XFS

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Posts posted by XFS

  1. Posted

    So, there is a car at Blackbush today which interests me. It is listed as 30K warranted miles and there is a DVLA milage discrepancy listed.

    My check on the MOT history reveals that its first MOT shows 13k miles, second MOT shows 0 miles and its third MOT shows 7k miles, so in 2 years the car has covered -6k miles.

    So, how can the miles be warranted? Its a two owner FSH prestige car. 

    I have brought this to the attention of BCA and asked if the SH shows a clock change, someone was supposed to get back to me, but no surprise...not a dicky bird yet. I won't be bidding on the car now,  but note that it still shows warranted miles!

  2. Posted

    My main reservation about your chances is lack of experience.

    If you have a decent amount of Capital and know the trade and know what you want to achieve you will make money. Its hard not to.

    BUT...you need to get that experience.

    Move into the trade gently. DONT...absolutely DONT give up your day job. Dabble, learn, make your mistakes and losses when its doesn't matter to much because you have an income.

    Once you have a bit of experience AND a decent pot... at least 100k and are confident you can make a living go for it.

     

  3. Posted

    46 minutes ago, NacMan said:

    But , if I'm having a grade 3 looking like a grade 5, I'm obviously going to complain

    Sure. I would to. But don’t expect to get anywhere.

    My point is, that at some point you will probably get something better than you expected which will be some compensation.

  4. Posted

    I have found it to be swings and roundabouts.

    I,ve bought grade 2’s which were 3 or even 4 in my book. I have bought grade 3,s which looked grade 1 and grade 4’s which were easily 2.

    i,ve been stung on some reports, but won on others. Last week I bought an X5 with a steering fault on the report. It’s absolutely fine.

  5. Posted

    On my don’t buy list? Mostly what is popular and what everyone else buys. 

    What I like ... Low Mileage scarce model Alfa’s ( Something always needs doing, but I budget for that)

    High Spec scarce model Jags, Merc’s, Audi’s (particularly estates) Old low miles/low owner M3, Porsche Boxster, TT

    • Like 1

  6. Posted

    You can look at Brexit from a selfish point of view or the wider picture.

    For me personally it’s been great. In my other business I get paid in US dollars, as the pound weakens, my income has gone up and up.

    As for the car business, I am looking forward to next year. There will be opportunities whether we leave or not. From a selfish point of view I just want it decided one way or the other.

    Looking at the wider picture, in the referendum I was undecided. Now I think leaving is one of the craziest things this country has ever done, up there with making Boris PM and almost on a par with the USA making Trump President.

    However, the people voted and I just want it done and dusted, it won’t effect me much either way, it could certainly screw things for the younger generation though.

    • Like 2

  7. Posted

    13 minutes ago, awc1000 said:

    agreed, trouble is the tory's are clearly the best of a bad lot at the moment, god forbid corbyns clown party ever get into power, we would be digging coal again and having tax levy's for steam power:blink:

    There lies the problem.

    There is simply no party worth voting for.

    16 minutes ago, Grantlfc81 said:

    sounds like you are a remainer lmao

    Makes no difference. Remain or don’t remain. Either way the fundamental problem is still there.

    • Like 2

  8. Posted

    Weak leadership and a gullible electorate is our main problem. 

    Now we have some toff in charge who thinks he is above the law. He is not a strong leader, he is a devious self serving individual with a sense of entitlement.

    I have no idea how to address this. I guess we need need a new broom, where it is coming from I don’t know.

    Whether or not Brexit happens will not cure the deep rooted problems of weak government and a gullible electorate.

    I just want Brexit out of the way one way or another. 

     

  9. Posted

    I am involved in a business which is diametrically opposite of the car trade. The only similarity is the downturn over the last few months...since Boris became PM. In fact. It’s been quite dramatic.

    I think most businesses have suffered.

    • Like 2

  10. Posted

    I was quite clever and always had good grades but I hated school and left when I was 15 with no qualifications. Started messing around with cars when I was 12/13 and have been dipping in and out of the trade ever since.

    I started of working on a farm and then got a fairly responsible public service related job and gained professional qualifications to degree level. From the age of 28 I have owned various businesses and I am currently winding up a photography career to concentrate on the motor trade full time. It’s what I promised myself as my wind down towards death or retirement...whichever comes first ...lol

    • Like 1

  11. Posted

    6 hours ago, trade vet said:

    You have just jogged my memory.We bought a wagon load of repossessed 406 diesels described as ex hire cars out of Belle Vue.They turned out to be ex taxis  ( private hire ) and most of them needed fuel pumps. ? 

    A lot of the tractors nowadays must be as complicated as any diesel vehicle and they survive their life on red diesel.

  12. Posted

    I have been looking for a Range Rover Sport on a 13 to 15 plate. Anything decent is way over retail money. There are 14 plates on sale at Franchises at 1k to 2 k less than they are making at BCA

    Everything is ridiculous just now....I though prices were going to soften rapidly in Sept with New Reg/Brexit etc etc??

    Its weird...prices were low for a while early summer. I went to BCA Bedford on a may bank holiday and bought five really cheap all grade 1 and 2, same cars 4 months later would be 1k to 2k more. Could have bought loads that day.

  13. Posted

    56 minutes ago, Dealer said:

    Cut a long story short the judge has given extra time and claimant now has to get 3 independent assessors and pass their details to me, I choose 1 and only after that "expert witness" report has been submitted will they continue the process. 

    Still up in the air for now, however on picking up on some of the judges points today he mentioned on more than 1 occasion about age and value of the vehicle etc this gave me some optimism. I was really worried before as I had read a thread on here about the chap who sold the galaxy automatic where the claimant kept driving it to destruction yet he still lost. 

    Thanks to all those who gave their advice and kind words today. Will be updating again when I have more information. 

    People in the trade assume Judges are against them. Mostly Judges are fair and will find based on the law and fairness. No Judge wants to get appealed against.

    Just hang in there, make sure you are prepared and present everything you can to substantiate your case and the chances are you won't lose.

  14. Posted

    9 minutes ago, Dealer said:

    Already rang them when this first came about, they don't want to know. They aren't going to turn up at court and the customer is using this as their expert advice /evidence etc

    As they are material witnesses to the case, they would have no choice. If the customer is using them as witnesses then ask the judge if you can have an adjournment as you want them to appear in person so you can cross examine them or have a solicitor examine the evidence.

    I mean no offence, but on the surface it sounds as if you have not prepared for this case.

    Taking the information you have given at face value, the case is perfectly winnable, but you would need to challenge the evidence of the main dealer strongly and discredit them...which to be fair should not be that hard.

    • Like 1

  15. Posted

    Buyer Declaration.

    I have inspected and driven the car. I am satisfied with its overall condition and have accepted any wear and tear to the bodywork, interior, mechanical and electrical components as commensurate with the age, mileage and previous use of the car.

    Seller Declaration.

    I certify that the car is delivered in a safe and roadworthy condition and complies with current motor vehicle construction and use regulations and at the time of sale would pass or has passed the current MOT test.

    Your statutory rights etc, etc, etc

    As part of my PDI I always MOT a car or if its been MOT,d recently, have it pre- MOT'd by a certified MOT tester.

    On 3/18/2019 at 10:59 PM, have a word with the wife said:
    235/60/18 103 V New: Continental 235/60/18 103 V
    Cost £60.00
    Wheel Alignment Recommend full 4 wheel alignment.
    Cost £104.16
    Glass/Mirrors/Door Locks offside front door strap broken
    Cost £650.40
    Water/Oil/Fluid Leaks Radiator leaking
    Cost £601.20
    Power Steering Fluid Power steering pump leaking
    Cost £15.48
    Mandatory Lights Rear (external) nearside rear upper/inner sidelight bulb blown
    Cost £285.60
    Front Suspension play in offside inner steering rack arm
    Cost £251.28
    Front Suspension O/S/F lower arm bushes worn N/S/F lower arm bushes worn
    Cost £89.52
    Miscellaneous front gearbox stabilizer deteriorated
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    get the name of the person who did this check, ask for him to ring you with about impending court case, advise him that you will ask the court for him to appear to substantiate this claim, advise him his best course of action is for the company he works for that the safety check picked out items that were consistent with the cars age and mileage, remind him the car has recently passed a mot and ask what his qualifications are, if "reception" wont put you through, tell them you are coming down with recording equipment unless they contact you in 24 hours with a explanation as to why, as a example they want £600+ for a power steering pump that is merely damp not leaking after 150k+ miles, you want the company to say that this check had picked out items consistent with the age and mileage of the vehicle .

    That is exactly what I would do. 

    Its pretty obvious a "free" health check is is close to a scam as you can get without actually being a scam. As part of my court submission I would also want to know how many cars over 5 years old have had a clean bill of health and what the average cost to rectify "faults" found in a "free" health check are per vehicle.

  17. Posted

    I,m not saying you should do this, because I'm in the position where I don't mind losing the odd potential sale.

    But the horror stories I hear on here about awkward customers....I simply couldn't deal with them. I try to "vet" my customer before they get anywhere near the car, that way at least 95% of the time the car sells to the first viewer. I just don't entertain anyone awkward or I suspect will waste my time.

    For instance, yesterday I had a guy on the phone about a car...Rare, low miles, 9 years old up at 8k. Older and cheaper than my normal stock. Obviously having been on forums relative to the car for hours, he starts asking me for photos of the gearbox (apparently the number gives an indication of robustness) the colour of the power steering fluid, and god knows what else from a list of prepared questions and whether he can organise an inspection with a specialist in the make and whether I would take it their (not a chance, obviously). I said mate, by the time I gather all the information you are asking for and organise a specialist to collect the car and take it back, the car will be sold, so I think you are chasing shadows. He seriously didn't know how to respond.

  19. Posted

    1 hour ago, tradegirl said:

    @XFS what is bread and butter stuff? Our stock is £6k-9k normal every day cars.

    Same stuff we've always stocked, but now it's in a higher price bracket. Before £5-6k was our most expensive car, now £4-5k are our cheapest ones. Maybe that's the reason, I don't know.

    We've never had a problem until now.  But no one knows we're home based until they actually call. Even then, very few people have a problem with us being home based.

    @jason doyle motor sales I need to market myself a whole lot better.

    I would classify anything mainstream as bread and butter stock. It could be a 6k car or a 16k car. If you can look on Autotrader and see a dozens of examples of the same car, be it a Ford Focus at 5K or a Mercedes A class at 15k, its bread and butter in my book and therefore it will be difficult to compete and make yours stand out.

    However, if you had a high spec Volvo C30 or a low miles Land Rover Freelander in Aintree Green, or a BMW E46 330CI or a Subaru Outback etc you would stand out as there are not many and people will go to wherever they can get one. 

     

  20. Posted

    2 minutes ago, tradegirl said:

     @NOACROSS it's 1 junction up from Birmingham on the M6.

    By the sounds of it I have a lot of work to do. Website is number 1, then I can get customer reviews.

    I need to see what AutoTrader needs to be able to get reviews on that too.

    Thank you everyone, it's put my mind at ease. It's something I can control if I do what's needed and do the right work

    I may have mentioned before in the thread. its not where you are as much as what you are trying to sell and whom you are trying to sell it to.

    Selling bread and butter to penny pinchers is going to be sole destroying as a home trader because they hold all the cards. Find yourself a niche where you hold more of the cards. 

    • Like 1

  21. Posted

    27 minutes ago, trade vet said:

    Hi Jason .....Cue A55 story........When I was 17 I used to moonlight with a mate doorstepping nothing else but A55’s.We bought them for £40 and sold them for £85 with a £2 lineage ad in the local rag.Except the punters never came to us. We used to qualify elderly punters from rural areas within 20 miles and we would offer to take the cars to them for viewing.This would impress them and it rarely failed.We would often do 2 a week but you could not charge more or the phone didn’t ring.We were earning more than a lot of first division footballers.

    Its a shame you guys can’t do that.

    Another A55 story. I lived in the country. When we were kids, the local garage would sell us MOT failures for scrap money. Maybe 3or 4 of us would club together and buy something and then run it to death on the farm roads. I remember acquiring an A55 pick up, the fuel tank was corroded and leaked petrol, so we had a Gerry can in the bed with a line through the cab into the carb. And it was winter and we couldn’t afford anti freeze.

    In these old cars the block had frost plugs which blew out if the engine froze. I remember not being able to get the right size of frost plugs, to trying to make them fit with cataloy....which wasn’t a huge success to be honest!

    We were in the 12 to 14 age group, I sometimes wonder how we survived.

    • Like 1

  22. Posted

    Thanks guys.

    I reckon 2000 odd of storage space is definitely enough. As TV said, if I can go small enough to avoid rates that would be great.

    SC your situation sounds ideal to me. I don't want visible frontage, the opposite in fact.

    I was offered a rural place around 3000ft for £800 per month no rates. It would have been great, but the commute was just to far. If I could find somewhere rural with 20 mins of the house that would be perfect...probably won't happen though...so it will be an industrial at around £5.00 per foot I reckon.

  23. Posted

    You guys who have units.

    How many medium to large cars comfortably fit in around 2000ft square? would it fit 10? Rectangular. Door to the side rather than central.

    Im looking at a unit around 2800ft. 800ft odd would be office/prep/maintenance, the rest as car storage. Room for around 4 inc customer parking outside, but as I am absolutely appointment only that means one customer car at a time.

    thanks

  24. Posted

    I think you have to be very niche not to offer finance and stock a particular type of vehicle with a limited market.

    If you have mainstream stock appealing to mainstream customers by not offering finance you have probably ruled out the majority of your potential customers.

    Examples.

    Land Rover Discovery Sport Black Edition in Black 66 plate average miles costing 25K - will mainly appeal to a younger buyer and customer has dozens to choose from and many finance deals on offer.

    Range Rover Sport HSE  in Aintree Green, Brown Leather very low miles on a 14 plate costing 28k. If such a car exists, it will probably be the only one in the country for sale and will have limited appeal mainly to a mature audience who probably won't want finance.

  25. Posted · Edited by XFS

    4 hours ago, Rory RSC said:

    XFS know if you don’t take part exes why not offer finance. 

    It costs nothing to set up. Over the course of a year you will make some money in comm.

    even through a broker you can do nothing to pay for 6 months giving people not trading in chance to sell theirs. It takes minutes to prop and get an accept. If anything trying to work efficiently and easily like you are it’s probably easier and brings you in more money. 

    Thanks. I will definitely take this on board, it does make sense for when I expand.

    I am in a different situation from a lot of people in that I do work hard, (although people perceive I have the "dream job"...which is not work at all) and cars have always been my release. I started buying cars and trading a bit when I was about 13, thats quite a while ago.

    Now its my wind down plan. Doing something I really enjoy for the next 10 years or until I peg it. Whichever comes first. I have no real interest in retiring. 

    • Like 1