tradegirl

If he is telling the truth and it knocked while driving and now no power at all, I'm reckoning the alternator belt snapped? Sparky, I'm doing a sterling job of picking cars then? Lol. They changed the registration number, and the one he told me isn't bringing up any vehicle. I'll call the DVLA tomorrow to see if they can give me the reg with the VIN.

I know Stalker, but some people at the cautious "belt needs doing at 80/100k" types. Services all from the same garage and same owner the past 3 years. Genuinely sound no expenses spared car. Anyway, all in a day's work!

Lol! That riles me me up though. Had another taxi driver recently for a Skoda. Over eBay. "£3200 cash today" "No thanks, £3400" "What's your lowest price?" "£3400" "I'll give you £3200" "No thanks, £3400." He tried it again and I told him to get lost and not message me again. He turned up with another 2 people in tow, and he tried to haggle me down again. Honestly if we weren't going through such a dry patch I would have told him to F off.

You mean on the price andy? Of course, but it was already low priced and I wasn't budging. He even tried after he'd completed the logbook online, to haggle me down. ...I'm putting my hands up. Just buggered all around.

2010 stalker. Didn't note it unfortunately as he switched between it's for a taxi and it's for his mom. It's my fault to be fair for not clearing it up.

No they spoke alright English. Not sure if that makes any difference, they all read from the same script.

Another one bites the dust. S-Max 1.8 TDCI sold at 104k FSH including cambelt at 96k. Customer called 3 months to the day to say the car "cut out" and not has no lights on the dash and won't start. It was "knocking", he pulled over and it's now dead. Ali with his 3 uncles/brothers came to view "it's for me", (No it's actually for the other guy) "it's for a taxi", then "it's going in my mom's name she's disabled", and went in his name. I'm assuming it was a taxi, but has only done 1.5k miles in 3 months. Sold £1k below any other Smax of similar spec, now he wants to know what I'm going to do about his Smax. Not looking for advice here, just ranting.

How come? These used to be the bulk of our customers a couple of years back. Parents buying their kids first Corsa/Fiesta/Mini. Not sure where they've all disappeared to.

I find Eastern Europeans fall into 2 categories. They either know what they're looking for and will sometimes buy without so much as a test drive, or they pull a car apart and want it with all the bells and whistles (and usually don't buy anyway)

Hahaha! I love that one. Yeah and with £10k more you could have a Mercedes, what's your point?? I've had a guy try to haggle me down because the clutch will need doing in about a year...

To be fair I have a black Fiesta I've been sitting on for a month.

Is that a thing?? Had a Focus last year (in our name) got 10 or so PCNs for it down in London. Found it bizarre that someone would do duplicate plates for a car only to park in the same spot day after day.

That must have been a satisfying feeling!

If the car is generally very good, fully serviced up etc, I tell them the sensors are there but aren't working. If the car is lacking in other aspects, then it's worth getting the sensors sorted to give the car a bit of a bonus

Way back when, we bought a Peugeot, took it to MOT same day to find the back axle was snapped. They wouldn't take it back.

Guys, I never said I've had a LOT of good texters. I'll agree that the many of them are all "What's your lowest price?", Or "1 grand below the asking price for cash". But I've had a few good eggs. Plus with the texters if they're going to be an idiot, I'd rather not talk to them on the phone anyway.

To be fair I've had a fair few good texters/messages. People have turned up and been some of my easiest sales. Others have called and either never turned up or been the "wife wants it mint/here's my mechanic friend" brigade. If they're idiots they'll waste your time equally whether they call or text.

Haha BHM, that's how ours was. He'd managed to paint an entire car (keyed all around) perfectly, and at other times he'd botch up a wing. Now he's useless and pricey(-ier) though. Thanks BCC!

Where I live they've added a bollard before the traffic lights turning a 2 lane road into a one lane road (which reopens again at the lights for those turning left) And they've done the same in the opposite lane of traffic which means a half mile single line of traffic even when it's not busy. No idea why, and never seen so many potential accidents on that road by frustrated drivers (and some idiots of course)

Mark, I was (halfway) kidding. Nice skill to have though in our line of work!

Thank you Mark!

Had 2-3 of this condition. First was a 2010 Micra that genuinely made me wonder if it was owned by a homeless person. It looked and smelled like it had been lived in, including piles of dirty clothes. Had another that topped the Micra, full of food, clothes and rubbish and stains. Such a stench to it, had to empty it with gloves and masks.

Mark, you're a talented man. Need an extra income?

Hi everyone. Got an Audi estate to polish up (understatement perhaps) and the bodyshop we've used for 5 years has put their prices up to the point where I'm not sure it's worth it. Found a SMART repairer who has good reviews online, but he's booked up until July. Is there anyone in the Walsall/Birmingham/Bromsgrove area who could recommend a bodyshop or SMART repairer please? Thank you.

Thank you Grant. Not quiiite, but thankful for those two. Got a lot of work to do to turn it around yet, but I'm on it Thanks again. ps. Got one of the two sold back tonight because the injectors are leaking (118d). Hopefully a cheap fix and the good customer service and my charm will bring repeat custom lol.