Buying a Leon TDi (2000)

Danyp

Guest
Hi Guys/Gals :D

I am new to SEAT and to Diesels... so would really appreciate any help from you guys! :help:

I am planning to a buy a 2000 X Reg Leon (1.9TDi S).

The car has done 47K miles from new with 2 owners. Full SEAT Service History.

Featurelist
-Manual
-47,000 miles
-Red
-Air Conditioning
-Adjustable Steering Column
-Anti-Lock Brakes
-Power Assisted Steering
-Electric Windows (Front)

Price: £4000

ln1ia1.jpg

ln2lx0.jpg


Before I make the decision to take the plunge... i would really like some :help: from you all :)

I took the car for a test drive today and have a few doubts I hope you guys can help me with.

When I got to the dealer, the car was already running (not that pleased seeing that)... So i tried looking under the bonnet and all looks good there, but when i started to drive off I could see quite a lot of smoke (White/light grey) coming out of the back of the car... for a sec I thought it was about to break down or somethin... but after a couple of minutes it kinda went off and was less smoky. Is this normal for this car??? BTW the time was 2PM... and it was pretty sunny today.... I also noticed that the car smoked if i rev high in lower gears... being new to diesels I would really appreciate if anyone in here could please confirm this smoking issue.

The second quesiton, might be a stupid one :) , does this car have a cam belt?? If so, how often does it need replacing?

Third one... when i turned on the Ignition, before I start the car, it showed "Service" on the instrument cluster... does this mean the car is due a service?? and once it showed "ERROR" on the screen next to the stereo and the instrument Cluster... what does this mean?

I would really appreciate if you guys could please help me with the above questions and let me know if there is anythin else I should look for before buying

Cheers
Dany
 

FINN

Active Member
Nov 21, 2006
70
0
Northern Ireland - Belfast
Hi Danny,

I currently am owner of a 1.9tdi S, mine is a 2004 model however.

In terms of the engine being warm when you arrived, this (as you hsve said) is not a good sign. If you are going to buy the car it is probably worth going back for a second test drive - but this time tell the seller you want to start it from cold.

My car can produce a little smoke but it is usually black, as it is a DERV. The white smoke could be 2 things. If the car has been sitting around for a long time or just started and stopped to move it around a forecourt it is possible it is justt condensation that is boiling off as the exhaust is warming up. However it could also be a sign of a head Gasket. Have you looked under the oil filler cap for a white residue or checked the coolant expansion tank to check for oil in the water?

The service on the dash means it has either been over a year/10,000 miles since it was last reset. Check the service book to see when it was last serviced. Don't worry about resetting it, you can do this yourself, it tells you how to in the instructions. The "error" code. cant help you there.

The car does have a cambelt/timing belt. As the car will be 8 this year it should have been canged 2 years ago i.e every 60000miles or 6 years.

Apart fromt that just look for the usual Leon quirks, dead Break Light switck, usual rattles (back seats, boot lid panel etc)

All said and done I am very happy with my car. It has done 44000 miles and is looking and feel good. It is not the fastet from a standing start but is excellent on once moving.

Best of luck,
Finn
 

gaztaman

Guest
the service thing means its due for a service. smoke is normally ok for diesels. If its blue you want to worry. also check the door seals and footwells for damp and seat are notorious for leaking.
 

FINN

Active Member
Nov 21, 2006
70
0
Northern Ireland - Belfast
Also, check the rear wiper, it does not appear to be resting in a level position. Also the water should point straigt up when in use and should not move with the arm. Also make sure the boot is dry. The pipe that delivers water to the wiper can come undone and spray water all over the boot. As you are standing looking into the boot check the left hand side under the light. Again an easy fix.
 

Danyp

Guest
Hi

Thanks for your quick reply all...

@FINN: Thanks for the info on cold start. The dealer did mention that he drove the car to south wales a couple of weeks back and after that i was never started. He mentionedthe battery was dead and thats reason he kept it on for a while. I did check the oil cap and it looks clean. Now the Service message makes sense. I checkd the service book and it was serviced last on 42K which was end of 2006. so well over a yr now.

So i guess the white smoke might be because of leaving the car untouched for 2 weeks... Anyways I will ask for a cold start next time.

Honestly I didnt notice the rear wiper untill you mentioned its position ;) thanks for that I will check it out.

@gaztaman: You are soooo right abt the door seals... its all messed up. The dealer will be doin a service at SEAT before delivery (If I go for it) so he has promised to replace them.

I did do a quick check under the carpets in the boot and inside and looked fine... it was black so not 100% if it was ever wet :(

So i guess things to check now are a cambelt change and a cold start + the wiper.

BTW does this car have a Turbo?? should I be worried about this ?? read a lot about Turbo failures (Mostly due to remap).

Thanks for the help guys

Cheers
Dany
 

FINN

Active Member
Nov 21, 2006
70
0
Northern Ireland - Belfast
Hi Danny,

Yea it has a turbo, it should be fine, I rarely hear of them going wrong. If you drive along with the drivers windown down once the engine spins to about 17-1800 rpm you will hear the turbo whistle.

Make sure the guy either gets the belt changed or gives you a good discount ( say about £300) to allow you to get it changed. When it is being changed you could also get the water pump changed to once with a metal impeller, the OEM part has a plastgic impeller, owners have reported that these fail regularly.

Finally (hopefully) make sure you view the car when it is dry. VAG red paint has a habit of fading due to uv bleching from the sun. This will not be evident when the car is wet. The worst panels to suffer from this is the roof and bonnet.
 
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Danyp

Guest
Hi

Thanks again for your prompt response..

Going down there soon for a second look :) and will keep all the suggestions in mind

I read a lot about leon diesels in the last 24 hrs [B)]... which got me into even more confusion... I believe the car I am looking at is a 1.9 TDi S (90) .

This is the first Leon I have ever Driven... so no Idea how the 110 and 130 feels like... Since you own a S i hope you could help me..

1. What do you think of the Price? is its a fair price for an S for that Year/Mileage?

2. Being an S there is no electric Mirros/Climate Control/Rear Elec. Window or Front Fogs...I am not that bothered about the mirrors and climate, but how easy is it to retro fit the fogs??

Thanks for your help again..

Cheers
Dany
 

gaztaman

Guest
to give you an idea, i paid 4k for my 2002 leon 110tdi SE with about 82k on the clock. the condition is pretty good but im sorting a few things out on it like the leaking door seals. i dont think theres a huge difference on the 90/110 but the 130 will have a good kick to it.
 

FINN

Active Member
Nov 21, 2006
70
0
Northern Ireland - Belfast
In terms of price, I think it is about £500 to much, I would be happier paying about £3500. Mind you I live in Northern Ireland, not sure where you're from so proces may be slightly higher if say you live in the south of England.

The fog lights, as far as I know, are simply a case of buying the kit from a dealer, about £130, and plugging them into the loom. I stand to be corrected on this however
 
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