In the Ads cars with low fuel lights on

[RodMod]

Hello.

Don't know if this is just another oddity I have now I'm getting on a bit but lately I've been thinking about getting another car, looking through the adverts I've noticed a few cars are advertised with the low fuel warning light on.

I know this is a standard thing that you wouldn't want to sell a car with a brimmed tank however does this put anyone else off?

Edited by RodMod on Sunday 6th July 15:53

[GeniusOfLove]

RodMod said:

Hello.

Don't know if this is just another oddity I have now I'm getting on a bit but lately I've been thinking about getting another car, looking through the adverts I've noticed a few cars are advisory the low fuel warning light on.

I know this is a standard thing that you wouldn't want to sell a car with a brimmed tank however does this put anyone else off?

If you're put off by low fuel on a car then you're the sort of fuss pot buyer nobody wants.

[RodMod]

Haha no its not that I'm a fuss pot it's just I never leave a car that low - never know when I'm likely to be one day to the next.

[Trif]

I heard it was a insurance thing. Means if the car is stolen, they would need to visit a petrol station promptly and will be picked up on their CCTV.

[Red9zero]

When I test drove our current car it had 0 miles range, so the salesman put £1.50 in. When I collected the car it was at 0 miles range again. Tbf the customer service was so st I was just glad to get out of there.

[Bonzo1930]

I would assume that many cars for sale at dealer's have come in part exchange.
Having recently purchased a new car I part exchanged the old one & left very little fuel in it like I think most people would, when I saw it advertised online the fuel light was on, I guess the OP would be leaving a full tank in a part exchange 😂

[OldGermanHeaps]

My fuel light comes on 3 or 4 times a week despite brimming the tank every time. If the fuel light being on is enough to put someone off then good that is exactly the type of perfectionist timewaster I want to actively discourage having any contact with.
Same with the type of herbert that come to view a 2 grand car with 150000 miles on it and complains there is only 4mm on the front tyres and there are stonechips on the bonnet and wear on the steering wheel and awwww i didnt think the road tax on a 3 litre would be so much.... Just go to the new car dealership if you want absolutely every little thing to be absolutely perfect. When you are buying a used car you are buying something that the previous person doesn't want any more because you are too hungry to buy a new one. There is nothing wrong with that but be realistic.

Edited by OldGermanHeaps on Sunday 6th July 16:49

[LosingGrip]

Id expect the fuel light to be on...why would someone give me free fuel?

[sherman]

A standard pdi at the dealer I work at gets £20 of petrol in it.
Nothing on the forecourt will have more than 100mile range in the tank as it would cost a fortune to fill every tank.
Coutesy cars are requested to be brought back with what we gave it out with.
I have test driven several cars with the fuel light on. One the dealer even topped it up from a jerry can before I set off.

[sooty61]

I remember buying a nearly new XR3i in the late 80’s and the salesman filling it up when I collected it. I bought a Vantage from HWM and a Porsche from GVE and both were running on fumes with warning lights on. I thought it was really cheap having to search for the nearest petrol station as soon as I left the showroom

[Lester H]

LosingGrip said:

Id expect the fuel light to be on...why would someone give me free fuel?

As a courtesy after your custom. I would not expect a full tank but £15 or 20 worth would be worth it to the dealer, simply for PR

[paul_c123]

Its because car dealers will use whatever comes in part-ex or from the auction with a bit of fuel in, until its almost run out, by that time another car has come in etc. Also if its been delivered (trade plates) the driver will have used up whatever was there and added only just the right amount to get there - probably doing a "splash and go" in the last 20-30 miles if they got their sums wrong.

I've seen cars from auction with half a tank or more.

[sixor8]

My TVR doesn't have a low fuel light. Keep your eyes on the needle, when it's on E, buy some.

I bought a 2 year old motorcycle in May from a dealer, and to my surprise, they gave me a full tank of fuel when I collected it.

[jonwm]

My last car purchased had 1/2 tank in it on the adverts, when I got to view it, it had full BMW or BMW indi service history even down to air con service so at the main dealer, it had PS4s all round so although body work had a few stone chips and the wheel were curved my though was the previous owner obviously cared about it and obviously kept the tank topped up too.

I took the fuel as "free delivery" to get home.

[Monkeylegend]

jonwm said:

My last car purchased had 1/2 tank in it on the adverts, when I got to view it, it had full BMW or BMW indi service history even down to air con service so at the main dealer, it had PS4s all round so although body work had a few stone chips and the wheel were curved my though was the previous owner obviously cared about it and obviously kept the tank topped up too.

I took the fuel as "free delivery" to get home.

When I bought my current BMW from a BMW dealer it was advertised with just over a quarter tank of fuel. When I picked it up it had 3/4 of a tank.

I was very happy.

[OldGermanHeaps]

Quite often a car can magically lose a half tank of fuel on its transporter journey from the auctions to the dealer.
It must be a safety thing, to lessen the risk of fire on the back of the transporter.

[Sheepshanks]

Bonzo1930 said:

Having recently purchased a new car I part exchanged the old one & left very little fuel in it like I think most people would…..

Both my wife’s last two cars have been almost full when she px’d them - she just always fills up and only does a couple of hundred miles per month and didn’t think about the changeover. As it happens, both the cars she bought were filled up so it didn’t seem so painful.

[mikeyr]

Wouldn't bother me at all. And doubt it does for 99% of population. I 'filled up' my EV when I sold it because I knew the guy was coming well over a hundred miles and it cost me all of about £3.

I think all you should expect is enough for a test drive of a few miles tops.

[Davie]

Other factor being, dealer group cars can be moved around branches so certain sites may hold back on prep work and that includes putting some fuel in in case the car is then requested by another site. Wouldn't bother me unless said car ran the risk of running out before the first fuel station.

[alangla]

sherman said:

A standard pdi at the dealer I work at gets £20 of petrol in it.
Nothing on the forecourt will have more than 100mile range in the tank as it would cost a fortune to fill every tank.
Coutesy cars are requested to be brought back with what we gave it out with.
I have test driven several cars with the fuel light on. One the dealer even topped it up from a jerry can before I set off.

Wouldn’t happen to be a large Scottish dealer group with a substantial coach hire division?
If it is, I bought a used car from their multi site in East Kilbride and was surprised to find an extra £20 charge on the invoice for putting some fuel in from the on-site bunker. Still convinced the gauge was lower than it was when I test drove it a couple of days earlier… Personally I’d rather have just taken it with whatever was in it & visited a nearby petrol station. On the other hand, I’ve had a couple of instances where other dealer groups have filled a car up at no additional cost over the £20 or whatever. I got the impression the fuel cards could be (mis) used as required if a deal needed a little sweetening.