Felt like I might've been bit of an idiot... but better being lucky than smart :-)

[Death2g]

As long as it has been repaired to a good standard and deemed roadworthy then you shouldnt have a problem. The only thing to note is if you go to sell it on it may put some people off.

But at that price it sounds like a bargain

[TAKTAK]

I have been looking for a new car for the last couple of months, trawling gumtree and autotrader etc. I had a 07/08 plate Golf GTI in mind and appropriate budget. I do tend to buy from the Auctions tho, in particular Central Car Auctions in Glasgow.

So I went along today (for the 3rd or 4th time) after spotting what is pretty much my affordable dream car, which is an 09 plate Scirrocco 2.0 TSi. After looking at it, listening to it, checking out the mod cons etc I decided to take a gamble, more so than usual as there was no service history but had a couple of months MOT left on it.

Highlighted what I think is the important bit.

At the end of the day it is a hunk of metal, plastic and in your case leather. The fact it has made it through an MOT since it was written off points to it having been deemed roadworthy. Sure you might have a bit more trouble selling it on down the line, but that is down the line and by-the-by, (you'll also hopefully have a good few years of history built up which will aid confidence when it gets to that point anyway). The fact that the price got to that point at auction implies that others had interest, which extrapolating means that even just selling it on would result in what? ~£500 + time lost + subsequent mechanic costs?

TL;DR, if you're happy with the car you have a bargain, it's you that will be driving it. If you're not happy, it's only money and you'll probably not lose out that much anyway...

[Ttaskmaster]

How long before you get this car and we find out exactly how good it is, then?

[Dareos]

Road taxed and insured now, theres a bit of cabin noise, wind whistling etc, need to check that out, otherwise it seems ok. The repair job isnt top notch but my mechanic (who i trust implicitly) reckons its safe and it drives well. I need to replace the rear seat as only the backs are leather, but theres a place will do that for me. I will take it out for a spin tonight and see how it handles.
First impressions (other than the drive back from the auction) are good. I can deal with the noise as the speakers are pretty decent in it, need to work out how to attach my phone/mp3 player tho.
Weather conditions tonight are far from perfect, so will be taking it easy but I can definitely see it being fun, I reckon I'll spend a few quid on petrol for the first few weeks

On my mechanics advice im not going to do any work on the car till the MOT is due, which is March 17, he reckons that I will know by then whether I am happy with it or not, will have some admin to do regarding insurance and tax if I do sell on but he also said that if I keep it a couple of years then the V-CAR thing wont be as big a deal and I wont lose so much against market value.

I do reckon that remapping it isnt really on the cards anymore but you never know lol

I'll post again after I've had it out, lots of country roads round here, few long straights, perfect driving on summers nights, treacherous and potentially deadly on nights like these

Thanks for all the advice and support guys

[peterb]

Sounds like it has come out OK! Tak-tak pretty much hit the nail on the head though in his post. And your mechanic has confirmed that it is OK, so...

Enjoy!

[Dareos]

So, took it out

theres quite a lot of snow about and I saw 7 crashed cars (4 separate incidents) and a few stuck folks and a lot of hazard lights.

I took it easy, its nice and smooth in comfort mode

I reckon I'll leave more vigorous testing for a nicer evening

[LiverpoolsNo9]

Its good that it worked out for you...hopefully this noise is something as simple as an inner door seal.

[KeyboardDemon]

I think it's time you changed the title of the thread to "Feeling so money Supermarket right now..." or maybe just feeling Epic etc...

[Ttaskmaster]

See - Nothing to worry about. Sounds like a pretty good deal on something in expected condition for being second-hand!

It's good that you were cautious, as that's always healthy, but I'm also glad it turned out so well and hoping you enjoy it for many years to come!!

[Dareos]

Had it out an about a few times now. Weather has been a lot better and i have been able to test out both the car and my ability as a driver.

One of us needs some work, i suspect it isnt the car

The noise is coming from 2 places, one is the vent near the drivers mirror, its not too bad, the 2nd was caused the the drivers window not resetting correctly when the door is opened. I think there is something called a window regulator that will fix this, mechanic and electrician will need to have a look. It does mean I have to reset the windows every time i lock the car and also have to fully close the drivers window after I close the door. Key fob should do this but doesn't. Means that I have to get back in to the car via the passenger door to fix. Not the biggest deal in the world, lets hope its temporary.

As far as driving is concerned..its very easy to break the speed limit....

I have been used to the likes of older cavaliers, 1.6 golfs, 1.4 golfs and my 1.6 honda civic. All of which were probably around 100bhp if you were lucky. Its a massive change when you move to a 200bhp car with a stiff suspension and wider tyres etc.
I have never found driving normally quite so effortless. The car sits at 30 in 3rd or 4th gear without troubling the engine (i've always found 30 an annoying point for smaller engined cars, sitting too high in 3rd gear but having no oomph in 4th), motorway driving is a joy (in as much as motorway driving can be) as I can touch the accelerator and know that there will be enough power there to pull out into the overtaking lane and match speed with little acceleration time. On country roads its just joyous but I have scared myself a couple of times, i need some practice
Currently my favourite thing is dropping to 2nd around 20-25 MPH and booting it to 60 or so

Right now very happy with what I thought was a bad purchase, it needs some work but thats ok

Thanks again folks

[peterb]

Ha, know what you mean about effortless! I moved from a 2 litre 4cylindet 90 bop to a 3 litre 6 cylinder 170+ bhp. And although a heavier car, the power to weight ratio is much better!

I find keeping to low speed limits actually easier. The straight 6 just poodles along at thirty, in fifth, that the urge to keep the engine revving isn't there.... But when the limit ends ������

But I glad you're pleased with your purchase, and I hope those jiggly little faults won't be too expensive to put right, but even if it costs a couple of hundred, considering the amount you paid, it will still be a bargain.

You probably don't need any more encouragement to ...

Enjoy! (But take care on those lanes, we want you around here for a long time yet!)

[Ttaskmaster]

I also know what you mean - I went from a 230kg bike and 40BHP, to 266kg with 130BHP!!

So with that in mind - try and take it easy, at least until you are more practiced with the nuances of this vehicle and comfortable enough to misbehave safely.
Last thing you want is to trash your dream car!

[Zak33]

the 2nd was caused the the drivers window not resetting correctly when the door is opened. I think there is something called a window regulator that will fix this, mechanic and electrician will need to have a look.

frame less windows are a pain in the arse and VW ones in particular.. I still scratch my head at VW's reputation at reliability and build quality ...

anyway.. here goes.

Because the window glass goes up withut having it's own metal frame to guide it.. it has to go up and press against rubber seals connected to the body of the car. It needs to seal every time amnd to do so involves the motor and regulator pressing the glass up against plump, spongey rubbers

Before spending money... wind the window down.. and lubricate the window rubber at the top on the door frame. Use plenty of grease.. you CAN wipe it off later.. just try it. MAKE SURE the grease DOESNT get on your interior fabrics, headlining etc


NOW.. without rubbing your favourite shirt or jacket on it.. get in and out a few times and see if the window can reseal itself with very low friction.

IF it can.. you can get some spray silicon lube, clean the grease off, and use a the new silicon on the rubber and the window once per week

If not.. it's regulator time..or POSSIBLY.. the door is not sitting straight from a repair.. and needs to be bent back into position. Door DO flex.. frameless ones more.. and cars in accidents more so again. Maybe the door is fractionally inward at the top edge and it's forcing the glass in too hard at the top.

Your mechanic can , with a firm knee in the lower door... and strong hands at the top... bend the whoel door gentle and the hinges WILL flex. (it's a VW.. they're made really light weight and soft )


If not.. reguator time...And whille you're spending money on that.... wonder ... how do VW get this reputation when SO MANY of them keep failing

[Dareos]

Its not just the driver door, it goes down ok when i hold the button down on the key fob, it just doesnt go down when i click it once to open the door, nor when i pull the door handle from inside. Its the sunroof too. This will open when i hold down the button, but wont close when I hold the opposite button.
I will heed your advice though, looks good for the upkeep of the car in general

[mycarsavw]

Before you do any of that just reset the auto windows.

Shut the driver's door and make sure the window is fully closed. Now wind the window right down and hold it there for 5 seconds, then wind the window up again and hold it there for 5 seconds.

There are posts that suggest disconnecting the battery first, or only holding it for 2 seconds, or only wearing lemon coloured Wellington boots to make it work but meh, the above works fine for me.

I think (a search of the internets should confirm) there was also a software update for window issues on the Scirocco - not sure of the specifics though.

[badass]

I have never found driving normally quite so effortless. The car sits at 30 in 3rd or 4th gear without troubling the engine (

At constant speed it'll happily be in 5th. Acceleration won't be a great idea but as long as the engine is doing more than 1300 RPM they are fine and it'll save a small amount of fuel. Even the older EA113 engine is happy at 1400 RPM.

P.S. Anyone that bangs on about labouring the engine - it's fine. These are designed to operate well at low rpm with high loads. Hence the 6 speed DSG cars shifting into 5th at 30 MPH under light acceleration