The new cars you can actually buy right now and drive away without waiting - even in a lockdown

You’ve probably heard that customers are waiting months for their cars to arrive after they’ve bought them due to the disruption caused by COVID-19, but CarsGuide has tracked down dealerships in Sydney and Melbourne where you can buy a new car and drive it away with waiting. That’s right, even during a lockdown, Sydneysiders.

It only took a bit of digging to find some instant new-car treasure, and we’re going to let you know where it’s buried. We also hope it inspires you to do some digging yourself.

Of course, people are going to start snapping these up, but at the time we put this together, all vehicles mentioned were still in stock. We know that there are other dealerships out there also with stock, but here are just a few of our picks to get you started. Let’s go.

Read More About Volkswagen T-ROC

Global semiconductor shortage explained: What the car chip shortage means for your next new vehicle - delivery delays and long wait times included New Toyota HiLux delivery delays: Longer wait times expected for best-selling ute and related Fortuner SUV due to parts shortage VW T-Roc 2020 review: 140TSI Sport

Melbourne

Melbourne has just come out of a lockdown and that means you can actually go into a dealership and take a car for test drive. 

Now, we’ve spoken to many car dealers in Melbourne, and they’re telling us that supply is still tight due to the semiconductor shortage and COVID-19, but they’re starting to see stock levels being replenished. 

If you’re after a small SUV that begins in ‘T’ and ends in ‘Roc’, then Essendon Volkswagen has five T-Rocs available to buy and drive away immediately. All five are the 140TSI, which is the hero of the range and start at about $40,500. There’s even one with the Ravenna Blue metallic paint.

Essendon Volkswagen also has the Passat R-Line, which lists for about $64K and has the potent 206kW turbo-petrol engine. Oh, and it’s grey.

There’s also a Polo in the Trendline grade, or if you want a bit more bang for your buck, there’s a GTI version.

Along with those, the same dealership also has a Tiguan Wolfsburg Edition in stock, and if you’re after the latest-generation Golf Mk 8, they have just one on the showroom floor and it’s white; it’s the Life grade and it has your name on it.

Moving upmarket a bit is Melbourne BMW at Southbank, and they’ve told us they can find you nearly any BMW model you want and have you in it within 72 hours – apart from the new 4 Series, which is in very short supply. 

If it’s the outgoing X3 you’re after, they have it in black and white in regular and M Sport specifications. There’s also an M3 Competition in Isle of Man Green waiting for somebody to walk in and buy it. The M3 Competition lists for $154,900.

Looking for something that’ll go off-road? Then Brighton Nissan has Navaras ready right now, including the top-of-the-range and hard-to-come-by-right-now PRO-4X. This one is on the dealership floor now. It was allocated to a customer who then changed their mind. Their loss, your win. It’s red, it’s an auto and it’s $63k.

Brighton Nissan also has two other entry-grade SL dual-cab 4x4 Navaras in stock. One is a demo model, the other is brand new. A 4x2 Navara ST in Frozen Silver is also ready to buy and drive away.

The same dealership also has entry-grade Jukes and an X-Trail ST in the forecourt. Forget the Qashqai – these are a very hard to find anywhere we’re told. 

Sydney

In Sydney, we’ve uncovered many brand-new cars sitting in dealerships ready to buy and drive away right now. Yes, the current COVID outbreak has Sydney in a strict Lockdown and only the service centres of dealerships are open, but you’re absolutely still able to buy a car if you use the ‘click and collect’ process.

The car dealership click and collect system is a bit different to what you’d use at Bunnings. What you need to do is call the dealership, tell them what you’re looking for, then they’ll email you the paperwork, you’ll pay through electronic funds transfer or a loan organised through a finance company, and then you collect the car from the dealership.

Picking up the car is done in a safe way that follows health guidelines and involves minimal contact. Basically, the salesperson will arrange a time for you to come into the dealership where the key will be waiting for you and the car will be ready to go.

What about a test drive? Yeah, nah… not during the current lockdown. But dealerships all over Sydney have told us that this is not putting people off. The dealerships are also getting creative and producing bespoke videos for customers with a walkaround of the vehicle they’re interested in. 

CarsGuide also has thousands of reviews on cars we’ve test driven and family tested as well, which will help take the guess work out for you.

Anyway, let’s get into the where these new cars are. Again, this is just the tip of the ‘car berg’; there’s plenty more out there, but here’s just a small selection to get you started.

First up, Sydney City Toyota in Glebe and Waterloo have six Corolla hatches - four in the Ascent Sport grade, and one each in SX and ZR form. All of them have the petrol four-cylinder engine, but hybrids variants will be at the dealership in September. The SX lists for $28,795 and the Ascent Sport is $23,895 before on-road costs.

They also have 12 Camrys in the Ascent Sport grade, and all of them are Glacier White in colour and they are all hybrids, so it looks like a fleet deal has fallen over there. The list price is $36,290.

There are three Supras in stock right now there, too. One is a demo and is Monza Red, the other two are brand new and wear the Bathurst Black hue. All are the GTS grade with a list price of $97,003.

The list goes on with five hybrid versions of the Yaris SX in Super White and Crystal Pearl. These list for $29,130.

Then there's two Fortuners, both are GXLs and have the Premium Interior pack, which adds leather seats. These list for $54,350 and a grand or so more for the optional pack.

Finally, for Sydney City Toyota, there's one HilLux in stock - it's an SR5 Hi-Rider 2WD double-cab. These list for $53,690. And last but certainly not least are two Prados - both with the flat tailgate. One is the GXL grade in Crystal Pearl and the other is a Kakadu in Graphite. List price here is $67,530 for the GXL and $87,807 for the top-of-the-range Kakadu.

Suttons City Kia in Zetland has the Cerato in stock. They have a grey entry-grade S hatch which lists for $25,490, and a white GT sedan with a list price of $35,290. There’s also two Picanto GT-Lines, Black or Grey are the two colour choices there. The GT-Line sits high in the Picanto range but is one of the best and most affordable tiny cars in Australia at $18,740.

The folks at Thomson Ford in Parramatta tell us that European-sourced cars are hard to come by, and that means the Focus and Fiesta, but you’re in luck if you’re after a Ranger dual-cab 4x4 ute or Everest seven-seat SUV. Among others, Thomson Ford has a black Ranger Wildtrak and a white Everest in the Trend grade. Wildtraks with an auto transmission list for $64,590, while the Everest Trend starts at $57,090 for the rear-wheel-drive version.

Now that is just a small sample of what is out there in Melbourne and Sydney. It’s proof that not all new car purchased require you to wait months for new car to be delivered. As many dealerships told us, as long as you’re not fussed by the colour or grade, there are a lot of models that you can buy and drive away almost immediately. 

We recommend you call around just like we did and ask what’s in stock – you might just find what you’re looking for without the wait.