Why car dealers refuse test drives on NICE Road

They cite customer and vehicle safety, and long service time

Taking a car or bike for a spin on NICE Road is something many fancy but showrooms in Bengaluru aren’t up for it.

Dayanand Sagar, assistant sales manager at a Millers Road car showroom, said, “Two years ago, a customer got into a minor accident while testing a car from another showroom on NICE Road. Since then, we don’t allow it. We prefer smaller roads or national highways and an executive always accompanies the customer.”

Requests to test a car or bike on NICE Road don’t come in big numbers, Metrolife learnt.

But when they do, Samanth, an executive of a second-hand car showroom on Hosur Road, denies them flatly. It is an expressway, he reasons. The apprehension is that customers may overspeed or perform stunts.

Sharath Raj, manager of a bike showroom in Banashankari, says they have accepted such requests not more than twice but each time, they stopped before the toll booth. Riding past the toll gate would mean the customer bearing the charges and the accompanying executive enduring a long exit. “We can’t spend so much time on one test drive,” he says.

Likewise, an executive from a used vehicle showroom in HSR Layout says they can’t spare a staff member to tag along to far-off spots. Most sellers allow test drives in the range of 1-2 km to 5-7 km from the showroom.

Some oblige but conditionally. Prakash Murthy, proprietor of a car showroom in JP Nagar, says, “Buyers like to check the performance of vehicles on high-speed (corridors) like NICE Road and we allow it. But if something goes wrong with the vehicle, they have to bear the cost.”

Ravish Uthappa, CEO of a used car showroom in BTM Layout, says he may allow it only if they are “serious about the deal” or “known” to him. “What if the vehicle meets with an accident, or fails? (In such cases), the risk has to be borne by sellers, not customers,” he explains.

Sudhakar Hegde, chief security officer, NICE, told Metrolife they don’t object to test drives or rides as long as customers pay toll charges and don’t obstruct other vehicles.