Vehicle heavily corroding not advisory

Gewakefie

400ixl said:

The most reliable on a 2 seater would be a manual soft top like the Mazda MX5 and would be my choice at that budget.

On the SLK, outside of the rust, the biggest thing to check is the condition of the supercharger. That will be £k's to sort if it is on its way out. When was it last serviced or replaced?

Services last month £350!

Gewakefie

Frozen_up_north said:

Read the description for the car:
” DUE TO AGE MILEAGE PRICE ETC, THIS CAR IS SOLD ON A AS IS BASIS”

ie no warranty

This is from a dealer operating from a Portakabin, with a mobile number and an AOL email for contact…

No it’s a garage in my town they are the biggest here but not offering any warranty

Goudy

Mildly_Miffed said:

Gewakefie said:

Mildly_Miffed said:

lordmountararat said:

Insurance for £100 is extraordinary. Where did you get that quote?

I suspect a zero has been omitted, since apparently lots of other cars are coming in the same. Or it's merely the monthly payment, not the actual policy premium.

No a zero hasn’t been omitted, this is obviously a monthly price not for the year, and yes I’ve looked at scorocco corsa fiesta, all coming in the same give or take a few pounds 

Never fall into the trap of looking at the monthly finance price and thinking that's the cost of your insurance.

You are buying an ANNUAL insurance policy.
Then, on top of that, you're buying a finance product to allow you to pay monthly - at, usually, an exorbitant APR.

It's important to remember this, because...
1. Your commitment is to them for a year. No more, no less. If you want to terminate the policy early, you will be paying a big chunk of those outstanding monthlies.
2. If you don't pay the monthlies, your policy doesn't stop, but your problems and debt will multiply.
3. If there's any way to avoid that high interest, TAKE IT.

£103/mo is £1,236/year. But how much of that is the actual insurance? How much would it be if you paid in full at the start?

You can stick it on a interest free credit card.
If you can get a 0% spending card for at least 12 months, but work out the payments and pay over 10 or 11 months.
The rate the insurance companies charge to pay over 12 months is usually very high.

Apart from the rust issues, you've a couple more issues to sort that's going to add up.

There's two new front tyres and as the inner edges have worn, it want the wheel alignment checked and adjusted.

A wheel bearing to replace.

And by the looks of the fluctuating brake, the brakes need looking at. That could be anything from warped disc to seized a caliper.

The rusty fuel pipes need some investigation as well. I wouldn't be happy driving it without knowing the extent of the problem that could spill highly flammable liquid everywhere.

You could be looking at £1000 before you got it home to enjoy.

Gewakefie

Goudy said:

Mildly_Miffed said:

Gewakefie said:

Mildly_Miffed said:

lordmountararat said:

Insurance for £100 is extraordinary. Where did you get that quote?

I suspect a zero has been omitted, since apparently lots of other cars are coming in the same. Or it's merely the monthly payment, not the actual policy premium.

No a zero hasn’t been omitted, this is obviously a monthly price not for the year, and yes I’ve looked at scorocco corsa fiesta, all coming in the same give or take a few pounds 

Never fall into the trap of looking at the monthly finance price and thinking that's the cost of your insurance.

You are buying an ANNUAL insurance policy.
Then, on top of that, you're buying a finance product to allow you to pay monthly - at, usually, an exorbitant APR.

It's important to remember this, because...
1. Your commitment is to them for a year. No more, no less. If you want to terminate the policy early, you will be paying a big chunk of those outstanding monthlies.
2. If you don't pay the monthlies, your policy doesn't stop, but your problems and debt will multiply.
3. If there's any way to avoid that high interest, TAKE IT.

£103/mo is £1,236/year. But how much of that is the actual insurance? How much would it be if you paid in full at the start?

You can stick it on a interest free credit card.
If you can get a 0% spending card for at least 12 months, but work out the payments and pay over 10 or 11 months.
The rate the insurance companies charge to pay over 12 months is usually very high.

Apart from the rust issues, you've a couple more issues to sort that's going to add up.

There's two new front tyres and as the inner edges have worn, it want the wheel alignment checked and adjusted.

A wheel bearing to replace.

And by the looks of the fluctuating brake, the brakes need looking at. That could be anything from warped disc to seized a caliper.

The rusty fuel pipes need some investigation as well. I wouldn't be happy driving it without knowing the extent of the problem that could spill highly flammable liquid everywhere.

You could be looking at £1000 before you got it home to enjoy.

Yeah I think I’m gonna swerve this example and just look for another one that doesn’t have these issues/advisories x

Frozen_up_north

I would strongly recommend that you buy a car from a dealer with repair facilities and one that offers a meaningful warranty.

There is a plentiful supply of secondhand cars around, without buying an 18/19 year old one “sold as seen”.

jimjames

Gewakefie said:

Frozen_up_north said:

Read the description for the car:
” DUE TO AGE MILEAGE PRICE ETC, THIS CAR IS SOLD ON A AS IS BASIS”

ie no warranty

This is from a dealer operating from a Portakabin, with a mobile number and an AOL email for contact…

No it’s a garage in my town they are the biggest here but not offering any warranty

They might be biggest but they're still not trading legitimately if they're trying to sell vehicles sold as seen to avoid their responsibilities. Regardless of whether they sell you a warranty they are still responsible for complying with trading law.
Have a look here at the issues that could arise https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6577860/broken-down-second-hand-car-dispute

Goudy

Gewakefie said:

Goudy said:

Mildly_Miffed said:

Gewakefie said:

Mildly_Miffed said:

lordmountararat said:

Insurance for £100 is extraordinary. Where did you get that quote?

I suspect a zero has been omitted, since apparently lots of other cars are coming in the same. Or it's merely the monthly payment, not the actual policy premium.

No a zero hasn’t been omitted, this is obviously a monthly price not for the year, and yes I’ve looked at scorocco corsa fiesta, all coming in the same give or take a few pounds 

Never fall into the trap of looking at the monthly finance price and thinking that's the cost of your insurance.

You are buying an ANNUAL insurance policy.
Then, on top of that, you're buying a finance product to allow you to pay monthly - at, usually, an exorbitant APR.

It's important to remember this, because...
1. Your commitment is to them for a year. No more, no less. If you want to terminate the policy early, you will be paying a big chunk of those outstanding monthlies.
2. If you don't pay the monthlies, your policy doesn't stop, but your problems and debt will multiply.
3. If there's any way to avoid that high interest, TAKE IT.

£103/mo is £1,236/year. But how much of that is the actual insurance? How much would it be if you paid in full at the start?

You can stick it on a interest free credit card.
If you can get a 0% spending card for at least 12 months, but work out the payments and pay over 10 or 11 months.
The rate the insurance companies charge to pay over 12 months is usually very high.

Apart from the rust issues, you've a couple more issues to sort that's going to add up.

There's two new front tyres and as the inner edges have worn, it want the wheel alignment checked and adjusted.

A wheel bearing to replace.

And by the looks of the fluctuating brake, the brakes need looking at. That could be anything from warped disc to seized a caliper.

The rusty fuel pipes need some investigation as well. I wouldn't be happy driving it without knowing the extent of the problem that could spill highly flammable liquid everywhere.

You could be looking at £1000 before you got it home to enjoy.

Yeah I think I’m gonna swerve this example and just look for another one that doesn’t have these issues/advisories x

You have to bare in mind this one had these issues and faults reported on a plate for you, the next one you consider might not.

Checking the Mot history is a useful tool before buying but a good history is no guarantee. 
Same goes for service history.
Yes they are a good sign but it's not nailed on it will be a good car.

I suggest you research any potential model, the internet is awash with all sorts of forums, reviews etc.
Some you need to take with a pinch of salt and remember no car was ever perfect to start with, a used one less so.
Often a simple "whatever make/model faults or problems" search throws up enough information.

Try to get in front of a few cars.
The more you look at the better your gut feeling will be.
I think your gut feeling over this particular car was starting to kick in, that's why you posted about it here.

Your heart might lead you to a certain make or model, but remember to buy with your trusted senses.
Desire isn't usually trustable as it often wears rose tinted glasses.

It's tempting to look at a few high def images on some website and think that looks good enough to buy.
That generally leads to massive disappointment and often massive repair bills.

Finally, your budget on this car is only going to get you in at the bottom of the market.
This isn't a bad thing if you know you can look after it and sort the niggles and problems out cheaply, maybe even handy yourself with the tools, but with a certain amount of rust it could well be beyond viable even for the best of us.

Plenty have given your their opinion and I think most are correct.
These sorts of cars aren't first cars for anyone.

Gewakefie

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202412016907510?fromSavedAds=true&advertising-location=at_cars&sort=relevance&postcode=Sg1%205rg

So I found this example guys, checked mot history and it comes with a 3 month warranty, now do you think it’s a stupid idea to just buy it as it’s quite far from me plus I wouldn’t know what to look for anyway as it’s my first car, they deliver it too, as I’ve looked at the other one and test drove it ect plus because it comes with 3 months warranty or do you think should definitely go and see it first which isn’t a problem but again I wouldn’t know what to look for in that sense anyway 

Mildly_Miffed

Gewakefie said:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202412016907510

So I found this example guys, checked mot history and it comes with a 3 month warranty, now do you think it’s a stupid idea to just buy it as it’s quite far from me plus I wouldn’t know what to look for anyway as it’s my first car, they deliver it too, as I’ve looked at the other one and test drove it ect plus because it comes with 3 months warranty or do you think should definitely go and see it first which isn’t a problem but again I wouldn’t know what to look for in that sense anyway 

Yes, buying a £2.5k 20yo car sight unseen is a stupid idea. ALWAYS. The rest is fine detail.

You say it's "quite far from you", but your Autotrader search includes a Stevenage postcode, which is also where the other one is for sale.
This car is in Chesham.
They're THIRTY FIVE miles apart...

If you don't know what you're looking for, take a friend who does.

400ixl

Advert says 84k miles but speedo says 94k miles. Service book appears to not have been stamped since 2019 so what is the service history since then?

Not that I would every buy any car sight unseen, this has too many questions to even consider doing such.

Car of this age and complexity if it goes wrong, you need to have someone who knows what they are looking at check it over.

As asked previously, who are you intending to get to maintain the car for you. It really needs a Mercedes specialist, its not the sort of car you throw at your local grease monkey.