Discussion
When you are looking to buy a car, how much does mileage come into it for you? Does it put you off?
We’re looking at a 10k second car for a weekend blast.
Would you go for a 120k immaculately maintained car that’s had loads of money spent on it, ie cambelt, clutch etc or for an older low mileage version? Thanks
We’re looking at a 10k second car for a weekend blast.
Would you go for a 120k immaculately maintained car that’s had loads of money spent on it, ie cambelt, clutch etc or for an older low mileage version? Thanks
short answer is it depends on the car and the history
low miles can cause issues just like high mileage, old oil sludging, seals and gaskets drying out, old belts snapping.
You'll pay more for low mileage but you could still end up stung with big bills replacing things that have perished through age and lack of use.
low miles can cause issues just like high mileage, old oil sludging, seals and gaskets drying out, old belts snapping.
You'll pay more for low mileage but you could still end up stung with big bills replacing things that have perished through age and lack of use.
Problem is that an interior that's been sat in for 120,000 miles is generally in less good condition than one that's been sat in for half the time.
And after all, when you get a car that's where you'll be spending the majority of your motoring hours!!
Lowe mileage for me where possible
And after all, when you get a car that's where you'll be spending the majority of your motoring hours!!
Lowe mileage for me where possible
Treat every car as an individual.
I've seen low mileage cars with bad body repairs.
I've driven high mileage cars that were lovely. Some having no wear on the seats even.
Of course the high milers should be much cheaper.
Are you doing a chunk of miles yourself?
If so you don't want to pay the extra for a low miler to quickly turn it into a high miler.
I've seen low mileage cars with bad body repairs.
I've driven high mileage cars that were lovely. Some having no wear on the seats even.
Of course the high milers should be much cheaper.
Are you doing a chunk of miles yourself?
If so you don't want to pay the extra for a low miler to quickly turn it into a high miler.
lee1610 said:
My daily commute will be 20 miles. The plan was to get a mk6 golf r or s3. I could use this daily or buy a cheap 2k daily to and from work
How long is your journey to work? If your doing 12-15k a year it won't make a massive dent on your overall depreciation so I'd put the extra 2k towards buying a better hot (Megane RS/GTC VXR/308 GTI) hatch.I go by condition. Our C class was 18mths old with 70k on the clock. But the condition was amazing...So I was quite happy to purchase especially as she is a diesel.... I've seen MR2s with 100k on the clock looking like they are 6 months old and I've seen TVRs with 12k on the clock looking like they have done 112k............. Condition, condition, condition. As long as the car has been serviced regularly etc.
Must be overheating lol
I always tend to look at lower miles, not so much for the engine, but all the other stuff that might need to be replaced - wheel bearings, CV joints, springs, ball-joints and dampers.
Not a major expense in themselves, but once on fails, it seems likely that the other stuff will start to fail too, so you can end up chasing problems around the car. Yes, driveshaft boots, seals etc. can fail if old, regardless of mileage and give a similar experience, but they tend to be even cheaper to fix!
But I wouldn't buy a ropey low mileage car ahead of a well kept one with higher miles on it, so condition trumps all!!
Not a major expense in themselves, but once on fails, it seems likely that the other stuff will start to fail too, so you can end up chasing problems around the car. Yes, driveshaft boots, seals etc. can fail if old, regardless of mileage and give a similar experience, but they tend to be even cheaper to fix!
But I wouldn't buy a ropey low mileage car ahead of a well kept one with higher miles on it, so condition trumps all!!
My experience of low miles cars has always been better than high miles. Aside from the wear, tear and exposure, high miles mean more opportunity to collect one or two stories along the way.
You often hear people say that low mileage isn’t necessarily a good thing, and it’s true a life of short journeys doesn’t do a car much good. But many low mileage cars, particularly “interesting” cars, have been looked after and used occasionally. Like for like I’d take low over high miles every time.
Having said all that I bought a 93k mile Honda S2000 two years ago because it had clearly been looked after and it stood out from other low mileage cars available. And I’ve just bought a VW van with 230,000 miles!!! This is very definitely a project and it’ll be interesting to see how it’s held up once I get underneath.
You often hear people say that low mileage isn’t necessarily a good thing, and it’s true a life of short journeys doesn’t do a car much good. But many low mileage cars, particularly “interesting” cars, have been looked after and used occasionally. Like for like I’d take low over high miles every time.
Having said all that I bought a 93k mile Honda S2000 two years ago because it had clearly been looked after and it stood out from other low mileage cars available. And I’ve just bought a VW van with 230,000 miles!!! This is very definitely a project and it’ll be interesting to see how it’s held up once I get underneath.
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