A car from the salon – and without cheating
There are many articles on the Internet with tips for car buyers. I will share the experience I gained while working with car dealers. The process of buying a car in the salon can be divided into three stages. Let’s dwell on each of them in detail.
The first stage: the choice of a car dealer
This is an important stage, as there is still a sector of unscrupulous speculators in the automobile market. Probably everyone has a friend who was offered by telephone to buy a car at an attractive price, much lower than the market one. But when you visit the showroom, it turns out that the attractive price is only a way to lure the customer. Often a person after that buys a car at a price much higher than the market price and on bonded credit terms.
When buying a new car the preference should be given to the official dealer of the manufacturer. In case of his unscrupulous behavior and the presence of a justified claim from the buyer, the manufacturer will take the side of the consumer and oblige the dealer to fulfill his obligations. There is such a thing as “customer satisfaction”. This is one of the indicators that the dealer and the manufacturer monitor at different stages of their interaction. Dealers value their position in the relationship with the manufacturer, so they will fulfill its requirements.
Finding an official dealer will not be difficult. For example, go to the website of Volkswagen Group Rus LLC (representative of Volkswagen, AUDI, Skoda, Porsche, Bentley and others in Russia) and choose a dealer in your region. Although there are still risks, but more about that later.
The second step: the selection of the model, the configuration of the car and the conclusion of the contract.
I may not agree with the buyers who prefer the exclusive configuration, but my advice is this: buy a car that is already in stock. Dealers call them “repurchased” or “cars with PTS”. Usually they previously buy out from the manufacturer the vehicles which are sold like hotcakes: WV Polo, Kia Rio, etc. And yet the presence of a big car park indicates the dealer’s financial stability and reliability.
The return of the car can be even profitable. If the market price of such cars went up, the buyer would get more money than he paid. And if the seller refuses to return the money, he will pay the car owner 1% of the car price for every day of waiting, pay a fine and compensation for moral damage
What risks are possible at this stage? More often dealers’ agreement with importer or manufacturer stipulates 100% prepayment for ordered car. In the conditions of difficult financial situation even official dealers do not disdain to use the money of a client to cover their operational expenses. As a result – delays in terms of delivery, changes in equipment (for example, the manufacturer can withdraw from production the classic automatic gearbox, replacing it with a robotized one) and other attendant problems. Let me remind you that such manipulations led to the collapse of several well-known grandees of the Moscow dealer network in 2016-2018.
Of course, the law here is on the side of the consumer. But lawsuits and the absence of a new car is not the most pleasant result. And it is good if the buyer gets his money back, at least at the stage of enforcement proceedings. But even more unfortunate result is possible – the dealer’s bankruptcy. The refund in this case is doubtful.
If you still want to risk and buy a car “to order”, remember: carefully read the contract. It must decipher the complete set of the car in full, abbreviations like “complete set 1 or 2” are not allowed. It is desirable that the cost of the car is not floating, tied to an event or currency. Also the delivery time should be clearly defined. If necessary, ask to make changes to the contract of sale – dealers are often willing to do this. It is better to spend a day or two for negotiations of convenient for you terms, than to spend six months in courts.
The third stage: the acceptance of the car
The buyers are not always attentive at this stage, and they should be. After all, even a new car may have signs of repair. I had a case when in a showroom of an official dealer the elements of the room decorations fell from the ceiling onto an expensive car, having damaged the lacquer coating in several places. It was sent for painting and later sold. I think the owner of that car was surprised when the next buyer informed him of the painted parts.
The car dealership representatives should give you the opportunity to fully inspect the car and check its completeness. Often they themselves offer the necessary equipment, such as a paint thickness gauge. Everything that can be seen and counted must be checked exactly in a showroom. After you sign the receipt of the car, you will not be able to prove that, for instance, there were no back mats or a minimal set of tools in it. You can assert your rights only in case of hidden defects.
Particular attention should be paid to all numbers and markings: VIN, engine number, body number, markings on the windows, etc. They must correspond to the ones in the documents. Otherwise, you risk taking the repaired car with replaced units, parts, etc. Subsequently, it can complicate the registration actions.
