I have never bought a brand new car, and I never would.
When I bought my current car (The Compact Royce), it was about 3 years old, it had done about 50,000 kms, and it was about half the price of a new one. As far as I was concerned, it was ideal.
It was for sale at a major dealership, and a very attractive 'parts and breakdown guarantee' was included in the price. I was certain that my Euros were being well spent.
On viewing the car, I had noticed that the front left glass headlight cover looked brand new, and that the front left wheel arch panel was a tiny bit different in 'age and finish' to the rest of the car; both parts had obviously been replaced. Without mentioning what I'd seen, I asked the salesman if the car had been in an accident, he answered that IT HAD NOT. I said nothing; and gave him my slow 'knowing smile'.
It really does make you wonder why second-hand car salesmen are totally incapable of telling the truth; all he needed to say was 'yes, it had a little bump, but it's been repaired'.
True!
ReplyDeleteDo French second-hand car dealers wear sheepskin coats over cheap suits as well?
ReplyDeleteThey visit the same tailors as British Estate Agents.
DeleteHere if you sell a used car to have to provide a printout from the licence bureau showing all its owners and all its accidents. Takes a little guess work out of it.
ReplyDeleteWhen I left the Army I started with a car dealershp in Berlin, the city of my birth. Then I started to bin the cars and concentrate on motorcycles and ended up with a dealership in Bielefeld called 'Superbike Centre'. EU laws meant all manufacturers limited their 'bikes to 125 bhp. I would rework them to original spec, as much as 175 bhp. I recall topping 185 mph on the stretch between Bielefeld and Paderborn on an FZR 1000.
ReplyDeleteI wore a bespoke tweed suit made for me in 1984 and a fur felt fedora in moss green and always told the truth when it came to a second hand trade in I was selling. My showrooms, I had three in the end, two in Germany and one in Bratislava, were carpeted, subtly lit by overhead 12v lighting, the few 'bikes on display interspersed with potted trees. I sponsored a British Army bobsleigh team (purely for the chance of a ride down the Cresta Run) and donated to charity. Once I sold a part ex, a beautiful four wheel drive Saphire estate to a client who subsequently discovered it had an outstanding lien on it more than the price I had sold him the car. I rang Midland Bank, the guys that had financed the car and should have done the check (they held the first lein so should have known) and got no immediate joy for the client so I paid the lien off and swapped my business account over to Barclay's International.
I recall driving 300 kms across Germany through the night with a recovery vehicle and a mechanic to rescue a customer of mine who could not speak a word of German whose brand new 'bike had died in the mountains only to discover the problem was an after market immobolizer he had fitted. He bought us breakfast, another 'bike off me at full sticker a year later and sent loads of his mates in so it was worth the effort.
We weren't all stereotypical salesmen.
I lost the business in a divorce settlement btw. I did learn the lesson, however, that if you have a successful business, don't employ your wife as an accountant. Her lawyer placed my books on the table, looked at my lawyer and said, 'Right, there's going going to be no arguing about this, is there?'
In my last para', please insert the word 'most' between 'why' and 'second-hand'; my sincere apologies.
ReplyDeleteNow I feel guilty. No need to apologise because MOST car salesmen are exactly as you describe. Fortunately, it was my business and, to start with at least, I was doing the selling and paid my own salary so I could afford to be choosy when taking a part exchange (everything else I sold was new). A lot of salesmen are on commission so are often tempted to 'buy' a deal. Offering over book in part ex for a heap of shit which then has to be moved on. It is like Piece Work, the volume increases in proportion to the fall in quality.
ReplyDeleteMy health has deteriorated dramatically these last few months but I had entertained hopes that I might get the business here going full tilt, leave it in Marcia's capable hands then retire back to Europe with its better medical care and open a dealership based on similar principles. Sadly I do not think that is going to happen now so I will not have the pleasure of placing you and Lady Magnon in your replacement Compact Royce and delighting in the offer of one of your mouthwatering breakfasts.
This all sounds rather depressing. I do hope your predictions are not correct. Maybe it would be wise for you to visit England now to see a specialist (or whatever is needed). I don't wish to be deprived of my visit to Hip Fatto's.
DeleteWe just bought a new vehicle because of the high resale value of good used cars here in the states; it was actually cheaper to buy a new car with zero percent financing than a used vehicle with higher financing percentage rates. Course this is all a moot point if you have the cash to fork out!
ReplyDeleteGenerally, over here, once a brand new car has left the dealership, it depreciates by about 20%.
DeleteYah, here too and then they jack up the price again to resell it to you!
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteYou have a good eye there. What I found intriguing though is that you still bought the car even though you knew that it had gone through the accident. I've known people who are very meticulous when buying a used car. Many bring a mechanic with them to be completely sure, which is good practice. I guess finding the right deal was more of the essence.
ReplyDeleteAshely Redden
ReplyDeleteI am very happy to find this post very useful for me, as it contains lot of information. I always prefer to read the quality content and this thing I found in you .I really enjoyed reading this.
click here
I'm really shocked to here this happened with the dealer.
ReplyDeleteAt our Used Car Dealership we stress to customers that they should not only test drive the vehicle before purchasing btu that they should see the logbook of any past owners and the results from past MOTs. It's always better to be honest and upfront, as this results in recurring business
Buy car and sale second hand car sell buy and sell used cars. Get a free valuation and idea about the car resale
ReplyDeleteSell Second Hand Car
As an individual, most of the people don’t know how to do Used Car Valuation. There are many factors to influence the car value. To evaluate the vehicle, the prospective should check the age of the vehicle and should check about the superficial damage.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHere if you sell a used car to have to provide a printout from the license bureau showing all its owners and all its accidents.Get the most reasonable Second Hand Car Parts from us.In fact,we consider ourselves auto parts specialists.
ReplyDeleteHi there. Nice blog. You have shared useful information. Keep up the good work! This blog is really interesting and gives good details.
ReplyDeleteUsed Car in Japan
Choosing a right car is always a hectic task as the user should always do an which car comparison. This gives them wide variety of options.
ReplyDeleteSell and buy used and new goods.
ReplyDeletePost ads for free or get free account via Facebook Login in one click.
More details post free ads in india without registration
I do not think, there is any harm or loss in buying used car. I also own Nissan skyline here in London.
ReplyDeleteJapan car import
Nice post. I would like buy also used car dealers in chennai.
ReplyDelete