Dear All

 

I appreciate the high mileage question has been raised before so please bear with me!

 

A close family member is buying a new car and has offered me their 53 plate Octavia L&K 1.9 TDI Estate, details of which are as follows:

 

200K miles but has been owned by them from new, driven sensibly, well looked after etc

In addition to being serviced properly it has had a few major repairs such as replacement turbo, timing belt etc but this doesn't overly concern as these are items that shouldn't be on my 'horizon'. I know for fact that they recently spent around £800

If I buy it, the mileage incurred going forward will be very low, literally a second utility car for missus to nip to shops etc

 

They are asking £2000 for the car which is rigid. I know this price is way above market value but can't really go hard ball, negotiation wise due to it being a family member!

 

I've tried to explain that the valuation of the car should be based on what the market will offer, not on money spent servicing the car etc. Their view is that 'taxi drivers would be queueing down the road to buy it if they advertised it' !!!

 

Anyhow, it's like this, £2k and the car is mine. Is this a no-brainer ?!?!

 

 

 

Tell then what you will give them and leave them to sweat.

I'd have thought £1000/£1100 is all it's worth

Regards all

Juan

Sent from my iPhone using my thumbs

Very steep price for the mileage, usually family do each other favours not screw you for mega money.

 

As already said, offer what you think you happy paying and let them sweat.  

 

I dont think they will be having taxi drivers queueing round the corner for that price and mileage.

 

At 200k prob too high to start doing 50k a year on. Plus any taxi driver is gonna want it for as little as possible.

 

 

Lewwy

Agreed with above, far to much money, offer £850, and say they are welcome to advertise it for £2000 and if after a few weeks they still have it your offer still stands.

Even if you give a car free to a family member they blame you when it goes wrong. If this car goes wrong and you paid too much your close family member won't take it back and you will feel aggrieved. From experience, I would be loath to sell to, or buy from someone in my family.

Yes it's far too much.

A quick look on Autotrader reveals £2000 will get a Mk2 1.9 TDI Octavia that is 3 years newer and has 50,000 less miles than the example you have been offered.

As you rightly pointed out, a cars value is dictated by the market. It is completely irrelevant that it has had money spent on it recently, in fact any car of that age/mileage is likely to have had significant cash spent on maintenance in the recent past.

Edited 16 April, 201412 yr by booke23

Taxi drivers sell cars at 200k miles - they don't buy them.

 

£2000 is extracting the urine.  It is worth £1000-1200.  If it is really sparkling condition then maybe £1500

I agree with all of the above. Let them advertise it for £2000, and after they are sick of a steady stream of tyre kickers offering them £500, go in with £850 and they'll think youre doing them a favour.

 

I can't really see taxi drivers being interested in this either. Apart from anything else some local authorities have an upper age limit for taxis now, and even those that don't have an age limit tend to impose much more regular inspections on older vehicles.

Thanks for all the replies, much appreciated

 

FF, you are very right, business conducted between family members can often result in friction and fall-outs and normally I wouldn't touch with a barge pole

 

I've had to do a soft shoe shuffle on this one after reading all of the above and have made out I've now gone lukewarm on the idea of taking it

 

I'd always thought £1000 was a fair price so I'll offer that next time it is discussed and if it happens it happens

 

Cheers Gents

I've had to do a soft shoe shuffle on this one after reading all of the above and have made out I've now gone lukewarm on the idea of taking it

 

Definitely the best tactic given the circumstances. I was in a similar situation myself years ago. Sometimes people get all personal and attached to their cars and use these sentiments to place a (unrealistic) value on it. There is no point arguing when people do this......they gotta learn the hard way by advertising it for weeks and weeks and not getting any calls etc, getting a few trade in valuations can also have the desired effect.

 

Hopefully they will become more realistic with their expectations and you will still be in with a chance of buying it having not caused a family diplomatic incident!   

Agreed, the value of £2k is derived from sentiment and money spent on maintenance in the recent past. I'd dare say the car would probably go on to 300K mile without any problem, it has been well looked after, no doubts there 

 

However, If the Octavia did croak £2k would leave a very sour taste. I also need to view the purchase as non-sellable so need to mitigate risk

I'd dare say the car would probably go on to 300K mile without any problem, it has been well looked after, no doubts there 

 

I'm sure it would. And of course there is a lot to be said for getting a car that has been in the family since new.....a car that you can be absolutely sure has not been written off/stolen/driven like a rally car etc......but it's definitely not worth paying double the market value for.      

Is it a mk1 or mk2 as didn't think you could get a mk2 in 2003

F*cking 2 grand for a 53 plate octavia with 200k. Do me a favour. £800-1000 tops.

Edited 16 April, 201412 yr by Bcc212

you can buy a 2006 mk2 for £2k

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2006-SKODA-OCTAVIA-1-9-TDI-ELEGANCE-DIESEL-FSH-1-OWNER-/181366904183?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item2a3a4f5577

For what its worth I recently sold my 04 plate ambiente 1.9 estate with 196k miles for £1500, could have sold 10 more, very popular...... If its got full history, full mot, recent cam belt change etc, and in good condition an L&K should still be worth £2k. Having said that I sold mine because after 196k miles it was time to say goodbye before any major problems.

For what its worth I recently sold my 04 plate ambiente 1.9 estate with 196k miles for £1500, could have sold 10 more, very popular...... If its got full history, full mot, recent cam belt change etc, and in good condition an L&K should still be worth £2k. Having said that I sold mine because after 196k miles it was time to say goodbye before any major problems.

 

Thanks, could you tell me what major problems could manifest? The car I'm considering has had replacement turbo, cam belt, and the last repair bill was about £800. I was kind of hoping the worst was out of the way

 

If I went ahead and bought this I'd have to accept I wouldn't be able to sell it on. Although I've been told the L&K is a limited edition I don't expect it command some kind of collectors premium anytime soon!

I agree with others here that 2k is extracting the urine.

 

DMF, clutch, aircon compressor are example candidates of other issues that may present, and its more of a lottery at that kind of mileage.

 

L&K trim means additional luxuries and gadgets that will command some value on a newer lower mileage car, but at that age and mileage I would say it just makes the car a little more desirable, without adding anything other than marginal value.

As a taxi driver myself, I wouldn't touch it at that price, prob the price around £500/750 then we would talk, but even the age in my area would be hard to get plated

G

I'm grateful for all the replies. The consensus seems to be that £2K is having a giraffe though I do note classic's comment that £2k is reasonable?

 

I've basically said advertise for two grand and watch those taxi drivers forming an orderly down the cul-de-sac or take my cash offer of £1200 which is market value and a little on top for goodwill

I'm grateful for all the replies. The consensus seems to be that £2K is having a giraffe though I do note classic's comment that £2k is reasonable?

 

I've basically said advertise for two grand and watch those taxi drivers forming an orderly down the cul-de-sac or take my cash offer of £1200 which is market value and a little on top for goodwill

 

classis's car is a mk2,  your relatives car is a mk1 which is worth a lot less.   I would not be paying more than £1k as you need to budget for unexpected bills as at 200k anything may be just round the corner

Honestly, for £1200 I'd buy a diesel focus with half the mileage. What a joke.

I've basically said advertise for two grand and watch those taxi drivers forming an orderly down the cul-de-sac or take my cash offer of £1200 which is market value and a little on top for goodwill

 

I think that's very fair of you. If I were them I'd bite your hand off!

L&K trim means additional luxuries and gadgets that will command some value on a newer lower mileage car, but at that age and mileage I would say it just makes the car a little more desirable, without adding anything other than marginal value.

 

It also adds a whole host of complex electrical gizmos to go wrong - electric seats, remote central locking, electric windows etc etc etc.  When I had an expensive growing family and had to buy old high mileage cars I always went for the base model.  Much less to go wrong.

To be diplomatically ambiguous, you could say to your family member that "Unfortunately, £1,000 is all that you are in a position to offer" and suggest that they advertise it at their asking price and sincerely wish them luck; but add that "your offer stands, if they should be unfortunate enought not to find a buyer".

That way, no-one gets offended and you don't get ripped off.

After all, they probably aren't deliberately trying to screw you, but (as others here have said) because they know the car, and have spent a lot of money on it, they may unfortunatley have a totally unrealistic appreciation of its market value.

Good luck, and please keep us posted!

 

Edited 22 April, 201412 yr by Stuarted