How Long Does It Usually Take from Car Purchase to Delivery?
3 Answers
Generally, the process is completed within 5 working days from the application date. Below are some considerations for first-time car buyers: 1. Determine Purchasing Power: To ensure that buying a car does not affect the overall quality of family life, it is generally recommended to allocate 20% of the family's average income over the past three years, but not exceeding 10% of the family's fixed asset value. 2. Determine the Brand to Purchase: Based on your purchasing power, you can roughly determine how much you can spend on a car, which helps narrow down the brands you can consider (this process excludes personal preferences). Among these brands, safety is the most important factor for family cars, followed by affordability, as the safety of the car carries the lives of the entire family, making it the top priority. 3. Visit 4S Stores for Specific Inquiries: Based on the above two steps, you can shortlist a few car models. Then, visit 4S stores to inspect the cars, including test drives, price inquiries, loan options, and after-sales services like maintenance and repairs.
I've gained quite some experience when buying cars. Generally, the speed of delivery depends on whether the car is in the dealer's inventory. For ready-made cars, you can drive it away within a day or two after payment. Last time I bought a car from stock, I took delivery the same day. But ordering a car is more troublesome, like custom colors or high-end versions, waiting for the manufacturer to produce it takes about a month. That time, I waited four weeks to get it. Payment methods also affect the time. Cash transactions are basically immediate, while loans take a few more days due to bank approval. Before taking delivery, you also need to handle procedures like licensing and buying insurance, which delays at least half a day. It's advisable to check the inventory status before buying to avoid waiting too anxiously like I did.
I often deal with helping people buy cars, and the pickup time is really unpredictable. The most common scenario is getting it done within three days, especially for inventory cars, which is super fast. However, if the car needs to be transferred from another location or is a new order, it takes at least a week or more due to the long-distance transportation by the manufacturer. Buyers opting for loans need to be more patient, as the bank approval process takes at least two days, whereas cash payments allow for same-day pickup. On the day of pickup, there's also paperwork to sign and a vehicle inspection, which usually takes about an hour. I've even encountered buyers who waited a month and a half for a custom-ordered car—back then, I advised them to leave some buffer time to avoid disrupting their travel plans.
