When is a pre-purchase check worth it?
Discussion
Hi,
I'm looking to buy a Jaguar XK8 for around £4-5000 but it's not likely I'm going to find one locally. Pre purchase inspections seem expensive for what they offer compared to an MOT done days before the advert is posted, and they don't seem much use if a fault occurs after purchase. Assuming visiting the seller to view or collect the car is going to cost say £200 a trip, the car has a clear MOT with no advisories and low price (£4K on a 51 plate) is it worth the cost of a pre-purchase check or would I be better off caching the cash for 'expected' repairs or adding the car to my AA cover which includes repairs if the AA is called out and can't repair at the roadside.
TIA
I'm looking to buy a Jaguar XK8 for around £4-5000 but it's not likely I'm going to find one locally. Pre purchase inspections seem expensive for what they offer compared to an MOT done days before the advert is posted, and they don't seem much use if a fault occurs after purchase. Assuming visiting the seller to view or collect the car is going to cost say £200 a trip, the car has a clear MOT with no advisories and low price (£4K on a 51 plate) is it worth the cost of a pre-purchase check or would I be better off caching the cash for 'expected' repairs or adding the car to my AA cover which includes repairs if the AA is called out and can't repair at the roadside.
TIA
At that age, its not going to get covered by a warranty of any sort, so that argues against. Is there a local indy you could ask to do one? I would suspect a 14 year old JLR capable of hiding a few nasty surprises, and better you go in eyes open than be surprised later on. You may be able to use the findings to walk away, negotiate further or be more confident that its not going to bite you in the bum.
Worth knowing
- you can get an MoT by post, I wouldn't put much store by that. A test done a few days before sale is probably done at the seller's tame garage so is likely to overlook any issues
- the X100 XK8 you're looking at is a 1960s British Leyland platform, so rust is a major concern.
I would definitely want a specialist in these cars to inspect before purchase.
- you can get an MoT by post, I wouldn't put much store by that. A test done a few days before sale is probably done at the seller's tame garage so is likely to overlook any issues
- the X100 XK8 you're looking at is a 1960s British Leyland platform, so rust is a major concern.
I would definitely want a specialist in these cars to inspect before purchase.
Join a few JLR forums and offer to pay someone/buy beer to go take a look/take photos?
I did this for free for a guy on a forum (it was a classic american 1960s car v cool) as the showroom was literally 5 mins down the road, took about 50 pictures and sent them over to him - half an hour of my time where I didnt have much to do anyway and a nice look around some rare metal.
But yes, a PPI can be useful if the problem is really obvious, if it isn't many dont pick it up, especially if that PPI involves not getting under the car (where to be honest the majority of the problems are going to lie with the X100 chassis)
I did this for free for a guy on a forum (it was a classic american 1960s car v cool) as the showroom was literally 5 mins down the road, took about 50 pictures and sent them over to him - half an hour of my time where I didnt have much to do anyway and a nice look around some rare metal.
But yes, a PPI can be useful if the problem is really obvious, if it isn't many dont pick it up, especially if that PPI involves not getting under the car (where to be honest the majority of the problems are going to lie with the X100 chassis)
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