First Buy

[Haizum74]

How do,

While strolling through the WWW looking for a T5 with my name on it I realised that while I have a general idea of what I am looking for I am not 'au fait' with what NOT to look for. So the question is - What do I need to be aware of when buying and what pointers / tips have folk got to look out for when viewing one of these fantastic beasts?

Cheers

Haiz

[t5 stealth]

evening & welcome,
theres a thread on here somewhere about buying guides etc....
im sure someone will be more help.

[Haizum74]

evening & welcome,
theres a thread on here somewhere about buying guides etc....
im sure someone will be more help.

Thanks and evening, yeh I thought there might be and should have looked but am in the middle of 'my turn to cook' malarky so did a quick sneaky post

[t5 stealth]

dont burn it or youll be in trouble lol.
i just had a quick look but i cant find the thread,but i dont know my way round this forum very well anyway

[Haizum74]

dont burn it or youll be in trouble lol.
i just had a quick look but i cant find the thread,but i dont know my way round this forum very well anyway

lol, if I burnt omelette I would be well and truly in the dog house. I had a look and there is a link from wobbly dave but it appears to be broken

[t5 stealth]

yeah i found that one,but cldnt find others lol.
& il hav a couple of them omletts

[Flatout Phil]

How do,

While strolling through the WWW looking for a T5 with my name on it I realised that while I have a general idea of what I am looking for I am not 'au fait' with what NOT to look for. So the question is - What do I need to be aware of when buying and what pointers / tips have folk got to look out for when viewing one of these fantastic beasts?

Cheers

Haiz

For starters, better buy a nice but more expensive car, than a 'project'. It may be a money pit.
I only know 850 cars - but much the same will apply to P1 V70.
850 T5 come in a variety of trim levels. The best pre 96 T5 trim level was GLE, after that it became CD. CD will have cruise, electric driver's seat, heated front seats, electric sunroof, full leather, sometimes self-levelling suspension at rear.
The best T5 for performance are better known 1995-6 as T5R, and 96 850R. These tend to be FULLY loaded.
Auto or manual? Well, I have had both and each are nice. But my view is that a drivers car needs gears, especially a heavy one. All 850 brakes are PANTS - but this is easily remedied for about £170 by fitting V70 front discs (although you will have to fit alloys that clear the calliper - Perfo - the standard V70 T5 wheel is perfect).
The engines fail slowly, but do need a good service history and regular cambelt changes. Do not touch anything with oil in water or water in the oil. Check for golden rather than black satanic oil.
Oil leaks can be expensive to fix if the rear main oil seal is failing. ALthough the turbo oil pipes can leak and are more easily fixable. Excess oil pressure can cause oil leaks, remedied by the replacement and servicing of the Pressure Control Valve (PCV) - not an immense job, but boring.
Think very carefully if there is a pool of oil under the car.

Crank the steering around and listen for knocks. Not usually anything seroiusly awful, but bargaining points for new wishbones, track rod ends or top mounts. Likewise look at tyre wear patterns.

Does the turbo smoke? Sometimes a bit of smoke at start up is to be expected, not so under major hammering (the odd puff is probably over-rich fuel being blasted out). Again, a turbo is not such an expensive thing to replace. And this is the thing, most items on 850 are fairly cheap in luxury car terms.

Aircon is prone to failure. This can be a bugger to fix - but may be something silly too. Budget for a regas every two years even with the best system.

Make sure you get two remotes that work. Make sure all windows work. Test cruise control, it can be a bit dicey at the sort of age we are talking. But all fixable.

100,000 is the turning point for 850 in my experience when rubbery bits tend to have worn out, so go for something either well before that mileage (if you can find one) or one where you can see a pile of receipts. I would not consider a 200,000 mile plus car, although these can be alright I gather.

If it has had Rica remap, check it has the paperwork. In fact, just check it has loads of paperwork, period.

My money would be on what I have, either a manual 850 T5 CD or a manual R. The R is considerably punchier than the T5, but both can be greatly improved with a low cost remap. T5R are good too, but I think the R is better equipped for my tastes.

GET AN ESTATE (AKA 855) if you buy a saloon it is unlikely anyone will want to buy it off you later. Plus, estates have huge utility, and will always be sellable just for that. They also look better IMHO!!!

I always look at fitted tyres, if they all match and come from a big brand like Pirelli (original fitment) it has probably had a caring owner. Avoid cars with odds and sods tyres - the owner probably can't afford to have the thing maintained - or doesn't care.

Any dash lights are a pain, but lambda sensor can be expensive trouble. ABS light may be just a simple joint failure in control unit.

Handbrakes are invariably pants any longer than two weeks after they are adjusted.

Probably missed loads - but it would have been useful info for me five years ago, hope it works for you!

[Haizum74]

yeah i found that one,but cldnt find others lol.
& il hav a couple of them omletts

Ha, all gone and by 'ell were they good

For starters, better buy a nice but more expensive car, than a 'project'. It may be a money pit.
I only know 850 cars - but much the same will apply to P1 V70.
850 T5 come in a variety of trim levels. The best pre 96 T5 trim level was GLE, after that it became CD. CD will have cruise, electric driver's seat, heated front seats, electric sunroof, full leather, sometimes self-levelling suspension at rear.
The best T5 for performance are better known 1995-6 as T5R, and 96 850R. These tend to be FULLY loaded.
Auto or manual? Well, I have had both and each are nice. But my view is that a drivers car needs gears, especially a heavy one. All 850 brakes are PANTS - but this is easily remedied for about £170 by fitting V70 front discs (although you will have to fit alloys that clear the calliper - Perfo - the standard V70 T5 wheel is perfect).
The engines fail slowly, but do need a good service history and regular cambelt changes. Do not touch anything with oil in water or water in the oil. Check for golden rather than black satanic oil.
Oil leaks can be expensive to fix if the rear main oil seal is failing. ALthough the turbo oil pipes can leak and are more easily fixable. Excess oil pressure can cause oil leaks, remedied by the replacement and servicing of the Pressure Control Valve (PCV) - not an immense job, but boring.
Think very carefully if there is a pool of oil under the car.

Crank the steering around and listen for knocks. Not usually anything seroiusly awful, but bargaining points for new wishbones, track rod ends or top mounts. Likewise look at tyre wear patterns.

Does the turbo smoke? Sometimes a bit of smoke at start up is to be expected, not so under major hammering (the odd puff is probably over-rich fuel being blasted out). Again, a turbo is not such an expensive thing to replace. And this is the thing, most items on 850 are fairly cheap in luxury car terms.

Aircon is prone to failure. This can be a bugger to fix - but may be something silly too. Budget for a regas every two years even with the best system.

Make sure you get two remotes that work. Make sure all windows work. Test cruise control, it can be a bit dicey at the sort of age we are talking. But all fixable.

100,000 is the turning point for 850 in my experience when rubbery bits tend to have worn out, so go for something either well before that mileage (if you can find one) or one where you can see a pile of receipts. I would not consider a 200,000 mile plus car, although these can be alright I gather.

If it has had Rica remap, check it has the paperwork. In fact, just check it has loads of paperwork, period.

My money would be on what I have, either a manual 850 T5 CD or a manual R. The R is considerably punchier than the T5, but both can be greatly improved with a low cost remap. T5R are good too, but I think the R is better equipped for my tastes.

GET AN ESTATE (AKA 855) if you buy a saloon it is unlikely anyone will want to buy it off you later. Plus, estates have huge utility, and will always be sellable just for that. They also look better IMHO!!!

I always look at fitted tyres, if they all match and come from a big brand like Pirelli (original fitment) it has probably had a caring owner. Avoid cars with odds and sods tyres - the owner probably can't afford to have the thing maintained - or doesn't care.

Any dash lights are a pain, but lambda sensor can be expensive trouble. ABS light may be just a simple joint failure in control unit.

Handbrakes are invariably pants any longer than two weeks after they are adjusted.

Probably missed loads - but it would have been useful info for me five years ago, hope it works for you!

Great stuff, thanks very much for taking the time to put fingers to keyboard, it gives me plenty to be going on. Out of interest why are the estates more desireable or is that personal preference. I quite like the look of both.

[walter leever]

Like Phil said,but with one adjustement(maybe not important)self-leveling system only came on the estates(i think)and are expensive to replace.

For the rest i think he covered it.

walter

[Haizum74]

I know what I forgot to ask. Current price range?

[walter leever]

I know what I forgot to ask. Current price range?

Mine,very expensive............lol

[Haizum74]

Mine,very expensive............lol

Yeh I have been reading up on it, damn expensive by the sounds of it, still if you were asked if its worth it......