Hello,

I'm considering the purcahse of a stolen & recovered Octavia VRS.

From the conversation I had with the dealer, the car was stolen and used under false plates. The owner claimed on insurance, and after pay-out the vehicle was recovered. I'm not yet sure how long (dist/time) the vehicle was being used under false plates for.

There is no theft-related damage to the vehicle.

The dealer thinks there is no warranty with skoda (couldn't tell me categorically as he wasn't at the dealership), but a 3rd party warranty has been purchased (I don't know exactly what this warranty covers).

The car has FSSH.

Now, this is obviously a riskier proposition than buying an entirely straight example, but if I can negotiate a hefty discount then the reward may be worth the risk.

I also understand the car will be more difficult to sell on. However, I'll be keeping the car for at least 5 years so the accelerated depreciation doesn't worry me overly.

So, what sort of a discount would you expect over a straight car of similar quality? 25-30%?

Is there anything I should be aware of when considering the vehicle? Anything in particular to look for which set alarm bells ringing?

If otherwise everything with this vehicle seems straight, why should I not purchase it?

Cheers

Neil

Will the car be on a "Q" Plate?

I don't think so - No major components have been chaged.

It's on an 06 plate in dealer pics.

I will check this out for certain though.

no its only on a q if the age is indeterminate.

the worry would be for me , "did they drive it like they stole it".

also would the insurance be different ? may be worth ringing first , wouldnt imagine it is but worth a quick call.

as long as it drives ok and you check everything , maybe get a AA report it should be okay.

if its trade then its got to be of merchantable quality.

would think its gotta be at least 30% , but would ring round a lot to be honest

I've seen a fair few vRS owners driving their own cars like they had stolen them. Providing it has history and you can find out how long it was missing for, I wouldn't necessarily walk away.

I would agree with VRSPhil. If it looks and sounds good then there should be no reason not to go for it (especially if you can get a good discount too). If you keep it 5 years then that will make it 7 years old and the difference in price between stolen or not will be almost nothing I would imagine.

is the car recorded then?

Cheers for the responses all. Yes it is recorded.

It would have to be sold for a good discount for me to entertain. I'd be looking at a pukka one as a private buy. As long as its hpi'd, you shouldn't have a problem, and you know what to look for in a car in terms of damage, abuse, neglect etc. Saying that where do dealers source most of their stock - car auctions.

In order to steal it you need to cancel out the immobilizer some how. Hence, have the electrics checked.

If the car is trouble free, and the discount covers the cost of an engine rebuild (in case it's needed) and then some, I'd do it.

Proberbly stolen with the keys from the previous owners house.

Buying the car wouldnt bother me at all, just get the price discounted to allow for sell on losses in the future. Keep any paperwork that comes with the car regarding HPI status etc, and any other documentation to prove the car is correct.

I used to work in the motor trade and purchased a number of 'salvage' cars, including S&R's. This was over 10 years ago. I wouldn't bother now because the margins are so small and the average punter is more averse to a recorded vehicle than used to be the case.

Anyway, I wouldn't worry to much about engine damage, its hard to over-rev them. My experience is that clutch/gearbox damage could be an issue, so give it a careful test drive. Also consider it may have been driven up kerbs and even off road, so check it out for damage to suspension and underside.