Buying a used car in Ireland guide

bazz26

It is possible the previous owner lost the logbook and requested a new one before trading/selling the car to the dealer. A car history check would surely tell you how long the previous owner had the car also.

L-M

larrymiller wrote: »

Yep I will in the morning!

Any update?

larrymiller

Limerick man wrote: »

Any update?

They had taken the 1500 of the listed price!
Pointless I think

L-M

larrymiller wrote: »

They had taken the 1500 of the listed price!
Pointless I think

Aye. Is the van priced 1500 cheaper than others?

larrymiller

Limerick man wrote: »

Aye. Is the van priced 1500 cheaper than others?

Yeah it is to be fair. I was thinking it was to cheap to be true.

L-M

larrymiller wrote: »

Yeah it is to be fair. I was thinking it was to cheap to be true.

Even with the "Trade in allowance" if it's too cheap to be true, it is.

bazz26

There is a certain large dealer based in the South East with multiple brands who does the same on carzone. I tend to just ignore their stock as it's annoying and misleading.

lfbmick

Hi,
I have dilemma,cant decide what car to buy. I had my mind set on honda accord type S 2ltr petrol.Looked at few of them and all where in bad shape,in need for body work.

Then found audi a4 2005 1.8 t spotless, but looking for 5250 which is bit to much for 05 car?
And there is honda accord 2007 type s 2 ltr petrol,but needs some minor body work.

What you think guys?

I can't put link in as I'm new member.

bazz26

If your preference is for an Accord and the ones you are rough then chances your looking at the cheapest ones of that year. If the car has rough bodywork then it would suggest to me that the car was not cared for that well. I would suggest dropping back a year for a tidier one within your budget.

lfbmick

bazz26 wrote: »

If your preference is for an Accord and the ones you are rough then chances your looking at the cheapest ones of that year. If the car has rough bodywork then it would suggest to me that the car was not cared for that well. I would suggest dropping back a year for a tidier one within your budget.

Tanks bazz26,but its not the case, the ones i checked was 06 where going for over 6 k. Whe I look at the pictures it looks good,and owner claims that car is spotless.When I get there and point issues,they all have the same answer: - car is 8 years old so you should expect to be like that. That's why I started looking at other options.

hoody

hoody wrote: »

Hi there,

Posted here recently when the other half was about to buy, got some great advice so hoping that I can get some myself now. New arrival on the way in January next year, so I need to move from my 00 1.4 Astra that has 231k miles on a petrol engine to something a bit fresher and with a bit more room.

Budget would be around €6500 - €7500 and I'm thinking diesel as I do about 15000 miles of mostly motorway driving each year. Any suggestions or am I best to stick to the obvious choices like 08/09 Ford Mondeos or Skoda Octavias? Probably won't be buying til later in the year but want to keep an eye out in case a bargain comes along!

Thanks for help

Had a look at a Skoda Octavia 1.9 TDI this morning, dealer is asking €8500, car has 81000 miles on it. Would give me about €500 for the Astra. Car seems fairly solid and I reckon I could get him to €7500 + my Astra. Any thoughts on these? Solid but dull?

bazz26

With your Astra having such a low value why not take it out of the equation when buying the new car? This allows you to negotiate a better deal on the newer car as you have no trade-in. In reality the dealer is not really giving you €500 for it, he is just taking €500 off the discount on the Octavia. I bet if you forgot about trading the Astra you would probably buy the Octavia straight for a bit less than what you are being offered now with the trade-in. Then sell the Astra privately, anything you get for it will be money in your pocket towards taxing the Octavia.

speakelton

Hey,

I'm looking at getting a new car and was thinking of this - http: //cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/audi-a4-2004-1-8t-convertible-s-line/7852579

I'm driving a 96 starlet at the moment and have been looking for a while but I'm waiting for a car I really like before purchasing. Aside from the starlet having a few scratches it goes like an absolute dinger and hasn't given me any issues in the 18 months I've had it. Im mainly a town driver mid week with some further trips at the weekend. Annual mileage wouldn't be much more than 10k.

I originally looked at some 318s but heard running costs were quite high on the older BMWs so was put off. Most recently I've been looking at 04(ish) A4s and A3 (1.6) or potentially an Astra.

Anybody have any opinions on any of the above models? Or suggest any alternatives?

Thx in advance

L-M

I think firstly you need to decide what you want from your car, you've given a hugely broad specrtrum of cars there.

Do you need a family hatch? Something with a big boot? Roof rack? Something for just you? Stylish? Economical?

Narrow that down first.

bazz26

speakelton wrote: »

Hey,

I'm looking at getting a new car and was thinking of this - http: //cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/audi-a4-2004-1-8t-convertible-s-line/7852579

I'm driving a 96 starlet at the moment and have been looking for a while but I'm waiting for a car I really like before purchasing. Aside from the starlet having a few scratches it goes like an absolute dinger and hasn't given me any issues in the 18 months I've had it. Im mainly a town driver mid week with some further trips at the weekend. Annual mileage wouldn't be much more than 10k.

I originally looked at some 318s but heard running costs were quite high on the older BMWs so was put off. Most recently I've been looking at 04(ish) A4s and A3 (1.6) or potentially an Astra.

Anybody have any opinions on any of the above models? Or suggest any alternatives?

Thx in advance

If your used to the reliability then the obvious choice would be to look at a Corolla. The others on your list there have the potential to break your heart.

a.ginoli

Hi Guys!

recently relocated to Ireland, just joined Boards.ie and lloking for a used car in €2000 budget (more or less).

I already read the initial LM post (great and useful advice) and few pages later.

I have contacted a private seller for a 2002 Honda Civic 1.4 (3 drs) with 99,000 miles NCT'd till Oct 15 and taxed until Apr 15 and 4 new tires.

The price is 1700€, it seemed very good to me and pictures (i don't have yet pics for the back and left side, but i'm viewing the car today) don't show any problems so far.

I just wanted to ask an opinion about the price and/or any suggestion about this particular model.

Thanks a lot for the help!

larrymiller

a.ginoli wrote: »

Hi Guys!

recently relocated to Ireland, just joined Boards.ie and lloking for a used car in €2000 budget (more or less).

I already read the initial LM post (great and useful advice) and few pages later.

I have contacted a private seller for a 2002 Honda Civic 1.4 (3 drs) with 99,000 miles NCT'd till Oct 15 and taxed until Apr 15 and 4 new tires.

The price is 1700€, it seemed very good to me and pictures (i don't have yet pics for the back and left side, but i'm viewing the car today) don't show any problems so far.

I just wanted to ask an opinion about the price and/or any suggestion about this particular model.

Thanks a lot for the help!

Can't go to far wrong with that car. There's 3 of them in this house and gear box went in one of them. That's all the trouble we've gotten.
All 3 have past there last 3 ncts with little hassle

bazz26

Gearbox bearings give trouble on that model Civic as can the power steering. Also be aware that alot of the 3 dr models are bought by young lads who turn them into replica Type Rs so there are alot of abused and tired ones for sale.

a.ginoli

Thanks a lot for the replies. The car seems to be original from the pics and at the phone the guy seemed more "mature" and relaxed .

Any idea on i can spot problems to the gearbox? i.e. difficulty in insert gears

bazz26

Yes, if the gearbox is clunky then the bearing is probably on it's way out and afaik costs around €700/€800 to replace which is half the asking price of the car. If it's been replaced already then that's a big plus.

a.ginoli

bazz26 wrote: »

Yes, if the gearbox is clunky then the bearing is probably on it's way out and afaik costs around €700/€800 to replace which is half the asking price of the car. If it's been replaced already then that's a big plus.

Great information, thanks!

I'll be very careful on that point then.

Esel

a.ginoli wrote: »

Great information, thanks!

I'll be very careful on that point then.

Have a look/ask in the Bangernomics thread. You will get good advice there too (meaning as well as here...).

Post a link to the ad for the car you are thinking of there.

a.ginoli

Thanks a lot Esel, i will jump there for sure.

Anyway i went to see the car and the owner confirmed that the car was affected with the gearbox problem... pity i really liked it.

Back searching now

larrymiller

a.ginoli wrote: »

Thanks a lot Esel, i will jump there for sure.

Anyway i went to see the car and the owner confirmed that the car was affected with the gearbox problem... pity i really liked it.

Back searching now

If it was sorted I would chance it!
But then again it depens if u trust him or not

a.ginoli

larrymiller wrote: »

If it was sorted I would chance it!
But then again it depens if u trust him or not

Oh no, no.

The problem begun few months ago (very feeble sound) and it growth with time. When i tested the car it was quite strong in the first 3 gears, the disappeared. He wanted to go down to 1500 keeping in consideration the repairs cost, but i think a repair would have been much more expensive.

larrymiller

a.ginoli wrote: »

Oh no, no.

The problem begun few months ago (very feeble sound) and it growth with time. When i tested the car it was quite strong in the first 3 gears, the disappeared. He wanted to go down to 1500 keeping in consideration the repairs cost, but i think a repair would have been much more expensive.

Yeah I suppose i took out the gear box myself and brought it saved me a lot of money

mauricebrown

I have been driving a 04 model Skoda Superb and I have found it to be outstanding. Very reliable and economical to drive and after an bad accident a couple of weeks ago I can highly recommend them for safety as while my Superb is heading for the highway in the sky, I am still living and breathing thankfully.
Therefore I am in the market for a car. I am waiting on the insurance to come back to me, so I am counting my euros and looking at what is best value out there. I am toying with the idea of coming up into the lower tax groups and looking at a '09 to '11 model Superb.
I am hearing a lot of stuff, some of it I am letting over my head i.e - the 1.6 model engine is too light, the 2.0 model give trouble, the suspension is not as reliable as my old model.
Has anyone out there gone from the 04 - 07 model to the 09 to current model that could give me an honest comparsion?

leakyboots

Howdy all,

Great thread, enjoyed the initial post Limerick_man, good stuff.

Currently driving an 06 Ford Focus Estate, looking to upgrade to (hopefully a 2010) estate. Finding it hard to find something though. After something with a big boot, low mileage and diesel 1.6-1.9.

Looked at a Hyundai http://cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/hyundai-i30-1-6-litre-diesel/6777868 and a few Vauxhall imports but wasn't mad about the interior (and I'm hesitant to go with an import). Was looking at Cargiant and there's good deals to be had, but like I said, not sure I'm bothered with the hassle of going through all that. The Volkswagen Estate are like hen's teeth and I won't go French.

Anyway, starting to think what I'm after is out of my price range, could anyone recommend a large hatchback that might come close to the space you get in an estate?

L-M

What's the budget?

leakyboots

Limerick man wrote: »

What's the budget?

Max is 12 grand all in including tax or vrt if importing