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Hard to get a test drive

wasz said:
My local OPC sends me emails about 4 times a year inviting me to test drive new models.

I've never taken them up, I assume they would weigh me up first to see if I was serious. If I turn up in my scruffy 996 they might eject me from the premises, I always feel so out of place - and unwelcome - picking parts up from their showroom.

But one day I will blag a drive of a 991 out of them.

I am amazed wasz, both Bournemouth and Portsmouth OPC are incredibly welcoming to any driver of a Porsche even if you just dropping in for a coffee.
13 of us turned up at Portsmouth last week just before they opened , they were happy to see us and made us all a coffee, salesmen chatted happily etc. very very shortsighted of them if your local doesnt make you feel welcome mate :thumb:
 
Yes I would agree.

Scruffy doesn't mean anything these days, cars or dress. Jimmy Page used to drive around our village in a filthy 70's Volvo, with clothes to match.

If you've been invited, I would take them up on their offer.

I have always found every person at an OPC to be very welcoming and polite.
 
Kimbo said:
Yes I would agree.

Scruffy doesn't mean anything these days, cars or dress. Jimmy Page used to drive around our village in a filthy 70's Volvo, with clothes to match.

If you've been invited, I would take them up on their offer.

I have always found every person at an OPC to be very welcoming and polite.

Yep dressing down is the new dressing up :grin: a few years ago I went into a bmw dealership to buy a new BMW the salesman looked at me and said used car sales are over there :eek: I said thanks turned round walked out, went to the local merc dealer and brought a new 45k car from them .

My personal pretty woman "you work on commission, big mistake" moment :floor: :floor:
 
I went on my first discovery mission last week as I have decided to upgrade to a 997 from my boxster... Went to a couple of specialist used dealers westish of London...Neither would let me test drive. One said they never did test drives and that he never test drives cars he buys personally blah blah blah... I then asked him how he selects his cars to sell, he said a full mechanical check and a good test drive :eek: You gotta love it!!
 
I simply wouldn't buy a car that I was not allowed to test drive. I wouldn't give a hoot for any self-proclaimed 'high-end specialist' that said no to me getting a feel for how the car drove.

That said, the majority of my purchases over the years have been private and I am very happy to keep it this way. I gave the chap who I bought my Turbo from a few more £k than the dealers were offering him which saved me a fortune and no silly conversations about not trying before buying.

A good private car with PPI for me every time.
 
Froe82 said:
I went on my first discovery mission last week as I have decided to upgrade to a 997 from my boxster... Went to a couple of specialist used dealers westish of London...Neither would let me test drive. One said they never did test drives and that he never test drives cars he buys personally blah blah blah... I then asked him how he selects his cars to sell, he said a full mechanical check and a good test drive :eek: You gotta love it!!

Which one? RSJ?
 
Never had any issues with a test drive before, but every car I have test driven has either been at an independent super car dealer (i.e. not Porsche specialist specifically but they happened to have a Porsche I wanted..) or at OPC.

Both of the above have been very happy for me to drive the car for as long as I needed to. In the case of the former it was after several calls/emails which established a serious interest to buy.

I find it very strange companies refusing a test drive under any circumstances! I don't understand what the problem is with at least a short test drive, accompanied, if they have good reason to think the person is willing to buy...
 
The dealers around here seem happy to enough to arrange a test drive, but you do need to sign an Insurance form with a 500eur excess. Private buyers don't have any problems either. Maybe it's because the car is insured in this market, rather than the driver. One of the shops I know even gives you an A4 print out of a map of some decent driving roads, on a 25 minute loop to and from the dealership. They're great roads so even a VW UP would feel good on that route...

I would add for the record that if there was no test drive, there'd be no sale. Even if I'd tried 'the same car' elsewhere. They are often different.

I must admit, though, I haven't asked the OPC about a 991. I might try on Friday morning as I have to drop the car off for a PCM sat nav update. :?:
 
Where to start...

Sub 21, I couldn't get a Test Drive in anything, apart from when my dad had organised it. Vauxhall gave me an Astra SR-I for the day when my dad hinted at doing a deal on a Van too.

At 24, was looking at £30k motors, S2000, 350Z, Scooby, Lancer, and even the Monaro.
S2000 was easy, think Honda at that time were happy to see anyone below 60 yrs in the showroom. Salesman told me off for lifting at 120 on a Harrogate Bypass!
350Z took a bit of convincing, promptly made the guy go green after being a bit to 'enthusiastic' through the corners, served him right for not knowing anything about the car (bad form!).
Scooby was easy, phoned ahead, made the right noises...
Lancer was tricky, full of fossils that didn't understand the car or the likely drivers. Never drove it but through choice, not lack of offers.
Monaro...different dealer to the Astra. Turned up after a kick-around inHarrogate's Garden's. Took one look at me and said down his nose 'You do know that it's a £30k car???".....promptly told him to 'do one' but with more F's.

I've always been paranoid that I look young, and on average, wanted a more expensive car than the norm, or at least my friends. This probably showed, but I battled through to get what I wanted usually.

Onto Porsche's. Went to Leeds OPC, Guy there was very helpful, spent ages going through the cars with me, as I also didn't know what to go for. Never got offered a drive though. On my fifth visit, I was getting a bit fed up, as I couldn't refine my choice without driving them, 2s or 4s? Which to have on a circa £40k budget. Never got offered, got tired of looking, and over the next two years did more research, and decided to go Big and try get into a 997.2 Turbo.
Went to Redline in Knaresborough. Very helpful chap to begin with, showed me an 09 he had just got in. Appologised for it being scruffy, but took me for a drive. I was happy with it apart from a bit of a jerky set off from the junction (my first post on this forum!). The car never got cleaned up to my standards, was still very scruffy. Left it at that point.

Briefly looked at an R8 from GC in Harrogate. Didn't like the ethos that came across from the sales dude, so didn't ask for a test drive. Car stunk of cigs too, and had several bits of dodgy wrapping. They seemed more interested in your monthly spend, suggesting I could change the car quite often and just pay the same monthly (Infinitum probably). Not what I was after, I wanted a carefully owned car, not to join a club...

Put a deposit on one at Strasse in Leeds, had the aerokit too, but a advertising error meant it wasn't for me (innocent admin error, otherwise great people!). I'd happily go there again.

Then, a 2010 with only 8,000 Miles cropped up at McLaren in Ascot. Paid a deposit over the phone after missing out on a few (including that Blue one from down south which went through JZM I believe to a forum member!).

Went down, wasn't offered a drive myself, but a sales guy took us out for a spirited drive. As I'd haggled a 111, borescope (just to be doubly sure - it had been practically stood for 5 years!), and a OPC warranty, I wasn't too worried about issues, as I could go back to them if something came up.

Numerous other drives in parents prospective vehicles, but I've always had them there (which distorts the offering a little - usually get chucked the keys when Ma's with me!!). Range Rovers, Jags etc, never a problem when buying for parents!

So overall, apart from this Turbo, I've always driven what I wanted to drive, sometimes it's easy, you get offered, sometimes you need to persist. I've never been refused flat out though. I think I too would react in the manner 'well sod you then fella' if they weren't even willing to negotiate at which point before signing they'd be happy to let me out.

The only caveat would be ultra low mileage cars. Cars whose value a test drive might affect significantly, or whose blemish free appearance might be ruined.

When I've sold Cars, I've demanded fully comp Insurance, and if they haven't got it already, I've used dayinsure to cover them, usually at my cost (its that awkward type of issue I don't want to make them pay for a test drive etc, like asking a recent catch if she's got condoms at home, just doesn't come out well...)

It's a bit of admin when they arrive, but all have been happy, and it leaves them with a confidence that your not a wideboy dealer winging it, you do things by the book. What drove it was the guy buying my R32 going straight on at a sharp left about 80mph! Didn't hit anything, but made me realise that these sorts of cars need cover!!

So, overall, there's no reason to refuse you a test drive unless they're really misjudging you, a###holes, or are simply skimping on their own cover.
 
After a few attempts to buy a £70k car, both R8 V10 6MT at independents and 997.1 Turbo's at various OPC's, with cash over the phone as I was working abroad none of them called me back and I chased them all once then they still didn't call me back despite me stating my circumstances very clearly. This was in April this year. Tired and surprised by the car buying experience, I found a 997.1 Turbo 6MT for sale at OPC East London and said to the sales person they put me through to 'I've spoken to so many dealerships and nobody seems interested in taking my money, it's bizarre. Can you help me? Within 5 minutes the deal was done and the deposit paid. I flew in a month later and they delivered the car to my place which was 80 miles away. The sales person, who was very professional through the whole process, said he gets many deals like mine where the person doesn't test drive and they deliver cars previously unseen by the buyer.
Just another perspective on the car buying/test drive process.
 
v8fettler said:
When I've sold Cars, I've demanded fully comp Insurance, and if they haven't got it already, I've used dayinsure to cover them, usually at my cost (its that awkward type of issue I don't want to make them pay for a test drive etc, like asking a recent catch if she's got condoms at home, just doesn't come out well...)

:floor: :floor: :floor: :floor: :floor: :floor:

:thumb:
 
I can't say I had any problems finding and test driving 996s or 997s before I bought mine.

It always helps to make it clear to the seller what your current position is and not be vague about what you expect. I drove maybe 8 or 9 cars before committing to the one I bought. As a person who works in sales, I find it quite easy to pitch myself to other sales people.
 
Perhaps you guys not getting offered test drives is down to how you present yourself to the dealers? I'm not talking about the way you dress here, rather the approach you take when visiting dealers. Do you have a genuine interest in the cars you are looking at? Take the time to ask questions about the two wheel drive and four wheel drive differences etc, or whether PASM is much of a benefit over passive suspension. A good dealer will very soon suss out if you are there for a jolly or there intent on buying the best car for your needs/budget.

My car came from RSJ in 2012, the whole buying experience was 11/10, which made a welcome change from the ones I had either visited or called prior to speaking to Joel. My circumstances mean that without modifications I am unable to test drive a car anyway, but this didn't deter RSJ, they insisted they take me out in a car to check that the ride quality was good enough and that a 911 was the car for me.

I ended up with a 996T and have zero regrets with either my choice of car or dealer, I still get stunning service from them to this day. Try putting yourself in the dealer's shoes, would you like to see a freshly prepped car venture out in the salt and rain just to see if someone fancies a 911 instead of an M3? I wouldn't.

Perhaps it is time to take a look in the mirror and change your approach to buying one of these excellent cars.

Flak jacket on ready for incoming. :grin:

Mike.
 

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