Buying second hand - what to look for

[fred12345]

Hi everyone, just joined this forum with my only EV experience as an Uber passenger ! Had to scrap my old diesel and agonising over the past few months what to do - new, second hand, petrol,. EV, lease, cash, salary sacrifice scheme.... I would be able to make it without a car for a while but realised I might lose my no claims bonus if I don't insure a car and end up paying thousands extra once I get one... I think I have to buy something second hand and use it for a couple of years or so.
Looking at what's available, seems MG 5 or MG ZS around 2021/2022 costing between £10K-£14K with anything between 20-60K mileage is my best bet. I think I prefer MG5 long range, ideally Exclusive.

Help! What should I look for when buying second hand long range MG 5? I never bought a second-hand car and know almost nothing about EVs ... Having a 7 year warranty is all I can think of but even there, not sure what invalidates it...

Also, I will have to use a house 3-pin socket to charge until I install something; do I need to buy a separate 3-pin cable or this comes with the car?

EDIT 02.07.2024 : ended up with higher mileage ex-lease Mk2 standard range ZS Trophy and quite happy so far after 3 months driving and using only 3-pin charger ?

 

[salty]

Fred, good luck with the search. ??

 

[kevin ellard]

Hi everyone, just joined this forum with my only EV experience as an Uber passenger ! Had to scrap my old diesel and agonising over the past few months what to do - new, second hand, petrol,. EV, lease, cash, salary sacrifice scheme.... I would be able to make it without a car for a while but realised I might lose my no claims bonus if I don't insure a car and end up paying thousands extra once I get one... I think I have to buy something second hand and use it for a couple of years or so.
Looking at what's available, seems MG 5 or MG ZS around 2021/2022 costing between £10K-£14K with anything between 20-60K mileage is my best bet. I think I prefer MG5 long range, ideally Exclusive.

Help! What should I look for when buying second hand long range MG 5? I never bought a second-hand car and know almost nothing about EVs ... Having a 7 year warranty is all I can think of but even there, not sure what invalidates it...

Also, I will have to use a house 3-pin socket to charge until I install something; do I need to buy a separate 3-pin cable or this comes with the car?

The 3 pin charger should come with the car. They came supplied with them when new and there isn't much of a market for them so there's no reason why it wouldn't be included. It is very very slow which might not be a problem if you aren't doing many miles.

I'm not sure I'd worry too much about the mileage - I have a feeling that EVs age differently from ICE cars but it is worth finding out the battery state of health which you can do yourself with an ODB reader and the car scanner app. The other thing mileage related is that there are different warranty rules for taxis so if it has a lot of miles on the clock it is worth checking.

 

[Jomarkh]

If it has been used as a taxi then you will not get the 7 year warranty on the battery.
I have Excite so don't have the extras of the Exclusive but the seats are not red hot in the summer. I do miss heated wing mirrors.

 

[EVsince2016]

Buy via Used Electric Cars for Sale - Used Electric Vans - Eco Cars

Best value around and experts

 

[Tommy]

Hi everyone, just joined this forum with my only EV experience as an Uber passenger ! Had to scrap my old diesel and agonising over the past few months what to do - new, second hand, petrol,. EV, lease, cash, salary sacrifice scheme.... I would be able to make it without a car for a while but realised I might lose my no claims bonus if I don't insure a car and end up paying thousands extra once I get one... I think I have to buy something second hand and use it for a couple of years or so.
Looking at what's available, seems MG 5 or MG ZS around 2021/2022 costing between £10K-£14K with anything between 20-60K mileage is my best bet. I think I prefer MG5 long range, ideally Exclusive.

Help! What should I look for when buying second hand long range MG 5? I never bought a second-hand car and know almost nothing about EVs ... Having a 7 year warranty is all I can think of but even there, not sure what invalidates it...

Also, I will have to use a house 3-pin socket to charge until I install something; do I need to buy a separate 3-pin cable or this comes with the car?

I ran my MG5 LR for 2 years on the granny charger alone (3-pin). Yes it's slow, but if you're doing less than 60 miles a day you can easily put that back in overnight ... and yes it should come with the car in a little rectangular pouch.

Hi everyone, just joined this forum with my only EV experience as an Uber passenger ! Had to scrap my old diesel and agonising over the past few months what to do - new, second hand, petrol,. EV, lease, cash, salary sacrifice scheme.... I would be able to make it without a car for a while but realised I might lose my no claims bonus if I don't insure a car and end up paying thousands extra once I get one... I think I have to buy something second hand and use it for a couple of years or so.
Looking at what's available, seems MG 5 or MG ZS around 2021/2022 costing between £10K-£14K with anything between 20-60K mileage is my best bet. I think I prefer MG5 long range, ideally Exclusive.

Help! What should I look for when buying second hand long range MG 5? I never bought a second-hand car and know almost nothing about EVs ... Having a 7 year warranty is all I can think of but even there, not sure what invalidates it...

Also, I will have to use a house 3-pin socket to charge until I install something; do I need to buy a separate 3-pin cable or this comes with the car?

Oh and check under the bonnet for surface rust on the holes, had some on mine after only 2 years (28k miles) but it was white car so showed up more than most ... see Jomarkh's rusty holes

Rusty holes

Hi, has anyone else seen rust appearing around the holes under the bonnet?

www.mgevs.com

 

[blader1611]

Buy via Used Electric Cars for Sale - Used Electric Vans - Eco Cars

Best value around and experts

I may be misguided but he has a 21 plate MG5 SR and wants 24000 for it, that is certainly not value. Is that right?

 

[Verdigris]

I may be misguided but he has a 21 plate MG5 SR and wants 24000 for it, that is certainly not value. Is that right?

They're extracting the urine. Here's the Sheffield one:

Auto Trader UK - New and Used Cars For Sale

Find your next car with Auto Trader UK, the official #1 site to buy and sell new and used cars. Over 400,000 cars online. Simple, easy, quick!

www.autotrader.co.uk

 

[fred12345]

I may be misguided but he has a 21 plate MG5 SR and wants 24000 for it, that is certainly not value. Is that right?

I ended up with ZS Mk2 instead for much less...

 

[Gomev]

I may be misguided but he has a 21 plate MG5 SR and wants 24000 for it, that is certainly not value. Is that right?

Selling on behalf of a delusional client.

 

[Deleted member 17384]

Buy via Used Electric Cars for Sale - Used Electric Vans - Eco Cars

Best value around and experts

I'm considering an MG5.
I had a look on there and they had just one for sale.
It was over 3 years old and £24k.
How can this be considered "Best Value"?

 

[EVsince2016]

I'm considering an MG5.
I had a look on there and they had just one for sale.
It was over 3 years old and £24k.
How can this be considered "Best Value"?

Use their Buy to order section. £24k is selling on behalf of a delusional client!

 

[DoctorWhen]

Hello! I'm new here! Hijacking the "what to look for" thread, sorry... is there a Battery SOH indicator on the vehicle? I'm about to upgrade my venerable 2016 Leaf to an MG5 (pre-facelift), and I wondered if there's a menu somewhere with battery status info. Some dealers get a bit grumpy when you whip out the ODB2 adapter (some don't even know what it is!) - many thanks!

 

[EVsince2016]

Hello! I'm new here! Hijacking the "what to look for" thread, sorry... is there a Battery SOH indicator on the vehicle? I'm about to upgrade my venerable 2016 Leaf to an MG5 (pre-facelift), and I wondered if there's a menu somewhere with battery status info. Some dealers get a bit grumpy when you whip out the ODB2 adapter (some don't even know what it is!) - many thanks!

Really you need to stick to competent EV sellers who can give you a full battery SOH

It's not only battery % remaining, say 98% by total, its cell balance & quality that spots dodgy cells that will result in a battery failure. Very rare, but it only takes one to have been in a flood / crash.

 

[fred12345]

I'm considering an MG5.
I had a look on there and they had just one for sale.
It was over 3 years old and £24k.
How can this be considered "Best Value"?

From my not very extensive experience over the past few months of frantically searching...
4 options really...
1. Buy from MG dealer, cost you maybe £1,000 more than it should but it should guarantee servicing and 7 year warranty + anything goes wrong with it, you know where they are
2. Buy from other dealers - hit and miss price wise but need to check all the paperwork. Would go for this over MG dealer only if paperwork spotless and at least £1- 2K cheaper than MG dealer... some people had bad experience with those dealers unable to provide follow up EV fixing if needed...
3. Private sale - I find it scary... Even with full service records, why are they selling it?
4. Big dealers type of Car Giant that buy ex lease cars - best price, servicing could be hit and miss...
(5. auctions - no idea how that works apart from potential bargain and blind buying..)

I bought ex lease with questionable service history for really good price (I think). It was worth the risk as (according to "buy my car" quotes) I should get almost what I paid for it if I go to part exchange... edit: just got health check and service done and it's apparently "all good", no idea what the battery state is but will find out soon ...

Hello! I'm new here! Hijacking the "what to look for" thread, sorry... is there a Battery SOH indicator on the vehicle? I'm about to upgrade my venerable 2016 Leaf to an MG5 (pre-facelift), and I wondered if there's a menu somewhere with battery status info. Some dealers get a bit grumpy when you whip out the ODB2 adapter (some don't even know what it is!) - many thanks!

Are you anywhere near London? I was going to go for the same model...

 

[Gomev]

Hello! I'm new here! Hijacking the "what to look for" thread, sorry... is there a Battery SOH indicator on the vehicle? I'm about to upgrade my venerable 2016 Leaf to an MG5 (pre-facelift), and I wondered if there's a menu somewhere with battery status info. Some dealers get a bit grumpy when you whip out the ODB2 adapter (some don't even know what it is!) - many thanks!

In a word....no

However a quick check you can do is turn the car on, everything such as heater etc set to off and mode in it's default Normal. Reset the accumulated trip meter.
If the car were at 100% State of charge the GOM would show 250 miles but any degradation in SOH would be reflected in the GOM - so 245 miles = 98% SOH.

Of course the car won't be at 100% when you look at a dealers but a very good approximation would be using the %age, so if car is at 60% SOC and GOM shows 146 miles..... SOH is approx

250 (WLTP) x 60 (SOC) / 100 = 150

146 (GOM) / 150 (from above) x 100 = 97.3% SOH

Substitute your own figures for SOC and GOM of course and this is a good guide but not necessarily precise result because 50% SOC might could be anywhere between 49.6 and 50.4.

*WLTP for LR and SE LR is 250, Trophy is 235.

 

[DoctorWhen]

In a word....no

However a quick check you can do is turn the car on, everything such as heater etc set to off and mode in it's default Normal. Reset the accumulated trip meter.
If the car were at 100% State of charge the GOM would show 250 miles but any degradation in SOH would be reflected in the GOM - so 245 miles = 98% SOH.

Of course the car won't be at 100% when you look at a dealers but a very good approximation would be using the %age, so if car is at 60% SOC and GOM shows 146 miles..... SOH is approx

250 (WLTP) x 60 (SOC) / 100 = 150

146 (GOM) / 150 (from above) x 100 = 97.3% SOH

Substitute your own figures for SOC and GOM of course and this is a good guide but not necessarily precise result because 50% SOC might could be anywhere between 49.6 and 50.4.

*WLTP for LR and SE LR is 250, Trophy is 235.

Good thinking! Cheers.

 

[samnew]

From my not very extensive experience over the past few months of frantically searching...
4 options really...
1. Buy from MG dealer, cost you maybe £1,000 more than it should but it should guarantee servicing and 7 year warranty + anything goes wrong with it, you know where they are
2. Buy from other dealers - hit and miss price wise but need to check all the paperwork. Would go for this over MG dealer only if paperwork spotless and at least £1- 2K cheaper than MG dealer... some people had bad experience with those dealers unable to provide follow up EV fixing if needed...
3. Private sale - I find it scary... Even with full service records, why are they selling it?
4. Big dealers type of Car Giant that buy ex lease cars - best price, servicing could be hit and miss...
(5. auctions - no idea how that works apart from potential bargain and blind buying..)

I bought ex lease with questionable service history for really good price (I think). It was worth the risk as (according to "buy my car" quotes) I should get almost what I paid for it if I go to part exchange... edit: just got health check and service done and it's apparently "all good", no idea what the battery state is but will find out soon ...



Are you anywhere near London? I was going to go for the same model...

Hi Fred, how much did you get it for and how many miles? No problem if you don't want to share.. I'm in the same boat. Have a test drive for MG ZS Exclusive on Sunday. 37K miles for £11,000. 2020 model. A bit confused if its a good deal or not?

 

[fred12345]

Hi Fred, how much did you get it for and how many miles? No problem if you don't want to share.. I'm in the same boat. Have a test drive for MG ZS Exclusive on Sunday. 37K miles for £11,000. 2020 model. A bit confused if its a good deal or not?

£15K for 2022 Trophy with about 41,000 on the clock. compare what they are selling on AutoTrader, MG website and check out Car Giant - good for comparison. Dont's feel pressurised to get the first one that comes along ...

Take into account whether you need the car urgently, for how long you want to keep it, does it have to be electric ...

New & Used Cars for Sale - Auto Trader UK

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Cargiant - London's Largest Car Dealership

We have thousands of used cars in stock at unbeatably low prices. We also offer finance, part exchange all at our London Dealership reserve your car online for just £99.

www.cargiant.co.uk

just realised you are in London; go to Car Giant and spend a few hours there, take keys for MK1 ZS and MG5 Mk1 (and Mk2 if they have any in stock) an djust see how they feel. I was originally thinking of high mileage Mk1 MG5 long range as a "transitional" car until more models come out, for about £10K ...

 

[samnew]

£15K for 2022 Trophy with about 41,000 on the clock. compare what they are selling on AutoTrader, MG website and check out Car Giant - good for comparison. Dont's feel pressurised to get the first one that comes along ...

Take into account whether you need the car urgently, for how long you want to keep it, does it have to be electric ...

New & Used Cars for Sale - Auto Trader UK

www.autotrader.co.uk

Approved used cars | MG MOTOR UK

www.mg.co.uk

Cargiant - London's Largest Car Dealership

We have thousands of used cars in stock at unbeatably low prices. We also offer finance, part exchange all at our London Dealership reserve your car online for just £99.

www.cargiant.co.uk

just realised you are in London; go to Car Giant and spend a few hours there, take keys for MK1 ZS and MG5 Mk1 (and Mk2 if they have any in stock) an djust see how they feel. I was originally thinking of high mileage Mk1 MG5 long range as a "transitional" car until more models come out, for about £10K ...

Been comparing for a while now. Its time to buy as really need to get rid of what we currently have. doesn't have to be EV but since we have the charger at home and at work it wouldn't be a problem. Just want a relatively newer model car within my budget of £12K and only can find MGs in that. Don't want to keep it for too long, 1 year max.

Excellent idea about car giant. I just googled its in White City, right? I thought its just a website not an actual place (sorry, first time buyer). I'm quite near to you in Northwood so can make my way to White City easily. I'd do that before my test drive on Sunday which is in Reading..