What does it take to test drive a car?
- Thread starter Quattro Pete
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Originally Posted By: Wolf359
Originally Posted By: Anduril
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
RANT:
I am currently trying to narrow down the field of possible vehicles to purchase. One possibility is Charger SRT. For the longest time, none of the local Dodge dealerships had any in stock. Now, one finally has one. So I want to come in for a test drive to determine if it's even something that I should continue taking into consideration.
The dealer tells me "the only way to pull it out to test drive it is to get a credit application showing that you are a qualified buyer and we need to have already agreed to numbers, terms, and conditions showing that you are going to purchase the vehicle pending an adequate test drive."
Are you kidding me? I realize they want to filter out joy riders, but this does me no good. There is no way I am going to talk numbers or fill out any applications until I first determine that I like the car.
Is this normal?
If that's the case, then I guess I have to cross this SRT off my list.
That's nothing. My grandpa had to walk out of a dealership because they weren't going to tell him the price of a car until after he had signed paperwork to buy it.
Well they were probably of the school of thought where if you have to ask, you can't afford it.
I doubt it, he's not one to buy fancy cars.
Originally Posted By: Anduril
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
RANT:
I am currently trying to narrow down the field of possible vehicles to purchase. One possibility is Charger SRT. For the longest time, none of the local Dodge dealerships had any in stock. Now, one finally has one. So I want to come in for a test drive to determine if it's even something that I should continue taking into consideration.
The dealer tells me "the only way to pull it out to test drive it is to get a credit application showing that you are a qualified buyer and we need to have already agreed to numbers, terms, and conditions showing that you are going to purchase the vehicle pending an adequate test drive."
Are you kidding me? I realize they want to filter out joy riders, but this does me no good. There is no way I am going to talk numbers or fill out any applications until I first determine that I like the car.
Is this normal?
If that's the case, then I guess I have to cross this SRT off my list.
That's nothing. My grandpa had to walk out of a dealership because they weren't going to tell him the price of a car until after he had signed paperwork to buy it.
Well they were probably of the school of thought where if you have to ask, you can't afford it.
I doubt it, he's not one to buy fancy cars.
Originally Posted By: CKN
The dealer...their rules. If you don't like their rules find another dealer. Seems pretty simple.
Not that simple when it's the only dealer within a 100 mile radius that has one.
The dealer...their rules. If you don't like their rules find another dealer. Seems pretty simple.
Not that simple when it's the only dealer within a 100 mile radius that has one.
Originally Posted By: Wolf359
Well they were probably of the school of thought where if you have to ask, you can't afford it.
More like trying to take advantage of an elderly person. I've seen attempts made by certain clothing retailers to do this and it was sickening.
Well they were probably of the school of thought where if you have to ask, you can't afford it.
More like trying to take advantage of an elderly person. I've seen attempts made by certain clothing retailers to do this and it was sickening.
Originally Posted By: grampi
No test drive = no sale for this guy. No way I'm spending that much money without first driving the vehicle...would you buy a house without first seeing the inside?
Yeah, if it was cheap enough. I had some people do that, foreclosures, you look at the old pictures. The owner of a firm I worked for bought a building once and he said he didn't even know it had a 4th floor. You couldn't see it from the street as it was set back a little.
No test drive = no sale for this guy. No way I'm spending that much money without first driving the vehicle...would you buy a house without first seeing the inside?
Yeah, if it was cheap enough. I had some people do that, foreclosures, you look at the old pictures. The owner of a firm I worked for bought a building once and he said he didn't even know it had a 4th floor. You couldn't see it from the street as it was set back a little.
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I'd tell that dealership to straight up kiss it. Running your credit will make your score take a hit. They have NO business running your credit to test drive a car. If they have a problem with customers test driving a vehicle before laying down tens of thousands of dollars,they need to close their doors. A copy and paste from Credit Karma:
*I Have Excellent Credit but they ran my credit score 3 times at dealership without my consent
I purchased a vechicle on Saturday and have excellent credit. I allowed them to run my credit once, and they ran it three times, once through the dealership and twice through various banks. So, my credit score dropped from a 779 to a 770 as a result. I did not content to them running it multiple times and am upset since I was under the impression is would just be ran once. Any recourse?*
That dealership sounds like a bunch of numbnuts. Who the [censored] buys a car as a shot in the dark? Most cars I've bought I've kept for the weekend to test them out.
*I Have Excellent Credit but they ran my credit score 3 times at dealership without my consent
I purchased a vechicle on Saturday and have excellent credit. I allowed them to run my credit once, and they ran it three times, once through the dealership and twice through various banks. So, my credit score dropped from a 779 to a 770 as a result. I did not content to them running it multiple times and am upset since I was under the impression is would just be ran once. Any recourse?*
That dealership sounds like a bunch of numbnuts. Who the [censored] buys a car as a shot in the dark? Most cars I've bought I've kept for the weekend to test them out.
Nice clothes and a drivers license.
Isn't this a question of straight demand and supply? IF the dealer has more prospective buyers than the available vehicles, there is no reason for him to accommodate a single buyer.
See if you can get test drive Tesla 3 before taking the delivery. Right now, you flatly can not. Every single Model 3 on the road was purchased without owner having had a chance to drive one.
You could say SRT is not as in demand as Model but it is just a question of relative scarcity. Heck, even on 83 Prelude or 99 Odyssey, there was no test drive (without already having deposit) when they first showed up at the dealer.
See if you can get test drive Tesla 3 before taking the delivery. Right now, you flatly can not. Every single Model 3 on the road was purchased without owner having had a chance to drive one.
You could say SRT is not as in demand as Model but it is just a question of relative scarcity. Heck, even on 83 Prelude or 99 Odyssey, there was no test drive (without already having deposit) when they first showed up at the dealer.
Originally Posted By: Vikas
Isn't this a question of straight demand and supply? IF the dealer has more prospective buyers than the available vehicles, there is no reason for him to accommodate a single buyer.
Yup, that is basically it. They have the only brand new Charger SRT in a 100-mile radius, and they are probably not in a huge rush to sell it - they are using it as their showroom piece. I would imagine eventually they will find someone who will agree to sign all the paperwork prior to test driving it.
As an update, the sales guy reached back out to me, offering to let me test drive a 2016 Charger Scat Pack that just came in to the dealership. While the Scat Pack doesn't have all the features of an SRT, I think I will still test drive it to get a general idea of its performance. Just need to wait for weather to improve a bit.
Isn't this a question of straight demand and supply? IF the dealer has more prospective buyers than the available vehicles, there is no reason for him to accommodate a single buyer.
Yup, that is basically it. They have the only brand new Charger SRT in a 100-mile radius, and they are probably not in a huge rush to sell it - they are using it as their showroom piece. I would imagine eventually they will find someone who will agree to sign all the paperwork prior to test driving it.
As an update, the sales guy reached back out to me, offering to let me test drive a 2016 Charger Scat Pack that just came in to the dealership. While the Scat Pack doesn't have all the features of an SRT, I think I will still test drive it to get a general idea of its performance. Just need to wait for weather to improve a bit.
I the only vehicle I ever bought without first test driving it was an '87 Buick Regal T-Type turbo (the GN in cognito), and that was only because I ordered mine the way I wanted it from the factory, and I had previously driven another one and knew I liked the car...
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