Buying privately - ex Isle of Man on uk plates

[imperium]

Good morning.

I’ve done a fair bit of googling on this subject but just wanted to double check on here in case anyone knew anything else.

Looking to buy an ex Isle of Man car which is now registered in the UK. Has a v5 and mot. It’s been uk registered since December.

Anything in particular to check on in this instance ? From what I gather Isle of Man doesn’t do MOT’s so not much history to look at in that respect. Also I gather my Hpi check may only be a surface check if it’s done under the UK plate.

Wasn’t sure if there was an iom database that I can check specifically. Anyway I’ve been stung before privately so trying to be as careful as possible.

Thanks in advance

[runnerbean 14]

Absolutely no issues with this - I took cars onto and off the island for years with no problems. The only thing you might want to check, if you are expecting a manufacturer warranty on the car ((i.e. it's under 3 years old) is that it is valid on the mainland. I know BMW and Audi are, can't speak for others.

[runnerbean 14]

Sorry, you might want to ask the vendor how many owners it had on the island - the number won't appear on the new UK V5. Also, I suppose you might want to check it isn't an ex-hire car (the phrase 'one careful driver doesn't often apply to these, although I have bought one or two nonetheless). If the car was regularly parked on a windy headland on the west side of the island it might have a bit more salt-water corrosion than usual, too.

[anonymous-user]

runnerbean 14 said:

Sorry, you might want to ask the vendor how many owners it had on the island - the number won't appear on the new UK V5. Also, I suppose you might want to check it isn't an ex-hire car (the phrase 'one careful driver doesn't often apply to these, although I have bought one or two nonetheless). If the car was regularly parked on a windy headland on the west side of the island it might have a bit more salt-water corrosion than usual, too.

This is probably the most important point.

Do not underestimate how quickly cars will rot that have spent any length of time living close to the sea.

Even cars that have been parked within a couple of miles or so of the seafront on a regular basis will be suffering greatly accelerated salt related rot.

[imperium]

Thanks for your input chaps much appreciate it.

I believe it’s been garaged most of the time because it’s in very good condition bodywork wise.

The main thing that bothers me is the lack of checks available. I would like to see if there is proof it isn’t write off/finance owing. Being Hpi clear doesn’t seem to mean much if that applies to mainland only.

[anonymous-user]

Finance and insurance write off would be registered against chassis number also. Plenty of cars in the UK that have been on iom, jersey, Guernsey etc

[imperium]

Thanks Sfella