Taking delivery - checklist?

[Karma]

Taking delivery of a build to order A3 in the coming weeks - what are some items you'd ask the dealer to do/not do. So far I have asked them to:

• Not wash or wax the car. I'll do that so I don't drive off the lot with scratches/swirls.
• Not drill a front plate holder or swap in a blank.

Others?

[Knight2000]

Taking delivery of a build to order A3 in the coming weeks - what are some items you'd ask the dealer to do/not do. So far I have asked them to:

• Not wash or wax the car. I'll do that so I don't drive off the lot with scratches/swirls.
• Not drill a front plate holder or swap in a blank.

Others?

Audi's use plate fillers, no holes to drill. That would have been decided at the time of order, which filler panel you will get. If you live in a state in which front plates are not required, the dealer probably ordered the standard one.

If you're being that picky about what a dealer does / doesn't do, you're going to be disappointed. I can understand the no washing/waxing the car, because a lot of people like to do that, but one thing you should understand is that cars do get damaged on trucks, even if it's a minor scratch. You are still responsible for taking the vehicle, as the detailing of the vehicle and professionally fixing any of those types of scratches is up to them.

That being said, I would have them detail the inside, because the adhesives that Audi uses for certain things is impossible to get off, and you don't want your first experience with the car to be a bad one.

It is required -- by Audi -- that after PDI, the car is to be driven to ensure no mechanical malfunctions. You will receive a car with anywhere between 10 and 30 miles on it. They usually come from port with about 7 miles.

If you plan on putting premium fuel in the car (assuming it's gas, not TDI), then request that the dealer put premium in it at delivery. Not all dealers will, but it's worth a shot.

Other than that, don't worry and enjoy your car!

[Karma]

Good point, thanks. They are trying to find a blank plate for me and I'll absolutely be doing a through once over to check for any imperfections before driving off the lot.

I requested that they remove all adhesive, but to just skip the final wash/wax which I can handle. Just want them doing the stuff that I can't.

It an A3, not an R8. Not too worried about them joyriding, but helpful info on the expected mileage. 100 and I'd have questions.

Thanks again!

[barrier12]

Old and may be rare now trick, but when I was buying my Passat, I told them I will not take delivery until they show me confirmation my credit was approved on discussed conditions. There were stories when some dealerships would call new owners couple weeks after delivery and tell, that "bank did not approve your credit applications, so your APR is XX% instead of X%. If you do not want it, you can bring car back, we will BUY it from you, but for X,XXX less, than you paid because it is not new anymore". Finance guy came 5 minutes later with confirmation in his hand.

What I did not do, but what, of course, should be done, walk around and take a look, as mentioned before sometimes there might be some damage to brand new car, it may be "parking lot" driver's fault(car haul driver) or flying stone. In my case I am not aware of any damage in transit, but again, I bought car, which was just dropped of the "parking lot", it was sitting on everybody's way with plastic on windshield and 8 miles on the clock...

If you would like to make sure car was filled with premium, if possible, ride along with dealership rep. Friend of mine told(asked) rep to fill up with premium or at least mid-grade, drove along with him, stand next to the pump and rep still tried to choose 87...

Good luck with your new car.

[Knight2000]

Old and may be rare now trick, but when I was buying my Passat, I told them I will not take delivery until they show me confirmation my credit was approved on discussed conditions. There were stories when some dealerships would call new owners couple weeks after delivery and tell, that "bank did not approve your credit applications, so your APR is XX% instead of X%. If you do not want it, you can bring car back, we will BUY it from you, but for X,XXX less, than you paid because it is not new anymore". Finance guy came 5 minutes later with confirmation in his hand.

Good luck with your new car.

I have NEVER heard of a dealership doing this?? Possibly a B-lot, Buy-here-Pay-here type place, but still, those guys don't want to lose out either. They already make big bucks on people with poor credit. You have the right to see your approval, I guess. But a dealer that wishes to stay in business will never let a car roll over the curb without a proper credit approval and all paperwork signed and dated.

[barrier12]

Well, better be safe, than sorry. It did not cost me too much to ask, besides, you know salesman's "You can drive this car NOW, isn't is what you want???" And what he hear is "Pfft, I am not in a hurry, I can come to pick up this car tomorrow or whenever you will have my loan approved." His face-"Priceless".

A little bit off top. When I was negotiating purchase, another sales guy came(I guess manager sent him to me). He quickly grabbed from the desk keys for "my" car and said a little bit pushy "I have another customer, who wants this car. We have another for you, but it is different color!" I knew it was just game, so I looked at him, like I was worried, moved my body a little bit forward and asked impatiently
Me "Is this car with the same options?"
Sales "Yes!"
Me "Same price???"
Sales "Yes!!!"
I put my body all way back into the chair, looked away, like I did not care and said calmly "Go ahead".

Sales was quiet for half a minute, he just stood there, them put keys back on the desk and left without saying a word.

[phil123]

I have NEVER heard of a dealership doing this?? Possibly a B-lot, Buy-here-Pay-here type place, but still, those guys don't want to lose out either. They already make big bucks on people with poor credit. You have the right to see your approval, I guess. But a dealer that wishes to stay in business will never let a car roll over the curb without a proper credit approval and all paperwork signed and dated.

I have never heard of how he explained it. I have however heard of people not getting approved and the dealer trying to up the APR and wanting more, but what my buddy ended up doing was giving them the car back and they still had his trade in, so he just took it back

[Knight2000]

I have never heard of how he explained it. I have however heard of people not getting approved and the dealer trying to up the APR and wanting more, but what my buddy ended up doing was giving them the car back and they still had his trade in, so he just took it back

I sold VWs (and Audi/Porsche) for close to 4 years. Never did I see the scenario he described. Even on the used car side of things. When I left my first dealership and returned for a visit, F&I Manager tried to pull the "Your APR is 3.9%," and the customer looked at her and said, "But Audi's website says it's 0.9%." And she responded, "Well, we assume you don't have perfect credit -- their guidelines are strict." The customer said, "I'm an 840. I'll get the 0.9%." I'm glad I left when I did. I would not put up with any manager doing that. I would just quit. I don't work like that.

But asking someone to come back after all of the paperwork had been signed is ridiculous. If there was a mistake on the paperwork, like GAP or an extended service contract wasn't placed correctly, that's fine. But rates cannot change. At that point, if there really was a problem, the dealer is to eat the cost one way or another, even if they have to buy down the rate. Not the customer's fault. UNLESS....there was a stipulation on the approval and the customer said he/she was going to take care of, never did, and THEN and ONLY THEN should the car be returned. Legally.