Looking at some low mileage Demos

[RyanB]

Anyone here ever purchase a demo? A local dealer has 5 demos with 2000-3500 miles each on them. From what I found online they are still considered as new but the warranty started when the dealer started using the cars. Besides the normal wear and tear and asking for service logs anything else that I should look for or be concerned with?

 

[Sal Collaziano]

Yes, there are several members here who've purchased Demos. I'm sure they'll chime in soon. I haven't bought a demo so I'll let them guide you. I have a 2015 myself and I love my Genesis Sedan...

 

[Aquineas]

Anyone here ever purchase a demo? A local dealer has 5 demos with 2000-3500 miles each on them. From what I found online they are still considered as new but the warranty started when the dealer started using the cars. Besides the normal wear and tear and asking for service logs anything else that I should look for or be concerned with?

You can probably get some good deals on those, but the two statements I have highlighted in the quote above are contradictory. They are (gently) used cars, not new cars, and should be priced as such.

 

[dareckibmw]

I'm on my second demo Genesis and there was/is absolutely nothing wrong with either car.

The first one was '13 Genesis Rspec, bought it with 4600 miles on obo, drove it for 2 years, put 16k more miles (trouble free, not a single problem) then traded it in for another demo, this time for '15 5.0 with 4200 miles on obo. Both cars looked like brand new cars, no visible "use" of them.

Do I care if their weren't brand new, with just a few miles on the clock? no. In each case, I paid ~14k below the sticker price.

Some guys are going to say: yeah, but those cars are being abused on test drives, driven hard, etc.I would never buy one! LOL I always wonder ....how can you "abuse" the car if you don't know the car?! do they drive ~140mph? they drift it, etc.? I don't think so...

Btw. on '15 the warranty started the day I purchased the car. Not when the dealer started using the cars. I got this written in contract.

 

[SuperKing]

I have 2015 5.0 Ultimate that I bought as a demo. Nothing wrong with the car. It had 11,000km on it and I saved about $12k.

A car like this wouldn't have a lot of test drives and the miles were most likely put on by the manager.

 

[jimb100]

A 5.0 Ultimate was likely used by the manager but many of these "demos" were service loaners. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but not much different from buying a Hertz or Enterprise car.

 

[glennk]

Just make sure to look the car over, even if it is Certified. Hyundai has taken the depreciation hit for all of these cars yielding a fantastic deal. Also, make sure you get all of the service records. If the car has sat for some time, I'd ask the dealer to inspect the fluids and replace the oil. Someone also mentioned that the tires cannot be patched due to the foam added inside the tires. Inspect them, as they are not cheap to replace. Every time I buy a car, I swing by to get tire warranty and rotation/balance coverage at Discount Tire.

 

[jimmy buoy]

My last 2 Genesis sedans have been dealer demos. No issues whatsoever and have enjoyed the sizeable price reductions on both.

 

[Mark_888]

Make sure you get one that was only used by the dealer manager or GM. These are extremely rare.

 

[glennk]

Make sure you get one that was only used by the dealer manager or GM. These are extremely rare.

Is there any way to know? Salesman could say anything to get you to buy the car. We're buying a used car.

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[kf4zra]

I leased a 2015 5.0 ultimate demo. The car had about 4k mi on it. saved around $14k on it. The paperwork I got states the warranty starts at the 4xxx mile mark. I only drive about 9k a year in my car anyways so I wont get close to the 12k/year allowed. There were tiny detail related issues with it like the tint was crap, and in the tint at the top of the windscreen you can see "demo savings" if where lettering was in place at one time if you can catch the sun just right from the inside. I can live with that for $14k. TI had them replace the tint anyways so I cannot complain. I think a demo is a great way to save a few bucks. The whole thing is under warranty for the whole time I own it, so if something breaks it is not my problem anyways. I like the car, but I am not keeping it after the lease, so as long as it makes it to about 30k miles without failing, I am happy. I will have a new one in 2 years, or a BMW, or Lexus, you get the idea.

 

[Advocate225]

I've heard other people make the same comments in the past. Since graduation from college I've purchased 40 some cars (I'm 68) and all of them have been new. Never had a demo or used car. Planning my next purchase in two years, when I'll be 70, I am thinking about either a demo or possibly very low mile CPO, but not sure I could get by the mental desire to be the first and only driver.

 

[chris41]

As long as the vehicle looks and smells new you'll be fine. With a low mileage car, you might not get the new smell but it should look new. So many just don't. I sometimes think having a great detailer is vital for a dealership. A really clean car that sparkles is hard to deny, vs just a clean car that lacks the Wow factor.

 

[Mark_888]

Is there any way to know? Salesman could say anything to get you to buy the car. We're buying a used car.

I was being sarcastic. 95% of demos sold are sold as GM or Sales Manager "personal use" cars, etc. They are all lying. They are all loaners and demos.

This lie is very first thing that car salesmen learn when they start selling cars.

 

[SuperKing]

As long as the warranty is there, I wouldn't overthink it. I was lucky enough to have a buddy work at the dealer. I asked him to tip me off when they're thinking of selling their 5.0L demo car. A few months later, I have the car. He gave me all the details, damage, etc... there were a few scuffs that I asked them to get fixed and all was good.

 

[kn5owa]

I was being sarcastic. 95% of demos sold are sold as GM or Sales Manager "personal use" cars, etc. They are all lying. They are all loaners and demos.

This lie is very first thing that car salesmen learn when they start selling cars.

Amen +

Why would a "manager" drive new cars thereby automatically rendering the value of the car substantially less?

They are obviously used cars - demos and loaners as Mark stated.

And when I was car shopping in 2015, the salesmen went one step further and represented these so-called "manager's cars" as actually new cars.

 

[Sal Collaziano]

So scammy. And car sales people wonder why buyers generally do not trust them. It's really not difficult to understand. I do realize that not every sales person necessarily uses these tactics and I always go into a deal with respect for them until I have a reason to feel otherwise. But I would be lying if I said I didn't have my ears opened and weren't listening closely.

Manager's car. heh...

 

[RyanB]

I don't know if this means anything but the dealer that has these demos has the name of the person from the dealer who was driving the car listed on the window sticker. This could be all BS though. And I really don't think it matters. I see a guy who works for a local Acura dealer daily on my way to work and he’s always in a different new car with dealer plates on it and he drives like a maniac! I even called the police and notified the dealer on him before but he’s still out driving brand new cars so it’s possible he’s a manager at that Acura dealer and still drives the hell out of the cars. Anyway I finally got my buy back offer from Hyundai this morning and it’s not horrible but less than I was expecting. They will only go back from the date of the second engine failure and not the 1st. So after paying off the balance of the loan I’m looking at $4,700 cash back. With this amount I will need to pick up a demo or certified to keep my payments similar to what they are now. I just hope some dealers still have some 16’s left. And I still may not get the actual check until after the 1st of December.

 

[Mark_888]

I don't know if this means anything but the dealer that has these demos has the name of the person from the dealer who was driving the car listed on the window sticker. This could be all BS though. And I really don't think it matters. I see a guy who works for a local Acura dealer daily on my way to work and he’s always in a different new car with dealer plates on it and he drives like a maniac! I even called the police and notified the dealer on him before but he’s still out driving brand new cars so it’s possible he’s a manager at that Acura dealer and still drives the hell out of the cars. Anyway I finally got my buy back offer from Hyundai this morning and it’s not horrible but less than I was expecting. They will only go back from the date of the second engine failure and not the 1st. So after paying off the balance of the loan I’m looking at $4,700 cash back. With this amount I will need to pick up a demo or certified to keep my payments similar to what they are now. I just hope some dealers still have some 16’s left. And I still may not get the actual check until after the 1st of December.

Even if they did drive it home and back to work, during the day it is used as a demo and loaner.

 

[XPO439]

I was being sarcastic. 95% of demos sold are sold as GM or Sales Manager "personal use" cars, etc. They are all lying. They are all loaners and demos.

This lie is very first thing that car salesmen learn when they start selling cars.

Glad I wasn't the only one thinking this. I've seen these "managers special" cars before, they're usually pretty beat up looking (others experience may differ) and car salesmen would lie directly to your face about it. Before we picked our genny up, we saw a black "managers special" 5.0 Ultimate on the lot. It had paint chips on the front, a slightly cracked windshield, the leather was all damaged, and it only had less than 6K on the ODO. The salesman offered $10K off sticker when I asked. To each his own, but I just can't imagine picking up a car of this caliber in that kind of shape. No offense to anyone here who bought these demos.

To add - the other day I was at a Chevy dealer and saw a nice black Chevy SS from far away. This was the "managers special" Chevy SS, with about 1-2K on the ODO. Ok, fairly low miles...so I went in closer for a look. Immediately noticed the brake dust coating the wheels. Why? Oh yea, the manager probably launched it a bunch of times, and slammed on the brakes just as much. Also, noticed a McDonald's wrapper on the Recaro front seats and the bug guts and sludge on the front hood. HOWEVER, the salesman said he was going to give me a GREAT deal on it, $500 off sticker price. Yea, go to h*** bro.