Buying a car and having it delivered (ie without seeing in person)... is it wise?

linax

Hi
I bought my car from Hilton garage one month ago without seeing the vehicle and no driving test. I paid in cash 12 000 pounds and to be honest I haven’t got great experience.  You have indeed got 14 days to return the car but also you can’t drive it for more than 100 miles in 14 days and now one mentioned it to me. Ask the seller to email all details to you, and double-check for logbook V5C. Some sellers will not provide you with the green slip V5C and it could be a problem. 

Herzlos

There's usually some conditions about returns being in a re-saleable condition and like they arrived, which when applied to cars usually means a very small mileage allowance and for you to stop using the car as soon as possible.

So you need to view it more that you're buying the car but have the option to return it after a test drive puts you off, rather than buying 3 different outfits online and returning the 2 you don't want.

Mickey666

BOWFER said:

Mickey666 said:

I bought my first E-class estate from a Merc main dealer about 200 miles away.  It was a 'used, approved' vehicle, two years old, one owner from new, 21k miles, full Merc service history.   They delivered it to my house.  No problems at all and I kept it for another nine years and added around 100k miles.

I'm not fussed about test driving a car.  Unless you're buying something unique then they're all much of a muchness these days and all will out-perform 99.9% of drivers.  I guess I'm just not really that interested in them and only care that they are reliable. 

The only car that has ever put a smile on my face is my old Defender . . . so clearly gadgets, speed and comfort are not that important

I don't bother test driving new cars either, no point.
But used really needs a test drive.
It could have a juddery clutch or anything.

The point about buying 'used approved' from a main dealer is the warranty.  Not as good as for a brand new car but good enough to cover any immediate faults. 

As for a 'juddery clutch' . . . are people still buying manual cars these days? 

HansOndabush

Mickey666 said:

BOWFER said:

Mickey666 said:

I bought my first E-class estate from a Merc main dealer about 200 miles away.  It was a 'used, approved' vehicle, two years old, one owner from new, 21k miles, full Merc service history.   They delivered it to my house.  No problems at all and I kept it for another nine years and added around 100k miles.

I'm not fussed about test driving a car.  Unless you're buying something unique then they're all much of a muchness these days and all will out-perform 99.9% of drivers.  I guess I'm just not really that interested in them and only care that they are reliable. 

The only car that has ever put a smile on my face is my old Defender . . . so clearly gadgets, speed and comfort are not that important

I don't bother test driving new cars either, no point.
But used really needs a test drive.
It could have a juddery clutch or anything.

The point about buying 'used approved' from a main dealer is the warranty.  Not as good as for a brand new car but good enough to cover any immediate faults. 

As for a 'juddery clutch' . . . are people still buying manual cars these days? 

Yes, usually a lot less trouble than auto-boxes.

AdrianC

linax said:

You have indeed got 14 days to return the car but also you can’t drive it for more than 100 miles in 14 days and now one mentioned it to me.

The distance selling regs do not include a hard mileage cap. But there is a requirement for use not to exceed what would be reasonable to decide if the goods are indeed what you require, which is what the 14 days is for.

Would you have a test drive pre-purchase that was more than 100 miles? Not usually.

AdrianC

Mickey666 said:

As for a 'juddery clutch' . . . are people still buying manual cars these days? 

Many modern "automatics" have clutches. They just aren't controlled by the driver's left foot.

mobileron

Think of all those company cars etc, purchased by Fleet manager and delivered directly to the driver.
Ive had many over the years. No one at head office ever sees them.

Penelopa.Pitstop

My friend considered buying online, but was hesitant. I also advised against buying used one without testing it first. She waited  until dealers were open and went to test 3 cars which were near each other. The one she favoured, had slipping clutch and was eliminated from her list straight away. You wouldn't establish it without test drive. Two other cars were ok and she chose one and it's being delivered today. All cars were 2 years old with low mileage.

Mickey666

HansOndabush said:

Mickey666 said:

BOWFER said:

Mickey666 said:

I bought my first E-class estate from a Merc main dealer about 200 miles away.  It was a 'used, approved' vehicle, two years old, one owner from new, 21k miles, full Merc service history.   They delivered it to my house.  No problems at all and I kept it for another nine years and added around 100k miles.

I'm not fussed about test driving a car.  Unless you're buying something unique then they're all much of a muchness these days and all will out-perform 99.9% of drivers.  I guess I'm just not really that interested in them and only care that they are reliable. 

The only car that has ever put a smile on my face is my old Defender . . . so clearly gadgets, speed and comfort are not that important

I don't bother test driving new cars either, no point.
But used really needs a test drive.
It could have a juddery clutch or anything.

The point about buying 'used approved' from a main dealer is the warranty.  Not as good as for a brand new car but good enough to cover any immediate faults. 

As for a 'juddery clutch' . . . are people still buying manual cars these days? 

Yes, usually a lot less trouble than auto-boxes.

I can't really comment on that, having had very little experience of manual vehicles but a lot of experience of trouble-free auto-boxes

Mickey666

AdrianC said:

Mickey666 said:

As for a 'juddery clutch' . . . are people still buying manual cars these days? 

Many modern "automatics" have clutches. They just aren't controlled by the driver's left foot.

Quite right . . . because car development has left the manual clutch far behind.  Perhaps the average driver can't adjust to such technology