Looking for advice on this car...

[bramston21]

Hey Guys,

so am looking at this car from Car Giant - but wanted to get a couple of opinions from your good selves...

Ford S Max, Titanium X: here's the car - http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

1. Anything there i should be aware of? I've checked it over and everything 'works', and there's no nasty dints etc in it.

2. It's ex lease, so i was wondering is there a way to find out why the lease company have 'sold' it?

3. Finally - for this price, am thinking about getting the AA along to check it out before committing... this is mainly because a friend of mine had a shi*y experience with CG, and i'd like to ensure that doesn't happen. Am i being over cautious..?

Thanks guys!

[SantaBarbara]

Maybe they have a policy to sell cars that are more than three years old

[bramston21]

Thanks - that's what I am hoping... but can I call them up and just ask? Does it work like that?

[crazy about cars]

Pretty expensive for the mileage no?

[bramston21]

crazy about cars said:

Pretty expensive for the mileage no?

Looks about right based on Parkes - taking into account it is in v good condition and has a ton of extras.

[cootuk]

Lease cars generally are leased for 2 to 4 years. At that point the best are auctioned to main dealers, the rest go to general auction.
Could also be a car handed back from a PCP after four years if the previous owner didn't want to pay a balloon payment to buy it.
At this point in its life, it needs MOTs..they look ok though probably not gone to main dealer auction cos of the mileage.

[bramston21]

Mots all in order as is the service history.

[bramston21]

Also am I right in saying that for a Diesel engine - that mileage is all fine... those TDCi's can go on for several 100k miles.

[Willy Nilly]

bramston21 said:

Also am I right in saying that for a Diesel engine - that mileage is all fine... those TDCi's can go on for several 100k miles.

I would be surprised if an automotive (by which I mean an engine designed for use in a car) diesel is much if any more durable than the petrol engine that was on offer. There are plenty of petrol engines being used with a lot of miles on them. 78,000 is not a lot for a modern car.

[Magic919]

How many previous keepers? Quite a few of these are Motability for the first three years.

I'd make sure you are happy with the ride quality in the Sport with the larger wheels.

If you are happy to do work on the car then 100k miles plus is fine. We outed one at 105k as that seemed to be the tipping point. Usual DPF woes can start around there plus the normal wear and tear on suspension and car in general.

[blearyeyedboy]

I'd tread carefully, which it sounds like you are doing. The SH being present is reassuring.

An S-Max might be a higher risk type of car to buy than, say, a Mondeo. An S-Max would be an odd choice for 70k miles in 3 years unless you were carrying lots of stuff or lots of people so if it had been used commercially, I'd look for signs of hard commercial use.
EDIT: Was going to add the same point as the poster below me. I would be surprised if a Motability car had covered this mileage.

I'd rather buy a good car that had done 70k miles than a bad one that had done 40k though.

e.g., Signs of lots of wear in the back seats or scuff marks in the load bay compared to the front? (Taxi/Airport shuttle?)

Edited by blearyeyedboy on Saturday 16th September 15:40

[SantaBarbara]

Magic919 said:

How many previous keepers? Quite a few of these are Motability for the first three years.

I'd make sure you are happy with the ride quality in the Sport with the larger wheels.

If you are happy to do work on the car then 100k miles plus is fine. We outed one at 105k as that seemed to be the tipping point. Usual DPF woes can start around there plus the normal wear and tear on suspension and car in general.

Motability cars tend to have a very low mileage in my experience

[Magic919]

They are commonly at 50k by the end of year three.

[Pica-Pica]

Willy Nilly said:

bramston21 said:

Also am I right in saying that for a Diesel engine - that mileage is all fine... those TDCi's can go on for several 100k miles.

I would be surprised if an automotive (by which I mean an engine designed for use in a car) diesel is much if any more durable than the petrol engine that was on offer. There are plenty of petrol engines being used with a lot of miles on them. 78,000 is not a lot for a modern car.

Agree that the mileage is not a lot, but I would say that the price is rather steep.

[bramston21]

blearyeyedboy said:

I'd tread carefully, which it sounds like you are doing. The SH being present is reassuring.

An S-Max might be a higher risk type of car to buy than, say, a Mondeo. An S-Max would be an odd choice for 70k miles in 3 years unless you were carrying lots of stuff or lots of people so if it had been used commercially, I'd look for signs of hard commercial use.
EDIT: Was going to add the same point as the poster below me. I would be surprised if a Motability car had covered this mileage.

I'd rather buy a good car that had done 70k miles than a bad one that had done 40k though.

e.g., Signs of lots of wear in the back seats or scuff marks in the load bay compared to the front? (Taxi/Airport shuttle?)

Edited by blearyeyedboy on Saturday 16th September 15:40

Don't think the 3rd roe of seats have ever been used...

It's in good nick.

[ZX10R NIN]

It's a good one priced right I'd say go for it, Car Giant basically get them from the lease companies add a bit on & sell them as they get them dents & all, so if it's in good condition & the history is good I'd say buy it.

[bramston21]

Pica-Pica said:

Willy Nilly said:

bramston21 said:

Also am I right in saying that for a Diesel engine - that mileage is all fine... those TDCi's can go on for several 100k miles.

I would be surprised if an automotive (by which I mean an engine designed for use in a car) diesel is much if any more durable than the petrol engine that was on offer. There are plenty of petrol engines being used with a lot of miles on them. 78,000 is not a lot for a modern car.

Agree that the mileage is not a lot, but I would say that the price is rather steep.

For that spec and condition- what price would u expect?

Many thanks.

[ZX10R NIN]

Pica-Pica said:

Agree that the mileage is not a lot, but I would say that the price is rather steep.

If you think that's steep go & have a look for one I think you'll struggle to find one significantly cheaper.

[Vee]

Many cars like this are used by companies as taxis in London, for airport runs, etc.
The less scrupulous ones are on standard leases and have their mileage corrected before each service.
I'd be wary before buying any black or silver MPV and E Class around London.

[TooMany2cvs]

bramston21 said:

Ford S Max, Titanium X: here's the car - http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

1. Anything there i should be aware of? I've checked it over and everything 'works', and there's no nasty dints etc in it.

Usual used-car-buying rules apply. Don't believe anything unless you've seen the paperwork, then be sceptical.

bramston2 said:

2. It's ex lease, so i was wondering is there a way to find out why the lease company have 'sold' it?

It's a 4.5yo car. It's more a question of why it's only just being flogged now - long time for a lease. Who's the keeper on the current V5C?

https://cazana.com/uk/car/FG62MRY
It changed keepers in July, then it's been advertised by a supermarket in August. Hmm. I'd be surprised if going into trade flagged as a keeper change, but it may.

Whoever leased it was doing bare minimum maintenance - first MOT, one bald tyre one tyre with a nail - and they didn't bother changing both.

bramston2 said:

3. Finally - for this price, am thinking about getting the AA along to check it out before committing... this is mainly because a friend of mine had a shi*y experience with CG, and i'd like to ensure that doesn't happen. Am i being over cautious..?

Given that you're quite happy to buy off an outfit your mate had a stty experience with, I definitely don't think "over-cautious" is an accusation that could be levelled.