Whether you’re buying or leasing your next car one of the most important questions you have is “When will I get my car?”. In this article, we’re going to break down the leasing process and timescales involved to help you understand when you’ll get your new car if you decide to lease with Xcite Car Leasing.

What Does Delivery Lead Time Mean?

The delivery lead time is the expected time it will take to deliver your vehicle from when you place your order.

If you decide to lease through Xcite Car Leasing as part of the process you will have access to the Wessex Fleet dashboard which will show you two dates: the estimated delivery date and the confirmed delivery date.

The estimated delivery date is based on the updates we get on the dealer for the lead time of your vehicle, and if there is any movement from the dealer updates this will be reflected here for you. This is only an estimate and not a guaranteed delivery date.

The confirmed delivery date will remain blank until we have arranged the delivery with you.  

If you’d like to learn more about leasing delivery lead times then we recently wrote a piece that goes into more detail.

How Accurate is the Lead Time?

Before you even decide to commit to leasing a vehicle our Sales Team will advise you of the lead time on any vehicle that you are interested in. Then when we place the order with the dealer we will get a lead time on the vehicle we secure for you.

We aim to provide as honest a lead time as possible for you, but we are dependant on the dealer to provide us with accurate updates.

As the order progresses, we will get regularly get updates from the dealer on your vehicle and keep you informed of these even if there is no change to the lead time.

What Does In Stock Really Mean?

Cars are listed as in stock on our website if they are physically at the dealership, or if they are in the UK and expected to arrive at the dealership shortly.

When the vehicle is at the dealership and has been assigned a registration, the dealer will then be able to arrange delivery which is a quicker process on in stock vehicles which are at or near the dealership. So, if you’re looking to get a lease vehicle quickly then an in stock car would be the best choice for you.

You can take a look at our top in stock lease cars here and we recommend comparing these with our current top leasing offers if you are not in a rush for the car. 

It’s worth noting that the turn around time for delivery can vary between dealers but it is usually around a week from the day they offer delivery.

What is a Factory Order?

A Factory order allows you to build a car to your exact specification, choosing the colour, engine and additional technology or trim packs.

With a factory order your vehicle will be assigned a build slot. This is not always done when the order is placed but once the build slot has been assigned, we will have a better idea of the expected lead time on your vehicle.

How Long Will a Factory Order Car Take to Arrive?

The lead time on a factory order varies between manufacturers, and sometimes models, and can be anything from two weeks to six months.

Factory order lead times depend on several factors which include: 

• Model demand: If you are interested in a particularly popular model there may be a longer waiting time, as more orders will have been placed for the vehicle and you will be joining the back of a longer queue. 
• Options chosen: Depending on what additional options or packs you add to your vehicle production may take slightly longer.
• Time of year: The time of year can also impact your car’s lead time as some manufacturers focus on particular models at different times of the year. It’s important to note that some factories also have annual shutdowns, where they do not produce any vehicles for a few weeks.
• Factory location: Very few cars are produced in the UK now and depending on where the factory is located shipping times to the UK can be several weeks. 

As with all orders, we will let you know when you are placing the order what the estimated lead time would be and provide you with updates as the order progresses.

Can I Reduce the Lead Time?

There isn’t really any way for you to be able to reduce the lead time on your order.

If you’re looking to get a car quickly then it would be best to look at an in stock lease cars and complete your finance documents as quickly as possible.

Can I Change Spec on a Factory Order?

You may be able to change the spec if your lease vehicle is a factory order, however this will need to be done as quickly as possible after the order is placed. The further along the order is the less likely it will be that you can make any amendments.

It’s important to know that if you do make changes to the spec of your vehicle then this may mean that the manufacturer could move the build slot.

We can always look at alternative vehicles for you however this will also impact the lead time on the order.

What Impact Do My Finance Documents Have on Delivery?

Whether you decide to lease a vehicle that is in stock or a factory order you will need to have the finance documents completed and approved by the funder before we can arrange delivery.

For a personal lease there is a 14 day cooling off period from when the finance documents are approved. During this period, we are unable to deliver the vehicle but can arrange delivery for when it is over.

Businesses do not usually have a cooling off period so as soon as the finance documents are completed we will be able to arrange delivery, provided the vehicle is in stock. If you are self-employed then a cooling off period may be applied depending on the size of your business.

Covid-19:

At the minute with the long term impact of the Coronavirus pandemic on the car industry still not fully clear we can’t be certain what kind of impact this will have on the industry as a whole. However, what is clear is that with factory closures around the world at various times due to lockdowns over the past six months there will be an impact on the lead time for factory orders.

If you are in the process of leasing a vehicle with us we will keep you updated on any changes to your vehicle lead time as soon as we are aware of them. And if you are looking to place an order we will provide you with up to date lead times on any vehicle you are interested in.

If you have any further questions about the lead time on a particular vehicle please don’t hesitate to get in touch either by dropping us an email or calling us on 0330 221 0000.