Hi all my 1st post on here so hope in the right area!

i just want to check something im about to buy  2nd hand  Ford Fiesta 1.4 TDCI Zetec off ebay

 

full ford services history   1 lady owner on books

Serviced last week and 11 month mot  99k on the clock.. when talking to the seller he has bought it cheap to sell on as he does abit of buying ans selling as a sole trader !

 

but when ive checked the mot history and the last fail was as below 

Do not drive until repaired (dangerous defects):

• Offside Stop lamp(s) all not working (4.3.1 (a) (iii))
• Nearside Front Tyre has ply or cords exposed (5.2.3 (d) (ii))
• Offside Front Tyre has ply or cords exposed (5.2.3 (d) (ii))

Repair immediately (major defects):

• Nearside Front Road wheel badly distorted (5.2.2 (c) (i))

Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):

• Offside Front Road wheel slightly distorted (5.2.2 (c) (i))
• Nearside Rear Road wheel slightly distorted (5.2.2 (c) (i))
• Offside Rear Road wheel slightly distorted (5.2.2 (c) (i))
•  

is has now pas the 2nd of Aug with these advisory 

Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):

• Offside Front Road wheel slightly distorted (5.2.2 (c) (i))
• Nearside Rear Road wheel slightly distorted (5.2.2 (c) (i))
• Offside Rear Road wheel slightly distorted (5.2.2 (c) (i))

 

i did think that maybe the car has been banged up something and wrecked the wheel. On calling the seller and talking to him he has said the lady owner badly kerb all the wheels to the point they were dangerous so there is 4 brand new tyres and alloys on the car which to be fair he has has sent me the receipt for and pictures..

 

While talking to him on the phone he mentioned there was a common fault on fiestas saying he has a replacement for the "bottom steering column shackle" said there is no knocking or anything but intended to fit the part or he will give me it to fit at a later date if a problem occurs!  ( you wouldn't buy something not needed if selling on to make profit)

 

i was all in for the car as it ticks all the boxes but that comment is making me think it has been bang or something.

 

like say ticks boxes 

long mot

full service by dealer 

1 lady owner 

4 new tyers and wheels 

 

he is wanting £2500 for the car but could do a deal

 

 what do you guys think.. i can provide link if allowed  

 

Ford alloys are often very soft, some types worse than others, but it only takes a pothole to bend some of them so it's a fairly common issue.

However something doesn't add up there...  If the wheels (and tyres) were replaced to pass the MOT, how can it still have advisories on 3 wheel for rim distortion?  

If all of the alloys have been kerbed I'd definitely want 4 wheel alignment done, and check the camber to make sure nothings been bent while she's been bouncing off kerbs.  Would also check the paintwork for poor repairs as it's likely to have needed paint.  One lady owner is a phrase that puts me off a car tbh!  

Thanks for the reply the wheels were advisories not fails but he says he added them after to sell the car as looked terrible yeah something isn't adding think ill walk away 

 

yes the one lady owner with fuller service history you would think it would be looked after not bang about then again it is 8 years old so will pick things up and some of the miles on he MOT there doing 20+k a year 

 

would a mot not have picked up anything untoward such as been bent if indeed had been abused 

 

it ticks the boxes tho which is annoying 

2 of the tyres failed MOT, so he had to put at least 2 wheels on it to pass, yet still 3 advisories...  They didn't have 5 wheels last time I checked...

I don't know why people think one lady owner makes a car any better...there are some terrible female drivers, as there are terrible male drivers...   One lady owner car cars are usually in worse cosmetic condition in my experience!

The MOT doesn't pick up bad wheel alignment or bent suspension components unless they're really bad.  So you will only know by slightly vague handling or when the edges of the tyres wear off before the centres.

The price sounds reasonable for the car tbf, and if it ticks all the boxes and you can't see a similar one then maybe it is worth going for, none of them will be perfect at that age.

Could check it out but keep you eyes open. Walk away if the seller says he doesn't have receipts on him. I once went to see a mk6 fiesta zetec s with 83k miles and one lady owner. From arriving the seller was honest and said there is a very slight oil leak. Inspected the paint and could see overspray on the rear quarter along with a trace sight of a white pen mark on the mirror cover which could mean that it was gotten from a breakers. Test drove it and it was underpowered. Struggled to even overtake a cyclist 😂. Checked for fault codes and it had about 7. 

My current fiesta I bought had about 115k miles and about 6 owners and has good bodywork and runs good. Had only two faults. I still came across a con man and it had a leaking injector but runs good 

I agree one lady owner is no advantage. Also agree alloy wheels are easy to bend, having bent three on my previous fiesta on potholes, but there was never any associated other damage. Have you checked full mot history on dvla website, will show all failures each year. This can sometimes show a car that has been abused. Have you seen proof it has no insurance damage categories against it. There are some honest part time casual traders(and some dishonest)

hi just picking this back up 

 

i guess a hpi check  would show if it has been un accident 

i did check the other  mot and all were fine ! only ever been odd bulb 

thing with goimg to see it was it's 3hr away 

 

i did think about sending the aa over to check it out ? are they worth it

 

i no nothing about cars is the problem

 

 

An HPI check only picks up on an accident if it has gone through insurance...  You can crash a car and fix it yourself perfectly legally, but it's then not recorded on the HPI register.

I've never used the AA checks so can't comment on them.

3 hours away!?  Fiesta's are everywhere, there must be a closer one lol?

AA or any specialist is worth it when youve got the car you think you want gives piece of mind, but they only point out the fairly obvious things and most have a disclaimer about  not guaranteeing to find major faults.

The best advice i can give is look at many buy one, dont rush, i if things dont add up in you head walk away there are plenty of others out there, and the one you have mentioned is one i would run from.

u would think there everywhere but struggeling and need one in 6 days for uni 

 

there are few petrol around that milage and price but was told to stick with diesel with been higher milage 

 

i was talking with seller on this one which he has shown me the receipt  of cam belt etc but womt go lower than £2700 which is id have to borrow off parents 

 

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F302877406568

 

what you think.. mot history looks good too nothing major 

I know no one can judge this car from reading this on this forum, a thought of mine is if it was so much of a bargain someone less than three hours away would have bought it by now wouldn’t they? I like diesels and have one, but you know nothing about cars and if anything goes wrong and you’re at uni, it could cost you, I know it might not go wrong but if it does, diesels are more hassle when they do go wrong. A 1.25 petrol is probably a more reliable cheaper option. Quite slow, quite gutless, uses more fuel but a fairly safe option . As long as timing belt is not due for a change.

I don’t know anyone who has used aa etc inspection, I definitely would not consider it unless I had first been and checked car. You might find something yourself that you are not happy with, or meet the owner and decide he seems a very untrustworthy bullshi@@er.

@simo2004 Have you tried Gumtree or facebook marketplace?  The fees for ebay and Autotrader are pretty high so cheaper cars tend to be on the other sites.  There is also motors.co.uk as well.

 

Definitely check other sites but be wary of some which don't display seller feedback. Definitely don't rush into a car as you could easy get cond and overlook some things which might cause a problem. Have you looked at the mk6 fiestas? You can get it with the same 1.4 diesel engine or look at the sporty zetec s with the 1.6 diesel or petrol engine. 

hi just wanted to thank people who chipped in 

 

bought the car on the ebay link and had it to garage and all is good 

slight corrosion on rear off sided spring 

one of the disk has a flat spot 

but all in all said looks a good car