Buying used car issues
So I have a real issue with this 2014 Mazda 3 that I'm planning to buy from this used car dealership. So basically, I already put down a non refundable deposit of £200 last week but before purchasing the vehicle, I had a comprehensive AA check on the car for peace of mind.
The AA check broght up zero red issues but a few in the Amber section, the primary one of which was something to do with the master brake cyclinder. It says "visible leaks seen possibly from the master brake cyclinder, requires further investigation" So that worries me as that could be potentially dangerous but it wasn't classified as red. Everything else seemed OK. Some general wear and tear on the tyres, offside rear brake disc show signs of pitting and wear and tear, mechanically car drives fine, exterior and interior is fine etc.
The other concern I have is that when I checked the MOT history, it did fail last in early 2022 due to front brake pipes being corroded, rear brake side pad less than 1.5mm thick - dangerous defect, parking brake lever has excessive movement. Now according to the history this was all corrected on the same day as it then says pass on the same day and driven a mile.
The last MOT done in Feb of this year was a pass and driven an extra 6000 miles. So based on that I'm assuming the serious errors were all fixed otherwise no way it would have been driven. BUT there is no service record apparently and thus no evidence that they were indeed fixed. So I'm guessing I need to obtain the V5C number in order to get these details. And I should push the dealership to provide all the documentation and fix that master brake cyclinder before I even considering buying the car.
The AA check broght up zero red issues but a few in the Amber section, the primary one of which was something to do with the master brake cyclinder. It says "visible leaks seen possibly from the master brake cyclinder, requires further investigation" So that worries me as that could be potentially dangerous but it wasn't classified as red. Everything else seemed OK. Some general wear and tear on the tyres, offside rear brake disc show signs of pitting and wear and tear, mechanically car drives fine, exterior and interior is fine etc.
The other concern I have is that when I checked the MOT history, it did fail last in early 2022 due to front brake pipes being corroded, rear brake side pad less than 1.5mm thick - dangerous defect, parking brake lever has excessive movement. Now according to the history this was all corrected on the same day as it then says pass on the same day and driven a mile.
The last MOT done in Feb of this year was a pass and driven an extra 6000 miles. So based on that I'm assuming the serious errors were all fixed otherwise no way it would have been driven. BUT there is no service record apparently and thus no evidence that they were indeed fixed. So I'm guessing I need to obtain the V5C number in order to get these details. And I should push the dealership to provide all the documentation and fix that master brake cyclinder before I even considering buying the car.
Well the 1st thing I'd want to know is how much they are asking for the 9 year old car and the mileage? As that will tell you a lot about how likely a seller is to fix it for you.
The work done for the 22 MOT could def have been done in a day, however you can't get much more info with the V5C, it just lets you see where and who tested it and a copy of the certificate, not details of the work.
If the car has no service history/book, then you cant pressure the seller for documentation they don't have?, I doubt they were responsible for whatever work was done in early 22 anyway?. Newer vehicles often have online service records, but for older ones, if you lose the physical one it's gone forever. Accidents happen but it being missing will obv be a red flag to buyers (I've actually bought a van advertised with no history and found the full history in a weird compartment in the dash)
(I had a quick look and apparently Mazda have been offering Digital Service Records well before 2014, so they might have it. This still prob won't have MOT work tho, just services)
For the brake cylinder (I don't know much about that part itself) it will depend whether it's showing signs of wear or signs of failure, although it might explain why one brake is significantly more worn that the rest. They do have a lifetime that can be a as short as 60k miles and the AA check hasn't specifically said what the issue is (or even if it's def brake fluid) so it's hard to negotiate on without knowing for sure, have you raised this check with the seller?
The work done for the 22 MOT could def have been done in a day, however you can't get much more info with the V5C, it just lets you see where and who tested it and a copy of the certificate, not details of the work.
If the car has no service history/book, then you cant pressure the seller for documentation they don't have?, I doubt they were responsible for whatever work was done in early 22 anyway?. Newer vehicles often have online service records, but for older ones, if you lose the physical one it's gone forever. Accidents happen but it being missing will obv be a red flag to buyers (I've actually bought a van advertised with no history and found the full history in a weird compartment in the dash)
(I had a quick look and apparently Mazda have been offering Digital Service Records well before 2014, so they might have it. This still prob won't have MOT work tho, just services)
For the brake cylinder (I don't know much about that part itself) it will depend whether it's showing signs of wear or signs of failure, although it might explain why one brake is significantly more worn that the rest. They do have a lifetime that can be a as short as 60k miles and the AA check hasn't specifically said what the issue is (or even if it's def brake fluid) so it's hard to negotiate on without knowing for sure, have you raised this check with the seller?
Original post by StriderHort
Well the 1st thing I'd want to know is how much they are asking for the 9 year old car and the mileage? As that will tell you a lot about how likely a seller is to fix it for you.
The work done for the 22 MOT could def have been done in a day, however you can't get much more info with the V5C, it just lets you see where and who tested it and a copy of the certificate, not details of the work.
If the car has no service history/book, then you cant pressure the seller for documentation they don't have?, I doubt they were responsible for whatever work was done in early 22 anyway?. Newer vehicles often have online service records, but for older ones, if you lose the physical one it's gone forever. Accidents happen but it being missing will obv be a red flag to buyers (I've actually bought a van advertised with no history and found the full history in a weird compartment in the dash)
(I had a quick look and apparently Mazda have been offering Digital Service Records well before 2014, so they might have it. This still prob won't have MOT work tho, just services)
For the brake cylinder (I don't know much about that part itself) it will depend whether it's showing signs of wear or signs of failure, although it might explain why one brake is significantly more worn that the rest. They do have a lifetime that can be a as short as 60k miles and the AA check hasn't specifically said what the issue is (or even if it's def brake fluid) so it's hard to negotiate on without knowing for sure, have you raised this check with the seller?
The work done for the 22 MOT could def have been done in a day, however you can't get much more info with the V5C, it just lets you see where and who tested it and a copy of the certificate, not details of the work.
If the car has no service history/book, then you cant pressure the seller for documentation they don't have?, I doubt they were responsible for whatever work was done in early 22 anyway?. Newer vehicles often have online service records, but for older ones, if you lose the physical one it's gone forever. Accidents happen but it being missing will obv be a red flag to buyers (I've actually bought a van advertised with no history and found the full history in a weird compartment in the dash)
(I had a quick look and apparently Mazda have been offering Digital Service Records well before 2014, so they might have it. This still prob won't have MOT work tho, just services)
For the brake cylinder (I don't know much about that part itself) it will depend whether it's showing signs of wear or signs of failure, although it might explain why one brake is significantly more worn that the rest. They do have a lifetime that can be a as short as 60k miles and the AA check hasn't specifically said what the issue is (or even if it's def brake fluid) so it's hard to negotiate on without knowing for sure, have you raised this check with the seller?
I agree
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