First Car Help?

[Max Quinn]

Get this -

http://www.vwgolfmk2.co.uk/modules.php?nam...opic&t=2707

You'll smash it up anyway so it dosen't matter about the body being untidy.

The blokes realyy sound too, I know him well

Not alot of point reccomending cars to be honest cos i don't want something further than about 20 miles away Cheers though.

Chunky, get your f**king questions out of my thead! Haha only joking CIS and Quinn both seem the best so far for me

[Max Quinn]

Right, i went to see this 106 yesterday evening with my dad. We didn't come away with it but it's really close so can go back and get it.

He went down to £450 fairly easily and has nowhere to store it so i reckon we can get it for £400.

But we had a few concerns:

Smallish dent on the back of the car right in the middle on the very bottom of the boot.

Smallish dent in the front of the passenger door.

Smallish dent just in front of that.

Superficial scrapes on front right bumper.

The strip that goes along the side of the car to prevent scraping had come off (the front left section of it) which i'm not really bothered about but i guess shows how it was driven.

Did it's MOT only a few days ago, but the guys a mechanic and it was done at his garage. How easy would it be for him to just be a bit lenient on stuff?

Dad seemed to think the engine was racing but he's hardly a mechanic.

Positives:

Long MOT

Interior was spick and span

Generally looked like a tidy car from the outside

Cheap

Cheap to ensure

Fairly low mileage for the price (69k)

What you think? Steer clear or ok for the price? For £400 on a 98 car with fairly low mileage i'm not too worried about dents and stuff but just don;t know

[Pashley26]

Whats the service history like ? The fact that the engines racing a bit could mean a few things, but as long as it dosen't knock bang and crash it should be fine. If you have got a little bit of money floating about get it AA inspected, It's about £200 I think ?

Sounds about right for the money though, it's quite "desirable" too, even though it's a 1.1 106.

If the service histories good then go for it

I wouldn't bother even looking at the bumps and scrapes, it sounds condescending but you'll put loads more on.

The Interiors where it matters, you don't sit outside the car

[Max Quinn]

Yer has all the service and MOT history going way back. He's had it three years for his first car then his brother had it as his first car before that and then 2 owners i think it was before. Had a few little things done to it on various MOTs and he's put new brake pads on recently.

Oo one thing i forgot to mention is the tyres. The front two are really new and the same make. The back two are both different makes and seem in good condition but are off a car that was being scrapped at his work Fair enough though i guess, they have alot of tread left on them so i'd do the same. The spare one however has no life left in it at all.

Engine didn't seem to knock or anything. Dad just thought he could have made it race to make it start easier or something? This all only came after he said he's a mechanic though so could be just paranoia.

To be honest, getting a £200 check on a car i'm spending £400 on seems a bit silly you know?

Cheers for the help man

[Pashley26]

Sounds like a deal

[Fish-Finger-er]

Whats the service history like ? The fact that the engines racing a bit could mean a few things, but as long as it dosen't knock bang and crash it should be fine. If you have got a little bit of money floating about get it AA inspected, It's about £200 I think ?

Sounds about right for the money though, it's quite "desirable" too, even though it's a 1.1 106.

If the service histories good then go for it

I wouldn't bother even looking at the bumps and scrapes, it sounds condescending but you'll put loads more on.

The Interiors where it matters, you don't sit outside the car

dont bother, its the biggest waste of time ever really.

as for him being a mechanic, it shouldnt really make it any easier for him to get it through the mot, although it may do, dependant on the garage.

upping the idel speed wouldnt really make any difference to starting, however it would cover up a lumpy idle/small misfire. such as an incorrect spark plug gap,dodgy idle control valve, coked up throttle body, or headgasket failiure, althought for a mechanic the first three are fixable for free/about £5, and the last one would cost about £75.so why he wouldnt do it, is beyong me.

2 big issues for me though are the rear windows, and the mirrors, it quite clearly has been owned by a boy racer type at some point.

also he works in the motor trade,cars like that will go stupid quick, as their desirable, why is he so keen to drop the price £150, also as a mechanic, the rub strip on the front, is available new for like £25, and from a scrappy for about £2, why is he too lazy to fit it.

maybe im being a bit harsh here, but personally there all warning signs id take note of.

[Max Quinn]

Yer you seem to have the same trust nothing attitude as my dad Which i guess is good, but i want a bloody car lol I'm just afraid i'll go for this and then regretting not having a bit more patience.

The rub strip he said 'only just came off today so i'll knock some money off for that obviously'. Bit wierd And yer the windows were tinted before his brother got it so about 6 years ago. Which is kinda good i guess cos whatever boy racer that put them on certainly couldn't have had it long (1998) or driven it very far (currently 69k miles).

Have the wing mirrors been changed? I can't even tell haha.

[Fish-Finger-er]

nah im generally very trusting, and chances are if i saw it, id be alot more positive than i am now.

just dont like telling people to buy stuff off 2 pictures(cos u understand if i said it looks like a good buy, and then turns out to be a bag of nails, id feel a bit guilty)

yea, its got bmw m3 replica mirrors on it.

not saying you shouldnt buy it, as i put in my previous post, their just warning signs id look at myself if buying, or selling a car.

thing with buying cars is, youve got to look, buy, then stop looking, youll always find a better deal if you carry on looking

you been to any auctions? because as you seem to buying privately, youve got no more comeback than if you bought from an auction, might be worth going to a couple, as you may find a bargain, a week last thursday i saw a x reg 206 1.1 go through prees motor auctions at £630, looked tidy, sounded tidy, had got 80 something thousand on the clock.

[Pashley26]

Kevs right about auctions, well worth a try

It used to be that at all the Auctions there were quite a few very cheap very nice cars though, but now your almost lucky to get a "Bargain" at auction. But most of the time they are cheaper than other marketing mediums so if anything, see it as a day out with the potential of picking up a cheap little motor.

Edited September 28, 2008 by Pashley26

[Jonny Jones]

To be honest that 106 looks decent for a first car. The whole engine racing thing is probably cos the engine was cold, my Corsa's 1ltr does that when its cold, just lets the engine warm up a little better, an auto-choke I guess - ive no idea what the correct term is. Please whatever you do though, dont spend money on alloy wheels or a baked bean can for an exhaust lol... although you probably wont.

Edited September 28, 2008 by Jonny Jones

[Max Quinn]

Just to say a massive thanks to everyone Got a 98 Fiesta 1.25 Zetec just the other day. Loads of great advice in here so cheers.

Hhhmm, now i'm just mulling over audio options haha.

[Jaffacakes]

Just to say a massive thanks to everyone Got a 98 Fiesta 1.25 Zetec just the other day. Loads of great advice in here so cheers.

Hhhmm, now i'm just mulling over audio options haha.

The zetec's are pretty reliable. I was gunna say either a VW polo (my first car) or a fezbox.

The 1.25 zetecs are pretty much the same as the 1.4 zetecs 'sept for bout 5 mph on top end. There fool proof aswel, probebly the easiest cars to drive ever.