Advertised car absent from used car lot -- reason?

[Skald_the_Rhymer]

@Leaffan

I wouldn’t think so, from an insurance perspective anyway.

When I sold cars, the owner of the shop, his daughter (an employee) and at least the top sales person all drove cars that belonged to the dealership.

[vetbridge]

@Leaffan

Durn tootin’.

When I read the thread title, all I could think of was poooor William Macy.

[UltraVires]

@control-z

There was just a comma missing on the sign, it should have said “No, money down.” (from The Simpsons.)

So, you don’t work on a contingency basis?

[Rick]

@Fubaya

Ever see a license plate that says “dealer” on it? It’s possible that’s the woman who owns the lot, or someone else driving a car that belongs to the dealership. Dealer’s license plates are usually screwed into a magnet so they can just stick them to any car and go. They can use them for anything. Want lunch? Slap a plate on a car and go get it.

This is correct. Car dealers often have a whole clutch of plates for use on test drives etc.

And it’s not just used cars. Dealers, salesmen, the service/body shop manager, or anyone else semi important (i.e. not mechanics, detailers, etc usually) often get “demos” which are brand new cars that they drive for about 5000 miles, then put back on the lot. I believe the law is that a vehicle can still be sold as new if it has under 6000 miles on it (or was a couple of years ago in my state anyway, it’s not something I keep up with.)

This is no longer true. There was a tax law change in the 1980s that no longer made it profitable for a dealer to field a fleet of demos. It used to be that every swinging dick in the sales department had a demo. Now the sales manager will, and maybe the top salesman. In addition the parts manager, the service manager and the general manager will have cars.
A car with 6000 miles cannot be sold for new. It will be put up at a discount as an executive or demonstrator. While it maybe getting registered for the first time, it is technically not a new car as the new car warranty has started to run when it went into demo service. (I seem to recall a law about the max mileage for a car to considered new, but I know for a fact it is way less than 6K)
One thing everyone has overlooked is a possibility of theft. Cars get stolen off of dealer lots all the time. Many times it is an inside job. I could tell you stories. (maybe I will if anyone is interested.)

[Pasta]

Thanks for the information. For anyone who is curious:

Despite the salesman’s promise that the car would definitely be on the lot if I came by again, I figured I’d call first since it’s a bit out of the way. It turns out that it wasn’t there. After a bit of prodding I learned that the car was at the repair shop with a part on back-order, and the guy I talked to originally either didn’t know or didn’t want me to know.

[Fubaya]

@Rick

This is no longer true. There was a tax law change in the 1980s that no longer made it profitable for a dealer to field a fleet of demos. It used to be that every swinging dick in the sales department had a demo. Now the sales manager will, and maybe the top salesman. In addition the parts manager, the service manager and the general manager will have cars.

I meant more or less what you just said, but I think a lot depends on the dealer. I know a large Ford dealer where all the managers and assistant managers have demos, as well as the head finance guy, 5-6 old-timer salespeople (out of 20-25), and even the local football coach, his wife, and several other local high profile people. I also know of an Audi dealer where no one has a demo, not even the guy who owns it and 5 other dealerships.

@Rick

A car with 6000 miles cannot be sold for new. It will be put up at a discount as an executive or demonstrator.

I worked at a dealership in 2000 and they always turned them in around 5000 miles and put them on the lot as new. Of course, if anyone asked why the car had 5000 miles, I’m sure they’d tell them it was a demo (what else could they say?), and I’m sure it would give the customer a way to get the price knocked down, but they were sold as new. They carefully removed the window stickers when it went into demo service and put them back when it was done. If they went over 6000, they called them demos and offered a discount right off the bat. But now that I think about it, I believe they were still sold as new.

Ok a little search brought up this Q and A from cars.com. I suppose the 6000 mile limit was only a dealership rule.

Technically, your car is still considered “new” because it has never been titled to an individual. Mileage has little to do with whether a dealer describes a car as “new.” It’s more of a legal term stating the car has never been owned by anyone except the dealership.

Dealerships have demonstration vehicles for test drives and such that can be driven up to 10,000 miles and still be considered “new” because they were never registered to an individual, although sometimes those cars are available cheaper than if they were fresh off the assembly line.

[Hockey_Monkey]

Not a scam, totally plausible. Most everyone has hit it on the head already. One reason not mentioned, and since you said the car was there now isn’t your scenario, is that the car could have been sold and the webpage not updated yet. Unfortunately we can’t do that in real time, but we are usually within a couple of days. I think the salesperson would have said the car was sold if it was a scam rather than say the dealer was in it.

[SmackFu]

@Fubaya

Of course, if anyone asked why the car had 5000 miles, I’m sure they’d tell them it was a demo (what else could they say?), and I’m sure it would give the customer a way to get the price knocked down, but they were sold as new.

About 10 years ago I was shopping for a new car, and they tried to sell me the “1500 miles but brand new” car. Their selling point was that “all the minor kinks had been shaken out”. They didn’t knock the price off much at all, so it was not attractive in the least.

[UltraVires]

@SmackFu

About 10 years ago I was shopping for a new car, and they tried to sell me the “1500 miles but brand new” car. Their selling point was that “all the minor kinks had been shaken out”. They didn’t knock the price off much at all, so it was not attractive in the least.

LOL. That’s funny as hell. I would never do business with that dealership again if they tried that bullshit on me.

But seriously, if I am paying for a new car, I want a new car. Just a handful of miles, certainly less than a hundred. If it has a thousand or more miles on it, I want a heavy discount or they can pawn it off on the next guy.

The last three cars that I have bought were painless. I went on the internet and picked exactly what I wanted. Body style, color, trim, options, etc. and emailed them to every dealer within a hundred miles. Told them I wanted EXACTLY that and that I was shopping around and just wanted their best price and the lowest would get my business.

I no longer have to settle for whatever is on the lot and sit there all day while the salesperson talks to his “manager”.

A couple of other things I’ve done to make the stress level less:

1. Have financing in place. I’ll be glad to listen to the pitch on dealer financing, but it is a yes/no proposition. Is it better than what I have? Two of the last three times, it actually was.

2. Tell the guy in the paperwork room to go fuck himself. Do this first. Before he begins talking. I got screwed when I was 22 by one of these guys. You think the negotiating is over and all this guy will do is put ink to paper and give you the keys.

No, he tries to sell you extended warranties, theft protection plans, service packages, oil changes, etc. Every time that I have been polite and explained that I didn’t want any extras the guy wouldn’t give up. YMMV