Low Mileage v's Average mileage when buying a car

[Stevie.b]

Looking at 2 1997 P reg 4.0 Chimaeras. 1 Has very low mileage (20,000) and only done 400 miles in the last 12 months and missed 2 annual services due to very low mileage (is this a reasonable excuse?). The other car has done 45,000 and approx 4000 every year and been serviced every year.

I have been told Rover 4.0 V8's go on for 100,000 miles no problem so mileage on car with 45,000 is nothing to worry about whereas car with 20,000 when starting to be used properly again will put strain on parts and more likely that things will start going wrong.

Both cars priced similarly, Comments most grateful as a decision will be made by the end of the week!

Steve

[flintstone]

I'm no expert but I believe the general concensus is that a regularly used car is a better bet than a garage queen though on paper a lower mileage always looks good. I'd guess that any buyer in the know would not necessarily go straight for the latter though.

Two missed services would worry me too and might put off potential buyers when you come to sell on.

Any chance of haggling down the higher mileage car? For what it's worth I'd feel happier buying a car that had been used regularly and often (which is exactly what I did).

[hut49]

I'd be nervous about a car that's hardly been used and improperly serviced. It's tempting to have a lower mileage car but 400 miles a year and two services missed would worry me about all the internal corrosion that's occured (drive train, exhausts, discs etc) and the remedial costs that will follow once taking it over.

45k miles is, as your guidance has indicated, nothing for a v8 block and with proper servicing (and proper general care) would be my preference - just based on the info you have provided. Obviously there are other factors to take into account - chassis, suspension, bodywork etc.

>> Edited by hut49 on Monday 28th February 21:09

[chimtvr]

i would probably be nervous of a car that does silly low mileage and misses services after all the main use of a service history is evidence of genuine mileage

[gf350]

I don't think 20000 is that low for this sort of car, thats still about 2500 plus a year, consistant with it being a summer toy. Missing two services would worry me a bit, what are the dates on the services it has had? is it a case of them being done a bit late each year or are there two years where they are missing.
What do both cars look like condition wise?
GF

[shpub]

2 Missed services means that no-one has looked seriously at the car for possibly 3 years, probably/possibly/allegedly. That means that it could well be a potential minefield. The problem with not using the car is that bits tend to seize and corrode and can be expensive to fix.

Worth a deeper look but be careful as it could end up costing quite a bit to get it sorted. Something that a regular used car gets done as a matter of course.

There are also a lot of cars out there so it is not the end of the world if you pass this one over.

[stevie.b]

I guess the concensous of opinion is if you own a low mileage car you like low mileage car and if you own an average mileage car you like average mile cars!

[M@H]

There was a car for sale on here for a long time that had two services missing from its history. It turned out (and I pity the seller when he found this out) that it had been CatD written off & repaired in that time, then sold on.

Cheers,
Matt

Edited to add:
When I bought my latest chim a few months ago I bought a 97 P plater with 43,000 on it.. mileage didnt bother me in the slightest, I was more interested in overall condition and price.

>> Edited by M@H on Wednesday 2nd March 13:50