No service book and just 1 owner

[AlainBrighton]

Hi there,

was wondering if any of you have some experience with buying a car without the service book. I have come across one that is sold without it yet the HPI report tells me there is just 1 owner and I would be the second one. 152K in 12 years for a 2010 D5 185 does not sound excessive and I assume that when the VIN is provided I should be able to find out who the dealer was that originally serviced the car ?
To me it seems like an informed risk, what should I look out for with this version in general (or in particular ?) I do intend to give the car a thorough service through an Indie or a main dealer directly after purchase, any advice is welcome !

[Lancee]

Local Volvo main dealer may have some history if they are willing to provide with just the registration number?

If you're more than lucky it might be full main dealer service history !

[XC90Mk1]

Originally Posted by AlainBrighton

Hi there,

was wondering if any of you have some experience with buying a car without the service book. I have come across one that is sold without it yet the HPI report tells me there is just 1 owner and I would be the second one. 152K in 12 years for a 2010 D5 185 does not sound excessive and I assume that when the VIN is provided I should be able to find out who the dealer was that originally serviced the car ?
To me it seems like an informed risk, what should I look out for with this version in general (or in particular ?) I do intend to give the car a thorough service through an Indie or a main dealer directly after purchase, any advice is welcome !

My XC90 is on 130k however I have full history (done by myself).

If the auto fluid has not been changed that is likely to bring problem. If the Haldex fluid has not been changed likely issues.

You don’t know how long the engine oil has been in there, the 185 can have swirl flap issues and you may have bore wear (bore wear would absolutly be caused by neglect as the miles itself would not be an issue).

Basically on a ‘90’ a lot of items will cost you four figures (£xxxx) and you absolutly should buy with the best history and condition.

Me personally I would look elsewhere or I would risk it if the price was over £2,500 less.

You will absolutly have a better experience buying a slightly later model 2012 with the higher 200BHP engine which will give 10-15% better fuel economy, doesn’t have swirl flaps, is more modern.

Also watch out that some of the early D5 autos were £600 a year to tax compared to just over half that for a slightly later one.

I don’t wish to be negative, with 1 owner it may be the case that they just didn’t keep the history, or it could be that they don’t wish to provide it as it’s poor.

Personally I would walk away unless it was in wonderful condition and lower price.

[SnineT]

Originally Posted by AlainBrighton

Hi there,

was wondering if any of you have some experience with buying a car without the service book. I have come across one that is sold without it yet the HPI report tells me there is just 1 owner and I would be the second one. 152K in 12 years for a 2010 D5 185 does not sound excessive and I assume that when the VIN is provided I should be able to find out who the dealer was that originally serviced the car ?
To me it seems like an informed risk, what should I look out for with this version in general (or in particular ?) I do intend to give the car a thorough service through an Indie or a main dealer directly after purchase, any advice is welcome !

Ring a Volvo service department with the reg number, whatever a Volvo dealer has done will be on the computer file. However as it's 12 years old it may have been serviced elsewhere and only a receipt will show that. You need to really trust your eyes and ears on this one I'll do you a checklist below.

I recently sold a car that I bought at 35k that never saw a dealer again, however it was over serviced every ten 10k and I really wish I hadn't px'd it now.

Dip the oil, is it black? if it is it's not a problem as oil goes black very soon after being changed anyway but how does it smell, remove the filler car if it looks black but clean it's going good so far. Give it a 3000 rpm boot test, no need to do it hard and fast and let it warm up a bit first, a progressive throttle will show smoke out the back if it's got turbo or engine wear, if it's not got a dpf a black cloud can be expected as it's just exhaust that's been sat in the pipe getting evicted, white,blue and grey stinky smoke is what to beware of. Same principal with the coolant, if it's low and you can't see it in the bottle walk away.

Check the tyres, are all 4 the same brand or are there 2 brands but on the same axles as each other, if not it's been on the cheap maintained, one odd one isn't an issue as this can be one tyre got written off and the new one is all that was available.

Seats and wheel and pedals, expect some wear but hope it's shiney rather than holed, drivers seat maybe ripped at that age and miles but how does the front of the cushion look, does it look ok or does it match the shredded bolster part, if it's also heavily worn through the car might have been clocked in the past.

If she's auto, apply the brake and go reverse to park park to 1st is it going straight in or pausing longer than would be expected.

Wheels are they scuffed up badly, if they are it indicates a careless owner and these scuffs can also translate into suspension damage and vibrations.

Paintwork, other than the bumpers look for a uniform shade finish, if it looks more than one colour it's been smashed before, how badly who knows it ranges from a deep scratch to a full panel replacement.

Expect chips on the bumpers and screen and the rest of it is price dependent as nice cars will be dearer.

Test drive, does it pull left or right and were the tyres evenly worn on the axles, is the steering wheel central in a straight line.

And always remember to not look keen and ask what they'll take on it, if you get hit with "wotcha got in mind" start with a grand "smoke speak" (£1000) off on anything over 7k and a Monkey (£500) off anything under, if you get £250 off it's £250 less than you were going to lay out and people price expecting to get offered anyway.

[AlainBrighton]

@XC90MK1 and @SnineT;
thank you both for your input, all helpful ! Looking at buying a car that has a decent history, willing to spend up to 4 digits to get a car mechanically straight (importing a car from Switzerland is costing a lot extra too :-) ) and I was not aware that the D5 200 was so much more advanced than the D5 185. I was thinking of perhaps booking a Premium Pre Purchase mechanic through ClickMechanic so they can check the car for me at 140 points for approximately GBP 163. Since I have hardly any time, that money would help me finding all the points you both mentioned (except for the swirl flaps, how you can check those ? Same as with BMW, having them replaced with metal ones ?) Was thinking that GBP 163 spent with a status where the car stands helps me a tad more taking an informed risk ?
Both your remarks make sense that I should not look only at the 1 owner status as the holy grail, will try to contact a local dealer or Volvo UK. I remember that there used to be a member on here who was able to help out finding the factory options and all when provided a VIN, not sure if that chap is still present on here.
The car is taxed at GBP 360 yet even at GBP 615 it is a steal, I almost pay that for my BMW per 3 months :-(

Really helpful remarks about the oil and what and how to check that, if I am not able to book the ClickMechanic chap I will definitely rely on the above.

Currently the highest bidder so I will keep my fingers crossed,

Cheers !

[Lancee]

1: Contact Volvo for possible service history.

2: Book the 140 point inspection. Might be the best money ever spent, and certainly a negotiating tool.

Good luck!

[XC90Mk1]

Originally Posted by AlainBrighton

@XC90MK1 and @SnineT;
thank you both for your input, all helpful ! Looking at buying a car that has a decent history, willing to spend up to 4 digits to get a car mechanically straight (importing a car from Switzerland is costing a lot extra too :-) ) and I was not aware that the D5 200 was so much more advanced than the D5 185. I was thinking of perhaps booking a Premium Pre Purchase mechanic through ClickMechanic so they can check the car for me at 140 points for approximately GBP 163. Since I have hardly any time, that money would help me finding all the points you both mentioned (except for the swirl flaps, how you can check those ? Same as with BMW, having them replaced with metal ones ?) Was thinking that GBP 163 spent with a status where the car stands helps me a tad more taking an informed risk ?
Both your remarks make sense that I should not look only at the 1 owner status as the holy grail, will try to contact a local dealer or Volvo UK. I remember that there used to be a member on here who was able to help out finding the factory options and all when provided a VIN, not sure if that chap is still present on here.
The car is taxed at GBP 360 yet even at GBP 615 it is a steal, I almost pay that for my BMW per 3 months :-(

Really helpful remarks about the oil and what and how to check that, if I am not able to book the ClickMechanic chap I will definitely rely on the above.

Currently the highest bidder so I will keep my fingers crossed,

Cheers !

You should very much book an inspection, that’s a great idea. You will be made aware of bushes, suspension components etc etc.

However the condition of the flaps, auto box and haldex will be ‘pass/fail’ as opposed to how degraded and aged the fluid is.

I will make my own assessment here and state it, it’s not fact but most on here will agree with me.

… if the automatic box has not had a oil change at 150,000 you will likely have problems in the next 30,000 miles, and they will probably cost £x,xxx. The transmission service is not scheduled at all as part of the Volvo maintenance procedure unless used as a taxi or for heavy towing. As such, having a full Volvo history is really not a good thing.
The same goes for the haldex.

Incidentally I am very well aware, and very accepting of the fact that I could get a £2,500 bill at anytime for a car like this.

At that milage a Volvo history is not enough, you need evidence of good mechanical practices such as gearbox oil and haldex oil changes etc so myself, I would go for a
Much lower miles car (75,000 maybe) with history and then you can change the fluids yourself.

[wynnj]

Check its Mot history free @ https://www.gov.uk/check-mot-status. That can be a good indicator of whether the car has been well maintained

[SnineT]

Originally Posted by wynnj

Check its Mot history free @ https://www.gov.uk/check-mot-status. That can be a good indicator of whether the car has been well maintained

These ones are better as option 2 if it's a UK car, I get the feeling it's not though and is a Netherlands car?


https://cartaxcheck.co.uk/

https://www.carcheck.co.uk/

[AlainBrighton]

Originally Posted by XC90Mk1

You should very much book an inspection, that’s a great idea. You will be made aware of bushes, suspension components etc etc.

However the condition of the flaps, auto box and haldex will be ‘pass/fail’ as opposed to how degraded and aged the fluid is.

I will make my own assessment here and state it, it’s not fact but most on here will agree with me.

… if the automatic box has not had a oil change at 150,000 you will likely have problems in the next 30,000 miles, and they will probably cost £x,xxx. The transmission service is not scheduled at all as part of the Volvo maintenance procedure unless used as a taxi or for heavy towing. As such, having a full Volvo history is really not a good thing.
The same goes for the haldex.

Incidentally I am very well aware, and very accepting of the fact that I could get a £2,500 bill at anytime for a car like this.

At that milage a Volvo history is not enough, you need evidence of good mechanical practices such as gearbox oil and haldex oil changes etc so myself, I would go for a
Much lower miles car (75,000 maybe) with history and then you can change the fluids yourself.

I would not go wrong to have a transmission oil service and haldex oil service in any case just to be on the safe side ?

At the current price I have allocated a 1500 GBP budget for upgrades and bringing the car up to the best standard. With less miles there is less budget for a E46 Convertible, 9-3 Convertible or C70 Convertible next to run besides it :-)

At 2100hrs I know more.

Since this is an Executive model with the 19" Galateia wheels, can I change them for the Camulus wheels as well or use those as winter wheels for my winter tyres ? Guessing it should not matter which size I fit under this model ?

Can I use Castrol Edge Titanium 5W30 LL oil ? I have quite a few liters left from my BMW 5 series .....