Win a pre-loaded Ipod Shuffle!

Want to win a brand new iPod Shuffle in the colour of your choice pre-loaded with 30 of your favourite tunes?
Enter our new competition and it could be yours!
All you have to do is write a comment using the form below that recounts your experience when buying a new or used car. This can be an anecdote or story or just an insightful comment and can be related to new or used from a franchised main dealer, independent, auction, private, import or even from the side of the road. To have a chance of winning it should be useful, interesting or funny (or all three!)
Once we have reached 50 comments we will announce the winner and contact them for their colour choice and, more importantly their list of 30 favourite songs!
So get writing, make a difference and the iPod could be yours!

Jun 28, 2008In51der

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Comments: 19

Ian Chralton
10 years ago
This actually happened to me the last time I purchased a car from a dealer. It was a Peugeot 206 and I had been speaking to a young man called Sam with whom I arranged a time to come into the dealership for my part-exchange appraisal and a look at the new car. When I arrived the “young man” Sam was wearing a dress and did in fact appear to be a woman. To this day I’m not certain if it was, in fact a man in drag or a post-op transexual because “Sam” did have very big hands and a deep voice and, to be blunt, a face like a mixed grill. I still bought the car though.
johnny mac
10 years ago
I went to a car showroom to buy a car, it must have been pretty quiet there cos 3 different people approached me to see if i needed help, which was great except that they couldn’t agree who that would be and 2 of them decided to argue about it, I started to get a bit embarassed until one of the sales guys decked the other one and the police got called and the agressor got taken to the police station. I decided to buy a car from somewhere else!!
kirstine meredith
10 years ago
it has to be when I listened to my husband and gave in by updating my banger of an Escort and going for everyones favourite lol a people carrier. I hated the idea….. then the problems started wipers, tyres, non starter….. this was from a reputable dealer! In future I will listen to my instincts and buy myself a Ferrari complete with child seats and extra boot space lol.
Natalie Wilkins
10 years ago
True story: I brought a brand spanky new 206 HDi. Got some 17in Alloys put on her, and as a result of that got some new suspension links put on to lower her back to normal height. Well less than 24 hours of collecting her one of the bolts wiggled free and the front divers wheel (yes wheel not tyre) came ‘off’ at 90 degrees to the car. Luckily I knew the steering felt wrong and I was pulling into a side road when it occurred. Needless to say the car went back to the garage and they ordered me a second brand spanky new car.
mike finch
10 years ago
When I got my Honda Civic (From a main Honda dealer), I saw the car had done 30,000 miles and I asked the salesman when the cam belt needed changing.
He said it didn’t as it was metal.
I was hesitant, so when we got back to the garage, he got a mechanic in and he backed him up.
After I had the car for 20,000 miles it stopped.
I got the nearest garage to tow me and they said the cam belt tension spring had brocken – and because of the milage would I like them to fit a new belt whilst they were at it.
I ofcourse said don’t try to rip me off – it’s metal.
When the stopped laughing and showed me the RUBBER one I was sooooo embarresed!
Moral of this tale – never trust a main dealer!!
P.S. They also swapped the alloys of plastic b4 I picked it up!!
Rozinna Dharamsi
10 years ago
Husband decided that it was time for me to test drive a Ford Escort .. souped up version. Did not go well. Car took off. Didn’t get as far as the T junction before deciding to stop and stagger out.. A jibbering wreck!
isla
10 years ago
went to a showroom to look at a new car salesman very slick,he showed me some models then asked if i wanted to ‘take her out 4 a spin’well we approache the said car only to find a man in overalls asleep in the back,apparantley he was a car cleaner who had been working too hard yea right!!!
Michelle Bosomworth
10 years ago
I bought my first car from an independant dealer, it was a Fiat Seicento Sport with a 1.1 ltr engine. The car was advertised as having air con, power steering etc. I did not test drive it because I didnt know what I was doing and that was a big mastake. Once I got it home the problems started, it did not have air con or power steering and the garage denied they said it did. I have thrown the advert out and couldnt proove it. I even went to trading standards but as I had no proof there was nothing they could do. I got a puncture and there was no alloy wheel key so I had to get back onto them and they found it. Then my clutch snapped when I was driving which was very scary. Then the petrol tank sprunk a leak and needed replacing and finally the battery died and it needed a new one. The garage were very difficult and tried to get out of fixing the car, an awful first time experience.
Linda Sandvik
10 years ago
I bought a car on eBay last November, a 1970’s Triumph Herald (convertible!). The owner needed a quick sale before the MOT ran out. We went down to Coventry to Bristol with intentions of driving the car back. When we got there we discovered it was in a bit of a state, and probably not roadworthy (although the MOT was still valid for a few days). There was moss growing on the car (!), the right-hand side window was strategically held in place by a screwdriver, the seat could be adjusted by putting a piece of wood underneath it, and the indicators only worked if you carefully put a stone on top of the wires in the trunk. Charming.

On our way back to Coventry it started to poor down, and we soon realized the roof had loads of leaks in it, I was sitting in the passenger seat and got very soaked. One other thing the previous owner mentioned was that the left-had side door had to be locked very carefully in a special manner or it wouldn’t shut close. Since this required some expertise, she had insisted on closing it. Nonetheless, in our first roundabout, the car door swung open, giving me the scare of a lifetime. I held on to the door for the rest of the (very long) journey.

The next day in Coventry was sunny and nice, and we decided to take the car for a ride in the Warwickshire countryside. We had a fantastic time, and people kept honking us (and we’d smile and wave back). However when we came home we realised they’d been honking us because the indicator lights were constantly on.
Graham Judge
10 years ago
At a Vauxhall dealer once, we were amazed when on the test drive of the Astra, they let us take the car out (all the family!) on trade plates without anyone from the dealer in it, even though their only guarantee was our old car, worth nothing like that of the new Astra!

Worked mind, we bought one very shortly afterwards!
Tom White
10 years ago
i decided to buy an automatic for the first time and when i went to collect it,i was driving along and the car suddenly wouldnt change gear and the revs were screaming,i had done 2 miles when i went back to the showroom the mechanic said it was stuck in emergency gear,and neede a new gearbox,is this the quiokest breakdown ever,needless to say iam now driving a spanish waiter(manuel) again
Kris
10 years ago
Is it wrong, when buying a new to to be chuffed to bits with an upgraded CD player and a nice bouquet of flowers? Maybe it’s just a girl thing…..
Allie
10 years ago
I bought my very first new car a couple of years ago and I was so please with the bouquet of flowers in the back – my husband thought I was mad, more interested in the flowers and colour of the car than the car!!
Love it to bits still
DUKE
10 years ago
Just after I’d passed my test (took me 3 attempts), I went to have a look at a second hand Capri. When I arrived at the house the Dad told me to come in as his daughter had popped out in my new car. I must’ve sat there for almost 2 hours terrified by the boxer dog that kept sniffing and growling at me. Eventually Madam arrived home in my car. I didn’t know anything about cars, so I pretended to poke around underneath as I’d seen my brother do this sort of thing. Not really quite sure I handed over my holiday money (£250) and drove off in my first car. To cut a long story short the car had a dodgy MOT, so I ended up selling it for £50 scrap.
spencer
10 years ago
bought my first car from a lecturer at college marina coupe in hand painted purple,driving along a dual carriage way trying to impress my date,she noticed a strange noise and lights on the dash,i drove on thinking i,ll check it when i get home,the car blows up,i found it was big ends whatever they are,the girl stormed off never to be seen again,my car was dead and my dad made me pay back every penny of the £250 he lent me,i use public transport surprisingly!!
Emma
10 years ago
I went witha friend to buy her first car, we sat in it, took it for a test drive, checked out all the gadgets, the colour was fine so she bought it! Weeks later she gave a few people a lift only to discover one of the back doors had a completely diffferent interior to all the other, obvioulsy been patched up after an accicent, she part exchanged it after that, but now years on I always find myself checking the inside of all the doors match!
Katia
10 years ago
I bought my first (and still have it) car 5 years ago today!

But my story is about another one I tried a week before when I was looking for cars. Because I was going to live in Scotland, I though it would be great to get a little 4×4 .. having never been in Scotland you see, I had this idea of a remote wild life in the highlands 🙂

Check the little ads and went, with my big brother and sister-in-law, to see some farmers selling a tiny Suzuki Samourai 4×4.
I loved the look of it.
We all jumped into the car (with the farmer wife), me at the wheel ….

It was a disaster, I couldn’t get the car moving, I would keep , and spinning!
As the car was parked on the front grass, I destroyed it. It had been raining so it was a carnage. LoL
When I finally managed to get on the road, I was so slow, I just couldn’t change the gears properly…

After a few minutes the woman made me stop on the side of the road (also to let all the other cars behind pass me safely!)
And proposed that she drive back so that she could show the potential of the car (ie there’s nothing wrong with it)…she was mainly talking to my brother (erg, hello I AM buying a car!!!)
well, this little car could go faster indeed… she was driving like a mad woman, to impress us, to the big dismay of my then 7months pregnant sis-in-law, at the back of car (very uncomfortable seats) who started to feel pretty sick.
We were just all so scared by her driving!

We left… (we’ll let you know bla bla bla)
After a minutes in the car (my brother was driving), my sis-in-law went like, erg to you want to drive a bit this car, to see how it feels, bla bla bla … basically she was wondering if I actually knew how to drive now!!!
So my brother stoped the car and I drove …. perfect smooth and everything. My sis-in-law was re-asssured 🙂
and we both went together to try the car I finally bought (Ford Fiesta) at my local garage dealer 🙂

I moved to scotland (don’t how I could have move all my stuff with the 4×4! no boot space!). And there are about 10 other navy ford fiesta in my street – LoL
jen eng
10 years ago
My husband and I once bought a used car, on the recommendation of my dad, who was a mechanic and had been servicing said car for several years. We viewed it in the evening and it looked great. We trusted dad about it’s mechanical state and it seemed like a great car (which it tuned out to be). It was only the next morning when we saw it in the daylight, rather than under the orange streetlamp of the night before, that we found it was the brightest lime green known to man!
jake
10 years ago
i went to a car supermwrket(wont mention its name) in london!!as soon as i arrived i was ponced on and told i could only drive the car i liked if i was going to buy it,i said well i dont know if iam gonna buy it till i drive it,as ou do but the sles guy wanted a deposit first i said no chance and walked away,it was only when i tried to leave that a manager came up and asked me why i was leaving,i explained about the salesman trying to get money from me before i went for a drive,he asked me to point him out but by then he was walking down the road,turns out he didnt evn work there he was some local chancer trying to get a few quid,nice try though!!