If you’re confused about unregistered cars and wondering whether buying one is truly beneficial, you’re in the right place. In this blog, we will clear all your doubts — from when the warranty period actually starts (manufacturing date or after the car is registered in the buyer’s name) to which dealerships you should trust for purchasing an unregistered vehicle. We will also explain how to transfer an unregistered car to your name and what essential documents are required in the process. If you have any questions or concerns about unregistered cars, this guide will help you understand everything you need to know before making a decision.
In India, there are many automobile companies that manufacture new vehicles in their production plants. From 1 January 2024 to 1 December 2024, around 49,147 cars were produced. Out of this, approximately 43 lakh passenger cars from different brands were sent to new car dealerships.
But what exactly are new car dealerships?
Basically, these are agencies that purchase vehicles directly from the company at wholesale rates and then sell them at retail prices to end users — customers like you.
In india there are many automobile companies that manufacture new vehicle in their production, around 50,000 cars have been manufacture in the year of 2024. Around 43 lakh passengers cars from multiple automakers were supplied to new car showrooms. But what truly defines a new car dealership?there are agencies that purchase vehicle directly from the company in wholesale price then sell them at retail prices to end users – customer like us
The thing is that car agencies purchased 43 lakh cars. But the number of cars actually sold to end users — meaning the vehicles that were finally registered in the country — was 4,73,843. Now you might wonder: if the agencies bought so many cars, and only this many were registered, where did the gap of 2,13,000 cars come from?
That gap represents the cars that remained unsold or unregistered last year. These vehicles got carried forward into 2025.
Now what happens in 2025?
When a customer visits a new car showroom in January, February, or March to buy a vehicle, they usually say:
“Sir, I am paying the full amount. So give me a car manufactured in 2025 and registered in 2025 as well.”
So then what happens to the 2024 stock?
Let us explain. All those cars remain unregistered. The companies then use various methods and strategies to clear this stock and sell these vehicles to end users because the number is quite large. Twenty-one thousand cars — I don’t think I have shown even this many cars on my YouTube channel till date.
Let me explain. They use five tactics.
The first tactic — which you often see in newspapers or on TV channels — is discounts. For example, one company might offer a ₹50,000 discount, another might offer ₹70,000, and some even give discounts up to ₹1.5 lakh. As soon as people see these offers, they rush to the new car dealership, book the car, and proudly tell their friends and relatives that they got an amazing deal.
Now suppose there is still a car model that has very low demand. What will the dealership do in that case?
In such situations, the dealership increases the incentives for their sales team. They tell them, “This is the model that isn’t selling. Try selling it, and we will give you extra incentives or commissions.”
But let’s say even after this, the car still doesn’t sell — because remember, in the calendar year 2024, 2,13,000 cars remained unsold.
The next tactic they use is demo cars.
If a car isn’t selling, they convert it into a demo car. Any customer who visits the showroom is given a demo and test drive in that vehicle so they can build interest in that model.
Then if the car still does not get sold, what step do they follow next? They go for inter-dealer trade. Let’s suppose a car has no demand in a particular area, for example Delhi. If a Delhi dealer has 50 cars that are not selling, he will sell all those cars to a dealer in Bengaluru or Mumbai. And if Chennai has higher demand, then all the cars will be sent to the Chennai car dealer.
These cars eventually enter the open market, where dealers from across the country can purchase them at wholesale prices. If there is no local demand or dealers show little interest, the entire lot is often exported to countries such as those in Africa and Indonesia at significantly lower prices.
If around one and a half lakh cars remain unsold, those cars are then put up for auction. At these auctions, used car dealers participate and buy vehicles in large quantities — like 30 cars, 40 cars, even 50 cars at once.
For a normal retail customer, buying 50 cars at one time is very difficult. Let’s take an example: if one car costs ₹5 lakh and I want to buy 50 cars, I would need ₹2.5 crore. A regular retail buyer, who usually pays 20% cash and gets the rest financed, will never go for a deal worth ₹5 crore, ₹2.5 crore, or ₹3 crore. But used car dealers…
Dealers, whose primary business is to buy cars at reasonable rates and then sell them by earning their profit, pick up these vehicles directly from such auctions. So now you must have a fair idea of where these cars come from—either from the stockyard or directly from the company.
This explains how these cars come out of the stockyard or company even when they are unregistered.