ADVICE: Demonstrator vehicles, are they a good deal?

You’ve probably seen multiple ads for demonstrator vehicles in newspapers or on the web when you were looking for your next vehicle. This type of vehicle actually falls between a new vehicle and a pre-owned vehicle, but often it offers advantages that compare more favorably to a new one than a used model.

A vehicle may hold the demo title for several different reasons. It may have been used by a dealership employee, or by the after-sales department as a service vehicle. It may also be a vehicle that has been registered as being sold in order to make room for new vehicles of the next model year.

In any case, the benefits of a demo vehicle are many. Here are three:

The price

A demonstrator vehicle will always be more affordable than a new vehicle, even if it ultimately has very little mileage. We mentioned that the demo vehicle is already registered and that its warranty has already begun, and that it already has a few kilometers under its belt, but these small realities are amply compensated by the fact that you save a lot on the retail prices and that you often have advantages in terms of financing.

The quality

We often tend to imagine demos vehicles as cars that have been used by potential buyers and therefore have not been well treated. The reality is often quite different. Demo vehicles come from a number of different sources, many of which are vehicles that have been loaned to employees or used by customers that already own a similar model. In any case, you can rest assured that these vehicles have been well treated, and have also been inspected.

Sometimes the vehicles in question have not even been used. These are vehicles of the last model year that have been registered by the dealer.

The warranty

Quite often, you get warranty protection that is virtually complete. Your demo vehicle is therefore protected for several more years, and for several kilometers. The same cannot be said for pre-owned vehicles, for example.

Thanks to Morrey Mazda of the North Shore for their help with this article.