Team-BHP - Used Toyota Land Cruiser Prado VX

Hey Guys,

Need some advice. A Nov 2008 Prado is available for sale by a Company, was used by the MD. Company now wants to sell it. I went for a physical inspection today, its done approx 40,600. Very clean papers, insurance gets over in Nov. Cars in good condition, however the interiors do look a bit worn out. Price quoted is 20. Was wondering if its a good buy? Opinions please. This car does meet my basic requirement of a 7 Seater which is a must for me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ab500 (Post 2540836)

Isn't the price a little less for a 3 year old Prado? What is the OTR price of the car? I thought it was around 50-60L. Toyota's don't lose that much value so early.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ab500 (Post 2540836)

the quote price very very less,it should be around 30 lakhs,if vehicle is an excellent condition!

Yes, I agreee, the price is what was tempting. I saw the ex-show room invoice price it was 48. What they have done is its registered as a private service vehicle in the name of the compnay, hence no OTT. Plus registration charges are a lot less as compared to a normal car. Its a yellow plate with black numbers. Will go for a test drive on Friday and decide.Any idea what the avaerage on this vehicle would be?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ab500 (Post 2541367)

But won't you have to transfer it to a white plate if you buy it?

Also it must be a petrol if I'm not wrong, thats why the low price, along with the above catch. Don't expect anything more than 5kmpl from the V6.

1) Is it a petrol or a diesel - Petrol would be 10L less than the Diesel and drop prices.

2) Since you say the Interiors look older, is it a car bought from India or imported - there are cases of older vehicles being shown as newer one when imported through non official sources. Do check the source.

Ofcourse As a deal it seems very tempting, but the price drop seems reasonably ok.

Hi All,

Just to answer every ones questions:

akshay1234: I can transfer it to my compnay name, so can keep the same number. Yes Its Petrol.

nilanjanray: Thanks for the advice, will keep it in mind when i go for the tril drive. They also have the complete service history which I will see on Friday.

ACM: Petrol, I checked the papers its been purchased new from Lakozy Toyota in Nov 2008, all the original invoices are there. The car belongs to a MNC and it was used by their expat MD. He got transfered 3 weeks ago, hence they are selling the car. They said they have a full service history for the car which I will chk on Friday.

Will update once I drive the Car on Friday.

Off topic ACM great thread on your Aria, sorry never complimented you for the same.

Aren't Prado and Montero in the same class? If a similarly run Montero with diesel heart is available for 20+, is 20 for a petrol Prado too less? I think the market for big petrol SUVs is very thin and low prices are inevitable.

Ok Guys, quick update on the status of the purchase. I inspected the car and went for a extensive test drive on Friday, Car is based in BKC area of Bombay. Visual inspection of the car seemed fine, test drive of the car was also fine. However The service records are a problem, the last time the car was serviced was at 10,000km in 2010, after that the cars not been serviced. Also the interiors of the car looked a bit worn out, the car was only driven by company drivers as the car was for an expat MD.

So I have requested them to get the car serviced and only after the garage gives the car a clean bill of health will I make an offer. The car was purchaed from Lakozy Toyota in Malad.They will get back to me by Friday. Although In my mind I'm now thinking that just in case they dont agree to service the car and sell it as it is, maybe Ill try to negotiate 2 lakhs down on the asking price and then maybe risk sending it for servicing and hope that nothing wrong with the car? What do all the experts think?

Let me know

Thanks Akshay, thats what I suggested. But the company does not want to do that, since the Insurance expires in a week, they want the deal done ASAP. I have put in my final offer price to them today, lets see what they have to say. I think with the offer I have made them, if they agree, I think it would be a very good deal. Fingers Crossed.

I think that could be good riddance. I was once stuck in a very similar deal and at the very last minute changed my mind which saved me from buying that vehicle (later discovered the car had done more than double of what the odo was showing).

No service records after 10k right? Strong signs of tampered meter!
Think about it, the car was bought in late 2008 and by 2010 it had only done 10k. But since then it has traveled another 30k in just a year?

Worn out interiors are another sign of heavy use.

Anyway, even if the odo is not tempered it is still advisable to get the vehicle checked at the official dealership to make sure everything is right. But they were not willing to get that done? Another sign of something fishy! I was also being forced and pressured to buy a car without getting it checked. Similar reasons.

Why would someone not get a relatively new Rs. 50 lac Toyota serviced at the official dealership?

To wrap up, the final price of Rs. 16 lacs is a bit low for this kind of vehicle.

So in the end maybe you just got saved or missed a very sweet deal :D