Should I buy this motor?

I asked about X Trails the other day & this came up…

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201405214394078/sort/default/usedcars/onesearchad/used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew/postcode/yo519pf/price-from/6000/make/nissan/page/9/quicksearch/true/radius/1500/model/x-trail/price-to/10000?logcode=p

And my initials are JWG!
is it fate? Should I buy it? Will I die?

Road tax cost?

Only ask as my wife’s 4×4 of that ‘vintage’ was over £450 pa

It’s on the VCAR register mate ! I wouldn’t touch it with a shitty stick

“Stunning example” and it’s in a CAT D? No chance at that price. I’d buy a banger on vcar for a chance but not blow that kind of money on a car that will be hard to shift.

What’s VCAR please?

08, think I drove one most of the way round Tasmania, NSW, Vic & SA. Fairly average motor, thirsty in the petrol and crap for storage space on the inside for the size of the thing. Also a bit noisy and not that comfy.

VCAR (Vehicle Condition Alert Register) is the register of cars that have been written off by the insurance companies at some point in their life.

Cheers Rockhopper

It’s a little naughty just putting that in the advert, as people recognise what cat D means but not VCAR.

Very cheeky listing VCAR as if it’s a plus point in the list of features, the uninitiated would very easily not realise what that means 👿

Unless it’s half the price of what similar non-listed cars would go for, I wouldn’t touch it.

Cheers, Rich

Often there is nothing wrong with a cat D, it could have been written off for something as minor as a dented wing. There are many reasons why an insurance company might choose to write off a car with minor damage rather than pay out to fix it. Convenience and speed of processing the claim has a lot to do with it – they can’t be bothered with the fuss and expense of paying for rental cars and managing the case. The price should be 10 or so percent lower to reflect it – could be a plus point in that you could use it as a negotiation point to hammer the price down, especially if the car has been up for sale for a while.

Obviously you should make yourself comfortable with the reason it was written off and that the repair was done properly. Query it with the previous owner, the garage that carried out the repair, query the insurance company etc. the fact it’s a cat D means it was a very minor thing that has not affected the safety, structural integrity or that the car cannot be returned to the road as good, if not better, than it was before.

Do we know its a cat d though? The add just says its on the register so it could have had a lot more serious damage and been a cat C.

On first impression I’d walk away. If you can get the info out of the dealer and find it’s insurance history, then it might be worth pursuing if the price is right and you just have to have it.

Speculation on the reason it’s VCAR. At some point in its life it’s needed work worth more than or very close to it’s commercial value. No insurance company is going to “write off” a £7-8K car, if it was done recently, without good reason. A heavy crash and you can reach £8K very quickly. Minor, superficial damage would need to be LOT of work to get to £8K.

On a sub £1K car, CAT D can be as simple as a small dent and a few scratches. The Wife’s Polo was borderline with a small dent in the wing, a few scratches and a new door mirror cover.

Wobliscott is that based on experience? About. 5 years ago My girlfriend had a cooper S worth about £8k written off on car d when it was nicked and crashed. In my experience cat d (and above) on 8k cars means more than a dented wing, a £1500 car maybe. I’d want more than 10% off too if your situation changed and you needed to sell the car a cat d will be harder to shift.

Plus we don’t know the history of the car, the advert could always be a mistake.

A door skin and a wing came to £2500 on my Alfa so its easy to get to £8k

The fact that it’s on VCAR is why It’s cheap & TBPH I hadn’t even realised it was VCAR!
Anyway, It was the reg no that caught my eye in the 1st place!

08, think I drove one most of the way round Tasmania, NSW, Vic & SA. Fairly average motor, thirsty in the petrol and crap for storage space on the inside for the size of the thing. Also a bit noisy and not that comfy.
The X Trail gets 4.7 on Autotrader reviews. Freelander gets 4.5, Honda CRV gets 4.5, I know these figures aren’t that reliable but they give you an idea.

is that out of 5? If so some people must have some low expectations 🙂 But then it’s probably on a par for other soft roaders with.

What do you recommend then MW? Looking for something that will pull a caravan, 4WD capability, manual transmission/economical/comfortable-ish/pokey, diesel, enough boot space for me, the wife/dog/bike/fishing gear & associated paraphernalia?
Am seriously looking for that vehicle.

Whats the 4wd for?
A decent sized estate with a decent engine will be more comfortably and just as capable.

It’s just personal experience, borrowed one from the mother in law and put about 20k KM’s onto it. The boot space isn’t that big and on par with a big estate (mondeo/accord etc) but not as comfortable.

It’s also 140 miles from where you live. That’s a long drive/tow if it needs fettling under warranty. Surely there are better cars closer?

The 4WD capability would be to go where I wouldn’t like to risk my Passat! we go to Scotchland a fair bit & would like a bit more ‘versatility’ even though the Passat’s a decent size inside.
suburbanreuben, I wasn’t actually contemplating travelling that distance to look at it even if it was cosha!
Still like the reg of JWG though!

suburbanreuben, I wasn’t actually contemplating travelling that distance to look at it even if it was cosha!
Still like the reg of JWG though!
POSTED 6 HOURS AGO # REPORT-POST

I’m lost now, you weren’t actually thinking of buying the car you just likes that it had your initials on the number plate and wanted to share that?

How about a forester?

How about a forester?

I’ve looked but they only get 4.4 out of 5, quite small luggage space too. I think the X Trail’s still in the lead.

I’m lost now, you weren’t actually thinking of buying the car you just likes that it had your initials on the number plate and wanted to share that?

People share a lot worse things on here! 🙂

(& out of interest I’ve mailed the seller of the dodgy one to see what state it was in before repair)

I’d take those ratings with a pinch of salt if I’m honest. Especially if they are generated by users not road testers. We have an MR2 and someone have it a low rating as ‘there was no room for a buggy’ and compared it to a focus 1.3 which they liked more, while this is an extreme example my point is unless the cars compared with like for like etc it may be best to try it yourself.

If you just want 4WD for the xtra traction/grip and not for more serious off roading then why not go for a Octavia Estate 4×4 , or the Scout version if funds will allow.

Or a older Audi A6 allroad if on a budget, both are probably more capable other than areas that require more ground clearance.

Take the reviews with a pinch of… for every person saying there car is great there will be another saying its shite.
Personally I judge each car individually as you will always find good and bad examples of the same model.

What’s your thinking for the 4wd? Where do you want it to go? Standard cars can run out of ground clearance pretty fast on broken surfaces but otherwise it’s surprising where a 2wd car can take you. Especially if you put a bit of thought into the tyres.

I wouldn’t touch that one purely because the dealer’s shown themselves to be untrustworthy. I wouldn’t even buy a perfect car from a shady dealer unless the price was the same as private sale.

The 4WD capability would be to go where I wouldn’t like to risk my Passat! we go to Scotchland a fair bi

You know we have roads up here? bridges, motorways, the works. And it’s surprising how many people manage without 4*4’s.

Indeed. But that issue aside a Forester has stacks of room, my old man moved me in his (05) a couple of times with room to spare. Only problem(s) are the engines, petrol is thirsty and taxy whilst diesel has a rep for the bottom end going. Otherwise I’d have one.

Not to knock every car but… the missus bought a forrester before I got over here to Oz, the petrol uses for too much fuel and has a 50l tank which means you spend too long at petrol stations. Usable space on a par with the Octavia we used to have, maybe a bit wider but not that useful.

You know we have roads up here? bridges, motorways, the works. And it’s surprising how many people manage without 4*4’s.

I know, I’ve been before. It’s also got some awesome tracks that Passats can’t manage. I know cos I’ve tried. 😕