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Buying advice needed


Jason T
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Hi,

I've just joined the forum as I thought it would be a good place to get some advice on buying an Arosa :rolleyes:

First off I have a couple of questions:

- Which engine is more economical, 1,7SDI or 1.4TDI

- Which engine do you all prefere and why?

- Is there any advantage in paying more for a Lupo? are they any better?

I have just been to look at a '51 reg 1.4 TDI Arosa S in red. Its done 88500 miles, has had 2 owners and has a good service history.

It is very clean inside and out and drives very nicely. The only problem I could find is a long scratch on the drivers side, which has been poorly touched up. Overall I would say it is in good condition. The guy is asking 2500 for it, however he says he will drop a bit. What would be a fair price for this car? Its on autotrader at the min, there are plenty of pictures on there.

Thanks for the help

Jason

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1.4 TDI is much better. The SDi is a seriously old design and not up to modern standards. Its a tough old unit though and eady to work on!

The Lupo is not worth the extra cash at all, they arent built any better. Also I think the Mk2 Arosa is much better looking than the Loop!

Some people will disagree i'm sure :shades:

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MPG wise id say you will get better MPg from the SDi, purely because its slower so makes you drive slower. Whereas the TDi has quite a bit of go about it for a small car so its fun to press on the loud pedal :D

When you think the Arosa TDi has 75 BHP, what other small cars have so much as standard? 1.4 TDCi fiesta (68bhp) 207 HDi (70) Swift 1.3D (68), even the polo/ibiza TDi has 80 BHp but its a lot heavier so its still slower.

The TDi is the best engine, has lots of pull, something you need for lots of motorway miles, great economy. Im not sure if the SDi will be £35 a year tax is it? Im asuming not since is quite an old unrefined lump compared to the TDi.

To get a SDi you either need a mk1 Arosa or a Lupo. So your best of getting a TDi so you can have the Mk2 Arosa :P

Its not worth paying more for a lupo, the Arosa and Lupo are very similar spec, the lupo has a few things the arosa doesnt and vice versa.

Just had a look on autotrader, it looks like a good one to me. In fact im sure that one was for sale last september when i was looking for one, looks identicle with the black trims down the side and only front mudflaps, also a 51 reg with optional sunroof, so i bet its the same. Although i didnt go and have a look at it since i found a lower mileage one. Carnt remember how many miles were on it then though.

Overall they are a cracking car and if it is a good one then you will not regret buying it, they are very refined for a small car and ive no idea what car ill choose to replace mine when the time comes, i love it that much :lol:

@ Tigz - there isnt much different in the quality of the Arosa and lupo, the Arosa has the same dash, only the Lupos finish is a bit more bobbly, the Arosa has better vents in the centre of the dash too, looks more funky. The lupos have blue backlighting but the Arosas have red, personally i like the red.

The earlier mk2 Arosas have light grey interiors with light grey botton fdash (just like the red TDi your looking at) but laters have dark all over so the same as a lupo. You can also get lupos with the light grey too. So they are the same.

Arosas look better IMO, but its all down to what you prefer the looks of, since you are looking for an arosa you must prefer those.

Check its had the cambelt done, It should be done every 40K or 4 years really, so if its not been done in the last 40K/4 years then try and budget that into the price.

The Lupo is not worth the extra cash at all, they arent built any better. Also I think the Mk2 Arosa is much better looking than the Loop!

Listen to this person, he is talking a LOT of sense :D Agree totally!

PM me if you want any more details or whatever :)

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Just found the advert for the car you are looking at, from September last year!

It had 71K with FSSH on then and was up for £2,795.

Thought you might like to know :)

Edited by cardaft
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Thanks for the helpfull replies guys! I guessed I would be opening a can of worms with the lupo/arosa debate lol.

TBH I like the looks of both, and I'm just after a reliable economical car, so if a lupo came up for the right money I would buy one :blush: However I think the Arosa is much better value for money :shades:

Looks like the seler has been honest then, he said that he bought the car about a year ago with 70k ish miles on it. The huge mileage is down to a 100 mile commute :wacko:

Should I be worried about the miles? I assume the engine is bulletproof, is the rest of the car up to it?

From what I've found out so far it is overpriced, and he is being a bit hopeful at 2500 just before christmas! lol

However he is open to offers and he needs it gone as he has his new car :shades:

So I might go around with 2K in cash and start waving it under his nose, if it works would you lot say thats a good deal? :coffee:

Thanks

Jason

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They cope well with the miles, there is a TDi Arosa here with 200K on it.

I bought mine since i was doing 60-120 miles a day commute, so mine has donw 21K more since i bought it last september. So they are often used for lots of miles so often for sale with lots of miles on the clock.

The rest of the car is very reliable, thay have a 12 year anti perforation warranty, so there shouldnt be any rust issuse since they are galvanised. Not that much to go wrong on them really, the TDi is about the hardiest (is that a word!) of them all since they dont suffer from pedal box issues like other models do.

Everything is easy to maintain, parts are quite cheap, you can get a set of front pads and discs for £50! rears are drums so last a whikle with just a bit of cleaning up. Tyres are around £30-£50 each depending on what make etc.

So yeah very reliable and cheap to maintain and run.

Id say if you could get it to around £2200 that would be a good deal, but like i say make sure its had its cambelt done.

Edited by cardaft
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Quick update on progress.

The cambelt was done at 60K miles by Seat, I'm unsure how long ago it was done :huh:

Anyway I can change it myself, so if I bought the car I would change it as a precaution. :coffee:

I phoned the seller and offered him 2K, surprisingly he turned it down! lol

He did say that 2300 is as low as he will go, I'm letting him sweat for a bit, will phone him back and see if we can have a deal :shades:

Jason

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The seller wouldn't budge even slightly below 2300 :blink: Due to it being just before christmas and him wanting rid of the car I think its a buyers market, so I have walked away. I would happily have paid 2200, but he was being stubborn so he can do without my money over christmas! lol However I did say if he has a change of mind he can give me a call :coffee:

So the hunt continues.......

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Thats a shame, to lose out for the sake of £100.

Hopefully there will be better ones come about then, at a similar price.

TBH you dont often see them up for much cheaper on autotrader, its about the going price for that age and mileage.

Infact im usually always keeping a check on them on autotrader and prices seem to be on the up!!!

Maybe due to the cheap tax and early next year they will be conjestion charge free in London.

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lol, maybe i'm being the stubborn one? :blush:

He just annoyed me by keep saying it was the best car in the world blah blah blah

But he forgot to mention in the advert it had a key scratch virtually the whole length of the drivers side!! :confused:

If he had been a bit more flexible we would have had a deal. I'll have a re-think over night, and see if I can find the extra £100 from somewhere lol

Jason

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arosa's are bulit buy the exactly same company as it falls within the VAG. Seat are made for the masses and are slightly cheap and imperior, but you also get more for your money.

Hence the reason why VW/Seat do not have a V8 or V10 sports car as this would be in to much compitition with the Audi V8 and V10 S-series cars.

Skoda, Seat, Audi, VW are all the same company, different marketing and different badges to capture a wider market. Bentley/Lambo and even porsche are all on the same pay role as the VW group to.

So buying a Arosa over a Lupo.......same car, slighlty cheaper, but still money in their pocket.

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Quick update :blink:

After telling everyone they aren't getting any presents this year because i wanted a new car I agreed on a price of 2300 with the seller.

I've just been to collect the car, and just as I was about to leave he handed me back £50 telling to have a few drinks on him :coffee: So I finished up by paying 2250, which I'm happy with:)

I had a 40 mile drive back home, so I had my first proper drive in the car. First off i'm surprised at how nippy it is!!! :shades:

With the current road conditions I found I was having problems with traction in first gear if I pulled away quickly :rolleyes:

It drives very nicely, no strange noises or anything, feels like you are driving a much larger car.

The plan was to leave this car as standard, but on the drive home a list of modifications was forming :blush:

Anyway, thanks for the advice that was given, in the new year i will get some nice photos of it and post them up!!!

Jason

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