Needs RAC check if second hand car has FSP

richjo100

Hi all

I am looking at buying a second hand car from AutoTrader. It is a few years old and has a Full Service History. Do I need to get the RAC/AA to check it out as well do you think? Or is the FSH enough? Or is it just a matter of opinion?

Thanks in advance

scheming_gypsy

Full service history tells you that it's been serviced on time twice a year, and that service items have been replaced.
It won't tell you if it's a turd on wheels or needs lots of repairs.

vikingaero

Quite easy to use fake stamps or forge FSH with new service books. If the car has a fully stamped FSH and invoices for the work then that is better.

forgotmyname

You can buy a FSH off ebay...

Its also meaningless. You take the car into the garage for a service. You pay say £99 they change the oil and oil filter then give you a list of stuff that needs changing. But stamp your book anyway.

Tyres worn below limit, Brakes below minimum thickness, Brake fluid weeping, Oil leak, Gearbox noisy, Engine low on oil presure, Clutch failing etc etc etc... Yet the seller gets none of them repaired.

Sells it on instead with FSH standing big and bold. Its meaningless. Just means it MAY have had some oil changes..

Or it maybe all fake. Do they have receipts for parts changed? When you view it check the filters etc.. Are they genuine items or cheap ones?

Does it look like its been looked after?

spacey2012

Call up and ask about "the car for sale".
See that in quotations, say that.
If it is a dodgy trader, well guess what they will say next, if not start asking the normal questions, mileage etc, sooner or later the dodgy auction banger dealer going to have to ask you which car.
Most who sell on Autotrader are dealers.

scheming_gypsy

spacey2012 wrote: »

Call up and ask about "the car for sale".
See that in quotations, say that.
If it is a dodgy trader, well guess what they will say next, if not start asking the normal questions, mileage etc, sooner or later the dodgy auction banger dealer going to have to ask you which car.
Most who sell on Autotrader are dealers.

The OP hasn't said it's listed as a private sale. If they phone a trader because it's advertised as a trader, they're bound to ask which car.

spacey2012

If it is a trader and say trader, it will be quite obvious, however most other (private) adds are banger dealers passing themselves off.

forgotmyname

Except the dodgy ones probably only sell one wreck at a time. Next week its a new mobile number and a different car. Or one car per phone number.

Which car is an old trick that doesnt really work these days.

Ultrasonic

scheming_gypsy wrote: »

Full service history tells you that it's been serviced on time twice a year

Errr, no. A legitimate FSH history should tell you that the car has been serviced as per the manufacturers recommendations. How frequently this has taken place will depend on the car, and how many miles per year the car has been driven. I have no idea where the 'twice a year' part came from :huh:.

Judging if a FSH is in fact legitimate can be tricky, but if it is a genuine private sale then ask to see the receipts and dealer paperwork for the services.

An AA or RAC check will give you far more useful information than the service history though. If you are not confident about spotting major faults yourself, then on a private sale a check like this seems a sensible plan. Assuming they offer some sort of compensation if the car turns out to have a major fault that they miss?

Ultrasonic

forgotmyname wrote: »

Which car is an old trick that doesnt really work these days.

It might work though, so no harm in using it.

scheming_gypsy

Ultrasonic wrote: »

Errr, no. A legitimate FSH history should tell you that the car has been serviced as per the manufacturers recommendations. How frequently this has taken place will depend on the car, and how many miles per year the car has been driven. I have no idea where the 'twice a year' part came from :huh:.

don't take things so literally.
It's pretty obvious that I was saying a full service history, is saying that the service book is stamped up to date.