sparky
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Content Count
1256 -
Joined
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Last visited
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Days Won
48
Everything posted by sparky
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Can you simply no longer buy Dragon outright for a one off payment? I think I'm on Dragon 8.1 and that was about £500 and the only monthly fee being support which I didn't take out.
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Whos made the swap from Autotrader to Motors then?
sparky replied to williamblackshaw's topic in General Dealer Chat
I took Uncle Jim's advice and put in my cancellation in 11 weeks ago and joined motors at the same time. As they do, AT came back to me with 'a special price to you Mr Mark' for two months which I accepted and when that runs out next week it will be goodnight vienna as far as AT is concerned. Have been impressed with the leads that MOTORS has produced as well as becoming a gold member of carsitenetwork, all for under £300 a month for 30 cars. I've also kept an eye on one or two others who have made the switch and if their adverts are honest they look to be doing the business without them. Of course AT is still the number one and a very good product, but personally on a main road pitch with a bit of a niche market I can no longer justify their fees and feel a whole lot better now that my number one monthly overhead is going. I'm amazed their fees for 2015 are going up again and hope this is the straw that breaks the camel's back for some because let's be honest, they are not a nice company. -
I don't think you were unlucky Ken. I'd imagine you could have listed those three on here before you bought them and I'm pretty sure most of us on here could tell you what faults those cars are likely to have and what you need to allow for because we have all been bitten on the arse by them at some stage in the past. It's not nice but it's the best learning curve IMO. If your unsure what to buy then probably best keep it simple. For example a petrol Ford Focus isn't going to give you much grief, on the other hand a 2.0 diesel one......... If you don't mind me asking, what sort of stuff are you buying?
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RE: Vauxhall revokes lifetime warranty
sparky replied to Jamie Edmonds's topic in General Dealer Chat
So even the latest Corsa is still suffering from steering wheels faults. Deary me. -
So what's the crack with these cars? Are they SOR, on a stocking plan or just purchased outright?
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Yes. That would be misleading.
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I've been a remote buyer (or lazy *******) for years and I have great faith in online auctions these days, they have come on leaps and bounds. Of course sometimes your grade 2 may turn out to be a grade 4 and vice versa but on the whole they are on the money. However, I do wish BCA and Manheim would grade the interior. Last week I bought a Peugeot SW from BCA which was lovely on the body but had sadly been lived in by a pack of Wolves. If I'd of know the interior was very doggy, then just like it being a smoker's car, I'd have left it there so I was a bit gutted. Thankfully though after a couple of days hard labour and a few quid it was a bobby dazzler and has now found a new owner so in the end al'ls well. I like the way Aston Barclay grade their cars both on interior and exterior and can't understand why Manheim and BCA don't do the same, at the very least they should have a comments section informing buyers of smells, pet hairs, etc. As for the fees, well what lose there we gain by having lower fuel costs, not to mention the savings on auction fry ups and coffee!!
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When some Russian tycoon has desires for an Austin Montego 1.6 HL then I'm quids in!
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Yes. If only it was the same for retail...
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Aren't we all
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Sunday Closing.....forward thinking or a backward step?
sparky replied to jimreidvehicle's topic in General Dealer Chat
The Mitchell Group (Skoda, Lexus and Mazda) are worth a look at. They don't open Sunday as according to their owner Sunday is family day, quite right too. The story goes that they parted company from their first franchise, Mitsubishi, because they refused to open on a Sunday. Clearly it's done them no harm as they have gone from strength to strength and is probably a feather in their cap in this day and age. The only time I open on a sunday is if I have an appointment or I want to get out of visiting the in laws!! -
I've just signed up for 25 cars per month at a cost of £216 + Vat per month.
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I'll let you know in a month or three! Motors seems to have come on leaps and bounds since the last time I used it and is a lot more price friendly. I'm not expecting Auto Trader style results from them but nor I am annoyed (yet) about a huge DD at the end of the month.
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Another vote here for Dealer Auction, although like any other timed auction it's no good for your blood pressure. As the bidding approaches the end, turn your phone off, lock your doors, make sure your stopwatch is working and have a stress ball to hand if you miss out! What's the problem with BCA? OK, I know they try and milk us for every penny but they do have an unrivalled choice of stock, Manheim also.
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Not much help but for Interim I got my rep at Motonovo to complete it for me and will be doing the same again. I'm pretty sure your main lender could help you out in the same way.
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Know of a couple of dealers close to me who seem to selling plenty of vans. One deals in mainly over 5 year old, up on the mileage stock stock. The other deals in very late stuff with little margin in it. My choice would be to go with what the former does but to be honest, it's hard enough trying to buy 5 year old plus diesel cars that don't need a flywheel, DPF or EGR valve that have been looked after, let alone a van that has been used by an employee who couldn't car less about it. On the plus side I guess your van man ain't as fussy. As long as the windows go down, CD works and it doesn't look like a painter's radio then it's chocs away. I guess also your van man isn't going to do the rounds and see what's out there, 'talk to the boss', consult those lovely folk at Parkers or bring it back if a bulb goes. Hmmm, someone pass over the LCV catalogue....
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Surely the auction would have CCTV.
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I read a similar story many years ago. Until I read that I had been taking the odd full payment over the phone thinking that an authorization code was good enough, clearly it isn't. I will take deposits over the phone but for full payment I need those four magic numbers to be pressed by the card holder.
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I'm fairly sure that if a fault like that happens within the first two weeks of purchase the customer is entitled to a full refund, regardless of whether a repair has been offered or indeed done. A quick phone call would have clarified this, not the smartest move to go to court IMO.
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If enough small dealers leave though, like I did myself recently, then surely they are going to have to take note. I found ATM handy for getting bids on oddball cars I was afraid of but as for buying, given the choice of stock that is out there to buy on other platforms at the touch of the button, I really don't need ATM or dealers like s******* in my life.
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Another vote for Dragon 2000 here.
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Done.
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So is the advert working? Are more dealers coming on board? Are punters left clicking? My experience of motors two years ago was not good. Impress me
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There are times when I'm very tempted to give AT the elbow. I just need convincing that when a man is after a certain car sat at his PC or tablet trying to find it then he is going to use more than one platform for his search. Obviously not being on AT would lose sales, but as it's my number one overhead it would also take so much pressure off every month. It really is a tough call and I'm not sure whether or not I have the balls to make it.
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Is the M32 box fitted to both 120bhp and 150 bhp models? Have replaced quite a few flywheels on the 1.9 CDTi's but touch wood, have yet to had to replace a gearbox.
