I am looking to buy a car I saw advertised on ‘leboncoin’. I have seen the car and am going again tomorrow, this time with a friend who understands spoken french better than me.
The unusual aspect of this sale is that the car is 51 years old, but has had only one owner. The carte grise (old old style!) is with the car and shows the original owner and registration details, but the car is being sold by another man. From what I could gather from him he has had the car for many years, (the original owner died at least 25years ago), but it has been parked up. I think he is a dealer, he is certainly in the motor trade so presumably has no obligation to register the car to himself, but our conversation today didn’t really make things crystal clear.
Any view about the registration process now? I guess it is possible that the seller will do all the paperwork for me should I buy the car so I won’t need to worry anyway.
Another point. I guess it will register as a historic car, does that mean anything awkward? If I buy it will have to be trailered to me and will not be ready for the road for months/ maybe a year.
When someone dies, the vehicle is inherited and the Carte Grise should be changed into the name of the new Owner. There is a correct procedure for this which is quite straight forward.
The fact that this did not happen (apparrently) makes the whole thing very iffy…
(and, even if this person is a Dealer, the person who inherited the vehicle should have done the paperwork before giving (??) the vehicle to this Dealer…)
very, very iffy…
Personally, I wouldn’t touch it with a barge pole.
EDIT: I’m sure there’s been a similar question recently (or not long ago) on the forum. This all seems to ring a bell… as I say, very iffy.
I’d sugest contacting @anon90504988
I don’t think he wants to sell his new old car yet!
Be extremely careful not to but a car from a British friend who takes you for a ride.
Check the undercarriage for corrosion.
Sounds like a very wise life lesson generally.
The person named on the CGrise died 25 years ago… and none of the heirs changed the CGrise…
Be interested to know who is actually claiming to be the Owner now and whether or not they truly have any right to Sell the vehicle… (if not, it’s Theft… surely)
Carte grise et succession : changement de nom suite à un décès.
I bet he wishes he had never asked.
After seeing the car (twice) and asking the seller relevant questions regarding ownership, re-registration, all became clear. I thought.
On the second visit I took an english friend, fluent in French, so we could converse properly.
I didn’t mention that the car is a non-runner and has been for over 40 years.
The seller bought the car from the main audi/NSU agent in Bergerac in 1980 as a non runner (engine seized). It had been the garage demonstrator, registered to the garage owner. The seller therefore still has the original carte grise because you cannot re-register a vehicle that is a non runner. It must be restored to gain a CT and can then be re-registered. So if I bought the car I would retain the original logbook until I had gained a CT, then the new carte grise could be obtained. Astonishingly, the seller had the certificat de cession from the Audi/NSU garage dated 1980, ready for the new owner to sign when the car was ready to be re-registered.
BUT
when I got home and looked at service.public point fr it says a vehicle needing restoration CAN ONLY be sold to a garagist.
So problem solved on two counts: 1. I decided against buying and 2. if I did buy it would technically be against the law.
Incidentally, for those wondering: NSU Ro80, 1971, 7388km from new, one owner. That provenance is probably worth the money being asked, but the thought of bringing another Ro engine back from the dead was too much. I had three of these wonderful-to-drive cars back in the 90s and did manage to rebuild an engine. But I wasn’t 76yo at the time…
As a matter of interest… it is only in recent years that non-runners have not been able to obtain a CT and thus impossible for the ordinary person to buy and Register.
We bought a non-runner about 15 years ago… got the CT marked as non-runner and had no problems re-registering it straight away in accordance with the law.
OH has since completely rebuilt it … hurrah.
It then had it’s CT to get it back on the road… hurrah yet again.
A pal of mine’s Dad had a new RO 80 back in the day, I loved the design and the “auto” change. Audi were great engineers, unlike VW who just churned out the same old stuff very profitably for decades. It was the acquisition of bankrupt Audi by cash rich VW that saved the two marques. I had an NSU TTS in my youth which had been raced and was a bit clapped out but she could blow off any Mini Cooper with ease 
I remember when the Golf came out looking under the bonnet and thinking, pure Audi 
Ten years ago I turned down a running Citroën GS Birotor (with pare engine included) that I was offered by a friend, who was one of the foremost (if not the foremost) Citroën SM expert in Europe. He wouldn’t have sold me a pup but a Wankel was still too much of a hassle IMO. It was an ill conceived engine from the start. Even leaving seals aside, long, skinny combustion chambers aren’t a good idea.
I think the seller, quite an old guy, is not aware of this.
I would suspect, based on what I see on the Lacentrale car sales site, that it could also be sold as an export.
There seem to be a fair few Belgian dealers on there buying and selling.
Driving in my car, smoking my cigar….
The only time I’m happy’s when I play my guitar.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dym4VFdTMnQ
How insufferably irritating.
I’m afraid that song is about a very different form of NSU. It was written by Jack Bruce to make a point about Eric Clapton’s health at the time…
Thanks - I recognised the line @plod quoted.
NSU is not an abbreviation with which I am familiar outside of motor vehicles.
Hi All,
Out of interest. . . . . Would you be able to buy this type of car “non runner” with no CG if sold as “spares” ?
If so could it then be restored and submit for CT?
Thanks. R