That test pilot on your smart is a Bell-End! Love the Skoda story! I'm 6ft 8 tall, someone offered me a lift in exact same model, literally had my knees around my chin!

I think the problem at the sub £4K price point is that these very purchasers are the ones that don’t have the funds to maintain them properly so when something goes wrong they’re looking to the seller to pay for it for them

James put a dashcam in the car when they test drive one that records speeds etc then that will cover you :)

Yet anther nice update, James - for the Smart and the S2000 (and maybe for others, or even standard practice for all test drives), might be worth investing in a demountable dash-cam ??

140mph with 2 gear's to go Sound's like they should have been banned from driving long ago 🙄.

I didn’t know Jay from the Inbetweeners was looking for a Smart Roadster, 140mph with 2 gears to go 😂

I've run a 07 Citroen c2 which got written off and was cheap and now a Peugeot 1007 which was also cheap as back and forth to work cars. These cars are absolutely end of life as parts do fail. They make sense for a couple of reasons - you can do the spannering yourself and you enjoy doing the spannering, if you don't and can't spend more money and get a newer car.

As you say with the Citroen being a slow seller , with that cost , age and mileage there is a lot more choice around. I would say the type of buyer for that wants finance (3 kids in early 20s all with moderate finance on cars) so without a finance offering you lose that type of buyer. You have done well without offering it so I’d stick to how you do it.

That was pretty out of order with those people test driving the Smart car. I think you should only allow a test drive if it’s pre-booked and tell them you have a 15minutes slot. Absolutely shocking how people treat cars that aren’t theirs. I would love that S2000, it was one of the cars I used to drive when I played GranTourismo on the PlayStation 2 😂👌🏻

On the subject of AC, the newest car in my family is a 57 reg Fusion, the oldest a 53 plate Frontera, by having the gas evacuated and refilled every other year is the way to keep it working. We've had one compressor go, and it was a couple hundred quid, with a regas included. It's not that hard, if looked after.

Hope you have the test drivers details just in case a ticket comes through! What a pain for you mate.

I let some lads out for a test drive in a 340 volvo, never came back, had police round and they'd done a robbery in it.

Massively frustrating when faults arise and eat into the profit margin, but, in the previous video you were able to report lots of sales. It really is a case of taking the rough with the smooth; sometimes you make a healthy profit and other times you have to pay out.

Nice monochrome Corsa Harlequin you’ve got in stock there James…

Amazing how I managed fine driving my 1978 Mk2 Marina 1800 HL/TC, 1980 Allegro 1750 TC Equipe and 1983 Mini Mayfair with no air conditioning no problem by just running the cold air or opening the window and so did most other people with their cars back then. Doesn't bother me if there is air conditioning in a car and as you say only something else to go wrong as the car gets older. Its not as if we get it hot for long or much in this country.

Good video this one, the Vauxhall twin clutch auto, I think they are called a trip tronic or easytronic or something like that. Thanks for the tip about the ceramic quick spray, I bought one with your link.

It was probably 140km per hour in third gear - There are some proper fools out there when it comes to cars - AC is fine when it's R134A - A suction pump isn't much, neither are the gauges, and the gas isn't a lot when you buy the cans. Great content as always.

People need to get a grip about old cars i remember cars from 25 years ago rust all over them needed full welding and new plates putting in them before over bits need doing. You are very right about the cars coming to the end of life just from money side of it because the labour cost more then the car and if you cant fix your self then a srapper keep up good work 👍

I can quite agree with you last year I bought a 2013 abarth well looked after good service history but its done 89 thousands miles it drives great but iam going through it replacing parts I.e exhaust system replaced it had a pair if bottom arms when I got it and it needs a list of part through out this year well done James stand by the truth great channel

I got some Farécla glaze recently. Haven't used it for over a decade but pretty decent results, replaced my 3M that had dried out.

Most traders ive bought from a test drive is 10 mins max and a recommended route. Were i live there are a couple of dual carriageways and loads of b roads so you can get up to 60 take the exit and drive back.

I’ve got the 3m yellow, blue and green top polish with corresponding pads. They aren’t cheap but the results are amazing, much better than cheaper ones

Had a Morris Ital back in the eighties, bought it cheap because the gear box was noisy . Repaired it and it lasted for many years after, as a daily driver.

Agree with everything you say James regarding end of life for car components

I've just bought back a jazz from 2020, she's had no trouble with it, gone up in price too, not that I mentioned that.

Now James the aircon is a pressurised system and shouldn’t need topping up unless their is a leak! mine has never been topped up it’s 16 years old and still as cold as the day it come out.

Hi James , regards air conditioning i wonder if it might be worth you buying a ree gassing machine (circa £3000) you could then offer reegassing as an upsell on sales?

They miss the point with the Roadie the body panels are changeable same as the FourTwo. The panel gaps were crap on them from new. I think it is missing the bonnet badge, mine had one. As I said before, they are great fun to drive, and a remap transforms them, but build quality is sketchy at best. That being said, I'd love another one.

I use 3M toilet paper, and yes you can polish a turd.

Maybe its different here in Oz, but I'd think advertising the Honda directly on a S2000 owners forum is actually your best bet of getting fair value for it. Yeah it may be a PITA to deal with their nitpicking, but they will also know what its truly worth and will be more likely to be actually interested, or recommend it to other members if they think its fundamentally sound.

Do you still valet your stock with Moonshine products? If you run out of anything, just bring the empty glass bottle back to Cullompton and Josh or Dan will fill it back up and send you on your way. My favourite one is Purge. It really transforms your alloys.

Think the semi auto gearbox in the Corsa was called easytronic or it was in the Corsa c as my mom had one. People mistake them and expect them to behave like an old school torque converter automatic

Remember to get copy's of driving licence before letting anyone test drive no licence no test drive

Surprised on the C1 as my Citroen Dealer seems to sell them quick. Actually they miss not having them new anymore now as they would sell pre regs quick as well.

Hi James what do you use to restore the outside vinyl

Interesting your comments on so-called end-of-life cars. I drive a Skoda Octavia which is now within a year of that ten year watershed. With a very low mileage run up by the first owner and still a very reasonable mileage for its age I have a pretty good idea what it has had from new. Apart from consumables like tyres, brake shoes and disks, one cambelt and water pump change and windscreen wipers, the only parts it has needed are a heater element and header tank, and a windscreen (accidental stone impact). Arguably the heater element and header tank would never have needed to have been replaced if the previous owner had not topped up the coolant with tap water instead of the proper coolant. I make sure that it always gets oil changes every 9000 miles and the dashboard computer reminds you that a service is due about 1000 miles in advance. I still see Mk1 Octavias out and about quite regularly and the youngest of these will be not much less than 20 years old. It won't make second-hand car dealers very happy, but I expect I will now run this one until expensive things start going wrong regularly but I don't expect very much of this to happen for quite a long time.

Call me insane but i want to get a 1.8 Rover 25 yes the head gaskets go on them but they are so fast 0-60 was like 7.5 secs and 135mph top speed the same engine as the Lotus Elise was in it the old K series , problem is most idiots who owned them scrapped them when the HG went , it makes me sad as they were really nice cars.

End of life I was in a scrappy yesterday morning all less then 10 years plenty of Chevy sparks in all scrapped parts removed, but I'm more off a older motors that have lasted 20years won't buy newer motors to much hassle more still to go wrong then 20 years ago, keep up the good work love watching your videos

Can understand were your coming from if you keep up on your maintenance they will last I have a 2013 Skoda superb 2.0tdi it has 206,865 and it like a new car but like you said you needed to be prepared to do maintenance

3M is good stuff,so is Farecla. Used both for many,many years. You wanna sell that Brabus & S2000 in a sports car magazine,you'll only get dreamers & timewasters on them,hence the thrashing test drive on the Brabus. Had a customer who test drove & thrashed a 1994 Swift GTI. Had a go at him saying you can rag it like that when it's yours! That Corsa...MMT gearbox?

I think I know the Skoda Fabia guy. He turned down a lottery win and has just broke up with a super model.

The spark might actually be end of life as chevy pulled out of UK in 2016,so no main dealer parts.

I only ever drive the car if I know I want it, then not wasting everyone's time, any issues on the drive ask dealer to get sorted before pickup

The argument about where a car reaches end of life is all dependant on your perspective. 1st world countries like UK and US have easy finance for new or newer cars and that with high labour costs means for for economic reasons a 10-15 year old car is at or near end of life. Now if we go to a country with no easy finance and low labour costs.. well now that 2011 in car is virtually new and is right at the beginning of its life. I noticed this in particular in 2 countries where I used to visit regularly.. Burma (Myanmar as it’s now called) and Cambodia. In these countries cars are imported that are 10 years old and are virtually treated in the way we see a brand new car. The cost of major repairs in these countries is extremely low, and the availability and cost of new cars, along with unavailability of credit, makes new cars a rarity. Everything in life is about perspective, for the lobsters in the tanks of the kitchen of the Titanic the sinking was a miracle!

Indeed. Sometimes when I advertised cars on Autotrader I dreaded the phone ringing. So many idiots.

Would it be possible to fit some sort of tracker or dash cam in the cars before test drive for peace of mind? Might also be worth scanning their drivers licence as well, in case they end up running through a speed camera etc

On a vehicle with any age to it and mileage any part could fail at any point and give no warning so I agree with you

I drive a 2008 Focus Mk2 ST with 140,000 miles on the clock and I won't get rid of even when the body control module went and cost me £900 the pleasure I get from it, its worth it

Put a dash camera in before they test drive it. Modern ones will record speed braking acceleration speed and what people are talking about in the car. Then slip an old I phone in the boot with find my friends on it to track the car. Great content 👍👍👍😂

Hence the reason i do bangernomics...i know stuff won't work ( aircon etc ) but also less to go wrong on 20 plus year old cars

£3995 bit steep for a Matiz i mean Spark but basically same car , most ive seen on Autoshite i mean Autotrader lol are £1500 but in my case ive given up on small cars , the state of the roads where i live you need something with a long wheel base and large wide tyres to absorb the potholes , most people in Ascot drive Range Rovers or Toyota Land Cruisers , I may get a cheap Landy to get around but have to be careful as they are not the most reliable engine wise lol

Very good idea about the classic car auctions,if you worried just put a reserve on them, you might be surprised with the outcome

We don't do test drives on sports cars without me or 1 of my sales guys being in the car also we try and guage the person before offering a test drive.

please tell me you've got driving licence copy's. then again I got a van a few years ago for a few weeks later a couple of tickets to drop through the door for before I even looked at the van.

The Spark certainly holds there value. You sold it last October for £3995.00

I really love your channel and big respect for your morals. A genuine good guy. Cant say enough good about you chap.

Totally agree, you cant buy a USED vehicle and not consider having a small contingency fund just in case!

Hey Chops - Just a question for you that I have wondered about - why do you not specialize in a couple of makes/models - Toyota/Honda etc- is it that the supply is just not there? Surly trading in Dawoo's, Fiats, and Citroens (sh!tboxes) is just asking for trouble?

I like the non-apology. 😂 I would rather there was a better form of words that describes the expectation that things will wear out, fail or need replacement. End of life to me means scrap and looking at how you prepare your cars for sale, I feel that isn't the right term. The way you described it in detail (name me a part that you could guarantee won't break) is far more representative of the real situation. It's the old reliability bathtub curve, that's all. We just need a better way to describe it.

I think the issue is using the term end of life. My rear windows winder were end of life but I guarantee a normal on a mk1 focus. If you say some stuff maybe end of life and it’s impossible to tell what is and what isn’t would be a fairer description. One thing I really like “I’m not going to apologise I stick to my words” while I think you’re wrong I have to respect someone for not swaying when they believe they’re right. Edit I’ll admit defeat a Corsa with 80,000 miles probably is well past end of life😁.

In the US, used cars are sold "as-is". No warranty or legal rights for consumers. UK consumer rights are a good incentive for used dealers to "refurbish it right".

stick an apple airpod in the cars when they go out for test drive.

Morning James, have you tried Pistonheads for the sporty specialist stuff?

I’d love the smart roadster but I’m in Australia just to take some miles off my daily

Just seen a 66 plate yeti for sale in Bideford £18295🫣, garage opp Morrisons.

Sports cars always bring the Fanny’s and test pilots out

Watching from Australia and loving the channel, what do you use to recolour the plastics please? Thanks Mark

thankyou James,,have a good weekend,,

Another good video chops 🚗🚙🚘⭐️⭐️⭐️👍👍👍👍👍👏👏👏👏👏

You cant remember what you call the semi automatic gearbox in the Corsa? I know what i called mine, just cant repeat it on here😂

Is that scotty in the background " rev up your engines"

Skoda Fabia VRS? that'll be the PD130 Diesel... not sure 140 with 5th and 6th to go is fact.... unless they've tuned and bigger turbo... but even so...

The skoda fabia VRS probably had a KMH speedo so was only doing about 85 mph😂

I once searched for a car that I only had a vague idea of the end number of. So found myself scrolling through the registration numbers. One thing I noticed. Whether it was a Ford or a BMW, the average lifespan (1970's vehicles) was around 12 years. That was at a time when rust affected the bodywork as much as the underside. The fact that today there are cars ten years old that look immaculate on top is a great leap forward from 40 years ago. Sure, the suspension and parts exposed to salt go, but we've come a long way

That Yeti won't hang around. Nice used Yetis are bringing silly money now..... A Suzuki dealer near me has a decent spec 5 year old (17 reg) Yeti 1.2 with 18k miles on it up at £18k...... You ought to have asked if that Fabia VRS - that still had 2 gears to go at 140 mph - had a plough fixed to the front to get through the bullsh*t. The camper van's a nice job. You can't beat a bit of luxury if you're crapping into a bucket.... Jesus James, a Morris Ital..... what are you going to do with that? Antiques Roadshow perhaps?

I had a vauxhall corsa with tiptronic gears like yours,it was a great drive,unfortunately I sold it to a woman who managed to break it on her way home, I had to tow it back and refund her

James, 3M compound is dinosaur abrasive technology. Get yourself some 3D ONE compound, its on another planet and all you need to do is swap the pad and it acts either like a heavy cut or a fine polish.

Maintenance is what cars of this age (or any age!) will need. Some will unfairly try and pin that on the dealers. Different if the car has an actual defect, of course. If you don't pay to maintain it; you'll be paying to repair it!

A corsa d at that age and mileage is pretty much end of life! Mind you i would say they weren't that much better when they were new!

is there any chance the S2000 will end up going up in value, a future classic?

Really good points on selling sports cars, especially being unable to accompany test drive. Where would you stand if the Brabus had been caught on a Gatso? I would fully market the S2000 but really interrogate potential buyers first - you might strike lucky and find a local retiree who isn't overpicky. Might be worth trading on to a local specialist although your idea of an auction would make good interest content. End of life - it's depressing seeing the relatively new cars on Kevtee/Trent that are classed as EOL but look eminently fixable.Astra has had paint on rear quarter, not the door - paint mismatch does rather standout so worth fixing?

I agree with the end of life statement thing to a degree. I own the tidiest Citroen C4 VTS 180 left in the UK and an example of this includes the rear air pullers started leaking water into the car due to 17 year old seals failing. £70 later from robins and day sorted. But its to be expected. Also in 2016 the A/C stopped working, £300 later a new condensor and it works like new. Im happy to put the money into it as it leaves me with the nicest one in the UK that in my opinion is the last proper performance citroen built. Another example includes a brand new alarm sounder £40 and front parking sensors all genuine 3 of 4 have needed replacing. Having stock piled sensors from ebay when they pop up they were only £20 a time. £170! FROM CITROEN. But after that you have a 50k mileage car with every option from new, JBL soundsystem, heated leather interior, panoramic glass roof, and optional front sensors 😭. But yes the point stands you have to put money into these things to keep them nice

Couldn't agree more about sporty cars, pain in the ass customers. Also unaccompanied test drives, someone swapped a throttle potentiometer on a corsa before on me, couldn't prove it but 100 percent definitely James. Grest video, regards Andrew

Never, EVER let a stranger drive your car.... sounds like these people have too much time on their hands and big imaginations. Stop/start is a pain even on new cars !!

Cameras and a tracker for unattended test drives 👍 even just a cheapo camera and an Airtag. My mate up north let a 2 seater out on a test drive, gone about 30 minutes or so came back said they had another to look at and later that day the police where there as they'd used it to hold up a garage. He was able to download the video from a dual camera showing them thrashing the crap out of it and even putting their balaclavas on when they held up the garage. Yes, they were caught, no, I don't know what happened to them.

I use to work for a car dealer in the 1980ts, back then they were real cowboys.. Brought my first car off him which was a 1968 Hillman Minx. cracking car to look at but at 18 any car looked great. Had 2 months MOT on it so went to get it done after I passed my test . When I went to pick it up the tester showed me the Oil drums welded in where the floor pans should be lol.. Now that's a bad car dealer not you.. He sold a Audi to a bloke once and going around the corner the brakes failed.. The guy nearly killed him lol

Get that s2000 up for sales james. Roof goes down price goes up!!😂

how the hell he used 2 bars of fuel in a smart car in 30 mins even if you rev it hard, he must of been drinking it himself

G3 CANT BEAT IT FINISHED WITH G10 FOR SWIRLS

I hope you asked him, if he’d driven your car the same way?

Best to sell privately

The s2000 is a great driver's car! The smart car must of been a moment of madness to buy in the first place 🤪

I’ve said this before, but when you buy older cars you have to understand that the purchase price is just a down payment and you will HAVE to spend money regularly to keep them on the road.

ohh I do like a yeti

How much is sparky

👍🏽 Great as always! ❤ from Stockholm Sweden

I once had to stop a test drive on an R/S focus as he was driving like an idiot. He marched back into the dealership complaining he wasn’t going to buy the car if he couldn’t thrash it first. He was sent packing.

I think if head thrashed one of my cars at 140mph he might have parted company with his front teeth😅

15:15 *Yea Right Down Porlock Hill !*

Stop start is a waste of time as with the cost of the Correct battery and extra Polly pully ect costs you more than the start stop will ever save you in fuel