2013 3.0 BiTDI advice….

[Gary W]

New member here - I’ve had a good look but can’t find what I’m looking for. Apologies if I’ve missed it…

 

just after a bit of advice please. I’m looking at buying my first Audi. I’ve seen a 2013 BiTDi with 150k miles on the clock. 
 

Any common faults or things I should be looking for when I go and see it? 
 

Would 155k miles worry you - I need this car to last me 5 years minimum - need it to do me about 14k miles a year…

Thanks 👍🏻

[Steve Q]

What's the service history on the car? 

When was the Cambelt and water pump last changed? 

Has the autobox been serviced? 

Has the quattro system been serviced? 

Do all electrical items work including ac and lights. 

[Gary W]

11 hours ago, Steve Q said:

What's the service history on the car? 

When was the Cambelt and water pump last changed? 

Has the autobox been serviced? 

Has the quattro system been serviced? 

Do all electrical items work including ac and lights. 

Nice one, thanks. Service history is full - I’ll check out the other things. 
 

Thanks for the advice 👍🏻

[Magnet]

Hello Garry,

Just to add a couple of comments to Steve’s comprehensive homework list:- 

Have you checked the online MOT history?

DVLA vehicle check to see when last V5 was issued? Short ownership can equal issues.

Have you actually seen sight of the ‘full service history’. It’s surprising how it can melt into thin air, or get seriously diluted once asked for sight of the evidence. 
The extent of repairs ( as opposed to servicing) is crucial with high mileages, as many components wear and should have been replaced e.g. suspension components, shock absorbers etc. 
 

Important to find out with high mileage:- has this mileage been covered mainly with one or two owners, hopefully on motorway type use. Has it had a low mileage use of late? If so, this can be a disadvantage. The MOT history check should help here. 
 

You are placing quite an expectation on this vehicle, with adding a minimum of another 70K miles to it, so homework and verification is going to be your best friend here. Worth doing it well and exhaustively. 
Good luck with whatever you decide.

Oh, and you are not too savvy with inspection vehicles, then a professional inspection would be a good investment. 
You don’t tell us the price of this Gary - all important, since prices are now more influenced by mileage than they were pre-price-escalation. 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Gary W]

Thanks Gareth - some really good advice there. It’s coming in at £11k. 
 

The more I’m thinking about it, the more I’m talking myself out of it I think. For the same price, I could buy a 3.0 TDi with 50 - 60k less miles on the clock. 
 

I’ll definitely apply a lot of what has been said above - to whichever car I go for 👍🏻

 

Really appreciate the info. 

[Magnet]

No problem at all Gary. I’m not averse to high mileage, if all  things add up, and the price makes the deal worthwhile. I’m a bit out of touch with month by month prices, but let’s say the price doesn’t seem cheap! 
Not wishing to blow trumpets, but if you write a list of what Steve and I have suggested you check (before even expressing and interest) and follow this homework through, then it should enable you to assess whether the car is attractive enough to invest further time and interest in it. 

Incase it help:- Start with MOT history and the DVLA check, then ask the seller to e-Mail copy of the ‘full service history’ ( much of which should now be on the Audi database). Armed with the reg. no. ring up your nearest Audi dealer and ask them to confirm ( and hopefully copy you) the service history you have been told. 
Ask the dealer to tell you the number of previous owners, and most importantly how long the last owner has owned it. 
You have now gone part way through your homework, and should then be sufficiently armed to decide whether said vehicle is of interest or not. 
Good luck with your quest, and please come back to us if we can help further.

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Steve Q]

Good advice there Gareth. 

I'd also recommend you check out buyers guides on YouTube as they'll help. 

As Gareth has said high mileage cars can be reliable if looked after. My A6 is on 344k miles, has been owned by my family from new and is over services if anything. I'm a stickler for maintenance though. 

[Gary W]

Thought I'd give you an update....

Contacted the seller of the BiTdi.  Asked him if he'd object to a vehicle inspection. He said "no problems."

Paid £260 for an RAC vehicle check to be done a couple of days later. 

Inspection was done and ai called the seller straight away. No answer. Called him again and left a message. No reply. Whatsapp him and got a reply saying:

Thanks for your interest - but I've already sold the car. 

Fair to say I wasn't best pleased 🤣

[Magnet]

Thanks Gary,

I thought you were going to give this one a miss.
What did the report come up with?
Also what did the MOT history tell you, also did the service history materialise - all before you had the inspection carried out? 
Sounds as if the seller has already sold it - unless the inspection  came up with something adverse. 
‘Sold your car before hand’. Yes, been there don’t that - myself, based on a walk around description of an intended purchase. The walk around must have been courtesy of Stevie Wonder! 
Anyway, all history now, and something far, far better turned up. 
Your recent experience is for a reason.

Good luck and kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Gary W]

The MOT history wasn't to bad, full service history and only 2 owners. I had a long chat  to the seller on the phone, it all sounded promising. Then I got the report....

Bake pad warning lights on

Buckled front wheel

Bulging tyre by the buckle

Oil on the turbo feed pipe

Both front suspension mounts damaged

Fuel injectors 'damp'

Water pump leaking

Underside of gearbox leaking

Oil filter housing has oil on it

Coolant leak

Every wheel scuffed

Chipped windscreen

 

Other than that - it was mint 🤣

To be honest, I'm not mechanically minded at all - I'd have not even noticed most of that 😕

 

 

[Magnet]

Thanks Gary,

Sounds like you would have been far better off going with your first idea of not bothering with it. 
Still, it’s all a learning curve, and hopefully the lesson has been attended, and you know exactly what you have now got to do in terms of homework, before even committing to an inspection. 
Following on from your last statement it would seem that an inspection will have to be an absolute must. It’s all to easy to fall in love with a vehicle, and potentially so expensive a fine for doing that. 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Gary W]

Exactly right 👍🏻