I have just been left a message by my dealer saying that I must take delivery of my car within 10 days since he has already registered it, otherwise I will not be able to buy it under the scrappage scheme.

1. Can he register the car before I have purchased it? I did an inspection of the car at the weekend and it failed so it has been left at the dealer for fixes. I signed nothing whilst I was there.
2. I can't find anything info on the scrappage scheme about a 10 day period after registration, does anybody know about this?

It's immensely inconvenient for me to return this weekend and just feel that he is spinning me a line trying to close the sale as early as possible.

I haven't bought a new car before so I would really appreciate and advice from buyers who have gone through the same experience or know the system better than I do.

Many thanks


PS Here's the info I found re. the scrappage scheme: http://www.ukcarscrappagescheme.co.uk/?p=330

we received our registration form through the post before we had seen the car.

Ours was registered at the end of November, we picked up early Dec (infact a year tomorrow!!). I think he just wanted it registered for his figures.

I can't believe that this affects your rights as you haven't paid.

Did you order the car?

booklady said:

I think he just wanted it registered for his figures.

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I agree, but does that mean I have to buy it within 10 days to qualify for the scrappage scheme?

pearce_jj said:

Did you order the car?

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Yes, in late September.

When you order a car and it arrives they register it.......

306maxi said:

When you order a car and it arrives they register it.......

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Well the car arrived in October and the dealer had to wait for some accessories to come into stock first. Why has he suddenly registered the car now (30th November)? I haven't paid for the new car, signed anything or given him my old car yet.

Does he just want to get his commission for November, or am I being cynical?

306maxi said:

When you order a car and it arrives they register it.......

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I'll bet that if the dealer got the car at the end of December and didnt register it until January the Op would then complain about having to pay the extra VAT,it seems the dealer can not win.

Agree with that, the car would normally be registered before you take delivery. Number plates, tax etc all have to be sorted.
This is the first post I've seen of someone not busting a gut to get to the showroom as soon as ,and get their mitts on their new 500.
Hope it works out for the OP and they enjoy their new car though.

loadswine said:

This is the first post I've seen of someone not busting a gut to get to the showroom as soon as ,and get their mitts on their new 500.
Hope it works out for the OP and they enjoy their new car though.

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Agreed, but I am nervous about parting with that amount of cash, I've had to save for a very long time :-(

You would not be able to take delivery of the car without it being registered. It is not something that you can do yourself without a lot of hassle and expense.

In regard to your point about 'did the dealer just want his commission?' almost pcertainly yes. But, as he has registered the car into last month's figures, but recieved no money, you are now a big red line on the 'debtors list'. This is a list that generally gets bought up at every morning meeting, with a 'why havent you sorted this yet' type ear bending, which is why he's now pressuring you to take the car.

Tell them its not convenient and you can't do it, as much as you'd like to. I can't see them cancelling the deal because they wanted to fudge their figures.

elation said:

You would not be able to take delivery of the car without it being registered. It is not something that you can do yourself without a lot of hassle and expense.

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actually it's dead simple and costs about £25, I know because we imported our multi from Ireland 10 years ago. The DVLA send you a pack, you fill it in, send it back and get a reg doc.

however you would expect the dealer to do it for you, there is no point in doing it yourself!

elation said:

Tell them its not convenient and you can't do it, as much as you'd like to. I can't see them cancelling the deal because they wanted to fudge their figures.

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Sorry if I'm being dumb but are suggesting that I should or should not say it's inconvenient?

openshac said:

Sorry if I'm being dumb but are suggesting that I should or should not say it's inconvenient?

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I'm pretty certain that elation means "Should say it is not convenient".

Try to offer an alternative date instead, rather than being just vague about when you want to pick it up.

grimwau said:

Try to offer an alternative date instead, rather than being just vague about when you want to pick it up.

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Ok but if I leave it past this weekend I will not be eligible for the scrappage scheme - I feel like he's backing me into a corner

openshac said:

Ok but if I leave it past this weekend I will not be eligible for the scrappage scheme - I feel like he's backing me into a corner

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As a curiousity, what would be your ideal solution to this problem?

Seriously, you ordered the car, he got it ready for delivery, you said 'I'm not happy with X' and he's agreed to fix it. * Unless X is a large gaping wound in the metal with fire coming out of it, what's the issue? Pay him for the car you ordered and go pick it up. If there are ongoing issues, this is why you have warranty.

No offense people but it's turned into whiney bitch central around here. My car has a smudge, my dealer is a prick because he won't give me mats, I'm complaining to god/bbc/fiat/forums because the dealer won't come around and polish my knob for me. **** you lot are hard to please. You know what you need to do? Spend £250k on a bentley. Then maybe the service will match your expectations. Or you could just whinge on the 500 forum. Please, if you chose the latter option, at least be creative. It's getting more repetitive than wallpaper in here.



* I can't believe I'm defending a Fiat dealer. What has the world come to?

It's my opinion (no offence intended towards the OP here) that the OP hasn't really had a thought about how it's usually done and what their rights are. When I picked my car up it was already registered. That's the way it works usually. If there had been a scratch in the paintwork it wouldn't have been the case where I rejected the car and got them to fix it before I picked it up but they would have just sorted it later.

You seem to be under the opinion that if you pay for the car that they'll throw you out into the cold when you ask for things to be sorted. All you need to do is take delivery of the car and have them note down the faults and sign, that way you've got something to fall back on.

I personally think you're being very picky by picking up 20 faults with the car including smudges and scratches on the interior. in use the interior of the 500 will scratch up over time, especially the door panels where the seatbelt will scratch them.

This reminds me of the time when I used to work @ a Sony repair centre and we delivered a gentlemans TV back to him and he shoved his nose right up against the tv and quite literally scanned across every single line of pixels to make sure each little pixel was pixelling itself to his very specifications. Let's not be silly about fault finding here, when your 500 leaves the factory it will most likely be absolutely perfect but the moment someone gets into it to drive it onto/off the truck/train/boat or out for its PDI it will show signs of wear and there will be perhaps some slight marking. Now if there is anything showstoppingly bad sure get it fixed but don't complain about the tiny little things. Heck there was a scratch in our 500's door car from new that would make some 500 owners curl up into the foetal position and cry themselves to sleep but do you know what? It's not visible when the door is closed so who gives a...... and in use it's gathered a few more scratches.

Where does the OP talk about 20 faults?

I guess I've been lucky in not having to go back or even phone the dealer since picking mine up in May, but I don't subscribe to the " bring it back and we'll fix it". From past experience once you drive off that's it, the interest in you car just left with you and it's on to the next customer. But, yes I've always put up with a minor blemish here and there, or sorted them myself.

Murano16v said:

Where does the OP talk about 20 faults?

I guess I've been lucky in not having to go back or even phone the dealer since picking mine up in May, but I don't subscribe to the " bring it back and we'll fix it". From past experience once you drive off that's it, the interest in you car just left with you and it's on to the next customer. But, yes I've always put up with a minor blemish here and there, or sorted them myself.

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In another thread.

If the dealer signs something which says "Here are these faults and we agree to fix them" then they're going to have a job weaseling out of things.

306maxi said:

In another thread.

If the dealer signs something which says "Here are these faults and we agree to fix them" then they're going to have a job weaseling out of things.

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In theory yes, but I have found that they often do not have the ability to do so.