Buying subaru impreza WRX 2.5 5DR 2010, need help regards new car inspection

[Tomce]

Hi Guys,

 

I am already paid deposit and next saturday going to view / buy my future car - Subaru Impreza WRX 2.5l reg 2010 5DR Hatch.

 

I am not a fan of light blue color, but mileage on the car and exterior condition - I would believe is a great deal.

 

It is 2010 reg, has 12000 miles and 1 previous owner.

 

Dealer asking price was £10k, he ensured me that car is in imaculate condition, but I was kind of surprised as it seems cheap to me (?), as I was looking into other similar models - and all of them were more expensive and with higher mileage.

 

Off course I did DVLA lookup and results shows that car is "clean" and had only one owner.

 

Can somebody advise - what I need to look before paying full amount - any common subbaru issues?

 

Dealer will give me 6 months waranty, but shall I try to inspect car in third parties garage after purchase?

 

I cannot find original advert as I think dealer removed it already, but I found very similar picture of this car.

 

I would appreciate for any comments / advises.

 

Many thanks

 

 

[Jay762]

Wotcha and welcome.

 

Wheel alignment is important check for uneven wear on tyres. check all the electrics work including air con, check for alloys corroding lacquer lifting etc

 

check rear wheel arch for corrosion / bubbling as there is a lip on the inside that holds the crud.

 

interior trim is on the cheap side check for scratches on door cards console trim etc

 

from an engine / driving perspective it should idle and rev nicely no grinding or rattling and have that delicious flat four lumpy burble

 

check cv joints on front by full lock circles fwd and reverse.

[Tomce]

Thanks Jay762, good advises. Is it worth to bring car to independant garage to check engine and electronics?

[Gambit]

Hi mate welcome to S.O.C

Think Jay said everything. And I agree not the best colour in the world but I'm sure the car will be great :)

[Jay762]

Only for peace of mind - just have a good play yourself, I have spent money on those independant inspections before buying a car and the report you get is very thorough, a garage will go on your direction though so will approach the inspection in a different way.

 

Having the warranty and a dealership you can physically go to and state your case to get things fixed is a good position to be in. Electric mirrors windows central locking ac etc can all be checked by yourself without too much hassle on the forecourt

[Jay762]

must admit I dont mind that colour - start saving for some alloys though and possibly a spoiler (very easy to swap over yourself),  the standard WRX one seems a little shy ;)

[Tomce]

Thank you for responses guys, much appreciated.

I had bad experience in the past when was buying vw passat, DVLA results
were positive, car was clean inside and outside, however after 3 months of
driving- rear arch started rusting. Went to VW dealer and they identified
(after very deep inspection) that car had an accident in the past. They told me
- that somebody smashed it and re-sprayed. I must admit - neither me, neither
my friend couldn't spot that, somebody made nice re-spray job :) Anyway, I sold
it eventually.

I really worry buying this car as it is performance car and with such a low

mileage this look damn cheap to me (maybe because of colour such a low price :)
)

 

I may try contact Subaru dealer and ask them if they can check their

database about any registered issues with this car, but this will be difficult
to check. Impreza WRX was one of my dream cars, but I couldn't afford it due to
insurance cost, but now I am 28 years old, so insurance price went down a
little :) from 1800 to 500 :)
 

[Jay762]

contact one of these orgs and get a full inspection completed - you will get a full report and it will significantly reduce the risk of you have purchased a lemon in the near future.

 

http://www.mycarinspections.co.uk/

 

http://www.rac.co.uk/buying-a-car/vehicle-inspections/vehicle-inspections-for-private-buyers/

 

http://www.theaa.com/rewards/offers/aa-vehicle-inspections.html

[Gambit]

must admit I dont mind that colour - start saving for some alloys though and possibly a spoiler (very easy to swap over yourself),  the standard WRX one seems a little shy ;)

2nd that. Apart from the colour :)

 

I had a problem like that with a BMW funny enough looked great until a bit of rust came through turned out it had some damage done to the car and replaced the front wing. But like you said it was done very well I would never have known. :( But I have found no matter how many used cars you by you always seem to have a problem, sometimes a big problem but mostly be a small thing. 

[Tomce]

Thanks for links Jay762, I already contacted AA and RAC. I
have spent some time on the phone, It is funny - they can check, but they
"cannot guarantee" about car :) Well it is also expensive - for basic
car review min price was like £139 or for comprehensive £229, however good
thing is that they can do full inspection without me and send report after.

 

[Jay762]

no one will offer a guarantee too many unknowns unless it is a brand new car with an audit trail from the start of the production line.

 

230 quid against 10K spend is a small amount in relation and if it means peace of mind also they may pick up something which you get fixed under warranty - there is your money recovered through cost avoidance of future failure

[Tomce]

Good point matey, but does they will be able to check ECU mods, engine? I haven't seen this so don't know how these guys working.

 

Alternative to this deep inspection of my list + your recommended checks + paint inspection device (which seems cheap on eBay :) )

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CEM-DT-156-Paint-Coating-Thickness-Gauge-Meter-Tester-F-NF-Probes-1250-Im-/230990025674?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Test_Measurement_Equipment_ET&hash=item35c81413ca

 

Interesting stuff, nice to have I think.

[Jay762]

If it has had one owner their details will come up on the V5 so a bit of detective work and you could approach them to find out any additional details.

 

if the exhaust and filter are standard there is a very good chance the ECU will not have been touched as it would give very little gain

 

The paint metal device will give the depth of the paint and is useful if you are looking to detail the car to a high finish but paint is paint irrespective of factory or damage repair finish so you could still be hunting the proverbial needle.

 

It used to be the case that factory paint finishes were slightly dimpled due to the drying process and repair paint jobs came up really smooth and mirror like in finish so if you looked along the car you could see the different way the light was reflected.

 

Giving the car a good hand wash, dry and polish will get you up close and will be able to pick out any small dents chips or cracks anywhere, the panels are quite thin so gentle tapping around the car may throw up some different tones if you are tapping on filler not metal

[Tomce]

Cheers Jay, I wish I would have mate like you next to me prior buying this car. In a meantime I am planning to do some work through online to find about car past.

[Jay762]

I just wish I had some mates

[Tomce]

Right after some detective work found that car had 1 previous owner who sold

this car to dealer on 30/04/2013 and settled his finance. Car has mileage of
12k (according to v5) - which is good.

Subaru insurance will expire on 30/06/2013, so I still will have some extra
time for free car and car engine diagnostic after purchase at subaru dealer.

Bad things: Nobody told me exactly, but I managed to figure out – 3rd major
service will be due soon on 07/2013 which according to dealer will cost me £385
inc VAT(http://www.mangoletsi.com/)

That seems too expensive for max 2 hours job. Can't believe that! VW, BMW

charged me 180 - 240 for same job! Any cheaper dealers in Northwest? :P)

I decided not to waste my money with RAC or AA guys, cos let's be honest -
they won't check engine compression or electronics, what they would do - simple
MOT like test (as you guys mentioned in your responses). But even me and my
friend - we can do this ourselves.

I got "device" for £13 from eBay already and it seems does job
very well for its price. My mate was laughing from me - but when we tested on
his Audi A6 bonnet  - he was surprised :D However this device will not
work for plastic bumpers as it has magnet inside of it, still nice toy to have
for inspecting car body.

I am excited, but not too much as if something will be wrong with this car –

I won’t buy it.

I noticed that is not very popular car in UK market and to find immaculate one
– it is a hard job for such a price range.

[Tomce]

Right, haven't bought this car as I could see it had accident which wasn't recorded in DVLA database. I hope this will be usefull for potential buyers / owners. REG number: RV10DRX (RV10 DRX)

My advise - don't buy this car guys as something is wrong with it :)

P.S. "Junction 25 car sales" - scammers and liers.. When I proved that car had accident - sales man - told "but it drives alright". So what ??? It had accident and it wasn't recorded.

[Scooby Pete]

Sounds like you did the right thing and walked away.

There doesn't seem to be many later ones about at the moment.

There's a few on autotrader.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/search/used/cars/subaru/impreza/postcode/tw75as/radius/1500/onesearchad/used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew/sort/pricedesc/body-type/hatchback/page/2

I'm sure you'll find your car soon :)

[Jay762]

yup sounds like you made a great decision there !!