Ford Focus - buying used car previously sold at auction

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Mon 3 Oct 2016 19:00
Ford Focus - buying used car previously sold at auction - EDW2000

I have seen a 2014 Focus for sale locally with low miles v good condition from PRIVATE SELLER.

Problems:

Buyer bought car at auction a year ago, previous owner (from new) was Lex, car has never been serviced our inspected as not done 20k yet.

I think the lack of 1st year/2nd year service means Ford warranty blown. Also why would Lex sell a one year old car at auction instead of returning it Ford?

Does this mean that car was a problem and that Lex did not want to burden Ford with it - accident damage etc. ?????????

Edited by EDW2000 on 03/10/2016 at 19:00

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Mon 3 Oct 2016 19:05
Ford Focus - buying used car previously sold at auction - skidpan

Ford servicing is 12500 miles or annually. The car sould have had 2 services by now by date alone. Its been neglected and will bite back sooner or later.

Run away and find one that has been cared for, plenty out there.

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Mon 3 Oct 2016 19:29
Ford Focus - buying used car previously sold at auction - focussed

Lex could mean it was a driving school car that had a hard time.

Plenty more about, they're not rare.

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Mon 3 Oct 2016 21:32
Ford Focus - buying used car previously sold at auction - SLO76
Avoid any car that's not been serviced EVERY year. This is particularly important on modern turbocharged engines. If this has the 1.6 PSA diesel in it it's best avoided anyway. It's a notoriously fragile engine.

It's common for leasing firms to offload cars this age in this way, it's the main source of stock for non franchise dealers who sell nearly new motors plus it's not the original leasing firm to blame for the skipped service. The seller bought it in 2015 as a 1yr old car which was due its first service. They bought the car cheaply at auction then they dodged the cost of its annual service and now plan to offload it privately for more than they would get in part ex. I'd walk.

If you're knowledgeable enough you could go to a lease disposal sale yourself and bag a bargain. Make sure it's been serviced in accordance to the manufacturers guidelines and any car under three years old will still have its warranty to back you up which takes a lot of the risk away.

Don't try it if you don't know what you're doing and don't buy a 1.6 diesel Ford, unless you're buying nearly new and offloading before the warranty is up. Even at that, the trade know all about the problems this engine suffers from and value it accordingly used.
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