Pre-Registered "New" Cars

Dealers have to meet sales quotas. Sometimes they register new cars so they appear on the books as sold. Generally good savings to be made if you don't mind a registration plate that might date it a bit. DaveK.

It has already been registered in the dealers name, so you will be the legal second owner in the log book and possibly will suffer some non transferable warranty cover loss.

It's a way to increase sales figures. The dealership registers the cars to itself but doesn't use them. Thus, you'll be the second owner even if the car only has delivery mileage* on it.

There'll be some difference in value, depending on when you sell the car on. If you keep it for ten years it'll make no difference. If you trade in every six to twelve months it'll make a more material impact.

Thank you all. I was wondering if they would apply that term to ex-demonstrators too?

ginga

Perhaps!

I put a "*" next to "delivery mileage" because one of the Alfa Romeos I borrowed as a courtesy car was put up for sale with "delivery mileage" on it. :-/

And if you write it off in the 1st year you won't get a new car to replace it (you generally would under a fully comp policy, if you were the first owner).

Depends on the car. Basically you will be the second owner and so forth.

Mostly done to get targets in line, cash incentives, bonuses. My RX8 had to be registered before March (so is a 55 plate) even though I will be the first owner (c/o the lease firm, natch).

On the RX8, for example, you wouldn't get the Prodrive day if they were doing things by the book.

Richard

Not really, as ex demo means miles will have been put on it.

Examples:

"You can't drive the MG ZT 260 more than ten miles - if we take it over

"We'll sell you this Marea, but really we're supposed to keep it on our books as a demonstrater for six months/6,000 miles" (It had 1100 on, and was very much cheaper than list).

"Of course this Beetle is a pre-registered one, it only has 12 miles on" (for an old, 53 reg car being offered at almost the new price by the main dealer when I got my 04 plate Beetle).

Richard

Maybe they made a mistake - maybe they initially thought they were delivering it to the dealer whose customer was buying it, then thought they'd got that wrong, thinking it was to go to a private customer, who just happened to be requiring a courtesy car from the same dealer, who then drove it around for a day or two as they would have done with the hire car, then the dealer realised the mistake and took it back. So it was delivery mileage with a few consequences of some admin cockups chucked in. :-)

What have they told you ? Usually a sales team needs to bump up figures for sales - they get a huge discount if they buy in say 6 cars instead of 1. Main dealers do it all the time, especially when a new model car is coming out. So they register them all with the garage being the first owner and give them to the customer a bit cheaper. Unless there is something you're not telling us about a specific deal, once the registration document is in your name, you can do what you like with the car *IF* you have paid for it. It's a different matter if you buy it on finance as it belongs to a finance company until the final payment is made and they confirm ownership is yours - or you settle with them early which often costs you more.

How about VAT? There's no VAT on used cars. Do dealers sell the car to themselves at a lower price (and register it at the same time) and avoid a bit of VAT? Then they can sell it later at slightly reduced price.

-- Chris