New vs nearly new cars – which should you pick?

At carwow, our aim is to get you a brand new car for as little money and hassle as possible. Speccing up a model in our car configurator will get you the very best deal but, depending on the model you’ve picked, you may have a wait a while before your vehicle is delivered. One alternative is to opt for a nearly new car. These are cars that dealers have in stock and are ready to drive away immediately – but have either covered a few hundred miles as demonstrator cars, or have been pre-registered by the dealer. We’ve put together a guide explaining the key differences to help you decide if a nearly new car would be a better fit for you – and we also have a third way of getting a new car that you may not have thought of. Try out our car configurator to get see how much carwow could help you save on your next new car.

Brand new cars

If you’re going to get a brand new car, your first step will be to place a factory order with a dealer. When you spec up a car with carwow, you’ll be able to email or telephone the dealer to talk further about the offer and your car. This method means you’re able to choose a personalised specification that’s exactly right for you. Our configurator makes this easy – you’ll already have chosen the colour, trim level and of course your preferred engine and gearbox combo. The downside is that you’ll have a wait for your car to be built and delivered to the dealership. This can vary from a few weeks to a few months and often depends on the manufacturer and specification chosen. Another issue is that once an order’s been placed, it can sometimes be difficult to change it.

Nearly new cars

If you don’t like the idea of waiting for your new car, you can opt for a nearly new one instead. These cars are usually ordered by the dealer, either as demonstrators or test vehicles, they won’t have covered many miles and are, in essence, new cars. You may have to compromise a little on specification, however. Being ready to drive out the showroom means you can’t specify the car to your exact standards. That aside, opting for this method will save you time and, in some cases, money. You won’t be the first owner on the car’s history file, however, because the dealer will have registered demo cars and pre-reg cars in their name. If you need a completely new car but without the wait, you have a third option…

Stock cars – a way to get a brand-new car, faster

Some dealers on carwow will show you a list of new cars that they have in stock. These aren’t registered, aren’t ex-demonstrators but brand new cars the dealer has ordered to fill their showroom. Again, you won’t be able to choose the exact specification because the car will have already been built, but that means you won’t have to wait several weeks or months either.

Save money on your next car

Whether you opt for a brand new car or one that’s nearly new, use our car configurator to get the best deals and find out what cars are immediately available. For more options, head over to our deals page or, if you’re struggling to decide which car’s for you, try our handy car chooser.