What to Look Out For?

[StevenF]

Hi people,

I'm looking at buying a VTR. I have my eyes on one at the moment: 49k miles, poseidon blue and has a toe bar which makes me think family car (obviously be removed). Only downfall is tax and MOT till next month.

Is there anything in particular I should look out for when viewing VTR's?

Thanks,
Steven

[Tom_Crx]

Don't worry if the airbag light is flashing, most of them do

[0rang3peel]

It should be cheap. VTR's are worth peanuts these days!

[SaxoAL]

What year is it mate?

Lift the boot carpet, make sure boot floor is not ripple (rear ender)
Check under oil cap for mayo (sign of HG going)
Look for signs of overspray on plastics, and miscolouring between panels.
Look under car for any signs of leakages.
Make sure locking wheel nut key is with the car, as they are a pain in the arse to get off without it.
When test driving car, go from lock to lock to check for worn bushes/droplinks.If you hear knocking noises, use as a bartering point.
Check for signs of wear on gearstick (movement when in gear)
Service history on a car is very important to me. Ask about timing belt.

[SaxoAL]

Don't worry if the airbag light is flashing, most of them do


I wouldn't say dont worry.
But it should be an easy fix.
Most likely cause (if vehicle still has standard seats and steering wheel) is the plug with orange wire under the seat has come apart from connector.
Just connects back up and airbag light should turn off

[StevenF]

Thanks guys, it's a 51 plate. I think it seems really cheap, and is the best I've found and at £1300 seems a great buy. it doesn't however mention service history. There's also another one with 69k (so more miles), MOT till march, 4 months tax, again totally standard and FSH but he was unsure about the timing belt. That one is £1500 but it's the Dark Metallic Blue which isn't as nice imo.

[0rang3peel]

£1300 isn't really cheap, its about right but without service history I would never pay that much. You can get an absolute minter of a Saxo for 2k so take that into consideration

[SaxoAL]

Just try and barter with them mate. Show them cash, you never know. Might come away with a bargain.

[Giraffe]

Service history isn't all it's cracked up to be... someone could service a car at reasonable intervals and still rag it around like a knob, and they may service the car themselves so don't focus on it TOO much.

[savo]

Make sure you check the rear axle cause itll cost you to get it fixed.
Jack up the back of the car and grab the wheel at either side and shake it..it should be solid with no movement..if not then it needs sorted.

[L33h]

toe bar is a bad bad sign imo. could u imagine a saxo pullin a caravan around. thats alot of strain on the engine

[parsonsvtr52]

When you test drive it too, check the brakes well for warping (juddering though the steering wheel front or brake pedal rear) minor detail, trim panel fit, some garages cant be fucked in gettin the proper clips from citroen so just bodge it with tape or wire, Sunroof can leak but thats niff naff. I paid 3700 for mine 2 years ago, it was 3 years old and had done 25000, pricey i agree. However, get one and enjoy it, they're mint

[Stissy]

toe bar is a bad bad sign imo. could u imagine a saxo pullin a caravan around. thats alot of strain on the engine

tow bar as in the normal one that pokes through the bumper?
or a seperate one like this:
http://www.toyota.com.au/TWR/content/static/30446.jpg

[Shadowdemon]

If everything seems fine, ask if they'd be willing to put the car through a m.o.t if you payed for it ? maybe plus abit extra, if it fails u loose the price of a m.o.t insted of the price of the car ....

[StevenF]

http://images.pistonheads.com/aimg/1136/1136823-2.jpg

That's the toe bar it has, can it be removed? :)

[SaxoAL]

yeh. looks as if the bumper hasn't been cut, so should be fine mate

[Danr]

Towbar will probably have been used to take a trailor down to the dump etc. Pretty sure towing a caravan would have been illegal.

[bensvarups]

Now that tow bar is one heck of a mod! :D Towing a caravan isn't illegal.

If you're not mechanically minded then I would say check the following things:

1. Oil level and visually check the oil
2. Ask about service history
3. Check when timing belt was replaced
4. Check general condition of car, generally a car that looks aesthetically right, clean/tidy etc has been looked after.
5. Check how many previous owners, check how long the seller has had it for.
6. See invoice/receipts for any work done, replaced parts etc.
7. Ask to test drive, check if temperature is running right. See how it runs, listen out for any strange noises.

If you know anyone who is able to do further checks on the mechanical side then I'd ask them. Maybe you have a friend who is a mechanic or works for the RAC?!

At the end of the day you're buying a car that is almost 10 years old so you're guarenteed to be paying out to fix something from time to time that's just life!

[sirhc1991]

auto trader have a printable list of things to check for :) And thats pretty good tbh :)

[Danr]

Towing a caravan isn't illegal.


If it's over 700kg then it is....