Cat D Vs High Mileage - Which is worse?

[Sarnie]

So, doing my usual surfing of the classifieds that I seem to do every day and I couldn't quite resolve this question in my head?

 

Which stigma is worse?

 

The unknown of the Cat D issues or the potential unknown issues of high mile cars?

 

For example, one car I seem to always look, at there are lots of cars like this;

 

£17k - Cat D - 30k

£17k - 90k

£25k - 30k

 

- Is it worth saving £8k and buying a Cat D 30k example?

- Is a £25k 30k car really worth the premium?

- Is a 90k car really that bad?

- Which do you prefer; 90k miles or 30k but Cat D?

- All things being equal, would you rather buy a 90k car or a 30k Cat D car?

 

My own thoughts are that I'd never buy a Cat D car. I've bought high mile cars before without issue but looking at the classifieds, the high mile cars aren't selling............

 

Opinions?

[GMballistic]

With a full good service history and not a huge number of previous owners I'd take the high mileage car every day of the week over any Cat D.

[Stutopia]

Probably miles for me, before CAT D. But I guess it depends on how well you know the seller and the damage and the people who put it back together - could be a bargain if it's been done by someone you trust and a garage you rate.

[Sarnie]

Why though?

 

What if the equivalent Cat D was down to something like panels being keyed, but all have been factory replaced so mechanically it's still a 30k car?

 

I'm struggling to reconcile which is potentially worse. Ordinarily, i'd go with the higher miler but in two years that car might be up to 110k and the cat D 50k; which is the more attractive then??

[KyleR]

For me the age would be relevant, too. If 90k was done in 2-3 years it would probably put me off and i'd be looking at one of the 30k-ers. If there were plenty of pictures and details on the repair and it was one of those first year write offs with minor damage, I may be inclined to save £8k and take the Cat-D.

[Stutopia]

Irrational fear for me. Don't like the idea something inside you can't see, might be cracked/bent and waiting to break/explode into flames on some bend 5k down the road. I know this could be the case on any car, it's irrational.

 

Agreed a keying is obviously not a big deal to fix, but even if you did every panel on a 30k car, surely that wouldn't be a CAT D ?

 

 

[KyleR]

Irrational fear for me. Don't like the idea something inside you can't see, might be cracked/bent and waiting to break/explode into flames on some bend 5k down the road. I know this could be the case on any car, it's irrational.

 

Agreed a keying is obviously not a big deal to fix, but even if you did every panel on a 30k car, surely that wouldn't be a CAT D ?

 

I'm pretty sure if that occurred in the first year of ownership it would result in a CAT D.

[coldel]

Depends on the car - many cat D VX220s out there simply because of a broken panel in a 5mph crash. Cars can get written off easily.

[Stutopia]

I never would've expected that. Every day is a school day.

[Sarnie]

Depends on the car - many cat D VX220s out there simply because of a broken panel in a 5mph crash. Cars can get written off easily.

 

Exactly.

 

My instant reaction when I see Cat D in the ad is to move on, but with a lot of high value cars it's easy for them to be written off. But then I see 90k cars and move on too.

 

And then I see the £25k 30k cars and think to my self "I could get in the same car but with higher miles for a lot less" !?!?!

 

A perfect example of this is I bought an M3 with circa 75k on it. My Dad is a complete mileage snob and bought one from a trader with 25k on it.

 

I paid £9k, he paid £18k.

 

Three months later my Dad decides he doesn't like it and sells it back to a trader for a £3k loss. I think a year later I'll get my money back, if not a small profit. Being a mileage snob cost him £3k

Edited July 25, 2014 by Sarnie

[DoogyRev]

I would look at a Cat D, but I would have to know what the extent the damage was and that it was not repaired by a Yee-Haaa. You can certainly save a few bucks. As for a high mile car, as long as its been maintained correctly, then thats not an issue for me either.

 

Also I think the stigma of a Cat D type thing is certainly a UK thing, or a lot worse in the UK . . . people could not really give a toss here, even though you have to state if its a crash/repair if you sell a car, servicing seems to be far more important, there is no such thing as an MOT here so poorly maintained vehicles are everywhere.

[Ekona]

If I can get full evidence of why it was a Cat D, who repaired it and what they did, I would buy one. If not, I'm moving on.

[Sarnie]

To be fair, I'd probably not buy any of the cars personally

 

Just, when looking at ads there's lots of cars that are priced low due to miles or being Cat D and those priced higher that are clean with low miles.

 

Just couldn't work out in my head which was the bigger issue; high miles, Cat D status or high price of a clean car?

[LRF4N]

Both could work out for you and save you cash

 

High miles- buy on good condition and with a full service history

 

Cat d- as ekona says a full report of the damage and repair before deciding

 

My cousin always buys high milers and sells them on without them depreciating too much further. He rarely has problems other than common faults or wear and tear. If well looked after mileage mainly affects the value of the car

 

Only reason I sold my zed was how much the value was dropping as it got closer to 100k. It was running perfectly

Edited July 26, 2014 by LRF4N

[cmck13]

A bit of a marmite subject but to get a informed view have a look at what the RAC say about Cat D.

 

http://www.rac.co.uk...rance-write-off

[Keyser]

I'm with the - depends on why it is a Cat D crowd, My good ladies roadster is a CAT D but it has never been in a crash - someone Stanley knifed open the roof to steal a handbag - that's it - it had a new roof and has had another one since (it started to leak)

 

By the same token a high mileage car that has been driven gently up and down the motorway and has a full service history is probably a good investment against a low mileage one that has been hammered.

 

So each case needs looking at on its merits

[Flex]

Given everything above into consideration, I would definitely go Cat D, especially if I planned on keeping for the long haul so that IF I sold then residual value would be squat anyway and not worth bothering about.

[marzman]

Does the value of the car matter at the time it's declared CAT D though?

 

e.g. i might buy a CAT D 350z now, as it might only have £2-3k of damage (i.e. scratched panels). However for a 370z to be CAT D it would need to have £15k+ of damage wouldn't it? (unless it was stolen recovered).

[Ekona]

Correct, it's percentage-based.

[martinmac]

I would consider why I wanted the car. If its something I intend to keep then the resale value wouldnt matter.

 

I would also want to know why it was a cat D and who repaired it. Provided I have this info I would be quite happy.

 

If a private seller declares its a cat D that would reassure me too, If I found out on an HPI check I would walk away.

[KyleR]

Does the value of the car matter at the time it's declared CAT D though?

 

e.g. i might buy a CAT D 350z now, as it might only have £2-3k of damage (i.e. scratched panels). However for a 370z to be CAT D it would need to have £15k+ of damage wouldn't it? (unless it was stolen recovered).

 

Good point about stolen recovered, the car is likely to be undamaged, so no reason not to buy at all.

[GMballistic]

Does the value of the car matter at the time it's declared CAT D though?

 

e.g. i might buy a CAT D 350z now, as it might only have £2-3k of damage (i.e. scratched panels). However for a 370z to be CAT D it would need to have £15k+ of damage wouldn't it? (unless it was stolen recovered).

 

Good point about stolen recovered, the car is likely to be undamaged, so no reason not to buy at all.

Could have been ragged around, over revved and generally just abused though whilst in the hands of the thieves.

 

My mate got his Nova GTE back years ago after it was stolen ~ the kids that had it had been driving around the same lanes trying to get the car to jump over humped back bridges. The car was shagged afterwards even though body work wise it looked fine.

[KyleR]

Does the value of the car matter at the time it's declared CAT D though?

 

e.g. i might buy a CAT D 350z now, as it might only have £2-3k of damage (i.e. scratched panels). However for a 370z to be CAT D it would need to have £15k+ of damage wouldn't it? (unless it was stolen recovered).

 

Good point about stolen recovered, the car is likely to be undamaged, so no reason not to buy at all.

Could have been ragged around, over revved and generally just abused though whilst in the hands of the thieves.

 

My mate got his Nova GTE back years ago after it was stolen ~ the kids that had it had been driving around the same lanes trying to get the car to jump over humped back bridges. The car was shagged afterwards even though body work wise it looked fine.

 

Any car you buy could be over revved and abused, though.

 

 

I think in the example you gave the car is easily stolen by any yob with a screw driver who knows where the hazard switch is, however modern cars are much harder to steal and are generally taken to sell on, not wreck.

[GMballistic]

Any car you buy could be over revved and abused, though.

 

 

I think in the example you gave the car is easily stolen by any yob with a screw driver who knows where the hazard switch is, however modern cars are much harder to steal and are generally taken to sell on, not wreck.

Yes true but generally people that legally own the car and have paid good money for it tend not to thrash it within an inch of it's life everyday or for hours at a time.

 

Personally I would never buy a stolen/recovered car but if you would then that's your prerogative.

[KyleR]

Yea but we're not talking about sheds here, we're talking about £25k cars. No one invests the time and money into being able to steal these cars with the various pieces of high tech gadgets that are required nowadays, to thrash it around the roads and try to jump bridges, they're stolen to sell on.