Thinking of buying this??

mcbobbyb

Hi, I went to view this car the other day. Got approved finance and was thinking of getting a mechanic out to look at it. Any opinions on it. Is the mileage a bit high. It hadn't a full service history but had been serviced recently as the documents were in the glove box. Left hand handbrake was sticking and needed to be looked at or fixed.

http://www.carzone.ie/search/Mazda/Mazda6/EXECUTIV/56314037092742200/advert?channel=CARS

djimi

I have nothing constructive to offer really except to say that handbrake would do my head in, being on the wrong side of the console like that!

Mileage is a bit on the high side alright, especially for a petrol, and I would want the car to have a full service history to show that it has been properly looked after.

bazz26

78k miles on a 6 year old petrol car is not high, that is 13k miles per year which would be average. I think people get a mental stigma when they see 100k+ km on the advert.

On the car itself, they are a solid reliable motor, that particular model is the base Executive model though which is pretty bare on the inside if that sort of thing bothers you.

mcbobbyb

Thanks, I'm just not sure about the mileage. I suppose it is average. There are others with a lot less for about 1000 more but without a service history to back it up. Also there was a decent bit of rust underneath which id be a bit worried about. The mechanic could tell me about that. I read the can have rust issues so might be on them all.

djimi

bazz26 wrote: »

78k miles on a 6 year old petrol car is not high, that is 13k miles per year which would be average. I think people get a mental stigma when they see 100k+ km on the advert.

In reality it is 125k km in a 5 years (or 5 and a bit), which at 20-25k km a year is not excessively high, but it would be approaching the higher end of average, which is why I would like to see a full service history on this car.

mcbobbyb

Would the tow bar put you off the car?

bazz26

djimi wrote: »

In reality it is 125k km in a 5 years (or 5 and a bit), which at 20-25k km a year is not excessively high, but it would be approaching the higher end of average, which is why I would like to see a full service history on this car.

The low reg number would suggest that it was registered pretty early in 2008 making it 6 years old at this stage for which 78k miles would be normal enough for it.

mcbobbyb wrote: »

Would the tow bar put you off the car?

Depends really, it could have been used to tow a small trailer occasionally or could have been hauling around a horse box regularly. You need to look for signs of rear bodywork damage such as scrapes and dings on the rear bumper and boot lid where a trailer could have damaged it. Also make sure to check for excessive wear on the clutch and gearbox, this could indicate it was towing something heavy or big.

JohnBoy26

mcbobbyb wrote: »

Thanks, I'm just not sure about the mileage. I suppose it is average. There are others with a lot less for about 1000 more but without a service history to back it up. Also there was a decent bit of rust underneath which id be a bit worried about. The mechanic could tell me about that. I read the can have rust issues so might be on them all.

Mazdas are terrible when it comes to rust imo. I wouldn't spend that kind of money on something that's rusty. Was the rust on the chassis?

mcbobbyb

There was some on the chasis. The exhaust had some too but most do. Im gona wait and see what the mechanic thinks anyway. I told him what I was worried about and he'd check.

JohnBoy26

mcbobbyb wrote: »

There was some on the chasis. The exhaust had some too but most do. Im gona wait and see what the mechanic thinks anyway. I told him what I was worried about and he'd check.

Id drop back a year and get an accord. Better build quality and no rust problems like those mazdas. Just my two cents.

bazz26

Could also indicate the previous owner lived close to the coast.