55reg car low milage no service history buy or avoid

selinaa_2

Hi,
I saw a peugoet 307 55reg for £3900 that has about 28000 miles on it with no service history. I have test driven it the car looks and drives good both exterior and interior look good. Now within first three years it did about 20k but last 2years only 5000miles according to dvla. However its not clear whether those 5000miles were spread within the 2years or just a one year as there was no mileage record for 2009. Which gives me the feeling that the car was sat down for a while. I don't think the mileage has been altered but just that very low mileage = car not driven. What do you think would you steer clear or buy?

Many thanks

eamon

I bought an 05 plate Mondy two years ago with no service history with something like 33k on the clock which I reasoned was close to the mark for a 3 yo privately owned motor. 15k later and I'm still satisified with my purchase (£3400) and when I come to change cars in a few years time the missing service history will be even less relevant (I tend to keep cars until they become bangers). What I did do was have a really thorough test drive, external & under the bonnet inspection and around £25 for a full HPI check. I could have paid for an AA or RAC inspection but I didn't really see the point in doing that.
Subsequent research revealed that many cars bought via car supermarkets the new owners reported difficulty in getting hold of the service manuals. Though I suspect that if the cars are main dealer serviced then any history will be on a database somewhere.
Its really an individual choice but be certain to price compare against vehicles with a service history and how long you intend to keep said car.

forgotmyname

Get it inspected make sure its not been crashed & repaired. Bought several cars from the accident auctions,
And done them up over a few months. Cheap motoring with a car you couldnt afford to buy if it had not
been in an accident.

Buying something with serious crash damage but been repaired by sticking a new bumper on is not what you
want though. It must have been repaired properly.

SailorSam

I do a very low mileage and keep all my Mots 'cos i think when the time comes to sell i'll be able to prove the clock is right, any buyers can see the way it's gone up year on year.
Have you got access to previous Mots, if you're buying from a garage and can see the last owner, go and see him and ask can he tell you about the car.

selinaa_2

Thanks for all your replies,

I just feel the mileage that its done between 08 and 10 which 5000miles is too low in fact we don't know whether the 5000miles is from 09-10 or 08-10 as the dvla print out report shown to us by the dealer of the mot's history gave a mileage for every year from 08 except for 09. My worry is that why was there no mileage recorded for 08-09. My feeling is that it either did not do any mileage between this time which meant it was sat down or it was in an accident and it was again not mobile. The dealer said they would do HPI check which i know i could do as well but that doesnt rule out unreported accidents however minor they may be. With no service history how do i know if the car was well maintained. My gut feeling tells me not to go for it do i don't know. If the mileage sounded right for it age i could have ignored the fact that it didnt have service history but with only 28k on over 5year old car and no service history hmmmm ?????

darich

While you're right to be concerned about the mileage, many components wear out die to age rather than mileage. In that respect, mileage is irrelevant.

I appreciate that you don't want to buy a car advertised as 28k but it may have 78k (who does?) - the point I'm making is that low mileage doesn't mean that all the components are in great condition.
Minor accidents won't be recorded by HPi and they're not a problem for any used car if the repair has been done properly - few years ago I was clipped by someone entering my lane - my front offside wing was bashed, bumper scraped. Car was repaired properly via insurance approved bodyshop. I traded that car in a couple of years later to a BMW dealer with no hassle.

Ultimately, the choice is yours but my advice would be to follow your instinct. Ok so you may miss out on a good car.....but another will come along - it always does. If you go for it, against your better judgement, you could end up with a lemon that turns out to be unsafe, undriveable and costing you a fortune.

If you're in doubt for whatever reason, then walk away.

alanfp

darich wrote: »

While you're right to be concerned about the mileage, many components wear out die to age rather than mileage. In that respect, mileage is irrelevant.

Hate to start a post by disagreeing, but having bought a 10 yr old car with 16,000 miles on the clock and a 5 yr old with 150,000 miles, I can state that GENERALLY, it's the mileage makes things wear out! Mileage is incredibly relevant. That's why there is so much clocking going on.

Anyway, to the OP, have you looked at MOTinfo website - I can't tell from your posts whether you have or not. (You refer to DVLA records - where exactly have you found these?). That will tell you something - you'll need the ref. No. from the log book. The dealer will understand why you're asking, and he will oblige..cos if he doesn't that tells you your answer.

The other thing to do is to try to contact the previous owner and ask them. Unless they are in on any dubious history, they have no axe to grind and will, in my experience, be truthful. I've done that around 6 times in the past, and on 2 of those occasions, the car had been clocked, and on another one, I found out the 'private' seller wasn't, so I then doubted anything he told me.

At the end of the day there ARE low mileage cars around, and a 307 is the sort/size of car that could well be one. Good luck.

darich

alanfp wrote: »

Hate to start a post by disagreeing, but having bought a 10 yr old car with 16,000 miles on the clock and a 5 yr old with 150,000 miles, I can state that GENERALLY, it's the mileage makes things wear out! Mileage is incredibly relevant. That's why there is so much clocking going on.

I'm not denying that in some respects mileage is a big deal but many serviceable components are replaced at a time limit or mileage whichever is first.....although many people go by mileage and don't realise that age can deteriorate oil, belts, tyres, hoses etc...replacing belts often also means tensioners, adjusters water pump etc....not to mention that older panels are more likely to be rusty than newer ones.
Exhausts corrode over time so will be more likely to be ready to go
If the car has been idle for a while then battery can be flat, brakes seized, tyres flat and sat on side wall for long periods causing damage.

Of course mileage wears cars out too and I'm not making out that age is worse.....I'm just pointing out that low mileage doesn't mean everything will be in better condition than a similar car with higher mileage.

atrixblue.-MFR-.

on the weekend, i saw a pug 307 GLX 04 plate done 47K miles £1895. hpi clear, docs showed that it had one owner from new, mot'd every year only only done low miles every year, no service history book though so couldnt prove it had the belt done etc etc or would be worth close to 3k.

so there are cars out there with low miles and dirt cheap. one thing would be to check the engine number see if it been stood because the thing blew up and new unit put in with no verified miles.

knightstyle

Why not get the previous owners details from the dealer? Just ask to see the V5 and make a note then contact them. If the dealer says no then walk away!

Gordon_Hose

If it's a proper bargain, and you're that worried, get it checked out by the AA or RAC.