It is, of course, reassuring to know that the owner of a so called 'mileage correction service' has been jailed for nine months for clocking cars.
Apparently this is the first time that such a service provider has been convicted under consumer law.
The owner had pleaded guilty to five charges under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 and eight charges under the Fraud Act 2006. He also agreed to a further 19 offences being taken into consideration.
His Honour Judge Ambrose said: “The clocking of cars corrupts the market and brings unjustified suspicion on honest traders.”
His Honour may well be right but it begs the question over just what is mileage? I’d argue it is a philosophical question and, as ever, car buyers should look at the condition, the service history and the cut of the seller’s jib before making any final decision.
Indeed, what is high mileage? Six figures, high five figures? Is 100,000 miles really a lot on a decade-old car when it averages out at 10,000 a year? And actually 6000 miles on an averagely maintained Vauxhall Corsa 1.0-litre over a decade is arguably far worse than a Jaguar XJ8 that's been ramped and stamped regardless of cost.
So the question is this: what in your book is high mileage? At what mileage point do you shake your head and move on to the next used car in the classifieds?
Join the debate
S60_T5
High Mileage is relative
I bought my 2000 Volvo S60 with 80,000 miles on it. I know that this type of car has at least another 100k left in it if I take care of it properly. However, I'd never buy anything like a Renault Clio or even a VW Polo with that sort of mileage, because it's not meant to last as long as more upmarket cars. Superminis are utilitarian urban runarounds, for short daily trips around town, not motorway mile-munchers.
I hope I've made my point clear (because I'm not a very good writer). Bigger more expensive cars will do more miles in the years they're supposed to last, so they're built with that in mind.
gkw90
Completely agree. Just
Completely agree. Just upgraded from a Mk3 Mondeo with little service history before I bought it to an E46 330D of the same age and miles (2001, 129,000) with all the paperwork right from its initial sales receipt. Taking into account the various quality differences between the two cars the difference is still astonishing. Indicating that mileage isn't a definitive yardstick for picking a car - try telling my girlfriend that though :).
In regards to smaller cars; a fair portion tend to have been bought by first time buyers throughout their lifetimes and may not have had the most sympathetic life, even if the mileage over the course of a decade would only amount to 50,000 miles and, in addition to lower life (cheaper) components. A mileage of under 100,000 would be high for a car like this, and more of a run in for a large motorway barge!
artill
The biggest problem with high
The biggest problem with high mileage cars is selling them on. I have a 405 MI16 with 160,000 miles on it. It still drives as it should, and doesnt do anything that people might worry about on a high mileage car. But i suspect if i were to try to sell it many people would be wary of the mileage. In fact i would probably be wary of it if i hadnt done all the maintanace for the last 6 and a half years.
People are useless at judging the condition of a car usually so they go by mileage, which is of course why its the easiest way of adding to the value of a car by reducing it!
As for how long a car lasts, its a tough question. I doubt there are many cars that wont do 200,000 miles on sale now, but the cost of fixing things is going up as cars get more complex. Which means anything that costs much over a few hundred quid to fix will probably be scrapped long before it gets there.
Bob Cat Brian
My '06 plate Astra company
My '06 plate Astra company car currently has 182k on the clock and still drives as it should. The only obvious giveaway to its mileage is is worn steering wheel and gear knob.
Would I buy it as a private buyer though? No. Mileage may not give an indication to condition but components all have an operative lifespan, the chances of a component needing replacing due to wear is higher on a 'mega miler'.
My wife has a 06 plate zafira and although it has the 2.0t engine and a much higher spec than my diesel Astra Club they still bear comparison. The Zafira has only covered 40k miles and still feels 'tight' andbrand new, the Astra feels terribly baggy in comparison.
kcrally
My Peugeot is 11 years old,
My Peugeot is 11 years old, 67k miles, and has a leaking cylinder head gasket. Age or Mileage ?
www.KOOOLcr.com
graingerblaze
All depends on use
I have a new car for company use, but I also have an old E-Class Merc estate (1998) for those weekend family trips where I need to carry the kitchen sink. It has covered nearly 260,000 miles without any problems! Ok it has needed wear parts replacing (tyres, brakes, wheel bearings, wipers and bulbs), but almost everythng is orginal and works as good as the day I bought it.
It has regular oil changes to keep the engine good and is seen by my local garage once a year just to check things over. It is probably only worth scrap money, but to me it's worth 10k as that is what it would cost me to buy a newer version. The problem is the manufacturers have improved cars so much that most can do 200,000 without too much of an issue, but the trade think 80,000 is high milage and worthless!
Keep calm & stay happy
elbernan
all best serials
It still pushes as it should, and doesn't do anything that individuals might fear about on a higher usage car. But i suppose if i were to try to offer it many individuals would be skeptical of the usage. Actually i would probably be skeptical of it if i had not done all the maintanace for the last 6 and a 50 percent decades. all best serials
elbernan
Xmas Images
One of the second most explored conditions is 'Christmas'. So you can see that the market potential for this season is tremendous.Xmas Images
bentleyboy
I can see!
I think it largely will come down to maintenance.
We have recently off loaded a 2007 Mondeo Diesel with 170K on the clock - mostly motorway miles, full Ford History on the nail (as company insisted) - and its still pottering around the local area having now done a miserly 7K in the last 10 months!
The new barge, a Hyundai IX35, has covered just short of 35K in 11 months, again with full history - but is not without a few technical issues! I think the cars of today are all built to a much higher tolerance and standard, but trying to convince a dealer that there is some worth in your 4 year old Mondeo with the above mileage was a joke. Even against another exact replacement the best Mr Local Ford Agent would offer was £1200!!
In the end, the private buyer got a cracking deal - fully loaded run around, in tip top nick, and will full history. Sailed through its MOT as well just before being sold, and other than tyres and servicing during its life with us required nothing else at all.
To live is to drive
Paddler Ed
High Mileage vs Low Mileage
I've got a 2000 Volvo V70 that I bought in Jan 2007 with 172,000 miles on the clock, full main Volvo service history. It got parked up in March 2010 with 225,000 miles on the clock. Costs in that time?
In Australia we bought an immaculate genuine Low Mileage 1986 Toyota Land Cruiser, 138,000km on the clock, and sold it with 151,000km when we had to unexpectedly leave. In that time we had:
All up about $1500 of parts and labour; OK when we sold it I cover 2/3 of that cost, but even so that was luck because we were at the top end of the market for that vehicle.
Which per mile was cheaper to run?
I'd say that the Volvo was, and on the basis of that experience I'll now always buy something with miles on it; most of the consumable/expendable parts have been replaced, and if they haven't been replaced they're getting enough use that they aren't seizing up and causing problems.
Neither car had any corrosion, and in fact my V70 is getting broken for spares on the driveway at the moment, and is realising a lot more than the scrap man would pay (in fact at the moment I'm about 4x what the scrap man would give me) so is really cheap motoring for 5 years (ab)use, and still counting becuase there is still some value in a body shell, engine, gearbox, cats and wheels!
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