Refused a test ride!!?!

[stevesnj]

I found this a strange policy at my local Yamaha dealer when i went to look at an 07 Leftover. I said to the salesman i would like to test ride their last 07 leftover before i buy...he said "we dont let customers test ride any of our bikes". I was like...HUH! I explained to him it would be silly of me not to be able to test ride something so expensive and something that I will use as my daily driver. He said it was the policy that no customers are permitted to test ride any bikes, even cruisers. Anyone run into this also?

 

[nlheikki]

Same exact story at my local Yamaha dealer.

 

[2-stroke]

I would have been laughed at if I asked around here

 

[dankatz]

same thing in Boston - it is a sucky policy. We should unite as riders and just say fine, we'll go to the next dealer. the problem is they don't have demo bikes (most of them).
i was dying for a test ride. I even told the dealer that I would buy A Bike from him, either the FZ6 or the GSX650F, but I wanted to test ride the GSX. He didn't let me

 

[Beknatok]

I found this a strange policy at my local Yamaha dealer when i went to look at an 07 Leftover. I said to the salesman i would like to test ride their last 07 leftover before i buy...he said "we dont let customers test ride any of our bikes". I was like...HUH! I explained to him it would be silly of me not to be able to test ride something so expensive and something that I will use as my daily driver. He said it was the policy that no customers are permitted to test ride any bikes, even cruisers. Anyone run into this also?

Hate to tell you this, but this is the status quo with motorcycles.

Honestly I'm not sure why, but my guesses would go along liability, too much risk of damage to the motorcycle, and immediate devaluation of a bike if it's ridden too much.

 

[bleego]

From what I understand Most Japanese dealers do not allow test rides. BMW I hear allows you to. Of course thats about twice as much as the FZ6, but yeah...

 

[Hellgate]

From what I understand Most Japanese dealers do not allow test rides. BMW I hear allows you to. Of course thats about twice as much as the FZ6, but yeah...

Buell will let you ride the 1125R

 

[rbesr]

My dealer lets me test anything on the salesfloor but I've bought over a dozen bikes from him in the last ten years. It's common policy with bike shops everywhere to refuse test rides. Who's to say the test rider is going to bring the bike back or in one piece? Most dealers either don't have the insurance to cover test rides or don't want to assume the liability of a rider that doesn't have the necessary skills needed to test out the bike they want. Watching new owners leave the lot last week on their new scoots scared the crap out of me. It was plainly evident that many of them either had never ridden a bike before or had not done so in many years. They insist on buying the biggest bike they can afford though. Watch for the fatality stats to go through the roof with the price of gas climbing out of sight!

 

[ant_mb]

My dealer won't let you ride anything new. You can ride any used bike on the floor as long as you have a license.

 

[Combat]

My dealer is the same way. The saleman said it was for liabitlty reasons. It makes sense to me although it sucks. Theres no way to know if the guy wanting a test ride knows what he's doing and it's to easy to down a bike.

 

[Arty]

How strange! How does a dealer expect you to part with your money if you cant even get a test ride?!

Here in the UK I have never had a problem getting a test ride, even when I obviously had no intention of buying.

The only restrictions here are that you normally have to sign an insurance document accepting that if you wreck it you will pay for the damage, and I believe some dealers are reluctant to let you take a demo if you have held your licence for less than a year.

I cant imagine buying a bike that I hadn't ridden.

 

[cbigbie191]

This seems to be the norm. Too many inexperienced riders out there and the dealers have no way of knowing who they are. BMW will let you test ride, Harley will let you rent a bike.

 

[brad81987]

My dealer let me test ride a used 07 before I bought mine as long as I had a license. Of course I also had to sign a form that said if I kill myself I won't hold them or Yamaha responsible, yada yada yada. I was barely out of the parking lot on it and I knew I was going to get one :Sport:

 

[Fred]

I went through four Yamaha dealers until I found one that would let me ride a used 06. None of them will let you ride a new bike. That's because nobody wants to buy a new bike with a couple hundred miles on it.

So I rode the used 06, and then bought a new 07.

BMW will do demo rides, but BMW tends to sell to experienced riders. Japanese brands tend to sell to squids.

It sucks, but it's how it is.

Fred

 

[jsteinb95]

I think that's pretty normal....CA is the same way.

 

[lytehouse]

My husband test rode my FZ6 for me...(I didn't have my licence yet) and the BMW/Ducati dealership let him take out a new 1098....
guess it's all in who ya know kids :rockon:

 

[gomd3]

lol, yeah the dealership said I could take a used bike for the whole week If I wanted to test drive it, I didn't ask about test driving the new model though...

 

[Nelly]

It does suck, I have been refused once in the UK ( for a used FZ6). I got my FZ6 else where then went back to get an oil filter lol. In general in the UK if you have full cover insurance you will get a test ride. Even if you stick 20miles on a used bike thats nothing. If a dealer lets you use the goods it lays the foundation for continued business which could amount to thousands over the course of your biking lifespan.
I hope you get it sorted.

Nelly

 

[Tallfry]

When I made the rounds at my local dealers, all of them offered to let me take a test ride as long as I had my endorsement. And sign a waver of course. Maybe that’s just an Oregon thing.

 

[HavBlue]

My dealer is the same way. The saleman said it was for liabitlty reasons. It makes sense to me although it sucks. Theres no way to know if the guy wanting a test ride knows what he's doing and it's to easy to down a bike.

This is it in a nutshell but I will say more dealers are coming around in that if you have a license they may allow you to ride some selected machines. Harley has certain times of the year when they will let you ride virtually all of their bikes with the exception of the Destroyer; providing you have a valid license. The same holds true for Buell. This isn't a car or truck and think about how many people don't have the skills necessary to go from even one bike to another without having problems. That's a scary thought.....