Buying a cat D car from Northern Ireland

eamondunphy

Hi guys

Excuse my ignorance as I don't know much about cars

Saw a nice car in n.ireland but unfortunately it's a cat d car that insurance company wrote off.

Have emailed the seller who said the car was never in an accident but that it went through a flood

I'm interested in the car as it would save me about 5k but am wary of the fact it was written off

Has anyone any advice on how I could get as much info as possible about the car?

Apparently it's still under manufacturer warranty until the end of July, can I ring up bmw UK or Ireland to get information about the car?

I used the website total car check UK and the info matches the Reg and says the car was indeed written off

If everything was legit and the car was legal and safe to use, do I need to declare to my insurance company that it was a cat d, also if I was to trade it in or sell it on a few years, do I need to declare it to the dealer etc?

Any help would be appreciated as I don't know how to proceed, thanks

James Bond Junior

Flood damage= no no no no no!

Might be fine until wiring starts to rust, electrical gremlins a plenty. Cat d that a few wings replaced is one thing but flood damaged, run a mile!

George Dalton

As above, I'd much rather take my chances on an accident damaged car than a flood damaged one.

Water and electronics don't mix and cars are full of electronics!

Even apart from any reliability concerns the car will always be worth less than a similar car with a clean history. So even though you are saving 5k now you will also get hit for at least some of that 5k come resale/trade in time.

Not worth the bother IMO.

mickdw

I'd run a mile from it tbh.
I'd buy a crash damaged cat d anyday of the week before a water damaged car.

eamondunphy

Thanks guys, the car was bought new in July 2012 and written off the next month, August 2012.

It only had 300 miles on it when written off, the car now has 27k miles on it, so after nearly a year and a half it seems to be running fine, according to the seller, who for the moment I'll assume is being truthful

Would it be likely to get wiring/electrical issues this long after after the incident?

And if it was currently passed as in perfect condition and safe to drive, can I bring it to bmw Ireland under the current warranty, and could I get an extended warranty to help with such issues if they did come about?

bazz26

Honestly, water can get into every nook n cranny and cause all sorts of corrosion that is not visible. You would really want to be bargain blind to still consider buying a flood damaged car.

mickdw

The fact that it was so new could be good or bad.
Good in that it had been fine so far.
Bad in that it was a high value car and it would still be worth fixing if heavily damaged.

If this was fixed by bmw at the time and you could get written confirmation of the repair and of the warranty situation now, it might be a runner.
Now how do you know the car had been trouble free since the damage? Maybe there is a light on every day.

colm_mcm

Flood damage is too much of an unknown quantity. Water damage is so hard to rectify after the fact. I'd avoid.

eamondunphy

The seller, who is a dealer but isn't a main dealer, said that the original owner was shocked that the car was replaced so quickly and never understood why it was replaced.

The dealer said he bought it from the insurance company and that I could talk to the original owner I'd necessary.

At the moment I'm taking the sellers word that it has been trouble free but obviously I'm not taking that as gospel, if the car is a serious option, I'd have to get someone to inspect it first and try get a history to see who repaired it.

I was hoping that it was too long after the incident for water damage to be a factor anymore and that a thorough inspection would put my mind at ease and minimise any risk.

I was also hoping that the warranty and me getting an extended warranty here down south would help a great deal also.

I don't know much about cars except what looks nice and feels good to drive so know nothing about cars internals etc

George Dalton

It sounds to me like you want to have your cake and eat it.

You want to buy the car at a huge saving.
You want to avoid any additional risk which may result from the car's dodgy past by taking out an extended warranty.
You want to then avoid any reduction in trade in or resale value by not disclosing the history of the car come resale time.

That's a lot of ducks you have to get lined up in a row

colm_mcm

Would an extended warranty company (who are known for weaselling out of repairs) not just refuse any claims relating to its water damage history?

goochy

it would only make sense to buy if u were going to keep the car for a long time if you are going to sell in say 3 yrs time while its still worth a fair some it will be hard to sell - its j and f group is it ? they used to get cars like thst in

goochy

it would only make sense to buy if u were going to keep the car for a long time if you are going to sell in say 3 yrs time while its still worth a fair some it will be hard to sell - its j and f group is it ? they used to get cars like thst in

eamondunphy

Ha wouldnt we all like to have our cake and eat it to??
Otherwise what's the point of the cake?

I'm not naive enough to think the car couldnt be without problems, all used cars run that risk, but I've never known anyone or heard stories relating to water damage, so it's new territory for me, that's why I'm asking for help, which is greatly appreciated by the way!!

I know I'm trying to cover myself as much as possible, it's only natural to try as get as good a deal as possible.

I'm just asking these questions because I don't want to part with loads of cash and end up with a broken car that I wouldn't be able to get rid of.

If the car worked properly id probably be keeping it for 5 years, so wouldn't be expecting massive trade in value, but would like to think I'd be able to trade in or sell if it worked properly or without problems

I ve no idea how warranty would work, I'd have to check with bmw UK to see I'd they repaired the car and then with bmw Ireland about the extended warranty

eamondunphy

Not j and f group that I know of, never heard of them to be honest, it's just a car I saw on autotrader.co.uk

goochy

dont like the fact u thought you could sell on car without telling history - shows you in bad light ! thank god for vehicle checks! .this car will always be listed as being an insurance write off unless person doesnt bother to do a uk as well as irish check

eamondunphy

I was mainly asking about declaring it to my insurance company.

And I wouldn't be selling it on privately, it would be to a dealer, who would obviously check the car out before taking it off me so I was asking if I needed to declare it,if I'm legally obliged to do it?

If I have the car 5 years and it has no problems out of the ordinary, and If the dealer gives it a proper check and said it was safe and happy to take it from me, would i be losing out on money by unnecessarily declaring it's previous history.

I wouldn't be trying to screw anyone over by selling them a car that is dangerous or full of problems

9935452

eamondunphy wrote: »

I was mainly asking about declaring it to my insurance company.

And I wouldn't be selling it on privately, it would be to a dealer, who would obviously check the car out before taking it off me so I was asking if I needed to declare it,if I'm legally obliged to do it?

If I have the car 5 years and it has no problems out of the ordinary, and If the dealer gives it a proper check and said it was safe and happy to take it from me, would i be losing out on money by unnecessarily declaring it's previous history.

I wouldn't be trying to screw anyone over by selling them a car that is dangerous or full of problems

Full disclosure to insurance company
Ethically you should be telling the dealer. He will take the car in good faith. Someone buying the car runs a check and finds out the history of the car , your warranty on the next car might become worthless as a result.
My advice is like all the other posters here DONT BUY A WATER DAMAGED CAR.
Alarm bells ring in my head , a car written off a month old, How bad was the damage that they wrote off a nearly new car., what did they do to fix it?
Its the electrics that will give the trouble when they corrode , and this will happen and it could take years .The person who sold it could be having problems and this might be the reason they got rid of it.
The 5 grand saving will be eaten up in repair bills

One other question is has anyone told you its a good idea to buy it??

goochy

op if i were to do a history check on this car i will be told its an ins. write off - u cant hide its history ! u think its alrite to try to get one over a dealer but not a private buyer ?
whether u need to get repairs done or not thia car will have a stigma to it forever - it wouldnt matter if it was older lower value car

R.O.R

Story sounds fishy to me from the outset.

We had a 6 month old 5 Series that required just (LOL) a new engine after trying (and failing) to navigate a flood. Insurance company forked out the €15,000 for a new BMW engine as it was considerably cheaper than writing it off, so the story the OP has been fed about it being written off within a few weeks sounds suspect.

If it was written off, then it would have been substantial damage and one to run away from.

power pants

might have got lucky if the previous owner dried the car out with a hair dryer immediately after

ra0044

Op

Take it from someone who sadly unwittingly bought a flood damaged car. (lease company sold it in to the trade without going through insurance so nothing flagged on history check ). It is likely to break your heart and your wallet.

Mine was a little over a year old when I bought it and was fine for 18 months or so. I even had it serviced with a main dealer but then niggles started. Electrical gremlins like intermittent warning lights coming on, warnings about various sensors failing and odd things happening with central locking suddenly not working or locking and unlocking the doors for 15 minutes without stopping.

As it was still under warranty I took it to the main dealer straight away and they hooked it up to the computer and reams of error messages spewed out of it. They had the car a couple of days and discovered what was causing all the gremlins. The water had eventually corroded the wiring loom in various hard to reach places and had shorted out and damaged the ECU and lots of different sensors.

Mercedes refused point blank to cover any of it under warranty and who could blame them. It needed a new wiring loom / ECU / various sensors etc. I know nothing about car electrics but the list of work they drew up was staggering and backed up by a second opinion at another garage.

In the end I managed through legal means to have my money refunded by the dealer who sold it to me. He was denying responsibility because he claimed the fleet company were to blame but it was he that sold me the car so it was his problem.

Lesson learned. Never by a water damaged car ever.

Kevin!

OP, your honestly not going to find one person with any sense to recommend you to purchase that car. There's a reason why insurance companies almost instantly write off cars that have been water damaged

It may seem like an overwhelming bargain, but the damage is unquantifiable and the seller could be telling you all sorts of things to try and persuade the sale - that's his/her job

eamondunphy wrote: »

Ha wouldnt we all like to have our cake and eat it to??
Otherwise what's the point of the cake?

I'm not naive enough to think the car couldnt be without problems, all used cars run that risk, but I've never known anyone or heard stories relating to water damage, so it's new territory for me, that's why I'm asking for help, which is greatly appreciated by the way!!

I know I'm trying to cover myself as much as possible, it's only natural to try as get as good a deal as possible.

I'm just asking these questions because I don't want to part with loads of cash and end up with a broken car that I wouldn't be able to get rid of.

If the car worked properly id probably be keeping it for 5 years, so wouldn't be expecting massive trade in value, but would like to think I'd be able to trade in or sell if it worked properly or without problems

I ve no idea how warranty would work, I'd have to check with bmw UK to see I'd they repaired the car and then with bmw Ireland about the extended warranty

the_syco

mickdw wrote: »

Now how do you know the car had been trouble free since the damage? Maybe there is a light on every day.

This. For all we know, the seller could have been bringing the car to an indie garage every year for issues caused by the flood.

eamondunphy wrote: »

I was also hoping that the warranty and me getting an extended warranty here down south would help a great deal also.

Warranty with the dealer up north means you gotta get the car up there... on a flatbed from your location before they even look at it.

eamondunphy wrote: »

I ve no idea how warranty would work, I'd have to check with bmw UK to see I'd they repaired the car and then with bmw Ireland about the extended warranty

Best check this first, as they could be two different companies.

=-=

How far underwater was it? 3 week old car totalled sounds like the roof was underwater, tbh, as I can't see engine alone being the reason.

eamondunphy

Thanks guys going to give it a miss, your advice was very helpful, appreciate all your input

Should I stay away from all cat d cars in general?

I assume all cat d cars should be avoided but I have read the odd article saying that a bargain can be found in the right circumstances

mgbgt1978

In the normal course of events I wouldn't let a Cat D put me off. It's ( as you probably know by now) the least damaged cars that are in this category, and stolen recovered where the insurance has paid out.
A quick Trawl on Autotrader will show you that the cheapest of any model are usually repaired Cat C, D write-offs.
A Cat D could be just a Bumper and Tail Light. Thousands of these are sold in the UK every week and and most are simply cosmetic repairs (nothing structural)....
.....in your particular case however the car was only classed as Cat D because there was no structural damage and it was still driving. But as everybody here has said it's the potential for massive electrical problems that makes this a no-no.

mickdw

A cat d could be perfectly fine in many cases.
At least in the uk where these things are more transparent, the cat d will be sold for 25 percent less approx. That can be a substantial saving. If keeping the car for a few years, I'd say a cat d is a reasonable option.
Of course you need to be double careful and if you are the type that sells on car every year, it would be a silly move as it will be harder sold and you will lose most of the saving again on resale.

EazyD

eamondunphy wrote: »

Thanks guys going to give it a miss, your advice was very helpful, appreciate all your input

Should I stay away from all cat d cars in general?

I assume all cat d cars should be avoided but I have read the odd article saying that a bargain can be found in the right circumstances

My daily driver is a cat D from NI and has no issues whatsoever. Had it two years. I was initially very wary but it had much better spec than what was on offer down here, was the facelifted model and from last year of production with really low mileage. Beyond consumables, hasn't cost me much at all. Saved a lot by buying it and put it towards new tires, shocks/springs and other goodies. When I was buying I had it thoroughly checked though so I was never too worried. It can definitely be a gamble though, all depends on the specific car.

Frynge

If the dealer is telling you there is still a manufacturers warranty on a flood damage cat d, I would walk away I'd run.

the_syco

Frynge wrote: »

If the dealer is telling you there is still a manufacturers warranty on a flood damage cat d, I would walk away I'd run.

On this; the warranty may not include the engine, or a few other things. Warranties aren't all the same. Current car had a 3 month warrant that meant very little.