stolen recovered car worth buying

[goofy gorilla]

hi guys - thinking of buying a car, i know the car was stolen and recovered, no damage whatsoever, done a hpi on the car and it was showing as:

CONDITION ALERT THEFT FOR: XXX XXXX SILVER VAUXHALL ASTRA ENERGY
Recorded against VRM and VIN Recorded on VCAR Vehicle Recorded As INSURANCE THEFT On Condition Alert Regstr Description VAUXHALL
Date 15/06/2010
is it still ok to buy the car or should i stay clear of it...mileage is very very low only 10k on a 07 plate car and looks like a great car and drives well...any advice befor i part with my hard earned money...? there was no damage to the car at all, apparently the car was stolen with the key...hence only 1 key comes with the car.

 

[RedHerring2]

It should always flag up that it's been stolen and recovered so may affect the resale value.
If you're satisfied that it's all OK, then go ahead, but be prepared to be stopped by the feds, if they don't update their systems quickly. Just carry your documents with you.
You should be able to order new keys from the dealers. Also, be aware that there are other keys for your car out there somewhere.

 

[JohnD]

be aware that it will be hard for you to sell, and you won't get a good price.

If you plan to keep it for a long time that might not matter.

 

[nickso]

in five years time it will be worth more as a chinese toaster, i very much doubt many people will be checking the database again if you come to sell it that far down the line.

 

[goofy gorilla]

cheers guys...i plan on keeping it for a few years, just to get me to work and back...as for the keys, seller only has one key, the other key got missing when it was stolen..therfore there is a key out there somewhere that will fit the car...what im also concerned about when the police stop me, surely they must know that this car was stolen and has now been recovered...is there anything the seller can do before he sells me the car to avoid this happening or is there anything i can do ?...i suppose the key can be reprogrammed with a diddefent code to the ignition and immbiliser....probaly expensive that..

 

[big-all]

just a thought
will it effect the insurance costs in any way ??

 

[goofy gorilla]

im still in two minds as to go for it or not...there is no service history with the car, just had 1st mot done...im thinking to myself, what kind of mileage has it done in its first 3 years?...could the mileage have been clocked back ? as this is the first mot and will show its present mileage..might give it a miss..

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole and I'm sure I'm not alone. Plenty of fish in the sea.

 

[1john]

It;s going to come down to price, if it is significantly cheaper, I am not bothered about buying stolen recovered cars. I wouldn't be too bothered about service history either, it's all in the past , if i buy a car it gets serviced and a cam belt done, i take that into accout when negotiating a price. How much cheaper is the car, what is the condition of it, if the engine bay is very clean and the seats have no wear / look like most of them havent been sat in then the car may well have done 10k, it's not unusual for cars to do very little mileage. Cars like this are soon worth pennys anyway, your buying a vauxhall, not a Japanese or German car.

If it's cheap enough, buy it and get it serviced and have the cam belt done too. Start your history with the car when you get it, this will be favourable when you come to sell it, keep it well services, keep receipts for all work and wear and tear items.

 

[PJF220]

im still in two minds as to go for it or not...there is no service history with the car, just had 1st mot done...im thinking to myself, what kind of mileage has it done in its first 3 years?...could the mileage have been clocked back ? as this is the first mot and will show its present mileage..might give it a miss..

Any car bought second hand could have been clocked, not serviced and have a key missing, I think you're just panicing because you know it's been stolen recovered. I've bought many a car with just one key, no service history and possibly some clocked ones. If you are looking to sell the car a couple of years down the line then perhaps some history would be nice to see, but if you are going to run it in to the ground then what does it matter? As has been said, just look at the condition of the engine bay, look in the oil filler neck, check the dip stick and air filter. Does it look like it's been looked after or is it dirty as hell? Are the seats tidy or look like they'd done a million miles?

As for being pulled all the time if the police don't update the records, that's rubbish unless you live in a particularly troubled area for car crime. My BMW used to have a personalised plate but was changed back when I bought the car. I've had it 4 years and was pulled over for speeding a couple of months ago. It was only when they started doing their checks that they asked if it had a private plate recently, I explained and they said their records had never been updated.... I've basically been driving for 4 years with a plate that does not match any registered car and not once pulled for it.

You sound like, and I know it's stereotyping, the sort of person who gets reassurance from having service history, both keys, lots of receipts and a clear HPI check. The swing side of that is my work car will go back with both keys, full service history, both stamped book and garage receipts. The car has decent mileage and is clean and tidy... but as the only driver, I know what it's really like and I'd avoid it like the plague. Just shows, what looks good on paper is not always the shiny gem it appears.

 

[salem2000]

I was under the impression that after the insurance company paid out on the insurance, the vehicle was their property not the original owners.

 

[georgiepie]

i bought a fiesta damaged repairable that is on the register best thing i ever did saved meself a grand never had any problems with it from day one use it every day for work il run it till it falls apart i think if not theres always one of me mates who will buy it even knowing its history,id say buy it and enjoy it save a few quid and put it towards a nice holiday and dont forget there are people making a good living from this buying these so called write offs getting them back on the road and makin a few quid a mate of mine bought a mondeo that had been in a flood dried it out runs like a dream that was few years back and got his money back when he sold on even with its history

 

[Mickymoody]

It seems strange that it was stolen/recovered, by the key, and not returned to the owners? Hmm.

You can always get the servicing data from the dealership, as it's all logged electronically nowadays.

If you only have one key, is it the masterkey? or one of the two duplicates produced? Might be an idea to research where the origionals are, or think about recoding the key that you have?

I have a bunch of keys for my old Escort (R reg), and have seen my old Avensis knocking around..V reg..