Buying a car but info doesn't add up
So I'm buying a new car but the mileage on the MOT certificate goes up and down which is odd and what the lady is telling me seems a bit wierd. Is there a way I can contact the police or DVLA to know if the car being sold is legal and that the vehicle hasn't been tampered with and everything is legal with the sale?
Original post by Zarek
MOT records are now available on line. There are also sites to check if a car has had an accident and been written off. But to be honest if you have any doubt, just walk away and go for something else
I've seen the MOT on the DVLA website and that's what made it seem dogy it's got a good record but the mileage goes up and down then one year jumps by 30k miles which is what made the car seem dogy. The car looks very good it's just I dunno if its worth the risk because I don't want to get scammed or in trouble later no way I can ask DVLA or police to check if it's ok?
Original post by Rohan007best
I've seen the MOT on the DVLA website and that's what made it seem dogy it's got a good record but the mileage goes up and down then one year jumps by 30k miles which is what made the car seem dogy. The car looks very good it's just I dunno if its worth the risk because I don't want to get scammed or in trouble later no way I can ask DVLA or police to check if it's ok?
Mileage going up and down is very suspicious. No reason why it shouldn’t go up by 30k in a year if that’s how much it’s driven. I don’t think there is any way to check other than the things you’ve discovered. Perhaps ask the vendor about the things you’re worried about and see what they say
Original post by Zarek
Mileage going up and down is very suspicious. No reason why it shouldn’t go up by 30k in a year if that’s how much it’s driven. I don’t think there is any way to check other than the things you’ve discovered. Perhaps ask the vendor about the things you’re worried about and see what they say
I did speak to her and she said she only drove 9k miles in the 4 years she had it which didn't make sense as the mileage figures don't add up she said here mechanic said it's a system error. I thought at first maybe it could be genuine as she lives in a small village in Wales where the people I've met are very friendly and they don't seem like the scamming type but I dunno because it's a beautiful car it's just the mileage doesn't make sense to me hence I didn't want to buy it as it may be stolen
Original post by Rohan007best
I did speak to her and she said she only drove 9k miles in the 4 years she had it which didn't make sense as the mileage figures don't add up she said here mechanic said it's a system error. I thought at first maybe it could be genuine as she lives in a small village in Wales where the people I've met are very friendly and they don't seem like the scamming type but I dunno because it's a beautiful car it's just the mileage doesn't make sense to me hence I didn't want to buy it as it may be stolen
You could pay for an AA vehicle inspection for piece of mind, if your spending a lot. Or just walk away and look for something else that doesn’t ring alarm bells
Original post by Zarek
You could pay for an AA vehicle inspection for piece of mind, if your spending a lot. Or just walk away and look for something else that doesn’t ring alarm bells
The AA wouldn't give you any peace of mind about the mileage though, either someone historically entered it wrongly or they didn't.
Original post by StriderHort
The AA wouldn't give you any peace of mind about the mileage though, either someone historically entered it wrongly or they didn't.
It will give you info on hidden history and roadworthiness which I would say would be valuable in this instance. Although I wouldn’t tend to go for a vehicle with a mileage discrepancy in MOT history
Original post by Zarek
It will give you info on hidden history and roadworthiness which I would say would be valuable in this instance. Although I wouldn’t tend to go for a vehicle with a mileage discrepancy in MOT history
Oh it will have it's benefits, I just mean it won't address the mileage issue the OP is anxious about. I prob wouldn't go for it either though.
The sad part is these days that even so called 'safe' well known big name dealers can sell you a car with the mileage turned back. If someone has kept the clock mileage within the previous year MOT mileage, it could easily have been hammered for 50k miles or more as a rep car and the clock turned back 49k before it was part ex'd to a major garage.
If the car has been crash damaged but not bad enough to economically write it off it will not show on the search data bases as a write off. However you could have problems with the suspension on one side being tight, and it corners ok but is out of balance when it goes into a bend. You could have a cracked or slow leaking radiator. Many odd problems with headlight alignment or load levelling systems.
If you have doubts that a car for sale is showing a lower mileage than it should (and the Govt MOT history checker bears this out) then contact the trading standards office for the area where the car is for sale and report it. If you are paying significant amounts of money for a car get an independent mechanical check on the car (even where there is a garage warranty) A warranty is only worth something while the garage is solvent and trading (and even then it can be nearly impossible to get recompense) If the garage goes out of business the warranty is worth diddly.
Look at a car very closely around the bonnet - the gaps around the headlights and the bonnet should be constant and absolutely true to the mm. Look at all the paint on the panels and look for any slight shade discrepancies in the paint work (matt areas or areas with change of texture) Look behind the petrol flap or a change in paint colour. Check under the bonnet around the edges. Drive the car on a quiet straight road - and when the road is clear gently release your grip on the steering wheel (it should not wander to one side of the road or the other) When you press the brake pedal it should brake without pulling to one side. There are other engine gearbox checks you can do. When the car is in a safe place, chocked and secure check around the brake discs & pads for brake fluid leaks. Look under the spare wheel in the boot insert and see if there are any signs of ripples (rear end shunt damage) in the floor panel. Check around the rear light lenses for signs of misaligned panels.
You have to use your gut feeling on a car (if you have any mechanical knowledge) You can hear engine or mechanical issues if you are used to understanding an engine. Squeals, ticks, shudders. ~ An engine should quietly purr - a manual gearbox should move through the gears without difficulty and not jump out of gear; an automatic gearbox should not lurch violently. Look for fault icons on the dash. Engine management lights - typically an EGR valve fault or oil loss into the catalytic converter.
Make sure the car has a V5 registration document. Check the chassis vin (usually in the area below the front n/s of the windscreen) Sometimes in older cars it is under the carpet alongside the driver seat. Do a search engine search to locate the ID marks for the make & model of car you are buying. See the car at the address it is registered to. If you can verify the engine number against the V5, take a torch (but even then this can be difficult to see)
Remember your little old lady could be a 'disarming' front for selling cars from someone else or a garage which needs a bit of a sales boost.
So take someone with you to inspect a car for sale. If it's a runner it will just drive and hopefully have an MOT as well (if you are lucky it will be roadworthy) Trust your instinct. If it runs like a bag of spanners, the engine ticks loudly or runs with thick blue smoke walk away. You just can't polish a turd no matter what.
If the car has been crash damaged but not bad enough to economically write it off it will not show on the search data bases as a write off. However you could have problems with the suspension on one side being tight, and it corners ok but is out of balance when it goes into a bend. You could have a cracked or slow leaking radiator. Many odd problems with headlight alignment or load levelling systems.
If you have doubts that a car for sale is showing a lower mileage than it should (and the Govt MOT history checker bears this out) then contact the trading standards office for the area where the car is for sale and report it. If you are paying significant amounts of money for a car get an independent mechanical check on the car (even where there is a garage warranty) A warranty is only worth something while the garage is solvent and trading (and even then it can be nearly impossible to get recompense) If the garage goes out of business the warranty is worth diddly.
Look at a car very closely around the bonnet - the gaps around the headlights and the bonnet should be constant and absolutely true to the mm. Look at all the paint on the panels and look for any slight shade discrepancies in the paint work (matt areas or areas with change of texture) Look behind the petrol flap or a change in paint colour. Check under the bonnet around the edges. Drive the car on a quiet straight road - and when the road is clear gently release your grip on the steering wheel (it should not wander to one side of the road or the other) When you press the brake pedal it should brake without pulling to one side. There are other engine gearbox checks you can do. When the car is in a safe place, chocked and secure check around the brake discs & pads for brake fluid leaks. Look under the spare wheel in the boot insert and see if there are any signs of ripples (rear end shunt damage) in the floor panel. Check around the rear light lenses for signs of misaligned panels.
You have to use your gut feeling on a car (if you have any mechanical knowledge) You can hear engine or mechanical issues if you are used to understanding an engine. Squeals, ticks, shudders. ~ An engine should quietly purr - a manual gearbox should move through the gears without difficulty and not jump out of gear; an automatic gearbox should not lurch violently. Look for fault icons on the dash. Engine management lights - typically an EGR valve fault or oil loss into the catalytic converter.
Make sure the car has a V5 registration document. Check the chassis vin (usually in the area below the front n/s of the windscreen) Sometimes in older cars it is under the carpet alongside the driver seat. Do a search engine search to locate the ID marks for the make & model of car you are buying. See the car at the address it is registered to. If you can verify the engine number against the V5, take a torch (but even then this can be difficult to see)
Remember your little old lady could be a 'disarming' front for selling cars from someone else or a garage which needs a bit of a sales boost.
So take someone with you to inspect a car for sale. If it's a runner it will just drive and hopefully have an MOT as well (if you are lucky it will be roadworthy) Trust your instinct. If it runs like a bag of spanners, the engine ticks loudly or runs with thick blue smoke walk away. You just can't polish a turd no matter what.
You can do checks online that completely go over any mileage fraud or if it's ever been in an accident before. Think they cost a bit of money but i doubt its that expensive and could save you from getting a dodgy car. Think one site is called carvertical
Original post by Rohan007best
So I'm buying a new car but the mileage on the MOT certificate goes up and down which is odd and what the lady is telling me seems a bit wierd. Is there a way I can contact the police or DVLA to know if the car being sold is legal and that the vehicle hasn't been tampered with and everything is legal with the sale?
Id leave it and run.
Id then look for another car that isnt iffy.
Original post by Rohan007best
So I'm buying a new car but the mileage on the MOT certificate goes up and down which is odd and what the lady is telling me seems a bit wierd. Is there a way I can contact the police or DVLA to know if the car being sold is legal and that the vehicle hasn't been tampered with and everything is legal with the sale?
There are websites you can use to conduct an HPI Check on a car. They have free & premium ones, although, if you're serious about buying that specific car and this is the only discrepancy, you'll want to get the premium version :
- https://vehiclecheck.greenflag.com/
- https://www.hpi.co.uk/
They're not too expensive, around £10 for one car's HPI and does a barrage of checks to ensure you're not being a mug of.
The reason why I've suggested this and not directly said walk away is because the exact same issue happened to my dad recently - he went to buy a used A5 and the hpi showed discrepancy in mileage (suggesting odometer manipulation). He in turn went to the dealer and said unless they could sort this out, he'd be walking away. 2 days and a lot of work from the dealer later, it was found that the technician simply entered the values wrong in the MOT test years ago. He did another HPI check and it was all clear - he bought it on the spot. I've sat in the car many times and it drives like a beaut, no hiccups 2 years later.
In the end, it depends on whether you're buying from a reputable dealer or some plonkers backyard - use your judgement to proceed. If still in doubt after conducting extra steps, just walk away. Hope my anecdote and linked websites are of some use to you.
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