High Mileage

Skyuser

I saw a 01 Astra with 110,000 miles which is loads. But what can happen to the car with high mileage?

Dilbert75

110k miles is high enough but that's only 22k/year, which is not extraordinary these days. It depends how its been looked after - if its had rigorous servicing on the button and the miles have been done on good roads, then it'll be no problem (apart from the obvious wear issues - stuff wears out). I'd prefer that to a car that was used for low mileage - going to and from the mart down country lanes towing trailers of livestock, with animal feed in the boot, with the car getting an oil change every three years "whether it needs it or not".

pontovic

The mileage on a car is not the 'true' effect of wear and tear it has undergone. If you are buying a car of that age, look for a service history and check the clutch. Make sure you won't need to change it soon. See when the timing belt was done as well. Having to change these items can set you back a good deal at the mechanics.

colm_mcm

If you're in any doubt it'd be worth your while hiring a mechanic to give it the once over.

damo605

It's not the mileage that's on a car that matters, it's the mileage you're going to put on it!
If you're going to be doing very little miles this could be a perfect car - you get a 01 for small money, use it for a few years and when you come to sell it the mileage is only average.
If you're going to be doing a lot of miles then you would probably be better off getting a slighty older lower mileage car as a newer car with high mileage will soon become worthless as it piles on more miles and may start costing in maintenance/repairs....

maidhc

Skyuser wrote:

But what can happen to the car with high mileage?

Parts wear out.

Every single mechanical part has a mean time between failure. Cars are full of moving parts, and as the miles pile up the closer you get to something breaking. It may happen nothing will break for 300k, or things might start going wrong at 40k, it all depends on how the car was designed first day and minded thereafter.

Skyuser

It's only €2300. I can't resist.

byte

That's not a bad price for a 2001 car! Obviously, it's a bit of a risk with the high mileage. I suppose if you did have to change major parts, it would still work out cheap enough overall.

*shrug*

maidhc

Skyuser wrote:

It's only €2300. I can't resist.

Is it clean, tidy looking? Service history? Who owned it? Was it ever crashed?

bazz26

Skyuser wrote:

It's only €2300. I can't resist.

That sounds very cheap for a 5 year old Astra with 110k miles. Sounds way too cheap to me. My guess is that a 01 Astra even with 110k miles would still fetch about €5k or more.

Do you know the person selling it that they are letting it go so cheaply, ie. a family member/friend who strangly may not be aware of the true value of the car ?

I would definately have it checked out fully by a mechanic, I would also have a HPI check done on it. At the end of the day €2300 sounds too good to be true in this case unless the current owner won the lotto or is hiding something.

Skyuser

Nope it's from an Opel dealer and they'll service it before they give it to me. I wanted an older one for about 3 grand and then he told me about that one. It's a posh model too with mahogony lol

damo605

Well, for that sort of money you would be mad to pass it up
I'd say get someone to have a look and make sure there's nothing seriously wrong and if not: jump at a really cheap car!!!

comanche_cor

Skyuser wrote:

It's only €2300. I can't resist.

Sounds far too chear - look at what the vrt calculator gives for its price.

What someone else said about buying a high milage car if you are only going to pult up low miles makes complete sense. Did the same thing myself.

I would be wary of the price - two saying that you hear being thown around when buying a car. If its too good to be true, then it usually is. If it doesn't feel right walk away.

byte

Is the dealer offering any sort of warranty?

Dilbert75

I doubt an Opel dealer will sell an Opel from their forecourt if its in any way dodgy - they'd sooner sell it on to another non-franchised dealer, buffers their reputation. Thing is a car with 101k on it is about as highly sought-after as a dose of the squits. Subject to a check, it sounds worth a whirl to me though...

unkel

bazz26 wrote:

That sounds very cheap for a 5 year old Astra with 110k miles. Sounds way too cheap to me. My guess is that a 01 Astra even with 110k miles would still fetch about €5k or more

Yes it is too cheap and no it's not too cheap. Imho the car is worth a lot more. That makes it a great deal especially if you get a wee warranty from the dealer. Then again, the dealer knows very well that the vast majority of people here have this anal thing about any car with >100k miles and it'll be difficult to sell to the public. I guess he's letting it go to you for just above trade value

If you're not getting a warranty, make sure you check the car out!