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[Wangswong]

Good afternoon folks.

Finally got news of the house sale on the 20th so will be looking to get rid of the death trap mondeo derv asap after that.

I've been browsing the forum for weeks, pretty much every day, in preparation for buying a brabus (Did the same on the talkford forums and every "common" fault has happened to mine!)

Firstly, thank you all who contribute on the site. A wealth of knowledge for current / soon to be owners and it's been an invaluable source.

Secondly, I have a few issues regarding one in particular I've got bookmarked -

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201304286500846/sort/default/usedcars/model/forfour/make/smart/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/radius/1501/postcode/ne659rz/page/1/keywords/brabus?logcode=p

Cheapest available..... that could be taken either way. Plus it's the same one I linked when I first joined the forum a while back. A few months to sell one of these for a dealer...is this normal?

Wife gave me a limit of around 3.5k. No point going for a 4k+ lower mileage one with the travel I do monthly anyway.

What I'm trying to say (in a long winded way!) is, do any of you guys know of this brab and why the hell it hasn't sold yet? Maybe some more recent members have been to see it?

[Brabs]

Well... in the photos it looks ok BUT as we all know the camera can and often does lie! The ad' does say full service history but doesn't specify who did the servicing. Not necessarily a bad thing. Also no mention of cam belt change. I guess if you factor the potential cost of that against the cheap price? Anyway, IMHO if you are interested you need to go nag give it a thorough test drive and as with any used car listen for the obvious knocks, rattles and noises, fluid leaks, exhaust smoke etc. if possible take a knowledgeable mechanic with you to act as a dispassionate third party because you stand the chance of becoming seduced by the occasion. Could be a good on though at a bargain price. Any warranty mentioned? Good luck with your search.

 

[nodi]

I could be wrong, but doesn't a Brabus have standard headlight washers?  This one doesn't have them, or they have fitted a new front bumper without the openings for the washers.

[CrazyG]

Headlamp washers were not a standard feature on the Brab...
(the 56 plate one that I owned didn't have them).
As usual it was a factory fit option at initial purchase on all
the models, not just the Brab. More often than not, it was
manufactured on the production line with them as the dealers
needed an 'assorted' stock for sales/showroom etc.

TBH, it was just about one of the very few options available to
be had/ordered for the Brab...apart from Monoblock A's, Radio6
or Navigator, electric sunroof, Nokia 6310/6310i handsfree kit...

[Brabs]

Headlamp washers were not a standard feature on the Brab...
(the 56 plate one that I owned didn't have them).
As usual it was a factory fit option at initial purchase on all
the models, not just the Brab. More often than not, it was
manufactured on the production line with them as the dealers
needed an 'assorted' stock for sales/showroom etc.

TBH, it was just about one of the very few options available to
be had/ordered for the Brab...apart from Monoblock A's, Radio6
or Navigator, electric sunroof, Nokia 6310/6310i handsfree kit...

... and three seat rear bench.

 

[funkydoodycool]

Don't be put of by the mileage for that price and if you're planning low mileage.  Mine's just about to hit 70k miles, but then it's also about to be garaged for the next couple of years, apart from the occasional "maintenance" drive.

As Brabs says, just take a drive and listen/test for the usual things.  Warm it up and find an open road to test the acceleration too, particularly the higher revs, and probably worth checking the clutch out (try to pull off in fifth).  Of course, they may have paperwork that says the clutch was done recently.

If the cambelt isn't done... well I'd either take the low price and accept having to pay £4-500 more for that, or at least ask them to knock £200 off the price to go halves on the cambelt change.

[Problemchild]

I know it's not the best way of judging cars but the house behind would give me more confidence than if it was parked in a muddy yard!

I would go and see it - it's the only way.

It's cheap because its done 100k and this would put most people off.

Grab a bargain

Then again it may just have sold and they haven't taken the ad down

JJ

[Wangswong]

Cheers for the replies.

Mileage has never bothered me. As long as all is in order with paperwork / HPI etc then it's a case of floor it and listen as suggested  (after warming it up ofc!). Clutch I can do myself if needs be but the belt "may" be beyond me. Never done one before so can't assess it's difficulty. It does appear to have a radio 6 on one of the internal pics but no mats as stated on the advert. Quite a nice powder finish on the wheels too!

@ Problemchild. The ads been relisted for at least 2 months which is what's making me a bit sus. Not called them yet but will be asking as many questions as possible before taking the trip.

Plus point is it's not massively far for me. It seems that most brabs that come up for sale seem to be 250+ miles away from here (nr. Newcastle), all down south. I assume that most members on here are southern also?

[Scoobysook]

There is one listed on here by a member on the site- Matt. Based in Woking and at a price abit more then your budget but 30k miles less then the other one.

[Wangswong]

Thanks Scoobysook.

It's not a capped budget as such so the 3k's more a ball park figure the wife plucked from the air.

Issue is that it's a 700 mile round trip if I did decide to go have a look.

As stated earlier, that seems to be one of the things with these cars. They all seem to be based a million damn miles away!

[mr singh]

if your willing to travel you are more likely to get yourself a bargain.
my mate used to but and sell bikes and he told me that he would travel to Scotland to get a bike he could make money on.
i live in Leeds and went to Birmingham to pick up my forfour

[Wangswong]

Travels not a massive issue but has a few flaws.

Picked up the S type from Wolverhampton a few years ago.

Issue is that my son loves to come along on these long day trips. As much as I love him, the constant chat about Power Rangers / Super Mario and 5 minute toilet breaks are enough to drive anyone mad! Duck tape and a bottle should sort that one out

Meh, just have to contain myself until everything comes through and start the hunt after.

[funkydoodycool]

I wouldn't worry about the timescale - hardly anyone in this country knows a forfour exists, let alone a Brabus version.  My own sat on Autotrader for 3 months and only one person ever called (someone who is on this very forum and wishes he had a Brab!).

When it didn't sell, I decided to sort my finances, do it up and keep it, and here we are

The Micra that I sold to make space for it sold in 2 days.

[Brabs]

Travels not a massive issue but has a few flaws.

Picked up the S type from Wolverhampton a few years ago.

Issue is that my son loves to come along on these long day trips. As much as I love him, the constant chat about Power Rangers / Super Mario and 5 minute toilet breaks are enough to drive anyone mad! Duck tape and a bottle should sort that one out

Meh, just have to contain myself until everything comes through and start the hunt after.

I drove from Devon to Harlow in Essex to get my Brab. Knew that it was the right car so worth the journey IMHO.

 

[mr singh]

if your unable to go view the car then ask loads of questions before you do and buy it/pick it up. ask for more pictures if your unsure with the pictures in the ad.