Buying cars online

[DelayRepay]

(I've done a search but couldn't find a thread for this - apologies if there is one)

I'm in need of a replacement second hand car. Last time I bought a car, about six years ago, you would normally end up at a dealer, inspect the car, do a test drive, then try to haggle whilst avoiding various unnecessary finance and insurance add-ons. No doubt due to the pandemic a lot of car purchases now seem to be online - you don't see the car until it's delivered although you normally have a cooling off period where you can return it if you don't like it.

I'm a bit nervous about buying a car this way - although I regularly make other purchases online. But I am tempted because there seem to be some good deals, and it avoids having to interact with a salesman!

I wondered if anyone had experience, good or bad, of the likes of Cazoo?

 

[Stormaggeddon]

I've picked up three cars this way, two Vauxhall Vectras' and an Audi A6. The latter was from Cazoo back in 2020, the other two were from Black Horse via a portal at work. It turned up on the back of a lorry and the lass that delivered it talked me through how it worked.

The first two never gave me any real trouble and the current one is going strong. I tend to buy them at 18 months old'ish, so there's still a manufacturers warranty. As an aside, given the current prices, a more basic version of the A6 of the same age with more miles on it than mine has is currently on sale on Cazoo for a grand more than I paid for it three years ago.

 

[Snow1964]

Seems to work well, all distance buying should give you a cooling off period.

Some internet purchases will get delivered to a local branch so can go and check it (which avoids the hassle of arranging a collection if it has to go back).

Another alternative is big car supermarkets, fixed price, but watch for admin or registration fee on small print.

What doesn't work so well is if you try and find a good deal then want to link a sale of another vehicle. Good for buying, poor for part exchanging.

The other one to be wary of (and it seems to be some main dealers who are the worst) is advertising a car, that when you enquire is not yet for sale, and should really have been coming soon rather than on sale and available to collect in few hours. You feel they are wasting your time.

But there has been a shortage of semiconductors over last 2-3 years so the supply of new and nearly new cars is limited currently (and obviously when demand exceeds supply prices are up). So expect to pay more than 3 years ago.

 

[DelayRepay]

Thanks both

I've just spoken to a colleague who bought his latest car from Cazoo. Like me he was a bit nervous but said it worked really well. He picked his up from the local service centre and his biggest complaint was the difficulty getting there by bus (he didn't have an old car to part-ex as it had been written off).

What doesn't work so well is if you try and find a good deal then want to link a sale of another vehicle. Good for buying, poor for part exchanging.

That's one thing I was a bit worried about. My car has various bits of damage and although I would try to be accurate in recording this, I suspect they'll reduce the value when they see it, or worse reject it completely which could scupper my plans. At least with a traditional dealer they can actually see the condition of the car and give an accurate price, even if it's not the price I would like!

I think I'm going to deal with selling the existing car separately, for ease. It will also give me a bit of piece of mind that I still have the old car for a few weeks in case the new one doesn't work out. I appreciate this means I'll be paying for additional insurance. I'm fortunate that I can afford to cover the full cost of the new car.

As an aside, given the current prices, a more basic version of the A6 of the same age with more miles on it than mine has is currently on sale on Cazoo for a grand more than I paid for it three years ago.

But there has been a shortage of semiconductors over last 2-3 years so the supply of new and nearly new cars is limited currently (and obviously when demand exceeds supply prices are up). So expect to pay more than 3 years ago.

I know - I'd heard about prices increasing but was a bit shocked when I saw how much they'd increased by! I was actually planning to change my car in early 2020, because I get an annual bonus paid in March. So I started looking, then the world went mad, the car dealers all shut down and my car usage dropped significantly, so I decided to hang onto my existing one for a bit longer. But now I need to change it for other reasons, and in any case I can't see prices dropping in the short term. Fortunately I am a cash buyer so at least I don't have to worry about higher interest rates!

I am however glad that I waited, as the way I use my car has changed a lot. I used to do regular long motorway journeys for work, but these have virtually all been replaced by Teams calls. I am making more long leisure journeys at the moment, but that might not be long term if the reliability of the railways returns to its previous level.

I tend to buy them at 18 months old'ish, so there's still a manufacturers warranty.

Most of my previous cars have been about 2 - 3 years old when I've bought them, and I had planned to do the same this time. But rising prices mean choosing between a more basic newer car or a 'better' older one.

 

[DustyBin]

I’ve bought three cars on eBay over the years. On two of these occasions I’d been drinking heavily, and on the other I really ought to have been!