C16 RKC's Project 2003 CL500 (and other stragglers)

[c16rkc]

Easy come easy go

So the first bit of news... yesterday (Saturday) someone came and bought my A6 estate. Was a lovely easy sale, but then again the car was close to mint so I was expecting it to sell easily.



Our beauty returns from beauty treatment with some side effects

So the good news is the Daimler is back, and I am thrilled with the paintwork done. It's 100% better than the last place I used, and it means the Daimler would now appear perfect to the average person.

It has had the following beauty treatments:

The suspension struts are repaired inside and out.








Full bonnet respray, off the car. The front trims around the lights were also painted to match, as well as both front arches blended.



Front bumper removed, all accessories removed and full respray.



Rust repair to front drivers side arch (this was missed by last bodyshop)



Rust repair to lower edge of both passenger doors



It looks tremendous... but nothing ever goes to plan, and there are some new issues for me to sort.

First, the spray work went over the pinstripes, and the sprayshop did not know how to replace them so left them missing.



The boot now only opens by key. The boot lid button does not work, neither does the fob button, or the button on the dash.

I can't figure out why...



The front passenger side indicator no longer works, and it's not the bulb. Its not the connectors at the front bumper either.



Lastly, the coolant now continuously says low level on the dash, even though coolant level is fine.



So lots for me to sort out sadly... I was feeling pretty miffed with the car on Sunday, despite the bodywork looking much better.

Most annoyingly I can't take it for an MOT until I get these bits sorted.

 

[c16rkc]

Good clean work

On Sunday I cheered myself up with a couple of easy wins.

I replaced the faded old gear knob with a nice spanking brand new one.



I shined up the lower chrome trim from the front bumper.



Then after two bodyshop visits, the already mucky engine bay had become embarrassing... particularly with all the dust. I gave it a light clean in some areas.



















Then I decided that the DIY gold paint from a previous owner needed freshening up. I was torn between cleaning it all off or going over it. I decided to give it another go.

Before...



After...



I'm still undecided, but I will see what it looks like when I'm done.

What does everyone else think?

Still lots to clean under here, but a good start to the passenger side of the engine bay.







That's all for this weekend.

Thanks for reading!

 

[c16rkc]

Things in life do not always go the way you want them to, and despite a great weekend, Aston spiked a high temperature yesterday. He seems absolutely fine, and there is no sign that he is ill in any way; but protocol means he has to be checked out at hospital, and stay until they know they have found the cause. This means our little pest is bored in hospital again.

I do feel sorry for the little fella, trapped in a small room; he plays with some toys and does some colouring, but in the end both Aston and my wife just want to go home...



The hospital is not really a good place for our other son, 2 year old Spencer, so after work I collected him from the hospital, took him home, and then got him to bed at around 7:30pm. This left me at a loose end...

Time to have a look in the garage!

Thanks to a helpful member on this forum, I had some nice tips about things to check. But the first thing that had occured to me was that electrical problems are often due to a poor quality battery. Therefore is seemed sensible to check this out first. I could not really pull the car apart, as I had to keep an eye on sleeping Spencer, but 10 minutes could not hurt.

I put a meter on the battery, and measured a pathetic 9.4VDC! This could certainly cause issues.



So the battery is on charge, and I shall check things again tomorrow.



While I was in the garage I loved the way the car looked under the garage lights, so I took a few pictures.

 

[NewbieAMG]

Hope nothing serious with your son mate. Car looks lovely!

Here I was thinking I change cars too fast. Luckily I’m not alone in this

 

[c16rkc]

Yes little Aston is OK; for anyone who does not know from previous posts, he has ALL (acute lymphoblastic leukemia). He is in the final 6 months of his treatment, which started December 2019. There are times he gets ill from the Chemotherapy, but this does not appear to be one of them; he is full of life right now. He just has to visit hospital due to his high temperature, so that they can monitor him, and make sure there is not a serious infection brewing.

I have had this Daimler since 2017, but yes I do change cars too much... there are a few of us with that illness, we should start a coping group!

But..... keep this hush... (lowers voice) don't tell anyone... but I am seriously considering selling the Daimler to fund something different... but let's keep that between us obsessive car changers... Lindsey has suffered enough this year

When (if) fuel comes down in price I fancy another S class Mercedes for my Daily driver; and long term I may sell both the Daimler Super V8 and the Mercedes CL500 to help fund an Aston Martin DB7 Vantage... but we shall see...

 

[NewbieAMG]

Sorry to hear that mate my best wishes to all of you! If you need help give me a shout.

It feels like fuel prices are starting to climb back up. Not a trend I would like to see. That db7 looks gorgeous

 

[c16rkc]

Yes despite the price of oil dropping, fuel prices seem to be staying high. That means I'll be stuck in my Citroen for some time by the looks of things...

I think the DB7 would look even better in my garage

 

[SmartAmg]

Sorry to hear about, Aston, what a little trooper he is, hope he's feeling better soon. On a lighter note, a DB7, get you! seriously though, Chris why the hell not.

 

[c16rkc]

So.....

I have rather neglected this thread, mainly because I also have a thread on "that other" Mercedes forum... and I forgot about this one...

So here goes, I will bring it back up to date!

From 23rd October 2022:

Good clean work

On Sunday I cheered myself up with a couple of easy wins.

I replaced the faded old gear knob with a nice spanking brand new one.



I shined up the lower chrome trim from the front bumper.



Then after two bodyshop visits, the already mucky engine bay had become embarrassing... particularly with all the dust. I gave it a light clean in some areas.













Then I decided that the DIY gold paint from a previous owner needed freshening up. I was torn between cleaning it all off or going over it. I decided to give it another go.

Before...



After...



I'm still undecided, but I will see what it looks like when I'm done.

What does everyone else think?

Still lots to clean under here, but a good start to the passenger side of the engine bay.





That's all for this weekend.

Thanks for reading!

 

[c16rkc]

From 25th October 2022:

Things in life do not always go the way you want them to, and despite a great weekend, Aston spiked a high temperature yesterday. He seems absolutely fine, and there is no sign that he is ill in any way; but protocol means he has to be checked out at hospital, and stay until they know they have found the cause. This means our little pest is bored in hospital again.

I do feel sorry for the little fella, trapped in a small room; he plays with some toys and does some colouring, but in the end both Aston and my wife just want to go home...



The hospital is not really a good place for our other son, 2 year old Spencer, so after work I collected him from the hospital, took him home, and then got him to bed at around 7:30pm. This left me at a loose end...

Time to have a look in the garage!

Thanks to a helpful member on this forum, I had some nice tips about things to check. But the first thing that had occurred to me was that electrical problems are often due to a poor quality battery. Therefore is seemed sensible to check this out first. I could not really pull the car apart, as I had to keep an eye on sleeping Spencer, but 10 minutes could not hurt.

I put a meter on the battery, and measured a pathetic 9.4VDC! This could certainly cause issues.



So the battery is on charge, and I shall check things again tomorrow. Might need a new one of course...



While I was in the garage I loved the way the car looked under the garage lights, so I took a few pictures.

 

[c16rkc]

From 28th November 2022:

All bland things come to those who wait

After being a coward, and deciding I did not want to take any more of the Daimler apart, I dropped it off at AutoElectrical in Kings Lynn on Sunday 13th November, and they were given details of the three faults that appeared after the bodyshop had the car.

Would you believe it, no longer had the Daimler gone, but that crafty little Citroen stole it's space in the garage!!



On Thursday of the week that followed (17th Nov), they gave me the diagnosis:

* The front passenger indicator not working turned out to be a connector not seated correctly. An easy fix!

* The coolant level fault turned out to be that the sensor has stopped working. At around £30ish for a sensor, I am not going to worry. Another easy fix.

* The boot lock/opening fault issue has turned out to be a micro-switch. Jaguar no longer make the part, but I betting I can find a used one. Auto electrical are going to show me the part so I can source a used one and fit it myself.

I hoped it would not take too long; though they did say they needed to order the level sensor from Jaguar. But I did not hear anything until last Friday (25th November). I was advised that not only was the level sensor in the tank goosed, but that there was another sensor that formed part of the tank that was also gone. So I needed a whole new tank.... This was going to be another £130.

I had to seek approval from the board for the extra costs...



Approval has been granted! - So I said go ahead, and I am advised the car should be ready later this week.

So very soon, I may be able to try again for my MOT!

I am pretty sure I am going to sell the old girl when I have finished the current bits and bobs. I will probably keep her through Christmas and maybe have a couple of nice trips out in her; after all for the last 2 years all I have done is spend money on her, and it is about time I got some enjoyment back!

I think it is likely I'll finish and keep the Mercedes CL as a fun car after that, but then sell that too when I both replace the Citroen and get something more interesting.... we shall see!

 

[c16rkc]

From 3rd December 2022:

I collected the Daimler last night. It is all fixed with the exception of the boot lock, but I have ordered the replacement part having been shown what it was by the garage.

But while I was hoping to give the Daimler a super clean today, Aston spiked a temperature last night and we are in hospital, again... He is absolutely fine in himself, just a bit quiet, has a cough and gravely voice, but we have to see out the visit now, so it will likely be a few days in here.

Here he is glued to his pad this morning...



So the poor Daimler will have to wait. I'll try and get it's MOT retest booked in for the coming week, as all the faults are now gone from the dash following work at the garage.

The garage have unplugged the "boot open" microswitch and its a surprise to see it not only clears the error, but also works perfectly too, so it seems the switch has no purpose other than to let you know if the boot is not closed properly.

I'll replace that when it arrives in the post.

 

[c16rkc]

From 24th December 2022

Overdue update

So I am well overdue an update, but have just been so busy I've had had the chance. Little Aston has spiked a fever at 2am this morning, so we are now in hospital again... seems like the perfect opportunity for me to do an update...

So first of all, Aston is fine. He has had a few viruses on and off the last few weeks, and he did get fairly poorly at one point, but he was actually discharged from hospital the day before yesterday, and we thought we were home free for a Christmas at home.

But then he got up crying at 2am this morning, and he felt boiling hot so Lindsey checked him temp. It was 38.2. Protocol is that we have to take him in when ever he hits 38 or above ... so here we are...

Doctors have checked him and say he seems fine, but we'll have to see if they let us go or not. For the time being Aston is too awake to go back to sleep, so he's on his pad.



So the Daimler went in for its MOT the week before last, and I am please to say it passed. That night Aston had his Nativity at school, he's the sheep on the left with the black ears and black gloves.



When I looked at the MOT slip, I was surprised to see that even though I had all the bodywork mentioned in both the previous fail, and advisories, it now has ANOTHER bodywork advisory. They have noted both floor pans are rusty. The brake pipes also need doing, but I can get that booked in easy enough.



Frustrating because I wanted it sorted and so there was nothing else to do, and I told the body shop if anything needed doing let me know (after all it is surely cheaper to do it all at once). When I collected it they said the car was now really solid now and I'd not have to worry for years. It seems our MOT centre disagree ... never mind...

The following weekend, I got some time on the Daimler as Lindsey popped out for a couple of hours with the boys for hair cuts (those who have seen me know I have no need for hair cuts myself...).

First of all, I sorted the boot lock.



It was very cold, I was praising my lovely garage! Got myself a cold drink to keep me hydrated, but also a nice hot cup of tea.



The used replacement part had arrived from Ebay. Jaguar do not make the part anymore.



The electrical specialist had told me the microswitch was not working. But when I used my electrical multimeter to check it, all seemed fine. But then I compared the new/old boot latches and noticed a striker was broken in mine. Its this grey bit sticking up in the below.



So I swapped them over, put it all back together, and had one working bootlock again! Perfect!

I then attended to the two front door/window chrome trims. Jaguar call this the waist trim. Mine were falling apart, particularly the drivers door one.



Need to take the door card off to do this properly without forcing or bending anything.




Then remove the mirror, and the chrome trim just pulls off.



Gave it a good clean along this top edge while it was exposed.

New trims fitted to both front doors and looking much better.



The rears are not too bad, but perhaps could do with changing one day. Thankfully they pull off easily with no need to remove anything.

So then I turned to the pillar trim logos. On mine these are a "V8" logo. Notice mine are garishly painted bright gold by me in a cheap refirb a couple of years ago...



But early versions of the Daimler had "Daimler" logos which I prefer. To my surprise they are still available from Jaguar, so I ordered a nice brand new set.



They come with the sticky pad seal, all ready for fitting.



Bit of residue when I removed the old.



Easily cleaned up...



...and drivers side badge fitted.



Then on to the passenger side.




I prefer these Daimler ones, but I guess its personal taste. A future owner may scratch their head why this car has the older style badges fitted

 

[c16rkc]

From 24th December 2022

I've just had some great news - we can go home!

They are breaking the usual protocol, as they usually insist 3 days of observation after a temperature. But Addenbrookes have given permission for an exception as they think they know the cause.

I'm so happy!!

PS. Aston never did sleep and he has been a hooligan today... At least he'll surely sleep tonight! [emoji38]

 

[c16rkc]

From 8th January 2022:

Automatic garage lights

In the little bit between Christmas and New years eve, we had a visit from one of Lindsey's friends. She bought her own ankle biter, kept the kids busy... I decided to escape to the man lair and get a job done!

Its been frustrating having to turn the lights on in the garage when we arrive at night. I fancied a motion sensor. Ordered one from Amazon for £20.

I thought it would attach nicely to the steel cross beams.



Moved all the cars out of the garage so I could work.



Found a central place for the sensor, in front of the roller doors.



Opened up the light switch to lash it in. Noticed how the electrician had also smashed this back box... [emoji2960]



I ran new cable, and set it so that the light switch was an override. In normal conditions the sensor brings on the lights, but I can turn them on permanently with the switch too.




It works really nicely, and I set the timer to about 30 seconds. Seems to give us plenty of time. Oddly the roller doors do not activate it when they raise, but luckily the car does when it gets to the opening.

 

[c16rkc]

From 9th January 2022:

That Daimler

Yesterday the weather looked cold… but at least dry, so after a quick negotiation with my wife, it was decided she could look after the ankle biting pests in the warm indoors, while I gave that Daimler the clean and going over it needed.

So I took it outside, and cleaning commenced!



I will not bore everyone with lots of mid-clean shots… mainly because I was too disorganized to take any… but here are some with the car wet, glistening in the light.





It was cold, and more to the point the neighbors kept popping over for a chat… so I dried it quickly, and moved it inside to finish it off.
I did a nice relatively thorough job, cleaned the glass, gave it a wipedown with a quick detailer, and dressed the tyres. I am very pleased with the way it is looking now.









The bonnet and front bumper look fantastic now, no stone chips or DIY paint areas anymore I am pleased to say.









It is exactly what I have wanted from the start, something really tidy that does the Daimler brand proud. When shined up the car looks almost like it has just rolled out from the factory! Every panel now shines beautifully!

I walk around the car, and it really does look amazing, I don’t think I have ever been so chuffed with something, but perhaps that’s because so much energy has gone into it, and it has taken such a long time.

 

[c16rkc]

Sadly it is not an absolutely perfect car, as even though I cannot imagine it is desperate, the MOT testers advisory comment suggests the underneath will need some welding in the coming years. But for now it has a years ticket and is good to go. I am pleased as punch!

I am also frustrated that the first bodyshop I used did not do a particularly good job on the rear bumper, so that could ideally do with another respray. I think they have touched the paint before it was dry looking at the inner most corners, and there are some visible sanding marks on the flat faces too. It only notices if you look closely, but it bugs me because I know it's there!

I love this interior, classic old school Daimler. Looking at it makes me grin from ear to ear, and I almost don’t want to sit in it and get it dirty!



















The elephant in the room is this sagging headlining… I’m not brave enough to take all this down and re-glue it. I think I’d rather have someone retrim it if I did get it sorted. Of course I could pin it, and I have seen the pins they sell online. But that only reduces the appearance rather than fixes it, so I don’t really think that’s worth it.



The engine bay still needs more cleaning if I want it immaculate, but for now it does look quite eye catching again. I do like the look of these early supercharged engines before Jaguar started covering them with black plastic.



So that’s the Daimler back on the road again, and looking pretty amazing. I took it for a little run around the block Sunday afternoon, and I felt like a president.

There are still a few things that are bugging me…. Yes it’s time for a list…

• That saggy headlining needs to be sorted.
• That rear bumper needs another respray due to the previous bodyshop doing a bad job…
• The brake pipes advisory on the MOT will need attending to.
• The two front tyres are old and look it, so I’d like to change them for brand new Michelins to match the rears.
• The passenger side front bumper chrome has a slight crease in it. I kick myself for not giving the bodyshop a new one to fit as they are not very expensive for a good used part... but I did not notice it until now.
• The drivers side lambswool mat has slight wear to it… but I may never find a perfect one as they are no longer manufactured new.
• The lacquer on the rear picnic tables has gone slightly dull.
• I think the gearbox oil could do with changing due to the age of the car.
• A DIY repair around the rear screen is starting to go dull, and would benefit from a professional respray.
• There is a technical bulletin on getting rid of the “chirp” the aux belt makes when cold. I would like to implement this (I think it’s a pully change).

But even though I look at the car and part of me wants to start doing more, I think I am going to leave it here and someone else can have the job of finishing these last niggles off. I really think it is time I draw a line, and now turn back to the Mercedes CL so I can get it off the axel stands!

I am so thrilled to have the car looking like this, but some interesting (and perhaps scary) figures:

Since summer 2017 when I bought the car, I have totalled a spend just shy of £12,000 on the car and yet only covered 4,094 miles!

Worst still, since the last MOT in April 2020, I have covered just 1,589 miles and yet spent a scary £4,621.27 on it on all sorts of bits and pieces.

I might say my story could serve as a warning to others who look to take on badly abused old cars, as the repairs total far more than the car’s worth. I know it should be obvious, but it is clearly much better to buy a car that is already in good condition and just maintain it. But then again I have had good fun working on it, so it is swings and roundabouts.

But I also have to admit that as a father of two very energetic boys, I don’t really have the time to spend on a car like this anymore. I think I’d be better to also finish the Mercedes CL before it too costs me a fortune, sell both these cars, and buy something more sensible I can use every day; like a nice clean luxury barge (I am thinking Mercedes W221) I can treasure as a daily driver. I’d perhaps keep the Citroen as a runaround while fuel is so expensive, and do some of my commute in it to keep the bills down.

We shall see… in a few months time I’ll probably have something else rusty and sickly in my garage as I never seem to learn!

 

[c16rkc]

From 25th January 2022

Car shopping

My outline plan for some time has been to sell the Daimler, so that I have space in the garage for something more suitable that I can use for work 1 or 2 days a week. Something I could maybe use when the weather was nice, but also something I can use at weekends when I want more comfort than the poor Citroen can offer. I did consider just using the Daimler, or maybe even the Mercedes CL for that purpose, but I really wanted something more economical, because when fuel comes down a bit lower it is likely to become my permanent daily driver.

Because I am completely irresponsible, I have actually been car shopping since October last year.

I had decided I wanted a 4-door car, and ideally something luxurious. Although I had considered some of the less obvious choices from Volvo, Volkswagen, and even brands like Peugeot and Honda, it was always most likely I'd end up with something from Jaguar, BMW, Mercedes, or Audi.

I set myself a budget of between £1,000 and £10,000 - But I really wanted to get something I liked while spending as little as possible!!

The cars in this budget were as follows:

The Jaguar X350/X358

I think these are a very, very pretty car, probably the most stylish in my budget.

But.... I quickly ruled these out, mainly because of the awful adaptive suspension setup. It's no worse than an Audi A6 or Jaguar XF, so I am being a little critical here, but it does not compare with the superior ride quality of a Mercedes S class or BMW 7 series. I think this is very sad because the Jaguar used to be the benchmark for ride quality.

But I also considered that the equipment levels on these cars are pretty sparse, even on the top models. There never was an option for Keyless Go, Power bootlid or Soft close doors; and all three of these things were on my wishlist (oh yes I am a pathetic pansy...). I also found the premium audio system from Alpine was not much better than the standard system offered by other brands, and I do like my music...

So this ones was out.

The Jaguar X351



These are technically an amazing car, and they do come with a good specification. However they are at the top end of my budget, and given I am not at all keen on the styling I felt pretty sure I would not be buying one of these. It would have to be an amazing car with a very good price for me to consider one, and I had to concede that BMW E65 (7 series) and Audi A8 (D3) models were much cheaper, perhaps less offensive to the eye, and could be had with a better specification.

So that's another one out...

Audi A8 D3



I do like the Audi A8, but it is very bland... I quickly ruled these out because they tend to be very expensive for what is a very old design.

Well looked after high mileage examples are often priced at between £3,000 and £4000 and quite honestly I can get a better Mercedes W220 or BMW E65 for that money. Lower mileage examples with a decent spec are generally £4,500 to £5,500 and that's Mercedes W221 S-class money..! In my opinion the Mercedes W221 S-class is a vastly superior car in every possible way.

So that's out too...

BMW E65 7 series





The early BMW E65 7-series fits squarely into the same box as the Jaguar X351 for me; because it is a hideous design that offends me when I have to look at it. That's mine from a few years ago above, and I never got used to the bug eyed front with strange proportions.

But... I also acknowledge that the E65 is a fantastic car, very well built, and plenty with a high specification. I thought the ride quality of my E65 equalled that of the Mercedes W220/W221, and that is high praise. When I worked on my E65 I found that the interior trim was better quality than the Mercedes W220, which came as quite a shock, and it came apart and went back together much more easily.

They are also very cheap...

So I did not rule this one out, and had a facelift one come up for around £4,000 with a decent specification and less than 120,000 miles, I would have bought it. I did have talks with a chap in Glasgow who had a very high spec one, but he was so difficult to talk to I eventually gave up. I was not travelling to Glasgow unless I knew the car was exactly what I wanted!

So this was in the mixing pot... but I have not bought one.

Mercedes W220 S Class



I do love the W220, and that's why I had two of them, in fact I have had three if we count the one I bought in 2018, and gave back to the dealer due to battery drain issues.

Sadly they are plagued with a lot of issues, and my old one cost me a fortune in repairs. I also think the interiors are a little "clinical" feeling for a luxury car.



But these are cheap too! - Had one come up with the right spec, with less than 120,000 miles, and for less than £4,000, I would have bought it. In December one did appear for £4,500 on Ebay with a decent spec, but I thought that was too much money. I waited patiently thinking it would be relisted at a lower price, but it never was, so I can only assume someone paid that...

So again this was in the mixing pot... but I have not bought one of these either.

Mercedes W221 S class



I have mixed feelings about the Mercedes W221. The interior is what the W220 always should have been, incredibly stylish and with a high quality feeling.



But I feel the exterior lets it down a little, and I feel this is a low point for Mercedes design. I think the older W220, while old fashioned, is more handsome, and I think the W222 than followed the W221 was a giant leap forward. The front lights of the W221 look a little clumsy to me, and they are unnecessarily angular. The overall body shape is also a little clumsy, and looks odd from some angles.

When the facelift W221 was released it made the front lights look better, with smart Daylight running LEDs, but I think the restyled grille looks like a crows beak, and I think I prefer the look of the older grille.



Ropey examples of these can be had for as little as £3,000, which I think is incredibly good value. The better ones seem to start at about £4,500 and so this seemed to be the best bet for me, and I was all over every single Mercedes W221 advert that hit Autotrader, Gumtree, Ebay, or Facebook marketplace, with a fine toothcomb. I know how to spot many of the options, even if they are not in the advert, and I made up a spreadsheet tracking the good cars.

I ideally wanted something as follows:

• Less than 100,000 miles.
• Full service history
• No silver or light blue cars (personal taste)
• Keyless Go
• Harmon Kardon sound
• Memory front seats
• Heated front seats
• Power bootlid
• Adaptive cruise control
• lastly, if possible, Nappa leather... as I hate the grainy leather!

Anything else would be a bonus!

Throughout October, November, and December I saw absolutely nothing worth having... I started to lose interest, and was checking less frequently in January.

To be continued....

 

[c16rkc]

From 28th January 2022:

Who abuses a car like this?

So the first car to appear meeting my expectations on specification had sadly been heavily abused by it's previous owners!

...It therefore fell way short of my expectations on condition.

I am sure there are some people who will think this car looks quite nice, but to me, what the previous owners has done with the blacked out trim is awful; in particular I hate the black wheels!

I also disaprove of the gold plated Mercedes lettering and bonnet emblem, and would have to remove that AMG badge!





The child in me loved the idea of buying this and restoring it back to it's former glory, and I was soon googling replacement parts etc.

It was an S320CDi model with 122,000 miles, long wheel base, and appeared to have nearly every option imaginable. Factory AMG bodykit and wheels, Electric, heated, cooled, massage seats in Nappa leather. Distronic, Keyless Go, Nightvision, Fridge, etc. it went on and on. The rear seats were full electric/heated/cooled, with electric window blinds all around. It even had an electric panoramic sunroof with electrically operated blind.

But the bad part was that the car was in serious need of some love. The owner wanted £6K for the car which did not seem unreasonable for such a rare beast. But it was clear I would have a lot of work to do on this car, cosmetic and otherwise...

I chatted to the owner, and got some more pictures. The interior looked pretty decent.

But some pictures suggested to me the car might have issues with the Airmatic, and the owner insisted it had not been lowered. These pictures look to me as though the car is sitting lower than standard (maybe it has sunk on it's struts...?):





Then things got worse....

No service history, which was a U-turn on what the previous owner had been saying, and it had recently had a gearbox replacement. The owner sent me a receipt and this just made me more concerned...



I could be wrong, but that does not look like the sort of place I would trust. I always get alarmed when I see a round figure like this. The price looks pretty cheap, and I think this is one of those "we'll fix it for £2,000 all inclusive" adverts you see on Ebay, where they take the job on, and then fix it as cheaply as they can to maximise their profit. I can imagine it is any old gearbox they could lay their hands on, and I would not have confidence it would have been fitted correctly.

Then there was this picture, which the owner proudly send me and said "the car just now"...



Lets zoom in shall we...



Now I don't like that red message on the dash, the one that a child is looking at from the drivers seat...

The owner said "That's just the normal handbrake message, nothing to worry about".

Erm..... No, actually it's not.

It may well be a handbrake message, but it is more likely indicating an issue with the handbrake, and it adds another thing I don't want to risk turning into a big bill.

So I never even went to see this car, I think whoever buys it will have a lot of stuff to fix on a heavily abused car, both mechanically and cosmetically.

The owner said "That's OK if you don't want it I have loads of people who do", and sure enough the advert disappeared 2 days later, so I can only assume he sold it.

So that ended that one.

 

[c16rkc]

From 30th January 2022:

No time wasters!

It always amuses me when I see the statement "No time wasters" on a car advert. Do they really think there are people who deliberately think "I'll phone and message this person just to waste their time", and then also that those same people think "I won't waste this particular persons time because they say not to in their advert".

It's more than likely there are people who are initially interested in a particular car, but change their mind when they learn more... or realise you are not going to give the car away . It is a sad truth that people will then vanish without a thank you... but that's just life, even though it does waste your time.

Then there are also genuine time wasters, people who are dreaming, and have no intention of buying, but they are not going to care what you put in your advert, as from their perspective what you think doesn't matter - they won't be stopped by a one liner!

So I always assume people who put this in their advert are not very bright... and sorry for the huge proportion of people who I just offended on here... Yep... I put these people in the same category as people who put "NO TURNING" in front of their driveway, or write "NO JUNKMAIL" on their letterbox.... Oh dear...

I stumbled upon just such an advert recently, and this was one of the cars I considered buying.

It was an advert on Facebook marketplace for a BMW 2007 model year 7 series, and it was very high specification. It boasted Keyless entry, Radar cruise control, Panoramic sunroof, electric rear blinds, Heated/Cooled/Massage memory electric seats, Powered tailgate etc. etc. But the photos were rather poor quality, and there were not many of them. The car had done 123,000 miles, and was priced at £3,000. This is very cheap for any 7 series of that model year/mileage, let alone such a high specification.

It might not have been what I really wanted, but it would make a lovely barge, and appeared to be incredible value.







But there were some initial issues:

1 - The car was in Glasgow!
2 - Some items in the spec were never actually an option on the E65 (such as blind spot monitor)... so were they being honest?
3 - The car stated it had comfort access (keyless go), but the key was in the ignition in one photo.
4 - It was listed as a "Sport" and has sport alloys, but I can tell from the interior it is an SE.

I decided it might be worth a punt, and I knew if the owner gave me the VIN I could verify the equipment fitted to the car from the factory. So I made contact, hoping I would not be considered a time waster .

Because of the blury photos, I first asked about the condition of the car. I got one response saying it was in great condition, but when I asked about when the car could be viewed, I never got a reply.

I assumed it had sold.

So a week went by, and then I noticed a duplicate advert appear on Gumtree. Same blury photos, but this time the price was £2,500!

I decided to make contact again, and I explained to the owner I was coming from Norfolk, so would need to have assurances he would not sell the car before I booked things. I even offered to give him £100 to "hold" the car for me for a few days, and I explained as long as it was what it said in the advert it was perfect for me, and I'd take it. But he did not want to do that. He seemed desperate to get rid of it, and his reluctance to even wait for a few days was making me feel uncomfortable. I also suspected it was probably not what is seemed, as he was very rude and difficult to speak to.

But the clincher was when I asked for the VIN. He told me I could be trying to trick him, and that I should do a HPI check instead. I explained that I wanted to verify the equipment levels, and did not want it for anything sinister.

But sadly he still did not want to give it to me...

I decided I was not going to spend a couple of days of my time, as well as the cost of flights, parking, hotel etc. and I never went to view this one either. I suspect this car was probably not the high spec model in his advert.

So I now probably listed in his black book of time wasters, along with all the other people he has been rude to...

Back to the drawing board...