This is advertised for sale fairly local to me for £1990. The price seems low for the mileage.

Should it have a 6 speed gearbox? Apparently 2003 was the year they changed from 5 to 6 speed.

Unfortunately its MOT expired in August 2022 which is the obvious downside.

Not my car and no connection at all to the seller.

What are the main things to check if going to inspect it?

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202207047435562

 

1 hour ago, AntonovAN12 said:

What are the main things to check if going to inspect it?

Everything that this well-cared for car has had mentioned on its last 15 MOTs. I would say. How can a car that has only been doing 4-5k miles pa generate so many advisories/failures? And the previous owner(s) apparently hadn't spotted all the bulb failures themselves,

Broken coil springs understandable as they go with time and not use/abuse. Driver's seat looks like it's done 182k miles. 

If I was interested, I'd pay £40 to put it through an MOT test and see what it's failing on. 

Remember the Tax is £400 per year for this

10 minutes ago, DaveT70 said:

Remember the Tax is £400 per year for this

And it's unlikely to crack 20mpg around town.  I would say the running costs makes this undesirable hence the low price.

But actually, without MOT I think it's a bit over-priced!  Alan mentioned the drivers seat, but also the climate buttons and steering wheel look worn.  The front bumper has been clouted on a speedbump (with potentially AC condenser damage behind it), jacking point covers are missing, the OSR door has a bad paint repair and there are dings on the bonnet and by the fuel cap.  Mileage is almost irrelevant past 10 years old IMO.

I'd offer a grand for it and walk away if they won't accept that.  

Just now, TomsFocus said:

I'd offer a grand for it and walk away if they won't accept that.  

I don't think I'd even go that high.

Thanks for the replies.

I didn't see any failures for bodywork rust in its history. To me that always seems like a more serious problem.

I know the tax will be high as this car was new when they were encouraging the public to buy diesels. How things change.

13 hours ago, AntonovAN12 said:

I know the tax will be high as this car was new when they were encouraging the public to buy diesels. How things change.

I must have missed the news where they're now encouraging people to buy 3 litre petrol's.  

There's something else weird about it that I've just spotted.  It was sold (or at least transferred) last March but hasn't been taxed since. 🤔

 

Tax Due Date

16 April 2022

 

Date of last V5C (logbook) issued

23 March 2022

 

 

37 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

There's something else weird about it that I've just spotted.  It was sold (or at least transferred) last March but hasn't been taxed since

I assume it was taken for the photo shoot on the back of a trailer and not driven un-taxed on a public road 🤣

Still it should be SORN if there is no current tax, or the DVLA could legally crush it and turn it in to super fast baked bean cans 🤣

18 minutes ago, unofix said:

I assume it was taken for the photo shoot on the back of a trailer and not driven un-taxed on a public road 🤣

Still it should be SORN if there is no current tax, or the DVLA could legally crush it and turn it in to super fast baked bean cans 🤣

Lol, perhaps it's a private road.  

If the seller is a proper trader they don't need to declare it SORN.  But if that's the case, they shouldn't be getting a new V5.  As I say, something weird going on there. 

Methinks you're right about it being a grand overpriced..... look at this one

https://www.pistonheads.com/buy/listing/15452861

Could it have been driven to where the photos were taken legally on trade plates?

As for the V5, could the trader have bought it with a missing V5 and applied for a replacement?

6 hours ago, nicam49 said:

Methinks you're right about it being a grand overpriced..... look at this one

https://www.pistonheads.com/buy/listing/15452861

That one is diesel so won't be ULEZ compliant.

The petrol one is, so will be higher priced in London.

 

Having looked again at the Fan speed increase button - I've never seen one that worn before on a Ford. There's no way that car has only done 85k miles. 

Surprised that this pre-2006 car is ulez compliant, but that is indeed what TFL say.

Yes, photos are on a private road. No road markings, a bench close to the roadway and mower stripes on the verge.

13 hours ago, AntonovAN12 said:

As for the V5, could the trader have bought it with a missing V5 and applied for a replacement?

Possibly.  But that still means it hasn't been driven for a year and a half.  I've watched my own car deteriorate far more in the 2 years that it hasn't been driven than the 3 years that I was driving it.  If the Mondeo has been stored on damp grass for that time, the underside will be a mess by now.  Also suggests a careless previous owner if they've lost the V5.

 

11 hours ago, alanfp said:

Having looked again at the Fan speed increase button - I've never seen one that worn before on a Ford. There's no way that car has only done 85k miles. 

I'm going to guess the air con is broken so they have to keep the turning the fan up!

Crikey... you guys are more adept at picking up clues than Colombo!! 😂

5 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

Crikey... you guys are more adept at picking up clues than Colombo!! 😂

Oh, just one more thing!  

3 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

Oh, just one more thing!  

My all time favourite...

20 hours ago, alanfp said:

Surprised that this pre-2006 car is ulez compliant, but that is indeed what TFL say.

Most petrols seem to be suitable from 2001 onwards.

The 1.8 Petrol Mk2 Mondeo appears to only be compliant after 2006, but the 2.0 was from 2001 onwards.