Where do you buy cars?

tnx · 7 May 2014 at 16:11

I have had many, many cars.

What I do is select which car I want to buy then go hunt down the very best one I can afford. I have bought cars from all over the UK and from my very own town.
I was all set to buy one from Southampton a few years back but I was pipped at the post and I live in West Yorkshire.

I know lots of folk who will just go to a sales room and buy what every they have.
It seems crazy to me.

Brando · 7 May 2014 at 16:31

Jez said:
If you have bought 3 lemons out of 5 is an auction the right place for you?

Good point well made...... But..... 2 of them were just sheer bad luck with older cars! 1 of them was several very stupid moves and bad decisions + blinded by the excitement of owning a race car... because race car....... All three have rocked my confidence but thinking that if I buy a newer 520d at auction I can then extend the BMW warranty (and I also know BMWs a lot more) = reduced risks and a nicer car to boot.

Brando · 7 May 2014 at 16:32

dbl post

jfp · 8 May 2014 at 23:37

I have heard that a lot of people can get a bit overexcited at auctions and end up bidding more than what the car would be sold for through a dealer (hope that makes sense) anyone seen this happen at the auctions?

shadow_boxer · 8 May 2014 at 23:51

Both from auction.

eatcustard · 9 May 2014 at 07:45

Just got myself a cheap Corsa C from an auction for £900 for an 06 plate 1 owner.
Will keep it until I find a nice 10 plate or newer works mini (probably main dealer)

Never uses a car supermarket and have not purchase private for years.

Tesla · 9 May 2014 at 07:57

I've bought all of my cars from private sellers with the exception of one who was some from small-time trader from his home.

abbotsmike · 9 May 2014 at 12:27

eatcustard said:
Just got myself a cheap Corsa C from an auction for £900 for an 06 plate 1 owner.
Will keep it until I find a nice 10 plate or newer works mini (probably main dealer)

Never uses a car supermarket and have not purchase private for years.

Jeez that's a bargain! I sold my 51 plate 2 years ago for £1200! A car that much newer for <£1k is pretty decent, you should be able to turn a profit when you sell it without too much hassle.

eatcustard · 9 May 2014 at 12:31

abbotsmike said:
Jeez that's a bargain! I sold my 51 plate 2 years ago for £1200! A car that much newer for <£1k is pretty decent, you should be able to turn a profit when you sell it without too much hassle.

Thats the plan, but it could do with a new gear linkage and bonnet respray due to lots of stone chips

abbotsmike · 9 May 2014 at 12:38

eatcustard said:
Thats the plan, but it could do with a new gear linkage and bonnet respray due to lots of stone chips

Gear linkages are cheap enough, just don't get the really cheap "upgraded" ones. The retaining cap pops off and you are then stuck with 3rd or 4th, lots of traffic and 3 miles to get back to the workshop and tools. Then when you get an official replacement, the bolts head rounds off and you have to use a die grinder to get the 'upgraded' part back off...

Guess how I know!

eatcustard · 9 May 2014 at 17:25

abbotsmike said:
Gear linkages are cheap enough, just don't get the really cheap "upgraded" ones. The retaining cap pops off and you are then stuck with 3rd or 4th, lots of traffic and 3 miles to get back to the workshop and tools. Then when you get an official replacement, the bolts head rounds off and you have to use a die grinder to get the 'upgraded' part back off...

Guess how I know!

Thanks for that, was going to get cheap one

Abyss · 10 May 2014 at 11:29

Brando said:
Good point well made...... But..... 2 of them were just sheer bad luck with older cars! 1 of them was several very stupid moves and bad decisions + blinded by the excitement of owning a race car... because race car....... All three have rocked my confidence but thinking that if I buy a newer 520d at auction I can then extend the BMW warranty (and I also know BMWs a lot more) = reduced risks and a nicer car to boot.

If you are the kind of person that gets blinded by the excitement then I would steer clear of a car auction! You need to be very level headed, know what you are looking for and know what price you should be getting it for. I have seen absolute bargains go through but I have also seen the room get over excited about something like a low mileage Focus ST and pay more than what they are selling for on Autotrader.

Personally I would buy from a car auction to save money, i.e. if I could get a car for £2k less than my budget by buying from an auction then a dealer then keep the £2k in case there is a problem. I wouldn't stretch my budget by buying something I can't afford at main dealer prices.

mattyprice4004 · 10 May 2014 at 11:32

Usually private, I enjoy travelling all over the country saving British sheds from being scrapped.

[TW]Fox · 10 May 2014 at 12:04

Main dealer or private only. I don't see what value independents add to the process unless they are highly reputable specialists and you are buying more high end.

A private seller lets you judge the owner and save on dealer prices. A main dealer gives you a cast iron warranty and actual comeback. Whereas random car dealers tend to offer nothing for the extra you pay unless you consider a worthless warranty and a world of hassle if you need anything out of them after the event as 'something'.

MatteH Oxford · 10 May 2014 at 19:34

Usually private, dealers etc are too expensive imo

grudas · 10 May 2014 at 20:00

mattyprice4004 said:
Usually private, I enjoy travelling all over the country saving British sheds from being scrapped.

Fluke? · 10 May 2014 at 20:07

1st car: g reg polo sub 1l from local garage (sold as seen) for £300
2nd car: P reg polo 1l from private sale (local classified) for £900
3rd car: y reg polo 1.4l from independant garage for £2k
4th car: 56 reg golf 1.6l from private sale (autotrader) for £4.5k

In terms of distance all within 50 miles.

Oh, and I've never felt 'safer' buying from a indy showrooms than private really.

lordrobs · 10 May 2014 at 20:56

Independent used car dealer - 306
Private - Octavia vRS
Local franchise dealer - Grande Punto
Private - MX5

The private buys were just to bag the best possible example I could find. The Punto was less than two years old so under manufacturers warranty so I wasn't worried about that. 306 was my first car purchase and relatively cheap.

Brando · 10 May 2014 at 22:16

Doing the maths I've owned 21 cars in total

...

4 new from dealers - (two company cars, two with free insurance when I was 18, 19 & 20)
1 from an Indy Dealer - they were great but the car had to go back 5 times, resulting in them buying it back for a small personal loss (SAAB)
1 from a friend that was a specialist - Was ace / worked well
5 from eBay - 4 good and 1 bad exp.

The rest from Private sellers: Pistonheads, Family & friends, Autotrader and Forums

.

I've never bought a second hand car from a dealer and in an ideal world I'd go to Ocean Falmouth and give them my monies. Sadly I can't afford it at the mo (I'm working on it

).

Brando · 15 May 2014 at 16:46

Tiny bit of an updated... The auction was hilarious! I'm not so clued up on the high end BMW pricing, I'm ok on 1, 3 and 5 series only. But it was mental. A few days before the auction I was doing a tiny bit of research at Ocean Falmouth and looking at a very tidy X1 on their forecourt. I watched a near identically spec'd car, in a less desirable colour, go through the auction for £1k more + the additional buyers fee... We left after 60 similar experiences. Of the 60 cars only one looked a good deal: 2008 Mini Cooper S Convertible that went for £7600+ buyers fee. Traders and the internet bidding pushed prices up lots! Guess I was naive to think I'd be easy to get a bargain.

The 7 series, convertibles, 6 series and M3s (inc a lovely Frozen Grey example) all went for mega bucks. No idea on their values / markets and it was mainly traders buying them.