Buying a used car in Ireland guide

FUTY2211

Hi there, just wondering if anyone on here had any advice - looking at getting an oldish (05-07 reg) 5 series BMW as a few people have told me that the engines on them were extremely reliable and they'd do quite a bit of mileage. They seem affordable enough around the 8-10k range. Has anyone on here had any experience with them positive or negative? Also any advice on spec would be greatly appreciated!

pabloazazel

I see http://www.mywheels.ie/ is the cheapest web to get a report of the car, is this web reliable?

PatL23

Looking at 08+ Saab 9-3 ttid from the UK atm. Anyone here know about saabs of this era? Bad points in terms of reliability? I'd imagine price of parts would be expensive let alone trying to find a mechanic to fix one.

Any input would be great.

Sarah Hogan

I'm going to buy my son (22) a used car this Summer. Has anyone any suggestions. I want to spend less than €1000 if possible on a 1 litre.

biko

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDv5bUR_Plo

colm_mcm

Sarah Hogan wrote: »

I'm going to buy my son (22) a used car this Summer. Has anyone any suggestions. I want to spend less than €1000 if possible on a 1 litre.

One thing you'd be wise to do at this stage is check insurance. They penalise cars over 15 years old. Also check insurance on 1.1 and 1.2 cars as you have more chance of getting something half decent for €1k if you go up a little on engine size.

A 1.0 Seat Ibiza/VW lupo/seat aroma would probably do what you want while still being reasonably likeable - but again check insurance due to age.

Bravobabe

As advised very Important to check out the Insurance first (its only going up).
Is he going to be a named driver (on your policy) or have his own insurance.
Has he a full licence or is he going to do the test shortly?

As Colm pointed out there is probably going to be better value in the 1.1 - 1.4cc range available.
If he is a named driver then the extra engine size may not (1.3 v 1.1) be excessive.
From a safety point of view - I think I would prefer a slightly larger 1.3 (buts that a personal opinion and depends on the driving style/ability and condition of the roads usually travelled)

Balky

Hi,

I'm planning to buy used car from my colleague at work. They are moving from Ireland, I need a car, and it seems like a great opportunity for me.

But, here comes the issue.

I tried 10 insurance companies last week (website quotes), and all of them, after filling boring forms, gave me "sorry, we can't offer you insurance now".

Now, that car is insured (as per that disc) till 07-16, and on the disc there's a date "04-08-15" (I assume when insurance was acquired a year ago?)

If I buy car now, do I have to pay my own insurance before buying car and transferring the ownership to my name, or is car OK to drive till 07-16.

I'm confused because in Croatia (where I'm originally from) driver is not tied to the insurance. We buy insurance for the car, and when you sell it, you are selling the insurance too. Anyone can drive as long as the owner is OK with it.

I'm not sure that's the case in Ireland, especially with all insurances telling me that they can't sell me the insurance as I never had any car here.

Confused.

What should be my step-by-step to transfer the ownership / get the insurance / can drive car legally here?

I do have full Irish license, exchanged from Croatian.

Also, I need this resolved within 10 days, before they move out from the country.

Thanks

colm_mcm

call some insurance brokers rather than using online.
insurance is on the driver/car rather than on the car.

insurers don't like risk so If the car is old or powerful they won't really want your business.

you can own a car without insurance. you just can't have the car in a public place.


what is the year/make/model/engine size?

Balky

It's 2005 Nissan Primera 1.6

Not too old, not to big, regular family car. (Or at least should be)

Balky

Also, what confuses me is "exchanged" driving license.

I have 20 years of driving experience, but I got Irish license just last week (EU exchanged from the original Croatian one).

Do I consider this license 9+ years old, or 0?

I mean, it says on the license that I acquired B category in 1997, so I assume 9+.

colm_mcm

Ring Munster Group 0656841766. they're usually fairly on the ball.

your issue is you don't have any no-claims bonus.

Balky

colm_mcm wrote: »

Ring Munster Group 0656841766. they're usually fairly on the ball.

your issue is you don't have any no-claims bonus.

Thanks, Will give them a shout.

As well, some companies, sometimes (and there's no clean information when is that sometimes) accept no-claim bonus from Croatia.

I do have my no claim bonus from there, expired 2.5 years ago. Since then I drove here a couple of times, but only rented cars.

colm_mcm

far as I know. no-claims bonus goes stale after a while.
mention it but I don't think it will work.

Bravobabe

As advised, I think you should call a few insurance companies to explain the situation

For comparison purposes - You may consider having a friend/colleague applying for insurance on this type of car (2005 1.6 primera).

In Ireland: insurance is owned by the person to drive a certain car rather than on the car (as road tax is in Ireland).

You may have filled one of the online questions incorrectly (or not given the answer you were looking for).

see this link for more information: http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/vehicles/insurance/validity/ireland/index_en.htm

Please post updates - Good Luck

Bravobabe

Hi you might have a look at this tread - people with similar issues
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=93832293

maynooth_rules

Is it madness to buy a car privately if you can't bring someone with car knowledge with you? There is a car I have seen that I would really like being sold privately. It's the other end of the country from me and really I can only view it in my own. But I'm a little hesitant as its over 10k so a lot of money when I will be taking a little chance

Bravobabe

Getting a car checked out before buying

You must be careful (to protect yourself from potential loss/fraud)
You have options
- You could get a mechanic from the local area to check the car out for you (you may find on Adverts. Donedeal etc or garage services in the general area)
- You could use the AA http://www.theaa.ie/aa/vehicle-checks/car-inspection.aspx
or other similar services in the area http://www.motorcheck.ie/used-car-pre-purchase-technical-inspection/
- You SHOULD get a full car history check (AA & other companies provide this service)
- NCT is it recent (or is it due)?

When you say the car is at the far end of the Country - do you mean South or North?
If the car is an import from the UK - you will have to make sure that the history reports includes UK details.

Double check the ownership (have heard of a couple who bought a car (great deal) only to have the car taken off them by the Gardi after they went to tax it (not registered in their name), the car had been purchased a week before with a stolen (non-valid) bank draft and they had paid cash - let the buyer beware.

The majority of car sale transactions go smoothly and are bone fide - just be careful not to get caught by fraudsters. Most people sell their cars privately as they feel the trade-in values offered by garages are not high enough and can get a better value when buying without trade-in.

Good luck and let us know how you get on

maynooth_rules

Thanks very much for that, very helpful. It's in th south of the country. When I take it for a test drive can I bring it to a local garage there and get them to have a quick look over it?

Bravobabe

Hi

I presume you could (bring the car to a garage on the test drive). But the owner will probably want to go with you (so both of you would be at garage).
I think with the AA or Motorcheck - they will actually go to site for you (You don't have to be there - you can arrange it with vendor, they will check the car out and let you know the condition of the car).
If the seller is not prepared to let you carry out an inspection (why would they?) - best move on
If your happy with the report - you can then do a test drive and negotiate with seller (if not you can move on to the next vehicle).

maynooth_rules

Thanks a million bravo babe, I'll look into that AA and motorcheck

Bravobabe

Hi

You might consider doing a search for Car inspections in the South
A search for Cork will show up this
http://www.carinspection.ie/pre-inspection (and a few more)

You could also consider putting up a request post for recommendations for "good inspection mechanics in that area"
(I presume a figure of €150 - €200 will be the fee)

When you know a bit more you can put some details of the car up here (not the specific ad - but make, year, rough mileage etc ) and people will give your their opinions.

Good Luck

bazz26

I certainly wouldn't spend 10k on a private sale without getting it checked over first. With a private sale you have zero comeback so as soon as you drive it away it becomes your problem. 10k is just too much money for that sort of risk.

Biffo1991

Hi guys,

Has anyone here dealt with Pat O Connel car sales in limerick?

Any feedback?

grogi

bazz26 wrote: »

I certainly wouldn't spend 10k on a private sale without getting it checked over first. With a private sale you have zero comeback so as soon as you drive it away it becomes your problem. 10k is just too much money for that sort of risk.

I would and have before (spent the 10k, but not without making sure it is ok). Much better deal to be grabbed that way.

Buying from a small shop is not better in any way. The warranty you get is very limited, the shop has the skills and means to mask the problems and you pay a massive premium for the privilege of dealing in an office than kitchen... They will fix the issues at the lowest cost, just to get rid of the annoying problem satisfy the customer.

You need to have the car checked - either by you if you know the stuff, or another qualified person - so why overpay?

Of course, that is a generalisation and as such does not apply to all garages. Just to majority of them.

Bravobabe

Hi Maynooth Rules

So you have 3 opinions - mostly agreeing on
Yes its okay to spend 10k + on a private sale BUT you must get it checked out (and make sure the owner is the genuine owner or has a right to sell the car)

Let us know how it goes

maynooth_rules

Bravobabe wrote: »

Hi Maynooth Rules

So you have 3 opinions - mostly agreeing on
Yes its okay to spend 10k + on a private sale BUT you must get it checked out (and make sure the owner is the genuine owner or has a right to sell the car)

Let us know how it goes

Would paying the €35 to cartell let me know if there is outstanding money owed or anything like that on the car?

Bravobabe

Hi

Have you contacted any garage or the "Inspection" companies, they may combine the car history report as well as the inspection?

Yes - a professional report will show if there is any Car finance outstanding on the car (cartel etc)
http://www.theaa.ie/aa/vehicle-checks/car-data-checks.aspx

Check to see (ask) how long has the seller got the car.

I presume the car is 2010+ (price). So its likely to be 3 - 6 years old (outstanding finance may not be an issue)

maynooth_rules

It's 3 years old. Very low mileage which has me worried more than anything really.

KERSPLAT!

Looking at a 2004 C180K 1.8 Auto on Saturday, 95k miles. Anything I need to look out for? It's from quite a large garage but I've no idea regarding warranty yet.