To trade up or to not trade up

AdrianC

dcouponzzzz wrote: »

@Adrian, I'll take a look on my lunch break and see what's going on under there, but at a glance the tyre walls looked new, which could just be an illusion.

Never mind the sidewalls, it's the tread depth you're looking at. A very quick glance as you walk past the car will show you whether they're new (8-9mm tread) or near-on illegal (~2mm tread)

dcouponzzzz

I'll check for that later on and update. FYI that image showing mpg was at the m602 exit, by the time I'd parked up and walked away it was on 82.6mpg

BeenThroughItAll

dcouponzzzz wrote: »

I'll check for that later on and update. FYI that image showing mpg was at the m602 exit, by the time I'd parked up and walked away it was on 82.6mpg

Which I'd suggest you assume is reading anywhere up to about 10% over the *actual* fuel consumption, which is probably more like low 70s. Still pretty good, but not 80+.


The loan Clio I'm trundling around in at the moment shows an average of 73.2MPG on the display, but a brim-to-brim test showed it's actually managing 61.63MPG.


Taking into account the awfulness of Renaults in general, I'd assume the VW to be slightly better.

dcouponzzzz

@Beenthroughitall I've been calculating my costs with a 15% offset so I should hope the pricing figures I've come up with are more accurate, cheers!

dcouponzzzz

AdrianC wrote: »

Never mind the sidewalls, it's the tread depth you're looking at. A very quick glance as you walk past the car will show you whether they're new (8-9mm tread) or near-on illegal (~2mm tread)

I checked them out, all 4 tyres look to have been replaced, tread is almost 10mm. Called the dealer and they confirmed brake pads and some other items had been replaced as well. When I take it in to sort the tracking out on Saturday I'll get documentation of the replacements they've made.

almillar

dcouponzzzz - bit late now maybe but since you like doing the maths - to work out what MPG YOU will get in a new car, work out where YOUR MPG in your current car sits, against the manufacturer's figures. EG find out the Urban, Extra Urban and combined figures for your Megane, (parkers.co.uk) and compare it to what you get. Then you can work out where you fit between thnose 3 figures for any car you're thinking of buying. EG if you're currently getting roughly the combined figure in the Megane, you shouldn't be expecting the Extra Urban figure in the Polo. This is also certainly more accurate than using the Honest John real world MPG because it's YOURS.

dannyrst

dcouponzzzz wrote: »

After getting home (and noticing the tracking is sliiiightly off to the left), I had a chance to look at previous MOT certs, which were not presented to me during the sale. This car has had up to 1.5k of repairs in the past 2 years.... The 2014 slip stated that the two front tyres and front brakes will need attention on 27/05/15, however the servicing document from Arnold Clark on 14/07/15 doesn't mention that these were replaced.

I plan on scheduling in to fix the tracking, but do I have a case to request for the tyres and brakes to be replaced as their servicing team should have seen the suggested replacement date? Their service didn't even mention the level of wear on the tyres or brakes..

Another person who bought a used car without looking, got it home and then noticed the long list of things wrong with it and suddenly want it all doing.

I really am going to have to get into selling cars.

dcouponzzzz

dannyrst wrote: »

Another person who bought a used car without looking, got it home and then noticed the long list of things wrong with it and suddenly want it all doing.

I really am going to have to get into selling cars.

I suggest you do just that. Oh and please make sure you post on here for advice when you get shafted, it'll make my day!

Edit: It would be illegal to sell me the car if the MOT instructions had been ignored. Trust me, everything is replaced and working except the tracking, which is off by such a tiny amount it's hardly worth worrying about. It's scheduled in for a free repair on Saturday either way.

dcouponzzzz

almillar wrote: »

dcouponzzzz - bit late now maybe but since you like doing the maths - to work out what MPG YOU will get in a new car, work out where YOUR MPG in your current car sits, against the manufacturer's figures. EG find out the Urban, Extra Urban and combined figures for your Megane, (parkers.co.uk) and compare it to what you get. Then you can work out where you fit between thnose 3 figures for any car you're thinking of buying. EG if you're currently getting roughly the combined figure in the Megane, you shouldn't be expecting the Extra Urban figure in the Polo. This is also certainly more accurate than using the Honest John real world MPG because it's YOURS.

Thanks Almillar, I drive like a granny as of a few weeks ago when I started trying to save some money. I wouldn't think it possible to drive any more economically. When I see 88mpg extra urban on the Polo I've worked it out based on 70mpg.