A good 2nd hand car dealership [in Dublin]?

davidlynchis

Is there such a thing? I thought buying my first car was supposed to be an exciting experience but i'm finding it such a pain!

I have 9k to buy a second hand diesel car (Passat/A4/A6/Golf is what i am looking at). I don't really care what i get I just need reliability (I suppose, so does everyone though), so that if something happens i have a replacement car and I won't get screwed by a technicality on the warranty. Easy ehhh?

Went to McAllister VW in Airside and they were rubbish. Found cars in Sarsfield motors, Right Price Cars, Superb autos but everytime i read up about it people have horror stories about them.

So my question is; are there any good experiences with second hand car dealers out there that you would recommend?

Henry Ford III

There's a problem inherent in the notion of a "good dealership".

A dealer could provide outstanding premises, customer care, be generous in relation to repair costs, and have a top quality stock of keenly priced used cars.

The only trouble is they'd be gone bust in a hurry.

goochy

The s hand places you have heard bad things about are going to get some gud cars in ! It's just when they get bad ones in they might not offer great service ! A good dealer might. It have the car you want ! Do an online history check always get a mechanic to check over car and if buying from used car dealer remember their warranties are never as good as main dealers but if you get car checked over by mechanic and are getting it at better price it's not so bad ! Sarsfield motors have quite a few cork reg cars ( I am a dub living in cork ! ) as they buy trade ins from vw/ audi dealer so they couldn't be that bad !

Anan1

Forget about the dealer and focus on the car. Buy privately (read & digest Limerick Man's sticky first) and don't hand over any money until you've verified the SH, had a mechanic examine the car, run a finance check etc.

davidlynchis

Thanks people, makes sense to me. I suppose there is no guarantee from any of the garages so just have to concentrate on the car.

But it leads me to my next predicament... Getting it checked by a mechanic! I haven't had the best of luck with mechanic's and my current (soon to be former) mechanic is an absolute shyster!

The carcheck places seem to charge a fair bit (€199 with carcheck?) any recommendations in Dublin?

Anan1

davidlynchis wrote: »

Thanks people, makes sense to me. I suppose there is no guarantee from any of the garages so just have to concentrate on the car.

But it leads me to my next predicament... Getting it checked by a mechanic! I haven't had the best of luck with mechanic's and my current (soon to be former) mechanic is an absolute shyster!

The carcheck places seem to charge a fair bit (€199 with carcheck?) any recommendations in Dublin?

Whereabouts in Dublin are you? Hopefully someone can recommend a good local mechanic - €50ish should generally cover it.

davidlynchis

I am in Santry but have 2/3 cars picked out in Sarsfield Motor Company in Kilmainham and after reading this thread, I got worried! Thanks again guys and girls for the help :-)

jdmauto

Sorry you found Mcallister's rubbish,i work for the group and we try very hard to look after customers whilst i recognise on this occasion they may not have done a good job with your enquiry. Might be worthwhile giving them another opportunity, ask for the DP.

pred racer

I bought my last car from here, http://www.webbmotors.ie/
Good to deal with and the only small problem I had (battery was a dud) they sorted out for me straight away.

Or go a bit further afield, a poster on here George Dalton sells exactly what you are looking for and is an independant vw specialist.

http://www.daltons.ie/

(George does all the work on my car, and I am happy to recomend him)

Del2005

davidlynchis wrote: »

Is there such a thing? I thought buying my first car was supposed to be an exciting experience but i'm finding it such a pain!

I have 9k to buy a second hand diesel car (Passat/A4/A6/Golf is what i am looking at). I don't really care what i get I just need reliability (I suppose, so does everyone though), so that if something happens i have a replacement car and I won't get screwed by a technicality on the warranty. Easy ehhh?

Went to McAllister VW in Airside and they were rubbish. Found cars in Sarsfield motors, Right Price Cars, Superb autos but everytime i read up about it people have horror stories about them.

So my question is; are there any good experiences with second hand car dealers out there that you would recommend?

Generally people never post about good experiences. A company could offer excellent service and do nothing wrong and someone would still complain.

As the others have said buy the car not the seller*. Make sure you all the required checks and you should be OK. But buying any 2nd hand vehicle, and even new sometimes, is always a risk.

* Do make sure the seller is legit though.

bumper234

Bought my last 2 from carland on old airport road decent website and service from them. Also there is a right price cars right next door usually do some decent motors.

Call Me Jimmy

Leanord's Motors Lusk. You won't beat them for price because they just can't be beat! That's Leanord's Motors Lusk.

bumper234

Call Me Jimmy wrote: »

Leanord's Motors Lusk. You won't beat them for price because they just can't be beat! That's Leanord's Motors Lusk.

Yeah but.......Luskangeles?

dutopia

.

shankespony

I liked Paul in Linders, good guy family company and SIMI members, they might source a car for you. Also Alasta Autos Andrew is nice fellow and both would look after you i'm sure. Happy hunting

bazz26

dutopia wrote: »

Just avoid SMG Capital at all costs. They recently changed their name from Southside motors. I can't emphasise enough how unprofessional these guys are. They're supposed to be a SIMI dealership as well!

To the ordinary consumer that has sweet feck all value anyway.

coolisin

While I don't know George dalton but as a boards user he comes recommended and I'd say worth travelling too if your definitely after a vag car.

Other then that a good mechanic, in drumcondra is Nissan doc (here on boards).

I've only talked too him in PM but plan on using him at some stage that is for sure.

But users here who I've met personally know and use both mechanics and garages mentioned here.

166man

Anan1 wrote: »

Forget about the dealer and focus on the car. Buy privately (read & digest Limerick Man's sticky first) and don't hand over any money until you've verified the SH, had a mechanic examine the car, run a finance check etc.

Can't say I'd recommend buying privately in this case. OP is looking for a reliable S/H diesel car and presumably want's peace of mind should something go wrong. Going to the right dealer should enable him to get a car with a years warranty for under €10k. Worth it IMO, because a mechanic can check all he likes and the service history car state everything done to the car, servicing wise, but it won't tell you how it was driven and especially, how it was maintained.

It might have been serviced on the button each time, but how can you know how the owner treated the car, did he check the oil, coolant levels on a regular basis etc.

A very sound user on here Kaiser2000 bought himself a Audi A6 3.0TDI only recently - you may have heard about this. It's a prime reason why on a second hand complicated car - which many newer diesels are - that I'd recommend buying from a dealer.

His mechanic checked the car over, he did all the online checks etc and yet 3 weeks into ownership the car was returned for a faulty turbo which was knackered. Had this been a private sale he'd have no comeback a four figure bill to fix it. Instead the car was returned and all his money back including money he spent taxing it etc.

I'm all for private sales, but they aren't for everyone and sometimes IMO, you're better off paying the extra dealer for that warranty/ peace of mind or whatever it is you look for.

OP, I can't recommend buying privately for yourself, I'd keep an eye out for the right car and haggle hard. Bargain a longer warranty into things and should anything go wrong, you'll have a leg to stand on.

If you buy a €9k car from a private sale and something happens you'll be footing the bill, also bear in mind that with the way the Irish ''maintain'' their cars, finding a well minded one is more difficult than usual.

Happy car hunting.

Nissan doctor

coolisin wrote: »

While I don't know George dalton but as a boards user he comes recommended and I'd say worth travelling too if your definitely after a vag car.

Other then that a good mechanic, in drumcondra is Nissan doc (here on boards).

I've only talked too him in PM but plan on using him at some stage that is for sure.

But users here who I've met personally know and use both mechanics and garages mentioned here.

You won't find me in Drumcondra these days...:)

porsche boy

Nissan doctor wrote: »

You won't find me in Drumcondra these days...:)

Have you moved branch or moved on completely?

Anan1

166man wrote: »

Can't say I'd recommend buying privately in this case. OP is looking for a reliable S/H diesel car and presumably want's peace of mind should something go wrong. Going to the right dealer should enable him to get a car with a years warranty for under €10k. Worth it IMO, because a mechanic can check all he likes and the service history car state everything done to the car, servicing wise, but it won't tell you how it was driven and especially, how it was maintained.

It might have been serviced on the button each time, but how can you know how the owner treated the car, did he check the oil, coolant levels on a regular basis etc.

A very sound user on here Kaiser2000 bought himself a Audi A6 3.0TDI only recently - you may have heard about this. It's a prime reason why on a second hand complicated car - which many newer diesels are - that I'd recommend buying from a dealer.

His mechanic checked the car over, he did all the online checks etc and yet 3 weeks into ownership the car was returned for a faulty turbo which was knackered. Had this been a private sale he'd have no comeback a four figure bill to fix it. Instead the car was returned and all his money back including money he spent taxing it etc.

I'm all for private sales, but they aren't for everyone and sometimes IMO, you're better off paying the extra dealer for that warranty/ peace of mind or whatever it is you look for.

OP, I can't recommend buying privately for yourself, I'd keep an eye out for the right car and haggle hard. Bargain a longer warranty into things and should anything go wrong, you'll have a leg to stand on.

If you buy a €9k car from a private sale and something happens you'll be footing the bill, also bear in mind that with the way the Irish ''maintain'' their cars, finding a well minded one is more difficult than usual.

Happy car hunting.

This can happen, but if you look at the cost of it happening, the likelihood of it happening, and the premium paid to protect against it happening then (for me at least) the figures generally don't add up. That said, if a good friend needed a car and I didn't have the time to help them then yeah, I would be tempted to steer them in the direction of a dealer with a good reputation for the reasons you gave.

NobodyImportant

Hard to find an honest dealer/salesman, but this guy is probably as close as you will get: http://www.lewismotors.ie/contentv3/

davidlynchis

Thanks everyone for the replies. Great help!

NullZer0

davidlynchis wrote: »

Went to McAllister VW in Airside and they were rubbish.

Same experience here if anyone else is on the fence or searching for feedback.

frostie500

Bit outside of Dublin but I got my car off Autoassure in Dundalk. Went in with a specific car in mind (M3 with specific specs including colour) and a couple of weeks later the guys had found me one with low mileage and a FSH that has given me no problems in two years. A lot cheaper than most other places I had priced the car too so I'd recommend them if you were willing to spend a tenner on a bus trip!

thecomedian

NobodyImportant wrote: »

Hard to find an honest dealer/salesman, but this guy is probably as close as you will get: http://www.lewismotors.ie/contentv3/

I haven't bought off this guy but I was up there a few times recently. He comes across as a decent guy, seems honest and no real bull**** from him.

Attreu

My dad and brother in law have had great service from Petersons in Dun Laoghaire. http://www.petersons.ie/

Dad got an 07 Passat there a few years back and any fault he found within the first year they sorted for him with no delay.

Greats guys there with quick turning stock.

_Kaiser_

NobodyImportant wrote: »

Hard to find an honest dealer/salesman, but this guy is probably as close as you will get: http://www.lewismotors.ie/contentv3/

thecomedian wrote: »

I haven't bought off this guy but I was up there a few times recently. He comes across as a decent guy, seems honest and no real bull**** from him.

I bought an A6 off him recently that went back to him because of ongoing problems within the first 3 weeks of ownership (engine light, turbo issues)

To be fair, he was fully willing to stand behind the car and fix it, but I wasn't prepared to wait any longer for them to figure out what was going on having only had the car myself for about a week since I bought it. In the end we did a full reversal of the deal and he agreed to cover the cost of the 3 months tax I'd just spent (not cheap on a 05 3.0 TDI).

But yes, very nice guy to deal with and credit where credit is due.. even though the car didn't work out, at least I didn't end up out of pocket on the transaction.

NobodyImportant

Glad to hear lewis motors getting some decent reviews, as i said, he seems a pretty honest decent bloke which is VERY hard to find in car sales.

As for any dealer being SIMI... They are a self serving lobbying group, it shouldnt give much consumer confidence.

L5

Nissan doctor wrote: »

You won't find me in Drumcondra these days...:)

Where are you based now? I'd like to continue using a competant mechanic!

katia.cork

AVOID--- SMG Capital in Dublin 24. They are not professional at all. Got a car from them two months ago and still haven't received the LOG BOOK. Every time I call them, they say that I will get it in few days. Also they say that all their cars come fully serviced but I had to change Wishbone and exhaust the next day. I called them the next day but they told that warranty doesn't cover it and they won't fix anything.