forfour.co.uk
Forum => General Smart Chat => Topic started by: Sharpy on March 28, 2013, 08:28:45 PM
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Anyone know this car........VX57VBG, for sale with one owner at a local dealers - hate buying from them.
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Why not go have a look and drive it?
Dealers are just like private sellers - except you KNOW they're gonna lie.
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mercedes dealer or independant garage?
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independant garage.....just thought someone might know the car.
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i bought my forfour from an independent garage in birmingham... the guy who i did the deal with was the DRIEST brummy ever!
we all hate buying a car from 'dealers' but id say its better than buying from a private seller, as the seller may sell you a car that might not be roadworthy but a dealer they will have checked the car over before it goes on there pitch. if there is any money to be made from the car after has had its faults rectified it gets sold... if not it gets auctioned.
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You've not given us much to go on really.....not to say we want to know the asking price.
As has already been said.....go check it over (JJ posted some 'what to look for' bits somewhere
on the forum, and I'm sure he'll refresh that on here shortly), but the main thing is....is has the
service book been stamped regularly ? Has the cam belt been changed ? If it's done nigh on 60k
miles then it should have, so check for a receipt. But then it's 6 years old now, so it's really time
it should be done anyway. If not done, deduct £400 at least for that. And.... if they're not a Smart
'indie' then do not agree to them doing it....assuming you want the car. Negotiate if necessary.
I'd ask if they have the previous owners phone number....call n get the real low down on the car.
With one previous owner it could be a gem.
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Thanks guys.............its one owner with 48k, silver and is up for £5495.....pictures look good, but the door mirror is taped up, so it looks like the last owner took something out. I going to call my local Smart dealer as the car has 5 Smart stamps - hopefully they will give me some info on the car.
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As long as it's been serviced regularly. 5 stamps suggests it has, but check also for evidence of the interim oil changes - although mine had no record of that and... well it's fine ;)
Door mirrors aren't hugely expensive to replace or repair, and every now and then one comes up breaking anyhow.
Sounds a reasonable price too, given the lowish mileage, but bear in mind I paid £4000 for mine 19 months ago, at 52k miles. I'd be thinking to talk them down to £5k or less, based on the cam belt needing doing (assuming it does).
Good luck anyway.
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I got a forfour 3 mths ago and got a 3 mths warranty with it which ran out today, I have been having problems with the clutch, today the warranty people phoned and said do I want to take the premiere warranty out which covers near all the parts for £28 a mth, I snapped his arm off :) my friend has a john cooper works mini and just spent over £1300 on his engine, gear box and clutch which I am covered for with my £28 warranty ;D
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... the door mirror is taped up, so it looks like the last owner took something out.
Taped up usually means it has been 'clunked' or knocked and damaged, not that something
has been removed. The door mirrors do not fold in fully flat, so are prone to damage even
when folded. Oh and if it is damaged, expect it to cost circa £75 for a replacement...
depending on if it is either a manual mirror, an electric one, or an electic and heated one.
Easy way to find out is to check it out.
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I going to call my local Smart dealer as the car has 5 Smart stamps - hopefully they will give me some info on the car.
6 year old car...5 stamps... get them to get it serviced and the cam belt done OR get about £500-700 knocked off the asking price and you get it done yourself from mercedes or a smart indi
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At least with dealers you get a proper warranty!
Negotiate very hard!!
I got mine from York merc and got then down from nearly £12k to £9k (18months old)
JJ
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Sharpy mines done 32K its a brabus in silver, added pipecross filter and legal tints, selling it for £4500.PM if interested....thanks
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Gutted Sal
JJ
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Hi JJ
Its a good car, handles well, speed for me is bang on but had heart surgery 7 months ago and ride is a bit to hard for me.
Will be sad to see it go but need a small car with a comfortable ride.
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Change the alloys and ? Suspension and your sorted.
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You may even find fellow forfour owners that want to trade their standard suspension and 15" alloys for the brabus ones ;)
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To be honest, all that power with a standard non Brab ForFour
suspension set-up wouldn't be the most ideal.....in fact a bit scary !
As someone has already said, compromise and change wheels
and tyres. Go to 7x16" and fit 225/40/16 tyres. The extra provided
by the tyre profile and slightly narrower rim will allow more give/flex
and make for a far more comfortable ride.
The 'bonus' of doing that will be that you will then be getting
stronger wheels, and....you could re-coup most of the cost of the
changeover by selling off your original wheels+tyres.
(That is, if you decide to keep the car....or just hold them as a selling
point for the next owner).
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Sal................did you get the knocking gear change sorted? how many owners?? FSSH???
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Sharpy.. issue with thrust bearing. Been told by my local mechanic not to worry about it its nothing major. He said best to have it looked at when u change clutch. He said my clutch is fine.
Anybody got some 16" deep dish alloys to swap ? (with tyres)....
Or...that I can try.... to see if they do the job for me ?
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And sal - I got some new shocks from s2smarts and the ride has improved considerably.
JJ
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JJ - Do you get commission from S2Smarts? ;)
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dont think so... he (Rob) is just a REALLY good Smart mechanic
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rob is awesome and very good value and i travel from bristol to go there for my work ;)
JJ
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Im on the lookout myself for a cheap set of 16s. I have tried larger tyres on the monoblocks for a day and I would agree with G, wheels can make the ride more comfortable and are tge cost effective way to do so
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You'd likely get upgraded shocks for the same or less than wheels and tyres.
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Sal_2013+ Mozilla....might I suggest that you somehow arange a meet with JJ...
to have a ride or drive of his car.....no, not to try out his remap...but to try out the
ride quality. If it then turns out that it is what you are after then go for the Bilstein set-up.
It'll cost about the same as a secondhand set of 16" wheels n new tyres.
(I could suggest a ride in my KW equipped car, but it's not a Brab...and the KW's are mega dosh)
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Im not so clued up on car suspension options. What do we need to look out for when buying coilovers?
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Im not so clued up on car suspension options. What do we need to look out for when buying coilovers?
Set a budget, and pick a reputed manufacturer.
If you really wanted to get into it, you COULD look at adjustable rebound, which will allow you to adjust the damping effect. Most will come with adjustable height as standard, and the changing height will naturally affect handling and have an effect on the damping/rebound.
There are also different damping methods - most on a car I imagine are oil filled. I know more about mountain bikes in this area - which can have elastomers, oil, air, or even bearings....
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I covered the subject of coilovers in depth not too long ago, and in truth there are/were
only 4 companies offering them that can fit the ForFour; usually the Brabus only though;
they are usually for the Colt CZT/CZC Turbo......with one or maybe 2 exceptions.
1/ FK...who make 2 models......both have poor write up's on-line. (Think they fit the Brab only)
2/ BC...made for the Colt CZT....need a little modding, but are not that bad. (Only fit the Brab)
Don't think they have rebound adjustment...
3/ Bilstein's...made for the Colt CZT...but JJ has a set on his Brab. (Only fit the Brab)
No rebound adjustment.
4/ KW's....made for ForFours and Colts. They fit all models....the 'crown jewels' of coilovers.
They have rebound adjustment.
However, the biggest 'hurdle' will always be the price....
FK's start from about £500, BC and Bilsteins are circa £650+, and KW's top the magic £1k !
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rob is awesome and very good value and i travel from bristol to go there for my work ;)
JJ
Hi Rob quoted me £230 for Brake disc and pads - that can't be right?
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Parts+labor? Sounds about right to me.
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Front and rear??
Don't forget, garages (even cheap ones) still charge a hefty labour charge. I think rob charges £60/hr which is middle of the road.
Tbh - discs and pads is too simple not to do yourself (sorry rob)
You need no special tools (just a cheapo torx socket set)
JJ
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Don't u need a wind tool for the calipers?
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For the back brakes....yes.
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Don't u need a wind tool for the calipers?
Or you could try to do it with a big clamp. But a wind tool is better and a lot easier, when you don't have enough force to push the piston into the caliper.
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I paid him £160 for pads all round including labour, so £230 to include discs too seems a pretty nice price...
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Don't u need a wind tool for the calipers?
Or you could try to do it with a big clamp. But a wind tool is better and a lot easier, when you don't have enough force to push the piston into the caliper.
Do not use 'a big clamp'...the pistons have to be screwed back into the caliper.
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You can use a clamp around the piston and twist but the draper windback tool is £5ish and only needed for the rears.
For the fronts, keep the old pads in and use them to either squeeze in or lever in (fluid cap off)
JJ