Advice on LCR for sale please.
- Thread starter RobDon
- Start date
I plan to break mine rather than sell. Hoping to build a 4motion golf using all the good bits from the lcr.
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OK, went to see an LCR that's for sale yesterday and would like some input on my findings and what you would do please. I found the following:
1. First impressions were pretty good, looks in good condition.
2. The owner drove me from the station back to his house, as a passenger it felt a little rattly and loose to me.
3. Inspecting the car I only found a couple of scratches that I could sort easily.
4. I went over the car with my paint depth gauge to check for any respray or repair work and found that the whole roof, bonnet and offside wing have been resprayed. A normal reading is around 120 microns - the roof showed 827! That's body filler and paint on there, which gave me immediate cause for concern - has this car been in an accident or is it dents/stone chips/scratches, etc. 827 seems way too thick to be minor repairs to me.
5. Interior was ok apart from some marks on the plastics and the red showing through on the steering wheel and gearknob - consistent with 98k miles I guess.
6. Engine bay was very clean, Badger 5 TIP and induction kit etc. It is REVO stage 2 with a dyno printout showing 285bhp.
7. TX Autosport FMIC fitted, front bumper hadn't been refitted very well, few top clips missing and a trim panel missing too. bumper covered in stone chips and would require repainting for me personally.
8. Rear brake discs are drilled but new front discs are plain, so for me the rear discs would have to be replaced with plain ones.
9. Bizzarely (to me) the owner has chopped off the large oval tailpipe and fitted small twin tailpipes, making this LCR look like an LC from the rear?
10. Alloys are black but need a refurb, 4 good tyres on it.
11. Brembo calipers faded and need a refurb.
Now I am not condemning this car, far from it, but for me the respray work and filler under the paint does raise my concerns - accident damage or just stone chip/dent/scratch repairs? It is HPi clear having run a check myself, 4 previous owners, 1 of which only owned the car for 3 months though?
The whole car felt quite loose and rattly to me, but coming from my own Leon which felt tight and solid with only 46k miles on it compared to 98k. The MOT also showed a list of advisories too, which were all ticked off so have all been addressed I think.
Would you run a mile from this car?
For me to be happy with this car I would have to refurb the wheels (£300), the calipers (£20 DIY), replace the rear discs (£50 DIY), respray the front bumper (£300), large oval tailpipe refitted (£100), have the steering wheel recovered (£150), new gearknob (£100?) and possibly replace the TX Autosport FMIC as it looks like a cheapo to me. So roughly £1,000 plus a new FMIC to put everything right.
It is priced at £3,700 on a 54 plate. I don't think it's worth that given all the above info.
Your thoughts please?
The only issue on there that would bother ME personally is the repair work. I'd ask the owner about that and just be open with him.
I'd probably be more concerned about 280+ bhp if the rods were standard. But then if you installed forged rods you could get new rings in at the same time and give the engine a bit of a refresh.
98k shouldn't be a big deal a lads just posted how he has hit 200k plus.
A small point which is more positive, he has a B5 tip which shows he is willing to buy decent bits for the car, ie not a cheap skate.
Oh and my steering wheel was showing red coming through at 30k! I must have toxic hands or summet
I quite like the look of a worn steering wheel though it looks lived in.Did you have a quick check of his mpg?
Definitely done the right thing Rob, my LC still felt tight to over 110k miles and only now are irritating things coming to light.
I bought my 04 LCR in September for £4400. It was up for £4900 originally but I rang the dude and said I'd come and look at it for somewhere in the region of £4600, which he agreed. It had 63500 miles, about 4 old mot certificates and tax discs and FSSH upto 56k. It had just had the cambelt and water pump done at 63000, receipted parts and work and a back street garage service at 62k (I will get a SEAT stamp in the book before 66k). It's got a receipt for £950 odd for genuine front and rear discs and pads, fluid and labour, with LOADS of other receipts in the folder I got it with. It's taxed and mot'd until the end of March and has two brand new Pirelli p zero rosso's on the front. Interior is mint minus one scratch on the glovebox and some wear on the steering wheel and gear knob. Here is the bad bits.... It had a dent in the o/s wing, and a paint crack on the rear bumper where it looks like someone has dropped something on it and the front bumper is stone chipped to death with a few on the bonnet. All the usual stuff too, like typical brembo fade, a couple of slightly curbed alloys and some bushes up front slightly perished but this doesn't bother me because all of this will be getting sorted hopefully in the next few months. Hope this can give you a bench mark, although I think I paid a couple of hundred over what I should have. The car was totally standard, no goodies except the cd changer which is normal with an LCR sale...?
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From what I've been to look at, LCR's in my price range are all thrashed old sheds, the really good ones go for a premium (quite rightly so) which I cannot afford, so looks like my dream of returning in an LCR is over, no others for sale within 100 miles of me that sound any good.
So I am turning my attention to a Mk4 Ibiza FR or Cupra. There are a few for sale which sound pretty good, most are newer with lower mileage than the LCR's, more modern styling, most are standard. Only 1 Cupra for sale within 100 miles of me though, a few FR's so am going to look at another one today. I only ever really drive around Edinburgh with the odd blast across to Dunfermline, so a wee Ibiza FR 1.8T will do just fine. (or even a TDi)
According to REVO, their map takes the 150bhp/160lbft FR to 202bhp/232lbft which will do just fine!
So I am turning my attention to a Mk4 Ibiza FR or Cupra. There are a few for sale which sound pretty good, most are newer with lower mileage than the LCR's, more modern styling, most are standard. Only 1 Cupra for sale within 100 miles of me though, a few FR's so am going to look at another one today. I only ever really drive around Edinburgh with the odd blast across to Dunfermline, so a wee Ibiza FR 1.8T will do just fine. (or even a TDi)
According to REVO, their map takes the 150bhp/160lbft FR to 202bhp/232lbft which will do just fine!
You'd think that wouldn;t you. But I had my Ibiza from new, and my LCR when it was 8 years old, with 150k on the clock.
Hmmm ... interesting comments, thanks for that. Went to look at an Ibiza FR this morning, nae good either, funny noise coming from the timing belt area and rust on the B-pillar just under the trim, was a 56 plate with 59k miles!
At this rate I'll be giving up on cars altogether and buying a mountain bike!
At this rate I'll be giving up on cars altogether and buying a mountain bike!
They're bad for rust there, and around the front and rear wheel arches.
Noise was most likely the alternator pulley. They're bad for failing too
Rob if you want my 2 pence, these cars are fast coming to the point where they're not worth selling whole... I bought mine as a Cat C write off for 2.5k knowing full well I would struggle to sell it as a written off hot hatch, but don't really have any intention of doing so - when I'm done with it I'll likely break it for parts and make my money back that way.
In light of that, I don't really care that it's had loads of panels resprayed, probably filled etc... I had a look at the inner pannels in the boot area and everything looks alright, the car drives fine, so I'm happy enough.
Being a detailer I imagine a perfect appearance is of more interest to you, although on the flip side of that I suppose if you look for something mechanically sound you can always work your magic on the appearance to make it look the part anyway..
In light of that, I don't really care that it's had loads of panels resprayed, probably filled etc... I had a look at the inner pannels in the boot area and everything looks alright, the car drives fine, so I'm happy enough.
Being a detailer I imagine a perfect appearance is of more interest to you, although on the flip side of that I suppose if you look for something mechanically sound you can always work your magic on the appearance to make it look the part anyway..
I have just bought a LCR 2weeks ago. "55" standard silver 40k 12 mot 6months tax FSH cam belt etc. bloke bought it for his wife who used it to go shopping in twice a week hence the mileage. They had it up for 5k went to have a look at it as they described it as superb example. Had a few marks on it, scratch on the front wing. Offered £4,500 and they took it. Brother in law had a look at it as he sprays cars for a job and said abit on the drivers side has been painted already, but doesn't bother me at all. Going in next week to get the other bits sorted. I use to have the AUQ 180! But absolutely love the LCR, keep looking the right one will pop up
Sadly after viewing 4 LCR's I have given up as they were all pretty crap and had too many things needing put right. I looked at 2 Ibiza FR's as well and they were no better. Mostly thrashed, worn out and poorly DIY modded. I would only have bought one of these cars as a project to work on and restore, not as a daily driver.
So I have given up and reverted to standard cars. I went to see a late 2008 red Ibiza 1.2 S A/C, WAY better condition than those older cars, very nice to drive, nice styling, nice interior, only 1 owner from new, full service history, MOT and tax until next July, felt tight and well made, perky wee engine. Made him an offer below the asking price and got it for a cracking price! Needs a full detail and interior clean but that's my bread and butter so will be done next week.
My 17-year old daughter is currently learning to drive so at least now she can drive this after she's passed her test. I only really drive around town so it suits my needs for now, cheap to run, insure, tax, etc. and looks pretty good with much more modern styling.
So I'm still in a SEAT but not the one I thought I'd be buying - oh well! I may own a fast SEAT again one day but not at the moment.
So I have given up and reverted to standard cars. I went to see a late 2008 red Ibiza 1.2 S A/C, WAY better condition than those older cars, very nice to drive, nice styling, nice interior, only 1 owner from new, full service history, MOT and tax until next July, felt tight and well made, perky wee engine. Made him an offer below the asking price and got it for a cracking price! Needs a full detail and interior clean but that's my bread and butter so will be done next week.
My 17-year old daughter is currently learning to drive so at least now she can drive this after she's passed her test. I only really drive around town so it suits my needs for now, cheap to run, insure, tax, etc. and looks pretty good with much more modern styling.
So I'm still in a SEAT but not the one I thought I'd be buying - oh well!
I may own a fast SEAT again one day but not at the moment.
Went to look at a 56 plate Ibiza FR 1.8T today, 59k miles - described as 'stunning' and 'mint' .......... erm no, it's definately neither of those! Nothing worked! The A/C, fans, CD player - nothing worked. Found rust on it too, scrape down the side, scuff on the bumper. Was going to look at another car on the way home but it was sold yesterday, so no luck today.
99% of cars described as stunning, mint and immaculate are never any of those.
that's the thing mate miles is nothing on a car,imo.
my car now has 109k on it and apart from the gearbox 2nd/3rd gear noise,wining the car is very quite inside, its only 10 yrs old, it is solid,and rides like its new, personally id be abit more
if I brought a leon with say 50/60k on the clock and forked out say 4/5k and then something goes wrong with it your forking out even more moneys.my car when new say did roughly 15k a yr but looked after very well from the stealers.
there is normally a rule I think from the moment you see the car you know if its for you or not,you just have that feeling
,within 1 or 2 mins your either a yes or no man,every car has its faults.
I don't have the time or inclination to do that anymore, I need a daily driver that I can jump in and drive, not spend days in my garage fitting new parts and re-doing other people's shonky DIY work - can't be bothered with that - been there and done that years ago.
If I ever buy a performance car again in the future, it will have to be a nearly new one, I certainly wouldn't pay £4k+ for an 8-10 year old car. I just bought a late 2008 Ibiza for £2,750 - exactly the same money as a 2003 LCR was up for and it was a 106k miles tired 10-year old shed compared to the Ibiza.
Looks like this but in red:
http://www.automobilesreview.com/pictures/seat/ibiza-5dr/wallpaper-02.html
Will suit me fine for now.
If I ever buy a performance car again in the future, it will have to be a nearly new one, I certainly wouldn't pay £4k+ for an 8-10 year old car. I just bought a late 2008 Ibiza for £2,750 - exactly the same money as a 2003 LCR was up for and it was a 106k miles tired 10-year old shed compared to the Ibiza.
Looks like this but in red:
http://www.automobilesreview.com/pictures/seat/ibiza-5dr/wallpaper-02.html
Will suit me fine for now.
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