Would you let a garages Reputation put you off buying a car?

C

CornishRob

Senior member
Decided to go for a Coupe now :) Seems that they are hard to come by.

BMW AUC don't have anything that tickles me. I'm looking for around 30k miles as I intend to use it alot!

Seen a couple, at some car dealers. One looks good, but after doing some research, there are a few bad reviews on the net about one of the garages (not BMW).

Would this put people off? Or would you go on the merits of the car? It has full BMWSH etc. might try and ring BMW with reg number and see if I can get any info about the car. The other thing is they want almost AUC money for spec and mileage so not priced cheaply. might be worth a bit of travelling though!
 
If you're unsure, pay for a second opinion using either the RAC or another independent.

Any garage can sell a lemon, no matter how good it's reputation, so if you've found a car you like where the garage has had some past issues, mention them to the salesman as part of your haggling repertoire to lower the price or to secure additional warranty...

Go play...
 
If there's two cars of similar spec then you'd always go for the garage with the better rep.

However there's not a lot to go wrong with the sales process, it's only afterwards that you really find out whether they're good or bad.

A dealer (BMW or independent) will still have to supply a warranty & after-sales service, so the prices between the 2 won't be much different. The only difference with an AUC car is that you can take it to any BMW dealer for warranty work. Just because a car is AUC doesn't mean it has been maintained any better than one from an independent.

BMW customer services can only tell you the service history & a list of dates/mileages where the car went to a dealer. It WILL NOT tell you what was carried out in those visits - that's what you need a complete service/maintenance history from the dealer for. If it's more than 3 years old then you can check the MOT history for any failures (not sure if it lists advisories).

If you're not sure, then ask the independent if he's okay with you getting it inspected by a specialist or a BMW dealer - and that if it's as good as they maintain you'll buy it.
 
miles are right but its pricey http://www.lloydcolnebmw.co.uk/approved-used-bmw/
just 4 miles from me i spotted it yesterday looking mighty fine on the forecourt :) :)
good luck with your search , they are worth the footwork :thumbsup:

oh & if its the bmw garage/seller ( hundreds of bmw,s ?) on outskirts of london i,d leave well alone .
 
definately, integrity is everything, most of us have been around long enough to spot the shysters, dealers are dealers, they need to make a profit, of which most do fairly and squarely, go to one on recommendation, reviews and most of all gut feeling, aftersales service is paramount, but it works both ways, if your gearbox drops out on your driveway you expect it to be put right, on the other hand, just because a guy sells you a car that he may only have 800 or a 1000 quid in , you cant expect him to be your own personal aa man, mechanic nursemaid and wedding planner, some customers return endlessly with lists of petty claims and unreasonable demands whilst threatening to besmirch the garages reputation unless he changes the courtesey light bulb foc. unfortunately theres a lot of idiots in all walks of life, look and listen and you will invarebly spot them. :wink:
 
You wouldn't buy from Billy's Backstreet Autos..... not worth the hassle if something goes wrong at a later date
 
I have been put off this one now, just by the garage. Might be the best car in the world but im Pi$$ed off!

First off, they have put a picture up in the advert of another cars interior. They put an imaculate roadsters interior up (same colour etc) but i noticed it had the roof up down switches in it! Its meant to be a Coupe!

Then i though, give them a second chance, asked about service history and which service it had, and which was next. Apparently the car tells you and they dont have oil, insp 1, 2 etc anymore. Had an argument with him that they did then went.

really annoyed!
 
CornishRob said:
I have been put off this one now, just by the garage. Might be the best car in the world but im Pi$$ed off!

First off, they have put a picture up in the advert of another cars interior. They put an imaculate roadsters interior up (same colour etc) but i noticed it had the roof up down switches in it! Its meant to be a Coupe!

Then i though, give them a second chance, asked about service history and which service it had, and which was next. Apparently the car tells you and they dont have oil, insp 1, 2 etc anymore. Had an argument with him that they did then went.

really annoyed!
Click to expand...

Bigmotoringworld ? :thumbsdown:
 
Keep looking i guess. I have a weeks holiday next week, so hoped i could find something then, but doesnt leave much time and i dont want to just rush to buy one. Trouble is i head offshore again week after, so the search all has to stop again which is frustrating.
 
it would depend on what there bad repuation is for

if they are simple numpties and have wrong pics i would not bother about that, if they had a bad reputaion for service then again i would not be put off, just don't have it serviced there

if their reputaion is for selling dodgy cars then ye, give them a wide birth
 
Another thing you may want to take into account when dealing with a seller with a disputable reputation is whether you agree on making a down payment or not. A dodgy garage is likely to face claims sooner or later and may also be in trouble otherwise, which might lead to somebody filing for bankruptcy sooner or later.

I do not know to what extent and to what percentage of the purchase price a down payment is common in the UK, but in the Netherlands it is not uncommon to make a down payment of 10% or more when buying a second hand car from a garage (not when dealing with a private seller).

If the garage goes into bankruptcy between you making the down payment and collecting the car, you are basically screwed. As a 'simple' customer you will not have any special rights in a bankruptcy and will likely have lost all your money in the end, or at least it will take quite a while to get at least part of it back.

So:
1. limit the amount of the down payment; or
2. limit the timeframe between making the down payment and collecting the car (you may try to agree on wiring the purchase price when colelcting the car either by phone or by computer).

Preferrably both if serious money is involved. Still no guarantee, but you reduce the risks a bit.
 
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