So won a bid on MGB 1978 classic this morning for £1500 but the guy only told me after i won that MOT had expired so not sure if i should still go ahead as i was hoping to drive it back but its miles away from me over 5-6 hours from me and cost of transporting it obv a lot, thoughts on if this is worth it and whats best thing to do ? get it mot up there and drive it back or find someone to tow.

 

i'd want it with mot just to know if there was any serious rust on it.

 

Sounds like the seller might be trying to hide something, if it was being sold/priced as a running/ road worthy car i would want it mot'd before i hand over cash especially on something that age. i wouldn't chance it.

 

my thoughts exactly i told him due to the distance if he get its MOT i pay for MOT if it passes and for the car i think thats a fair offer really , he never mentioned on description it MOT was expired he put it runs nicely, clearly not when mot expired 2yrs ago and been sitting about. if doesnt MOT i prob wont pay for it....guessing ebay cant force me?

 

in todays online world its quite easy to check if a vehicle has mot or not, personally I would not have bid on any car without doing some detective work first

 

If there’s no mention of mot in the advert, and you didn’t ask. That’s on you.

Running nicely could simply mean when you turn the key it starts and idles nicely, I personally wouldn’t take any more from it than that.

 

Are you still able to book an mot close to your destination and drove it straight there, or has that loophole been closed now?

 

on dvla website


"If your MOT has run out you can take your vehicle to:

have the failed defects fixed
a pre-arranged MOT test appointment
In both cases, your vehicle still needs to meet the minimum standards of roadworthiness at all times or you can be fined"

 

Have you checked its MOT history? That should tell you if there was anything wrong on its last MOT. It seems odd to me that if the car is supposed to be running fine why has the guy not got an up to date MOT? You are obligated to disclose any faults in the description of the car on E-BAY. If this has not been done then you have the right to pull out of the sale.

 

My view is if a car has been sat for 2 years then I wouldn't want to drive it 5-6 hour journey. These cars rot like crazy, I'd do an mot history check as a minimum to see if it failed badly the last time which could have been the reason it was laid up in the first place and maybe make a decision from there. I picked a car up from Coventry once (live in Dorset) and booked it in for mot at the garage I worked in and drove it back

 

This was last mot then expired in 2016 so really no mot in 3yrs and yh not much info on discription also no reg just assumed running nicely meant it was a car being used is bit my fault but i guess i trying grab a bargain i said to him if gets mot we can go from there no reply yet but i think thats only fair

 

Yes, you are permitted to drive it to a pre-booked MOT.

Next month it will be MOT exempt, this is a prime example of why this is a bad idea.

Martin

 

I wouldn't want to drive a 40 year old car even if it had an MOT

 

Robsters. You can reckon on the issues mentioned that they have not been fixed so maybe now are worse than in 2016. The chances of the guy getting it an MOT before you buy it are very unlikely I would say. Looks like more of a project than an on the road running car, depends how much you are into MGBs and if you are prepared to fix it up.

 

Plenty of classic Ford owners with 40 year old cars would probably disagree with you!

 

They drive them on the trailer and take them to a show

 

Aye Frank Kelly for one

Mind you baby blue is pretty new apart from the shell

 

Well he not replying so obv gotta be some major fault on it 😣 main concern is if sale falls thru can ebay force me to pay?

 

lol.
I am in the resto trade and this no mot is not good idea at all even my car will have a MOT even tho it' s exempt. Second opinion is always a good call.

Bet you have seen some shockers eh Tony.....

 

indeed I have and that was in the 90's, how some of thee people drove these cars to us shocked us.Quite a few we refused to drive and some we sent away the car and their owner were that bad We banned any car that was on Q reg this to me meant part or all of it was stolen and the police were just unable to prove it and often in a poor and dangerously built condition. I'll put it all in my memoirs one day be a best seller

 

No they can't

 

The guy in Southampton with the black Sapphire Cosworth show car gets his driven on and off the trailer as well!!!!

 

As I said before if there are faults which have not been disclosed on E-Bay you have the right to pull out of the sale.

 

exactly, it doesn't matter to me even if the seller says its perfect condition with no advisories ill still check its history to see what previous failures theres been.it gives a reasonable indication on how ell its been looked after.
I pulled out of buying a c32 amg last year after the seller told me it had sailed through the mot but when I checked it had many advisories and had a suspect history of failing on the same issues every second year or so that suggested a serious front end impact badly repaired with things like excessive uneven tyre wear NS front, misaligned headlight NS Front , worn balljoints and bushes NS front every 2nd year over a 6 year period and it had had 15 owners in its 15 year history so no one was keeping it long after buying !

 

 

 

yeah your 100% right just absolute idiot he trying to claim i should asked him more questions but he said the advert the car drives well and is road worthy now he telling me had it 2 months never drove it, he wont MOT it so obv major fault here, prob chassis rotted away

 

I meant other faults which it must have which the seller is trying to hide.

 

this is the car....part of me still feels £1500 is still gd bet for such sort after classic even just risk on what mot would find

 

At the end of the day you have to decide if you are willing to take a chance on it , looks ok but wonder what its like underneath? The initial price may be cheap but how much will it cost to fix if it has major rust problems etc?

 

Having had BL and Ford cars of that vintage, the Ford lasted longer and had far fewer faults. As said, I'd be looking for the rot you can't see, our old Mini looked great on top, but the floors and sills went like swiss cheese!

 

I spoke to seller he said this about rust

i have just looked underneath it's solid no rust it's been undersealed it's had two small plates wielded on out rigger at some point of its life but they are solid 3/4 new exhaust system I see no reason why it wouldn't pass an mot the body work is sold and looks good there are a couple of bits that have been painted over which is why I was going to strip it and repaint it . I am just concerned driving a vehicle of this age that distance without knowing the car I bought it less than 70 miles away and I had it delivered by a transporter at the cost of £130

 

to be fair the seller doesn't sound like hes done anything dishonest. he didn't say it had an mot , he just didn't mention and you didn't ask ! but id always question why if its claimed it doesn't need much why doesn't he mot it and sell it for more?

 

Underseal hides a multitude of sins

 

thats exactly my feeling on it must be a big cost in there somewhere that he hiding, after telling my wife tonight and her angry reaction i prob let this one go providing ebay cant force money out of me, not saying he dishonest but def hiding something being vague as possible

 

All sounds a bit strange to me, if he thinks it would pass an MOT why has'nt it got one already?
Either forget about this one or be prepared to pay more for a good condition one with plenty of history and a current MOT.

 

my thoughts exactly time i paid him £1500 for car £300 recovery whatever else get it thru MOT i be better off just spending 3-4k on a decent one. i feel the same i said to him ad was misleading i did impulse bid i admit but when said drivable and roadworthy then like yep no MOT for 3yrs like woah hangon a min :/ but claims dont worry it will pass, sent me a photo some big hole in wheel arch this evening claiming had no idea it was there, i offered take the car if inc delivery for free but thats only after myself and my friend check it out if its even worth that but no reply from him... but really he should MOT get me to drive it off can only hope he does this but i doubt it.

 

If he said it was driveable and roadworthy and then says it hasn't had an mot in 3 years then keep hold of that message As without an mot it's defo not roadworthy and if u pull out of the sale then eBay can have that message to prove it.

 

yes, roadworthy does imply it has an mot.

 

He pulled out of the sale he claiming he found big rust holes inside wheel arch and under the door after his mg expert came to look. My friend said prob wants sell it for more but i guess that gets me off the hook