I’ve seen this car advertised at a local dealer. Would anyone be able to give me some help and advice on it please.

 

It’s got full service history, 4 new tyres, waterpump, cambelt, brake pads and discs all round, new shocks and springs all round. 
 

Some images attached. 

First off, the DVLA data on this vehicle are:

Vehicle make SKODA
Date of first registration April 2008
Year of manufacture 2008
Cylinder capacity 1896 cc
CO₂ emissions 135 g/km
Fuel type DIESEL
Euro status Not available
Real Driving Emissions (RDE) Not available
Export marker No
Vehicle status Taxed (to Jan 2022)
Vehicle colour GREEN
Vehicle type approval M1
Wheelplan 2 AXLE RIGID BODY
Revenue weight Not available
Date of last V5C (logbook) issued 11 January 2021

 

I'd be wanting to ask why the colour is recorded as Green when the official paint colour is Silver Grey (best way is to check the VIN on the V5 with the VIN in the bottom left corner of the windscreen), and also why the seller is wanting to part with it after only 6 months ownership and after spending (at a guess) around £1,000 on service work.

 

Parkers data are:

Skoda Octavia Estate 1.9 TDI PD Classic 5d 2008/08
Private Price £735 - £1,105
Dealer Price £1,505 - £2,095
Based on 140,000 miles with no optional extras

 

"Classic" is the base model so don't expect many toys; I'm not sure if it has electric windows in the front or not.

 

General comments: car looks clean and key items seem to have been covered (full service history, 4 new tyres, waterpump, cambelt, brake pads and discs all round, new shocks and springs all round); have a good lookast the service history to see if it was regular, at what intervals and by whom.  This may also tell you if the car was a taxi, in which case look for higher wear.  The other big maintenance item is the dual mass flywheel.  If that's been done, you will save around £500 in garage charges.  Listen to the engine ticking over and check for noises like metal scraping on metal (try a youtube search for examples) which would suggest an imminent failure of the DMF. Cosmetically, is that a scrape or a reflection on the driver's door?  Also, the left hand door mirror is missing a cover.  No piccies of the back end?  You should check for rust on the tailgate around the number plate lights.  As long as it hasn't penetrated the metal it can be touched up (and it's not normally visible) but it is a known weakness.

 

Overall, the 1,9tdi PD diesel is pretty reliable with good fuel mileage so if the car is a good one and the price is right it's worth a look.

 

 

I forgot; another excellent check is on the MoT history, but you'll need details from the last MoT certificate to do a web lookup.

Hi Mike,

 

Thank you for coming back to me with some great advice. I’ve done a v check on the car:

 

https://www.vcheck.uk/report/AM08ZNA-ME4YT6T
I will certainly check the VIN number to make sure the paint matches. There is also a lot of receipts with the car. The dealer sent me some photos. So I will have a good look through them. I will do the check you mentioned also. 
 

The door on the drivers side looks like a reflection. I’ve some images of the rear. 
 

Cheers,

 

Rob

Some more images

15 minutes ago, RDB85 said:

Some more images

Looks clean all round.  Cloth seats, some compression wear on the driver's seat squab plus (I hope!) some coffee dribble marks.  Manual rear windows, can't see for the fronts.  Boot space clean and cover present.  BXE motor is pretty solid as long as it gets regular oil changes with the proper VW grade oil - check the service records.  Wrong or insufficient oil leads to camshaft wear - noisy valves and/or irregular engine note can indicate this.

 

Vehicle check looks pretty good and clears up the (official) taxi question.

 

Thanks Mike, I’m going to have a look at it over the weekend. I’ve read some horror stories about the BXE engines. Would you say that this one should be fine. Depending on if the oil has been changed regularly and the correct grade?

The only thing they have said is the Air Con does not work. 

They have said they’ve tried a re-gas but it’s not solved the issue. Would anyone have any ideas on what it could be?

Just taken a quick look in the brochure for this period. The colour is Island Green. The non-body coloured door mirrors and door handles are features of the Classic model. Equipment highlights are that the front windows should be electric, the door mirrors should be powered and heated, standard fit ICE was the Stream with single CD, MP3-capable and 4 speakers, central locking (not remote), and height adjustable driver's seat. For a 13 year old car, the body looks remarkably tidy in those pics.

Aircon issue could be the compressor or a hole in the condenser, usual common failure with age and not usually worth repairing unless you plan to keep the car for a while.

1 hour ago, wiilydog said:

Aircon issue could be the compressor or a hole in the condenser, usual common failure with age and not usually worth repairing unless you plan to keep the car for a while.

What sort of cost would I be looking at for the condenser or compressor?

16 hours ago, RDB85 said:

What sort of cost would I be looking at for the condenser or compressor?

I paid 110 for both parts from ebay new and Chinese. Been blowing ice cold for 18 months now. Fitting is a couple of hours work. If you go to a garage they will easily charge you £600-1000

4 hours ago, lukegcorrida said:

I paid 110 for both parts from ebay new and Chinese. Been blowing ice cold for 18 months now. Fitting is a couple of hours work. If you go to a garage they will easily charge you £600-1000

Wow that’s expensive! I now know why many people don’t bother. 

Would anyone be able to help me in sourcing either a condenser or compressor. I’m not sure on the model numbers etc. 

Cars been sold unfortunately.

I know it is academic now, but I'd have ben a bit concerned about why the suspension had needed so much work. Shocks usually last quite a while, so that would have been a slight worry, and springs too. although estates are usually the ones that get the) 'carried a cement mixer around in the back' kind of abuse).

 

The springs (corrosion) might have been a fail at the last MoT, and that can happen, without evident/particular cause, particularly in seaside areas.

 

I'd have also wanted a look at the tyres/brand. As a fairly cheap car, you wouldn't expect 'top of the range', but you'd probably want to avoid 'no name/ditchfinders' just from a safety point of view And, bear in mind that if the tyres had been changed recently, that could have been legit/general wear, or it could have been an odd wear pattern due to suspension mis-alignment (probably covered up by the dealer fitting the cheapest tyres he could find).

 

It didn't have the look of a car that had been to the moon and back, making the shocks a bit of a mystery, unless the miles were really high.

9 minutes ago, Camlobe said:

I know it is academic now, but I'd have ben a bit concerned about why the suspension had needed so much work. Shocks usually last quite a while, so that would have been a slight worry, and springs too. although estates are usually the ones that get the) 'carried a cement mixer around in the back' kind of abuse).

 

The springs (corrosion) might have been a fail at the last MoT, and that can happen, without evident/particular cause, particularly in seaside areas.

 

I'd have also wanted a look at the tyres/brand. As a fairly cheap car, you wouldn't expect 'top of the range', but you'd probably want to avoid 'no name/ditchfinders' just from a safety point of view And, bear in mind that if the tyres had been changed recently, that could have been legit/general wear, or it could have been an odd wear pattern due to suspension mis-alignment (probably covered up by the dealer fitting the cheapest tyres he could find).

 

It didn't have the look of a car that had been to the moon and back, making the shocks a bit of a mystery, unless the miles were really high.

It had done 150k. I was offered it for £1500, then £1200, but the dealer listed it on eBay and never told me mind, sold for £800. Which no doubt someone will sell for a profit. 
 

The shocks and springs must of been quite bad for them to be replaced. It may have been an advisory on the next MOT. 

Will have to keep looking.