[amitayu]

PDI is a habit I picked up from TeamBHP!

Nowadays even my friends insist on taking me along for PDI. It all started with a coincidental visit I made with a friend when he was took me along to make the advance payment and initiate registration when I insisted we check the VIN.
Found out there were panel work done on the rear left door which had a dent. The paintwork gave it away under keen eyes!

But a big bugger is it takes lot of time to go through all the PDI points!!

[lsjey]

Originally Posted by gamingstein

"How correlated the PDI process is to the chances of one buying a peaceful product or a lemon"

This is IMHO not a good question to ask. The right question should be “Is doing PDI a quality decision?” And the answer is an emphatic yes.

Here is my reasoning.

Quality of decisions (+ or -) Luck = Outcomes in Life.

All we can do is to make consistently right decisions(In this case do a PDI) and hope that Luck doesn’t play spoilsport.

Regards,
Lsjey

[Gamemaztr]

One option that needs to be added is:

Done PDI, Issues found, took delivery with compensation.

While the dealer refused a PDI beforehand, I insisted on a PDI on the day of delivery. Found an indent on the front bumper and a scratch on the grill. Made the dealership refund Rs. 18,000 before accepting the delivery.

Team-Bhp helps!!

[krishnakumar]

Voted for "Conducted PDI; No issues with vehicle faced".

While the horror stories of buying defective vehicles are posted all across the forum, I could not find a thread for the times where a member saved themselves by conducting a thorough PDI!

PDI is never about identifying lemon - honestly, there is no good way you can test for such defects. Lemons are generally cars that have some underlying defect that (1) affects the basic functionality of a car and (2) takes an overwhelming amount of time and effort to fix. Cosmetic exterior damages, minor bluetooth/infotainment errors etc. won't really qualify to be lemon.

A PDI can only help you avoid a potential lemon simply by doing some basic checks like VIN, odometer, tyre condition etc. through which you can avoid a car that is being passed on as "new" by the dealer with deliberate malicious intent.

A used car or a car that has been lying around in the yard for long time/returned by some influential buyer (due to some issues) will have a few telltale signs. A basic check will allow you to at least minimize such possibility, but it mostly works like how a "CCTV camera" prevents robbers from targeting a house with surveillance.

The moment you insist on a PDI, the dealer knows you're an informed buyer and likely won't pass on such cars as they know there is a very high chance of losing sales through malicious intent. Moreover, very few dealers would actually do this but when you're coughing up such huge sums for cars, it is an absolute must just to save yourselves from that trouble.

If an actual new car does turn out to be a lemon due to our bad luck, there is nothing that a PDI can do.

[gamingstein]

Originally Posted by krishnakumar

Voted for "Conducted PDI; No issues with vehicle faced".

PDI is never about identifying lemon - honestly, there is no good way you can test for such defects. Lemons are generally cars that have some underlying defect that (1) affects the basic functionality of a car and (2) takes an overwhelming amount of time and effort to fix. Cosmetic exterior damages, minor bluetooth/infotainment errors etc. won't really qualify to be lemon.

Originally Posted by a_chelat

Honestly, how many of us truly believe that a PDI can help detect a lemon? Can you really ensure that a vehicle is mechanically sound by just conducting a PDI?

I agree, however, I have read cases where the cars broke down on the way from showroom to home after delivery itself. Mostly due to oil leaks or component failure. While paint and other static PDI check points might not suffice, an extensive cross check (including engine idling, and driving a few kms, etc and then checking for oil leaks can definitely help). Plus, many good brands have markings on the connections made all cross the engine bay (example - BMW) and that helps ensure if any thing was fiddled with post dispatch from factory or by dealer!
In fact, these brands have an extensive pre-delivery checklist for themselves which covers a lot of mechanical parts and functioning too!

I agree that not everything can be checked and luck does play a huge role, but it is more like preparing well for exam even if the result was not as expected vs not studying at all hoping to top! (sorry for a pathetic analogy, its the season for marks and results!)

Originally Posted by Mitadru

P.S. The Team BHP PDI checklist, though exhaustive in terms of mechanical and cosmetic issues,needs an update. With even the humble Maruti Alto coming with a touch screen infotainment system, the in car entertainment system section should be updated. It still mentions a CD player and Bluetooth connectivity, but tech has progressed a lot. It should include modern day infotainment systems, and their bugs, and whether we should reject the model due to these issues

Check this link -
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/india...-kulkarni.html (New Car PreDelivery Inspection List Part I, II, III and IV (by Kishor kulkarni))
while it too may have points that are not relevant to modern cars, still a big checklist with lot of actionable insights!

[Mr.Ogre]

Used cars and bikes, Yes. But if buying new, I stick to my favorite brands like Ford, Honda, Toyota, Yamaha, Kawasaki and so far never found any issues even though I never insisted on a PDI.

Companies with doggy behavior in the past are never on my shortlist.

[Captain Slow]

Originally Posted by revvharder

Meanwhile at a Tata Dealership, shared by a reddit user

Attachment 2613730

Hey that's our hard earned money ! They have no right to deny us from doing a PDI of our own car. Someone should tweet this to TATA

[secondopinion]

IMO a professional PDI for a used car is a must. In case of new cars, a keen eye could spot for any superficial damage (re-paint, parts replaced, etc). Team BHP checklist is more than extensive enough to take care of that. For other issues, the OEM warranty covers the damages. However, in case of used cars, there is little covered once the car is delivered. Even the reputed players in the market do not have an extensive cover. I would always get a PDI before buying a used car.

[nmenon]

I've been lucky enough to purchase 2 cars at home. The 1st one way back in 2007 was brought home with a short PDI, I wasn't as knowledgeable then as I am today and hadn't become a member here yet.
Since we'd had some accessories fitted we only checked those on the Alto LX we purchased.
The 2nd car purchased in 2018 was with a full PDI using the TeamBHP checklist, no issues were found and the car runs as well as it did at delivery, today.
In between and after that, I've always insisted on friends and family having a thorough PDI before they make payment for any vehicle they're purchasing.
So far we've been lucky with all cars coming through clean.

Pre Owned cars is a different matter. Having accompanied 3 friends on pre owned car purchases, twice we rejected the selected vehicles and purchased different ones which have served well over 4 or 5 years since.
One car didn't show issues during PPI but has had minor gremlins ( poor AC cooling, throttle position sensor issues) 1 year down the line.

[amarcool55]

Bought Swift vdi in 2013. Went for PDI and found that dealer has allocated a swooped up showroom display car (with additional accessories such as rear spoiler scuff plates and door guards) for additional cost to us which I straight away rejected. Then went on and offered us all the accessories for free and even then we rejected the car because I wanted to customize it on my own. Finally had to wait few days but then got a stock car

[adithya.kp]

I am told my car is in transit. I am wary of a display/demo car being pass on. I think the month of manufacture can be used as one of the indicators. Is there a possibility of a slightly older car being dispatched from the OEM?. Lets say its being dispatched now. In that case, generally it should be a November made car?
Also, a couple of other doubts.
1. How do they dispose off sparingly used demo and display cars?
2. For demo and display, usually they will use a top end or entry level model and not the mid variant?