[dejongj]

Would you buy it unseen? Ordering one in the UK is proving an absolute pain. I have heard back from Nissan today and they can't say anything about availability or colour, the only way to find out is to order one...

I am slightly concerned about this as I have never really ordered a car, without seeing one and let alone knowing when I would get it. There answer was, it could be March, it could be April, it could be May. My interpretation is that it could be September....

I am worried about the trade-in value of my Nissan Patrol if I keep on driving it based around 3000miles per month...

So here is the question: As you own a Murano, do you think it is good enough to buy it unseen with uncertaintity about delivery? Knowing what you know now would you do it?

 

[GripperDon]

It's a great Vehicle. You will be very glad you did it. Freeze your trade in value. Make the deal Now!

 

[simplesb]

I guess I would be more cautious because of my bad luck. I like tangible things. There are to many outstanding issue including the delivery;whether it meet your needs; if it is a comfortable ride for you; if it fits you; what do you do if something go wrong? do they have the infrastructure there to do repairs if you were delivered something that had a defect? Something about a dealership you can go to to b*** and complain.

 

[Ohio Murano]

I would buy it unseen if, they could give me a delivery date and refund my deposit if it wasn't delivered by the deadline.

 

[Eric L.]

I technically bought mine unseen. Before I even testdrove one, I already had the deal ready on paper for me to sign. I did my research online, but I think the biggest selling point was that I drove a Maxima before, so I wanted the "Maxima of SUVs."

 

[Stoker]

Would I buy it unseen

I would probably would, I took almost a year to research three types of cars before I bought mine. I did test drove it, but I was probably convinced to buy it before that happen.

It was reassuring to see that Lemonaid books for the 2005 model year still rate the Mo at 5oo5 stars. Thst coming from that book is high praise.

 

[dejongj]

Interesting stuff so far! But then again I did expect a little bias ;-)

 

[mgthe3]

I think I would do it if I wanted one bad enough...which I did, the salesman knew I was a sure sell when I walked in the door.
hehe
I think I would get them to put on paper that ANY shipping defect would be fixed perfectly before you took possession of it.
Besides, I bet if it was on their lot because you didn't take delivery for some odd reason, it wouldn't last a week.
There is no equal, the wannabe's aren't even competition.

 

[NatasG]

My purchase was partially sight unseen.

1) I had never seen the Merlot Ext
2) The Murano I test drove was a SL not SE with no VDC or Manual cvt mode
3) The interior was not Charcoal either

Took a chance on the colors and the handling and am loving every minute of it. GO FOR IT!

 

[EasternPA]

I did too (*)

I know its hard for any of us to put ourselves exactly in your shoes, but I come pretty close (to the sight unseen part, not the unknown delivery part). I did all my research online for a week or so, test drove some other car models, read the reviews, selected my options online, and then searched dealer inventories. The dealer I planned to use had the only exact match in stock in my area, so I called and asked them to hold it for me. I went in, test drove it for 15 minutes, and drove it home. It had 46 miles on it, so I know a bunch of people had taken it for a spin. I still thought "screw it, let's do it. Its too nice."

At least you have the benefit of having a couple of years' worth of improvements made to the car's design. I bought it in its first model year. I can't tell you how I'd feel about the unknown delivery date, unless they were willing to take your trade and give you a flexible lease to fill the gap or something. As has been said already, what's going to happen to your trade-in in the meantime?

 

[GripperDon]

I also bought my 2000 S430 sight unseen and before they were even in production. Now that's faith or stupidity, Don't know which one for sure.

 

[9495]

I have a very hard time buying ANYTHING unseen. Especially a $30k vehicle. There are just too many things that you can't know for sure that you will like. Especially in the comfort area. Just because the seats are comfortable for some people doesn't mean that you'll like them. The feel of the car is subjective.

I would never make an expensive purchase without first trying it out to make sure it was the right choice for me.

But, then again, I'm the guy who waited and researched for an entire year before finally ordering my MO from the factory (should be here the 2nd or 3rd week of February).

 

[Kris]

No I would not. I need to know what I am going to drive. $35k investment is just too risky. I spent too much time in a car not to like it. Also, others opinions may be very misleading, to say the least......

And in your situation, not knowing the color, not even driving one, not delivery time.............hm, no, I would not buy. But that just me.........

 

[MichaelMurano]

I would not. I factory ordered a car once and when I picked it up it had a real nice dimple in the driver side door. A factory defect in the metal.

 

[Halo]

Unseen #1: Never seen the vehicle up close, never sat in it, never drove it: NO.

Unseen #2: Seen at least a demo in the showroom, sat in it, drove it. Order a DIFFERENT vehicle of the same model with slightly different options and color: YES.

I don't know what kind of contract they are offering you. I have a friend who is waiting on an Elise he ordered last year and he put down a 2 thousand dollar deposit to take delivery of a yellow one at MSRP. His trade will be assesed at the time of delivery and he can back out for any reason at any time before signing the ownership papers and get his 2 grand back. So, if the car isn't what he wanted, or it's dented, or they lowball him on his trade or any of a million other reasons to change his mind... no big deal. Well, lost earnings on 2 thousand dollars for about 4 months, so maybe 70 bucks? (Sadly Lotus just cranked the MSRP on the Elise accross the board so it's going to cost a bit more... but hey, it's an Elise!.

 

[9495]

I would not. I factory ordered a car once and when I picked it up it had a real nice dimple in the driver side door. A factory defect in the metal.

Well, if that happens you simply refuse delivery until everything is fixed to your liking. That's the deal. I made a factory order that is supposed to be delivered the 2nd or 3rd week of February (crossing fingers). If ANYTHING is wrong with it, I walk away. If they can't fix it, then they have to order me a new one. Otherwise I get my $500 deposit back. That's the deal, and it's written in the contract that way. They'll try to convince you otherwise, of course, but you don't have to take it.

Now, mind you, if there isn't anything wrong with it and you just decide you don't want it for some reason, that's a different story. You can walk away if you like, but you lose your deposit. For only $500 (I think that's standard for Nissan in the US) that's not really a big deal if you think about it. Yes, a $500 mistake, but you don't have to shell out the full $30k for something you don't want.

 

[mozman]

It really depends on the type of buyer you are.
In this case, you're spending $30+K. Personally I would want to test drive one before deciding. You never know, you may not like the placement of the cup holders, or how the various functions/controls operate so much that it turns you off. Or... gasp.. you may not like the CVT But more seriously, a test drive or view of the actual model may help you decide what options you may/may not want.

But if you do order, I agree with everyone on the board in saying that you would most likely be happy with the Mo.

If and when you get it post pics. I'd like to see the driver's seat on the right side of the Mo.

 

[MichaelMurano]

Don't factory order

I factory ordered. Along with a nice defect in the metal, a couple months later when I went to use the AC I found the tubing/hoses weren't even hooked up to the vents. Those were just signs of the troubles ahead. A factory order is a rush order. You also can't negotiate price on a factory order. Dealers want to sell what they have. In a well documented case in the Wash DC area a guy ordered an Infiniti - he went to a national car show at the city's convention center - on display was a car that exactly matched what he ordered - they told him it wasn't in yet - kids were jumping in an out of it (I wonder why people take their kids to these car shows and let them jump in and out of the cars - are the 10 year olds going to buy a car? - whole other topic) - so the guy calls his wife and reads off the serial number and it's his - was published in the Washington Post - of course the dealership said there was a 'mistake'. Anyway, you definitely want to test drive THE ONE you are going to buy. If it comes in and looks ok and you test drive it and you find something wrong, will they give you your money back? -now it has miles on it. Be patient. Surf the Nissan website. One will come in to your specs. Yes, you should be able to factory order and get exactly what you want with a hassle but it doesn't work that way.

 

[dejongj]

Really interesting stuff...

I have nearly always factory ordered my cars, it is just too unlikely that they have a new one in stock exactly how I want it. Hey our currently Nissan Patrol is built-to-order only, so there is always a three month wait.
This is a quite normal situation in Europe. If you want to compromise dealer may have some cars pre-ordered in their 'network', so if you like the options on the car you are lucky...But you probably know that especially with the German brands (BMW, Mercedes, Audi, VW) nearly everything is an option and there are so many to choose from, so they (the dealer) just won't have it in stock...

With the Nissan Murano it is a slight different storey, all the UK cars will be pre-ordered, made in Japan, shipped to Amsterdam (Holland) and then distributed to the UK so that is it. Nissan UK is saying it is on a first come first serve basis. I just find it silly that 1 month before it is due they can't tell me my position in the queue.

I don't mind factory orders at all, and the law is quite good in the UK as I think upto 3 months you can reject your car with full refund (depending on mileage done and the grounds for rejection, within 7 days you can reject on hardly any grounds...).

I have gone for it anyway now; only option I could choose was Cayman blue (Pearlescent paint) and the rest is standard; that is, every factory option available in the US is standard on the UK cars!!!

Price is a whole different matter, I wish I was talking about a $30k investment. Unfortunately car manufacturers seem subsidise US prices by hiking it in the rest of the world. The Murano is for sell at GBP29800 which at the current exchange rate equates to $55795...That is quite interesting isn't it...

We've decided to sell the Nissan Patrol privately in the mean time, my wife will use my BMW 750 in the mean time and I will use (aaargh) public transport: taxi (really don't do the bus!) to the train station and then a taxi to work...According to my accountant I can claim it back anyway from our Inland Revenue ;-)

Thanks for all the different views...

 

[GripperDon]

CONGRATS AND GOOD LUCK Tell us how it goes. If we are getting subsidized prices over here, Wheeeee!