Millbrook Posted February 26, 2010 Report Share Posted February 26, 2010 Hi, my name is Mark and I'm hopefully going to be purchasing a Lupo in the coming weeks. Well, the car will be the Grilfriends but it'll be me who looks after it! I've finally persuaded her to get one of these great little cars - I've always wanted one and I'll be getting plenty of use out of it too.Anyhow, we are going to look at one tomorrow and I have a couple of questions I'm hoping I can have some help with.The car is a 2003 model, 1000cc and has covered 46,000 miles. It has full VW service history so sounds promising. I've spoken to the seller and asked about the cambelt, he says it's not been replaced and it's a little early for it to have been changed. I explained to him that I've done a little research and the accepted wisdom is to have it changed at 40,000 miles or 4 years. He said ok well we can negotiate that.My question is how much should I be trying to knock off the asking price of £3000 for Cambelt replacment? Also, is it advisable to have Water Pump be replaced too?As stated, I have done a bit of research and feel confidant about the specific things I need to look at, i.e clutch pedal, door hinges/check-straps, damp under rear seat and possible rust on the roof gutters. So my other question is, can anybody suggest other things to look for? Or just any hints/tips for checking over a Lupo?I look forward to any comments/suggestions.Cheers,Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
99hjhm Posted February 26, 2010 Report Share Posted February 26, 2010 I think this sums up most of your questions pretty well..Some models are more badly affected with problems than others. I think the consensus is that the 1.4 16V Sport and 1.4 E and S models tend to give the most problems. Whereas the TDI Sport and GTI seem to be the most robust.As previously mentioned, gearboxes and pedal boxes are weak. You should also be careful that the car has had a cambelt service as these have been known to fail early generally accepted interval is 40,000miles. In fact as with any car a full service history is important. Some 1.4 engines have suffered wear and have either had to be rebuilt or replaced, look for black dots from the exhaust on the back of the car.Check the electric windows work normally, VW electric windows have a weak component that results in the glass dropping.Check the door straps, if the door creaks loudly when opened then the straps need to be replaced, there is a "how to" guide on here it is not a big job but can be used as a bargaining point.It is also worth checking the condition of the exhaust system, some of the earlier cars are over 10years old now and they have been know to drop.If you dont know if/whats been changed, change the cambelt, tensioners, aux belt and water pump. Then you know it's good for the next 4 years or 40k miles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB1.0e Posted February 26, 2010 Report Share Posted February 26, 2010 I would say a cam belt service would probably be around £300:http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/VOLKSWAGEN-CAMBELT-VW-FOUR-CYL-POLO-GOLF-LUPO-PASSAT_W0QQitemZ380075065026QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM?hash=item587e3d3ec2I would suggest that this would be a reasonable reduction, I doubt that the advertised price would include the water pump as well but it provides a guide for you. I have my water pump changed at the same time to be safe. If the new belt is fitted then the replacement of the water pump is easier and once the new belt is fitted it will possibly place a greater starin on the old pump which may cause it to fail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Millbrook Posted February 26, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2010 Cheers for the info guys. Thanks to you and this forum I feel I have all the possible weak spots on my checklist. Does £3000 sound about right for the car mentioned? I'm always relunctant to rely on the prices given by likes of Parkers etc - I would much rather take advice from people who have more experience of the car involved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB1.0e Posted February 26, 2010 Report Share Posted February 26, 2010 It seems a decent price, does the car have any options? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rrdoctoruk Posted February 26, 2010 Report Share Posted February 26, 2010 does the water pump need replacing????????was told when i was looking to have my cam belt done you had better do the water pump as well as the timmimg belt drives the water pump,and this was from a vw dealerin the end i did it myself and found the water pump is NOT driven by the timing belt so i would be paying for something i did not needmine is a sdi lupo,greta little car Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Millbrook Posted February 26, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2010 (edited) It seems a decent price, does the car have any options?Cool - I think it does seem a decent price, when you compare other Lupos for sale.It's a 1.0E and is advertised as having the following:Driver and passenger airbags, tinted windows, radio/cassette, colour coded bumpers, height adjustable drivers seat, steering wheel rake adjustment, folding rear seats, rear wiper, Iso fix, child seat anchor pointsNot sure if any of these were optional extras when new...Cheers Edited February 26, 2010 by Millbrook Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Millbrook Posted February 26, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2010 does the water pump need replacing????????was told when i was looking to have my cam belt done you had better do the water pump as well as the timmimg belt drives the water pump,and this was from a vw dealerin the end i did it myself and found the water pump is NOT driven by the timing belt so i would be paying for something i did not needmine is a sdi lupo,greta little carI didn't ask the seller if the Water Pump had been replaced but I'm guessing if the Cam Belt hasn't been changed then the Water Pump would not of been replaced either. If the cars a good 'un and we buy it, the Water Pump and Cam Belt will be replaced asap whether or not the Cam Belt drives the pump or not. After all it will be 7 years old and I think it will be worth doing for peace of mind. I will tell the seller this too and use it to try and knock him down a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Millbrook Posted March 3, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2010 Quick update, brought the Lupo and knocked £150 off - the seller really wouldn't budge on that! Anyhow the Mrs is well pleased with it, so all good.A big thank you to the people who took the time to respond.Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB1.0e Posted March 4, 2010 Report Share Posted March 4, 2010 Congratulations on your new purchase I hope you and girlfriend enjoy many happy miles in it...get some pictures up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Millbrook Posted March 5, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 5, 2010 Congratulations on your new purchase I hope you and girlfriend enjoy many happy miles in it...get some pictures up.Cheers Buddy! we're giving it a damn good clean and polish this weekend so no doubt we'll (she will) take some pictures after - she likes taking photos, too many for my liking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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