would you buy a cat c?

[Big Iain]

I have been lookin about at v6's mk1's and there seem to be alot that are cat c, obviously alot cheaper.

some show pics of damage and some dont but there really doesnt appear to be much damage done to them ie bumpers wings etc nothing major. Are the panels just that expensive?

 

[McBunny]

ask dash when someone twated his mk1 mucho mucho money

 

[kully]

cat c are slightly damaged repaired cars , as long as it been repaired correctly , i cant see the harm in buying one .

you'd save lots and who would know unless you told everyone , though some ppl can be sceptic about buying catergorised cars

 

[Wilkeh]

i'd buy one.

 

[Bluebeard]

is cat c worse than cat d?

 

[Englebert]

Yeah. I'd expect a libary of build photos, and details of who did it.

 

[kully]

is cat c worse than cat d?

cat d is the worst i believe , like an insurance write off

 

[McBunny]

yes c is worse than d

 

[McBunny]

cat a vehicle must be crushed all of it
cat b vehicle may not be returned to road but may be broaken for parts
cat c repairable. possible structural damage. cost of repair at main dealer prices and labour rates is more than book value

cat d repairable. probably non-structural damage may have been economical to repair but insurer didnt want too

cat f fire damage
cat x repairable minor damage

 

[terribleclio]

yep i would and have. my pug was cat C. it all depends on insurance companies, i've seen cat Cs with just dings in them.

 

[kully]

cat a vehicle must be crushed all of it
cat b vehicle may not be returned to road but may be broaken for parts
cat c repairable. possible structural damage. cost of repair at main dealer prices and labour rates is more than book value

cat d repairable. probably non-structural damage may have been economical to repair but insurer didnt want too

cat f fire damage
cat x repairable minor damage

damn you beat me again

CAT A​

Vehicles that have to be completely destroyed.​

CAT B

Vehicles that can be sourced for spare parts but the body shell has to be completely destroyed.​

CAT C

Vehicles written-off as costs of repairs are more than the value of the vehicle , but can still be repaired and returned to the road.​

CAT D

Vehicles written-off where costs of repairs are less than the value of the vehicle.​

CAT X

Vehicles that are not recorded as damage vehicles usually sustaining very light damage if any. Usually relatively new or stolen recovered vehicles.​

​

 

[JD]

ooooh, does cat x appear then? when i had my bump it was a new bumper and a new headlight, what would that come under as my insurance wont tell me (poss because i am still under dads name )

jamie

 

[Steve]

No, waste of time.

Turns into trouble selling.

The fun in clio's is the handling so why would you risk your cash buying a damaged repaired.

If you can't afford it don't buy it.

Look at the one on ebay the 182, had six owners in less than 2 years, this is a good buy:S

 

[Big Iain]

can afford a legite one no bother steve, I always said Id never spend more than 12k on a car again though. Just wondering if in the v6's cases they are really that bad.

I hear what u are saying though hard to sell.

 

[terribleclio]

only have trouble selling if you try to sell them at book price steve. you buy cheap you sell cheap. I don't understand people that won't buy a damaged repairable. If they have been repaired properly they are probs better than when they were new.

 

[terribleclio]

ooooh, does cat x appear then? when i had my bump it was a new bumper and a new headlight, what would that come under as my insurance wont tell me (poss because i am still under dads name )

jamie

Categorys only show up if the car has been written off. so if yours was repaired via insurance and not written off then nothing will show up on hpi.

 

[Ex-User (19928)]

I wouldn't feel right driving other people around in a Cat D, so Cat C is a no brainer.

It's usually bullshit when they say it was only cosmetic damage, cars aren't given Cat C for no reason.

 

[_Kenny_]

Nope

 

[Christopher]

not when there are straight examples around for not much more £££

they are a 'mare to sell also, more often than not.

 

[Rufstuf]

I would buy one if the price was right. If it passes an MOT, It must be safe for the road.
You see some crackers in the damaged repairables websites. The voices inside my head nearly made me buy a TVR Tuscan for 10 grand, then the missus gave me a slap lol

 

[Rufstuf]

I quite fancy this....

http://amlinternational.co.uk/details.asp?CarID=848

Bit of filler, lick of paint, it'll be good as new.

 

[cropcrop]

I quite fancy this....

http://amlinternational.co.uk/details.asp?CarID=848

Bit of filler, lick of paint, it'll be good as new.

fibreglass filler

 

[terribleclio]

I wouldn't feel right driving other people around in a Cat D, so Cat C is a no brainer.

But i'm sure you wouldn't have a problem driving around in a car that had been in a crash and repaired by the insurer.

 

[RichRSi]

The proof is in the pudding. If it drives straight, brakes straight, looks straight, goes well and has a good service history and plenty of paperwork to support that it has been looked after.
I'd have no poblem buying a repaired Cat C / D or X car, because a few non write off's of any marque can claim to offer aforementioned attributes. If the car is a good one and the work has been done by a reputable garage to a high standard then why not grab a bargain.
The only time I would not agree with buying a damaged repaired car is if the seller has tried to avoid mentioning this fact to you, probably because they can command a higher price and know it's value is affected.

 

[terribleclio]

yep as rich said. Usually if the seller is openly honest about the cars history it's a good'un. When repairing my 306 i took pictures through the process and most the parts were just bolt on anyway.

 

[Laura]

i wouldnt, my 205 was a cat c and seeing the state that was in i wouldnt go near one

 

[Final Maxim]

yup, my clio was a cat c (i bought it written off) repaired it myself n put it back on the road.

aslong as you can see photos of the damage, maybe in progress photos and take someone with you who knows what to look for then there is no problem buying them.

ide probably go for ones that have had panel damage rather than say suspension/chassis. as panels are usually just bolt on.

 

[Laura]

thats a cat C

 

[cat171]

I wouldn't touch one at all.

 

[terribleclio]

That is also a Cat C....shows the difference in insurance assesors

 

[RichRSi]

No offense taylor but I worked in three vehicle repair body shops, it is down to the individual vehicle assessor who makes checks based on a great number of details that make up the grade so your 205 is not a rule of thumb to what a cat c 'looks' like.
There is always a (small) chance that any assessor may make a mistake when categorizing a vehicle in which case it is aways best to go off the quality of repair to a vehicle and how it drives after the work has been undertaken and not by the registered catagory (c,d,or x) before repair.

Trust me, I've seen so called cat x's that although they have been repaired I wouldnt drive if I was paid. Insurance and repair networks are huge and highly organised, there are always one or two cars which slip through the net and are back on the road when they shouldnt be for reasons I aint gonna go into.

 

[172boost]

My personal opinion is that I would never drive a car that had been in an accident. The way I see it is very simple but I believe to be very true.
If a car has been crashed/damaged then no matter how well it is repaired, it will never be in the perfect condition it was built to in the factory. If it was repaired and then involved in another accident, would it hold up ok? My opinion is no, so I would stay well clear.
A good way to describe what I mean is my knee. i was extremely fit, strong and flexible in my left knee joint, then I ruptured my crutiate ligament, went through extensive repair and re-hab, knee will never be 100% again even with the best treatment. If a similar injury was to occur again I think my knee would suffer much worse consequences than just a rupture. I wouldn't feel safe in a car that has been crashed before incase it was involved in a major accident and wouldn't hold up.

 

[Final Maxim]

My personal opinion is that I would never drive a car that had been in an accident. The way I see it is very simple but I believe to be very true.
If a car has been crashed/damaged then no matter how well it is repaired, it will never be in the perfect condition it was built to in the factory. If it was repaired and then involved in another accident, would it hold up ok? My opinion is no, so I would stay well clear.
A good way to describe what I mean is my knee. i was extremely fit, strong and flexible in my left knee joint, then I ruptured my crutiate ligament, went through extensive repair and re-hab, knee will never be 100% again even with the best treatment. If a similar injury was to occur again I think my knee would suffer much worse consequences than just a rupture. I wouldn't feel safe in a car that has been crashed before incase it was involved in a major accident and wouldn't hold up.

while respecting your opinion and your beliefs, what difference does it make structurally to take a car from factory as opposed to a factory car thats had a new bumper, new headlights, new wings and a new bonnet. what difference would there be in a crash if the parts have been swapped properly. i'll tell ya, none at all.

 

[Laura]

every one has personal opinions, i would buy a cat C car alot of people wouldnt... its up to you

 

[172boost]

My personal opinion is that I would never drive a car that had been in an accident. The way I see it is very simple but I believe to be very true.
If a car has been crashed/damaged then no matter how well it is repaired, it will never be in the perfect condition it was built to in the factory. If it was repaired and then involved in another accident, would it hold up ok? My opinion is no, so I would stay well clear.
A good way to describe what I mean is my knee. i was extremely fit, strong and flexible in my left knee joint, then I ruptured my crutiate ligament, went through extensive repair and re-hab, knee will never be 100% again even with the best treatment. If a similar injury was to occur again I think my knee would suffer much worse consequences than just a rupture. I wouldn't feel safe in a car that has been crashed before incase it was involved in a major accident and wouldn't hold up.

while respecting your opinion and your beliefs, what difference does it make structurally to take a car from factory as opposed to a factory car thats had a new bumper, new headlights, new wings and a new bonnet. what difference would there be in a crash if the parts have been swapped properly. i'll tell ya, none at all.

Yep I fully understand what you are saying, maybe the structure wouldn't be damaged, I just think that if it's a crash then the force at the point of contact cannot be good for the car's safety. Maybe I'm wrong, it's not as if I'm a body shop repair expert, lol

 

[RichRSi]

There is some truth in that argument 172boost.
However some of the work that I have been involved with has cost in excess of £30k. in these instances it was classic vehicles which were restored to better than 'as new' condition using modern methods.
These cars would have rust everwhere and suspension eaten away by rot. imo these classic cars are often worse than accident damage vehicles because they have sufferd massive structural integrity compromises in very important areas of the suspensions geometry through neglect and rot. However they were never recorded as being a write off and anyone can (technically) restore a car without a license, it just needs to pass a MOT or SVA (pretty strict).

I would always say buy a car on it's merits, if it feels all wrong then it may well be a bad car. There is rarely a 100% garantee that your car has not been involved in some form of body repair in it's life as there is always that small chance that it may have not been recorded.

 

[Ali]

No chance.. it would play on your mind every time you drove it.

 

[Ad]

wouldnt bother me as long as i had confidence in the repiar and it would depend on the car.

A CatC V6 is very different to a CatC 182 in terms of damage.

Categorys are used more for economic purposes as opposed to levels of damage.

a 1yr old car will be repaired more ofthen with a high level of damage than a 3yr old because of the value.

Particularly heavy accidents in the 1st year are often repaired.

 

[AlexS]

Yes. You buy it cheap, you sell it cheap, no probs. Can make quite a good saving but photos and details of the garages used are a must.
The V6's have such expensive panels it only takes a bird to s**t on it and its a cat D. Nobody will know its a catergorised car and you still get your dream motor.

 

[rory182]

sure, i'd buy one to track and fit a roll cage and fully weld it