New car delivered with over 500 miles on it?

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

If a customer comes in and wants to drive a specific car, of course they are allowed to. Usually not every car on the lot has more than a few miles on it. Usually my company demo would have between 3-7 miles when I got it.

Every car gets driven on to the car carrier and driven off. The cars get driven to the service department to get prepped and then they get driven to the get ready area to be cleaned. From there they get driven to the spot where they will sit on the lot until a buyer is found. The cars will be driven when moving the lot around. It is very easy to get 20 miles on a car and it has never left the lot.

What constitutes "new" is not having been titled. Once a vehicle is titled, even if it turned back in for some reason it is then considered used. It could have 10 miles on it; if it were titled it is "used."

Joy

Well I would sure rather have a pre-titled car with 10 (or even 100) miles on it (barring any accidents), than a "new" one with 500. I am getting more and more irritated by this...

[joycapecod Silver Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close joycapecod]

Well I would sure rather have a pre-titled car with 10 (or even 100) miles on it (barring any accidents), than a "new" one with 500. I am getting more and more irritated by this...

A car that is titled will not have the incentives etc on it that an untitled one will and usually you cannot lease a car that has been titled. Exceptions are high end cars like some Mercedes, Lexus, BMW and Infinity to name a few where the leasing companies will do leases. If you are a finance buyer the titled car will carry a higher interest rate as it is "used" than a non titled car and there are no offers for zero percent from the manufactures and there are no incentives. I don't know what you leased, but having 500 miles on a car shouldn't sway your feelings.

I do feel that the dealer should have told you, but you saw the car (I presume) before you signed the paperwork and the mileage would have been disclosed on the paperwork you read and signed. In Massachusetts (Maryland, Virginia, California and Florida, all states I have worked) the mileage is on the purchase and sale documents, the Federal odometer mileage statement, the certificate of origin, the lease or finance contract and the application for title, all papers that require the purchaser's signature. It should have been no surprise that the car had miles on it.

Glitter, I am not taking the dealer's side, but trying to explain that there should have been ample opportunities for you to question the number of miles on the car. If you didn't like the explanation (like the car was at a dealer in Virginia and we had a driver bring it here; the car was a dealer demo etc) you didn't have to sign the paperwork and take delivery.

Was the car on the lot when you were looking, or was the car an "order?"

Joy

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

Joy, I appreciate your perspective. Truthfully, I probably would have taken the car anyway if he had told me upfront, I just didn't like the surprise. We had already turned in our prior leased car, and this one was delivered to my house. So yes, I knew about it before I signed the papers, but it was delivered by messenger, Lease Guy was too busy to talk to me on the phone very long, and I didn't feel as if I had time to deal with the ramifications of turning the car down. It is also the end of the month, so lease "programs" will be changing (we are already paying more than if I had leased it in February), and since I'm going away I don't have time to try to find another car, especially while we'd be down to one car for three drivers.

So, there you have it. Live and learn - this has been an education, and you have helped me understand the process. And as irritating as it is, I am otherwise very happy with the car.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

Speaking of which, we were one of those on the waiting list when the PT Cruisers first came out. We were on a Cruiser website that followed our order from submission to delivery. We knew where it was every day so we knew before the dealer called that it was in.

We had sold our other car the day before, and friends took us to pick it up.

It had slipped off the ramps when they were unloading it, and it was messed up.

So, new, truck-delivered, is not fool-proof . . . as long as fools are still involved.

Well I would sure rather have a pre-titled car with 10 (or even 100) miles on it (barring any accidents), than a "new" one with 500. I am getting more and more irritated by this...

[joycapecod Silver Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close joycapecod]

Joy, I appreciate your perspective. Truthfully, I probably would have taken the car anyway if he had told me upfront, I just didn't like the surprise. We had already turned in our prior leased car, and this one was delivered to my house. So yes, I knew about it before I signed the papers, but it was delivered by messenger, Lease Guy was too busy to talk to me on the phone very long, and I didn't feel as if I had time to deal with the ramifications of turning the car down. It is also the end of the month, so lease "programs" will be changing (we are already paying more than if I had leased it in February), and since I'm going away I don't have time to try to find another car, especially while we'd be down to one car for three drivers.

So, there you have it. Live and learn - this has been an education, and you have helped me understand the process. And as irritating as it is, I am otherwise very happy with the car.

OK, so Lease Guy was "too busy". You will get a customer satisfaction survey in the mail shortly and you can pay Lease Guy back by filling out the survey as not satisfied. With CSI surveys many times dealer cash and employee bonuses are in part based on feedback. If you slam him it will hurt the dealer CSI scores and in turn get his attention.

We only get "good credit" for surveys that are filled in as completely satisfied; satisfied does not count as a good score. So, payback can be a Bitc*.

I hope that will at least take some of the sting out of this process. Getting a new car should be a happy experience.

Joy