Would you buy a 'new' car with 100 miles on the odometer

[rickypicky]

Before I bought my Titanium Flash Mica with Tan/Black interior 2016 CX-5 Touring which had my second choice color combination, the dealer had a 2016 CX-5 Touring in Deep Crystal Blue with Tan/Black interior, which was my first choice color combo. Unfortunately, that vehicle had around 130 miles on it, so I didn't buy it. I decided to wait and got lucky as my car arrived a couple of days later. I couldn't be happier with it.

My question is, would you consider a car with over 100 miles on it to be 'new'? The dealer said it was perfectly normal for new cars to have over 100 miles on the odometer.

 

[Lawrence]

When I picked up my 2016 AWD GT with Tech in Soul Red/Parchment it had 12 miles on it.

Anything over 20 or so for me would be too much for a "New" car.

 

[bxpretzel]

Mine was supposed to have 80 miles on the odo (papers I signed). It actually had 49 on it. Anything less than 100 miles I think is fine. But it's your preference.

 

[IHeartGroceries]

Doesn't bother me. I've done it before.

If it hasn't been sitting on the lot long, which as a very new model, it obviously hasn't, it was almost certainly a dealer trade, which was just driven to the dealership by a salesperson from another local dealer.

 

[Ride92]

When I bought mine it had exactly 100 miles on the clock. The window sticker indicated that it was shipped and sold to a mazda dealer in Madison WI and I bought the car from it's sister dealer in Milwaukee WI. It's about an 80mi distance between the two. I was told that they transferred a lot of their cars from the Madison dealership because there was more space at the Milwaukee location. Not that big a deal to me.

 

[tzr916]

Not a problem for me. The 2016 CX5 I purchased had 121 miles on it.

 

[yrwei52]

No, not for me. We paid $30K for a new car, not a car with 100 miles on it! We picked up our special ordered CX-5 with only 3 miles on the odometer. Lowest we have ever got on all new cars we have had.

I think under 10 miles is the guide line. Any thing over that, means someone has done test-drive on it. You'll never know how did the person do during the test drive. Full throttle acceleration, constant highway speed, sudden brake, or worse, hitting pot holes or curbs! Nothing is good for a car requires the break-in period. That's way I don't like buying a new car which has been test-driven before! I don't like miles from dealer trade either. It means the constant highway speed for many miles which is not good for break-in either.

 

[mooneezy]

i bought mine with 126 on the odo. it was a dealer trade so it wasn't a problem for me. i knew the miles that were on it were the distance from glendale to SD and it was just the transporter/driver who drove it mostly and not mixed-styled driving by test drives

 

[IHeartGroceries]

I don't consider 30 or 50 miles of cruising on the highway as a violation of the "break-in" precautions arbitrarily stated in the owner's manual. A few hundred miles perhaps.

Modern engines are considered fully broken in before they even arrive to the end user. Anything stated in the manual is just precautionary.

If it's a violation of your conscience to purchase a new car which isn't new enough for you, fine, but it's silly to consider the potential driving habits of those who drove it before you, especially when the first 10 miles of the engine's life sees WOT and "racing ".

 

[DG_1234]

Mazda's " break in" expectation is that the first 500 miles will include highway driving as well as stop and go city traffic. And a car having multiple 10 minute dealership neighborhood test drives is better for the vehicle than sitting idle with no one running the motor.

 

[IHeartGroceries]

Because there's old fashioned rationale, which you appear to have, which necessitates its placement in the owner's manual. It's like 3K mile OCI. It's taken years to ween the public off of 3K OCI, even though it really hasn't been necessary for nearly 20 years.

People generally don't abuse autos they're test driving, because they're like you - they're driving a vehicle they might potentially purchase. Testing the acceleration and stopping power in the first 100 miles of a vehicle's life aren't going to do diddly squat. Neither consitites as the precautions described in the owner's manual.

 

[rmmazda]

i bought mine with 126 on the odo. it was a dealer trade so it wasn't a problem for me. i knew the miles that were on it were the distance from glendale to SD and it was just the transporter/driver who drove it mostly and not mixed-styled driving by test drives

My friend's car was having around 130 miles on it which the dealership said it was traded & driven from San Diego. I don't like that, dealerships should use a truck to transport instead of driving all the way like that. My new car was 7 miles on the odo when I bought it.

 

[yrwei52]

Modern engines are considered fully broken in before they even arrive to the end user. Anything stated in the manual is just precautionary.

You just contradicted to yourself by saying this. If modern engines are considered fully broken in before they arrive to us, why the car manufactures need precautionary measurement? And Why every car manufacture I've seen, Mazda, Toyota, Honda, BMW, VW, etc., specifies a beak-in period in the owner's manual?

If it's a violation of your conscience to purchase a new car which isn't new enough for you, fine, but it's silly to consider the potential driving habits of those who drove it before you, especially when the first 10 miles of the engine's life sees WOT and "racing ".

Many people do test drive with full throttle accelerations and hard stops to test out the performance. They run over pot holes to find out the ride characteristics. It is not the case to consider the potential driving habits of those who drove it before you, but the nature of the test drive itself. I don't think it's "silly"!

Because there's old fashioned rationale, which you appear to have, which necessitates its placement in the owner's manual. It's like 3K mile OCI. It's taken years to ween the public off of 3K OCI, even though it really hasn't been necessary for nearly 20 years.

So you're blaming old-schooler even on OCI? Car manufactures love to specify longer OCI whenever it's possible to make consumers have the false feeling that the maintenance cost is low. Environmental consideration is another reason. The lingering effect is hard to detect for very long period of time anyway. Owner's manual has been specifying 7,500-mile OCI for more than 20 years! And I really don't know what was your basis on your "3K-mile OCI" saying.

People generally don't abuse autos they're test driving, because they're like you - they're driving a vehicle they might potentially purchase. Testing the acceleration and stopping power in the first 100 miles of a vehicle's life aren't going to do diddly squat. Neither consitites as the precautions described in the owner's manual.

You may be the one not trying to "abuse" a new demo car, but many people will as they want to find out performance and ride. After all, it's what the test drive for, isn't it? As a matter of fact, many times the salesman riding with me encouraged me to step on the gas and brake pedals hard trying to show off the car! If you think hard acceleration and braking are not included in the precautionary during break-in period, please read your owner's manual. I prefer to get a new car without beng test driven to minimize the chances of having trouble later on, what's wrong with that? You may disagree with my opinion but don't blame everything on "old fashioned rationale"!

 

[bxpretzel]

You just contradicted to yourself by saying this. If modern engines are considered fully broken in before they arrive to us, why the car manufactures need precautionary measurement? And Why every car manufacture I've seen, Mazda, Toyota, Honda, BMW, VW, etc., specifies a beak-in period in the owner's manual?

Many people do test drive with full throttle accelerations and hard stops to test out the performance. They run over pot holes to find out the ride characteristics. It is not the case to consider the potential driving habits of those who drove it before you, but the nature of the test drive itself. I don't think it's "silly"!

But aren't hard accelerations and hard stops, coupled with normal driving, all stuff that's supposed to happen during the break-in period? Pretty much what you DON'T want is miles upon miles of highway driving at the same speed without changing the RPMs.

 

[cybercruiser]

I've bought many new cars over the years, different brands, different dealers, the lowest I remember, I think, was 9 miles, but, I think I bought one once that had just over 200 miles on it. If it's one that they've had out for more demos, vs one that was sitting in the back lot the entire time, the mileage will vary. All other things equal, I would go with the fewer miles of course.

 

[yrwei52]

But aren't hard accelerations and hard stops, coupled with normal driving, all stuff that's supposed to happen during the break-in period? Pretty much what you DON'T want is miles upon miles of highway driving at the same speed without changing the RPMs.

Every car manufacture has different ways to handle break-in period, but the principle, "gentle & variable" (term stole from Kedis82ZE8 downstairs), is the same.

For the first 1,000 km (600 miles) on Mazda CX-5:

• Do not race the engine.
• Do not maintain one constant speed, either slow or fast, for a long period of time.
• Do not drive constantly at full-throttle or high engine rpm for extended period of time.
• Avoid unnecessary hard stops.
• Avoid full-throttle starts.
• Do not tow a trailer.

For the first 1,000 km (600 miles) on Honda CR-V:

• Avoid full-throttle starts and rapid acceleration.
• Avoid hard braking.
• Do not change the oil until the recommended time or mileage interval shown in the maintenance schedule.

 

[Kedis82ZE8]

Mine had 8 miles on it IIRC... I did look for one that didn't appear to have anything other than maybe the dealer prep drive on it. I admittedly did romp on the demo I tested the week before pretty hard. The hardest was full throttle into that corner merging onto the Boeing freeway east near factory for the locals that know.

I'm open to both arguments on engine break-in but gentle & variable has served me well over the years.

 

[yrwei52]

I'm open to both arguments on engine break-in but gentle & variable has served me well over the years.

"Gentle & Variable"! This is the old-school thinking and it's well said for the break-in period. BTW, is that Boeing assembly plant in Seattle area? I wish I can be there for a tour.

 

[Kedis82ZE8]

"Gentle & Variable"! This is the old-school thinking and it's well said for the break-in period. BTW, is that Boeing assembly plant in Seattle area? I wish I can be there for a tour.

Yeah... the plant is in Everett, WA just north of Seattle 20 or so miles. I think it still holds the world record as largest according to volume.

 

[robertmazda]

To answer the original question, yes I would buy new with over 100 miles. I bought my 2013 as a Mazda corporate demo with about 5500 miles on it. It was one of the first off the line to come to the US (I got it in summer 2012, was built in early 2012) and was used to promote the new model around the Houston area. I'm now at nearly 50,000 miles. The car has never had a repair. Not one. I do my own maintenance.