Buying a used car

[Ian ParkinParticipant @ianparkin39383]

[Ian ParkinParticipant @ianparkin39383]

Went to look at a car today with every intention of buying it .. dealer said it hasn’t any service history recently.but that didn’t bother me too much

cars a Mercedes eclass estates reg WJ11 CYU

mileage in dealer ad says mileage is 85,000

mileage on dash says 85,000

dealer says in ad mot till march next year

checking on gov site says mot expired jan 2020

and checking history of mots …mileage at jan 19 was 167,000

but looking further back its had more mot’s than hot dinners some years its had 6

why would this be

can one trust the gov mot site?

should i report the dealer?

having said all this the car was virtually unmarked and drove well much much better than my present car with 165,000 on the clock

[Jon LawesParticipant @jonlawes51698]

That isn't a rare car; if thats the model you are after there must be a hundred out there that don't have black marks over their history.

Personally, if in doubt, walk away. The dealer will have an explaination, but what dealer wouldn't?

[Ian ParkinParticipant @ianparkin39383]

Doh

my mistake its CYV Not CYU and mileage is correct

but it still surprising that that car needed 6 mot’s in 2014

Edited By Ian Parkin on 22/04/2021 21:32:05

[OldironParticipant @oldiron]

Get the dealer to MOT it. Tell him what the Gov MOT site says. The software will know what the last MOT mileage was. I thought (maybe wrongly) that the mileage was checked at MOT every year and what on record cannot be tampered with. He may be genuine but a previous keeper was dodgey.

regards

My post overlapped your correction.

Edited By Oldiron on 22/04/2021 21:34:45

[Jon LawesParticipant @jonlawes51698]

If the mileage lines up then maybe there isn't any skullduggery at play. The MoT's could be because someone was trying to correct a pesky fault, like emmissions. But it does suggest it has had niggles in the past. Could be fine now of course.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by Ian Parkin on 22/04/2021 20:55:23:

.

dealer says in ad mot till march next year

.

.

So does the DVLA

MOT Expires 13 March 2022

MichaelG.

[Mick B1Participant @mickb1]

I generally buy older, low-mileage (typically < 35k) cars of well-designed common models that all garages know how to fix, where the service and MoT histories are straightforward, and the state of the tyres and visible underbonnet fasteners are indicative of an uneventful life. Anything that doesn't fit is justification to walk away – there are always others to choose from.

[SteviegtrParticipant @steviegtr]

Just looked & only had one MOT in 2014. Everything looks fine to me.

Steve.

[BufferParticipant @buffer]

It's an old private hire car or taxi if if had that many MOTs

[Nick Clarke 3Participant @nickclarke3]

Being in Birmingham with a Low Emissions Zone happening from June 1st an older diesel is not a good buy – and there are about 20 more similar zones being set up over the next couple of years so if you need to drive into or through any cities I would check to see if any of these might affect you before making your final decision.

[Martin KyteParticipant @martinkyte99762]

Don't get fixated on that particular car. Merc made more than one and there will be another copy for sale elsewhere. In fact many of them. Golden rule for buying cars is being able to walk away or at least make extra demands/lower price and walk away if you don't get it.

regards Martin

[Dave HalfordParticipant @davehalford22513]

Have you checked the service requirement for 80K miles? The Merc 3.0 CRD that goes in both the Sprinter van and Jeep GC of that era needs the heater plugs and control module changing.

[Ian ParkinParticipant @ianparkin39383]

Anyway i bought it and so far delighted with it its a e250 CDI blue efficiently in dark silver/blue and has everything i want.

this is now my 6th Mercedes estate from w123 w124(2) w210 w211 and now w212

they have all been about 9-10 years old at my purchase and have lasted with repairs as and when needed from 5 years to 10 years. ( lost one when a skip lorry ran into it  w124)

those 5 previous cars have done me 35 years as a business van in times putting 500kg in the back and generally carrying loads of tools and stuff

and I’ve paid 3k 2k 1.5k 2.6k 4K and now 7k

obviously 3k was a lot more 35 years ago

i generally used to give them away to needy friends when I got rid of them

but overall i feel i have had cheap motoring over 35 years and perhaps 700k miles

Edited By Ian Parkin on 23/04/2021 19:30:29

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