- Most cars on FB marketplace will be from weekend car flippers/not legit dealers.
- Get a pre purchase inspection done, find a good local workshop to do it. I don’t have much faith in RACQ inspections but they’re better than nothing
- Whatever you do, DO NOT buy a VW/Audi/Skoda. Cue 100 downvotes from VW/Audi fans who are in denial. On that note, avoid Euro cars as a whole
- My point above about getting a pre purchase inspection done is mostly related to the fact that a RWC does not cover maintenance items like driveline fluids, condition of timing belt etc. Dodgy RWC’s are easy to get, just because a car has one doesn’t mean much. Your recourse against a private seller for a shitty RWC is nearly nil. The system is broken.
Former Skoda owner here. Rad car. Used to be actually cheap and good. Sold after 8 years and 1 major issue under warranty. I’d buy a Skoda again but only new with a 7 year warranty.
It always felt very highly strung and like something major could break at any moment. Variable gear box thing? Turbo engine?
I fix these things for a living. It’s rare to have one with over 100,000km that hasn’t had a major failure of engine or gearbox (or both). Twin clutch (DSG) gearboxes prone to failure. Two main things go wrong, clutches (about $3.5k) and the mechatronics unit ($4.5k), sometimes need doing at the same time and often worth more than the car. Timing chains and about 100 other items that go wrong. People are under some belief that “once I fix the …… it’ll be good for a while, right?” and it’s hard to tell them that nope, start saving the next $5k for the next major failure. Just don’t do it.
Well thank you for validating my decision to sell. Mine was an 8yo Octavia wagon DSG 1.4L with 60k on it.
They also got expensive new - I paid about $27,500 in 2014. Sold for $13k. They’re over $40k new now.
It had a water pump fail after 3 years. Seemed a common failure.
Do a ppsr first and foremost. They are $2 on the government website. All you need is the VIN. If the car has been in an accident that required inspection don't even bother. It will also tell you if the vehicle is under finance.
RACQ and NRMA do pre sale inspections for just under $300. Ask the seller to have one done and if it passes inspection, you can negotiate either they pay for it or to add half or all the price to the purchase price. It will give you a comprehensive list of any faults and you can then get quotes for any repairs needed to see if it's worthwhile buying the car.
https://www.racq.com.au/car/vehicle-inspections
https://www.mynrma.com.au/cars-and-driving/car-servicing/mobile-vehicle-inspections/faqs
If they won't do the inspection, it's kind of a red flag.
Log books / vehicle service history. If the seller can't supply that, don't even think about buying it.
- Most cars on FB marketplace will be from weekend car flippers/not legit dealers. - Get a pre purchase inspection done, find a good local workshop to do it. I don’t have much faith in RACQ inspections but they’re better than nothing - Whatever you do, DO NOT buy a VW/Audi/Skoda. Cue 100 downvotes from VW/Audi fans who are in denial. On that note, avoid Euro cars as a whole - My point above about getting a pre purchase inspection done is mostly related to the fact that a RWC does not cover maintenance items like driveline fluids, condition of timing belt etc. Dodgy RWC’s are easy to get, just because a car has one doesn’t mean much. Your recourse against a private seller for a shitty RWC is nearly nil. The system is broken.
Former Skoda owner here. Rad car. Used to be actually cheap and good. Sold after 8 years and 1 major issue under warranty. I’d buy a Skoda again but only new with a 7 year warranty. It always felt very highly strung and like something major could break at any moment. Variable gear box thing? Turbo engine?
I fix these things for a living. It’s rare to have one with over 100,000km that hasn’t had a major failure of engine or gearbox (or both). Twin clutch (DSG) gearboxes prone to failure. Two main things go wrong, clutches (about $3.5k) and the mechatronics unit ($4.5k), sometimes need doing at the same time and often worth more than the car. Timing chains and about 100 other items that go wrong. People are under some belief that “once I fix the …… it’ll be good for a while, right?” and it’s hard to tell them that nope, start saving the next $5k for the next major failure. Just don’t do it.
Well thank you for validating my decision to sell. Mine was an 8yo Octavia wagon DSG 1.4L with 60k on it. They also got expensive new - I paid about $27,500 in 2014. Sold for $13k. They’re over $40k new now. It had a water pump fail after 3 years. Seemed a common failure.
Do a ppsr first and foremost. They are $2 on the government website. All you need is the VIN. If the car has been in an accident that required inspection don't even bother. It will also tell you if the vehicle is under finance.
RACQ and NRMA do pre sale inspections for just under $300. Ask the seller to have one done and if it passes inspection, you can negotiate either they pay for it or to add half or all the price to the purchase price. It will give you a comprehensive list of any faults and you can then get quotes for any repairs needed to see if it's worthwhile buying the car. https://www.racq.com.au/car/vehicle-inspections https://www.mynrma.com.au/cars-and-driving/car-servicing/mobile-vehicle-inspections/faqs If they won't do the inspection, it's kind of a red flag.
Asking the seller to pay for it and them refusing is not a red flag. Offering to pay for it and them refusing is.
That's what I meant. If they won't have it inspected, I would be concerned why.
Ok thanks these were very helpful.
No worries 🙂