Can dealers declare any vehicle as 'spares or repair'?

nottsphil

https://www.gumtree.com/p/citroen/2010-citroen-c3-picasso-1.6-picasso-exclusive-hdi-5d-90-bhp-mpv-diesel-manual/1387612602

I was aware of this vehicle when it was offered at a fair price of, I think, £2450 - outside of my budget. However the price has recently crashed by £500, making it not only within my budget, but an absolute bargain to boot. I was dismayed to
read that it was being advertised as spares or repairs, despite appearing to have nothing wrong with it - the reason stated is it's due to being a part exchange vehicle!

lesalanos

Probably so you have no come back if its a bag of nails 

AdrianC

It's meaningless guff.

It just means "Look, if it turns out to be broken, don't throw it back at us." - not that they CAN get out of their legal responsibilities, of course... (Not that they mean a lot on a 10yo £2k car).

And not that £2k is a particular bargain on a C3Pic.

nottsphil

If there's nothing wrong with it, I'd say the diesel  version with £30 tax and under 60,000 miles is indeed a  bargain.... if it comes with dealer's obligations (although in this case, it helps if you like the colour!) 

Grumpy_chap

OK - so the dealer puts "spares / repair" as a bit of a "get out" on any come-backs.  That statement also devalues the car. 

From a purchaser's point-of-view, I always interpret "spares / repair" as the dealer knows the car is a bag-of-old-nails money pit.

I don't read the advert linked as saying the car is "spares / repair" because it is a part-ex.  They just happen to be two sequential bullet points (Sold As Spares Or Repairs. P/X Clearance) in the advert, which also includes (Rear Parking Sensors. Climate Control.).  It would not be logical to read that climate control is the reason the car has rear parking sensors.  Hence, "spares / repair" is simply one statement followed by the second statement "part-ex".

I previously had a Citroen 110 HDi Xsara Picasso and it had numerous faults all fixed by Citroen warranty and at 63k miles and 5 years I chopped it in one month ahead of the warranty expiring because I knew that I would not be able to afford the continuous repairs.  It was a shame, because I did like the car.  60k miles on a 10 yo diesel might mean all sorts of issues with the 'clever' stuff that gets the fuel economy up - on my Citroen it was always the EGR valve needing replacing (about every other month).

facade

You don't want to get involved with a hdi engine that someone is trying to get rid of as "spares or repairs"

born_again

Who would trust a dealer that advertises on "Gumtree"

nottsphil

born_again said:

Who would trust a dealer that advertises on "Gumtree"

It's also on Parkers. Does that make a difference? 

AdrianC

born_again said:

Who would trust a dealer that advertises on "Gumtree"

I bought a £2k car earlier this year from a driveway-trader via a Gumtree ad. I'm very happy with it.

[Deleted User]

I’d speak to the dealer and ask them what is wrong with it for it to be listed as spares or repair - they are obliged to tell you. 

Personally though I wouldn’t bother with that car unless you are a mechanic. The spares or repair is enough to set the alarm bells ringing for me. Looks in good condition so if it was a simple or cheap fix I’m sure it would have been done by now if it was worthwhile. 

Knocking £500 off the selling price gives a clue to how much the repair costs are and given it was out of budget at full price you don’t have the budget for repairs either. 

Walk away and find another one. 

eamon

Its within the time period for cambelt replacement (10 yo or 150000 miles whatever happens 1st). Thats at least a £400 repair bill. Its got an MOT until Sep 2021. Low mileage for a diesel and may or not have a DPF fitted.