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350 on Auto Trader - Low miles but may have issues


longsh07

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Just a heads up about a 350 for sale on Auto Trader.

I've been helping a friend look for a 350Z for a little while now and this weekend we popped down to see this Zed.

 

Ad:

http://www.autotrade...us=40&logcode=p

 

Car is a 2007 (HR engine so 313BHP), GT Pack.

Good points are its one owner, 29K miles, new brakes (discs and pads) all round in the last 12 months, new banana arm bushes, black leather, and body work/alloys are alright (some marks on wing mirrors).

Downsides are that there is no evidence of a service since 2013 (besides brakes/bushes), its due a P3 service, and to top is off there was a note in the service history from April 2015, 'Investigate lack of power'. Oil cap also has a small amount of that white 'mayo' gunk around it.

 

It could just be that the car hasn't been used much (supported by the low miles) causing the small amount of the white gunk but combined with the 'Investigate lack of power' comment we decided to walk away just in case.

 

Hopefully this info will either serve as a battering point or save someone a trip etc.

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Well there is some history (IE brakes and bushes) between the last service stamp and now but nothing that indicates a basic service (oil and filters etc).

I wouldn't say they are lying but maybe bending the truth a little.

Edited by longsh07
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Did you test drive it to see if it was down on power?

 

Nah we walked away after I found the mayo and the 'investigate the lack of power' note in the history.

Would have been a pain to test drive it too as it was in a show room behind two rows of other cars. Wasn't worth the hassle as I know my friend wasn't interested after that.

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When was the power investigation? Could be something simple. Any chance of finding out the previous owner and chatting with them? It looks tidy enough other than the scuff on the front bumper and not priced too badly for a dealer. Personally I wouldn't buy it but that's only because it's silver.

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When was the power investigation? Could be something simple. Any chance of finding out the previous owner and chatting with them? It looks tidy enough other than the scuff on the front bumper and not priced too badly for a dealer. Personally I wouldn't buy it but that's only because it's silver.

 

Yeah, Silver was his last choice on colour too so it kind of sealed the deal.

Power was investigated in April 2015 - no further history from there so it feels a bit like a dump and run job.

Not my place to find the owner to be honest, I was more technical advice :lol:. By no means a mechanic but I have an interest in how it all works and have tinkered with my own cars.

 

The Mayo thing could have cleared after a blast - or could be a big problem

 

Exactly.

Best case - just needs a thrashing

Worst case - head gasket.

Not a risk I'd be prepared to take personally.

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So they are lying in the advert? States full service history! Mother truckers

 

A full service history is just a full documentation of the services that the car has had, it doesn't mean that the car has been serviced "correctly".

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So they are lying in the advert? States full service history! Mother truckers

 

A full service history is just a full documentation of the services that the car has had, it doesn't mean that the car has been serviced "correctly".

 

Absolutely.

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A bit of mayo on the cap isn't too tragic.

 

If it's on the dipstick then there's more to worry about.

 

I doubt I'd walk away from it just for having an invoice saying 'investigate lack of power'......We see 20 threads a week on here where someone is having an issue with something or another......cars break.......cars get fix......life plods on

 

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

 

 

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When was the power investigation? Could be something simple. Any chance of finding out the previous owner and chatting with them? It looks tidy enough other than the scuff on the front bumper and not priced too badly for a dealer. Personally I wouldn't buy it but that's only because it's silver.

 

Yeah, Silver was his last choice on colour too so it kind of sealed the deal.

Power was investigated in April 2015 - no further history from there so it feels a bit like a dump and run job.

Not my place to find the owner to be honest, I was more technical advice :lol:. By no means a mechanic but I have an interest in how it all works and have tinkered with my own cars.

 

The Mayo thing could have cleared after a blast - or could be a big problem

 

Exactly.

Best case - just needs a thrashing

Worst case - head gasket.

Not a risk I'd be prepared to take personally.

Thanks for the tip off. :)
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When was the power investigation? Could be something simple. Any chance of finding out the previous owner and chatting with them? It looks tidy enough other than the scuff on the front bumper and not priced too badly for a dealer. Personally I wouldn't buy it but that's only because it's silver.

 

Yeah, Silver was his last choice on colour too so it kind of sealed the deal.

Power was investigated in April 2015 - no further history from there so it feels a bit like a dump and run job.

Not my place to find the owner to be honest, I was more technical advice :lol:. By no means a mechanic but I have an interest in how it all works and have tinkered with my own cars.

 

The Mayo thing could have cleared after a blast - or could be a big problem

 

Exactly.

Best case - just needs a thrashing

Worst case - head gasket.

Not a risk I'd be prepared to take personally.

Thanks for the tip off. :)

No worries. If it helps someone out then I've done my job.

 

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

 

 

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A bit of mayo on the cap isn't too tragic.

 

If it's on the dipstick then there's more to worry about.

 

I doubt I'd walk away from it just for having an invoice saying 'investigate lack of power'......We see 20 threads a week on here where someone is having an issue with something or another......cars break.......cars get fix......life plods on

 

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

 

It was only a very small amount so I expect all if needs is a thrashing but he's in a position to be fussy so didn't think it was worth taking that chance.

 

A lot of money if it does have issues.

 

Yeah. Plus its due a P3 with no evidence of an oil change since 2013 so he didn't want to pay £10.5K + a full P3 + any extra work required,

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  • 1 month later...

When was the power investigation? Could be something simple. Any chance of finding out the previous owner and chatting with them? It looks tidy enough other than the scuff on the front bumper and not priced too badly for a dealer. Personally I wouldn't buy it but that's only because it's silver.

 

Yeah, Silver was his last choice on colour too so it kind of sealed the deal.

Power was investigated in April 2015 - no further history from there so it feels a bit like a dump and run job.

Not my place to find the owner to be honest, I was more technical advice :lol:. By no means a mechanic but I have an interest in how it all works and have tinkered with my own cars.

 

The Mayo thing could have cleared after a blast - or could be a big problem

 

Exactly.

Best case - just needs a thrashing

Worst case - head gasket.

Not a risk I'd be prepared to take personally.

Thanks for the tip off. :)

No worries. If it helps someone out then I've done my job.

 

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

 

I think this thread has quite possibly saved me a trip. I have had my eye on this but it's the best part of 200 miles away from me. Had been toying with the idea of calling and negotiating over the phone prior to viewing to make sure the trip was worthwhile but am now less keen to do so.

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