C30 2L R-Design 2012 pre purchase

[Clan]

Originally Posted by chandra

Thanks, yes car hs been fully HPI checked with 114 point safety check and no outstanding finance PPI

It is now in my knowledge that the car is a part ex' but this is not an issue in itself. I like to imagine they traded for something more 'practical'.

Regarding oxidisation/rust the caliper being cast iron I would expect it to be brown (as in picture) it would be white for aluminium oxidisation.

It isn't anything off the wheels which causes the rust it is the acid which they spray all over the wheel ...AND the caliper unfortunately ..

[chandra]

Originally Posted by lockstock

I bought same spec car couple months ago... Issues I knew about and needed to sort...

Front wishbone bushes fail withe age and mileage. To check, drive and tap breaks if you feel a knock or diving or clunk... likely they need changing... expect to pay £300 -400 from a garage to do work... wishbones are £75-£115 per side for parts only if diy.

if there is any vibration from engine through steering wheel, the the engine mounts may be worn... again relatively common maybe okay for low mileage... about £200 for parts.. £100 labour if u have a garage do it. significant vibration at idle is an indicator of this issue. although the issue can manifest more when driving...


Any clunk or knocks when pulling away or vibrations or really anything odd feedback wise could be the dual mass flywheel... I have this problem, this one I missed. my manifests as a bad vibration at 2.4k revs when stationary.. problems with the dmf are the main one to look out for... total cost is £8-900 to sort.

Any clicking knocks or vibration through front wheels when turning lock to lock, or at speed in corners could be CV joints... these are about £4-600 for both sides to be sorted... but I think not that common a fault on the 2l... mine are fine at 80k miles.

coolant tank.. check for heat damage and cracks... cheap easy to fix, common fault. £40 plus 30 mins labour if you cant diy.


As usual check for sludge in oil cap. The rocker gasket seals fail ln these 2l engines so look for oil leakes around top of engine... not too expensive to fix.


listen for ant air leak or whistling noises in engine bay, could be pcv valve from breather system. cheap parts but valve is a pain to get to, so quite a bit of labour costs.

can't think of anything else specific to car... I find mine to be quite reserved and quiet at low revs, but pulls nicely over 4k revs and feels quite nippy. If you dont have good pick up after 4k revs and car feels sluggish, something more significant wrong. it's not a fast car but should rec nicely.

edit... oh and aircon system! should blow nice and cold, quickly with no bad smells. no bad noises in engine bar... leave on for at least 15 mins when viewing car... make sure stays cold for whole time.. if it switches to warm then cold again the compressor and clutch are failing. expensive fix at over £600.. amd a ommon fault... diy bodges available to lock the clutch... you can search the forum... condensors tend to fail on these cars too which results in bad aircon performance... also expensive to sort becausw of labour



hope this helps

thank you so much for this info it was invaluable, travelled to see the car today. Pretty dam sure that the dual mass flywheel as you described was up to something wrong.

Excactly at 2.4K while stationary there was clear vibration through the car. increase/decrease revs it was gone but back to 2.4K there was the vibration.

Also,while idling I could feel bad vibration through the seats, maybe the engine mounts....Back in my car it was smooth as butter at idle (just to reassure myself that I wasnt nitpicking)

Anyway, I walked away. Just didnt feel right.

I would by you a beer, but anyway a big cheers to you.

My search will continue.

[lockstock]

Originally Posted by chandra

thank you so much for this info it was invaluable, travelled to see the car today. Pretty dam sure that the dual mass flywheel as you described was up to something wrong.

Excactly at 2.4K while stationary there was clear vibration through the car. increase/decrease revs it was gone but back to 2.4K there was the vibration.

Also,while idling I could feel bad vibration through the seats, maybe the engine mounts....Back in my car it was smooth as butter at idle (just to reassure myself that I wasnt nitpicking)

Anyway, I walked away. Just didnt feel right.

I would by you a beer, but anyway a big cheers to you.

My search will continue.

glad it helped, the engine mounts mostly sorted the vibration for me... However I have had a nightmare after clutch change as now I possibly have a gearbox issue that magically appeared after clutch change... so dealing with garage, will hopefully sort.

I think a small 'resonance' in these cars at around 2.4k is 'normal'.. but it becomes not good at all when the engine mounts are bad and you feel car shake! so, probably a cheapish fix but I really think yiu need to trust yr gut. If it didn't feel right, there are lots more cars out there. also the possibility could be dmf. I had other dmf symptoms too though .

[chandra]

Also, cannot remember seeing that much water coming from beneath the car due to air con being on a day that was not in the slightest bit warm.

But of course it might just have been expelling any moisture from the car!

Seeing a big puddle along with the vibrations (maybe an innocent puddle) just swayed me to go home without parting with cash.

Oh and the wheels had clearly been acid cleaned, rear calipers quite white.....front ones...quite brown!

[lockstock]

Originally Posted by chandra

Also, cannot remember seeing that much water coming from beneath the car due to air con being on a day that was not in the slightest bit warm.

But of course it might just have been expelling any moisture from the car!

Seeing a big puddle along with the vibrations (maybe an innocent puddle) just swayed me to go home without parting with cash.

Oh and the wheels had clearly been acid cleaned, rear calipers quite white.....front ones...quite brown!

yea I have some brown rust on calipers from acid cleaning, no biggie. just looks unsightly.. Actually, there is a water drain pipe and if you saw no water draining that might actually indicate a blockage which is worse.

I think you probably made the right call, if it was a super rare car, then budget for worst case.. buy one you like.. etc. etc. With cars like these though, wait for a good one you are happy with. As I have discovered it's no fun chasing faults and fixes... good luck with the search.

[chandra]

Have actually started looking at D3 versions now. With Euro 5 engines and lower annual TAX it makes sense at first sight.

But, looking at things like DPF and the twin exhaust (costly replacement) it might be an expensive car to keep going as it ages?!

The more I look the more to think about.

Found a nice D2 R-design FSH very well looked after, but despite £30 raod tax benefits I dont think I could live with that lack of power!

[lockstock]

Originally Posted by chandra

Have actually started looking at D3 versions now. With Euro 5 engines and lower annual TAX it makes sense at first sight.

But, looking at things like DPF and the twin exhaust (costly replacement) it might be an expensive car to keep going as it ages?!

The more I look the more to think about.

Found a nice D2 R-design FSH very well looked after, but despite £30 raod tax benefits I dont think I could live with that lack of power!

d2 can be improved easily with cheap remap. with the £30 roadtax.. put the saved £170 each year to one side to cover potential dpf costs. looked at this way there isn't much cost difference with petrol, and you save a little on fuel. i just dont like deisels but if you look at total costs I dont think a big difference between the two. obv the D5 would be best of u can find a good one

[M4ss4]

I went for a D2 and picked mine up a couple of months ago. Tbh i was worried about the power but mine is not actually to bad. The boost is pretty strong early on in second and third. Overall it is not a quick car but it feels composed and nippy enough for most journeys. I do plan on having mine remapped for the extra mpg savings.

The remap will no doubt help with the flat spots across the acceleration range.

I certainly don't regret buying the D2

[chandra]

Originally Posted by M4ss4

I went for a D2 and picked mine up a couple of months ago. Tbh i was worried about the power but mine is not actually to bad. The boost is pretty strong early on in second and third. Overall it is not a quick car but it feels composed and nippy enough for most journeys. I do plan on having mine remapped for the extra mpg savings.

The remap will no doubt help with the flat spots across the acceleration range.

I certainly don't regret buying the D2

Thank you, Have not driven one yet but your info definitely makes me more inclined to consider one. Might travel to see a good one this week. It is I consider reasonable mileage for a Diesel (under 90K). What sort of mileage has yours done? and what do folks round here consider high or low mileage for a D2?

[M4ss4]

Originally Posted by chandra

Thank you, Have not driven one yet but your info definitely makes me more inclined to consider one. Might travel to see a good one this week. It is I consider reasonable mileage for a Diesel (under 90K). What sort of mileage has yours done? and what do folks round here consider high or low mileage for a D2?

Mine was 90k with full service history. Apparently 20k miles per year is the current expectation. On that basis I would say it is low mileage. Mine is a 61 plate. From looking around the very very good condition ones were double my budget.

I drive from Sheffield to Nottingham for work and find it has power in the right spots. The mpg estimate is definitely out but I am getting 55 on my mixed drive.

The stock 1.6 d2 feels better than my old 1.8 V50. The remap options all generally list 138ish hp following a map. That is more than enough for driving to work all whist saving on the tax.

I wasn't too worried about dpf issues as this version has the same dpf type as my D5 Xc60 and is fine as long as you get it fully hot to run the recharge cycle.

I do still have a hankering for a sports car but will be looking to Nissan for that..