Road Cycling - How do you do a test ride?

For my next bike I plan to purchase it from my LBS. I'll likely choose from a Cervelo R2.5, Trek Madone SL and Kuota Kredo.

My LBS already carries Cervelo and Trek and are trying to become a Kuota dealer after I suggested it.

I can imagine them having a 54cm Trek Madone for a test ride, but I doubt they'll get in an R2.5 and if they do it probably won't be in my size. If they become a Kuota dealer maybe they'd get a Kredo in my size, but it would probably be ordered just for me.

I would like to ride each of these bikes. If my LBS doesn't have an R2.5 I suppose I could go elsewhere and test ride one, but honestly I would have no intention of buying the bike from there. Also, would it be unusual for the LBS to order a Kuota in my size? What if I like the Madone best of all? Would they be 'stuck' with the Kredo that they may or may not be able to sell?

Auto dealers seem to have some kind of network where they can call around and get a specific model or color to suit their customer from another dealer's stock. Can bike dealers do the same?

Yes bike dealers can do that. I don't think it's on the same level as the car dealers but my LBS had do to something similar to get my Giant OCR Elite. They only had a medium and a large on order. I needed a small. And the bike was on back order. The LBS called the Giant rep and he managed to locate one that hadn't been allocated yet. The next step would have been trying to find a dealer willing to give one up. As far as test riding it's definately a predicament. There were several bikes I ended up rulling out simply becuase nobody in town had one in my size. They were all willing to order, but that would commit me to the bike. Even if they let me walk away from it I would still feel guilty. Maybe check the local bike clubs and see if anyone owns the bike in your size that's willing to let you take it for a spin. I definately wouldn't spend that much money on a bike without a test ride first!

Some say they dont need a test ride before they buy and there research says it all for them. I do all the same research but would never buy a bike i couldnt ride. When i got my last it was between 3 so on the same day i tested one,when right to the other dealer and tested the other two,went right back to the other and did that one again and went back and did the two again. I wanted it to be as fresh in my mind as i could. Not days apart.

Yeah I think the problem with buying based on reviews and research is it doesn't account for the fit factor. All geometries will simply fit some people better than others.