Buying a used car in Ireland guide

sandydan

bazz26 wrote: »

Rain sensors have been around in cars for years and is fairly proven technology these days. I never had any issues with the ones in my cars over the years.

good to hear , saw a few complaints re speed adjustments, and sensitivity so wondered

bazz26

You can always switch the automatic feature off on the stalk.

sandydan

bazz26 wrote: »

You can always switch the automatic feature off on the stalk.

thanks for that , i never had car with automatic anything, drove a truck with auto gearbox, thats all, would like an auto-car though

FortunaMan

Should I be worried if the motertax check shows purchased by a dealer 2 weeks ago but the car is listed as a private sale and when I called he verified this?

sandydan

FortunaMan wrote: »

Should I be worried if the motertax check shows purchased by a dealer 2 weeks ago but the car is listed as a private sale and when I called he verified this?

dont think so as sale is private imo if sold to dealer by private owner not by garage but i may be wrong

sandydan

what do you folk think of this,
a garage selling car said they were not giving any garage guarantee with car as it was still under remainder of Toyota warranty of six months.

personally id walk,as if a faulty repair invalidated warranty or washed diesel was in tank and caused costly repairs, the garage could wash their hands of it legally.
my understanding is all garages are legally required to provide garage warranty or guarantee when selling cars,

im told im an alarmist. but i heard of a repairs on 6 month old car, described as outside warranty as result of washed diesel and there unfortunately is some problems associated with WD around

bazz26

I wouldn't bother buying it to be honest. If the dealer is only offering the remainder of the manufacturer's warranty then what is the point in buying off the dealer, might as well buy private then as the warranty is still the same plus you won't be paying for the dealer's profit margin.

Given that the car is only 2.5 years old and still has 6 months Toyota warranty on it, I'd expect the dealer to be giving a 12 month warranty with a car of that age. In reality Toyota would cover the first 6 months for any warranty issues. The fact the dealer doesn't want to cover anything on a 2.5 year old car would make me walk.

PatL23

What should I look out for when buying a 04-07 530d auto? Many problems from them? I might look to import buy they'd probably work out a lot more expensive considering cheaper tax in UK. Are they a good car?

bazz26

Turbo breather filter should be changed to the new vortex shaped one and replaced every 3 oil services. This will help prevent the filter getting blocked and starving your turbo of oil resulting in it ceasing.

Manifold swirl flaps should be replaced by plastic blanks to prevent the metal ones breaking off and getting ingested into the engine killing it.

ABS/DTC modules on early cars are known to fail but reconditioned units can be bought for alot less these days. So watch out for the ABS/DTC dashboard warning lights staying on.

Not a service item but recommended to change the Automatic transmission oil every 100k miles to keep the box is good shape.

You will probably pick one of these up cheaper over here than in the UK due to the higher motor tax making them less attractive here. The only reason to go to the UK is for a higher spec better condition car but you will pay more for one. Try and get a later one as they received increases in power other the years. LCI or facelift model appeared in mid 2007 but luckily the E60 retained the M57 engine rather than getting then newer N57 that is in the F10. Easiest way to tell the LCI model is that it got the newer 7 speed auto box and new type gear shifter, along with rear LED tail lights.

PatL23

Great info. Thanks bazz. It'll be hard to get a good one here for less than 8k I reckon. Looking at donedeal there's a lot of wrecked ones
Are they reliable? Iv had bad luck lately with cars so I'm looking for something that'll last a while.
What should I be looking out for when test driving? Could a diagnostics unit find if the car is clocked. Will the milage be stored on the ecu?

I'll stretch my budget for the lci model.

bazz26

Reliability will depend on the individual car at this stage of it's age. Better off getting a BMW indy to inspect it as there are many tired old dogs out there. Mileage is stored on the car's ECU, the odometer and the key on later models.

Hi all, would you find it suss if someone is selling on a car they only purchased back in March? The Cartell report shows everything else is in order but I'm a bit worries that they've only owned it for a short time. I'd be getting it checked out by a mechanic.

bazz26

Do you have a link to the car advert? There could be a number of reasons why they are selling it so soon after buying, some legit, others maybe not. Could be a case of not liking the car, emigrating or they are a part time wheeler dealer type. What reason has the seller given?

bazz26

bazz26 wrote: »

Do you have a link to the car advert? There could be a number of reasons why they are selling it so soon after buying, some legit, others maybe not. Could be a case of not liking the car, emigrating or they are a part time wheeler dealer type. What reason has the seller given?

Hi Bazz, I can't post a link but it's a 06 Jetta based in Wexford selling at €2,700 1.6. The seller hasn't given any reason for why they're selling. I've queried them on the mileage and NCT as they hadn't listed that info and it all matches up. NCT is up next year and mileage is 190,000km.

bazz26

That's a bit on the cheap side even for a 06 Jetta so tread very carefully when looking at it and make sure to do thorough background checks. If something is cheap then it's usually cheap for a reason.

bazz26

bazz26 wrote: »

That's a bit on the cheap side even for a 06 Jetta so tread very carefully when looking at it and make sure to do thorough background checks. If something is cheap then it's usually cheap for a reason.

I've been thinking that myself. He's dropped the price from €3k to €2700. When I search under private sale, the ad doesn't come up. I'd have everything checked thoroughly though.

Thanks Bazz

chan6

I got caught out a few years ago buying privately, even though I had the car (07 passat) checked out at a garage! Because I bought privately I had no comeback... had I bought through a garage or dealer I could have looked to get my money back.... I would always pay the extra few quid and go through a dealer, just for peace of mind!

newbuild06

Going to look at a car tomorrow and if I like I will do the car and finance check but before I go just a quick query. I googled the car reg and it came up under a trade sales company who must have sold it to the garage where I am going to look at it. Should I be worried about this and is there anything I should be looking out for or any questions I should be asking?
Thanks in Advance great post by the way

NB

bazz26

It's not unusual for dealers to sell/buy cars from other dealers. I'd still ask the selling dealer about it though.

newbuild06

bazz26 wrote: »

It's not unusual for dealers to sell/buy cars from other dealers. I'd still ask the selling dealer about it though.

Thanks bazz will do

Wanderer2010

Im looking to drop 12k on a used car, preferably one with low enough mileage and NCT sorted for a year or so? Im new enough to the process but I dont want a private deal as I have heard too many horror stories. If i buy one from a garage, am I entitled to any warranty or free service or is it mostly a case of "try it out, if you like it pay the money and hope for the best"? Im looking for a 1.3L at least, just something reliable to get me to work and back each day (30Km round trip) and the odd trip up the country. I wouldnt be doing massive mileage per year.

Any advice?

bazz26

If you are spending that sort of money on a car from a dealer then you should be getting a decent warranty with it. I'd also expect the car to be serviced as part of the sale.

Best stick to petrol if you are doing low mileage. Just remember that on your budget you will probably be getting a car that is on the newer emissions based motor tax system so in most cases the engine size doesn't matter but rather the car's Co2 figure, so no need to limit yourself to 1.3 litre.

gaz wac

Hey,
Im interested in buying a car but I have contacted three mechanics and three of them are too busy to go check the car. Its 2012 and im getting 6 months warrant but I was just looking for the peace of mind really.
Just wondering if there is anything I should look out for ? I know its an import from NI/UK so im just a bit anxious around that as I wouldn't have a clue about cars! anyone got any opinions?
Cheers

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/peugeot/3008/used-2012-peugeot-3008-active-e-h-dublin-fpa-161914315239799220

R.O.R

gaz wac wrote: »

Hey,
Im interested in buying a car but I have contacted three mechanics and three of them are too busy to go check the car. Its 2012 and im getting 6 months warrant but I was just looking for the peace of mind really.
Just wondering if there is anything I should look out for ? I know its an import from NI/UK so im just a bit anxious around that as I wouldn't have a clue about cars! anyone got any opinions?
Cheers

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/peugeot/3008/used-2012-peugeot-3008-active-e-h-dublin-fpa-161914315239799220

That's an "Automatic", with the worst gearbox known to mankind. If you are taking it for a test drive, take a neck brace to minimise whiplash.

Unless you really need an auto, search a manual version out.

I'd be fairly confident buying from Charles Hurst if they are giving a 6 month warranty, without the need for a mechanic to check it out. Charles Hurst are a long established dealer group in NI, which is also part of the massive Lookers group in the UK.

gaz wac

R.O.R wrote: »

Unless you really need an auto, search a manual version out.
.

yea, the missus is stuck to an auto. thank for the heads up

byrnem31

gaz wac wrote: »

Hey,
Im interested in buying a car but I have contacted three mechanics and three of them are too busy to go check the car. Its 2012 and im getting 6 months warrant but I was just looking for the peace of mind really.
Just wondering if there is anything I should look out for ? I know its an import from NI/UK so im just a bit anxious around that as I wouldn't have a clue about cars! anyone got any opinions?
Cheers

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/peugeot/3008/used-2012-peugeot-3008-active-e-h-dublin-fpa-161914315239799220

There is a fella called matt on adverts
Ie. He has an add titled mechanic available evenings and weekends. There is a picture of a spanner on a yellow sign on his add. Ask him to check it out for you. Sound and works in a Peugeot garage.

sunflour

Hey all

Going to look at a car tomorrow at a dealers. 2010 Ford Focus, 1.6 diesel, asking for €9750, but think he'll go down a little. Have viewed it already, but didn't get to test drive it yet as the garage was doing a full valet on it and had all the seats etc out.
We'll be asking about the timing belt, any accidents, etc, everything that was in the OP, just wondering if there's anything else we should be on the lookout for? We're a little bit green about this kind of thing! Any help greatly appreciated. :-)

Ivefoundgod

Hi all

Just looking for opinions, viewed a car last Saturday and agreed a price with dealer and paid deposit on condition of nct and a few other small details. Arranged to collect this Saturday, tomorrow, and after contacting dealer to confirm was told nct not passed and no date for test but that car was ready for collection. Upon asking why the delay and pointing out nct was condition of sale was told earliest appointment is the 24th of August. Had arranged for insurance to switch over already.

Am extremely annoyed about this, not over the nct but lack of communication of this and that I was told the car was "ready" for collection, this is a main dealer and yet they seemed to think it was acceptable for me to drive a car for almost a month with no nct and then bring car to nct test centre which is around an hour away. Car under 10k but Am I missing something here or is this the standard of customer service when buying a used car from a main dealer?

bazz26

Some dealers have no problem getting priority or cancelled bookings for NCT testing "unofficially". Afterall they are probably their best customers. :P

If you don't want to collect the car without a NCT then I'd tell them you will wait until it's tested before handing over the money and collecting it. Don't be surprised if you then get a phone call at the end of the week saying it's tested and ready to go.

Ivefoundgod

bazz26 wrote: »

Some dealers have no problem getting priority or cancelled bookings for NCT testing "unofficially". Afterall they are probably their best customers. :P

If you don't want to collect the car without a NCT then I'd tell them you will wait until it's tested before handing over the money and collecting it. Don't be surprised if you then get a phone call at the end of the week saying it's tested and ready to go.

Thanks bazz. Yeah the impression i was given after viewing the car was the dealer would easily get an appointment so wasn't concerned. What has me worried is the lack of communication and being told the car was ready for collection with no nct.