We just bought a 2013 Jaguar XF 3.0 AWD for testing, and the dealership offered a welcome bit of concierge service: delivery to my home.
Having never experienced this before, I thought I'd give it a go and it worked out well. I made just one trip to the dealership, about 35 miles from my house, to choose the model and negotiate its price (knocking about $3,000 off).
We had to wait a week or so for the dealer to obtain our car in the color we wanted, a very dark red that Jaguar calls caviar. When the Jaguar XF was ready, the salesman called and offered to have it driven to my house, gratis.
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We arranged a time, and at the appointed hour, lo and behold, here came our new Jag, followed by a second vehicle that the two delivery guys would drive back in. I did a quick inspection to see that everything was correct, and then we moved to my dining room to complete the purchase. The whole transaction took less than 10 minutes. All I had to do was to sign the purchase agreement, odometer statement, and registration form, and hand over a Consumer Reports check for $56,671.
Besides saving a 70-mile round trip, this process spared me a last-minute pitch for an extended warranty, paint sealant, or some other nonsense—an ordeal that often drags out the transaction at a dealership. If the car had arrived damaged or wasn't right in some other respect, I'd have just said "no thanks" and sent it back. Either way, the convenience was unbeatable.
Now, its time for the essential 2,000 break-in miles before formal testing can begin.
