Hello again
I’ve seen a 2013 (13 reg) Fiat 500 at my local dealer for £3900, which has 60k miles on it.
I'm remembering you were
contemplating a similar purchase a couple of months ago.
My
reply to you then still holds good. It's a lot of money for a 9yr old car.
My concern is before this current MOT, the car had serious faults around crumbling bearings and leaking shock absorbers. I assume it’s all been fixed now. But should I consider this car or stay away? I’ve put failed MOT details below. I haven’t done a test drive, but I noticed the cars break peddle was stiff and wouldn’t move when the car was parked. Is this normal? Thanks
Failing shock absorbers and wheel bearings after 60k are by no means unusual on a 500, but continuing to drive one when it was close to disintegrating (it would have been making a hell of a racket) says something about the person who owned it at the time.
The disintegrating wheel bearing and shock absorber would have been fixed (it would never have passed an MOT otherwise); the other wheel bearing might not have been.
If I were inspecting this car, I'd pay close attention to whether the
other wheel bearing and shock absorber were replaced (it's good practice to change both sides when these sort of components fail). If they weren't, it's another sign the previous owner spent only the absolute minimum on maintenance, and that's a red flag.
The brake pedal should feel quite firm if the engine is not running; folks who haven't driven older cars can be surprised by how much effort is needed to operate the power assisted systems (brakes, steering) if that power assistance ever fails.
I do sympathise with you; it's tough buying a car at this price point, and, realistically, running anything of this age is likely to result in a few things needing replacement from time to time. How much this will cost depends to a large extent on what you are capable of doing for yourself - if you have no mechanical skills or facilities to work on it, then you're likely to be paying out for garage repairs on an ongoing basis, and this is rarely cheap.
Whatever you choose to buy, expect a few bills, especially during the first year, and keep back enough money to cover them. Don't rely on any used car warranty you may be offered for this; most of the things that are likely to need replacing will be considered 'wear and tear' items, and won't be covered.
My final comment is about buying older used cars generally, and isn't aimed particularly at 500's, or even just Fiats. Many of them are just tired, with most of the 'wear and tear' items considerably worn and torn; their owners are contemplating replacing tyres, battery, exhaust, suspension, brakes, clutch and cambelt in the near future, and that could easily be £2k-£3k if you take it to a garage. These cars are still serviceable, and will pass an MOT, so rather than live with the potential liability of all this, the owners trade them in before all the bad stuff happens.
These trade-ins are all out there now on garage forecourts in their thousands, just waiting for someone like you to come and buy them.
You're already doing the right thing by discussing your prospective purchase on this forum. Shop carefully, and if you can, take someone with you who knows what to look for in a used car.
