[LAnderson23]

I *should* be able to pick up my new car in the next couple of weeks or so, and I wanted to ask you guys some questions.

When accepting delivery I'm obviously going to inspect the car carefully for scratches, blemishes, etc. but it never crossed my mind to actually drive it before signing. This will be my 2nd new car purchase, and when I bought my first one, they never offered to let me drive it, nor did I ask...I never even thought about it. Should I ask to drive it first before I sign anything? What have you guys on this forum done? What would you recommend I look for if I do drive it? Thanks!

[huskercubfan]

Maybe I'm crazy but scratches and dents are the only thing I look for. It is a brand new car, it should drive as a brand new car.

I would maybe ask to drive it if it had an unusually high amount of miles on a brand new factory prepped vehicle.

[BigKutta]

My two ordered BMWs came with 5 miles on them (as all new ones do), and i never drove them. Just a visual inspection and off I go, but I always wondered in hindsight why i didn't drive them. I have had no issues, but if it makes you feel better, you should drive it. I am sure the dealer will not say no.

[LAnderson23]

Originally Posted by BigKutta

My two ordered BMWs came with 5 miles on them (as all new ones do), and i never drove them. Just a visual inspection and off I go, but I always wondered in hindsight why i didn't drive them. I have had no issues, but if it makes you feel better, you should drive it. I am sure the dealer will not say no.

Well, my nightmare scenario is this:

I inspect the car, looks great, I'm excited, happily sign the papers and I'm out the door ready to enjoy my new baby. I drive off, and I get the dreaded "No Signal" message on the screen, or I clearly have the 40-60mph steering vibration issue. If I drive it first I can at least have the salesman see these problems with his own eyes, and note them accordingly. I guess neither one of those issues would cause me not to sign though, as they would pledge to fix. (Or in the case of the vibration, wait for a fix) Am I over-thinking this?

[BigKutta]

Originally Posted by LAnderson23

Well, my nightmare scenario is this:

I inspect the car, looks great, I'm excited, happily sign the papers and I'm out the door ready to enjoy my new baby. I drive off, and I get the dreaded "No Signal" message on the screen, or I clearly have the 40-60mph steering vibration issue. If I drive it first I can at least have the salesman see these problems with his own eyes, and note them accordingly. I guess neither one of those issues would cause me not to sign though, as they would pledge to fix. (Or in the case of the vibration, wait for a fix) Am I over-thinking this?

Yes, because like you said, you would sign anyway. Its one thing if you will not sign the papers because of any issues. Here is what I did on my F10 delivery. I got there, and salesperson had already pulled the car into the bay. I looked around sat in it, had the igintion "on" to play around a bit. Then went inside and signed the paperwork. Then we came out and the sales guy spent an hour in my car showing me the basics on idrive, helping activate sat radio, etc. Then I drove home. I never expected anything to be wrong so this method was ok with me. If you are hearing a bunch of issues, then take it for a quick spin. I am sure you will not be the first to do this.

[Maz335i]

Originally Posted by LAnderson23

Well, my nightmare scenario is this:

I inspect the car, looks great, I'm excited, happily sign the papers and I'm out the door ready to enjoy my new baby. I drive off, and I get the dreaded "No Signal" message on the screen, or I clearly have the 40-60mph steering vibration issue. If I drive it first I can at least have the salesman see these problems with his own eyes, and note them accordingly. I guess neither one of those issues would cause me not to sign though, as they would pledge to fix. (Or in the case of the vibration, wait for a fix) Am I over-thinking this?

I thought the same.

But after waiting 8-10 weeks for the car I'm just going to check it visually and OFF I GO....time to start my mods and DRIVE DRIVE DRIVE!!!

I've been waiting so long and cant wait to get my hands on the car. Its brand new and a BMW with warranty. So in reality, I have nothing to worry about.

It all depends on how you feel.

Only my 2 cents...

[SCBimmerKid]

If your dealership has a problem with you taking it for a spin before you sign, I would walk away. There should be no issues with this if you have a good dealer

[LAnderson23]

Originally Posted by SCBimmerKid

If your dealership has a problem with you taking it for a spin before you sign, I would walk away. There should be no issues with this if you have a good dealer

Don't get me wrong, I don't anticipate them not wanting me or not letting me drive it, I'm just curious if you guys think that's just being paranoid or if it's pretty standard operating procedure. By the sounds of things in this thread so far, most of you don't drive it first.

[SCBimmerKid]

Originally Posted by LAnderson23

Don't get me wrong, I don't anticipate them not wanting me or not letting me drive it, I'm just curious if you guys think that's just being paranoid or if it's pretty standard operating procedure. By the sounds of things in this thread so far, most of you don't drive it first.

Anything for peace of mind is worth doing if you ask me Although, I did not test drive mine.

[David328M-Sport]

Originally Posted by LAnderson23

I'm just curious if you guys think that's just being paranoid or if it's pretty standard operating procedure. By the sounds of things in this thread so far, most of you don't drive it first.

What if you do take it for a 'test' drive and it works as advertised. Ok, then you are happy to sign. Great. Then it is possible that when you drive away from the dealer, the car throws up an error of a sort. Then what?

It may be ok for a week or a month or 6 months and then cause you some issues. It may never have any (annoying to serious) issues during your ownership.

Point is, there is no telling if and when your car may have problems. That is why you have a new car warranty.

Enjoy your car a safe, issue free motoring to you.

[svache]

Originally Posted by LAnderson23

I'm just curious if you guys think that's just being paranoid

I think it kinda is. I signed my car almost two weeks before it arrived at the dealership, at that point it still had to be shipped from Cali to Hawaii (I know, that's usually a bit extreme as well but it's ok, it had a reason).

Thing is, I know that if there would be something wrong, my dealer would have solved it for me. If the car would show defects, they will have to fix it, if they couldn't fix it, I would simply lemon it. But I had great experiences in the past with my CA, so I didn't expect any problems at all.

As far as scratches, I can imagine you would look out for those but as far as driving goes.. I don't know, I just wouldn't think of doing that because I already test drove other cars and since this would be a new car, you can't expect the car to have issues right at the start (especially not since the car usually undergoes another complete check before you take delivery).