Best websites for second hand cars

Apart from Le Boncoin that is, there does not seem to be that many dealers on there, is there a gumtree or autotrader equivalent here.
It’s the usual is saw some site mentioned in another post but I forgot to bookmark it and cannot find it now :roll_eyes:

1 Like

There are a lot of dealers - and some individual sellers - on La Centrale: https://www.lacentrale.fr/

I’ve also looked at Autoscout (not as good for electric cars): https://www.autoscout24.fr/

There is also Véhicules d'occasion : 419102 annonces disponibles | l'Argus

Looking at the bottom of car registration plates, I now see an increasing number have buymycar.fr or similar

Is buymycar.fr a bit like cargiant and cazoo in the UK? I’d been looking around for similar in France.

Toprenault.com claims to sell staff’s own or delivery mileage cars. Dacia.fr always has a “second hand” menu option to click where they sell the odd trade-in they’ve had and demo models it seems.

Can’t refer you to anything racier though sorry :slight_smile:

1 Like

Two points in response:-

Firstly, if you buy from a private seller, you don’t get the same level of post-purchase protection - we made that mistake a few years ago and what had seemed a bargain became a very expensive liability.

Secondly, when buying our present car (BMW X1 Xdrive) we were unable to find much within 200 kms and several were mis-represented - they were in fact front wheel drive , Sdrives. Anyhow we chose to look though Reezocar who search across western Europe, mainly Germany and the Netherlands, but also France Italy and Spain for exactly what you want, they provide a 32 point mechanical and bodywork check and handle all the import and registration. If you want a German marque they’ll probably find you something in much better condition, with higher spec for the same price as an ordinary French equivalent. We got low mileage, full leather interior (with heated seats - OH insisted) , panoramic sunroof and a three year controle technique equivalent.

Forgot to add that they also have a longer guarantee on mechanical parts than the French norm.

1 Like

Regarding your first point, isn’t France the same as the U.K. in that you’d have to prove that car is significantly not as described before “sold as seen” isn’t legally binding?

I wrote from personal experience, our first French purchase was private and after a couple of months the injectors needed replacing - got nowhere with Dutch couple who’d sold us the car, and it would have been complicated and long drawn out to take it through the courts. Second car purchase from a dealer, particulate filter needed replacing, it was replaced without question and they delivered a courtesy car from their garage south of Toulouse (nearly two hours drive away)

1 Like

Yes - there’s the rub. The law is a blunt instrument, but dealers generally value their reputation, so will go to some trouble and expense to avoid negative reviews etc; but private sellers have no such concerns.

A few years ago I sold a car to a local restaurant owner for his son. It was a cheapie but I did give a 3 month warranty & allowed him to pay over a couple of months.
All went well but after 6 months I had a call from him to say that the car sometimes lost power so they took it to a local garage. They estimated repairs at more than the car cost so, before I said a word, I was given an ultimatum - buy the car back for 200€ less than he bought it for or he would take me to court under the Vice Cache rule. While he had been outlining the faults the garage was quoting for I had been thinking of a way that would keep him happy despite the expiry of the warranty but the threat of court before I had said anything immediately changed my mind.
I ended the conversation politely by saying that I would go & look at the car myself.
When I saw the car & the devis I found that the car had managed 11000 kms in 6 months & that the pwer loss “may well be” an injector pump issue, something this model of car (but not this version) sometimes suffered from. No dismantling or investigation had been carried out although there are other causes, far cheaper to fix, that can create a similar problem. The devis also included the cost of replacement brakes, tyres & other service items not covered by any obligation.
I contacted the owner & politely refused to do anything (I don’t respond well to threats) so court it would be.
I tend to believe that honesty will prevail but when I started do do my research I found that in a high percentage of cases involving garagistes the garagiste lost. This was a worry only because I felt that my defence would need to be more compelling than the prosecution. However, I still felt that I had a defence & so, without legal representation but with a very good interpreter in the form of a friend I had my “Judge Judy” moment.
After months of worry the case against me was dismissed. I don’t know what happened to the car but the restaurant closed down shortly after for financial reasons & the couple left the area.
At the time it cost nothing to make a claim under 4000€ & seemed to be just a matter of filling in a form & waiting your turn for a hearing. I imagine things only get complicated when solicitors get involved.
Such stories make you aware that not all garages are as thorough as they should be & I am currently dealing with a situation where a garage, playing “guess the cause”, is currently trying to sort a minor but elusive issue with a vehicle I sold recently (with the minor issue fully explained to the buyer with the advice that it is better to live with it than try to fix). He did not take the advice & his local garage has so far damaged more stuff with no benefit & now suggest that the cam belt is old & the timing could be out. The vehicle was advertised with a new cam belt & water pump & service which was true, if I don’t know when it was changed it is best to fit one. If you lie & the belt snaps a week later it is easy to see if the belt was new or not. I like to be able to look my customers in the eye!
For the record, I am a garagiste, not a motor trader. These are two different disciplines.

7 Likes

And that story about the folks ‘trying it on’ just reinforces what despicable people there are out there, almost willing to do anything for a couple of hundred euros. Sad, but true!

And well done to you for standing your ground!

3 Likes

Hello everyone not a lot to add. The main sites are already mentioned bon coin, argus, centrale, etc. Buymycar and others are similar to webuyanycar in uk. Depending on how new you want the lessor and grey market importers are also possible aramis auto is one. Again for newer cars just up the road from my home in Castelnau D’Estretefonds is the train terminus for car deliveries and renault, peugeot and others have huge places with second hand cars to buy just like normal dealer.

Are those the huge car yards you see alongside the railway track coming from the North Adrian? Are those the new cars or second hand? If second hand are they ends of leases, trade-ins taken in by the dealer network, or other?

Mostly the ones in the picture are new coming from the factories in Spain and France. If you zoom in a bit on Google Maps there’s a Renault and Peugeot place edenauto for Renault and Félix Faure Peugeot. I think there’s also Opel (with Peugeot maybe). At Renault there’s also Dacia. These are normal dealership used cars.

https://renault-dacia-castelnau-estretefonds.edenauto.com/recherche/?pricePublic[min]=undefined&monthlyPayment[min]=undefined&

1 Like

Hi their, i seen on le boncoin. I met guy avpautomotors.com he seems to be able to get some parts

There are a lot of scam sites springing up recently.

2 Likes

I was just thinking that… :wink:

This company is legitimate. Its fully registered in france. He got me some parts from the UK. I ordered my bmw and ford parts from him. Owness guys. He tell you if its worth getting it or not. Reasonable prices the guy is from UK as well.

Glad you got sorted.

It’s always useful to find another car-parts company.
However, I do prefer to check out them out before using them and the website doesn’t give the Siret Number for this enterprise.

cheers

1 Like