Off Topic Advice Needed - Car Related

[R36 Dreamer]

Hey All,

My wife and I are thinking about buying a new second car.

Our current 1999 Mazda 323 has done 65,000 kms. Our second car does 5,000 per annum, which is why we dont spend up big time on it. It is basically a commuter, and we use the R for longer trips, out of town etc.

We have decided on a 12-18 month old Mitsubishi 380. They are going for around $17k on the net (assume some haggling could bring that down), which is pretty cheap for the specs.

Anyway I looked at a couple on the weekend, and realise they are from Kingmill Pty Ltd which after some research was Thrifty Car Hire.

Cars all have 30-40,000 on them, and from Mitsubishi dealers the warranty starts again when purchased ie. another 5 year factory warranty.

My question is whether anyone has any experience with an ex rental car. I know when I was younger and I got my hands on a rental I drove it like it was stolen, but now am more subdued.

Figure it could hardly be worse than buying a one owner car from someone who has flogged it every day?

Cars appear to be in good condition, everything works etc. and from experience these big fleet type cars go forever.

Anyway anyones experience/ advice would be well received, as we are keen on the idea, but are hesitant due to the fact they are ex rental.

Apologies for this not being Passat/ VW related, but the advice on here has been top notch to date, and I believe a Mitsubishi forum could be a bit "Biased!"

Cheers,

[phaeton]

All I can say is get an RACV check or pre-purchase from your local garage.

Other than that the 380 was a good Mitsubishi; if your happy with what they're offering you, then buy it.

Good Luck

[gerhard]

Why would you sell a perfectly good low mileage 323 to get an unknown 380 with nearly the same ks?

[sci_fianime]

Presume that you are looking for a second car for short trips - why get a large one like the 380?

It would be more efficient to get a smaller car - think that a new Polo is currently selling at around the same price range you are looking at...

Otherwise for a cheap runabout, think that a new Kia Rio starts around $13k...

[tryingavw]

Presume that you are looking for a second car for short trips - why get a large one like the 380?

It would be more efficient to get a smaller car - think that a new Polo is currently selling at around the same price range you are looking at...

Otherwise for a cheap runabout, think that a new Kia Rio starts around $13k...

agree, either a polo or a mazda 2. ( bought my 18yo son a 1 y.o demo polo for 17k and its a lovely little car. not much power in the 1.4 though.

these little cars are surprisingly roomy.

[KWICKS]

A while back my brother and I went shopping for a car for his Mrs. She said anything but a wagon and not another silver car...

Anyway, we stumbled on a couple of Magna's. One was ex-rental, the other one private owner. The rental car had no log books, in fact no evidence a service had ever been done in its 40000km. It drove like a dog back to back with the other one. We paid $1000 more for the privately owned one, which had nice 17 inch alloys and new rubber as the sweetener anyway, plus a full Mitsubishi service history including recalls all done, with 6 months factory warranty left. Was chalk and cheese in our experience (YMMV).

Oh, did I mention it was a silver wagon too...

[Autopia]

I know this thread is titled as "off topic" but surely there is a more appropriate place for this. The "General Chat" section springs to mind.

[Golf Houso]

380's go for between 11 and 14k at auction, and they have them every week:

https://www.manheimfowles.com.au

https://www.pickles.com.au

[R36 Dreamer]

Why would you sell a perfectly good low mileage 323 to get an unknown 380 with nearly the same ks?

It is near on 10 years old, and based on experience stuff starts to go wrong.

Also we are looking for a safer car, that can do some highway miles.

Safety has really progressed since 1999, the Mazda has airbags, but no abs etc. etc.

[R36 Dreamer]

Presume that you are looking for a second car for short trips - why get a large one like the 380?

It would be more efficient to get a smaller car - think that a new Polo is currently selling at around the same price range you are looking at...

Otherwise for a cheap runabout, think that a new Kia Rio starts around $13k...

We prefer a larger car - simply due to safety.

There is a lot of conjecture about whether a small 5 star car is better than a 4 star large car etc. etc.

I would bet on the bigger car everytime.

In addition, the 380 needs to be able to do the odd trip up the highway, so I would like cruise, etc.

The 380 is just better kitted out for the money compared to the smaller cars.

My wife cannot (read will not) drive a manual - and I hate the idea of having a 1.5L auto (especially when it is such an expensive option).

We looked at a mazda 2, but by the time we had the model and spec's it was around 20k, rather than 14-16 for the 380.

My question was more about rental cars, rather than the choice of the car - which we are happy with.

Cheers,

[3Putt]

This IS an appropriate place IMO

Why can't you post an off 'theme' thread on a forum where you know the contributors.

Maybe this fella actually values our opinions.

[R36 Dreamer]

Why can't you post an off 'theme' thread on a forum where you know the contributors.

Maybe this fella actually values our opinions.

Cheers,

That is exactly the reason I posted in this forum - I have been reading, asking advice etc. on all things car, and value the opinions of people who have a similar mindset.

I know if I had posted in General Chat, I would have received diatribe from car owners trying to peddle the benefits of their cars.

I titled it off topic so that if people did not want to read an off topic message they could go past it.

[passatpout]

Here's my tuppence worth

Well, the last hire car I had was a VE Commodore in Adelaide last November, from a car hire company with a similar name to the SI unit for cycles per second.

It had only done about 25000km, and had the following wrong with it:

• Service indicator on permanently
• Brakes were rock hard and no feel - not quite metal on metal, but not far from it.
• Boot lid wouldn't close properly and needed to be re-opened to latch down (only found that out after driving from the airport to our hotel with our bags inside).
• Engine performance way, way down on other VZ/VEs I've driven - struggled to hold 110km/h coming up the hill outside Gawler heading back to Adelaide.
• Power steering failed intermittently, occasionally kicking in when least expected (like going around some of the hairpins through the Hills).

And my wife is wondering why I'm now suggesting that the Motorail on the Overland isn't a bad option to consider... I was quite happy to get back to the Passat afterwards..

Anyhow, from working at Holden in a past life, I'd never buy an ex-"executive-driven" car, since it was pretty rare for them to have an easy life. Due to the cycle at which they were changed (6 months or 10,000km), lots of guys took cars appropriate for what they wanted in that period - eg brand new Jackaroo/Rodeo to tow the caravan or boat from Melbourne to Cairns & return in summer, driving in salt conditions (either water or air) every day and only washing once a month, or getting an SS because they were planning on going to Bathurst for the races, etc, etc.

I'd be a bit concerned about an ex-rental, based on experience driving them, but if it's brought back to scratch and they're willing to restart a 5-year warranty, it might be OK. It wouldn't surprise me if the biggest buyers of 380s were rental fleets, and Mitsu probably did deals to assist with resale value at the end of their term.

[tryingavw]

That is exactly the reason I posted in this forum - I have been reading, asking advice etc. on all things car, and value the opinions of people who have a similar mindset.

I know if I had posted in General Chat, I would have received diatribe from car owners trying to peddle the benefits of their cars.

I titled it off topic so that if people did not want to read an off topic message they could go past it.

here here . no problem with off topic. as you say likeminded means we'll have similar processes.

also i must admit when someone says "this has already been covered in other posts.... " often a hint as to where to find the post would be real handy!

[gregozedobe]

I simply will not buy any car that I haven't had a test drive in before paying for it (and that goes for a new one as well). That may be a problem at some auctions. I am also very interested in seeing a decent service history (doesn't have to be main dealer, as long as it has been done).

All secondhand car prices are low at the moment, so if one slips from your hands there will be another one along soon, and maybe at an even better price.

As a general rule I would prefer a privately owned 2 year old car over a 1 year old rental, as most rental drivers don't give a crap about looking after the car they've hired, as long as they get where they are going that is all that matters. Most wouldn't even think about warming the engine up before they give it a bootful, let alone check on oil and coolant.

I'm sure there are loads of great ex-rental cars out there, but how do you know whether the specific one you are looking it is one of the good ones or is a mis-treated mangy cur ?

Just my opinion, others may believe differently.