How many of you have bought a high mileage car??
Discussion
Most of the cars i've had have been bought around the 100-130k miles mark. The highest mileage one i had was a stop gap 2.0 Omega bought on 195k for £200. It was genuinly amazing for having done that many miles, one tiny rust bubble, otherwise immaculate, all the electrics worked and even the seats looked like brand new. Ran it for a couple of weeks and sold it for £600 on 196k.
jbi said:
120k
That's not high mileage... that's just run in.
http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledet...
2007 Honda Civic with 123,000 miles on the clock
$20,000
Why didn't Honda sell the coupe in the UK? Shame.That's not high mileage... that's just run in.
http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledet...
2007 Honda Civic with 123,000 miles on the clock
$20,000
I bought my last 2 cars with over 100k on the clock - the ST24 was on 104k and the E46 was on 111k.
I don't really take it into consideration when looking at a car, I buy on condition and history. High mileage cars are always cheaper too because it puts a lot of people off!
Some good ones in here:
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
I don't really take it into consideration when looking at a car, I buy on condition and history. High mileage cars are always cheaper too because it puts a lot of people off!
Some good ones in here:
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
If it's the VAG 1.8T you're on about then so long as they're serviced they can do big miles without problems - it's the rest of the car that will cost you.
However, I'd be wary of turbos at that milage or at least hold enough to replace them in reserve.
I bought a 328i for £700 with 162k on it for a bit of a laugh.
Ran it for 18 months to 180k and sold it for £700.
Next owner killed it 6 months on when it's water pump failed.
It was still completely fixable bu he scrapped it.
I had kept a water pump and aux belt in stock whilst I ran it.
However, I'd be wary of turbos at that milage or at least hold enough to replace them in reserve.
I bought a 328i for £700 with 162k on it for a bit of a laugh.
Ran it for 18 months to 180k and sold it for £700.
Next owner killed it 6 months on when it's water pump failed.
It was still completely fixable bu he scrapped it.
I had kept a water pump and aux belt in stock whilst I ran it.
t of the proverbial still! Vw 8v engines are solid. 
obtained a saab 900 turbo a few years ago though here for gratis (ok, paid the guys train ticket home to the SW) had 170 + k on the clock when i got it. Exterior was tatty to say the least, tyres miss matched and cheap, yet went like a stabbed rat! came with a full stainless steel exhaust in the boot that was fitted on the day and did 20k in it over a few months. did a couple of bodge repairs on it (spacers in the clutch cable to make it taught again, rather than £18 on a new clutch cable 
) and sold it on to a mate for £400. Wish i still had it, was a great laugh with a couple of tasty bits on it and the boost turned up a smidge
) and sold it on to a mate for £400. Wish i still had it, was a great laugh with a couple of tasty bits on it and the boost turned up a smidgeyes, MK3 golf tdi with 133k off my mum.....drove absolutely fine and FSH but i already had another car so sold it a few days later for a profit.
bought my E38 with 115k on so not quite at 120k, it's had a few minor issues but is absolutely fine now on and just ticked over 122k this morning. didn't do many miles when i got it (at uni so no real need) but now i'm clocking up 250-300 miles per week it'll soon go up!
bought my E38 with 115k on so not quite at 120k, it's had a few minor issues but is absolutely fine now on and just ticked over 122k this morning. didn't do many miles when i got it (at uni so no real need) but now i'm clocking up 250-300 miles per week it'll soon go up!
bga said:
<snip> I buy another high mileage car if it has been looked after properly.
y2blade said:
<snip> Mileage is just a number if the car has been looked after properly
Razzy Man said:
If taken care of, milage is irrelevant.
Lots of cars can take high mileage. As quoted above it's about how the car has been driven and serviced. Because car values are generally so low in the UK, especially with the 'fear factor' of high mileage, many people start cutting corners on servicing or just stop servicing altogether when cars get a bit leggy because "it's not worth spending 15/25/50% of the car's value in servicing" even though a bit of preventative and/or reactive maintenance would ensure many more reliable miles. Hence high mileage cars get the reputation that they're just waiting to throw big bills at you due to previous owner's neglect.There are plenty of stories on PH about the general public (not PHers) who hate spending money on servicing cars but will happily splurge on a new/nearly new car and pay huge amounts of depreciation. Among the general public it seems:
spending money on servicing cars = bad
spending money on depreciation = ok
All petrol
154k Saab 900 T16
179k Saab 9-3SE
166k Saab 9000 Aero
203k Citroen BX 14e
188k mk3 Golf 1.8 auto
All run to 200+ the BX to 265 before the hydraulics gave out.
The 9-3 I sold for 50 quid more than I paid.
My little Beemer has a big task ahead. Bought at 102k in March, up to 112 already.
154k Saab 900 T16
179k Saab 9-3SE
166k Saab 9000 Aero
203k Citroen BX 14e
188k mk3 Golf 1.8 auto
All run to 200+ the BX to 265 before the hydraulics gave out.
The 9-3 I sold for 50 quid more than I paid.
My little Beemer has a big task ahead. Bought at 102k in March, up to 112 already.
muppets_mate said:
Lots of cars can take high mileage. As quoted above it's about how the car has been driven and serviced. Because car values are generally so low in the UK, especially with the 'fear factor' of high mileage, many people start cutting corners on servicing or just stop servicing altogether when cars get a bit leggy because "it's not worth spending 15/25/50% of the car's value in servicing" even though a bit of preventative and/or reactive maintenance would ensure many more reliable miles. Hence high mileage cars get the reputation that they're just waiting to throw big bills at you due to previous owner's neglect.
There are plenty of stories on PH about the general public (not PHers) who hate spending money on servicing cars but will happily splurge on a new/nearly new car and pay huge amounts of depreciation. Among the general public it seems:
spending money on servicing cars = bad
spending money on depreciation = ok
Indeed.There are plenty of stories on PH about the general public (not PHers) who hate spending money on servicing cars but will happily splurge on a new/nearly new car and pay huge amounts of depreciation. Among the general public it seems:
spending money on servicing cars = bad
spending money on depreciation = ok
I was angered (briefly) this morning by a 2" snippet in the Metro about a survey from Autotrader which said that old cars were money pits and people were better off buying newer cars for better efficiency and lower running costs.
B*£!cks!
If you spend £10k on a car, over 5 years you WILL lose the bulk of that even if nothing goes wrong and it gets 40Mpg.
If you spend £1k on what most would perceive to be a shed (due to age and mileage but not spec or condition) then you could very well run it for 5 years and have very little to pay out. It'll also most likely be a more interesting car. Conversely, if it does break in a big way it's your choice as to whether to scrap it and get something else with the repair cost, or fix it as it's better the devil you know. If a £10k car breaks, you have no choice but to repair and then get rid to try and recoup some of your "investment".
Running high mileage cars is a great way to get better value for money.
Look at other countries used cars values, and then see how fortunate we are in the UK that premium cars are accessible to all, really.
welshsurferdude said:
Bought a 2007 mercedes sprinter van with 475k! smooth as a nut! converted to a camper and still going strong! had full service history
bought a 2005 land rover defender 110 with full history at 155k, but had a hard life and needed all new bushes, recon gearbox, new pads and discs, new hub bearings. will need new doors as rust is taking hold and new front seats etc etc.
So id agree its all about how it was treated/maintained!
To be fair, those items can go wrong on a Defender at 50k, let alone 155k. Despite their greatness, the gearboxes aren't known to be the best. Rust shouldn't be an issue on a 2005 car though bought a 2005 land rover defender 110 with full history at 155k, but had a hard life and needed all new bushes, recon gearbox, new pads and discs, new hub bearings. will need new doors as rust is taking hold and new front seats etc etc.
So id agree its all about how it was treated/maintained!
I have faith in modern car mechanicals, but, its the suspension that can become costly at high miles. I know my Saab needs both rear wheel bearings and track control arms on the front and they are going to cost in excess of £400 to replace
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