What do we do? Ready-to-deliver cars given for Test Drives!

scanD · 11th April 2010, 04:05

This happened sometime in Dec 2009.
I was very skeptical about TDing the non-demo Getz 1.1L that the Trident showroom had offered. Sensing my worry, the sales guy said it was their Manager's car and that is the only variant of Getz that he can offer for TD. When i got in, i noticed that the ODO had indeed clocked a few thousand kms.. so i went about taking that TD. During the TD he explained that Hyundai would be phasing out Getz and hence no funds diverted towards TD, mktg (the showroom didn't even have any pamphlets on Getz !!!)

Pancham · 3rd February 2011, 19:46

Nowadays, very often this is happening. Ready for delivery cars given for Test Drive to anyone who is asking for one.

I dont like this. Imagine you spend your hard earned money for a dream car and you are so excited about the car and without your knowledge some "Nobody" test drives your new baby. And we know how people take test drive , dont we?.
So my point is-- is it justfied on the part of the showroom. If we say that it is us who have to rebel and say "NO" to such offers then it is almost impossible since most prospective test drivers are looking for the car to TD. He has come to the showroom expecting to drive the car(some even cannot sleep the night before dreaming of the TD). And if you are swaying a piece of meat in front of a hungry lion he will surely take it. So what is to be done ?

The other day me and my brother decided to visit various showrooms to TD a few cars. I mean serious test drives. As I had zeroed down on the i20 so wanted to test drive it and a few other cars(just in case). So we reached a Hyundai showroom(would not like to name it though) and we asked for both i10 and i20. The SP was very polite and gave us i10 ASTA (TD vehicle). Then we asked for i20. The SP said that the car was out for a TD so she handed us the keys of a ready to deliver i20 Magna.

I felt bad considering that my future to-be car can be similarly handed over to anyone. I told my brother lets drop it. The SP also told us that since its a non-TD car we will have to drive it in the service road and not on the main road. That was in a way good for the owner of the poor car. We decided not to drive it.
But I didnt feel as bad as I did in the Maruti Showroom. It was Mohan Motors in Sec 5. We said we wanted a Swift Diesel for a TD. The showroom people were not as warm and cordial as that of Hyundai. After waiting for sometime we were standing in front of the Swift Vdi. And no prices for guessing, it was a ready to deliver car with temporary plates.
What they did next is unbelievable. The SP sends an employee inside the showroom and after sometime he comes with a sticker. The sticker was nothing but some temporary number. He sticks it over the present temp number and "we are ready to go".

This is what is happening with your future car. What do we do now ? What is the solution ? Going to the stockyard to get the car is not always possible for everyone. So what do we do ?

Recompose · 3rd February 2011, 20:06

In my opinion, there is little that can be done. Either we drop all our work and do the PDI and take the car when it gets down from the truck or just trust these guys to not go overboard with these test-drives. Its shameful, no doubt, but given that an engine lasts over a hundred thousand kilometres, 0.1% of that will hardly make a difference.

If the people refuse to test drive these cars, the problem is solved. No demand, no supply.

libranof1987 · 3rd February 2011, 20:21

I doubt the solution is so simple.

Anyone who wishes to buy a car would first want to test drive it. To add this, people also take test drives from various showrooms they visit to compare prices/accessories provided etc. There are many people who test drive cars just for the fancy of it. To add this, dealers often take the cars for display at malls, tech parks etc.

=> The convert ratio of Test drive to buying is I bet not significant.

So, moral of the story, EVERYONE wants a test drive. And, I don't think it is feasible for any dealer to have each variant of every car on display. Agreed there are many dealers who have a no. of showrooms across the city and even outside but there are many more who operate on a smaller basis and cannot have a TD vehicle.

Add to it our mentality. If we go to TD, say an i10; one would like to drive a petrol and then maybe the diesel too. It is his hard earned money afterall. They'd also want a car that has not been test driven before; by anyone.

So, there is a huge disparity in the everything.

What you can do : Be nice to the car you TD in the hope someone who test drives the car you eventually get behaves the same. And, do a thorough PDI.

rajeev k · 3rd February 2011, 20:35

And the speedo/odo may not be working then. This is the way the dealers does their errands too.

Pancham · 3rd February 2011, 22:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by rajeev k

And the speedo/odo may not be working then. This is the way the dealers does their errands too.

Exactly!! The Swift Vdi I am talking about had its wire cut.

rajushank84 · 4th February 2011, 00:51

Same thing happened to me when I asked for a petrol Swift for TD. None of the dealers had a petrol Swift TD vehicle, they had only diesel ones. One dealer offered me a TD in a ready-for-delivery piece, and I refused to touch it.

As far as I could see, Ford and Tata are not doing this (at least MPL and Concorde). They have dedicated cars with "test drive" stickering all over and offer only those particular vehicles for TD.

ghodlur · 4th February 2011, 07:47

The possibility of giving the new car (already booked by someone) for test drive may be because the TD cars are already bruised to the extent that they start to rattle and the dealers would not want to use another car for TD purposes. The dealers would want to create a good impression of the vehicle on the prospective buyer and would not risk providing the rattling TD cars.

How does a customer know that the TD car he is driving is already owned/booked by some one? No fool proof method. Too much reliability questions on the dealer.

Samurai · 4th February 2011, 07:59

As I am waiting for delivery of my i10 Auto (a rare car in my area), I have repeatedly informed the sales manager to not even think of giving mine for test drives. It is supposed to reach the dealership today.

mjothi · 4th February 2011, 08:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by ghodlur

How does a customer know that the TD car he is driving is already owned/booked by some one? No fool proof method. Too much reliability questions on the dealer.

A test drive car is suppose to be marked as Test-Drive car like the one we see in some TATA, FIAT, Maruti test cars. But cant expect this to be for all models.

Atleast they have one top end for all models. Unless there is a clear govt. policy [or do we already have one?] and strict enforcement, this can never be stopped.

swiftnfurious · 4th February 2011, 08:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samurai

As I am waiting for delivery of my i10 Auto (a rare car in my area), I have repeatedly informed the sales manager to not even think of giving mine for test drives. It is supposed to reach the dealership today.

This is one of the best ways - Keep scaring the SA. If the car has some waiting period, all the more good I would say. Just try to know when it is coming to dealership and make no delay in getting the car home!

I saw my car being taken out of the truck and the very next day I was at the dealership to take delivery - They didnt even bring it to showroom, but I reached there first - So no way its gonna be handled by anyone.

But then there is no fool proof method to stop the ready-to-deliver cars being used for TD. As someone rightly pointed out, If anyone and everyone denies to TD a delivery car, they will not do it. Also I dont think none of the t-bhpians should hesitate to post the name of the dealership where such problems occur. What we should do is, report and create a thread in t-bhp and then send a copy / link to each of these dealerships [in simple terms BLACKLIST them] ! This will make them think twice to do such mistakes - And to boost their morale, we could tell them that their names will be removed if there is no such incidents reported for 3 months/6 months etc]. Again its better said than done - but definitely a point to think over.

Edit: I was given a ready-to-deliver spark when I wanted to TD the car - Thankfully I didnt rip it as the time was almost peak hour and there was lot of traffic. Also I would not blame anyone who pushes a car to the limits - after all they all have the rights since everyone will be shelling out a bomb as per their capacity. So they better check the car inside out before tearing the cheques!

aroop · 4th February 2011, 08:22

Adding my experience to this: I wanted to TD / buy the new WagonR, and went to Dewars garage. I was told that TD vehicle is undergoing repairs, but I was driven around in a ready to deliver vehicle (wasnt allowed to drive)
Mohan motors at sector 5 was too eager to help and gave me a supposedly TD vehicle - I found it had the odo/speedometer disconnected!
I lost my faith in Mohan, but this appears to be an industry norm.

xingamazon · 4th February 2011, 08:35

Well the problem is grave I know.
I feel doing few things might help.

1. Make sure you buy from the dealership who has a TD vehicle whenever you walk-in this can atleast give you some confidence in the back of your mind.
2. Make sure, you speak to the Manager about the situation and tell him that you would want to take the delivery the day the car arrives in the showroom.
3. Leverage the TBHP site, create a thread describing the showrooms which follow this practice. Thus using this information, other future users can avoid doing any purchase from them .
4. Finally a sureshot way: Pray heavily to god from the time that you book the car till delivery that your car should not be given for test drives.

download2live · 4th February 2011, 08:46

The only way to avoid it is to Refuse to take a test drive in any car which does not have the "Demo" stickered all over it. Anything else and you might be ripping the car someone has paid for.

pjbiju · 4th February 2011, 10:03

If there is anyway one can get the number of the person, whose car is being offered for the test drive, call him/her and ask him/her to come to the showroom. May be an excuse like I want to talk and find out why this person decided to buy this vehicle might make the dealer give the number. It will be fun to watch what unfolds after that.

View Poll Results: Have you driven a non Demo vehicle.
Yes, I have and its not my fault and the dealer should take care.	42	27.27%
No, I have not come across such a vehicle	60	38.96%
I have driven but will ensure I dont do it in the future.	28	18.18%
No, I have refused to drive such a vehicle.	24	15.58%
Voters: 154. You may not vote on this poll

11th April 2010, 04:05	#91
scanD BHPian Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Bangalore Posts: 74 Thanked: 21 Times	This happened sometime in Dec 2009. I was very skeptical about TDing the non-demo Getz 1.1L that the Trident showroom had offered. Sensing my worry, the sales guy said it was their Manager's car and that is the only variant of Getz that he can offer for TD. When i got in, i noticed that the ODO had indeed clocked a few thousand kms.. so i went about taking that TD. During the TD he explained that Hyundai would be phasing out Getz and hence no funds diverted towards TD, mktg (the showroom didn't even have any pamphlets on Getz !!!)
	() Thanks

3rd February 2011, 19:46	#92
Pancham Senior - BHPian Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Kolkata/NCR Posts: 1,753 Thanked: 2,648 Times	What do we do?? Ready to deliver cars given for Test Drives!! Nowadays, very often this is happening. Ready for delivery cars given for Test Drive to anyone who is asking for one. I dont like this. Imagine you spend your hard earned money for a dream car and you are so excited about the car and without your knowledge some "Nobody" test drives your new baby. And we know how people take test drive , dont we?. So my point is-- is it justfied on the part of the showroom. If we say that it is us who have to rebel and say "NO" to such offers then it is almost impossible since most prospective test drivers are looking for the car to TD. He has come to the showroom expecting to drive the car(some even cannot sleep the night before dreaming of the TD). And if you are swaying a piece of meat in front of a hungry lion he will surely take it. So what is to be done ? The other day me and my brother decided to visit various showrooms to TD a few cars. I mean serious test drives. As I had zeroed down on the i20 so wanted to test drive it and a few other cars(just in case). So we reached a Hyundai showroom(would not like to name it though) and we asked for both i10 and i20. The SP was very polite and gave us i10 ASTA (TD vehicle). Then we asked for i20. The SP said that the car was out for a TD so she handed us the keys of a ready to deliver i20 Magna. I felt bad considering that my future to-be car can be similarly handed over to anyone. I told my brother lets drop it. The SP also told us that since its a non-TD car we will have to drive it in the service road and not on the main road. That was in a way good for the owner of the poor car. We decided not to drive it. But I didnt feel as bad as I did in the Maruti Showroom. It was Mohan Motors in Sec 5. We said we wanted a Swift Diesel for a TD. The showroom people were not as warm and cordial as that of Hyundai. After waiting for sometime we were standing in front of the Swift Vdi. And no prices for guessing, it was a ready to deliver car with temporary plates. What they did next is unbelievable. The SP sends an employee inside the showroom and after sometime he comes with a sticker. The sticker was nothing but some temporary number. He sticks it over the present temp number and "we are ready to go". This is what is happening with your future car. What do we do now ? What is the solution ? Going to the stockyard to get the car is not always possible for everyone. So what do we do ? Last edited by Pancham : 3rd February 2011 at 19:51.
	() Thanks

3rd February 2011, 20:06	#93
Recompose BHPian Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Home Posts: 180 Thanked: 106 Times	Re: What do we do?? Ready to deliver cars given for Test Drives!! In my opinion, there is little that can be done. Either we drop all our work and do the PDI and take the car when it gets down from the truck or just trust these guys to not go overboard with these test-drives. Its shameful, no doubt, but given that an engine lasts over a hundred thousand kilometres, 0.1% of that will hardly make a difference. If the people refuse to test drive these cars, the problem is solved. No demand, no supply.
	() Thanks

3rd February 2011, 20:21	#94
libranof1987 Team-BHP Support Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: All over! Posts: 7,613 Thanked: 18,336 Times	Re: What do we do?? Ready to deliver cars given for Test Drives!! I doubt the solution is so simple. Anyone who wishes to buy a car would first want to test drive it. To add this, people also take test drives from various showrooms they visit to compare prices/accessories provided etc. There are many people who test drive cars just for the fancy of it. To add this, dealers often take the cars for display at malls, tech parks etc. => The convert ratio of Test drive to buying is I bet not significant. So, moral of the story, EVERYONE wants a test drive. And, I don't think it is feasible for any dealer to have each variant of every car on display. Agreed there are many dealers who have a no. of showrooms across the city and even outside but there are many more who operate on a smaller basis and cannot have a TD vehicle. Add to it our mentality. If we go to TD, say an i10; one would like to drive a petrol and then maybe the diesel too. It is his hard earned money afterall. They'd also want a car that has not been test driven before; by anyone. So, there is a huge disparity in the everything. What you can do : Be nice to the car you TD in the hope someone who test drives the car you eventually get behaves the same. And, do a thorough PDI.
	() Thanks

3rd February 2011, 20:35	#95
rajeev k Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Emerging Metro Posts: 3,352 Thanked: 1,947 Times	Re: What do we do?? Ready to deliver cars given for Test Drives!! And the speedo/odo may not be working then. This is the way the dealers does their errands too.
	() Thanks

4th February 2011, 00:51	#97
rajushank84 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Chennai Posts: 1,116 Thanked: 1,098 Times View My Garage	Re: What do we do?? Ready to deliver cars given for Test Drives!! Same thing happened to me when I asked for a petrol Swift for TD. None of the dealers had a petrol Swift TD vehicle, they had only diesel ones. One dealer offered me a TD in a ready-for-delivery piece, and I refused to touch it. As far as I could see, Ford and Tata are not doing this (at least MPL and Concorde). They have dedicated cars with "test drive" stickering all over and offer only those particular vehicles for TD.
	() Thanks

4th February 2011, 07:47	#98
ghodlur Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Thane Posts: 6,009 Thanked: 4,198 Times View My Garage	Re: What do we do?? Ready to deliver cars given for Test Drives!! The possibility of giving the new car (already booked by someone) for test drive may be because the TD cars are already bruised to the extent that they start to rattle and the dealers would not want to use another car for TD purposes. The dealers would want to create a good impression of the vehicle on the prospective buyer and would not risk providing the rattling TD cars. How does a customer know that the TD car he is driving is already owned/booked by some one? No fool proof method. Too much reliability questions on the dealer.
	() Thanks

4th February 2011, 07:59	#99
Samurai Team-BHP Support Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Bangalore/Udupi Posts: 25,826 Thanked: 45,514 Times View My Garage	Re: What do we do?? Ready to deliver cars given for Test Drives!! As I am waiting for delivery of my i10 Auto (a rare car in my area), I have repeatedly informed the sales manager to not even think of giving mine for test drives. It is supposed to reach the dealership today.
	() Thanks

4th February 2011, 08:22	#102
aroop BHPian Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Kolkata Posts: 128 Thanked: 23 Times	Re: What do we do?? Ready to deliver cars given for Test Drives!! Adding my experience to this: I wanted to TD / buy the new WagonR, and went to Dewars garage. I was told that TD vehicle is undergoing repairs, but I was driven around in a ready to deliver vehicle (wasnt allowed to drive) Mohan motors at sector 5 was too eager to help and gave me a supposedly TD vehicle - I found it had the odo/speedometer disconnected! I lost my faith in Mohan, but this appears to be an industry norm.
	() Thanks

4th February 2011, 08:35	#103
xingamazon Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Chennai Posts: 1,400 Thanked: 121 Times	Re: What do we do?? Ready to deliver cars given for Test Drives!! Well the problem is grave I know. I feel doing few things might help. 1. Make sure you buy from the dealership who has a TD vehicle whenever you walk-in this can atleast give you some confidence in the back of your mind. 2. Make sure, you speak to the Manager about the situation and tell him that you would want to take the delivery the day the car arrives in the showroom. 3. Leverage the TBHP site, create a thread describing the showrooms which follow this practice. Thus using this information, other future users can avoid doing any purchase from them . 4. Finally a sureshot way: Pray heavily to god from the time that you book the car till delivery that your car should not be given for test drives.
	() Thanks

4th February 2011, 08:46	#104
download2live Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: - Posts: 1,147 Thanked: 1,144 Times	Re: What do we do?? Ready to deliver cars given for Test Drives!! The only way to avoid it is to Refuse to take a test drive in any car which does not have the "Demo" stickered all over it. Anything else and you might be ripping the car someone has paid for. Last edited by download2live : 4th February 2011 at 08:51.
	() Thanks

4th February 2011, 10:03	#105
pjbiju Senior - BHPian Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Pune Posts: 1,357 Thanked: 1,091 Times	Re: What do we do?? Ready to deliver cars given for Test Drives!! If there is anyway one can get the number of the person, whose car is being offered for the test drive, call him/her and ask him/her to come to the showroom. May be an excuse like I want to talk and find out why this person decided to buy this vehicle might make the dealer give the number. It will be fun to watch what unfolds after that.
	() Thanks