j.hammond1

I've viewed a 4x4 sapphire cosworth today that is a cat D, i had a good look around the car and couldn't really see any damage, although i think one of the front wings has been replaced. The car's last mot had an advisory for accident damage and the seller said that was just from where the car has been badly jacked up which has dented the chassis (which he did show me).

Should I be wary of this car, how much should the Cat D status affect the price, and do the dents from poor jacking of the car suggest a corroded and weak chassis or do I not need to worry too much?

Caddyshack

I would get it fully inspected or potentially cost in a replacement shell

j.hammond1

Yeah I think you're probably right, the seller seemed pretty straight but I suppose it's definitely worth checking, do you know how much it costs to get someone to check for something like that? the bloke has offered to take the car to a garage to check an oil leak has been fixed, do you reckon a regular garage would be able to spot crash damage or would i need to take the car to a specialist? i don't really want to mess the bloke around too much as he's already had some offers for the car not too far off what I can afford and the car's 90 miles away so i can't exactly take it to a mechanic i know

Mr S1

iTrader: (2)

Personally chap I'd steer well clear. The seller may well be being honest with you, not doubting that, but the car has a past and an MOT issue with damage. Insurance companies don't like Cat D's much either, let alone a Cat D Cosworth.

Your money, but if it were me I'd pass.

j.hammond1

alright cheers for the advice, i'll have a think about it, I've just had my first cosworth (owned for 3 months!) rear ended and want to get in another, unfortunately this one was the only one i could find in my price range and not in Scotland or Ireland.

If I can get insured on it and get it checked for chassis damage, is it still worth looking at, it's this car: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/FORD-..._qi=RTM1793693

It drives really well (0.8 psi boost and pretty much as fast as my old one running on 21psi with stage 3 upgrade). It also has an escort cosworth engine in, I'm assuming that's a good thing??

cameron2

Seems at bid odd that there is no mention of the cat d on the advert.
8k seems a bit steep aswell, I'd steer clear from that one .

j.hammond1

alright cheers, think i might just have to be patient and wait for another to come up for sale within my price range then.

kyle_st200

It is abit weird there's no mention of the cat d in the ad. How did you find out it was a cat d? Me personally I'd stay away, I've nothing against a cat d car if the price is right but trying to resell it is a nightmare. I think you'd end up losing big money on it when you try to sell it as that's quite a high price

j.hammond1

I've owned a Cat D car before and it didn't bother me, I'm looking to buy a car to keep so not too worried about resale (although it would be nice to own something that would hold it's value). Just not too sure about this one, it looks to be in better condition than the one I've just had and the bloke jacked the car up so I could look underneath and aside for the jacking up dents i couldn't see anything wrong.

kyle_st200

My fabia is cat d and to look at it you can't tell I genuinely don't know what damage it has had and I've had it on ramps working on it loads of times but I tried to sell it last year and no one would touch it with a barge pole or offered seriously stupid money. In the end I kept it and gave it to the wife, I would buy another cat d in a heartbeat (if it looks ok like this Sierra) but I'd never buy one in the hope I'd get good money back. Unfortunately it probably is worth more in bits as I bet 99% of people won't buy a cat d let alone a cat d cosworth. £8k is a lot of money I'd just be very careful it's more than I'd like to gamble with. How much would it be worth if it wasn't accident recorded?

j.hammond1

I suppose it probably wouldn't be worth any more if it wasn't cat D, might steer clear of this one, it's nice but not sure it's worth the gamble, should probably do the sensible thing and wait for a better one to come up for sale.

rallycross

The fact the seller is too lazy to put the fact it's a cat D in his ad would put me off its not something you leave out.

I've had a few Cat D cars and nothin wrong with that I prefer to buy them knowing what the damage was and when ( ideally with a photo so you can see the extent of the damage and how good the repair was).

It makes them much harder to sell but if you have photos of what was done it helps when selling. On a normal car you are looking at 25 to 30% less for a cat D with one of these maybe a bit less if it's bad lots of other good stuff done since it was put on the register.

Having an engine out of an escort doesn't make any difference other than it might be 3 or 4 years newer but if it's been rebuilt previously does not matter.

Glenn_

iTrader: (1)

It looks a nice car. Shame its a cat D.

c20tbo

iTrader: (1)

I wouldnt say its a massive spec niether.....id stay clear

Fullflush

I'd stay away from any Cat D

tony66

iTrader: (7)

never had an advisory for previous accident damage on any car i have owned lol
that car needs proper inspection-or phone the garage who motd it and wrote the comment-might shed some light on it

strada84

Not sure I'd buy that particular car at that price, but would never be put off by a Cat D in the slightest. As long as you're getting the car for a good price and the repair is of a high standard, who cares?

I've bought and sold 100+ cat d cars, all disclosed of course and whilst I prefer to buy them damaged and repair myself, they always sell very easily.

c20tbo

iTrader: (1)

Im not fussed regarding the cat D thing, ie my last car B7 RS4 was cat D but purely due to someone thieving the front seats (Audi cant replace them and recaro to manufacture is 20k for 2 front seats) so car was categorised, no other damage was done to car either on body or internal.

Paynee

I wouldn't buy this type of car as a cat D unless it was a very good price, had photos of damage pre repair or was planning on keeping it for a vey long time. I tried to sell my 400hp Evo 6 which was on a cat D which was competitively priced and had a few trick bits on such Tommi mak front bumper (previous damage had been very light front, bumper and I/C) got very little interest and ended up breaking the car which was a chew on but in the end made me more cash than I had the car advertised for.

Cos500

Maybe in the 90's Id agree but nowadays do you really think cat d on a cossie matters?
It's probably a more genuine car than most cossies on the road as it's actually showing its history.
I know 5 cossies local ish to me and not one isn't without a past, but you'd never know.

tony66

iTrader: (7)

for me its a different view-as the cars become more expensive the catd/c etc matters more...
a modern mundane vehicle with a cat d wouldnt bother me at the right money
a classic would
the fortunate thing about cossies is that they break for decent cash-so the values are always going to reflect that even cat c/d

stu20004x4

Well I bought mine a couple of months back for similar money, 3 owner 114k backed up with full history and no write off. And its stage 3 tuned.

Imo hes asking too much. 6k max id say