Ford Fiesta - First car confusion! (V5C question,cat d question)

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Tue 10 Jul 2012 16:42
Ford Fiesta - First car confusion! (V5C question,cat d question) - Zziggy

Hi all, please bare with me because I am very green regarding cars!

I'm about to buy my first car and one option is an 02 Fiesta. Cat D, but I have given it a test drive and although the wheel alignment was clearly off it felt OK. The dealer says it was just the front bumper needed replacing. However, my boyfriend reckons bad wheel alignment could be a symptom of something bad relating to the reason it's cat D - so should I stay clear?

Another thing that raised alarms was that the V5C was not in the dealer's name but some woman's name and address. There was also a bit missing - the top part of the third page, if that helps? I can't find out if this is bad or not though! Everywhere seems intent on telling me what isn't normal, and I get that this would be bad if it were a private seller, but is it just because he is a trader and actually fine?

Thanks for any help!

Zziggy

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Tue 10 Jul 2012 16:47
Ford Fiesta - First car confusion! (V5C question,cat d question) - unthrottled

Suspension components are quite delicate and easily damaged in even a minor accident. It's not 'serious', but it should have been repaired properly. If it was just a bumper, then the car would not have been written off by the insurance assessor. I would be tempted to walk away. There are loads of Fiestas around!

It is normal for dealers to not register the car in their name

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Tue 10 Jul 2012 17:10
Ford Fiesta - First car confusion! (V5C question,cat d question) - Zziggy

Thank you!

So how does the change of hands work then, if he doesn't technically own the car? Or am I misunderstanding ..?

The suspension being broken is a worry now. I guess there's no way to tell without a proper inspection?

Unfortunately I find myself looking for cheap cars exactly at the same time as everyone else...

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Tue 10 Jul 2012 17:12
Ford Fiesta - First car confusion! (V5C question,cat d question) - RT

As you know little about cars, just walk away from a car that's known to have been in an accident - it may have been repaired properly but even someone who knows about cars would want to do various checks, which you clearly can't.

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Tue 10 Jul 2012 17:12
Ford Fiesta - First car confusion! (V5C question,cat d question) - dervdave

Hi all, please bare with me because I am very green regarding cars!

I'm about to buy my first car and one option is an 02 Fiesta. Cat D, but I have given it a test drive and although the wheel alignment was clearly off it felt OK.

How was it clearly `off`, steering wheel off centre,pulling to one side ? Get the dealer to sort it to your satisfaction.I bought the wife a 1yr old cat d 1.4TDCi Fiesta years ago and sold it since but still going strong.

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Tue 10 Jul 2012 17:47
Ford Fiesta - First car confusion! (V5C question,cat d question) - Zziggy

It wasn't pulling, just off centre - that was why I assumed it was just alignment.

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Tue 10 Jul 2012 18:08
Ford Fiesta - First car confusion! (V5C question,cat d question) - MikeTorque
I would suggest you walk away from this car, too many things don't add up.

Cat D vehicles are repairable salvage that an insurer doesn't want to repair. Often it is because they are a stolen and recovered vehicle whereby the insurers paid out a claim before the vehicle was found.
Unlike Cat C cars a Cat D vehicle does not need a VIC (vehicle identity check) inspection to return to road but they are recorded as 'Category D' with DVLA, HPI, AA, etc.
The value of a Cat D vehicle is roughly the value of the "vehicle without damage as per the Parkers guide price" then deduct 50% off that price.
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Tue 10 Jul 2012 18:51
Ford Fiesta - First car confusion! (V5C question,cat d question) - dervdave

It wasn't pulling, just off centre - that was why I assumed it was just alignment.

It doesn`t take much to knock it off centre, get the dealer to rtake off and realine the steering wheel

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Tue 10 Jul 2012 19:11
Ford Fiesta - First car confusion! (V5C question,cat d question) - madf

Run away. A dealer selling a car with duff steering is a crook.

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Tue 10 Jul 2012 19:37
Ford Fiesta - First car confusion! (V5C question,cat d question) - Bobbin Threadbare

I'm with madf. Leave it; if it's your first car you don't want something that could end up putting you off motoring, be it by scaring yourself with a damaged car or large repair bills.

It is not too hard to get a decent first car for any budget, if it's a Fiesta sized vehicle you're after.

Look at it like this; if you'd never had an iPod before and you wanted to try out all the lovely shiny things it had to offer, you wouldn't want one that someone else had smashed up and sellotaped back together as first one.

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Tue 10 Jul 2012 22:41
Ford Fiesta - First car confusion! (V5C question,cat d question) - mikem004

Don't bother with a Cat D (or any other Cat) vehicle.

If the front bumper needs replacing, why hasn't the dealer done this anyway?

Look for a Fiesta or Ka on private sale in Autotrader or in the local paper. I'm sure you'll be able to find a decent one.

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