Decent S3 virtually impossible to find...

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Big_Nige

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At my budget £5k max...

Went to look at a *mint* one today

all wheels kerbed
Roof rotten
Doors rotten
LCD dash broke
No radio
CL didnt work
Seats where a mess
Had an oil leak on the inlet manifold on the first cyl (as you look at it, the first on the left)
Needed service, although FSH!
Paintwork a right mess

Seen loads like this, even at higher budgets.

Doing my head on now.
 
It will be very hard to find a 'mint' example for £5000...
 
Just remember how old these cars are know finding mint one is going to be hard
 
I was expectin some issues, but most are utter wrecks, even at more money :(
 
There is no such thing as a mint example of a second hand car that is for sale privately in my opinion. Restoration/Concours cars might be the only exception.

You will be buying someone else problems. And when people decide to sell their cars, to upgrade/downsize or out of boredom etc they tend to spend less on the upkeep of the car they are selling, despite what their for sale adverts may say.

Regarding the S3 specifically, its an expensive car to maintain. Especially at the age and mileage most examples are at. If your budget is £5k, budget another £500 to £1000 to sort out niggles, get it serviced etc.
 
need to increase your budget to get an quite nice one. I got mine for 5700, but there was still some niggles which needed sorting
 
iv just got my first s3 yesterday,i think i got quite a good deal.
its a 2000 w,116,00 fash,12 months mot,3 keys ,original purchase recipt,all wheels in as new cond,black elec recaroes,bose,re-map with dyno prints 252bhp,interior is as new and the exterior is i would say a 8.5/10 after iv machine polished her up now and i paid£4100:cool:

what do you guys think????

also great site by the way...
 
I paid £3900 for mine, body is ok, a few little tiny bits of rust & it's deffo had the drivers rear arch done at some point. Needed a service (cambelt & waterpump) rear shocks & springs & a full valet. You get what you pay for at the end of the day & 5k will not get you a minter unless ou get very lucky.
All in the car owes me £4200 now... time to remap :)
 
ditto,what i went to see was rubbish,but then i looked for an enthusiasts car and found what i was after.
 
Mine could be just what your after. Was at Audi International so i'm sure a few members can vouch for its condition.

Very clean car !
 
S3s are quite rare in Australia compared to Euro, and were expensive when first released @ around A$65,000 or at today's exchange rates around £37,000 .

fortunately, most for sale now are still cherished and well looked after, but for a 2000 model you would still be looking to spend around around A$20,000 or £11,000
 
***, do you expect a car in Concours condition for £5k? Save up an extra few grand and get yourself a decent one, rather than scraping the barrel for the dirt cheap ones owned by yardies from Lewisham.
 
yup i agree with golf, you'll be extremely lucky to find a spec your after in mint cond for 5k..... yes they are going for that amount but your scrapping the barrel in terms of whats available - bearing in mind how rare this car when compared to say, a focus
 
I think you should keep looking, yes it will be hard to find perfect one for 5k but there are deals out there . Im guessing by what you have said you wouldn't be interested but have you looked at any cat d's? I think you would be able to find one that has had cosmetic damage and been repaired properly for that price...just a thought.
 
lee172 said:
I think you should keep looking, yes it will be hard to find perfect one for 5k but there are deals out there . Im guessing by what you have said you wouldn't be interested but have you looked at any cat d's? I think you would be able to find one that has had cosmetic damage and been repaired properly for that price...just a thought.
Click to expand...

I still don't agree with Cat D's, they are more of a headache than a bargain. Insurance is a grey area with these in terms of payout, and come resale time, they are difficult to shift, as you have to sell them dirt cheap again.

In my opinion of course.
 
haha not this again jo :)

yet i do agree, CAT D's unless massivley cheaper no matter what quality of repair, should be avoided IMO - you just dont know regardless of cost, what has been picked up by the chap surveying the car and also what actually has been changed....an insurance company has taken away their risk from the car repair, this should tell you something
 
When I was looking for mine I just watched pistonheads daily for new adverts and a few bargains do pass by.
 
audi upgrades
Did i say i expected mint, it was advertised as mint you tool.
 
Big_Nige said:
Did i say i expected mint, it was advertised as mint you tool.
Click to expand...

Well, whoever that was aimed at, I feel that was probably undeserved!

These people are only trying to help you. If you don't like the answers you are likely to get, then maybe posting them on a public forum isn't the best way to go IMO.
 
this is gonna sound strange but have you thougth about a cupra r? some nice examples in ur budget. Either that or a really nice A3?
 
Big_Nige said:
Did i say i expected mint, it was advertised as mint you tool.
Click to expand...

you know what...big or small get a cupra if your gonna take that attitude towards a member off here who is trying to help you.

You will find that this is probably one of the best forums your likely to find for advice and any one of us will gladly help you out - this is as long as you keep your temper in check and respect and treat people how you expect to be treated yourself

as for your budget, as said above.... it wont be 5k and done, you will ALWAYS have something else to pay for, the S3 isnt a cheap car to run - assuming you have taken this into account, good luck with the search
 
GOLF started his doodahs with *** etc etc, i never said i expected mint for £5k, the seller advertised it as mint & it wasnt, he wasnt trying to help at all, just looking for a few gratis points.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Calm down calm down guys, lets get back onto topic.

The 5 grand S3 in good nick are not impossible, just very rare. Chances are, if there's one for sale, it would have been snapped up in double quick time, if what you say about there being so many dodgy ones about.
 
Just ignore him mate, if i was you id wait an extra few months and try to find one for around 6k or something just because it cheaper doesnt mean it will need sorting out, but most of the time it does, thats why youd best checking every detail of the s3 before you buy it.
 
Big_Nige said:
GOLF started his doodahs with *** etc etc, i never said i expected mint for £5k, the seller advertised it as mint & it wasnt, he wasnt trying to help at all, just looking for a few gratis points.
Click to expand...

took most of us a few months to find what we were after matey....keep the faith, you wont regret it ;)

although i fell lucky and found mine within 6 weeks...... and i was very specific, although had a slightly bigger budget which didnt tie me to the lower price bracket

it'll turn up :)
 
jojo said:
I still don't agree with Cat D's, they are more of a headache than a bargain. Insurance is a grey area with these in terms of payout, and come resale time, they are difficult to shift, as you have to sell them dirt cheap again.

In my opinion of course.
Click to expand...

Insurance issues?? i bought mine as a cat c and my insurance have just paid out £2400 for a minor bump i had i think its just a myth mate
 
S3-Andy said:
Insurance issues?? i bought mine as a cat c and my insurance have just paid out £2400 for a minor bump i had i think its just a myth mate
Click to expand...

so that makes all CAT C's less risky does it? surely you can see why your car will have a reduced selling price when compared with a clean similar vehicle
 
I think he was talking specifically about insurance issues, not resale value.
 
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