High mileage

[xjay1337]

I'm in the mileage don't matter club too! most of my cars have been high mileage vw's and I've never had any issues with them that weren't easy or simple to fix and nothing to do with the mileage.

In my eyes anything under the average 10-12k a year hasn't probably hasn't had nice long motorway drives and has been start stop around towns wearing parts out quicker than a higher mileage car.

Too many assumptions , my car is never driven unless it is running for 30 minutes , its 2007 and done 22k . Why does the trade give a higher price for a lower mileage , they are the proffesionals in what A CARS WORTH after all

That is not true at all. They pay more for a lower mileage car because to the AVERAGE JOE who is uneducated, or doesn't understand, they think low miles is good.  You say they are professionals in what a cars worth, most offer you £3k under retail anyway.. 

Where as some of us believe differently, and understand there is more to a cars condition than the mileage.
I sold my TDI which had done 150k for £6750.. a 2004 Golf - And I can guarantee that car was in better condition than 90% of cars on here which may have done 1/3rd of the miles.

Your car which has done 22k in 5 years I'm sure is a good condition car but who's to say a car which has done 100k in 5 years is any less good condition... ? Engines can in theory last for 500k+

[garrardrj]

Engines are cheaper to repair than bodywork , hence the reasoning and the reason why the trade are after low mileage examples as they are less likely to have non engine related problems
So Average Joe is uneducated and doesn't understand ! There are many people on here who feel they know better than other people , some are more in a postion to comment than others as they have more experience of what they choose to comment on . Then there are also people on this forum who buy cars and sell cars and unless they are purely private transaction are controlled by the Trade Price guide . The Car industry is controlled by those that are within it , not by those outside it , hence the trade dictates a cars worth . Damage your car and its written off what gauge do they use to give you a pay out ? The trade guide .
Ask any trader who attends a car auction what they are looking for when looking at cars for sale "BODYWORK"

Look at YOUR comment about YOUR car and what you think of 90% of the rest of the cars on here ! You have seen these 90% ? NO

So how can you say that about your car , it might well have been in good condition but its mileage will put off many more buyers than the the condition will attract and that is a fact 

[xjay1337]

I know what they are looking for. But to people who KNOW about cars (IE enthusiasts, don't believe that car salesmen know half as much as they think they know) then you take the whole package.
You inspect everything, engine, bodywork, interior, wheels, suspension components, etc.

I just go to basically every single show in the community for the last 2 years, I've seen enough Mk5s to know where my old one stood in terms of quality of bodywork. My current GTI is not all that good (in my eyes) but other people think it's amazing. Just goes to show... Buying my GTI I looked at 6 cars, the one I bought was the 6th. 4 of them were CRAP. Either bodywork or mechanical or a combination of both and yet they all had between 40k and 70k.. one was even advertised on here!!!!!! So lower milage and yet crap condition! The best condition one I looked at (the first one) had 85k and this one that I bought had 89k and was the 2nd best condition. So the two highest milage cars I looked at were the best.

The fact is I put the car up for sale for £6750 and within 2 weeks I had had several offers of over £6000 and it was actually sold in cash at full asking price. When was the last time you hear that happening? A car sold within a fortnight for full asking. I am only speaking from experience.  On Autotrader or Egay then people would probably have been put off with the mileage. However where it was advertised (on here, Edition, uk-mkivs etc - Enthusiast sites) people are attracted to the condition of the vehicle and generally do not care about mileage because they understand that in the grand scheme of things this doesn't matter and is not an indication at all of vehicle condition - mechanical or bodywork.

Don't under estimate the power of the consumer. WE as buyers control the market. If we don't buy a car because WE THINK it's too expensive the price will drop.

[garrardrj]

Agree with most of what you say above

I always advertise my cars at what they are worth , not what i want for them , which is quite different in alot of peoples eyes ! If you price you car right it will sell especially if you are realistic.

At the end of the day we want rid of the car we have because we have an eye on another , it makes me laugh when people say they are not bothered whether they sell it or not , this is because they generally want more than the car is worth .

As a 50 year old i have been about the car scene for a few years  , Condition of a car will always sell a car to an enthusiast from another enthusiast . This rarely happens and might account for about 2% of private sales . Mileage has such a dramtic influence on people that whatever the condition will sell one car over another if the condition of both cars are the same . The advert attracts in the potential buyers and however well you describe the car and show how fantastic it is in photos the car that receives the most attention will always be the low mileage one . The more potential buyers the higher the price (Generally) and what we are on about here is generally and not the exceptions , is it not ?

[edewer]

I've just bought mine on an 07 with 41k on the clock. The chap has never changed the cam belt, but has a ridiculously comprehensive history otherwise! its a little confusing, but car runs and drives well. Because its only ever done short mileage the past year it probably needs a good thrashing as theres the bit of milkiness in the oil filler, but after 3 separate garages backing up that theory, i'm guessing we're ok!

but i agree, bought both high and low mileage before, and had a mixed bag, although generally the higher milers been better!

[alexmccabe]

Mine is on 116k and rapidly rising. It drives well. Just gotta change a couple parts and it will be sweet. Might have to get a cambelt and water pump done at some point though.

[N8KOW]

I've seen enough Mk5s to know where my old one stood in terms of quality of bodywork

You make alot of good points Jay, I like reading your posts 

[Scottymon]

Lovely.

.

The unfortunate simple truth is, a LOWER mileage car will ALWAYS demand & receive a HIGHER price... spec 4 spec.

[candy turbo]

Service history doesnt mean that much either , my mrs s nissan qashqai 1.5 dci had full nissan history inc cam belt etc went bang at 73k miles just out of warrenty and nissan say that s exceptable!!!

[Adil]

As already said if a cars been well looked after then the mileage isn't too much of an issue.