Is this used car in good condition?

FreshlyCutFlowers

I am buying my first used (2018) car, but I dont know anything about cars and have nobody that can help me. I felt secure buying from a dealership, but something made me feel uneasy about it as they suddenly said another buyer was interested in buying if I didnt. I walked away, but they have now called and said its available after all.. I feel like they are chancing on me.

The car looks nice inside.
There's many small scrapes going just into the white layer, especially on areas of handling so I assumed someone with a ring being heavy handed..
There's however also quite a few 'chips' in the pain revealing the black, especially around corners like the door frames or around the wheel openings. I've added an example here but its pretty much the same on the edges around the car.
The thing that worried me the most however was the rust underneath. I've not looked at many cars underneath so I dont know if this is normal or not.

Any help very appreciated.

Mark_d

When you're only spending £100 on a car, you need to be realistic.  You can't expect to get a car in top notch condition that'll last you 10 years.

uknick

What's the mileage and how much are you being asked to pay?

The rust appears to be superficial and shouldn't be anything to worry about.  Steel can get like that after quite a short period of time.  Look at brake discs that have been left to stand for a day or so after it has rained.

The white chips on the door frame, I assume that is what it is, look pretty normal as well for a car that has a few miles on it. 

And, yes to my mind any salesman that uses the old "we have someone else interested" invariably is being economical with the truth. 

FreshlyCutFlowers

The car is £10200, 7 years and 36000 miles. I realize its not a new car so I am expecting some wear and tear but I want to make sure I dont buy a mechanics next project.. It's not sold for almost 6 months, so it cant be that sought after.

It's a lot of money for me but I was prepared to but it.. I just got put off by what I felt was a sales tactic and now wonder if I am being blind to an issue since its not sold in a long time and I felt like it was being 'pushed' on me.

Thanks for the feedback. Sounds like I dont have anything to worry about here.

Rodders53

Get an independent report on the vehicle via RAC or AA etc.,.? 

5,000 miles per annum is low so likely short trips with engine rarely getting hot?  Full main dealer service history? 

Make and model of vehicle and if Main Dealer sales or not may allow better comment.
A car on any dealer forecourt for 6 months seems a red flag to me;  how do you know that fact?

daveyjp

Light rusting like that isn't a concern.  Those suspension components have little more than a quick spray of paint which soon gets chipped.

As regards longevity,

What car is it?  Is it a brand which is generally reliable? Is the MOT history looking healthy?  Service history?  Tyres and brakes condition?  Aircon working?  Central locking and all windows work? 

born_again

FreshlyCutFlowers said:

The car is £10200, 7 years and 36000 miles. I realize its not a new car so I am expecting some wear and tear but I want to make sure I dont buy a mechanics next project.. It's not sold for almost 6 months, so it cant be that sought after.

It's a lot of money for me but I was prepared to but it.. I just got put off by what I felt was a sales tactic and now wonder if I am being blind to an issue since its not sold in a long time and I felt like it was being 'pushed' on me.

Thanks for the feedback. Sounds like I dont have anything to worry about here.

What car is it?

£10K for 7 year old. I'm out of touch...
You can have a new Dacia Spring for that.

paul_c123

Its a fairly obvious area which should have been prepped before the car was put for sale (IMHO). If they haven't bothered doing a touch-up there, what else haven't they bothered doing? Checking the brakes? Service? Cambelt? Mot? etc etc

If they say they'll prep the car after you've agreed to buy it, fair enough, but then how are you supposed to make a firm offer on a future promise? 

Without knowing the make/model/variant, we can't possibly know if its good value or not.

FreshlyCutFlowers

The MOT is indeed expired but the dealership didnt want to renew it before I decided to make the purchase. Previous years MOTs were all fine. They offered 3 months warranty and said any issues in the MOT would be fixed as per law, but not if they were advisory.. It made me feel like they know there may be MOT advisories and I will be unable to get them fixed.

According to the seller, not renewing the MOT was normal practice. This is a big brand dealership in london who is selling a car different to their own brand. I'm keeping details sparse as I dont want identification.
The price is right for the type of car according to autotrader.

paul_c123

How are you supposed to test drive a car if it doesn't have MoT?

How are you supposed to commit to buying a car if you can't test drive it?

I'd say its what SOME dealers do, but OTHERS do it in a different order, so its easy for the buyer to 1) evaluate the car fully and properly, including a test drive, and 2) see what they're actually getting in terms of prep, mechanical jobs done, etc rather than a future promise.

HillStreetBlues

What quality are the windscreen wipers?