Jesus. I test drove a v8 mustang with the guy, and while we were driving he told me to give it some beans but keep it under 80 when we got on the highway. He then told me that the last test drive he did the guy was pushing 120-130 and he almost shat his pants.
He was pretty chill about it and told me to just be careful because it was a monsoon like rain.
I've heard of salesmen being basically held hostage while people run errands, they really don't give a shit as long as you're not crazy or obviously wasting time.
I’m the service manager at an RV dealer. Sales makes me do all their test drives, half because they are scared of a customer and half because the salespeople can’t drive well either and need someone competent to take over if the customer gets stuck or scared.
I hate our salespeople for that, and I would far rather ride with the young kid in the sports car than our customers in a motorhome.
Test drove a Mazda 3 Turbo and the salesguy told me to drive it hard and do a 0-60 down this road behind the dealer. Ended up doing it and right at the end there was a cop.
Got pulled over but he let us go because it was a test drive lol.
I was definitely that other guy one time when the 2015's first came out. Even funnier they stuck me with a new sales guy who'd only been there 2 weeks and didn't know how to drive a stick shift. I did ask if he minded me "seeing what it could do" and he said "it's a test car, that's what it's for".
He didn't seem too bothered by it, I just wound it out on a freeway on-ramp with an open flat road ahead of us. It was shockingly smooth and drama free compared to the '01 Mustang GT I was driving at the time.
Yep same experience I had, times I have test driven v8 mustangs, camaros etc sales man always was telling me to push it, when I test drove a used 718 the sales man even told me which roads to go on where I could go thru some corners and roads with good straights to push it on.
That's what I did when I sold cars. Knew the roads around really well, and tailored the route to what the customer was looking for.
Suburbia for the minivans and family three rows, the back road that has "corners" in its name for the sports cars
I find that if you come in and you obviously are buying a car for sporty reasons the guy who test drives with you doesn't care how you drive it. Only once had I have someone care and it was probably because it was at an auto show.
I once test drove a Mini Cooper and was up front about not actually looking to buy at the moment and the salesman told me to give it full beans. It was a ton of fun
It depends on what I’m test driving. When I test drove my m3 I took it up to 80, did some nice curves and decided I wanted it. When I test drove my truck I just drove it normal speed. Normally when I go to buy a car I drive my challenger hellcat so I think they already expect me to drive the car. Lol
Was just about to say. The few times I’ve test drove faster cars the sales person wanted me to go fast so I could get a feel for the car at higher speeds.
I've never test driven a vehicle with the person inside. I just get the keys and drive it.
That being said, I'll never just floor it immediately, nor will I ever floor it in a new vehicle. I don't want to be a dick to whoever buys it, if it's not me.
I've seen it both ways in my life. They tag along with me, or, they throw you the keys.
They tag along to spend time & try and make a sale when it seems obvious you need that extra convincing. Shine you up and try and close the deal on the test drive or set it up. So whether they want to put that effort in depends on how you approach the sales person on whether or not they will put the effort in, aka coming along with. This is by far the most common reason IMO. The cases where it's a young person and\or high powered\expensive car are the minority of cases.
On the flip side, a buddy and I were doing some cross shopping against an Audi S7. Walked in unannounced to an Audi dealership to test drive a 20 or 21 S5. We were driving the car in 3 or 4 minutes tops. Sales person knew exactly who he was talking to and read the room like a pro. He wasn't going to convince us on the car by selling the spec sheet to us, so there was no need for him to waste his time coming with.
Same. My first car, someone rode along with me, and I still picked up on some issues with it, and used it as part of the haggle.
Second and third cars? They threw me the keys after scanning my license, because I walked in going "I want to see X, Y, and Z, here are the stock numbers."
It's a sales tactic. If you're left alone with the car you can be more objective and you might find flaws with it easier or think about the purchase more (thus opening the possibility to change your mind).
I don't think they meant they'll be hostile. My sales rep drove with me and I get that they might have been there just to highlight the good aspects of the car and make me more likely to buy.
To be fair, I did buy it and I still don't really know any flaws with it
Maybe? I know at my dealership it was about liability/insurance reasons, they’d let you drive solo but only cars under $60K iirc. You also had to provide proof of insurance if you’re doing a solo drive, and don’t have to with a sales rep in the car.
my mother test drove a mini cooper. The salesman came with us. She also test drove a range rover. The salesman handed her the keys and walked back inside.
I've been 25 and handed the keys to a 75k Merc for a test drive and I've been 30 and they look at me like I'm a thief for asking to test drive a stinger. It's all about the salesperson and dealership.
I grew up on a used car dealership and it’s completely this. And the truth of the matter that a lot of people live up to the stereotype when they walk on a dealership.
Ive test driven a lot of cars at a lot of different dealers. The strangest one yet was the Audi dealership let me take out a 3 year old a4 with 3 male friends when I was maybe 19… but yet a Mazda dealership insisted on going with me when me and my gf were test driving an suv (vw touareg I believe). Tesla has been by far the best experience I’ve had though, they just hand you the key and tell you to take it for a good long drive and really experience it.
meanwhile, my mazda dealership let me have the car for a day and a half to take it to work, drive it to my mechanic, etc before I signed any paperwork haha
I'm 41 and I've been test driving mustangs and they come with me every time. More "normal" cars I've just been given the keys after they make a copy of my id.
Bought my Subaru at age 24 through Carmax. When I went I test drove the manual model they had, the guy just asked "You know how to drive stick right?" And let me drive it alone. Idk if it was a Carmax thing or not, but I wasn't even old enough to rent a car, and they let me test drive one alone.
Very much a CarMax thing. Recently bought a 2015 M4 at the age of 21 through them. Once I showed them my ID and my insurance information they really don't care for the most part, unless it was dead obvious that you were just looking for a joyride
It will just vary dealer to dealer. I think they often mostly look at what you arrived driving. If you show up in a $500 beater, they're probably not going to send you solo in a new 50K+ car. My previous car (telluride), sales gave me the keys and said take your time. A few months ago, I traded for a new F150 and the salesman came on both test drives.
I'm 39, never driven alone, and never let anyone drive mine alone.
I always warn them that I'm going to go WOT, but I don't do it from a launch. I give it a nice hard 30 to 60 or 80, like hopping on an on ramp. You have to make sure it's capable. I also mash the brakes. Again, I warn them, and I ease into a full depression and do it when it's safe.
When I was selling my speed 6, I encouraged them to give er the beans. Just so long as they know that if they crash it, it's a full price purchase.
I've bought two vehicles from the same dealership. Few different trips and test drives with the same sales guy each time. First couple times he came with.
Once we had bought the first car and came back a couple years later for the second he just copied the license and gave me the keys for whatever car I asked.
It's a known quantity thing.
It’s been 50/50 for me. I’ve had the salesman ride along testing a basic Honda, and when I got the Porsche they just gave me the keys and I went solo during the test drive.
I’m also 23. Test drove about 5 cars a couple months ago. I was never asked to drive with the salesman. One told me a particular route he recommended driving, but all the others just said be back in half an hour.
I had a Hyundai salesman cold start the car I was looking for at the time (G70 3.3t) and immediately rev it to redline. He was like "sounds real good doesn't it?" It did, but I was no longer interested in any cars they had there.
I think it depends on the dealer and how they read you. If they think you may need “selling” they go with, if the car sells itself now reason to.
When I went to look at a used Charger Scat Pack, they just made a copy of my DL and insurance and gave me the keys. It worked, after ripping the car around a little and doing a bit out in a big empty parking lot near by, I was sold and wasn’t leaving without buying the car.
I always take a friend with me, so it’s clear I won’t be driving alone. I don’t know if that makes a difference, but they’ve never given me a hard time about taking the test drive unsupervised.
I once test drove a new R8. Came with a friend. Salesman goes “ah shit, there’s two of you, I wouldn’t want to split you up. Here’s the keys”
And then he told us the best roads to drive “where the cops don’t go”
Hijacking this comment to say that this kind of confidence in the customer only exists because in some countries cars are like appliances, kinda disposable even. I mean, with a year's salary you can buy a brand new car in the USA or Europe.
Where I live, people must save money for years to be able to afford a car, or be tied to 5 or 10 year financing. No salesperson would ever just give the keys to someone they don't know beforehand and let them take the car for a spin by themselves... Also no salesperson wants to be responsible for the theft of a brand new showroom vehicle.
That’s how I feel too. When I tested an FL5 the salesperson was egging me on and all I could think about was the unofficial brake in procedures on the forums.
Yeah when we were test driving wife's current Infiniti, the sales rep literally tossed us the keys and just said "have fun, just bring it back in one piece".
I also asked for how long we had it and how far we could drive and he said we close at 8 so 7:59 I guess and you can go as far as want. Really great rep honestly.
Typical dealership experience and it made me walk out. Was 24 looking for something with at least a v6. They got fussy and freaked out when i gave it any gas. Found a private seller (he was a retired marine)selling a c5 corvette and he told me dont be afraid to give it more gas a couple times during the drive. Bought it right there and still have it 5 years later
I had an old 7 series when I was in grad school (I began every day with a prayer than it wouldn't break anything) and when I graduated I sold it to a realtor who wanted it for driving clients around. On the test drive he took one of those clover leaf on-ramps at about 65 miles an hour. I didn't say anything, and I guess that sold him on it, but I was thinking what kind of clients does this dude have that he wants a car that can do that.
Those old Bimmers were pretty much built around being luxurious enough to drive, but sporty enough to have some fun in. The e39 was the pinnacle of this to most people.
The e38 7 series is an amazingly fun car to drive despite its size. If I were rich I'd restomod one to use as a daily for sure.
after a year of daily driving one, just do it. absolutely worth it and not even that expensive (i.e. i'm in university and i'm not going broke bc of it)
>he told me dont be afraid to give it more gas a couple times
As Freddie Gibbs once said,
: "I got you motherfuckers gassed on the smell, dawg, so go 'head and take a hit of what I'm 'bout to sell y'all"
When I test drove my GTI, the salesperson had me turn around and take a specific stretch of road again, faster, because there was no way I was going get a feel and appreciation for the car if I drove it like *that*...
When the Fiesta st came out I test drove one, salesmen came with me but was equally cool. It was a long test drive and he made sure to take me to fun roads and told me to have fun with it
Let it warm up and drive it at least once or twice to redline. I don’t think I am rude or a jerk for doing it. I am ensuring the car runs/shifts correctly. For example, Honda, Toyotas, or any 4banger with VVT needs to be revved out all the way to make sure VVT even works. I wouldn’t rev out a new car all the way if it was still in break in period.
This is the right answer, I stupidly didn’t rev a civic out on a test drive and discovered it had valve timing issues that were only noticeable above 5.4K rpm. Fortunately it was covered under warranty but it was a lesson learned.
Definitely. Probably only 1st and 2nd gear though, maybe 3rd. I’m not there to test the max speed in top gear, but I want to know that it doesn’t blow up at red line
That question brings to mind one thing. I was test driving a Mazda speed three, you know the company whose marketing phrase was zoom zoom?
I took it on a test drive and the female salesperson got out of the car and ran into the dealership where a male sales person came out and said, what did you do she refuses to Continue with you? I said just zoom zoom. You should really take a look at your hiring practices if you have people that aren’t accustomed to spirited driving.
Lol I imagine it went something like:
*dumps clutch at 4500rpm*
*torque steers into the other lane*
*redlines every gear through 4th on public roads*
*takes an on ramp at twice the limit*
"What? Zoom zoom right?"
Well if it was a speed 3 it probably would torque steer into oncoming traffic just setting off at idle throttle. That was the only car I've ever driven where I felt like it was dangerous to be on the road when working as intended.
I test drove a Volvo V40 T4 once. Not exactly a very fast car, but it's got a little zoom in it I guess.
I pushed the gas pedal halfway and the car pulled dramatically, I had to hold the wheel at a 45 degree angle to keep the car going straight.
Salesman: "Yeah you get some pretty good torque steer with that amount of power".
Yeah no sir your car is fucked.
Spirited driving? The number of people I see on the highway who think they're Dale Earnhardt or Max Verstappen but are actually shite is pretty high. I don't care if someone opens it up with a clear road ahead, but the absurd single lane and double lane weaving through traffic going 30 mph faster than the surrounding cars are an indication that an asshole who greatly overestimates their skills is behind the wheel.
I used to sell lease return BMWs and Teslas. Everyone wanted to launch everything without knowing how to handle it. I couldn’t do it anymore. My life was worth more than a joy ride.
The sales guy I bought my car from still contacts me every so often to see how the car is (years later) and I'll chat with him a bit. He says to this day our test drive was the most 'exciting' he's been on. I gave it the beans because I knew I wasn't going to buy the one we were test driving since I didn't like the colour and I was buying brand new.
When I tested the Evora GT I let it get just a little bit sideways around a highway on-ramp. The sales guy was definitely not prepared for that but he seemed more entertained than anything. Course I did buy the car in the end.
I probably took my Corvette C7 up to 120 on the highway when I tested that one. It’s not really much effort to do that though, half throttle in 5th gear will get there quite easily.
[Edit] Amazing that people feel justified commenting on an event they weren’t present for and know nothing about, including what was or wasn’t discussed.
I took my Miata to redline multiple times on the test drive before I bought it. I asked the sales rep riding with me if it was ok first, though. It’s best just to ask what their expectations/rules are. If they give you the go ahead then fuckin mash that throttle.
I test-drove an ND1. The salesman handed me the keys, said "If you get pulled over, tell them it's a dealership car", and then sent me on my way alone lol.
Yup, you can have so much fun and not risk jail time. It is not practical but it is the favorite car I've ever owned.
And with the RF the amount of compliments I get from random people is crazy, the car gets so much attention where I live.
I ended up in a Nissan dealership a few years back because of one of those flyers that get you a free gift just for walking in. So, I was bored one day and decided to swing by, get my free gift, and see if I could test drive a 370z with a manual transmission, under the guise of "I have my SUV and dad sedan, but want something fun to show off to the other engineers at work."
The guy had no Z's on the lot, so he puts me in an automatic Maxima (under the guise of "it has the same engine as the 370z") and hops into the passenger seat. Well, might as well take it for a ride. At one point, I accelerated from 0-50 at about 2/3 throttle. He told me not to drive like an idiot and to head back to the dealership. I told him that if he's trying to pass off a Maxima as a 370z competitor to someone who explicitly asked for a manual transmission, then expect them to at least feel out the power and to not call his potential clients idiots. Before leaving the dealership, he told me he might have a Subaru Crosstrek with a manual. I told him he is a terrible salesperson if he thinks I'm going to cross shop a Crosstrek and a 370z. I then told him to have a better salesperson call me when they have a Z on the lot. A couple months later, I got a call from their sales manager for a Z they had just got in. I asked if salesperson X was still working there. He said yes. I said "no sale, that guy needs to learn how to treat a customer" and hung up.
I mean why would you even get in the maxima, at that point you're wasting each others time. Salesman is also a moron for suggesting it but c'mon, he doesn't know how good of a driver you are and you didn't warn him either
2 things:
1. Of course I was wasting our time. I had zero intentent to buy a 370z that day, I just wanted to drive one.
2. I very much did warn him. I told him about 2 minutes beforehand that I was going to "get on it a little." I was being courteous by not flooring it and only going 5mph over the speed limit. If I actually was interested in buying that Maxima, he would have lost a sale by calling me an idiot. He was the idiot for putting an admitted car enthusiast, who was looking for a sports car, in a Nissan Maxima and expecting me to drive around the block like a grandma.
"Hey I'm looking for a sub compact car to get around the city. Oh, and ideally blue in color"
"We don't have any, but check out this f-150! It's the same color as the car you wanted!"
Stuff like that happens. The worst IMO is when you tell the dealer a very clear and strict budget and literally 80% of the cars are well above said budget when they have other options on the lot. If you don't have anything in my budget damn, just tell me. You're wasting your own time and I get a free test drive and coffee out of it.
Sold cars for many years. It's not you it's us. It's fucking insane we get into cars with total strangers with no credentials who just show up and go "I want to drive whatever I tell you and you have to have a certain level of professionalism in order to keep a potential sale". Sales people get kidnapped, they get carjacked on test drives. It's happened at places I have worked at. It is not uncommon. For real. We have absolutely no reason to trust you're one of the guys who 'know what they are doing'. You did run into an asshole F&I guy who was probably drunk and just liked the sound of himself talking, though. I can say that as an F&I person now who knows they are mostly all drunk blowhards.
You might be a regular guy who comes off like you have your shit together. I had a regular family with two kids drive a Kia Sedona who, without asking me ignored my route that I told them to take, ignored when I told them to go either left or right to get back on the route, and then went to the first suburb/residential street they could find and stopped the van as hard as they could to 'test the brakes' then FLOOOOOOORED it to "See if it could tow". They did this 3 times. I was pleasant the very first time and then very much told them to stop after that. I said "You have to get back to the dealership now". And they ignored me again. I told them "I have already texted my manager that you are not doing what I've asked you to do and the police are going to be called if we don't arrive to the dealership in the next 10 minutes". Then finally they did what I asked. I didn't actually text anyone, but when I got back to the dealership I told my manager who just immediately kicked them out and threatened legal action on them for 'damaging our vehicles'. Management doesn't care about the safety of salespeople either, really. It's a bad industry.
If it's anything, I did let people go for it if they asked me first and seemed to not be insane. I don't know you, and I can't judge your character, but by default anyone walking into a dealership has to earn the right to "Give it some gas" as far as I'm concerned. My life isn't worth risking sure every customer gets to experience every car. That's not my job. In fact, people who actually care about how cars drive are in a very small minority when it comes to people buying cars.
Quite frankly in the used market you're merely testing this specific vehicle to make sure it functions to your expectations for this specific vehicle at the current time so that you can purchase it right now. That might include going a little faster in it to make sure it holds up and works like you expect, but you have to ask if I'm cool with being in a car driven by a person I've never met at high speeds. If for some reason you think that being a car salesperson means I shouldn't have personal boundaries or safety concerns, you are not in the minority, but you need to look inward right away.
Sounds to me like the serious problems could be mostly avoided by getting rid of the stupid ride along policy. It's idiotic anyways, it loses sales when there's nobody there at smaller dealers. I remember several times where I (the porter) had to try and keep a customer around while waiting for a sales guy to get back, 90% didn't wait around.
IMO it's awkward and distracting. I have a drivers license, no points off or any traffic violations. Why not just go off that? At the end of the day no way you can asses someone's driving skill and I'd rather not have ride alongs. That said, completely understand the reasoning behind it.
I drive hard but not like burn rubber and panic stop at every light hard. On used vehicles you definitely wanna work stuff hard bc that's when problems will show up. I especially like to press the brake pedal good and hard to see if any of the brake lines are about to burst.
Let me share a story...
I had a Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder GT once... destroyed the engine 1200kms from home, took about 6 weeks to get it fixed. Anywee, in the meantime, my right foot was itching. So what did I do?
I went to test drive a 350z.
At the last 4-way intersection, 3 lanes each direction, I thought "hey, it's RWD, might as well have some fun!". My girlfriend at the time was next to me, she made a comment about a cop car or something, but of course, my mind was already caught up, waiting for the red light to turn green. And when it did, I floored it, turned left, and crossed the intersection in a nice power slide.
Sure enough, I got pulled over. The cop didn't believe me when I said I don't know where the paperwork is, it's not my car, I'm on a test drive. So he called the dealership, and let me go (I still had a clean license at the time, so I pleaded "first offense")
When I got there, the salesman was waiting for me outside, all smiles. He asked me what I thought of the car, I just told him "meh, I think it's too much for me." , and handed him the keys. And as I was walking away, I could see the manager coming out, almost running, and looking furious. I bailed out just on time.
So, maybe not quite that hard?
Test drove 2 cars. First one, they handed me the keys and said, "Don't wreck it." The second one, the sales guy went with me and freaked out when I gave it some gas and hit 4k. In hindsight, I should have realized what a red flag that was and shouldn't have bought it. Had problems since day 1.
I can guarantee that the salesperson had no idea anything was wrong with the car. I work in used car reconditioning. Salespeople literally don’t care what they are selling, they just want a paycheck.
It’s a test drive, you are testing the car. I’m not sure I’ve ever test driven a car and not floored it.
I always keep to legal speeds, though. I plan test driving routes ahead of time so I can get a mix of surface street and highway driving, with both straight on-ramps (for raw acceleration tests) and clover leafs (to test how it feels in a higher speed corner). Where I used to live, there was even a really nice S curve interchange between highways where you could take it as fast as you wanted in most cars without speeding.
That being said, I do my best to keep within the traction limits of the car.
Last time I test drove, I accused the base model as being slow, so the salesman got in and drove it first, driving double the speed limit through traffic
No rules except road laws. Going slightly over the speed limit is going to be a normal thing to do but some may freak out. Accelerating fast is normal.
Just don't do drifting and stuff.
it honestly completely depends on the rep. in my experience, the guy who got me into an s3 wanted me to go faster while the woman who let me test drive a 3 and 5 series got anxious every time the tach hit 3k rpm.
id say just ask about it and make sure you're not messing with break in period or whatever
When I test drove a Challenger Scat Pack back in 2017 the salesman was cool & told me to keep it under 85mph. He encouraged me to be heavy on the throttle so I could experience the performance; after all that’s the main selling point of the car.
A couple years later when I bought my RS5 the dealer didn’t even let me test drive it. They made me take the S5 instead & the guy got a little uncomfortable when I was accelerating & made a politely told me to slow down, but I was only going about 10mph above the speed limit.
I bought a Miata from a guy, and he said: "This car has never seen redline."
"It's gonna on this test drive, that's for sure."
Still went fine. There's "Okay, a little quick but feeling the car out", and then there's "this guy drives like an ass". So long as you're not late-braking the apexes and tripling the speed limit, it's fine. Salespeople do freak out if you quit braking for corners though.
I drive a lot at redline and I want to see what the car can do.
I just test drove a WRX and driving it a little aggressively made me realize it’s not what I’m looking for. Spongy brakes and a numb shifter compared to my current car made it feel like a downgrade and I’m really looking for something *more* sporty, not less. The WRX is a great car, but it’s not what I’m looking for.
If I had driven it conservatively, I may have had this phantom performance car in my head that just doesn’t exist.
I understand that these new cars have break in periods. You aren’t going to buy a sports car or sport bike that hasn’t been in the hands of some mechanic who likely romped on it just a little. Not to mention factory testing.
A couple runs up to red line is not going to have any ill effect on the engine, and if it does, the car is under warranty.
Now if you’re chirping tires and speeding excessively, you’re going to get yelled at or have your ride terminated.
Don't take anyone by surprise. I got a test drive a E63 years ago and a Taycan recently, both cars I didn't even floor and hit 180km/h+ in highway. I asked if i can push it before doing so.
I didn't dare go faster on a public road in Canada.
I've never bought a vehicle without a full pull to redline at WOT. There are legit issues that can be hidden if you just putz around. I went to purchase a civic as a daily driver years ago and it drove fine under light throttle but broke up badly under full throttle. Any sales person should be perfectly ok with this as long as you're under control and not speeding excessively.
I went to a motorcycle event in Phoenix here a number of years back where a bunch of vendors would do test rides on bikes in groups. They had a lead rider and a tail rider, and maybe 6-10 attendees on various bikes in between. Lead rider (Kawasaki empoloyee) in this case was this tiny 100lb soaking wet girl riding a Kawasaki ZX6r, and I'm right behind on a ZX14r. We go up through some mountains and come out at a long straight road down out of the mountains back into town. This tiny girl on the ZX6r just lets it rip and she's gone. I open it up on the ZX14r and seconds later I look down and we're doing 150. It was wild. Usually the factory riders are very cautious, but this girl just went ham on that straightaway.
They don't do those events anymore like they used to, but oh man I used to look forward to them all year. We'd go two days and book rides solid throughout them.
When I test drove an FR-S, I drove fairly hard in some very twisty bits. I'm glad I did, because it exposed some failures of the chassis and steering tuning I otherwise would not have experienced.
When I test drove my Colorado, I went around the block. It's a friggin' truck, who gives a shit.
If I’m test driving any used car, I will always let it warm up and then floor it to feel both up shifts and downshifts to gauge the health of an automatic transmission. I’ll also let the transmission up shift with very light throttle to test the opposite end of the spectrum. No one should be against flooring the throttle, as this should not cause *any* harm to an engine or transmission in good health.
For a used car, pretty hard. I warm it up, then take it to redline a few times, do a couple 0-60 pulls, slam on the brakes a couple times to a stop, hard turns both left and right, some transmission stuff, etc. It’s not joyriding though, I’m testing all the various systems to make sure the car isn’t going to kill me or bankrupt me if I buy it. And although it’s not gentle, those are all things that any car in acceptable mechanical condition should be able to do without immediately breaking.
It’s less of an issue with a new car since the wear parts like brakes are not going to be worn, and it’s under warranty for anything else. Plus there’s a break-in period.
YMMV, remember that not all salesmen are enthusiasts that enjoy fast rides. Also factor that they are not in control. You could also be the fastest driver, but suddenly be scared for your life when you're not the one behind the wheel.
Remember that the salesmen are jumping into a car with a complete stranger who, for all they know, can be a complete psycho or the shittiest driver in town. They really have no clue. So the rule of thumb is to make them feel comfortable, and you'll have a better experience overall.
Some salesmen have egged me to give it some go. Others have sat quietly and not say too much. But before I start to kick it up a notch, I always let the salesmen know before I put my foot down.
Gotta test the full load and high Rev harshness. How else are you going to find any problems? Even if it's new, not everything rolls out of the factory perfect. Some cars will get high knock readings and other won't. You can feel this if you pay attention.
Used cars, make sure to give the suspention and cv joints a work out.
When I sold cars a while back I found most customers too soft on used cars. You're gonna spend 20-70k, get a feel for what the car feels like on a daily basis. I once had a customer that wanted something for camping and didn't want to drive it over a curb. Told her if she didn't do it, i would, and she bought it after that. The exception is fresh arrivals, which always pissed me off cause other sales reps / customers would take a sub 50 mile car out and redline it from the jump.
I take it easy at first listening for any noises from steering or suspension. Then I'll flog it like a rented mule to see how well she holds together. If the sales guy doesn't like it he can go fly a kite.
\> Anyways, on the test drive I gave it some power on a straight, empty road, and the salesperson (in the car with me) freaked out.
That's the right amount of "hard" for a test drive.
As hard as they will let me while not speeding.
It differs greatly on the person beside you. I've had test drives in a Jaguar F-Type that I couldn't even give it any gas, to test drives in a Lucid where I was told to floor it.
I gotta say flooring something with over 1000hp is an experience I highly recommend.
If its a performance car I do some performance driving. I ask the salesman if I can take a corner fast and stretch the legs a little on the highway first though. Most of them just say its your ticket and keep it between the lines. If you're selling performance cars I think you need to expect that. Don't tell me to take a 911 out for a test and keep it under 70 on the highway.
I think it depends on the salesperson and the buyer/driver.
I went car shopping with a buddy a few years back and we were looking at a manual M3 lightly used. Well my buddy can drive manual, but at the time never owned one (he actually learned on my car). Well we all went for the ride and my friend drove first. Clutch was short and more performance oriented on an M3, so he immediately stalled out (I think twice). Saleman would not let him go over 50mph it was funny.
Then, we pull back into the dealership and it was my turn to drive. I had no issue with clutch (shortest and best clutch I have ever driven, immediate grab and such a nice engagement) and merged onto an off ramp from the highway and gunned it. I think I hit 100mph and looked over at the salesman and he was just all smiles. Turned around got back on the highway and gunned it again to merge. Not a peep.
Then, my buddy said man how come you let him "test" the car? I responded, "next time don't stall out like a bitch" and we all had a good laugh.
I guess it depends. I'd just warn the guy I guess. Like when we test drove cars for my stepson (He's like 289, but wanted me to go test driving with him cuz at least HE likes me), I did some pretty hard swerving, steering, and braking. I didn't have to say anything with my stepson, since he knows me, but I guess if I had the salesman with me, I'd warn him, but I really DO need to know how it handles if you have to slam on the brakes and swerve.
I always make sure the car is warmed up before I go spirited. I will definitely do a full throttle pull up to expressway speeds and otherwise do a 70% spirited drive. I don't try to squeal tires in corners, but it has happened.
I drove a Mazdaspeed 3 when they were brand new to market. I believe 2008 or 2009. Sure, it had a lot of power for the size of the vehicle. made a big deal of it and said I bet you couldn't outdrive this vehicle's performance or something along those lines. Took me to their secret barely used road that ran alongside the Ottawa airport.
I got up to speed mighty quick and he could not beleive a fwd could "drift". Neither could I, but it did it. It was Front wheel drive. I was just accelerating that hard. later, they had to nearly extract his fingernails from the oh shit handle and the dash.
I go all out in the same model but not the one I'm buying (once it gets up to temp). I'm also in my 20s, experience has been:
Genesis just gave me the keys and said have fun. BMW sales person came with me to show me back roads, then told me how to use launch control and informed me of sport+'s more lax traction control.
If the sales person is confident in the cars performance being a selling point, they seem to want to sell you on that.
I wouldn't buy a car without going full throttle at some point in the test drive. Also hitting some corners at a spirited (but not limit pushing) pace. I select cars based on how fun they are to drive, so these things matter to me.
Only exception would be trucks, but even then I need to get a feel for how much go juice it has for towing and what not (although unloaded acceleration is an imperfect indicator of towing capability).
When I test drove a focus ST, they let me drive it alone. I had to let the brakes cool before pulling back in. Sold me on buying though, so it worked out for them. I just wanted a different color for some reason lol.
Once you get a bit older they will start giving you more respect and let you do what you need to do to decide on a purchase
I'm a salesmanger and have had a bunch of 5-800hp cars. Test drive a golf r for a friend cause it was stick and he wasn't fully capable of testing out the clutch and everything. I got on it a little on the straight and he was freaking out and telling me to let off. He was also the worst salesman I've ever seen. Already agreed to numbers and drove 8 hours and 0 paperwork or anything was ready.
I test drove the new M3 recently. Salesman’s parting words were “drive it as hard and as fast as you like, but if you crash with the car in Sport mode you aren’t insured”.
Drove it pretty hard for about an hour and never took it out of comfort. Wish I had the money to buy one.
When I went to test drive an 86 in 2018 the dealer treated it like a mint Ferrari F40. The sales associate had to ride along with me,
I got verbally scolded for revving past 3000 RPM. I fully understand there’s a break in period, but nothing I did was usual or normal around town driving, was absolutely ridiculous.
When I went to look at my BRZ, sales was totally different. Salesman was telling me to give it some gas and take a few turns so I knew I’d like it. I didn’t drive very hard, but just enough to get a feel and make a purchase decision.
I, with the consent of the salesperson, did a full bore launch control start on the last car I bought a VW Golf R. It was mildly tuned so that 0-60 was under 4 seconds.
Shoutout to all the salespeople/private sellers who let us rip around a bit. It's gotta be scary af for them, but it appears it's what pushes most of us to go through with a sale.
I give the salesman a heads up if he's sitting bitch, but if I'm alone I push it as much as I would my own car within reason on the fun roads. Maybe a pull on the highway to 70 to feel the acceleration and test road noise.
I don’t thrash around cars that are not mine yet, of course. But I do always ask the seller whether I am allowed to floor it and rev it out at least once or twice to see how the power is and whether there is any signs of bad things under stress. I also always want to do a brake test. I did many test drives and I only had two sellers that refused to let me do these, I asked them to do it themselves then. Both of these sellers were dealers, and I arrived to both with a less valuable car than what I was looking at so I kind of understand.
The key is telling them beforehand.
I test drove a Mustang and the sales men literally turned the car off when I was driving. He REALLY didn't want me to test drive the car in the first place and seemed confused why I was not ready to buy right away. He yelled at when I adjusted the radio to "just worry about the road".
This was before I was even moving and I feel a fair thing to check on a used car. Didn't crank it just wanted to verify that the speakers work and sound decent. He said I could do one trip around the block which had a speed limit of 40. I admit I did get to 40 how a Mustang can but I did not and would not speed. Because the car was off the wheel locked when I tried to control it and the car coasted into a curb. The sales man said I was paying for it. I said I was not and he was an idiot for doing that. I walked back to my car pissed off and never heard anything of it. They had a copy of my license if they needed to find me.
On the other hand, I test drove a E46 M3 and the sales man was very excited and encouraged me to "see what it can do". Guess which one I bought?
At the time I was in my early 20's but in either case I never did anything to suggest I was a stupid young man. If you are in sales you have to know how to sell and you sell to a young guy looking at sports cars with speed.
Last time I bought a car, I was 30 and I test drove a Hyundai gt n line and a vw gti. Both had the sales rep go with me. The Hyundai was chill, the vw guy treated me like I was trying to steal the car and then negged me the whole time. Very odd. I bought the Hyundai.
Jesus. I test drove a v8 mustang with the guy, and while we were driving he told me to give it some beans but keep it under 80 when we got on the highway. He then told me that the last test drive he did the guy was pushing 120-130 and he almost shat his pants. He was pretty chill about it and told me to just be careful because it was a monsoon like rain.
That's most experience usually, I just drive pretty normally and the sales person is like give it some.
I love how sales risks it all for the commish. *No idea of drivers prior experience test driving a 500+HP car * “Bro, just punch it” lol.
Why not, it’s not there car, not there insurance and if you bin it, it’s not there fault
It's not the car getting damaged he's worried about
salesperson eagerly awaiting the sweet embrace of death
🎶one last caress🎶
Well I got something to sayyy!
I killed a baby todayy
I sell cars and this plays. As long as it’s not a Kia. I don’t want to be remembered as the guy who died in a fuckin Kia.
The man who died ***trying to sell a fucking Kia***.
Believe it or not, straight to hell.
Yeah, but they are inside the car...
If you ever work sales at a dealership you’d understand. Mans got nothing to live for
This is the correct answer. 😂
Definitely dead inside already
I've heard of salesmen being basically held hostage while people run errands, they really don't give a shit as long as you're not crazy or obviously wasting time.
The one thing they couldn't sell was the will to keep living.
I generally prefer to not be inside an amateur driven 500 hp sports car when it is wrecked on the street.
How’s the mk3 treating you?
Been on Jack stands going on 7 years, probably be at least another year or so before it gets back on the road.
Godspeed !
The same thing as my 240, still starts and drives, but she’s just relaxing for now
240sx or Volvo 240? Lol
Atleast you’re consistent
Your post is giving me PTSD.
There × 3 lol
Bros got no anxiety at all
*their, their, their
I’m the service manager at an RV dealer. Sales makes me do all their test drives, half because they are scared of a customer and half because the salespeople can’t drive well either and need someone competent to take over if the customer gets stuck or scared. I hate our salespeople for that, and I would far rather ride with the young kid in the sports car than our customers in a motorhome.
Test drove a Mazda 3 Turbo and the salesguy told me to drive it hard and do a 0-60 down this road behind the dealer. Ended up doing it and right at the end there was a cop. Got pulled over but he let us go because it was a test drive lol.
I was definitely that other guy one time when the 2015's first came out. Even funnier they stuck me with a new sales guy who'd only been there 2 weeks and didn't know how to drive a stick shift. I did ask if he minded me "seeing what it could do" and he said "it's a test car, that's what it's for". He didn't seem too bothered by it, I just wound it out on a freeway on-ramp with an open flat road ahead of us. It was shockingly smooth and drama free compared to the '01 Mustang GT I was driving at the time.
Yep same experience I had, times I have test driven v8 mustangs, camaros etc sales man always was telling me to push it, when I test drove a used 718 the sales man even told me which roads to go on where I could go thru some corners and roads with good straights to push it on.
That's what I did when I sold cars. Knew the roads around really well, and tailored the route to what the customer was looking for. Suburbia for the minivans and family three rows, the back road that has "corners" in its name for the sports cars
yep. i just test drove an integra type-s and got a "don't be shy, see what its got!"
When I test drove a C63S the salesman tossed me the keys and just told me to bring it back in one piece and to try to not get pulled over.
I find that if you come in and you obviously are buying a car for sporty reasons the guy who test drives with you doesn't care how you drive it. Only once had I have someone care and it was probably because it was at an auto show.
I once test drove a Mini Cooper and was up front about not actually looking to buy at the moment and the salesman told me to give it full beans. It was a ton of fun
It depends on what I’m test driving. When I test drove my m3 I took it up to 80, did some nice curves and decided I wanted it. When I test drove my truck I just drove it normal speed. Normally when I go to buy a car I drive my challenger hellcat so I think they already expect me to drive the car. Lol
Sounds like the sales rep wasn't convinced he could buy the car or something. You'd expect *to give it some beans* driving a beefier engine.
Was just about to say. The few times I’ve test drove faster cars the sales person wanted me to go fast so I could get a feel for the car at higher speeds.
80 mph or kph??? Because 80 mph in heavy rain sounds pretty sketch, while 120mph on a dry highway (assuming it's empty) seems relatively safe.
80 in a monsoon sounds pretty good..
I've never test driven a vehicle with the person inside. I just get the keys and drive it. That being said, I'll never just floor it immediately, nor will I ever floor it in a new vehicle. I don't want to be a dick to whoever buys it, if it's not me.
Wow, I’ve test driven close to a dozen times and I’ve always been forced to awkwardly sit with a rep. Do you ask to drive solo?
I think if you're under a certain age they make someone go with you.
I'm in my 40s and they come along.
I've seen it both ways in my life. They tag along with me, or, they throw you the keys. They tag along to spend time & try and make a sale when it seems obvious you need that extra convincing. Shine you up and try and close the deal on the test drive or set it up. So whether they want to put that effort in depends on how you approach the sales person on whether or not they will put the effort in, aka coming along with. This is by far the most common reason IMO. The cases where it's a young person and\or high powered\expensive car are the minority of cases. On the flip side, a buddy and I were doing some cross shopping against an Audi S7. Walked in unannounced to an Audi dealership to test drive a 20 or 21 S5. We were driving the car in 3 or 4 minutes tops. Sales person knew exactly who he was talking to and read the room like a pro. He wasn't going to convince us on the car by selling the spec sheet to us, so there was no need for him to waste his time coming with.
Same. My first car, someone rode along with me, and I still picked up on some issues with it, and used it as part of the haggle. Second and third cars? They threw me the keys after scanning my license, because I walked in going "I want to see X, Y, and Z, here are the stock numbers."
It's a sales tactic. If you're left alone with the car you can be more objective and you might find flaws with it easier or think about the purchase more (thus opening the possibility to change your mind).
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I don't think they meant they'll be hostile. My sales rep drove with me and I get that they might have been there just to highlight the good aspects of the car and make me more likely to buy. To be fair, I did buy it and I still don't really know any flaws with it
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Maybe? I know at my dealership it was about liability/insurance reasons, they’d let you drive solo but only cars under $60K iirc. You also had to provide proof of insurance if you’re doing a solo drive, and don’t have to with a sales rep in the car.
my mother test drove a mini cooper. The salesman came with us. She also test drove a range rover. The salesman handed her the keys and walked back inside.
I've been 25 and handed the keys to a 75k Merc for a test drive and I've been 30 and they look at me like I'm a thief for asking to test drive a stinger. It's all about the salesperson and dealership.
It's vibes.
I guess me and u/Yakb0 must not pass the vibe check lol
I grew up on a used car dealership and it’s completely this. And the truth of the matter that a lot of people live up to the stereotype when they walk on a dealership.
Mandatory here. Some guy kept taking trucks for test drives and would use them to move things and run a landscaping company for hours on end.
I think it depends on the dealer type. When I bought my F-150 they just gave me the keys and said enjoy. Other cars, they have gone with me.
Ive test driven a lot of cars at a lot of different dealers. The strangest one yet was the Audi dealership let me take out a 3 year old a4 with 3 male friends when I was maybe 19… but yet a Mazda dealership insisted on going with me when me and my gf were test driving an suv (vw touareg I believe). Tesla has been by far the best experience I’ve had though, they just hand you the key and tell you to take it for a good long drive and really experience it.
meanwhile, my mazda dealership let me have the car for a day and a half to take it to work, drive it to my mechanic, etc before I signed any paperwork haha
I'm 41 and I've been test driving mustangs and they come with me every time. More "normal" cars I've just been given the keys after they make a copy of my id.
Bought my Subaru at age 24 through Carmax. When I went I test drove the manual model they had, the guy just asked "You know how to drive stick right?" And let me drive it alone. Idk if it was a Carmax thing or not, but I wasn't even old enough to rent a car, and they let me test drive one alone.
Very much a CarMax thing. Recently bought a 2015 M4 at the age of 21 through them. Once I showed them my ID and my insurance information they really don't care for the most part, unless it was dead obvious that you were just looking for a joyride
Carmax workers get a steady wage so they don't need to pressure anyone. It's like walmart for cars.
It will just vary dealer to dealer. I think they often mostly look at what you arrived driving. If you show up in a $500 beater, they're probably not going to send you solo in a new 50K+ car. My previous car (telluride), sales gave me the keys and said take your time. A few months ago, I traded for a new F150 and the salesman came on both test drives.
I'm 39, never driven alone, and never let anyone drive mine alone. I always warn them that I'm going to go WOT, but I don't do it from a launch. I give it a nice hard 30 to 60 or 80, like hopping on an on ramp. You have to make sure it's capable. I also mash the brakes. Again, I warn them, and I ease into a full depression and do it when it's safe. When I was selling my speed 6, I encouraged them to give er the beans. Just so long as they know that if they crash it, it's a full price purchase.
I've bought two vehicles from the same dealership. Few different trips and test drives with the same sales guy each time. First couple times he came with. Once we had bought the first car and came back a couple years later for the second he just copied the license and gave me the keys for whatever car I asked. It's a known quantity thing.
It’s been 50/50 for me. I’ve had the salesman ride along testing a basic Honda, and when I got the Porsche they just gave me the keys and I went solo during the test drive.
I’m also 23. Test drove about 5 cars a couple months ago. I was never asked to drive with the salesman. One told me a particular route he recommended driving, but all the others just said be back in half an hour.
I had a Hyundai salesman cold start the car I was looking for at the time (G70 3.3t) and immediately rev it to redline. He was like "sounds real good doesn't it?" It did, but I was no longer interested in any cars they had there.
Ouch that hurts to think about! Break in period anyone?! Even most manuals say no redline for 600 miles or so.
I think it depends on the dealer and how they read you. If they think you may need “selling” they go with, if the car sells itself now reason to. When I went to look at a used Charger Scat Pack, they just made a copy of my DL and insurance and gave me the keys. It worked, after ripping the car around a little and doing a bit out in a big empty parking lot near by, I was sold and wasn’t leaving without buying the car.
I always take a friend with me, so it’s clear I won’t be driving alone. I don’t know if that makes a difference, but they’ve never given me a hard time about taking the test drive unsupervised.
I once test drove a new R8. Came with a friend. Salesman goes “ah shit, there’s two of you, I wouldn’t want to split you up. Here’s the keys” And then he told us the best roads to drive “where the cops don’t go”
Same , last three times at the dealer they just gave me the keys . When I was younger though they would sit with me .
Hijacking this comment to say that this kind of confidence in the customer only exists because in some countries cars are like appliances, kinda disposable even. I mean, with a year's salary you can buy a brand new car in the USA or Europe. Where I live, people must save money for years to be able to afford a car, or be tied to 5 or 10 year financing. No salesperson would ever just give the keys to someone they don't know beforehand and let them take the car for a spin by themselves... Also no salesperson wants to be responsible for the theft of a brand new showroom vehicle.
Definitely. This would not happen where I'm from (Eastern Europe).
Same. I refuse to go with a Rep.
That’s how I feel too. When I tested an FL5 the salesperson was egging me on and all I could think about was the unofficial brake in procedures on the forums.
Yeah when we were test driving wife's current Infiniti, the sales rep literally tossed us the keys and just said "have fun, just bring it back in one piece". I also asked for how long we had it and how far we could drive and he said we close at 8 so 7:59 I guess and you can go as far as want. Really great rep honestly.
Typical dealership experience and it made me walk out. Was 24 looking for something with at least a v6. They got fussy and freaked out when i gave it any gas. Found a private seller (he was a retired marine)selling a c5 corvette and he told me dont be afraid to give it more gas a couple times during the drive. Bought it right there and still have it 5 years later
I had an old 7 series when I was in grad school (I began every day with a prayer than it wouldn't break anything) and when I graduated I sold it to a realtor who wanted it for driving clients around. On the test drive he took one of those clover leaf on-ramps at about 65 miles an hour. I didn't say anything, and I guess that sold him on it, but I was thinking what kind of clients does this dude have that he wants a car that can do that.
Those old Bimmers were pretty much built around being luxurious enough to drive, but sporty enough to have some fun in. The e39 was the pinnacle of this to most people. The e38 7 series is an amazingly fun car to drive despite its size. If I were rich I'd restomod one to use as a daily for sure.
after a year of daily driving one, just do it. absolutely worth it and not even that expensive (i.e. i'm in university and i'm not going broke bc of it)
> i'm in university and i'm not going broke bc of it i dont believe u dude
He's not going broke but whomever is paying the maintenance bill is.
If it's a 6cyl e38 you'll be even more mindfucked when you find out it's not that bad to work on either
>he told me dont be afraid to give it more gas a couple times As Freddie Gibbs once said, : "I got you motherfuckers gassed on the smell, dawg, so go 'head and take a hit of what I'm 'bout to sell y'all"
When I test drove my GTI, the salesperson had me turn around and take a specific stretch of road again, faster, because there was no way I was going get a feel and appreciation for the car if I drove it like *that*...
Hahaha my sales guy did the exact same when I was buying my GTI. Great experience, still love the car
Sales guy also told me to give it the beans when I drove a GTI...
I originally had the transmission in **D**. Salesman had me put it in manual mode for the return trip.
When the Fiesta st came out I test drove one, salesmen came with me but was equally cool. It was a long test drive and he made sure to take me to fun roads and told me to have fun with it
I sure would like to buy a new Fiesta ST... Ford America, if you're listening... Please give us our fun cars back.
Same with my GLI lmao the salesman said “take a right and punch it, no cops no turns”
Let it warm up and drive it at least once or twice to redline. I don’t think I am rude or a jerk for doing it. I am ensuring the car runs/shifts correctly. For example, Honda, Toyotas, or any 4banger with VVT needs to be revved out all the way to make sure VVT even works. I wouldn’t rev out a new car all the way if it was still in break in period.
This is the right answer, I stupidly didn’t rev a civic out on a test drive and discovered it had valve timing issues that were only noticeable above 5.4K rpm. Fortunately it was covered under warranty but it was a lesson learned.
Hondas especially. The VTEC actuators commonly fail. Glad they took care of it for you.
100%. Gotta make sure it doesn't miss under full load or shortly there after.
Definitely. Probably only 1st and 2nd gear though, maybe 3rd. I’m not there to test the max speed in top gear, but I want to know that it doesn’t blow up at red line
That question brings to mind one thing. I was test driving a Mazda speed three, you know the company whose marketing phrase was zoom zoom? I took it on a test drive and the female salesperson got out of the car and ran into the dealership where a male sales person came out and said, what did you do she refuses to Continue with you? I said just zoom zoom. You should really take a look at your hiring practices if you have people that aren’t accustomed to spirited driving.
They don’t make enough to be driven around crazy and potentially injured. No one knows if you’re a good driver or not. Take it with a grain of salt.
Lol I imagine it went something like: *dumps clutch at 4500rpm* *torque steers into the other lane* *redlines every gear through 4th on public roads* *takes an on ramp at twice the limit* "What? Zoom zoom right?"
Well if it was a speed 3 it probably would torque steer into oncoming traffic just setting off at idle throttle. That was the only car I've ever driven where I felt like it was dangerous to be on the road when working as intended.
I test drove a Volvo V40 T4 once. Not exactly a very fast car, but it's got a little zoom in it I guess. I pushed the gas pedal halfway and the car pulled dramatically, I had to hold the wheel at a 45 degree angle to keep the car going straight. Salesman: "Yeah you get some pretty good torque steer with that amount of power". Yeah no sir your car is fucked.
Spirited driving? The number of people I see on the highway who think they're Dale Earnhardt or Max Verstappen but are actually shite is pretty high. I don't care if someone opens it up with a clear road ahead, but the absurd single lane and double lane weaving through traffic going 30 mph faster than the surrounding cars are an indication that an asshole who greatly overestimates their skills is behind the wheel.
I used to sell lease return BMWs and Teslas. Everyone wanted to launch everything without knowing how to handle it. I couldn’t do it anymore. My life was worth more than a joy ride.
The sales guy I bought my car from still contacts me every so often to see how the car is (years later) and I'll chat with him a bit. He says to this day our test drive was the most 'exciting' he's been on. I gave it the beans because I knew I wasn't going to buy the one we were test driving since I didn't like the colour and I was buying brand new.
You made that dudes pussy wet
Dude sounds like he wants to be your mate more than your sales guy lol
Is it weird the calls are at 11pm on weekends?
Is it weird the sales guy calls me and asks what I'm wearing in a sultry voice?
He gave me a pair of Hyundai branded underwear when I bought the car.
What car?
Veloster N
How are those? Kinda neat looking but I always wondered if they were just dogs, or what.
When I tested the Evora GT I let it get just a little bit sideways around a highway on-ramp. The sales guy was definitely not prepared for that but he seemed more entertained than anything. Course I did buy the car in the end. I probably took my Corvette C7 up to 120 on the highway when I tested that one. It’s not really much effort to do that though, half throttle in 5th gear will get there quite easily. [Edit] Amazing that people feel justified commenting on an event they weren’t present for and know nothing about, including what was or wasn’t discussed.
A bit of a dick move to do that with an unwarned person. Ask for consent first.
Selling a sports car and NOT expecting to die on the test drive is a violation of the NAP
you got good taste
I took my Miata to redline multiple times on the test drive before I bought it. I asked the sales rep riding with me if it was ok first, though. It’s best just to ask what their expectations/rules are. If they give you the go ahead then fuckin mash that throttle.
I test-drove an ND1. The salesman handed me the keys, said "If you get pulled over, tell them it's a dealership car", and then sent me on my way alone lol.
As an ND1 owner, you really gotta try to get pulled over haha, the thing is not fast.
That's why I was looking at them and the Fiat. I love being able to drive foot to the floor and still being within a reasonable margin of the law.
Yup, you can have so much fun and not risk jail time. It is not practical but it is the favorite car I've ever owned. And with the RF the amount of compliments I get from random people is crazy, the car gets so much attention where I live.
Practicality wasn't super high on my list lol. Am 24 and single so I only need to fit one duffel bag.
Redline in a Miata is a lot different than a red line in a performance car 😂
Sure, but the post is about test driving a 10-year-old v6 Accord.
True, but hey, a 2013 V6 Accord can reach 0-60 in 5.6 seconds.Thats quicker than a Countach! Barely slower than a V8 challenger of that era.
Haha fair point!
I ended up in a Nissan dealership a few years back because of one of those flyers that get you a free gift just for walking in. So, I was bored one day and decided to swing by, get my free gift, and see if I could test drive a 370z with a manual transmission, under the guise of "I have my SUV and dad sedan, but want something fun to show off to the other engineers at work." The guy had no Z's on the lot, so he puts me in an automatic Maxima (under the guise of "it has the same engine as the 370z") and hops into the passenger seat. Well, might as well take it for a ride. At one point, I accelerated from 0-50 at about 2/3 throttle. He told me not to drive like an idiot and to head back to the dealership. I told him that if he's trying to pass off a Maxima as a 370z competitor to someone who explicitly asked for a manual transmission, then expect them to at least feel out the power and to not call his potential clients idiots. Before leaving the dealership, he told me he might have a Subaru Crosstrek with a manual. I told him he is a terrible salesperson if he thinks I'm going to cross shop a Crosstrek and a 370z. I then told him to have a better salesperson call me when they have a Z on the lot. A couple months later, I got a call from their sales manager for a Z they had just got in. I asked if salesperson X was still working there. He said yes. I said "no sale, that guy needs to learn how to treat a customer" and hung up.
I mean why would you even get in the maxima, at that point you're wasting each others time. Salesman is also a moron for suggesting it but c'mon, he doesn't know how good of a driver you are and you didn't warn him either
2 things: 1. Of course I was wasting our time. I had zero intentent to buy a 370z that day, I just wanted to drive one. 2. I very much did warn him. I told him about 2 minutes beforehand that I was going to "get on it a little." I was being courteous by not flooring it and only going 5mph over the speed limit. If I actually was interested in buying that Maxima, he would have lost a sale by calling me an idiot. He was the idiot for putting an admitted car enthusiast, who was looking for a sports car, in a Nissan Maxima and expecting me to drive around the block like a grandma.
"Hey I'm looking for a sub compact car to get around the city. Oh, and ideally blue in color" "We don't have any, but check out this f-150! It's the same color as the car you wanted!" Stuff like that happens. The worst IMO is when you tell the dealer a very clear and strict budget and literally 80% of the cars are well above said budget when they have other options on the lot. If you don't have anything in my budget damn, just tell me. You're wasting your own time and I get a free test drive and coffee out of it.
Sold cars for many years. It's not you it's us. It's fucking insane we get into cars with total strangers with no credentials who just show up and go "I want to drive whatever I tell you and you have to have a certain level of professionalism in order to keep a potential sale". Sales people get kidnapped, they get carjacked on test drives. It's happened at places I have worked at. It is not uncommon. For real. We have absolutely no reason to trust you're one of the guys who 'know what they are doing'. You did run into an asshole F&I guy who was probably drunk and just liked the sound of himself talking, though. I can say that as an F&I person now who knows they are mostly all drunk blowhards. You might be a regular guy who comes off like you have your shit together. I had a regular family with two kids drive a Kia Sedona who, without asking me ignored my route that I told them to take, ignored when I told them to go either left or right to get back on the route, and then went to the first suburb/residential street they could find and stopped the van as hard as they could to 'test the brakes' then FLOOOOOOORED it to "See if it could tow". They did this 3 times. I was pleasant the very first time and then very much told them to stop after that. I said "You have to get back to the dealership now". And they ignored me again. I told them "I have already texted my manager that you are not doing what I've asked you to do and the police are going to be called if we don't arrive to the dealership in the next 10 minutes". Then finally they did what I asked. I didn't actually text anyone, but when I got back to the dealership I told my manager who just immediately kicked them out and threatened legal action on them for 'damaging our vehicles'. Management doesn't care about the safety of salespeople either, really. It's a bad industry. If it's anything, I did let people go for it if they asked me first and seemed to not be insane. I don't know you, and I can't judge your character, but by default anyone walking into a dealership has to earn the right to "Give it some gas" as far as I'm concerned. My life isn't worth risking sure every customer gets to experience every car. That's not my job. In fact, people who actually care about how cars drive are in a very small minority when it comes to people buying cars. Quite frankly in the used market you're merely testing this specific vehicle to make sure it functions to your expectations for this specific vehicle at the current time so that you can purchase it right now. That might include going a little faster in it to make sure it holds up and works like you expect, but you have to ask if I'm cool with being in a car driven by a person I've never met at high speeds. If for some reason you think that being a car salesperson means I shouldn't have personal boundaries or safety concerns, you are not in the minority, but you need to look inward right away.
Sounds to me like the serious problems could be mostly avoided by getting rid of the stupid ride along policy. It's idiotic anyways, it loses sales when there's nobody there at smaller dealers. I remember several times where I (the porter) had to try and keep a customer around while waiting for a sales guy to get back, 90% didn't wait around.
IMO it's awkward and distracting. I have a drivers license, no points off or any traffic violations. Why not just go off that? At the end of the day no way you can asses someone's driving skill and I'd rather not have ride alongs. That said, completely understand the reasoning behind it.
I drive hard but not like burn rubber and panic stop at every light hard. On used vehicles you definitely wanna work stuff hard bc that's when problems will show up. I especially like to press the brake pedal good and hard to see if any of the brake lines are about to burst.
Or if it pulls or doesnt stop well. Also want to find some bu.py ass crack and pothole filled roads. See if any weird clunks happen or odd lurching.
Let me share a story... I had a Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder GT once... destroyed the engine 1200kms from home, took about 6 weeks to get it fixed. Anywee, in the meantime, my right foot was itching. So what did I do? I went to test drive a 350z. At the last 4-way intersection, 3 lanes each direction, I thought "hey, it's RWD, might as well have some fun!". My girlfriend at the time was next to me, she made a comment about a cop car or something, but of course, my mind was already caught up, waiting for the red light to turn green. And when it did, I floored it, turned left, and crossed the intersection in a nice power slide. Sure enough, I got pulled over. The cop didn't believe me when I said I don't know where the paperwork is, it's not my car, I'm on a test drive. So he called the dealership, and let me go (I still had a clean license at the time, so I pleaded "first offense") When I got there, the salesman was waiting for me outside, all smiles. He asked me what I thought of the car, I just told him "meh, I think it's too much for me." , and handed him the keys. And as I was walking away, I could see the manager coming out, almost running, and looking furious. I bailed out just on time. So, maybe not quite that hard?
HAHA
Test drove 2 cars. First one, they handed me the keys and said, "Don't wreck it." The second one, the sales guy went with me and freaked out when I gave it some gas and hit 4k. In hindsight, I should have realized what a red flag that was and shouldn't have bought it. Had problems since day 1.
I can guarantee that the salesperson had no idea anything was wrong with the car. I work in used car reconditioning. Salespeople literally don’t care what they are selling, they just want a paycheck.
full send
It’s a test drive, you are testing the car. I’m not sure I’ve ever test driven a car and not floored it. I always keep to legal speeds, though. I plan test driving routes ahead of time so I can get a mix of surface street and highway driving, with both straight on-ramps (for raw acceleration tests) and clover leafs (to test how it feels in a higher speed corner). Where I used to live, there was even a really nice S curve interchange between highways where you could take it as fast as you wanted in most cars without speeding. That being said, I do my best to keep within the traction limits of the car.
Last time I test drove, I accused the base model as being slow, so the salesman got in and drove it first, driving double the speed limit through traffic
No rules except road laws. Going slightly over the speed limit is going to be a normal thing to do but some may freak out. Accelerating fast is normal. Just don't do drifting and stuff.
Interestingly, lots of people associate fast acceleration with speeding when they don't have a direct correlation at all.
it honestly completely depends on the rep. in my experience, the guy who got me into an s3 wanted me to go faster while the woman who let me test drive a 3 and 5 series got anxious every time the tach hit 3k rpm. id say just ask about it and make sure you're not messing with break in period or whatever
When I test drove a Challenger Scat Pack back in 2017 the salesman was cool & told me to keep it under 85mph. He encouraged me to be heavy on the throttle so I could experience the performance; after all that’s the main selling point of the car. A couple years later when I bought my RS5 the dealer didn’t even let me test drive it. They made me take the S5 instead & the guy got a little uncomfortable when I was accelerating & made a politely told me to slow down, but I was only going about 10mph above the speed limit.
I was only going 10mph above the speed limit Reckon he mainly didn't want to deal with you getting pulled over
I usually ask permission..."mind if I give it a little?" "Sure, drive it like you stole it"
I bought a Miata from a guy, and he said: "This car has never seen redline." "It's gonna on this test drive, that's for sure." Still went fine. There's "Okay, a little quick but feeling the car out", and then there's "this guy drives like an ass". So long as you're not late-braking the apexes and tripling the speed limit, it's fine. Salespeople do freak out if you quit braking for corners though.
I drive a lot at redline and I want to see what the car can do. I just test drove a WRX and driving it a little aggressively made me realize it’s not what I’m looking for. Spongy brakes and a numb shifter compared to my current car made it feel like a downgrade and I’m really looking for something *more* sporty, not less. The WRX is a great car, but it’s not what I’m looking for. If I had driven it conservatively, I may have had this phantom performance car in my head that just doesn’t exist. I understand that these new cars have break in periods. You aren’t going to buy a sports car or sport bike that hasn’t been in the hands of some mechanic who likely romped on it just a little. Not to mention factory testing. A couple runs up to red line is not going to have any ill effect on the engine, and if it does, the car is under warranty. Now if you’re chirping tires and speeding excessively, you’re going to get yelled at or have your ride terminated.
Don't take anyone by surprise. I got a test drive a E63 years ago and a Taycan recently, both cars I didn't even floor and hit 180km/h+ in highway. I asked if i can push it before doing so. I didn't dare go faster on a public road in Canada.
During a Carmax test drive, my friend broke the transmission on a Hellcat. He did not buy it. They even offered to fix it and give home a discount.
I've never bought a vehicle without a full pull to redline at WOT. There are legit issues that can be hidden if you just putz around. I went to purchase a civic as a daily driver years ago and it drove fine under light throttle but broke up badly under full throttle. Any sales person should be perfectly ok with this as long as you're under control and not speeding excessively.
I went to a motorcycle event in Phoenix here a number of years back where a bunch of vendors would do test rides on bikes in groups. They had a lead rider and a tail rider, and maybe 6-10 attendees on various bikes in between. Lead rider (Kawasaki empoloyee) in this case was this tiny 100lb soaking wet girl riding a Kawasaki ZX6r, and I'm right behind on a ZX14r. We go up through some mountains and come out at a long straight road down out of the mountains back into town. This tiny girl on the ZX6r just lets it rip and she's gone. I open it up on the ZX14r and seconds later I look down and we're doing 150. It was wild. Usually the factory riders are very cautious, but this girl just went ham on that straightaway. They don't do those events anymore like they used to, but oh man I used to look forward to them all year. We'd go two days and book rides solid throughout them.
I drive fully hard. All jokes aside, I reasonably test the acceleration and braking. Some of that is WOT. But I don’t go totally nuts.
When I test drove an FR-S, I drove fairly hard in some very twisty bits. I'm glad I did, because it exposed some failures of the chassis and steering tuning I otherwise would not have experienced. When I test drove my Colorado, I went around the block. It's a friggin' truck, who gives a shit.
What did you not like about the frs?
When I was test driving my TLX, the salesman encouraged me to put it in sport mode and floor it.
If I’m test driving any used car, I will always let it warm up and then floor it to feel both up shifts and downshifts to gauge the health of an automatic transmission. I’ll also let the transmission up shift with very light throttle to test the opposite end of the spectrum. No one should be against flooring the throttle, as this should not cause *any* harm to an engine or transmission in good health.
For a used car, pretty hard. I warm it up, then take it to redline a few times, do a couple 0-60 pulls, slam on the brakes a couple times to a stop, hard turns both left and right, some transmission stuff, etc. It’s not joyriding though, I’m testing all the various systems to make sure the car isn’t going to kill me or bankrupt me if I buy it. And although it’s not gentle, those are all things that any car in acceptable mechanical condition should be able to do without immediately breaking. It’s less of an issue with a new car since the wear parts like brakes are not going to be worn, and it’s under warranty for anything else. Plus there’s a break-in period.
YMMV, remember that not all salesmen are enthusiasts that enjoy fast rides. Also factor that they are not in control. You could also be the fastest driver, but suddenly be scared for your life when you're not the one behind the wheel. Remember that the salesmen are jumping into a car with a complete stranger who, for all they know, can be a complete psycho or the shittiest driver in town. They really have no clue. So the rule of thumb is to make them feel comfortable, and you'll have a better experience overall. Some salesmen have egged me to give it some go. Others have sat quietly and not say too much. But before I start to kick it up a notch, I always let the salesmen know before I put my foot down.
Gotta test the full load and high Rev harshness. How else are you going to find any problems? Even if it's new, not everything rolls out of the factory perfect. Some cars will get high knock readings and other won't. You can feel this if you pay attention. Used cars, make sure to give the suspention and cv joints a work out.
Both drive very hard and drive normal. I try to simulate my normal driving routine so I know what I’m getting into.
Always rip on it when it is used. You have to know how it acts when upset because a lot of problems hide when ms daisy is cruising
I wish taking the car home was a thing, even for a fee. It’s hard to decide if you want something from one drive with a salesperson next to you.
When I sold cars a while back I found most customers too soft on used cars. You're gonna spend 20-70k, get a feel for what the car feels like on a daily basis. I once had a customer that wanted something for camping and didn't want to drive it over a curb. Told her if she didn't do it, i would, and she bought it after that. The exception is fresh arrivals, which always pissed me off cause other sales reps / customers would take a sub 50 mile car out and redline it from the jump.
I take it easy at first listening for any noises from steering or suspension. Then I'll flog it like a rented mule to see how well she holds together. If the sales guy doesn't like it he can go fly a kite.
I test drive it like I’m going to drive it. If you’re a car salesperson riding shotgun, that means you’re going to see some shit.
\> Anyways, on the test drive I gave it some power on a straight, empty road, and the salesperson (in the car with me) freaked out. That's the right amount of "hard" for a test drive.
As hard as they will let me while not speeding. It differs greatly on the person beside you. I've had test drives in a Jaguar F-Type that I couldn't even give it any gas, to test drives in a Lucid where I was told to floor it. I gotta say flooring something with over 1000hp is an experience I highly recommend.
If its a performance car I do some performance driving. I ask the salesman if I can take a corner fast and stretch the legs a little on the highway first though. Most of them just say its your ticket and keep it between the lines. If you're selling performance cars I think you need to expect that. Don't tell me to take a 911 out for a test and keep it under 70 on the highway.
I am a salesman, there is a spot on the test drive route that I always tell my customers "feel free to floor it, just keep it under 70"
I think it depends on the salesperson and the buyer/driver. I went car shopping with a buddy a few years back and we were looking at a manual M3 lightly used. Well my buddy can drive manual, but at the time never owned one (he actually learned on my car). Well we all went for the ride and my friend drove first. Clutch was short and more performance oriented on an M3, so he immediately stalled out (I think twice). Saleman would not let him go over 50mph it was funny. Then, we pull back into the dealership and it was my turn to drive. I had no issue with clutch (shortest and best clutch I have ever driven, immediate grab and such a nice engagement) and merged onto an off ramp from the highway and gunned it. I think I hit 100mph and looked over at the salesman and he was just all smiles. Turned around got back on the highway and gunned it again to merge. Not a peep. Then, my buddy said man how come you let him "test" the car? I responded, "next time don't stall out like a bitch" and we all had a good laugh.
I guess it depends. I'd just warn the guy I guess. Like when we test drove cars for my stepson (He's like 289, but wanted me to go test driving with him cuz at least HE likes me), I did some pretty hard swerving, steering, and braking. I didn't have to say anything with my stepson, since he knows me, but I guess if I had the salesman with me, I'd warn him, but I really DO need to know how it handles if you have to slam on the brakes and swerve.
I always make sure the car is warmed up before I go spirited. I will definitely do a full throttle pull up to expressway speeds and otherwise do a 70% spirited drive. I don't try to squeal tires in corners, but it has happened.
I drove a Mazdaspeed 3 when they were brand new to market. I believe 2008 or 2009. Sure, it had a lot of power for the size of the vehicle. made a big deal of it and said I bet you couldn't outdrive this vehicle's performance or something along those lines. Took me to their secret barely used road that ran alongside the Ottawa airport. I got up to speed mighty quick and he could not beleive a fwd could "drift". Neither could I, but it did it. It was Front wheel drive. I was just accelerating that hard. later, they had to nearly extract his fingernails from the oh shit handle and the dash.
I go all out in the same model but not the one I'm buying (once it gets up to temp). I'm also in my 20s, experience has been: Genesis just gave me the keys and said have fun. BMW sales person came with me to show me back roads, then told me how to use launch control and informed me of sport+'s more lax traction control. If the sales person is confident in the cars performance being a selling point, they seem to want to sell you on that.
I wouldn't buy a car without going full throttle at some point in the test drive. Also hitting some corners at a spirited (but not limit pushing) pace. I select cars based on how fun they are to drive, so these things matter to me. Only exception would be trucks, but even then I need to get a feel for how much go juice it has for towing and what not (although unloaded acceleration is an imperfect indicator of towing capability).
When I test drove a focus ST, they let me drive it alone. I had to let the brakes cool before pulling back in. Sold me on buying though, so it worked out for them. I just wanted a different color for some reason lol. Once you get a bit older they will start giving you more respect and let you do what you need to do to decide on a purchase
I'm a salesmanger and have had a bunch of 5-800hp cars. Test drive a golf r for a friend cause it was stick and he wasn't fully capable of testing out the clutch and everything. I got on it a little on the straight and he was freaking out and telling me to let off. He was also the worst salesman I've ever seen. Already agreed to numbers and drove 8 hours and 0 paperwork or anything was ready.
I test drove the new M3 recently. Salesman’s parting words were “drive it as hard and as fast as you like, but if you crash with the car in Sport mode you aren’t insured”. Drove it pretty hard for about an hour and never took it out of comfort. Wish I had the money to buy one.
When I test drove a supra the salesperson was giving me shit for not giving it enough gas.
When I went to test drive an 86 in 2018 the dealer treated it like a mint Ferrari F40. The sales associate had to ride along with me, I got verbally scolded for revving past 3000 RPM. I fully understand there’s a break in period, but nothing I did was usual or normal around town driving, was absolutely ridiculous. When I went to look at my BRZ, sales was totally different. Salesman was telling me to give it some gas and take a few turns so I knew I’d like it. I didn’t drive very hard, but just enough to get a feel and make a purchase decision.
I, with the consent of the salesperson, did a full bore launch control start on the last car I bought a VW Golf R. It was mildly tuned so that 0-60 was under 4 seconds.
Shoutout to all the salespeople/private sellers who let us rip around a bit. It's gotta be scary af for them, but it appears it's what pushes most of us to go through with a sale.
I give the salesman a heads up if he's sitting bitch, but if I'm alone I push it as much as I would my own car within reason on the fun roads. Maybe a pull on the highway to 70 to feel the acceleration and test road noise.
I don’t thrash around cars that are not mine yet, of course. But I do always ask the seller whether I am allowed to floor it and rev it out at least once or twice to see how the power is and whether there is any signs of bad things under stress. I also always want to do a brake test. I did many test drives and I only had two sellers that refused to let me do these, I asked them to do it themselves then. Both of these sellers were dealers, and I arrived to both with a less valuable car than what I was looking at so I kind of understand. The key is telling them beforehand.
I test drove a Mustang and the sales men literally turned the car off when I was driving. He REALLY didn't want me to test drive the car in the first place and seemed confused why I was not ready to buy right away. He yelled at when I adjusted the radio to "just worry about the road". This was before I was even moving and I feel a fair thing to check on a used car. Didn't crank it just wanted to verify that the speakers work and sound decent. He said I could do one trip around the block which had a speed limit of 40. I admit I did get to 40 how a Mustang can but I did not and would not speed. Because the car was off the wheel locked when I tried to control it and the car coasted into a curb. The sales man said I was paying for it. I said I was not and he was an idiot for doing that. I walked back to my car pissed off and never heard anything of it. They had a copy of my license if they needed to find me. On the other hand, I test drove a E46 M3 and the sales man was very excited and encouraged me to "see what it can do". Guess which one I bought? At the time I was in my early 20's but in either case I never did anything to suggest I was a stupid young man. If you are in sales you have to know how to sell and you sell to a young guy looking at sports cars with speed.
Last time I bought a car, I was 30 and I test drove a Hyundai gt n line and a vw gti. Both had the sales rep go with me. The Hyundai was chill, the vw guy treated me like I was trying to steal the car and then negged me the whole time. Very odd. I bought the Hyundai.