[Questions] Would you buy a demonstrator car?

[FWH]

Of course I always drive demo cars carefully. *Cough*

[harleyfatboy]

Everything is relative ...as was said in a earlier post if you are not keeping it to long you could end up with a good deal ...warranty,extras, maybe a good cash deal, but anyone who says they drove any demo car car like miss daisy aint keepin it real man...its not your car ..no problem if it goes bang call up the dealer they collect you walk away...your choice...caveat emptor....ON A STEEL HORSE I RIDE

[adamcivic]

I can still smell the tyres and engine of the Accord demonstrator after my Dad and me had finished "test driving" it.

A demonstrator has to be tested properly as you test drive it for 10/20 minutes but could end up making a expensive mistake if not tested well.

So no I wouldn't buy a demonstrator!

My previous Civic was a pre reg which was sat in the showroom for a few months. So still got a good deal and it had 9 miles on the clock when I picked it up

[Fb77]

My car's in the ex-demo camp. I don't think it's any worse as a result, just be sure to check the bodywork and especially the alloys.

I had to negotiate to get a new wheel after I found that one wheel had been skimmed to within an inch of its life.

That aside it's been OK. As has already been mentioned though; buyer beware!

[Sandozer]

My Crab is an ex-demo, easily, EASILY the best second-hand car I have ever owned. Apart from the known Honda recalls,..... faultless.

Its the Mutts Nutts....

[Dawson]

I wonder if all these rattles on ex demos are in any way related to the rev limiter beatings the cars had in their previous lives?

In all seriousness, pre-registered, fine, ex-showroom car, fine. The first few hundred miles on the car should be run in properly. Full throttle cold starts, rev limiter shenanigans etc aren't something I'd want to happen to my cars engine with 5 miles on the clock.

[terry]

Adamcivic: are you saying you thrash a test car because you drive that way all the time? If so you already own a thrashed car....
I treat a test car like I do my own, in that I let it warm up before using the full rev range, then drive in the way I usually drive.
The attitude that "it is not mine so I don't care" seems most inconsiderate if not just plain stupid, just like the boy racers/joy riders. I presume that on the "full test" you confirmed the maximum speed?

[Woette]

mine was also an ex demo, its the car i test drove. I did push it on motorway ramps but i dont think its bad for the car. Mine seems to be well run in. I got a good price for it and i am very pleased with it. i am still looking around to other cars to compare if i could have gotten a better deal but i dont think so (so far ).

[NEEMSTAR]

demonstrators and hire cars are the fastest cars in the world

[Vet_2010]

By the sound of things alot of Honda dealers are very relaxed about who they let take their demos away for a test drive. At the dealership where I bought mine you couldn't get a test drive unless someone accompanied you and I doubt very much they would let you break all hell out on the car. In fact the guy who was out with me told me that they have to make sure you keep to the speed limit etc. or their head will roll come insurance claim time.

[FWH]

Originally Posted by Vet_2010

By the sound of things alot of Honda dealers are very relaxed about who they let take their demos away for a test drive. At the dealership where I bought mine you couldn't get a test drive unless someone accompanied you and I doubt very much they would let you break all hell out on the car. In fact the guy who was out with me told me that they have to make sure you keep to the speed limit etc. or their head will roll come insurance claim time.

Sounds like things are different over here in Sweden.
Never heard of a dealer accompanying anyone on a test drive.

Of course I would not break all hell out of a car anyway.
*cough*

[lippy]

Originally Posted by Vet_2010

By the sound of things alot of Honda dealers are very relaxed about who they let take their demos away for a test drive. At the dealership where I bought mine you couldn't get a test drive unless someone accompanied you and I doubt very much they would let you break all hell out on the car. In fact the guy who was out with me told me that they have to make sure you keep to the speed limit etc. or their head will roll come insurance claim time.

Yep, when I test drove my ex demo, sales staff came with me, all their tests are accompanied for the same reason, in fact whatever car I have test driven has been the same, never'solo' tests. So I know mine was well looked after.

[slick]

most decent dealers allow the cars to warm up to temp before allowing joe public to thrash them.

and most decent drivers will let their cars warm up before taking it over 3000 rpm if your petrol or 2000 rpm if your diesel.

[firefly412]

I got a 2.2 Type S GT, Milano Red, ex-demo (3,000m, 4 months old, 08 model) for just under £15k & everything seems OK at the moment.

[symia32]

I previously had a A3 ex demo and had a load of problems resulting in an exchange, hence this time bought a pre-reg Type s GT 2.2 with blades for just over 16K and 50 miles on the clock. I have had friends who have had demo's and have had no problems, but once burned....

[Dawson]

Originally Posted by slick

most decent dealers allow the cars to warm up to temp before allowing joe public to thrash them.

and most decent drivers will let their cars warm up before taking it over 3000 rpm if your petrol or 2000 rpm if your diesel.

Perhaps decent dealers will do that, but in that case, I'm yet to come across any. A quick count of garages I've been on unaccompanied test drives on (aged 21-24) is about 10-12. None of which have warmed up the car before me taking it out, and all of which have just given me the keys and told me to come back when I'm ready or before the car runs out of fuel.

That's the best way to test drive a car - you get a proper look around the car, and good poke about at the interior to make sure bits won't fall off, and you'll see how the engine performs and how the car handles. I normally take cars out for 30-45 minutes - mixture of town and A road driving, generally finding out exactly how good the handling is and how well it goes.

Funnily enough, at one garage I looked at a performance hatchback, the salesperson came with me for "insurance reasons". He actually encouraged me to redline their demo car (not warmed up). During that test drive he was more than happy for me to find out how the car behaved on the limit over some NSL back roads. 5,000 demo miles and a new set of front tyres later, that car was up for sale with a whopping £1,000 saving over retail. No thanks.

[slick]

perhaps you need to read the second half of my previous quote.

i'm not accusing anyone of being a poor driver, and maybe you let your own cars warm up first. but i personally let any engine warm up first, i too have been on test drives but have the courtesy to treat someone elses property with respect.

i had the sales man from mini scream like a girl when he told me to test its limit, and i power slide it sideways round a roundabout and then hammered it up the slip road. but the engine had been warmed first. after that any amount of hammering is fine.

i had a courtesy car for 3 months and treated it like a whore, but only after the engine was ready.

when i bought my last sports car, i had the salesman getting me to drop the shift at 70 into 3rd to show how well it accelerated and red lined becasue that was where the power band was.

and red lining every car doesn't get the best performance out of it. i'm sure your aware v-tec and vvt-i engines with movable cams are great for that as to get the most of the power you need to take them up to 8-9000 rpm to unleash them. but other engines power bands and gear changes are better lower down.

[NH Dan]

Originally Posted by Vet_2010

By the sound of things alot of Honda dealers are very relaxed about who they let take their demos away for a test drive. At the dealership where I bought mine you couldn't get a test drive unless someone accompanied you and I doubt very much they would let you break all hell out on the car. In fact the guy who was out with me told me that they have to make sure you keep to the speed limit etc. or their head will roll come insurance claim time.

None of my demos are insured for solo flights, every demo drive has to be accompanied. Drive like a loon and you can walk back to the dealership. Would you let a complete stranger take your car 'for a quick spin'??? me neither.

The other, more sensible part is - Mr Joe Public comes to see a civic, knows a bit about them but not everything and wants a test drive. If he has a question while he's out all alone, who does he ask???

[Unknownsoldier]

Originally Posted by terry

Adamcivic: are you saying you thrash a test car because you drive that way all the time? If so you already own a thrashed car....
I treat a test car like I do my own, in that I let it warm up before using the full rev range, then drive in the way I usually drive.
The attitude that "it is not mine so I don't care" seems most inconsiderate if not just plain stupid, just like the boy racers/joy riders. I presume that on the "full test" you confirmed the maximum speed?

I was told by the salesman to drive it hard, to show how good the VTEC was, so I did, (think the salesman's life was shortened just a bit ). I drive my car hard, and expect a lot from it, and so I drove the test car hard-er. They really are bullet proof (engines anyway).

Anyway, why shouldn't you drive a demonstrator 'hard'?? (Hard, not ripping the balls out of it!), it's not inconsiderate, just the way it is done, would you buy a bed without sitting on it, bouncing up and down a little???? Perhaps even, getting a bit bouncy on it's edge etc.? Doesn't mean the bed has been abused, just tested, remember these things have to last a few years and so, why not check if they are built strongly/properly?????

If I'm spending 20K on a car, I test drive it pretty much however I want, because if it doesn't meet my standards I don't want it.

ATB,
Tom

[ahar]

I'd buy a demonstrator as long as the price reflected the fact that it will have been thrashed around a bit.

My Dad's had fords for the last 20 years and had 3 or 4 demonstrators and they've been about as reliable as the non-demo cars.

My civic was 2nd hand and I took it out for a nice long test drive before I bought it - no thrashing it as I'd just be damaning my own car if I bought it!