Buying a good car from a dodgy dealer...
Discussion
Would you?
Looked at a car at a 'specialist' recently. Lots of pretty expensive stock. Cars seem 'honest', i.e. with little prep.
Liked the car. Needs a little tidying but nothing major from what I could see. Great history, low owners, loads of paperwork. Very local to me.
At the time I spoke to the mechanic who seemed very upfront, no pretence, and straight talking.
Tried to research the previous owner and in doing so found that the car had been advertised on Instagram for £2k lower. Still very well priced and at least 10% cheaper than the next nearest car, and very much to the spec of my liking.
Online reviews were either 5 star or 1 star, citing pressure to leave good reviews on collection, or basic denial of consumer rights and ghosting when after sales service needed. No great!
Bit more research shows that the dealer has phoenixed less than a year ago, allegedly to avoid a court claim liability.
Spoke to the dealer/owner and challenged him on the difference between advertised prices. Says that the IG price was in case he had someone want it immediately, and would be sold 'off the books', no company invoice/warranty etc. incidentally their 'retail' warranty is with no T&C's, drivetrain only, and self funded. Totally cringe wide boy pitter patter and very off-putting.
Lots of red flags, but I do like the car and it's a good price. Ironically I would have been much more confident buying direct from the previous owner, knowing there would be almost zero consumer protection, but this guy seems to want to sell on his own terms, irrespective of the law - basically very high risk!
Would you?
Looked at a car at a 'specialist' recently. Lots of pretty expensive stock. Cars seem 'honest', i.e. with little prep.
Liked the car. Needs a little tidying but nothing major from what I could see. Great history, low owners, loads of paperwork. Very local to me.
At the time I spoke to the mechanic who seemed very upfront, no pretence, and straight talking.
Tried to research the previous owner and in doing so found that the car had been advertised on Instagram for £2k lower. Still very well priced and at least 10% cheaper than the next nearest car, and very much to the spec of my liking.
Online reviews were either 5 star or 1 star, citing pressure to leave good reviews on collection, or basic denial of consumer rights and ghosting when after sales service needed. No great!
Bit more research shows that the dealer has phoenixed less than a year ago, allegedly to avoid a court claim liability.
Spoke to the dealer/owner and challenged him on the difference between advertised prices. Says that the IG price was in case he had someone want it immediately, and would be sold 'off the books', no company invoice/warranty etc. incidentally their 'retail' warranty is with no T&C's, drivetrain only, and self funded. Totally cringe wide boy pitter patter and very off-putting.
Lots of red flags, but I do like the car and it's a good price. Ironically I would have been much more confident buying direct from the previous owner, knowing there would be almost zero consumer protection, but this guy seems to want to sell on his own terms, irrespective of the law - basically very high risk!
Would you?
I have, yes. As far as I was concerned I wanted the car, and accepted that that is what I was buying, knowing the dealer would be off no use. It's an E91 335i, one of less than 100 left on the UK roads. It had one owner +BMW, good provenance (loads of services/work) but had numerous faults and aesthetic issues. 3.5 years on, all of these are now sorted, the car is near perfect, and it drives absolutely amazingly. The dealer was in Keighley.
Yes have bought from such dealers, use your sniff test as it seems you have, so if solid car, the value is right and you're not expecting any after sale warranty then go for it
Personal preference, I've never bought from a shiny dealership ever, they look too pricey for my appetite
Personal preference, I've never bought from a shiny dealership ever, they look too pricey for my appetite
Edited by v8notbrave on Saturday 12th September 09:39
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