What to look for

[nathanhutchison]

As ive now got insurance sorted, im going to veiw three vitaras on wednesday with a view to picking one up on the friday.

they are all 05s three doors and the miles range between 31k and 58k, the pricesw range from £4500 to £5500, with the lowest mileage being the middle priced vehicle.

 

so what should i look/ listen for whilst veiwing/ test driving? ive got my gfs dad coming with me to look it over (ex mechanic) but just want to know for myself.

 

any advice is welcome

 

nathan

[fortune82]

I had one of these for a couple of years, a 55 reg 2.0 petrol 5 door manual.

 

They are reliable cars. Look for evidence of off road damage and any gunge in the inside of the oil filler cap. Also check the condition of the exhaust as a mechanic mate told me they have a habit of rusting through in the rear box, allowing the final section to rattle loose.

 

Have you test drove one before? They are not brilliant on road. The 1.6 & 2.0 petrol is revving its head off at anything over 60. I used to struggle to get much over 28 MPG and that was with plenty of long 55 - 60 mph journeys.

 

Off road it was good but suffered from lack of ground clearance. When driving off road I struggled to get anything over 20 MPG.

 

In the end I got rid after someone smashed into it at 50 mph, her car folded like a paper bag, mine was still driveable! In the end she had bent the chasis however. They are fairly expensive to run compared with a normal car when road tax, insurance and fuel are considered.

[nathanhutchison]

tested them today none of them had anything wrong, all in great condition and emmaculate inside picked the mid priced one (only has 31k on it so least mileage of the three by 20k)

 

all i8 have to do now is spend £300 to get the clio through its mot so i can use it as a deposit