2nd hand Colt 5k mileage only £3900, is this a con?

ironlady2022

I am a first time driver looking for a second hand car. My budget is 6k including car and insurance.

I found this on Autotrader

http://www2.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201140419289896/sort/priceasc/usedcars/maximum-age/up_to_3_years_old/maximum-mileage/up_to_10000_miles/engine-size-cars/1l_to_1-3l/price-to/4000/page/1/radius/100/postcode/wf104tf?logcode=p

Seems a bit too good a deal. what should I be looking for? I'm a bit cautious as it's a private seller and don't want to pay for the vehicle check report at £19.99.

A similar spec would probably cost around 6k. I have checked my insurance and it would be around £1500-£1700, so this would fit into my budget perfectly.

Any tips?

BlueC

The clue is "v car registered" hidden in the description - Vehicle Condition Alert Register - most likely means it has been written off and repaired. I wouldn't touch it.

gmrsupplies

Hi, I have been looking at Colts and I am going to buy one on Monday. THere is one on Autotrader at Pentagon Seat and Subaru in Chilwell Nottingham a 10 plate with 10k on it, same s the one you have seen and it is 4995. I went to look at it and its great but it was a little too white for me. Just a suggestion and no i dont work for them...

forgotmyname

V Car registered but what category?

Unless you know how to check for crash damage and see if the repairs have been done properly
then avoid like the plague.

You could pay £150 or so for a RAC inspection. But at the end of the day its worth a lot less than
one thats not registered. And how will your insurance value it when you tell them its a category C
or D?

Insurance maybe more than you think or they may not value the car as much as you need to replace it.

ironlady2022

Thank you for all your replies. I am learning something new everyday! I knew there was something fishy! I'm gonna have to go back to the drawing board!

ironlady2022

PS where would you recommend I look to buy for a second hand car besides Autotrader?

forgotmyname

Autotrader, Ebay, Gumtree etc.

BUT if you dont know what your looking at then you maybe better off buying a a big chain main dealer.

£££ extra but less chance of being sold a dud and them vanishing. Or shutting down and opening up the next
day with the family dog as the boss. Leaving you with no comeback.

property.advert

I wanted a car last year. I wanted value for money, around the £5k mark.

I couldn't risk buying private and the checks by the AA/RAC etc. are not worth the paper they are written on.

So I went with Vauxhall and Network Q. I picked up a 3 year old Astra Design, 1.8 auto, half leather etc. with only 19k on the clock, straight from Motability and I paid a little over £5k with 2 years warranty instead of the standard 12 months.

By my reckoning, I've got 2 years trouble free motoring or Network Q will sort it out. After 2 years, I have a car with perhaps 30k on the clock and a car I have known for 24 months which has proved itself not a lemon and reliable. So why would I want to change it ?

I could not find a better deal, even with Ford.

leeg9989

wisebuyers.com used car valuations .............

cyclonebri1

forgotmyname wrote: »

Autotrader, Ebay, Gumtree etc.

BUT if you dont know what your looking at then you maybe better off buying a a big chain main dealer.

£££ extra but less chance of being sold a dud and them vanishing. Or shutting down and opening up the next
day with the family dog as the boss. Leaving you with no comeback.

There's another variation to this and that is to approach the main dealers and see if they have any part ex stock available at trade rates. The stuff that's say 3 or 4 years old, too old for the forecourt and bound for the auctions or smaller car dealer.

AlexisV

If it's too good to be true, it usually is.

Could also be the abroad scam.