Used car expectations

[fabes]

Clean!

It says a lot about the sellers attitude and maintenance and treatment / respect of the vehicle

It doesn't have to be detailed, but generally clean in and out
I have a few minging cars over the years and they have been unloved in more ways than one....

 

[V6GBJ]

I am currently a seller rather than a prospective buyer but thanks for the advice anyway! I am about to put up my SL350 R230 up for sale and your opinions match my preparation and presentation of the car. I bought an SL400 days before the lockdown and there was no time to put the SL350 up for sale. I guess I'll wait until lockdown is eased before advertising it on Autotrader but maybe put it in Classifieds on here. Thanks folks!

 

[Deleted member 11979]

I hate buying used cars nowadays as there seems to be no method of operation that guarantees you a decent car with a painless ownership experience.

Gone are the days that main dealers had all the decent stuff, and that they would be easy to deal with.

As we live rurally in the south west going to see cars is a pain as it’s always a trek, and getting any work done by main dealers is a pain as they are over an hour away.

So our last family car was bought from Carshop, a Mercedes GL that had the last owner for 8 years, and it was obviously cared for. A set of new discs and pads all round, new tyres was good, but the clincher was a set of new wheel caps in the glove box, attention to detail. We bought and it’s been great so far.

The car before that, I couldn’t make my mind up between a S212 or a 535d F11, so I bought the first one I found being sold by a bloke who sounded decent on the phone, it too has been fine (535d se with someone great options I’m afraid)

I am afraid I expect a lot from a used car, these prestige vehicles are well engineered machines and I only buy cars that have been looked after, I don’t expect them to be as new, of course not, but cheap tyres, non standard mods, high previous owners etc are turn offs and the car doesn’t get viewed.

All that being said, 3 weeks ago I bought sight unseen a 1999 CLK that's previously been a write off, had been ‘modernised’ etc, but had been owned since 2012 by one owner. Car was delivered a couple weeks ago and has proven a satisfactory project so far, returning it to standard spec and fiddling about has kept me and the boy busy in lock down and it’s now looking great. Just hope it drives well !!!

 

[merc85]

It should be Painless if the Previous Seller is Honest. But i agree

 

[nickgar]

I agree with my neighbour in sunny Devon that cheap Chinese ditch finder tyres on a prestige, relatively high performance car are a real turn off.
Unless the car is old enough to start to fall into the banger market. In that case it's a question of "well what do you expect sir!"

 

[R129mine]

I find it really hard to determine a fair price. I have bought 3 cars in my life and only my Saab 900 purchase was a good one. The other 2 (r129 and cayenne) left a foul taste in my mouth re purchase price negotiation. Both sellers being pissed off when I tried to negotiate a 10% discount because of work that needed doing (r129 needed new front bumper and wings replaced) and cayenne needed exhaust replaced and oil leak fixed.

I did get the discount on the r129 but trade seller basically told me that he was really pissed off about it (nice) and the trade seller of the cayenne was dishonest and I ended taking him to small claims cour over a damaged headlight he promised to replace and he decided to settle 2 days before hearing. Also had major hydraulic issues which cost a fortune to get sorted (30% of purchase price) but that is the risk of buying a 10yr old (my sweet spot) which was close to £90k new.

Needless to say I am not looking forward to the next purchase.

 

[grober]

When selling a car it may help to put yourself in the shoes of a prospective buyer? As has been said here before when buying a car it often pays to look as hard at the seller as the car itself. To that end it pays to be realistic on price [ sentiment plays no part here and a bit of market research presale helps too] Be transparent about the cars condition and history and take both into account when setting price--less liable to get time wasters trying to beat you down on price that way. Decide on your bottom line and if reached make that plain-saves both the buyer and seller time. Beware of buyers coming mob handed- buyer + expert / friend maximum number at a time . Are you prepared to have the car inspected/test driven? if so have an idea in your mind what organisation/ setup would you find acceptable.
Different sellers will be free to have different boundaries on these matters of course but it pays to anticipate these things presale in order to retain the degree of control you feel happy with during the selling process?

 

[Dazsw]

As other have said, as described.

Be it a private or trade sale.

I viewed 3 C63s before purchasing the 4th I seen.

First 3 not as described, wrecked alloys, rust, poor paintwork, etc. dealers told lies on the phone about all manner of stuff.

Even the car I purchased still a few things I've found out, but luckily minor and rectified.

Never trust any seller.

 

[Cyclone1]

Good thread!

I try to advertise cars with the “honest” detail that I’d like to know if I was buying, and vice versa if I was actually buying a car.

I never, ever expect a car with age to be perfect, but do expect it to reflect whatever is put in the advert, and this is where “honesty” is key, but not always the case.

Plenty of pictures help justify the written adverts in many cases and for me can make or break whether I pursue a potential purchase or not. Adverts on forums from regular posters tend to be more honest, which is why I’d initially look at an established forums classifieds first.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I find it really hard to determine a fair price. I have bought 3 cars in my life and only my Saab 900 purchase was a good one. The other 2 (r129 and cayenne) left a foul taste in my mouth re purchase price negotiation. Both sellers being pissed off when I tried to negotiate a 10% discount because of work that needed doing (r129 needed new front bumper and wings replaced) and cayenne needed exhaust replaced and oil leak fixed.

I did get the discount on the r129 but trade seller basically told me that he was really pissed off about it (nice) and the trade seller of the cayenne was dishonest and I ended taking him to small claims cour over a damaged headlight he promised to replace and he decided to settle 2 days before hearing. Also had major hydraulic issues which cost a fortune to get sorted (30% of purchase price) but that is the risk of buying a 10yr old (my sweet spot) which was close to £90k new.

Needless to say I am not looking forward to the next purchase.

Leaving the broken commitments aside, and focusing upon negotiation, I think many people expect to knock 10% off the price of a car - whatever the asking price - and so many sellers build that 10% wiggle room in to the asking price, and hence it becomes self-perpetuating.

However sometimes the seller has priced it at or very close to the market value - accounting for issues or condition - and so the expectation of knocking 10% off is unrealistic from the outset. In some cases there’s a much bigger potential because it’s priced well above market rate.

As time goes by my tolerance for messing about viewing and negotiating cars is reducing, and as a result I now only enquire about cars which are already close to what I believe their true market rate is.

I’ve found that the sales people involved to be very straightforward and very helpful, which may be why the car was priced right to begin with, and no doubt helped because I haven’t tried to negotiate beyond the market price. The whole experience was super smooth, and super positive as a result. I recommend it!

 

[Deleted member 37751]

I never, ever expect a car with age to be perfect, but do expect it to reflect whatever is put in the advert, and this is where “honesty” is key, but not always the case.

I suppose this is what I'm getting at really; I've seen a lot of people on this thread talk about "honesty" and "trust" but most private sellers haven't a clue whether the car has any niggly faults or not - I've bought dozens and dozens of cars and have learned that the hard way! As I also alluded to on another thread, I imagine it can be very frustrating as a seller when someone wants reams of information from you to then either become non-responsive or use your own info against you and make you a ridiculous offer *because* you've been "honest".

Car dealers are different in that they will rarely talk their car down - they're salespeople at the end of the day and have to make money to pay bills - and their are so many time wasters out there that they've become sort of numb to the "best price cash" and "I'll just speak to the Mrs and get back to you" types which can be frustrating for genuine buyers.

My opinion is that nothing beats seeing the car and the seller in person; if the car is miles away from you that is not their fault, that's your problem. Some of the best cars I've bought had terrible photos and woefully inadequate descriptions in their adverts but, having picked up the phone and spoken to them, it's given me the confidence to schlep to all corners of Great Britain.

 

[Deleted member 37751]

Leaving the broken commitments aside, and focusing upon negotiation, I think many people expect to knock 10% off the price of a car - whatever the asking price - and so many sellers build that 10% wiggle room in to the asking price, and hence it becomes self-perpetuating.

I think a lot of buyers - quite literally - enter their search into AT, go to the lowest price and work from that! So you get good, genuine cars that struggle to sell because buyers aren't as bothered about service history and condition they just want the newest possible at the cheapest price possible.

However sometimes the seller has priced it at or very close to the market value - accounting for issues or condition - and so the expectation of knocking 10% off is unrealistic from the outset. In some cases there’s a much bigger potential because it’s priced well above market rate.

If I ever see a car I'm interested in very keenly priced I know that I'll have to move quick - they just don't hang about long because the seller is basically saying "look, it's the best price, don't waste my time; first one to tun up with the cash can have it".

 

[E55BOF]

Used car expectations?

In general, that it will have plenty wrong with it, and the seller, whether trade, private or trader masquerading as private, is lying through his teeth.

In particular, that a used W211 will need at least £1000 spending on it, not including cosmetics.

I generally buy older, cheaper cars, so this obviously colours my view, but I have rarely been wrong.

 

[219]

When buying at 5 years old I expect the car to be perfect functionally i.e. no mechanical faults, but small cosmetic defects are inevitable and therefore acceptable. That's basically what I got when I bought my W204.

It does depend on the price though. In my village there's a small classic car showroom. They have a newish Morgan for sale at £125,000 and I can see the stone chips and possibly some paint bubbling through the showroom window. That's not acceptable.

not at that price

 

[219]

To be as described with all faults declared.

In fairness , all KNOWN faults declared .

 

[Jukie]

Going off on a related tangent, I would like sellers, moreso traders (be they main dealers or OMOs), to respond promptly to enquiries.

Sometimes you get the impression they don't give a toss about selling a car.

 

[Deleted member 37751]

Going off on a related tangent, I would like sellers, moreso traders (be they main dealers or OMOs), to respond promptly to enquiries.

Sometimes you get the impression they don't give a toss about selling a car.

When you say promptly - out of interest - what do you mean?

 

[Gollom]

For me, @Mercland give the best used car purchase experience -it could be used as a template by any dealer.

It was the best and simplest transaction ever. They gave me a great deal, the car was prepared to a very high standard and I am confident that if there are any issues, they will be dealt with in a timely and professional manner. Not sure I'd ever use anybody else now

 

[st13phil]

It absolutely depends on the age of the car and whether it's being sold privately or by a dealer.

My biggest bugbear is main dealers putting cars < 18-months old on the forecourt without proper preparation. When I moved out of my E63 I was toying with buying a VW Golf and found that VW dealers were absolutely the worst in this respect, with most examples not even hoovered out and with marks on the paint that would either polish out with little effort or should have been re-finished before display. In the end I gave up on them. Mercedes dealers may be rubbish in some respects, but at least their used stock is consistently well presented.

If I ever see a car I'm interested in very keenly priced I know that I'll have to move quick - they just don't hang about long because the seller is basically saying "look, it's the best price, don't waste my time; first one to tun up with the cash can have it".

Every car and every motorcycle I've sold privately I've tried hard to describe accurately, and set a realistic price. I tell anyone who phones up that if they think they're going to come along and make a stupid offer then they're wasting their own time as well as mine. I've always managed to sell at my asking price.

 

[szucchet]

I expect to get my monies worth.

This hits home!