unrealistic expectations of the used car market???

[danlightbulb]

Hi all,

I'm still looking for a car to replace my aging Mondeo. I'm still not having any success. I want to spend £1,500 to £2,000. I believe my own car to only be worth around £500. (A 2003 Ford Mondeo TDCI Zetec hatchback 192,000 miles).

I'm very disappointed with what is on offer on ebay, autotrader etc for £2,000 and under. Even for £2,000, I have not seen anything which is any better than my current car which is only worth £500. It doesn't make sense to me.

Yesterday I viewed a Saab 9-3 Aero, 2006 model estate. It was up for £1595 @ 134,000 miles and I was told over the phone that it drove well and had no mechanical or bodywork issues. When I turned up to view it, the engine was a dog, it drove like st and the interior and bodywork has issues. The seller has since dropped it to £1,000, but even at that price I wouldn't buy it.

Am I doing something wrong in looking for a car, or is the market itself overpriced and full of unwanted crap?

Thanks

[danlightbulb]

I'm looking privately as well, and would prefer it, but like I said, what seems to be around for £2,000 is pretty rubbish across all outlets. The Saab 9-3 I saw was the closest one and I had to travel 60 miles to see it. The selection is so poor.

[danlightbulb]

parabolica said:

^i don't think the OP mentioned anywhere anything about the Saab being for a dealer.

No I didn't but the poster guessed right. It was a two bit place I wouldn't go back to.

oldnbold said:

The further you drop down the price range the harder it is to find a car without any issues. Certainly by the time you get to the £2k bracket it has almost become a "needle in a haystack" search.

Most reputable dealers won't even consider selling cars at this price point because of the huge potential for trouble that they bring, and most private sellers are only selling because they either know off or fear a major problem coming very soon.

But very occasionally you get a gem, however they take a lot of finding.

In my mind cars around 10 years old should be around this price if they aren't top range premium models. The common advice on here is that getting a car in this price bracket is easy, and that spending £8k on a car is unnecessary. I have had this advice myself. Saab's commonly recommended, but less than 2k are almost non-existent, despite Saab being a bust company!

Butter Face said:

£2000 buys you a lot in the Private market .

This is what I keep being told - but where are they because I'm really struggling.

Edited by danlightbulb on Sunday 22 November 16:15

[danlightbulb]

E30M3SE said:

OP get yorself over to this thread for some inspiration.

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

Inspiring if I wanted a car that I would have owned had I been in my 60's twenty years ago.

Except for the Audi on the last page. How has someone bought a V6 twin turbo quatro estate for a grand? Based on that car alone I should get what I want for two grand.

[danlightbulb]

Is nice yes and seems good value. I perhaps should have said up front that I need a family car. A mid sized estate preferably. I have seen cars for the money but none of them are suitable. In what I am looking for, I cannot find any good value cars.

[danlightbulb]

Ghost91 said:

If Saabs are your thing, I strongly recommend you join UKSaabs forum and post a wanted ad on the sales section.

I'm on there and have been monitoring the classifieds. There was a seemingly well looked after 9-5 in bognor regis but it was high miles (not a problem in itself), but I just couldn't get there. 3 hr+ drive just to view it and if I buy it a 5hr+ train ride needing a day off work to pick it up. I hadn't considered a wanted advert. I guess my thought is that if someone wants to sell their car they will put it up for sale.

Ive been looking almost daily at AT, ebay, gumtree, exchange and mart and various car forums.

Edited by danlightbulb on Sunday 22 November 17:32

[danlightbulb]

I appreciate you looking. My thoughts are below. You may think I'm being picky but I feel that I should be able to get what I want for this money - everyone else on here seems to be.

E30M3SE said:

A very quick scan through AT. I've omitted to post and octogenarian spec Merc's.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

its a basic linear model for £1500. I feel it is overpriced for the basic spec that it is. My current car is better.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

It is older than my current car and beige externally and internally. Too old fashioned. If its was any other colour and black/grey interior i'd be all over it. I don't feel that is too much to ask.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

Not bad actually. I'm not overly keen on VAG and I did want a more powerful car.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...

Don't want another diesel after being advised against them multiple times at this age.

[danlightbulb]

Ghost91 said:

You can't find a decent car for the budget without putting some effort in so if you're not willing to either travel or compromise a bit then it's no real surprise you're struggling.

I am putting in effort, but I have to be realistic about travelling distance simply due to time constraints. I'm in the Midlands. You'd think the law of averages would mean some cars are for sale fairly near me, because the midlands is in the 'middle' of the country. But its not happening.

There was one I saw advertised last week. I contacted the guy and said I was interested but I can't get there until Sunday (it was about 80 miles away). It sold a couple of days later. I travelled 120 miles round trip yesterday to see a dog that was supposedly a good runner. There is one in Peterborough I like the look of, but I won't be able to get there until next Sunday because I simply can't get time off work this week. Its not like travelling round a few local garages for a browse, every car needs a full day out.

I'm not willing to commit to buy anything until Ive seen it first. God knows how people can bid unseen. It does my head it as it fks it up for everyone else.

Edited by danlightbulb on Sunday 22 November 21:14

[danlightbulb]

Ghost91 said:

if you buy on eBay and it's not as described you can walk away.

Although you risk a negative review by doing this. Plus if you've paid train tickets to get there (could be close to £100 depending on where in the country you are going - a one way ticket to Bognor was going to cost me £70) then you're already partially invested in it.

Ghost91 said:

I guess taking a few days off and getting it done isn't an option?

It would be if I could be sure I'd have some choices and be confident one of them would be good. At the moment the cars are so few and far between it makes this impossible.

[danlightbulb]

Ghost91 said:

V8RX7 said:

Welcome to 2015 - sellers haven't been able to leave Neg feedback for at least 3 years.

Indeed.

The seller might be a bit cheesed off, but if it genuinely has been falsely described then I suppose it's tough.

Chances are if you pick right, the advert reads well and there are receipts, speak to the seller on the phone etc, then your train ticket won't be wasted.

Oh ok, didn't know this. Not a big ebay user. There must be some sort of consequence though for winning/buying something and not paying for it? Some kind of black mark?

Plus if you've won it on a bid you can't (shouldn't?) then haggle when you get there.

Ghost91 said:

If it is wasted it's better than spending months waiting for the right car to come up down the road.

Once maybe, but if it happens several times that's alot of money and time down the drain.


Maybe you guys can help me with how to handle this situation. I want to go and see the car in peterborough but can't go until sunday. How do I say to the seller when I speak to him if he will hold the car for me until then, without me commiting to buy it or removing my ability to haggle on the day? EDIT - I just this second had a message back off the guy. He's sold it. This is what keeps happening. Anything realistically priced goes immediately, and what is left is overpriced.

Edited by danlightbulb on Sunday 22 November 22:07

Edited by danlightbulb on Sunday 22 November 22:09

[danlightbulb]

Farmer Geddon said:

fking hellfire, not you again!!

How hard can it be?

Something's got to give somewhere, you can't have it all.

Nice to see you too.

I'm doing everything that the forum previously advised that I should be doing, including targeting the Saab's the forum advised me to target. I have a budget that I can afford which was also the forums advice. No need to get shirty, I'm genuinely trying to find a car. My expectations are not unrealistic - there are cars out there that match what I want, but they either sell before I can get to see them or they are at the other end of the country.

V8RX7 said:

I've bought many cars off Ebay without seeing them.

But I always get the sellers no. and have a chat before bidding. I tell them to walk around the car and describe it as I am buying on their description and if it doesn't match, I won't pay.

Allow £300 to cover the stuff they've "forgotten" I've always bought the cars because I got them for a low enough price.

The last car was a V6 MR2 which he'd forgotten to mention several dents but as I bought it for half what I'd have paid, I didn't mention it.

I've also bought cars at night - I get them to drive it to a petrol station so I can see it. No one will hold a car without a deposit.

Great if you have the funds to cover such a risk. I don't. Like the petrol station idea, if the seller will do it, but still no good if I have to travel 150 miles after I finish work at 6pm.

Bonefish Blues said:

OP, go and check the 2002 Aero Estate has had the obligatory sump drop, check the neated and vented seats work, and buy it for £1500-£1600.

The exterior's not beige. The interior is, but the signs are good there.

I can't stand the interior mate. I'm not 65 and this isn't the 1970's any more. There is a nice one on AT at the moment in the Chilterns somewhere (1.5hr drive away for me). But its a dealer again and slightly over budget. Still can't see it until Sunday (appointment only at the dealer so depends on him).

[danlightbulb]

Farmer Geddon said:

Like I said, you can't have it all. You wonder how everyone else manages to find a bargain nice car. They're not as picky or as difficult/unwilling to help themselves.

I'm doing everything I can. My spec list is hardly picky. Black leather? That's hardly picky. Not my fault lots of people bought horrible beige when they bought the car in the first place. Maybe you can actually help me out by telling me what it is I'm doing that means I'm unwilling to help myself. Given I've been scouring all the websites every day and joining all the forums looking for cars? The only think I haven't been able to do is drive to see many because:

a) the cars are not out there
b) I only have very limited time to do view any
c) if I do make arrangements the cars are selling before i get to them
d) I'm being sensible by not bidding on an unseen car like a fool.

If I had bought the car I saw yesterday without seeing it I'd have bought an absolute dog. According to the seller it was perfect.

Farmer Geddon said:

I've managed to buy two cars in the same budget since your last stupid posts on here, and I like most people work full time, it must be magic!

What have you bought?

Edited by danlightbulb on Sunday 22 November 23:44

[danlightbulb]

Because £2k is all I have. If its spent on a dog I'm fked. I have no reliable car. I can't get to work. I can't get to see my kids. Understand? £2k is a hell of alot of money to me and its all I have.

It's a big risk buying unseen. You've successfully done it - great for you. Just my luck I do it and get a crapheap. And if that happens then what?



Where did you get your Saab from? What you bought is exactly what I'm looking for. Why would silver dash and a different colour interior all of a sudden be so difficult to find? Why should those two tiny things make the car well over my budget instead of within it like you got?

Edited by danlightbulb on Monday 23 November 00:08

[danlightbulb]

Farmer Geddon said:

I got the saab on eBay from a private seller, there was a nice one on eBay too from a dealer in Lincolnshire roughly the same price. He's on the saab forum with the name 'woodside'.

I've been looking at his website regularly. Did you buy a saloon? There is more choice in saloons. I need an estate of which there are less around.

The Saab 9-5 is my car of choice, and at the price you paid yes I would have some extra for repairs. I know exactly what I want. A 9-5 aero or vector sport estate, 2004+, <120k miles, silver or grey, black interior with good maintenance record. I don't care about a sunroof or even parking sensors or heated seats really. Look I know what you are saying about the colour of the interior but I just don't want beige in the same way as I don't want one of those old Mercs so often banded about in the shedding thread.

[danlightbulb]

Ghost91 said:

I'm trying my best not to judge your situation sir, but what's worrying me is, if you spend all of your 2k on a car and it's a dog, you're screwed - more or less your own words. Anything you do buy and can afford to run isn't likely to be *massively* better than your current car (assuming there's nothing wrong with it), although nothing wrong with a change, if you can afford the risk of the unknown.

The sensible thing would probably be keep it until it dies or becomes uneconomical to repair and stick some more money in the car fund to bag a better one at some point with less risk of financial ruin, or to set aside in the event of a costly repair bill coming up.

Where I sit on the risk curve is this:

My current car is 12 years old and has done 192000 miles. Its starting to feel its age and I know the suspension is fairly worn. It could do with a refresh probably, but I don't think its worth spending the money on at that mileage. The bodywork is tired, the bottoms of the doors are going rusty, the paintwork is tired and starting to peel on the rear bumper.

I will never want to spend more than 2k on a car because I'm also saving for a house deposit. Any more than this I see as a waste of money.

So I want to find something for my budget that is newer and lower mileage than my current car which decreases my risk a bit. I realise I can never fully eliminate risk, but I feel I should be able to better what I have at the moment. I will also have an emergency fund building up.

So I can afford the risk of the unknown provided I stay within my budget and don't buy a dog. The one I saw yesterday was truly awful, it really was, but to look at it from the outside it looked great.

[danlightbulb]

OldGermanHeaps said:

If you are dead set on spending so little then you need to accept that you might need to choose a different type of car, you want a rare variant of a car that never sold well in the first place, and you have a load of other things that you wont accept, you either need to look further afield, widen your scope or be prepared to wait a looooooooooong time until you get very lucky.

When I came here for the first time a couple of months ago I did not know what I wanted. I was looking at big 4x4s and E39 530i's. It was this forum that first identified Saab's to me. I have been told by many people on this forum and several others that the Saab should be easily obtainable in budget and that it would be more reliable than an old BMW. It took me a while to get used to the idea, but since I've been looking they have grown on me. It seems to be the only car where I can get good value 200+ bhp in a good sized well equipped car.

I did nothing for 2 months while I saved some more money as I was originally planning on getting a loan to finance a car. I again took the forum's advice on saving up instead, and now I have the money I'm actively looking.

OldGermanHeaps said:

If i had a st hot saab estate with all the desireable attributes i'd be listing it way above the other ste out there in the hope of getting lucky, not pricing it the same as a neglected heap with a ste coloured interior. You would do the same i'd imagine unless you were some type of mental?

Well maybe, but what I'm seeing is that the ones priced 2k+ are not selling. So clearly the market maximum is around that price, regardless of spec. Anything priced less than this sells in no time. So on that basis I think how much I'm willing to pay is about right. Cars do come up at the price I'm looking at, but I can't get on them quick enough, or they are realistically way too far away.

[danlightbulb]

Isnt it funny how a simple desire for a black interior causes so many sarcastic responses. Its not gold bloody plating.

Not once has anyone said i shouldnt be targeting the HOT model even though there are less around.

Not once has anyone said the vector is as suitable as the aero.

But black interior - you lot would have me burned at the stake for wanting that.

[danlightbulb]

Challo said:

OP i think what you have just stated about the car you are looking for is your problem. That model Saab is going to be difficult to find with your set criteria in the 2k market. Plus i think you need to realise expectations are far to high to have something not wrong with it.

It was this forum in the first place that recommended this make & model car to me. All i have done is say i want black rather than cream interior.

[danlightbulb]

doro708 said:

Have you considered a Honda Accord petrol , 2L or 2.4? These are pretty much bulletproof engines , quite cheap and with some decent toys . Not many things to go wrong on them , comfortable, decent mpg , cheap parts.

I have looked at those as well yes. Again there arent that many around in the high power models.

[danlightbulb]

WinstonWolf said:

Is it on a forecourt? I might be able to scout it out and tell you if it's worth travelling to view.

Typically you'll need to look at probably ten vehicles before you find the one. Sometimes you get lucky, sometimes you have to look at loads. They're out there, you've just got to find them.

Thanks thats very nice of you to offer. Its sold now unfortunately, and it was private. There is another in the chilterns somewhere (dealer) i like the look of but its slightly over budget. If it doesnt sell by sunday ill try and go and see it.

I wont be part ex-ing my current car its not worth it. Ill keep it and sorn it then sell it private for a few hundred.

Lease deals are out as well. No way i can get something big enough for what i would be able to pay.