Used Porsche from independent dealer – what to check?

[px1980]

I’m about to buy a 2018 Macan Turbo from an independent dealer – I’ve paid the deposit and signed the papers already. Car’s under warranty (until 2021), was last serviced at 20k miles in June. Dealer’s own check showed no issues with the vehicle. From what I could tell, the car is in pristine condition. Dealership is an independent one, what I could verify on the internet suggests Companies House incorporation since 2011, and straight 5-star reviews literally everywhere: FB, their own website, and autotrader (more than 100 5-star reviews there). I was shown the HPI report, an independent workshop check, service book, title. The couple who run the dealership were probably the most professional and responsive salespeople I’ve come across in my car search so far. The dealership specialises in high-end cars and I saw several on their premises last night.

What else could/should I do to buy with confidence? Should I commission an independent pre-purchase check? They said it is never done by their customers, which I found a bit unusual but it’s the first time I’m buying in the UK, and in fairness, the car is still under warranty. Should I re-do the HPI check myself? Can I verify the dealership in any other way – they are not members of any trade association, so I only have the companies house entry to go by, and of course all the reviews.

Thanks!

[alfabeat]

Only thing I would consider is if the dealer is local to you. Any problems, and if the dealer is miles away, it becomes a major hassle.

[px1980]

Yes they are local. It was one of the factors I considered – other cars with the options I wanted were often located 150, 250 miles away.
Just to play devil’s advocate though, why would it matter? I mean I have no recourse to the seller after I paid the full amount and collected the car, right?

[tickedon]

px1980 said:

Yes they are local. It was one of the factors I considered – other cars with the options I wanted were often located 150, 250 miles away.
Just to play devil’s advocate though, why would it matter? I mean I have no recourse to the seller after I paid the full amount and collected the car, right?

Of course you have recourse to the seller - consumer rights are quite strong in the UK. But it does depend on what the issue is and how far you want to push it (e.g. if retailer says no, you’d need to go to court). If your car is less than £30k (appreciate it might not be in this case), paying even part of the transaction by credit card also makes the credit card company liable under s75 in some circumstances.

[alfabeat]

px1980 said:

Yes they are local. It was one of the factors I considered – other cars with the options I wanted were often located 150, 250 miles away.
Just to play devil’s advocate though, why would it matter? I mean I have no recourse to the seller after I paid the full amount and collected the car, right?

I think it matters, as an example, a used Discovery I purchased from an independent dealer quite a long way from home. Within a week of purchase, wheel bearing was noisy, so took it down to my local garage, who confirmed it needed a new wheel bearing and also one of the rear suspension bushes needed replacing. This should have been picked up by the seller before it was sold, and he agreed to cover the cost of repair. But I needed to take it back to him for repair so they could do it inhouse.

He wouldn't cover the cost of my local garage doing it. So I had the choice of taking it back, hang around for a day whilst they did the work, or forgetting it and getting my local to do it and me stump up the ££. I would only buy from a local dealer now, based on my experience.