[naveenroy]

RE Thunderbird - did a short test ride. This was the AVL version. Loved the looks on the bike and put my money down soon after the test ride.

CBR 250R - Did a short test ride again. But knew that it was the bike I wanted. Did not hesitate to buy it. IIRC, I think I paid the full amount. Not even sure what I was thinking. Wonderful machine, I would still love to own one!

Honda Africa Twin - No test ride - because no test rides are usually given here. Love the machine. Haven't ridden much sadly though I used it to commute to work the last few months.

Mazda CX 9 AWD Grand Touring - To be honest, my first car. (Yeah I know. I am not a big fan of cars). Did multiple test rides. Probably because my wife came along for every visit to the dealer. Also because we just could not settle on a good, used one. Am glad we did the drives though - we finally got one that we love and is in great shape.

Would I buy another car without a test drive? NO WAY! Would I buy another motorcycle without a test drive, sight unseen. OF COURSE YES!!

[VJ05]

Originally Posted by ajmat

• Tata Sierra - in the days of take it or leave it.

Tata Sierra - What a great looking car it was? I really loved its design and 3 doors make it unique. It was so modern and contemporary back then in the early 90s. If TAMO brings back the Sierra today, I would be the first one to buy it.

[giri1.8]

First bike, Hero Honda Hunk was bought without TD as I didn't know how to ride one


We bought 2nd gen swift without test drive, as we had the first gen with us before, needless to say car exceeded out expectations in many departments.

[Eddy]

Nopes. Never.

I have only purchased 4 cars and 1 bike till date, and all have been after a couple of test drives.

[Aditya_Bhp]

Yes, Maruti 800 and Maruti Ritz.

What can go wrong in a Maruti?

The Ritz Diesel in particular was selling like hot cakes. And people who had bought the cars found nothing wrong in them. Wanted a car quick and the waiting period was 4 months, got it from a dealer 60kms away (not even a PDI/visit to the showroom), the salesman came home, and finished all the proceedings. Finally saw the car after registration at the showroom. Till now no regrets. One of the most practical and reliable cars ever launched by Maruti.

[arunrajk81]

I was in need for a second car for my wife and mostly for use in and around City. Hence my requirement was different when compared to the time when I brought my previous cars.

My Requirements this time
- Reliable and with latest Safety Features
- Fuel Efficient Hybrid or Electric with 200+ miles Range
- Space utilization – Want space for a child seat in rear
- Cost to be very Low and I should not fall in love with its drive – This may give an opportunity for me to upgrade to a performance electric car in 3 Years if possible with minimal Loss during resale

My usual requirements during my previous car purchases which I skipped this time
- Performance and Driving comfort
- A Non-CVT
- Visual Appearance

My Wife’s Requirements
- A Blue Car – She like the Electric Blue of Prius
- Reverse Camera - That is Mandatory in California (Or Entire US?-Don't know) now days and all car comes with reverse camera.
- Wireless Phone Charger in built - Good to have, not a must

She likes Prius Prime (Plug-in Hybrid version) more than Hybrid version because of funky interior. Since 2019 Prius Prime is a 4-seater, we have to drop it. Normal Prius is a 5-seater

For Normal Hybrid Prius, all the points were met except wireless charger and I got a deal for 6k less from the sticker price of 26k. She sat on the driver seat and was comfortable with the steering reach and controls. With that said, brought the car without having a test drive.
Two days after buying it only I realized that it has (or semi) automatic Parallel and Reverse Parking.Bingo

[fz_rider]

Not me, but I guess( 99.99% sure) my father must have bought his first two and four wheeler without test drive.

[mchandra13]

I learnt my driving in India, got license, and traveled to US without much driving in India. I learnt again and got a license in US and bought my first car in US. After I returned back, my first car in India was a Wagon-R and I dont have much experience or confidence in driving the manual transmission when I bought it. There was a sale going on at Maruti with 60k discounts being offered on Wagon-R during an year-end event and we 3 of our friends bought it together to maximize the discount to 65k and added some freebies as well. It was like going and buying some furniture in a store. I never test drove till I took the delivery of the car. One of my friends didnt even want to do that and asked the Sales guy to drive it home. I didnt even think whether I really want a Wagon-R. It was all about the cheapest deal we can get.

Originally Posted by arunrajk81

My usual requirements during my previous car purchases which I skipped this time
- Performance and Driving comfort
- A Non-CVT
- Visual Appearance

You have truly skipped your requirements. Pruis is what they call an ECVT and isnt exactly a looker

Originally Posted by arunrajk81

- A Blue Car – She like the Electric Blue of Prius
- Reverse Camera - That is Mandatory in California (Or Entire US?-Don't know) now days and all car comes with reverse camera.
- Wireless Phone Charger in built - Good to have, not a must

Yes its mandatory in California to have in-built reverse camera. Otherwise even the luxury German brands like Merc/Audi skimp on this very essential feature in their base versions. I dont think its mandatory in all states as far as I know. I have recently picked a Merc as rental in Baltimore airport which did not have a rear view camera, so much for driving a Merc.

Originally Posted by arunrajk81

For Normal Hybrid Prius, all the points were met except wireless charger and I got a deal for 6k less from the sticker price of 26k. She sat on the driver seat and was comfortable with the steering reach and controls. With that said, brought the car without having a test drive.
Two days after buying it only I realized that it has (or semi) automatic Parallel and Reverse Parking.Bingo

Thats a pretty good deal. Even the LE version of the latest Prius or for that matter most Toyotas are loaded with Toyota safety package which includes all the safety features. The Qi wireless charging is available on the higher variants though

[pnredkar]

The first vehicle that I bought back in 1999 was without a test-drive. It was a Suzuki Samurai motorcycle, that I test rode (as a pillion) but did not test-drive as I did not know to drive. Since I was new to driving, I talked to people who rode and read reviews before deciding on this model. I just checked one vehicle and purchased it. There was no A/B comparisons here.

The second one was Honda Activa back in 2001; just fresh when it was launched. I test drove that and purchased it. But again there were no A/B comparisons again.

Next one was an Opel Corsa in 2003. Here, I short-listed and test-rode 3 vehicles: Hyundai Accent 1.5, Ford Ikon 1.3 and Opel Corsa 1.4. I was not comfortable driving a car then; hence I let the SA drive and I was in the passenger seat. Once I had finalized on Opel Corsa, I asked my friend to drive it again before finalizing it.

All my subsequent purchases have been after elaborate and long-drawn test-drives:
- Volkswagen Vento 1.6 MPI after test-driving it against Honda City, Honda Civic, Fiat Linea and Ford Fiesta.
- Maruti WagonR after test-driving against Honda Brio TC automatic, Nissan Micra CVT automatic and Ford Figo DCT automatic (due to significant price savings, not technical reasons)
- Volkswagen Passat 2.0 TDI after test-driving against Volkswagen Vento, Hyundai Elantra, Jeep Compass, Honda Civic and Skoda Octavia all in automatic variants

For me, the process of evaluating, test-driving and A/B comparisons is very much exhilarating and rewarding. I will not purchase a vehicle without test-driving.

[2000rpm]

Honda Unicorn. This was during the Activa Boom, where dealers where charging 10k black to deliver Activas on priority.

In such a high handed scenario, you think the Honda showroom will provide a test drive?

[jinojohnt]

These cars were bought with out test drives because there weren't many options available, and I would have bought them any way.
Alto Lxi 2008:
1. No other option in that price band with a/c and power steering.
2. Was my second car.
A-Star Automatic 2011:
1. Was the cheapest automatic available that time. To give you a perspective about what people used to think about automatics that time - my sales executive actually asked me whether I am physically challenged when I enquired about a-star automatic.
2. Test drive was available for the manual version only. Nobody used to buy automatics those days because of the 'kitna dethi hai' mentality.

Interestingly, I didn't buy any cars that I test-drove:
1. Santro Automatic (I liked the car, but I decided to defer the purchase till I own a petrol pump because 3 of my friends reported 7 km/liter).
2. i10 Manual (I generally up-shift early, and didn't quite like the low end torque. I shifted to 3rd gear at 25 km/hour and by the time the car reached 50 km/hour, my grand children had got married)
3. Xylo (Got scared the moment I released the clutch in first gear. The car moved more towards the sky than to the front. More over, since I am not one of the 'long-handed' types, I thought I would be able to use only the 2nd and 4th gear. The test drive staff slotted the first gear for me while I stood on the clutch, and I realized I would need to keep a long stick in the car to change gears and ward off dogs).
Also Ran:
1. Isuzu V-cross (Lost my interest after 2 years because all I could manage was a call from head office every six months asking 'Sir, did you get a test drive as you requested?')
2. Renault Duster (I asked for an extended test drive and was willing to pay taxi charges because my primary usage would be for 400 km week-end trips, but they had enough customers who are willing to buy the car with a one km test drive)

[gubbi555]

Yes, it was when we booked the brand new XUV 5OO AWD. No test drive vehicles were available at the time, but given the amount of tracking spy news, reviews and speculations we knew we would jump the gun on this one.

Developed a great rapport with India Garage at the time in Bangalore and was delivered the first AWD variant in the city sporting the Doplhin Grey colour! 2.25L kms later, we still don't regret the decision to make this purchase without a test drive!

Additionally, we bought the Kinetic Blaze back in 08' without a test ride and although the vehicle was incredibly comfortable, the usage didn't last beyond 3-4 years of purchase and the firm as well. My 2 cents!

[King_pin09]

Being the first big purchase by myself alone (in the absence of my father) I got my Indica Vista, Aura, Safire, BSIII, 2009 model, from Wasan Motors Chembur, merely based on the perception of space, tough build, fancy (blue/ white LED) electronics, and luxury features (as for a hatch back in those days) such as all four power windows with backlit buttons, tilt adjustable steering, adjustable lumbar support, interior lighting with theatre diming effect, et-al.

I must admit that taking a test drive was least on priority as I was afraid a test drive may spoil the enthusiasm and may cause changes in the decision. Besides, the sales executive having sensed my commitment to buy this very car, outsmarted me by deviating the topic elsewhere whenever the context of taking a test drive surfaced. Overall it was a decision of which I was pleased in the initial days, however ended up with repenting later. Reasons being placement of pedals (which did not suit my body frame and caused strain to muscles in the calves and ankles after long journeys), large steering wheel, small boot space, inadequate AC, etc, which perhaps could have been figured out easily had I taken a test drive.

[PB10rider]

I bought New Civic without a test drive, relying solely on the brand value the car has created for itself worldwide.

Needless to say, was not at all disappointed.

And a 10 mins test drive can't be a deciding factor.

Instead long term ownership reviews can be more helpful and guide better.

[krishnakarthik1]

Yes, I did. Maruti 800, Honda activa and Maruti Ritz.