Demo Cars For Sale: Should You Buy One?

In the search for cars, you may have thought of buying a new car or a used car. However, somewhere between the two: “demo cars," may have been something you came across. Even though it’s similar to a brand-new car, you might be wondering if it’s worth the buy? Let’s find out.

What is a Demo Car?

Demo cars, dealer demonstrator’s car, or “dealer used” cars are new cars that are driven by the dealer or as a test-drive by interested customers.

So is it a new car? No.
Demo cars are used cars with low or only several thousand kilometres (2,000 - 5000 miles) on its odometer. Usually used by a staff member at the dealership for a test drive with customers or when familiarising the vehicle they are trying to sell.

Cars that have very few kilometres on them are the demo cars used in the showroom. They are used by manufacturers for events or appearances. It might be driven only a short distance, but its tyres are used and its seats sat in for the whole event.

Both type of demo cars are very-new indeed and is a great buy if you want to save some money.

Why are demo cars sold for less?

As it is part of their contract with the manufacturers. The dealerships are given a bonus to run a few demo cars which odometer varies depending on the car price. This gives a dealer a good opportunity to sell a car for a competitive price compared to a brand-new car.

However, you must be wary as not everyone drives carefully. So, ask plenty of questions; how many people have driven the demo car? What was it used for?

Warranty

Keep in mind that the warranty of every car starts at 0 mileage, not when you buy it. So when purchasing a demo car, you have to be mindful of the mileage on its odometer. If the car comes with a 5 year/ 100,000 km warranty and the demo unit has 8 months and 6,000 km on it for example, then your mileage protection is pretty used up.

However, it’s mostly never an issue to demo car buyers since a slight reduction on the coverage is unlikely to cause a financial detriment.

Should you buy one?

Yes. If you’re the type of person who doesn’t mind buying a car with a few mileage, barely touched interiors, barely worn tyres, good paint, in other words – a “demo” car, that is on a bargain price, it is an absolute purchase.

But hey, when in doubt, just buy a new one. J

Ask us for assistance: www.motormatcher.com.au