buying advice

[Laurie]

Hi all, I am thinking about buying a 2008 A3 1.8 tfsi I recently saw in a dealership, having done a test drive I got them to put it up on the lift and was a little concerned to see a fair amount of oil over the back of the engine which looked quite old and some more that looked very recent. I did check where the car had been parked in the dealers however and there was nothing on the floor. any ideas where this may be coming from, if it is a major problem etc. 

 

Any advice welcome, thanks for your time. 

 

Laurie

[cliffcoggin]

It's a 12 year old car Laurie, so of course it won't be perfect and you must expect some defects. However the oil leak may be something as simple and cheap to rectify as a poorly sealed oil filter, or it might be a crankshaft seal that requires an expensive engine rebuild. I suggest you get it inspected by a qualified car mechanic before handing over any cash. Whatever you decide, do not be fobbed off by anything the car salesman tells you: they are experts in deceiving you without actually telling lies.

Edited to correct a naming error. Sorry Laurie, I don't know where I got James from.

Edited January 1, 2021 by cliffcoggin
Wrong name.

[Laurie]

Hi Clifford,

Thanks very much for your reply, I accept that its quite an old car and there are bound to be some defects, the difficulty is that here, in Mallorca, you are paying at least twice what you would reasonably expect to pay for such a car in the UK, it would be a pity to buy a liability on top of that. 

 

The best idea is, of course, to take anything that I am serious about buying to my own mechanic, but I am keen to do enough research prior to this before taking that step. I have probably seen 20 cars at this stage and non of them have been much good. The benefit of a dealer here is, that they all offer a 12 month warranty on engine and transmission.

Thanks for your time. 

[cliffcoggin]

Laurie.

If you can not decide for yourself if the oil leak is serious or not, your only sensible choices are either to consult an expert or to walk away from the car, because nobody can give a definite diagnosis on the basis of a brief written description in this forum.

I don't know how reliable dealer guarantees are in Mallorca, but over here I would not rely on one because they generally exclude "fair wear and tear" which is open to wide interpretation.