You probably know that when you’re thinking about buying a car you have two choices, you can buy New or you can buy used, each have their own advantages and disadvantages to choose from. But what if we told you that there’s actually a third option? In this article we’re going to tell you all you need to know about demo cars. 

What Is A Demo Car?

A demo car is a new car that instead of being put on sale was given to the salespeople of the dealership to test drive for a certain amount of time, usually 1 year, with the hopes that driving the car will make them more informed about the car when it’s time to sell. Once this demo period is over these cars are put up for sale in their own special category. 

Literally speaking a demo car is a used car as it has been driven by another person before you, but it’s in this grey area because while it has been used, it’s never technically been sold, it’s always remained the property of the dealership.

Should You Buy One?

This grey area puts demo cars right between new and used and along with it the price. A demo car will still cost more than a used car, however it will also be cheaper than a new car, and that sweet spot in the middle could be exactly what you need. The reasons for the price drop are 2 fold: since the cars have been used their odometer is not going to be at zero which can be off putting to some people, and second because of that the cars have also depreciated in value.

As you may know the majority of a car’s depreciation happens in the first few years of its life which means that if you buy a demo car you’re skipping the very worst of the depreciation.

There are some downsides to this plan as well however. Since the demo car was made as a demo for someone else they’ve often already been custom tailored with all the features that person wanted, meaning colour and add-ons have already been set in stone. 

Demo cars are also relatively rare and it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to just walk into a dealership and ask to buy one. Instead you have to pay attention to the dealership listings and act fast when you see one since their competitive prices means they’re usually snapped up fast.