Buying a new car is always an occasion on its own. Waiting to finally get your hands on your new beloved possession can provide happiness that a very few other moments can match. Ask the hardcore auto enthusiasts and everyone will bluntly tell you that buying their new car is one of the best feelings they have ever been subjected to. However, taking delivery of a new car in India is a tricky affair, thanks to various scams that have come to light over the past many years. As a result, it is important to maintain your calm and ensure that you perform all necessary checks before proceeding ahead with your new car delivery. In order to help our readers, we have drafted a step-by-step guide to explain how to take delivery of a new car in India.
Step 1: PDI – Pre-Delivery Inspection
PDI is a very important step that is often neglected by a majority of Indian car buyers. PDI, which is the acronym for Pre-Delivery Inspection, consists of a comprehensive inspection of your vehicle, before the dealer sends it for registration with the RTO. It must be noted here that you should do the PDI before the car is registered in your name. If you find any fault with the car after its RTO registration, you won’t be in a position to do much since the car is legally already sold to you.
In order to do a PDI, ask your sales advisor to inform you whenever the car reaches the showroom’s stockyard. Stockyard is the place where dealers park newly received cars before they are delivered to prospective owners. The sooner you have a look at your car, the better it is. Hence, make sure you visit the stockyard at the earliest after receiving the call from your sales advisor, so that further procedure can be executed once you verify the car.
Once you reach the stockyard, following are the checks you need to perform:
- Note down the car’s VIN (Vehicle Identification Number). This number will help you to know the exact month and year of manufacture. You can also ask your sales assistant to show the car’s Form 22 certificate, which will have all information about the car’s manufacturing month and year.
- If the car is older than 2 months, it is a high probability that it has been lying around some stockyard for a fairly long time. In such case, you should either back off from the purchase and inform the dealer that you need a newly manufactured car, or else you can ask him to offer some discounts if he wants to move the older stock.
- Check the car’s exteriors for any scratches, dents or repair marks. Vehicles often get scratched or bruised during transportation and the dealerships try to hide it from customers by doing shady touch-up jobs. These can easily be identified by looking closely at the paint finish, especially under direct sunlight. If you find any major issues, ask the sales advisor to change the car. No point in buying a bruised vehicle.
- Move to the inside and check whether there are any signs of mishandling. This point becomes especially important if your car comes with dual-tone colours with lighter shades (beige, white, etc.). If you do find any marks, just notify it to the sales advisor and he will get it cleaned. Nothing major here.
- On the interiors, also carefully check the car’s seats. Verify that the stitching is fine and there are no loose ends across the upholstery.
Step 2: Finalising the deal
Once you are satisfied with the PDI, go ahead finalise your deal with the sales advisor. Make sure he mentions all applicable charges on the invoice, including registration, insurance and accessory prices (if opted). Inform him that you won’t be paying anything over the price that has been mentioned on the invoice. Once the invoice is ready, go through it comprehensively. Check all taxes applied by calculating them yourself with a calculator. Don’t rely on calculations done by the SA as they are often found to overcharge taxes. Additionally, keep in mind that the Supreme Court of India has announced that any dealer should not charge handling charges from the customers. Make sure such charges have not been added to your invoice. Once satisfied, confirm you delivery date and time with the SA, thank him for his services and leave the showroom with a smile on your face. You just took one more step closer to the beginning of your ownership experience.
Step 3: The Day of Delivery
So the day to bring your new baby (or beast) home has finally arrived. Following are the major points you need to take care of.
- Reach the showroom around 15 minutes ahead of the scheduled time. Check whether the car is ready or not. Event if it isn’t ready, be courteous and inform your SA about your arrival. Complete the documentation and visit the service centre. Get acquainted with the service manager so that when you bring your car for after sales services, you know whom to talk to.
- Once the car is ready, do a final inspection again. Ensure everything that you pointed out during the PDI has been addressed.
- Note that all accessories that you had opted have been installed correctly. Also check that all tyres (including the spare) are fresh.
- Ask your sales advisor to give you a demo of the car. He will explain all switches, functions and infotainment settings on the car. Don’t hesitate to ask him any doubt, it is a part of their job.
- Say thanks to everyone, especially your SA and Service Manager.
- Inquire about the nearest fuel pump. Dealers generally put a very small amount of fuel in new cars, which is just enough to take you to the nearest petrol/diesel station.
- Shake hands with your SA and leave with a smile.
- Congrats! You are now an owner of a shining beauty!
