Bank details for deposit

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mikrt said:

Dodgy AF. Red flags all over. Who covers their car anyway by the way? 

Quite a few people round here have some sort of sports car parked outside rusting and developing mouldy carpets & upholstery under a cover- and that assumes that they have a soft cover underneath to protect the paint from the waterproof cover moving in the wind.

They really need to go in a dehumidified garage.

Catonthemoon

facade said:

mikrt said:

Dodgy AF. Red flags all over. Who covers their car anyway by the way? 

Quite a few people round here have some sort of sports car parked outside rusting and developing mouldy carpets & upholstery under a cover- and that assumes that they have a soft cover underneath to protect the paint from the waterproof cover moving in the wind.

They really need to go in a dehumidified garage.

Agreed. But, not everyone has a garage.

Catonthemoon

Herzlos said:

MOT's are a very basic test of roadworthiness, without being able to remove anything from the car, so it'd only pick up on rust that was serious and obvious. 

Does the MOT history also reflect the mileage?

Does the registration plate match with the area i.e. it's WH58 xxx or WH08 xxx?
Can you get him to send you photos of some MOTs or invoices and use that to figure out where the work was done? If the MOT is from a garage on the mainland then it's definitely dodgy. 

It still feels a bit off but I can't place it.

Yes, the MOT’s show the mileage - current owner has had it for 2 years… covered 100 miles per year.

Seller informed me the MOT’s were carried out locally on the IoW.

Herzlos

It does sound like it could be genuine, but I'd still recommend making the trip over to see it and bringing it home immediately. Even if it's genuine and you pay a deposit you don't know what'll happen in the 2-3 months where you sort of own it but don't. 

Alternatively, can you pay for an AA/RAC inspection? That'll be a cheap and easier way to verify that the car is really there and in bearable condition. You'd be looking at the higher tier ones because of the age though at around £200 so it's maybe not worth it. 

Another option is to call some local garages (don't ask the seller for a recommendation) and see if they can send someone over to verify it's legit.  It probably doesn't even need to be a mechanic, a handyman or whatever would presumably be happy to take £20 from you to go and look at the V5 and check the address and car exist.