Hi there guys - really excited to be getting my second car - an X reg 1.4 fabia in black with 38,000 miles. I've sold my first car, a mk1 golf, as i fancied something a little more modern yet still sensible on insurance (still only 17)

Saw it on autotrader just after going up and rang the guy immediately - went and saw it the next day... looked clean, no major issues, drove nice - all seems great!

Agreed a price with the dealer, he was going to get a new spare wheel (current was wrong size) and replace the cracked fog lamp. He was also going to get the most recent MOT document from the garage he bought it from. Now, here's my concern... i might just be getting all worried over nothing but I want this to be perfect! He had printed off the mot history from the VOSA website and it was all ok except, he explained, in the most recent test it went in at 36k and the tester entered 63k by accident? So... long story short, i've paid a deposit, car's all ready to go just waiting for this MOT document.

Now, apparently, VOSA are adjusting the document on their records and sent the certificate on friday to the garage where my seller previously purchased it from, news from my guy today was that they still haven't received it... does this sound right? I've done a full HPI check and that came back completely clear and mileage correct.

Sorry for what is probably a stupid question, I'm just really eager to get my new car and get driving!

Also, a few other questions which aren't so important but would be nice to know... It's a comfort model so will it have a CD player? (i didn't check)

finally, the computer is pinging up with "service insp" when i start the car... does this seem normal at "38,000" and will a service cost me a lot?

Thanks a lot guys... really hoping the car's sound and I can pick it up soon!

The MoT stuff I have no idea about I'm afraid.

An X reg Comfort will come with a tape player as standard. CD autochangers were an option, so if your luck may have one. On the bright side, tape adatoprs for iPods etc are only £10 vs. the £40 for iTrips etc.

Services are meant to be every 10,000miles or 12 months, which ever is soonest. Cost wise I dunno, but it is possible to disable the flashing if you do it yourself. As a note - the cambelt (16v only, if it's an MPi don't worry) are every 4 years, or 60,000 miles, which ever is soonest.

I'd be very suspicious about an X plate with only 38k on the clock and a story about "it went for a service but they entered 63k instead". Get it checked out by the AA or similar who do inspections and if it looks like it's done more miles than recorded, get on to Trading Standard/ the Police immediately.

On the upbeat side I hope it's all gen and I wish you all the best with it - I sincerely hope it's all above board.

Graham

Be prepared to walk away. How big a deposit did you put down?

I would NOT take delivery of the car until I saw a corrected MOT certificate. I certainly wouldn't give the seller any more money.

As a stop-gap, offer the seller £500 less than he wants, the balance to be paid when he produces the corrected MOT certificate. That way you're at least not paying over the odds for a 63,000 mile car if he is dodgy. I'll put a couple of days wages on the outcome that he won't go for it.

Another possible check is to get hold of the service book and contact the last main dealer that did the servicing. It should have a stamp every year irrespective of the mileage and the dealer should be able to confirm when they serviced the car. If it doesn't have a healthy crop of service stamps, I'd walk away to be honest. PLUS - if it needs a service, you'll be looking at £100-£250 for a normal service or £350 for a cambelt service. I'd want a discount for that as well.

Unfortunately there are lots of people in the world who find it easier to lie and cheat than to make an honest living. Even more unfortunately they seem to train and develop those people in the world of automotive retail.

There are plenty of Fabias about and they take the miles very well indeed so they are quite easy to clock if you have a mind to do it - so don't get rushed into a dodgy one.

Edited 3 February, 201016 yr by wja96

Be prepared to walk away. How big a deposit did you put down?

I would NOT take delivery of the car until I saw a corrected MOT certificate. I certainly wouldn't give the seller any more money.

As a stop-gap, offer the seller £500 less than he wants, the balance to be paid when he produces the corrected MOT certificate. That way you're at least not paying over the odds for a 63,000 mile car if he is dodgy. I'll put a couple of days wages on the outcome that he won't go for it.

Another possible check is to get hold of the service book and contact the last main dealer that did the servicing. It should have a stamp every year irrespective of the mileage and the dealer should be able to confirm when they serviced the car. If it doesn't have a healthy crop of service stamps, I'd walk away to be honest. PLUS - if it needs a service, you'll be looking at £100-£250 for a normal service or £350 for a cambelt service. I'd want a discount for that as well.

Unfortunately there are lots of people in the world who find it easier to lie and cheat than to make an honest living. Even more unfortunately they seem to train and develop those people in the world of automotive retail.

There are plenty of Fabias about and they take the miles very well indeed so they are quite easy to clock if you have a mind to do it - so don't get rushed into a dodgy one.

I have seen car and the documents of an X reg POLO with 9k on the MOT (and all previous MOT'S So it is possible), in good nick, it was owned by an eighty year old who used it for her weekly shop a mile away and two holidays

This has its own problems as it is not good for a car to not be run

An X reg Fabia Well I very much doubt 36k could be true, just ask to see ALL the previous MOT'S It will show a few miles each year until it tots up, No previous MOT's Them make suer of what you are buying 63k would still be a very good Fabia but adjust the price to suit

National

dunno mate i would be careful!

I have seen car and the documents of an X reg POLO with 9k on the MOT (and all previous MOT'S So it is possible), in good nick, it was owned by an eighty year old who used it for her weekly shop a mile away and two holidays

This has its own problems as it is not good for a car to not be run

An X reg Fabia Well I very much doubt 36k could be true, just ask to see ALL the previous MOT'S It will show a few miles each year until it tots up, No previous MOT's Them make suer of what you are buying 63k would still be a very good Fabia but adjust the price to suit

National

I think it's very possible it's genuine - my own dad has an M-Reg (1993) Merc 250D in the garage at home that has under 80,000 miles on it. It only comes out of the garage for it's annual service and MOT. Sitting next to it is a P-reg (1975) SAAB 96 V4 that hasn't turned a wheel since 1983 but is 'in-store'. It was bought with 76,000 miles on it and it still has under 77,000 miles on it. It failed it's MOT almost immediately after it was bought and he's been meaning to get it repaired ever since. I keep donating parts to the restoration pile but he's firmly not taking the hin :'( t. Part of the reason for this is that my dad no longer feels the need to drive anywhere (my mum has a big people carrier and takes them everywhere they want to go) and he likes both cars and doesn't want to get rid of them.

My issue wasn't with whether you can get a REALLY nice 10-year old car with a very low mileage, of course you can, my issue was with car dealers who seem incapable of just selling you a car that is what it is. I'm sure you've heard stories from car dealers? Well, this one sounds 'odd' but if the dealer is genuine the paperwork will turn up.

In many ways I was trying not to have a go at the OP about how he bought the car. He's 17 and he wants a new car - I can remember that feeling too! That's why I always took my mum along as she could always spot all the holes and dents and rattles and squeals and amazingly enough, she could even tell if it was running on 3-cylinders more often than not.

Don't worry about your deposit - if you're in ANY doubt, just state that it's been misrepresented under the scope of the Sale of Goods Act, and wait for them to refund you. I did this with a 156 I nearly bought once upon a time that was described as 'immaculate' on the advert, but which turned out to have worn cams due to being run on low oil. Does sound like a genuine mistake, though!

As for the stereo, yes it will be a tape player, but Symphony CD players come up for sale from time to time on fleabay, and they are a straight swap unlike aftermarket ones.

Other than that, the 1.4MPi (doubt it's the 16v if you can get sensible insurance on it aged 17 ) is pretty reliable, if rather thirsty. They did have a rep for problems with the head gasket, but there was a recall for it, so it shouldn't be an issue after this amount of time. The only other model-specific problem I can think of to look out for is with the thermostat and/or temperature sender, which are both easy DIY fixes. There are other niggly potential problems to check like leaky doors and rocker cover gaskets, but again these things can be fixed cheaply at any garage or easily DIY. All-in-all, other than the HG perhaps, these problems should be grounds for haggling the price down rather than reasons to walk away...

Hope you get the mileage thing sorted, and enjoy your new car!

I'd sooner have a well looked after car with some/full service history than one with low mileage if it was my money.

I'd hang on for the MOT. If he's giving you the run around he'll be waiting for a while and it's his own fault, if he's being honest he'll be trying to rush the certificate along

With the details on the last MOT it should be possible to read details of the last few MOT's on the internet since the advent of computerisation.

Hi there guys - really excited to be getting my second car - an X reg 1.4 fabia in black with 38,000 miles. I've sold my first car, a mk1 golf, as i fancied something a little more modern yet still sensible on insurance (still only 17)

Saw it on autotrader just after going up and rang the guy immediately - went and saw it the next day... looked clean, no major issues, drove nice - all seems great!

Agreed a price with the dealer, he was going to get a new spare wheel (current was wrong size) and replace the cracked fog lamp. He was also going to get the most recent MOT document from the garage he bought it from. Now, here's my concern... i might just be getting all worried over nothing but I want this to be perfect! He had printed off the mot history from the VOSA website and it was all ok except, he explained, in the most recent test it went in at 36k and the tester entered 63k by accident? So... long story short, i've paid a deposit, car's all ready to go just waiting for this MOT document.

Now, apparently, VOSA are adjusting the document on their records and sent the certificate on friday to the garage where my seller previously purchased it from, news from my guy today was that they still haven't received it... does this sound right? I've done a full HPI check and that came back completely clear and mileage correct.

Sorry for what is probably a stupid question, I'm just really eager to get my new car and get driving!

Also, a few other questions which aren't so important but would be nice to know... It's a comfort model so will it have a CD player? (i didn't check)

finally, the computer is pinging up with "service insp" when i start the car... does this seem normal at "38,000" and will a service cost me a lot?

Thanks a lot guys... really hoping the car's sound and I can pick it up soon!

Hi Niall

Does sound a bit iffy, but get someone with Vag-com to check it, and it will give the correct mileage, Unless someone has changed the ecu (bit unlikely though)

Radiotwo

These cars are extremely easy to clock. I could do one in about 5 minutes if I wanted to and it would be undetectable. I think there are a lot about that have been clocked.

First of all, don't panic! The law is on your side. Don't proceed further with the sale until you are happy about the car. Try to find some independent evidence of the mileage (previous owner or previous service information). Do you have access to the service book?

The mileage sounds low for the age of car, but not impossible. How many owners has it had?

I'm a bit confused by all this talk of clocking and checking all of the old MOT docs. The OP has stated that he's seen all of the old MOT history from the VOSA website and all is OK.

So. All previous Mot's show a V Low mileage (Less than 36K ?)

It has an MOT Certificate / Data for each consecutive Year ? No Gaps ??

The Last Mot says 63K

Taking the last MOt as Fact then ... This mean's that the Car has Covered in the region of 30K Miles in a Year !!! V Rare i would imagine for a 1.4 .... & would lead you to believe in the user Error theory ....

But you never know

If all the Vosa data is to hand & genuine, A garage / dealer would be very foolish indeed to clock the Motor ...

Just my Two Pennies worth

Cheers

Dean

Edited 4 February, 201016 yr by dfullb

He had printed off the mot history from the VOSA website and it was all ok except, he explained, in the most recent test it went in at 36k and the tester entered 63k by accident? So... long story short, i've paid a deposit, car's all ready to go just waiting for this MOT document. Now, apparently, VOSA are adjusting the document on their records and sent the certificate on friday to the garage where my seller previously purchased it from, news from my guy today was that they still haven't received it

Umm ... if they've adjusted their records, wouldn't it show the adjusted value on the DVLA/VOSA's MOT checking website?

If you're really worried, but still want to buy it, have a word with your parents, and see if they'll put some of it on their credit card - it only needs to be £1 - the card company may be easier to get a refund from than the retailer if it turns out they're telling porkies (if you're not aware, using a credit card to pay for any part of an item costing £100-30,000 makes the card company as liable as the retailer, per the s75 Consumer Credit Act 1974) - obviously keep the advert, etc.

Can't comment on whether it's a good idea to get it or not, though ...

Edited 5 February, 201016 yr by martinch

depending on how many prev owners it is very posible that its covered that low milage my v reg fiesta only had 33k on the clock until someone totaled it!! (my mom gave it to me as a cheap runaround) plus my mom has an 08 KA that shes had over a year and has only done 800 miles lmao!!

just be careful and check it out as much as pos you should be able to trace mileage with previous mot records as they are done evry year

Edited 4 February, 201016 yr by lex2311

My missus' 51 plate has only done 51k so i dont see why its not possible

my furby on an 02 plate has only done 49,ooo miles and had 2 owners before me one being my husband and the other was his dads neighbour so it is possible to get one with low milage