Hello again,
This is my 4th blog about moving to Spain. This time will tell about buying a car. The first weeks we had our car from Belgium. We did the trip by car and my hubby was there for a couple of weeks. We needed it because a lot of things had to be done. You know how it goes: buying some furniture, arranging documents, discovering the area, finding out were to get the daily needs, ...
But then I was alone. I had to do things on my own without a car. I could manage it, but it was not always easy. Springtime was hard. We had so much rain. March was a new record in rainy days. Luckily we've found a little car for me. or not so luckily???
First of all I need to tell a bit of a background story. We never bought a second hand car and the only thing I know about a car is that it has 4 wheels and a steering. I already start looking for a new car while I was a month in Belgium. I was shocked by the prices for a small car. I didn't want a big one. A small one is more my style and so much easier to find a parking spot. Our first thought was to take our SUV to Spain for me and we would buy a new one for Belgium. But I wasn't into it. So I started with my hunt for a small, city car. I ended up with a few possibilities, but OMG, so expensive. So I decided to look for a second hand one.
I thought that would be easy ... Wrong! Because of al the problems (Covid, War in Ukrain) there is a very long waiting time for new cars. So it's hard to find a second hand one. But I won't give up.
One day I found one that might be good. we went to the dealer and it was a disaster. The car was in a bad shape. So that was a no-go for us. Suddenly my husband saw a nice little Fiat 500. He knew I liked that model a lot. And yes ... It was still available! We were so enthusiastic (first mistake!) and after a bit we decided to buy it. It looked good although it had a high milage. But we thought it would still be okay. I don't use it that much and if we could use that for a couple of years it would be fine. The salesman was an English guy and of course very friendly. It would take less than a week to prepare everything (paperwork, insurance) and than I would be the proud owner.
I was so happy with my Fiat 500. It's so cute and adorable. 馃槑
Until a bit later. After the sale was done we got all the papers. There was a report from the previous ITV inspection (Inspecci贸n t茅cnica de veh铆culos is the Spanish vehicle roadworthiness test) and we discovered there were some serious remarks. Well you can call us stupid, but we didn't know about that paper and it was given to us after buying it. Lesson learned the hard way. So I want to share this story to warn other people. First check all the papers and if in doubt, ask around.
I was so in love with my little car and made it mine with some personal touches. Flip flops on the mirror and a personal keychain holder.
But less than 2 months later the love and happiness was fainting away. We had to make a decision. Would we do all the repairs or sell it again? Finally we cut the cord and go for another one. But this time no second hand anymore. We realize it's hard to buy one if you have no clue about cars. Even if they look nice, it can be a disaster. Luckily I could sell it again for a reasonable price to the car dealer where we bought it .
This time I went to an official Fiat dealer and I was informed. The lady was very helpful and gave me advise to get the best price selling the old one. The new car is again a Fiat 500 and a white one. Most of the colors are not available and the waiting time is between 6-12 months. I need a new one sooner, because the next inspection will be in october. Or I have to do the repairs (which will cost a lot) or risking it will be disapproved and hard to sell. There were only 3 colors to choose for a stock car (white, dark blue and black) so I ended up with the white one. I see a lot of dark colored cars in Spain with damaged roofs from the sun. In the meantime I'm back in Belgium and I got a message that the car has arrived. They have to do some minor modifications and when I'm going back in less than 2 weeks I can pick it up!
At the end I think we made the right decision. We lost a bit of money, but learned a lesson and no harm is done. From now on I will have a safe car to tour around!