Car Sales
Buying a Used Car – 7 Things to Consider
Buying a used car is something most of us do at least once in our life. It’s a right of passage for many people – buying a new car is a great feeling, and especially good you find an excellent deal and are able to enjoy trouble free motoring.
If you’re looking at buying a used car that’s maybe 1-2 years old, Private Fleet can help. We get access to a large amount of trade in vehicles – you’re always able to access the very best of what’s out there.
If you buy a used car from Private Fleet, you can be sure that the vehicles is in an almost good as new condition. We’re proud of our ability to source the very best cars out there, but even if you’re not buying through us, here are 5 things to consider when buying a used car.
Check the history
When buying a used car, you need to make sure you know at least a little bit about its history. The history can tell you a lot not just about the car but the type of person who has owned it in the past. Check for service intervals, and when the all-important cambelt or timing belt was changed. The more you know about the service history of a car, the more you’ll be able to mitigate future, costly repairs.
Does it have any leaks?
Check all the hoses, tubes and pipes in the engine, and if possible, the underside of the car. Leaks can often be hidden, and provide slow burning problems that worsen over time. Piped not doing their job can also affect a lot of components – stay aware from vehicles that obviously display these kind of issues.
Check for corrosion
Hidden corrosion can be the arch nemesis of your car and its health. Inspect the wheel arches, the wings and as much of the sills as you can – poking suspect areas. If you finger goes through the rust, steer well clear
How does it turn at slow speeds?
Drive the car slowly and make a series of 90-degree turns left and right. Observe how the car steers and the feedback from the road – are there any knocking noises? If there are, it could signify wishbone or anti-roll issues. It’s repairable, but be wary, and make sure you factor this in to the amount you’re willing to spend on the car.
Have the tyres worn evenly?
Tracking and balance issues caused by problems to the suspension and the anti-roll system can make the tyres wear unevenly. Even if there’s no outward sign of issues with the internal structure of the car, uneven tyre wear can potentially give the game away.
Check the condition of the fluids
As well as making sure you’re checking the levels of the fluid in the car, check the quality of it too. If the oil is brown, black or grimey, it could be an indication that it hasn’t been changed in a long time. Sludge build ups also indicates this, alongside the possibility of overheating problems. Additionally, check the quality of the coolant – dirty or off-colour water needs to be changed.
Test drive the car
Of course this goes without saying, but you would be surprised how many people buy a car without scrutinising it or understanding the specifics of how it drives. If you do buy the car, you will of course discover idiosyncrasies you’ll have to deal with – but most major issues can be discovered by taking it on a drive at all speeds and making sure it goes through the gears.
If you’re looking to we have here at Private Fleet a vast wealth of knowledge about the car industry in Australia and how to get the best deal possible. We have access to a huge amount of vehicles that have been traded in – contact us for more information.
Classic Cars: Aston Martin DB5.
For everyone, there is something they consider important in their life; it even gets to the point where they meet up with like minded people. For some, a car is nothing more than a method of getting from A to B, like a fridge is for keeping things cold, a TV is for watching a reality program (shudder) but for many a car is a symbol of desire, of majesty, of perfection. In the first of an ongoing series (and because I grew up, like so many, with Sean Connery as Bond, James Bond) I’ve selected the Aston Martin DB5 to kick it off.
DB stands for David Brown, the head of Aston Martin from 1947 to 1972. The DB series commenced in 1950 with the DB2. 
The DB5 was launched in 1963, an evolution of the DB4. The alloy engine was increased from 3.7 litres to 4.0 litres with 210 kW available, a new five speed manual transmission (after the initial four speed manual was dropped) was standard and a weight of just 1500 kilos provided a top speed of 230 kmh and a 0-100kmh time of just over seven seconds. A buyer of a DB5 got electric windows, wool pile carpet, leather trim, disc brakes and a damned good looking car, thanks to the Italian company Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera. There was 123 convertibles made (one most famously driven by Prince William after his wedding) with 37 made from October 1965.
Most people would know of the DB5 from the James Bond movie, Goldfinger. Somewhat scarily now, it was the prototype DB5 car used in the film, with another car providing the stunts. Complete with machine guns, ejector seat, Roman era style rotating
blades from the centre of the wheels and oil slick making gadgets, the DB5 quickly became, at the time, the most famous car in the world. Priced, when new, at 4175 pounds sterling for the hardtop and 4490 pounds sterling for the soft top, it was expensive for the time but when you consider one sold at auction in 2010 for 2.3 million pounds (one used the films Goldfinger and Thunderbird admittedly…) it’s a bargain now.
Still regarded as one of the most beautiful cars ever produced (alongside fellow Britisher the Jaguar E-Type), the coupe style fastback was a stunner. Laid back headlights, air vent in the bonnet, the now traditional and famous grille design with seven vertical bars, the low sweeping design leading into the three bulb tail lights conspired to delight and beguile the eyeballs.
A timeless design with curves Jennifer Hawkins would envy, a powerplant that provided some startling numbers for the ’60s and showing up in a couple of the most loved films of the James Bond pantheon have continued to excite and enthrall lovers of automotive beauty. The Aston Martin DB5, a classic car.
Still Holden On…But For How Long?
Holden’s call for extra funding has been answered in the most unexpected way; the answer was no yet they look like they will get their funds request. Confused?
As it stands, it appears the Federal Government has had a change of heart and will NOT go ahead with the proposed funding cuts of around a half billion dollars. This isn’t good news for just Holden, it’s good news for Toyota and Ford AND all of the businesses that supply the automotive industry. Holden also hadn’t put forward a formal request for extra funding by the end of 2013 as they were expected to do, as Industries Minister Ian Macfarlane’s office confirmed recently. Current funding for Holden was approved and locked in by the previous Government, which was intended to give Holden the strength to manufacture two cars through to 2022. Says Mr Macfarlane after the walk through at Holden’s Elizabeth, South Australia factory: “There’s money there,” he said. “The Labor Party’s added money through to 2020, which we haven’t touched and I’m not going to touch – that’s all there for keeps. It’s in the forward estimates, it’s been through the budgetary process, it’s been legislated, there’s at least $1 billion. The more, the better, as far as I am concerned, because I don’t want the industry to close down, I want them to keep going.”
This would indicate that although the Government had said they’d withhold $500million, it wasn’t mentioned that there would still be the same amount on offer anyway. This comes from an interim investigation that Mr Macfarlane has requested into the state of the industry to be completed within three months with a more detailed report to follow by the end of the first quarter of 2014. Should that report be as Mr Macfarlane clearly hopes, then there will be funding put forward with that coming from the surplus due to an underspend of allocated funds, thanks to the downturn in production over the last couple of years. This also apparently backs Holden’s original call for extra funding due to a change of market conditions since their original funding request was signed off by state and the Federal Governments in 2012.
Ship Out Or Else: Holden Told To Increase Exports
New Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane has given Holden a blunt piece of advice: export more if you want more support. With the red lion brand finding public support dwindling thanks to its near sighted attitude, it’s advice Holden itself are probably well aware of.
Macfarlane has said he’d like to see Holden with an export rate of around 30%; currently the numbers are 17% against Toyota’s 72% which begs the question: are Toyota making a better product or have a better export market situation? The local arm of General Motors has tried exports before and currently has the Caprice being sold into the US as a 
police vehicle. It was also sold into the Middle East successfully yet doesn’t appear to have been continued as a market, with the exchange rate a telling indicator. In 2005 Holden shipped out over 60, 000 vehicles to the US and Middle East, about 38% of its production. Aiding that was having the dollar buying just 71c US. Now it’s more in the region of 95c…. Counting against Holden currently is the economic value of the dollar, plus the expectation that, from 2016 onwards, the two vehicles it will build here in Australia will also be built for and by overseas markets, further cruelling a long term export market.Toyota loses around $2500 on each Camry exported but, crucially, with such a high number of imported Toyotas sold, makes that back on those imported sales. MacFarlane says: “I know (Toyota is) doing it at a loss, I’d like to stop that happening,” said Mr Macfarlane.“But that shows real dedication to me to Australia. That’s what Toyota are about.” Toyota has also just completed its one millionth export Camry.
Holden is also copping flak for importing wheels from the US for its high end Redline models whilst ROH Wheels, once a major supplier and 
located just 25 kilometres from Holden in Adelaide sits waiting. Toyota sources all of its rolling stock from ROH; Holden insists it’s to do with the higher than expected demand for their new VF Commodore and, in particular, the Redline, as there’s now a three month waiting list. It’s also better news for the struggling company, with demand for the Commodore firmly placing the range into the top five sellers in Australia.
Another issue with Holden is the increasing non local componentry in the Commodore; the Falcon is 70 percent locally supplied whilst Toyota is 65%…the Commodore is around fifty percent whilst the success story that is Cruze is even lower, at just 30%. In just the last week, a number of staff from Holden’s purchasing and admin sections were let go and this is on top of a number of design and engineering staff at about the same time. Coming into play is the new government’s forthright attitude and its confirmation of restructuring car industry funding. Says Mr Macfarlane: it will make good on its pre-election promise to cut $500 million from the $5.4 billion set aside for car manufacturing industry assistance.“We’re not giving back the $500 million, so I’ve got to come up with a solution there,” said Mr Macfarlane. “And then we’ve got to have a long term plan which will be ‘The End’, in capital letters, in black, six feet high, ‘This is all we’re ever going to give you’. That’ll be the end. I won’t be seeing car companies after that.”
It’s not shaping up to be a smooth road for the red lion.
Level 2, 9 Help Street