trying to clear stocks to make way for the new E-Class, and nearly every E-Class that I see is white. Other colors would have taken about 2 weeks.
  They even showed us our car before it was allotted to us.
  Delivery experience was nice; they picked us up from our home in a C200 demo vehicle (after we made a request; frankly I expected an Innova).
• 2018 Honda City VX (i-dtech). 1 month.
  Not at all excited, probably because we already have a City.

In addition to that, in 2015, we had pre-booked a Honda Jazz diesel VX at around June/July. By about November, we were done waiting and cancelled the order.

[harishhm74]

Voted for 1-2 months
This has been the max wait for all my cars (booked and taken delivery). However I have waited/delayed quite long for a right car and also cancelled a few like Compass Petrol AT that was pre-booked 4 months before its launch.

[Arjun Reddy]

Sometimes the wait could be endless. I started looking for a diesel compact SUV, automatic, top spec with all the safety features.

Started around 3 years ago when the Creta was launched and here I am still waiting. If the variant you want is not available, the wait goes on.

However I think a 30-60 days wait is fine for the variant and colour options. Anything more than that, the manufacturer has got it all wrong.

[H_Dogg72]

First car I purchased was the polo GT TSI.
Called up all dealers within 100kms of Delhi.
Took the draft and got it within 1 hour. 2014 December. Waiting was 2.5 months, I got lucky.

Creta: this was dad's car he decided in morning to buy, got it home 8pm.
Instant gratification, baby!

I will wait only if it is unavoidable. Eg. Wouldn't buy baleno automatic if polo was 2 months away. Would still have called up dealers in other cities and driven it to Delhi. If I decide a certain car. It will be that car only or something even better. But never a downgrade just to get it early.

[Chugh_H]

Voted for < 1 month. When it comes to a new car purchase, the results on this forum are pretty much expected, I think.
I had planned a new car by end of Jan'19 and started test drives in November. As soon as I was sure of what to buy, I had all my internet bandwidth spent on YouTube reviews, read TeamBHP review every day, and annoyed my better half because I couldn't discuss anything else in our time together. Ended up getting the car home by last week of December, even if it meant I couldn't get a color of my choice.

[Mi10]

Of all my 8 cars in the last 17 years, only three cars made us wait for more than a month. Those cars are ;
2007 Swift 1.3 Petrol (2 months) This after compromising on ZXi and Color !
Reason: High Demand

2010 Fiesta 1.6 S (6 weeks) The car was special and carried a waiting period owing to low production
Reason: Low Supply

2019 Tiago JTP (5 weeks) The car as said by the dealer is only made as a preorder. I dont know if this is true, but my guess is the specfic hatch market is very averse to performance oriented cars. Hence it might be a good strategy to follow owing to less Demand
Reason: Low Demand

Out of my other cars, the only exception is Skoda Rapid which carried a 2 week waiting period.

The car which had the lowest lead time was 2009 Hyundai i10 1.2 . The car was taken in 4 days time. (From Booking to Delivery)

[drive2eternity]

I consider myself a very patient individual. However, I have voted for the first option here.

A couple of factors may dictate how much someone is willing to wait for a vehicle's delivery post booking.

The Need: Say I already have a car in my garage and am buying a new one and intend to keep both. In such a scenario, I would be more patient as I have a car at my disposal.
However, if I have sold my old car and it is no longer in my garage, my patience levels will run thin. Being without a car is something I cannot fathom.
If this is my first car purchase, the patience levels will be minimal. Additionally, the itch of getting the car would grow bigger every time I see one on the road while I wait for my car's delivery.

The OOMPH: If I am getting a regular sedan or hatch, I may have more patience. However, if I am buying something out of passion, say a Thar or Isuzu D-Max VCross, I would never be able to wait. Sleepless nights and restless days would become routine till I get the keys !

I remember in 1995, when my dad bought a M800, we had to book the car in another city and then waited for 6 months. I was barely a teen but the calendar became my best friend as I eagerly waited to finally have our own car.

When I bought my Verna in 2015, I got it in 4 days. It was with the dealer when I booked it, so, that pretty much defines my patience levels.

PS - Amazon Prime is spoiling me. I rarely have to wait for 2-3 days for anything new to be delivered, then why should my car buying experience be different. Loved the way Jereon has mentioned about US dealers and their inventory. It is pure bliss for someone like me.