Am i being paranoid

[Xantic]

I would like as many thoughts on this if possible.
As you might have read i am in the process of buying a 2.2 C5 Exclusive. The garage said give us a ring on thursday to see if the car went through the mot ok.

I rang as asked, Was told it failed on 3 bulbs and a cut on the inside of the tyre so a new tyre needed and sort out the bulbs which we have done and it back at the garage so they can re mot the car.

Now, when i took the car for a test drive there was no faults showing of any kind including bulbs on any display at all. The guy saw me looking at the tyres but i did not look on the inside of the tyres. The tyres really does not concern me.

Now call me suspicious but 3 bulbs going at once or in a very very short time is not right.
My deduction from this is.

The guy is buying time to fix an issue and probably a botch job otherwise i think he would say as i negotiated the price with an mot regardless as to what needed doing.
Am i being paranoid do you think or would some think the same as me.

I would rather lose a £50 deposit than have to spend on what maybe a costly excerise. Knowing buying a second hand car can be dodgy at any time but there is no warranty with this car for the price i was paying for it.

Your thoughts please.
Russ..

[Vulpinity]

Now, when i took the car for a test drive there was no faults showing of any kind including bulbs on any display at all.

There is no bulb warning on the C5 - Caught me out too, as the thing has so many bells and whistles that I just assumed it had bulb warnings, until I was pulled over for a dead brake light.

[Xantic]

I am amazed to hear that to be honest..
Next scenario is, We all know this is not supposed to be done moraly or legaly but, If a dealer was dealing with a garage on a very regular basis and a car failed on 3 bulbs and a tyre then would'nt the garage say to his regular customer get them done , bring it back to show me but here is the mot certificate.

Yes against the law but i know it goes on and if people were honest they would say the same, Of course no mention of any garage on here for obvious reasons because they might and probably are acting within the law at all times.

Yes i could be paranoid but as we get older we get wiser and sometimes seen the scams and maybe pulled a few ourselves.
Just look at the government..lol..

[RichardW]

Get the reference off the V5 or MOT and look it up on the 'net, all the failure details will be there. I wouldn't buy a 2nd hand car now without looking at the MOT history - you can infer a lot from the failures / advisories over the years!

[Lighty]

Maybe the car failed on the Orange indicator bulbs being too white, hence they were working, You seem mighty suspicious, why ?

[Xantic]

I do not really have a valid reason for being suspicous, in saying that something does not seem right, Maybe because i am up against it and need a newer car or it just seems too good to be true. Can someone else confirm the exclusive does not have bulb failure warning fitted.

Give me the keys straight away, take it for a test drive no problem, off he went and left me to it.

When i come back he tried to deflect the conversation about the car to other things or other cars.

He then said a little know fact about Citroen that they will change an engine for a new one does not matter how old or mileage up to 160k with no trouble at all.

Smooth talking car dealer, of course i took the last statement with a pinch of salt as i have not heard that before.

Maybe gut feeling.

[citroenxm]

WALK Away Russ... is a 2.2 also..

[Xantic]

WALK Away Russ... is a 2.2 also..

And your reasons because it's a 2.2 Paul are.
Read and replied your PM Paul

Thanks

[citroenxm]

Without upsetting some 2.2 owners, they do have issues, even dealers have resorted to scrapping complete engines because the injectors have siezed so solid in place they cant get them out to get the head off...

Maybe its previous owners ignorance I dont know, but I wouldn't have one.. Id FAR rather have a 2,o 8v and have a tuning box or remap..

[lexi]

Tons of C5's out there anyway. You could buy one of those every week and guys are glad to get a sale as there is so many.

The replacement engine comment? Was he smoking a very funny smelling rollup and did you notice if his nose
stayed the same size? That goes in the book of sales sh*t comments along with " this car belonged to a mechanic you know".....like it would mean a darn thing anyway

[Gregg1100]

If in doubt, walk away--as said, 2 litre 8 valves have far less issues

[Northern_Mike]

That goes in the book of sales sh*t comments along with " this car belonged to a mechanic you know".....like it would mean a darn thing anyway

I would never, every buy a car off a mechanic. Having worked with a few, it appears the last thing they want to do when they clock off is fix their own cars...

[addo]

Absolutely. It's the same reason builders never bother finishing their own houses. And a beautician once proudly showed me: "Look, I've got really hairy legs!", as she too had a terminal dose of CBF after eight hours of manicures and waxing punters.

I want to complain about the OP - have had Black Sabbath stuck in my head all day.

[cachaciero]

There is no bulb failure indication on 2.2's in exclusive trim and as far as I am aware none of the others have it either.
Based upon my experience 2.2's have an unjustified bad rep, yes they do have issues but none serious enough to make them a bad buy (so far), apart from fuel consumption of the automatics.
History is everything (ain't that always the case) and it is far easier to find a 2.2 in Exclusive trim than a 2.0ltr.

cachaciero

[Citroenmad]

No, there is no bulb failure warning on any C5. It is something which I thought would be a good feature but few cars have them really.

It could well be a genuine MOT failure, yes some garages will let it slip through if they know the owner and know they will get the issues sorted out. However it is illegal and so it puts the MOT station at risk.

Neither failure should delay the arrival of the car to you though, a tyre and some bulbs can be sorted in a few hours and a retest on those parts wouldnt take long.

It is true that the 2.0HDi 110 is the more proven unit, its also more economical and easier to find if your not spec specific. I always buy on condition and never spec, if its a basic Id think twice but most C5s have enough kit for most people.

Ive never considered a 2.2 as its performance does not outweigh the economy and the potential for problems over the 2.0HDI. Probably the best C5 is a 2002-2004 2.0HDI 110 SX/VTR with a remap and aftermarket solid flywheels. Hardy, well proven, economical and the engine performs well as standard.

You have the 2.2HDi now and hopefully it will be a good one. As cachaciero says, it probably does get an underserved reputation but there are things to be mindful of. Im pretty sure that it was one of the first, if not the first, mass produced car to have the FAP system, this does need maintenence even if it proves reliable. However all the 16v C5 HDis do (1.6 & 2.0 138) and a lot of diesel cars do too, so its something to get used to.