New lads questions

[lasbazrre]

Hiya, to cut a long story short ive just been laid off from work and got to sell my brand new Seat leon Cupra Mk2 to free up a few grand, the cars only done 700mile, i'm just starting to feel them 240-260 ponys!!!!!!

So i was thinking about the S3, good choice?

I'm going to look at a 03 35k one! is there anything i should look out for?

how do you spot a good one from a bad one?

Ive seen pic's on here with lads who have changed to the newer style bumper/grill how much would that cost painted and fitted?

Would you say a 35k S3 would/should FEEL in good nic?

Its had 3 sevices

Sorry for all the questions

Thanks

leon

 

[Aky]

35k is nothing Should be ok. Mine had the same when I bought mine and it sailed thru its MOT. 2003 will be a facelift so I wouldn't worry about changing bumpers etc (unless you are into that sort of thing)

 

[voorhees]

Have a look at the stickie thread= S3 buying guide
Oh and yes you'll like the S3 its a very very nice car and the quality is better than the Seat but thats why you pay more I guess

 

[lasbazrre]

Have a look at the stickie thread= S3 buying guide
Oh and yes you'll like the S3 its a very very nice car and the quality is better than the Seat but thats why you pay more I guess

Ive seen the pics of your car looks fit!!!! what wheels are the ones in the pics, the 5 spoke things with the black centres? 18's or 19s?

The car im looking at is black with them wheels, in 18!

I read the buying guide , just wonderd if there was any quick tests/sounds/things to look for right away!

I don't know much about the Haldex how it drives/should be?

Thanks

leon

 

[voorhees]

I have the same size wheels,I believe more air gets to your brakes to help keep them cool but whether it does or not ?!
Look for rusting at the bottom of the doors,bumper strips,roof strips is the only one I can think of and make sure you get an AA checkover check out the s3 parts sale thread to see what happens if your conned

 

[simch]

Hiya, to cut a long story short ive just been laid off from work and got to sell my brand new Seat leon Cupra Mk2 to free up a few grand, the cars only done 700mile, i'm just starting to feel them 240-260 ponys!!!!!!

So i was thinking about the S3, good choice?

I'm going to look at a 03 35k one! is there anything i should look out for?

how do you spot a good one from a bad one?

Ive seen pic's on here with lads who have changed to the newer style bumper/grill how much would that cost painted and fitted?

Would you say a 35k S3 would/should FEEL in good nic?

Its had 3 sevices

Sorry for all the questions

Thanks

leon

How much are you really going to free up doing this.....? Not sure what model your Leon is, but an 03 35k s3 will be about £12k, (+) if you then change wheels, remap it, put later bumpers on, it will soon stand you £15k, change suspension / brakes and it will be £17k!

I think if you want to free up cash the S3 is not your friend!! !

 

[Aky]

 

[lasbazrre]

I agree to a certain exstent, the Cupra is mine! i bought it outright!

I have two choices.

1- keep it , and hope that i get a job ASAP , we have just enough to cover bills and food , and that includes me signing on!

2- Sell it for 18k ( with a bit of look ) £12500 on the car £500 for a remap, i'm left with 5k , that will keep the wolf from the door for a bit!

Theres no point selling the Cupra and buying a cheap runabout, as i'd have already have taken the ££££ hit!

I'll just have to wait for further mods!

leon

 

[simch]

I agree to a certain exstent, the Cupra is mine! i bought it outright!

I have two choices.

1- keep it , and hope that i get a job ASAP , we have just enough to cover bills and food , and that includes me signing on!

2- Sell it for 18k ( with a bit of look ) £12500 on the car £500 for a remap, i'm left with 5k , that will keep the wolf from the door for a bit!

Theres no point selling the Cupra and buying a cheap runabout, as i'd have already have taken the ££££ hit!

I'll just have to wait for further mods!

leon

But you could spend like £4500 on a polo diesel, get 60mpg for a bit, group 4 insurance, use it for a year, put 10k on it and sell it ofr £4k..........!
Frees up at least 10k even if you only get 16500 for the Leon, (whihc dare is say is more relaistic.....).

Buying and selling cars usually costs money, if you use a dealer you will pay him £1500 to £2000 profit on ypical £8k hatch, and if you were to trade your own in on it, you would pay it again!!

A little polo diesel at about 4k will have depreciated 70% if its total already, be dirt cheap to run, saving you masses in monthly bills to help you make neds meet, (much less tax, insurance and fuel cost, plus it's deprecition costs are far lower than Leon, S3 etc). It also frees up capital of about £10k whihc is worth about £40 a month in the bank!

if you really want to free up some cash, this is the way to do it, not buy a 4 yr old S3 that could easily cost you £500 in a one off bill in the first week of ownership!!

Hope you get it sorted

 

[lasbazrre]

But you could spend like £4500 on a polo diesel, get 60mpg for a bit, group 4 insurance, use it for a year, put 10k on it and sell it ofr £4k..........!
Frees up at least 10k even if you only get 16500 for the Leon, (whihc dare is say is more relaistic.....).

Buying and selling cars usually costs money, if you use a dealer you will pay him £1500 to £2000 profit on ypical £8k hatch, and if you were to trade your own in on it, you would pay it again!!

A little polo diesel at about 4k will have depreciated 70% if its total already, be dirt cheap to run, saving you masses in monthly bills to help you make neds meet, (much less tax, insurance and fuel cost, plus it's deprecition costs are far lower than Leon, S3 etc). It also frees up capital of about £10k whihc is worth about £40 a month in the bank!

if you really want to free up some cash, this is the way to do it, not buy a 4 yr old S3 that could easily cost you £500 in a one off bill in the first week of ownership!!

Hope you get it sorted

I do understand and agree with what your saying......but ive made my mind up, if i do have to/want to sell the Cupra , i want a decent car to replace it with, other wise i'd resent driving it/selling the Cupra!

I don't think i'd resent driving/owning a S3 , with remap it will be as fast as the cupra , and in time ( when i'm back on my feet ), sort brakes, and handling out .

Thanks

leon

 

[simch]

Keep the Leon then. You'll end up ploughing cash int the s3 to make it match your cupra r and be stiffed on insurance, and lose money when you sell it.

If you want a similar car to what you have, you aint going to free up any significant cash!

 

[lasbazrre]

Keep the Leon then. You'll end up ploughing cash int the s3 to make it match your cupra r and be stiffed on insurance, and lose money when you sell it.

If you want a similar car to what you have, you aint going to free up any significant cash!

Alright mate i know where your coming from!

IF i sell the Cupra ( it's looking likely ) i'll free up money to tide me over till i find a job, i get a decent car in the S3 , when i get a new job i'll spend on the S3 to make a decent car a great car.

When the smoke clears ive still got a great car! i need money now not in 3 years time when i sell on! all cars are losing money, and i know selling the Cupra now will cost me ££££ , but what can you do?

Sorry if this sounds a bit aggro mate, i'm not having a go, it's just a stressful time.

Thanks for your input

Any tips on things to look out for when buying a S3?

leon

 

[ash_s3]

Get an AA or RAC inspection, HPi report, if possible, buy it from a dealer.
If you fail to do the above your £10k+ car could end up looking like mine.

Lesson well and truly learned!!

 

[ash_s3]

Like vorhees said, look for the usual signs of rust on the bottoms of the doors, around the wheel arches and around the roof gutters.
Wishbone and ARB bushes are also common (cheap to replace but an inconvenience non the less)
The Recaro seats can also be a pain in the ***, check the mechanisms all work properly and dont stick or rattle whilst driving
The dot-matrix display on the clocks can also ****** up and is an expensive fix so make sure all is well with that too!!

Check and then double check chassis numbers, engine numbers and cross reference them with the original owners manuals, service history and the V5
Dont be afriad to have a good poke about, lift bits of trim etc.. if i'd have done this i would have saved myself alot of ******* about and a serious amount of cash!

Good luck fell, they're good cars... honestly!

 

[dan_a3]

I made a mistake and didnt check the electric windows worked when i brought mine, and they didnt! Very common problem on these for the clips to brake, not expensive to fix if you know what your doing, but agro!