Buying a car from a private seller.. Am I mad?

[Blartiartfast]

How do. Found a 3 year old Audi a6 2.7 TDi SE with all of the trimmings. Asking the seller some questions, it turns out he's selling it for his Brother in law, and the log book is in the brother in laws companies name..

Just asked the seller from where I'd be buying the car. His house, his Brother in laws house, or the Company that the car is registered too.. Still waiting for a reply on that last q..

The Brother in law is an old one, for the company is another old one..The two together?

Is it me be overly protective of my hard earned dosh, or does the deal just stink to any one else..

Obviously, I would get a HPI (the £30, not the £2.99 via text one)..

Surely if I can either get proof that the brother in law truly does own the company thats on the log book.. no worries as long as the HPI is clear.. also if I take a m8 thats a mechanic along to try and spot owt obvious wrong with the car then all should be tickety boo?

My missus is ruining her tights in regard to me buying a car privately.. Plus I've never done it before.. Does this whole deal sound odd, or like I have already mentioned am i just being over protective? Just fed up of paying a dealer a big premium..


Just got a reply.
Says his Brother in law was given the option to buy the car when his new one arrived.. His mate wanted it originally, then changed his mind. At this point Jeff (brother in law) had already bought it from the company. Jeff asked the ebay seller to help him sell it..
He says they never changed the log book, because this obviously would put another owner on the log book..

How will I know who to actually buy the car from? The ebayer surely cant sell it, Jeffs name isn't on the log book. Managed to find someone who's open to an early christmas bonus if they can pull the service record for me (with the company name who owned /owns the car.. still waiting for that one)..

Anyone ever bought similar before?

 

[Donnie Darko]

I'd be inclined to see some sort of receipt from the company if hes bought it from his employer.
Even better i'd like to speak to a person at the company also to confirm it has been sold to this person.

 

[thebigyin]

it could be genuine mate or it could be a scam maybe cloned car,,contact the company who it is registered with and see if the stories match also when you see the car take someone with you to check the chassis number etc..with a 3 year old Audi a6 i take its worth a pretty Pennie so better being cautious than skint

 

[nara]

Too many 'ifs' and 'buts' for my liking.

 

[Rs2k_Rider]

Too many 'ifs' and 'buts' for my liking.

That I agree with !

I would be VERY CAUTIOUS !

Personally, I would ask the company's name and address the car what bought from.... and contact them to confirm the sale and who to... I am sure they would have a record of this for tax/audit purposes.

I have on occasion called the local police station and said that I am buying a vehicle, could they let me know if its of any interest to them... sometimes they bring up data protection etc ... but thats irrelevant as your not asking for the persons details just if the car is marked.

Can you get RAC or similar to do a inspection on it ? sometimes you get them free with breakdown cover/insurance ?

 

[The Dentist]

One question...have you actually seen the car (physically with yor own eyes and not on picture) or is it in Nigeria somewhere?

 

[Munkey]

If you're considering buying that car I have some magic beans for sale.

 

[madnlooney]

watch out for the cloned V forms which are also knocking about and was on the TV the other day

 

[Blartiartfast]

Was smelling a rat too.. Just really, really wanted the car.. Its about 2.5k cheaper than a dealer.. enough to easily replace a clutch which wouldn't be covered by the warranty anyway, and something daft like a head gasket... looking through his previous sales i see a set of keys with a citroen logo on it in the background.. Did a bit of pointless shot in the dark detective work (sometimes works, usually doesn't). There is a Citroen dealership in the area that has a parts manager that appears to have the same christian name, and the same surname minus the random digit... Hmmm. a little more than a coincidence..

Still waiting for the info on the service record to come back.. you never know..Ahhhhhh still trying to convince myself... stoppit.


Head screwed back on properly again.. Buying a used car privately.. Name of the fella selling it has to be the same as the one on the log book with I.D. Buy it from the log books regged address.. Any other pointers? I'm nearly 40 years old, and never bought a car other than from a dealer. Most of the time, whatever is wrong with the car is usually one of the few bits not covered by the warranty.. Thought I'd try and get a private sale done before my next purchase is an electric wheelchair..... Cheers for the help.. Thought this was the case.. Rose tinted glasses and all..

OO how much do you want for them beans?

 

[afterhourz]

Nothing wrong with buying a car privately...

Just look out for all the points people have stated..

Verify sellers ID
Check car/VIN/V6 all match - yes contacted the previous owner if need be and asked anything unique to this car ie scratchs/marks to aid IDing.Also an ex company car will have shit load of paper work with it,service/repairs receipts etc
HPI check
Mechenic check
Pay by bank cheque,gives you an audit trail.