[Mrred32]

Thought I'd take to the ever trusty forum before taking the leap. I've been keeping my eye out for the perfect R32 for about 18months now (on and off) and spotted one that I thought I might take a chance on.

I do, however, have a tendancy to jump into car purchasing blind (my only non-logical vice!). I was hoping for some advice from the forum.

I've been to see a car (quite a distance from me) which seemed to have a few issues. Many I think I'd be able to put right but one or two that cause me concern (I'm a Haynes 2 spanner at a push!).

Context: the car is DSG, 5 door, blue and best of all...low tax!

Issues:

• Smaller of the two fans not operating (shouldn't be a problem to replace)
• Non-standard exhaust (would prefer to take back to standard I feel)
• Standard rust on the arches - stupid sponge! (pics to follow)
• Rust on the sills - little more concerning (pics to follow)
• Discs will be needed all round at some point in the next 12 months.

Now I'm all up for a bit of a project but the rusty sills are concerning. But most of all it's the old worry, the cam chain sound. Will link a recording/video. My ears are shot and I have no idea if this sounds like the hundreds of others out there but it definitely doesn't sound right to me.

The price isn't too bad but would have to come down considerably if the cam chain needs replacing. I'm looking for help and advice as I'd love to bring, what is one of my favourite cards of all time, back to life. But don't want to end up digging myself into a hole!

 

[Mrred32]

Pics:

 

[Mrred32]

Cam chain video (apologies for the horrific wind noise)
Cold start - Mk5 R32 Chain Noise (Cold Start)

Warm start - Mk5 R32 Cam Chain Noise (Warm Start)

 

[Mrred32]

Welcome to the club

The wings need replacing and are £200 a side

The sills can be sorted out when the wings are of..

The chain noise is hard to tell but
Sounds OK
Is it a private sale or through a garage..you could ask for the chains to.be read with vcds..
Service is a major issue also make sure the doors lock and open and the dsg changes gear smoothly m

Thanks for this, the service history looks decent (in recent couple of years at least). Haldex/DSG and full service done in the last 12 months/last 10k.

The doors seemed to lock without issue and the DSG seemed pretty smooth from my limited exposure. It's a private sale which is why I'm quite a bit more weary.

 

[Mrred32]

That's quite a project. If they've let the bodywork get that bad, what is the rest like mechanically. I'd be avoiding it, if it was me. You might find real horrors under the sill covers. Don't get hung up on low tax cars either, they can drink the difference in petrol in minutes. Find a better one would be my advice.

Exactly my first impression on seeing it! The current owner seems to be on the ball with servicing etc but that's not to say previous ownership has been as kind (and judging by the poor wing rust cover up it wasn't a "get to the root of the problem" type process).

TBH the low tax element is really appealing to me as i plan on keeping this for a long time but won't be using it as a daily (so mileage will remain low). Guess I should be mindful not to be blind to it when I can end up spending what I'd save in 10 years on repairs 😂.

Hmmm, got to think about this but perhaps more than I could chew. It's always under the surface that gets you, and there's enough on the surface to deal with already!

 

[Mrred32]

I think low tax appeals to everyone tbh!😁 But, buy the right car, not the right tax car. I've done similar to you in the past and made rash project purchases on bodywork tlc needed cars. It's alway the bodywork ones you will regret as you can't easily fix them yourself. It's much easier to learn and do mechanicals, especially now there's a guide on how to do most stuff on the net.

Too true fella!

I think waiting for the right car and keeping my eyes on the For Sale section here. Blue, DSG, 5 door low tax cars are becoming like rocking horse stuff here! But I'm sure I'll find one. Thanks all for the advice, a win for the forum community again!

 

[Mrred32]

The right one will turn up. If you are set on low tax, have you thought about a Jap import? Tax is about 300 a year on them, with wider choice than low tax UK cars.

I have seen a few of these around to be honest.

Never sure what you can trust from an import and not 100% on the caveats of buying one. Will have to do some research if this is a good way to get a low tax example.

 

[Mrred32]

How many miles? Without VCDS you can't be so sure about the chain, so the lower the miles the safer you are to some extent. The rust bugs me. Being metallic blue you need to get it repaired at a good shop and pay the higher price or it will not match the rest of the car well.

110k, so not huge but certainly not low enough to not be concerned.

Good shout about the blue, I imagine it's a bugger to blend properly!