Ever buy a new vehicle and then immediately return it?

[2binak]

We bought a new car this week, which I was soooooo excited about!!!!! They didn't have one on their lot in the color we ended up choosing so I didn't see it until after the paperwork was signed....and I HATE it! We saw the color online (on various pc's) and it was a dark, rich color. In person, it's bright as could be and looks nothing like the online (manufacturer) pics.

We have a few days to return the car, but we would have to pay a re-stocking fee of a couple of hundred dollars. I will have this car for a long time so I'm seriously considering returning it for a color that I will actually like. I should have asked to see a similar car on the lot in the same color or to see the car before signing the paperwork, but I didn't, which is not like me at all, and now I'm kicking myself. If we do return this car, it will be an expensive lesson learned on my part.

So have you ever bought a car and returned it for a reason like this or am I alone in this?

 

[Carl]

I returned one onetime. I came back the next day and told them that it had a high pitched sound that I could not live with. They took it back without any argument. I was surprised, but really glad, because it was extremely irritating.

 

[SandrA9810]

A couple hundred is a lot cheaper than getting a new paint job on it. Might be expensive, but you could also talk to the salesman to see what you could do about exchanging it. Just don't wait till it's too late.

 

[2binak]

A couple hundred is a lot cheaper than getting a new paint job on it. Might be expensive, but you could also talk to the salesman to see what you could do about exchanging it. Just don't wait till it's too late.

I like your thinking and thought the same thing myself, if only to make myself feel better about being out a few hundred bucks

 

[tlbwriter]

You have to live with this car - it needs to be a color that you do not hate!

 

[Cindy's Mom]

After a week, I returned a Chrysler Aspen. The thing was HUGE. I had to park in in the middle of the garage, so the overhead door opener tracks wouldn't hit it also, while it had every possible extra on it EXCEPT known to mankind, it didn't have a power antenna. So every time I pulled into the garage, the antenna would bend back. So beufroe I'd get to the garage, unscrew it and then pull into the garage. It took me like 10 minutes to get the car 1) in the right spot and 2) take off the antennea

DH would watch me, shake his head and laugh, he asked how long I was gonna put up with it, I said you're right, this is crazy. Went back to the dealer and traded it for a Dodge Journey. Now I can zip in and out of my garage without worry.

The dealer didn't bat an eye, and it lowered my payment too

 

[bethy]

Under those circumstances I would return it.

 

[S. C.]

I would return it. We recently bought a new Chevy Traverse, they did not have the color we wanted with the options we wanted so they got it from another dealer. We did not sign the final paper work until the vehicle was on the lot and we got to checked it out to be sure we were happy with it.

Love our new Traverse.

 

[SandrA9810]

My grandparents for years and years talked about getting a brand spanking new Lincoln Towncar. My grandfather's brother bought one and allowed my grandfather to drive it around town when we visited one summer. That was the car to have, and they really wanted one.
So one day my grandfather winds up taking the van to work, and drives home with a brand new Towncar. I think it stayed in the driveway for three days prior to him going back to the dealership to get his mini van back.

It was several years later, that he finally bought them a Capric Classic, and passed the van off to my sister. Who promptly killed it because she didn't know anything about mechanics of a car.

 

[EeyoreEma]

I'd return it. It's too big a purchase to have to live with something you really don't like.

 

[r1lissa]

Oh my gosh! I would never buy I vehicle that I hadn't physically laid my hands on! Whether or not they had the exact same kind in a different color on the lot- I would want to inspect the vehicle that I am actually taking home before signing any papers.

 

[natenapril]

We bought a 1996 dodge intrepid in 1997 and returned in two days later. They took it back only because we had received orders. I have never heard of anyone returning a car because of color though

 

[SandrA9810]

Well if no one ever returned a car, then there wouldn't be a return policy. If they offer a return policy, then it really shouldn't matter which reason you pick for returning it.

 

[tvguy]

After a week, I returned a Chrysler Aspen. The thing was HUGE. I had to park in in the middle of the garage, so the overhead door opener tracks wouldn't hit it also, while it had every possible extra on it EXCEPT known to mankind, it didn't have a power antenna. So every time I pulled into the garage, the antenna would bend back. So beufroe I'd get to the garage, unscrew it and then pull into the garage. It took me like 10 minutes to get the car 1) in the right spot and 2) take off the antennea

DH would watch me, shake his head and laugh, he asked how long I was gonna put up with it, I said you're right, this is crazy. Went back to the dealer and traded it for a Dodge Journey. Now I can zip in and out of my garage without worry.

The dealer didn't bat an eye, and it lowered my payment too

Wow, you must have a tiny garage. I have a tiny garage, 20' x 20' with a 7' high opening (the smallest dimensions allowed in my county for a 2 car garage) and my Suburban fits in their just fine.
24 x 24 is the norm here for a 2 car garage.

 

[momrek06]

Oh my gosh! I would never buy I vehicle that I hadn't physically laid my hands on! Whether or not they had the exact same kind in a different color on the lot- I would want to inspect the vehicle that I am actually taking home before signing any papers.

I did. My Trailblazer. It was going to be our second one. My next door neighbor worked for Chevy. I told him what color I wanted and he delivered it a few days later. That was in 2003 and I am still driving it.


To the OP, did you happened to ask the dealer (where you were ordering the car) that when it arrived, if you didn't like it, was there an option to back out of it and NOT be responsible for any fees?

Oh and I would pay the re-stocking fee and get the color you love!!!!!!!

 

[2binak]

First, I want to say thank you to everyone for being nice and not making me feel worse than I already do.

Second, we called the salesman last night and as of tomorrow, I will be driving the same car in a color that I like!!!!! They had one on their lot with all the same features, plus a feature that I didn't care if I had or not but DH really liked, so we're paying an extra few hundred dollars for the extra feature and calling it even (so no return fee in exchange for the extra feature).

I told him that the color we have is so vastly different from what we saw online and in the brochure (both of which are the same color) and he agreed that it is a darker, richer color in both of those places than it is in person so that made me feel better. He also told me that the dealership has had other buyers return cars for various reasons. It's good to know I'm not the first and probably won't be the last.

I'm more embarrassed than anything. It's not like me to not see something in person before buying it, especially a car! I even get nervous buying things online unless I've seen them in person first.

Thanks again everyone!

 

[SaraJayne]

First, I want to say thank you to everyone for being nice and not making me feel worse than I already do.

Second, we called the salesman last night and as of tomorrow, I will be driving the same car in a color that I like!!!!! They had one on their lot with all the same features, plus a feature that I didn't care if I had or not but DH really liked, so we're paying an extra few hundred dollars for the extra feature and calling it even (so no return fee in exchange for the extra feature).

I told him that the color we have is so vastly different from what we saw online and in the brochure (both of which are the same color) and he agreed that it is a darker, richer color in both of those places than it is in person so that made me feel better. He also told me that the dealership has had other buyers return cars for various reasons. It's good to know I'm not the first and probably won't be the last.

I'm more embarrassed than anything. It's not like me to not see something in person before buying it, especially a car! I even get nervous buying things online unless I've seen them in person first.

Thanks again everyone!

That is great service!

And I'm glad you're getting a car that you like the color.

 

[ICF]

Oh my gosh! I would never buy I vehicle that I hadn't physically laid my hands on! Whether or not they had the exact same kind in a different color on the lot- I would want to inspect the vehicle that I am actually taking home before signing any papers.

MTE....I've never heard of signing the papers if they don't have the car in their actual possession for me to look and and check out.

 

[2binak]

MTE....I've never heard of signing the papers if they don't have the car in their actual possession for me to look and and check out.

Agreed! We've never bought a car without seeing the actual car we are buying first and like I said in my original post, I can't for the life of me figure out why I didn't ask to see this one. The only reason I can think of is that when we arrived to sign the paperwork with the business manager, we were exchanging hellos with our salesperson when he had another customer show up. She was not familiar with the car buying process and began yelling at our salesman about numbers that he had e-mailed her and ads in the paper. His focus immediately shifted to trying to calm her down since she was disrupting the entire showroom and making everyone feel uneasy. While he was doing that, the business mgr. brought us into his office to sign the papers. It was a mistake on all of our parts. Our salesman did apologize last night for not showing us the actual car and I think that's in-part why the exchange is being done without much fuss.

 

[j's m]

My MIL has driven Camrys for years, and always bought a new one without a test drive. The last car same thing. She drove it for a weekend and was very unhappy with the way it drove on the highway that she returned it. They gave her the trade in and her cash back.