Good job for HPI checks

[Carolyn]

Hi Everyone

With regards to the mr2 mk1 i was going to travel 300 hundred miles to Birmingham for is now not happening,today i done a HPI check on the car and found out it was an insurance write off 6 years ago,I just want other buyers out there to take note to make sure what they are buying,(p.s the car is advertised on the MK1 owners site) YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!!!
However after feeling disappointed about the situation, not as much as i would have been if i had gone all the way up there and bought it and then found out.

I was looking at the auto trader online and there is was an MR2 MK1 only 2 miles away from my house i couldent believe it,it was the colour and everything i wanted,i went straight over an seen it,and made an offer subject to it being inspected by the mechanic i use,So all being well this time tomorrow i should be a proud owner of an MR2 MK1 Oh and i HPI'd this one which was fine YIIIPPPEEEE

Thanks agains to everyone who replyed to My Advice needed post

caz

ps i will keep you posted on the out come tomorrow

[Lauren]

Good stuff Carolyn, keep us posted!

[raptor95GTS]

good escape there Carolyn. Let us know how you get on with the new target

[DevaMR2]

i done a HPI check on the car and found out it was an insurance write off 6 years ago

What did the owner/seller have to say about that?

Let us know the outcome of todays inspection too.

[spudgun]

Blimey, that was a close call!
I suppose it might not of had too much damage though to right it off at that age, Carolyn. Jinxy will have this hanging over his car, and all it had was a damaged rear quarter. Still could have done with out it.
Will be in touch at some point.

[Kieron]

What was the category of write off? Cat D is very light damage and insurance companies have a history of writing off Jap imports because they (incorrectly) believe that you can't source the parts.

There are some real bargains to be had in the Cat D world, especially if it's a car you intend to keep for many years. Generally it can be a little as door locks missing, or a dented panel, something that most regular cars suffer throughout their working lives....

As long as you don't pay a premium price, you won't take the loss at the end when you sell it.

Only the uninformed would be put off when you come to sell it, and how much would an old MK1 be worth in years to come anyway.....

You can actually have a Cat D car taken off the register too if you have it inspected at an approved center and they find the damage has been repaired to a high standard. I believe the charge to be £75 for the inspection...

[JJ]

Uneconomical write offs shouldn't be dismissed in buying.. but shouldnt be paying top whack for it either.

Sure if the car was a cut and shut car, but if your talking about a clip on the rear qrt or sommat that is physically involving in terms of man hour labour and the price of parts is astronimical ... then its easy to say the insurance write off route.

You'll be suprised how easy it is to write off a mk2 now... generally rear bumper and a crease in the rear qrt would send a perfectly immaculate ( pre incident ) to the scrap yard heaven.

I've even seen G regs where they've lost control of their car on roundabouts / corners, broke the alloy and bent the hub... your talking literially no more than £300 repair on the 2nd hand market.... and yet they're been written off... quite a simple repair and the structual integrity of the vehicle is still unaffected.

[Sidewinder]

I've even seen G regs where they've lost control of their car on roundabouts / corners, broke the alloy and bent the hub... your talking literially no more than £300 repair on the 2nd hand market.... and yet they're been written off... quite a simple repair and the structual integrity of the vehicle is still unaffected.

Hell yeah - a similar situation to myself a while back (but on an L-reg), although the rear bumper needed replacing as well. I practically had to beg the insurance company not to write the car off.

[stevecordiner]

Yup, jap imports means cars get written off very very easily. The insurance company will go to an approved repair garage and they will then go to toyota to price up parts for an MR2 turbo - lol ... bet they decide most have to come from japan too lol.

I nearly bought an Evo 2 about 2 or 3 years back. Written off car, it needed a new front panel (£130 quid new) a head lamp ... just buy one from a sister car (a 12 valve proton hahahaha). The reason it was written off was because it's intercooler was punctured. The radiator was pushed back but not nackered, but you can guarantee the repair centre will have wanted to cover its back for one of those too just in case.

Intercooler from japan £1000+ VAT
Radiator from japan £300 + VAT
Air con rad to be on the safe side £250 + VAT

Suddenly its not economical to repair.

My prices -

front panel 130
headlamp from proton - 10-15 quid from scrappy
second hand Evo 6 IC - 100 quid
radiators were still intact and fine
labour for fitting and miscillaneous paint work £400

Suddenly I'd of had a car that if not technically written off would've been worth 7-8k at the time. Cost to me 3k repaired

Guess my message is this, just because something is "written off" can just mean that it was an uneconomical repair through the main dealership type channels for the insurance company. Does not mean it is any less structurally sound than a car found on a dealers forecourt for over double the price

[raptor95GTS]

i must admit though I would walk away at that point

[Kieron]

The thing to remember with write off's is - get them inspected by somebody in the know, if the chassis isn't bent and it's superficial damage then it will be ok as long as you can repair it, or it has been repaired to a high standard.

Don't pay a high price, take the loss on the car at the start of the deal - i.e. if a car retails normally at £4000, only pay £3000 if it was previously written off and repaired. Then when you come to sell it you have already had the £1000 loss and won't suffer during the sale.

Or, get the category removed at the inspectors.

[Carolyn]

Hi Guys

Just thought i would let you all know,i am now a proud owner of an MR2 MK1,after all that searching it was only a mile down the Road,I purchased a 1987 in midnight Mica Blue,with 91k on the clock with full service history @ a cost of £1400 ,have got alot of work to do on it though to make it pukka,here is a list of things i am getting done in the next 2 months.

1) Take it to the garage for a complete service and new handbrake.
2) Full respray and then back to the garage to be wax oiled
3) New alloy wheels and tyres (15")
4) And last but not least a nice cherished number plate.

Once all is complete, i will put on the before and after pictures

Caz x