Please keep us posted on how your hunt goes.

I enjoyed the V6’s in my previous D4’s and it was okay in the Fatty that I first test drove, but I knew the V8 was for me as soon as I started to turn it around on the dealer’s forecourt before the test drive!

I will do - there are plenty of FF RRA around , just not the spec I want. If I have to pay top price to purchase, i need good price for mine.

Negotiations continue... the other issue is mileage, mine has just gone to 60000 and don't see the point in buying something which has covered 30 to 40000 miles. ------------------------------------------
L405 4.4 V8 18 FFRR Autobiography (facelift) Santorini Black with Shadow Pack
L405 3.0 V6 13.5 FFRR Autobiography Santorini Black
L322 4.4 V8 12 FFRR Autobiography Santorini Black (RR Styling Pack)
L322 3.6 V8 10 FFRR Autobiography Santorini Black
L322 3.6 V8 07 FFRR Vogue SE Santorini Black
L322 3.0 I6 55 FFRR Autobiography Santorini Black

Just bought a MY17, yesterday, and without consultation or reading up, I'd already decided on the last of the 'analogue' interiors. MY17 is the ultimate full fat IMO.

I'm pleasantly surprised by the fact others have come to the same conclusion!

Excellent choice !

After some serious negotiation I have done a deal on the vehicle I wanted with the exact spec and back in a V8.

I really was torn in holding out for a MY17 - after giving it much consideration I went for the MY18.

It will be interesting to compare to MY 13.5. I’m nervous with click and collect but if not as described I will decline for sure.

Roll on a week Saturday for collection.  ------------------------------------------
L405 4.4 V8 18 FFRR Autobiography (facelift) Santorini Black with Shadow Pack
L405 3.0 V6 13.5 FFRR Autobiography Santorini Black
L322 4.4 V8 12 FFRR Autobiography Santorini Black (RR Styling Pack)
L322 3.6 V8 10 FFRR Autobiography Santorini Black
L322 3.6 V8 07 FFRR Vogue SE Santorini Black
L322 3.0 I6 55 FFRR Autobiography Santorini Black

Look forward to seeing it !

Good choice! MY23 Panamera E-Hybrid
MY19 SDV8 Autobiography - Sold

Be aware that a dealer's idea of a "spotless" car may be a million miles away from your own!

The disadvantage of click and collect, if you're travelling a distance, is that those little things you could get the dealer to fix is just so much more difficult than if you'd looked at the car first. I travelled a couple of hours to view the car, pointed out all the things I needed doing (which they agreed to do) and then picked the car up 10 days later. Even then when I got home I spotted a small scratch which may not have been there when I first viewed it - but what's the point travelling down another 4 hours there and back to get a small scratch polished out?

Lot easier of course if your dealer is local.

regards, L405 4.4 AB Loire Blue
Tesla Model Y
Audi A6 2012 (sold)
BMW 5 series 3.0 petrol, champagne II edition (sold)

I had a really hard time with my car after it was bought unseen despite the salesman's promise it was mint and only 8k miles use. It had several issues and I wish I'd made the effort to look at it first, never again will I trust them.

I bought my L322 unseen all the way in middlesborough last year. I ordered my wife's BMW M2 Competition through click and collect last month. I'm really not bothered about them making or having it perfect. First stop there after was to a detailer to get the job done properly. No garage/dealership can ever do it to the required standard in my opinion. And if there is anything wrong, well there is warranty. I'm having them maintained locally no problem at all.

I wouldn't do that with a private sale, but under a trade sale there is plenty of consumer protection to deal with it. In my opinion and experience..

I get the warranty aspect when buying sight unseen but it's the hassle factor, inconvenience and disappointment that I dislike the most.
All problems can mostly be fixed be it paintwork or mechanical but should a used FFRR from a main dealer not be near on as perfect as can be considering the 'claimed' checks and high standards that they supposedly work to for an approved car?
It seems a subconscious battle between customer and car dealer every time, one half expects high standards the other half does their best to get away with the least possible. Lots of stories on this forum of poorly prepared approved used cars.

True, but at the same time if you hold everyone else by your own high standards you will always end up disappointed in my experience.

Stuff happens. Our recent BMW still had lots of iron deposits on it. Clearly not washed well. But I found that a blessing in disguise so they couldn’t make swirls in the paint work either

We all have different tolerance levels. I would check what you can at home and take the test as it comes under warranty. Heck one BMW I looked at from a main dealer was terrible. So glad I asked for the build sheet copy as I found out it was build a whole year before it was registered. Then also it was build with different colour stitching then the interior. Yet it only had 100 miles. The dealer said they swapped the interior with another car. Didn’t mention that at all. I’d be fuming if I found that out after pickup, so glad I checked remotely n

My car had a crust hanging off the tailgate bottom edge where it had been v badly painted, flat battery, cracked front bumper, damage to front wing, overspray on a trim piece and grubby inside, not unreasonable to expect none of this irrespective of anyone's level of quality standards. If I'd seen the car before purchase I would have discounted it straight away but the salesman convinced me the car was mint so I took him at his word although a few marks or the odd issue is apart of buying a used car I agree.
Mine was a stand out example of how not to prepare a car. It's been fixed and continues to be a great car but I was v disappointed to start with.
We all have different expectations but no one should be lied to, they'd had it about a year or more for sale, I can see why if people were viewing it in person.

Anyway, I've moved on now, this thread brought back the memories of my delivery day.

Thanks all, I have more pictures and video than you would believe. I haven’t purchased from main dealer, purchased from smaller company who specialise in high end cars. My experience so far has been outstanding.

I have to admit I do have high expectations. I will only transfer the money once I have seen the car on the day of collection.

Trust Pilot have outstanding reviews for this company from initial inquiry to after sales care.

Click image to enlarge

Yeah it is really disappointing turning up expecting one thing and getting something totally different. That’s why I went down to look at the car I eventually bought first. The dealer did ask me whether they should prepare it so that if everything was ok I could drive away on the day. I decided to say no to that as I’d have to arrange insurance etc and it would just be a load of hassle if it needed work or had been seriously misdescribed.

And I’m glad I did - I’m not particularly picky but there definitely a dozen or so marks and scratches on the interior and exterior and loose trim pieces too which they agreed to fix. They even resprayed the entire edging just below the grill as there was a gouge in the paint there. They also fixed a badly marked piece of interior trim and a discoloured driver seat (looked like blue jean marks). All this on a car they described as more or less perfect. Though to their credit all the work was done without any quibble and to a good standard. I then returned the following week to satisfy myself on the remedial work and pay for the car using a debit card (apparently easier and quicker than bank transfer).

So, overall very glad I viewed the car before purchase. L405 4.4 AB Loire Blue
Tesla Model Y
Audi A6 2012 (sold)
BMW 5 series 3.0 petrol, champagne II edition (sold)