Recently a reader wrote in saying that she was considering buying a new car from a dealership in her neighborhood. She liked the vehicle, liked the features and actually like the salesperson. But the car seemed to have a lot of miles on it for new vehicle, about 150.
She asked the salesperson why the car had so many miles and didn't get a straight answer. Because she didn't get an answer she began to wonder if in fact the car was used. She wondered if perhaps someone else had bought the car, driven it for a weekend, got buyer's remorse and returned the car. Then she began to wonder if the car was indeed new and if the price she was being quoted was still appropriate. What a great question!
The answer to her question is like most others: it isn't simple. The starting point to determine "newness" should always be the state code, the statutes in the state in which you live. "New" and "Used" are defined by each state. In Virginia, for example, the Motor Vehicle Code provides definitions for hundreds of terms.
Still using Virginia as an example, the mere fact that a vehicle has 150 odometer miles is not conclusive. One explanation for miles on the vehicle is that the dealer may have had the vehicle "dx'd" or transferred from another dealership 150 miles away. This would not change its status from "new" to "used." However, if the car was "test" driven by prospective customers or even sold and returned, in Virginia this would transform it into a "used" car.
The practical advice here is that if a car has a suspiciously high number of miles on it and is being represented as new, check with the local Department of Vehicles in your state (or whatever it is called locally). Ask how "new" is defined and at what point a vehicle is considered used. Also, make sure to ask them if cars that are used as demonstrator models for test drives are considered used.
Practically speaking, it usually makes no great difference whether the vehicle got the miles from test drives, delivery or a short-lived sale. The consumer presumably knew of the mileage and got a copy of an odometer statement. The real issue is: whether the vehicle is in "like-new" condition. Damage, defects, and repairs can then become issues that are actionable under warranty laws, consumer protection acts, and fraud.
About the only good reason for starting to fight with a dealer is when a car has been sold and brought back without disclosure to the new buyer or the dealer knowingly concealed damage. 150 miles on a new car is not unusual. 500 may be excessive, but not 150.
This raises another point. During our research into the subject of when a car becomes used, we looked at prices for several new and low-mileage used 1998 vehicles. In several of our tests we found that a low-mileage used vehicle (with about 1,000 miles on it) was in fact worth $1000 to $1,500 less than a brand new one. If this type of vehicle is of interest, check the Kelley Blue Book or the National Automotive Dealers Association pricing guides. You may save yourself some money by simply checking a few print publications and websites for prices.
