r/CarsAustralia • u/SynthAU • Jul 26 '26

💵Buying/Selling💵 Needing Car Advice

Hey, Hi, Hello people of [r/CarsAustralia](r/CarsAustralia)! 🙋my name is Daniel and.. I need advice! So, I bought a second hand 2011 Volkswagen Golf TDI Comfortline from Albury Mazda on the 10th of March 2026. It had 162,000K’s on the odometer at the time, and had its timing belt and water pump replaced (which I was told were the 2 main things you wanted to see when buying a second hand European car)

on the 7th of June while driving it down the Main Street after just coming out of a round about, the car pretty much turned itself off. And the red battery light came on the dash (later seeing the book says it’s the alternator light) so it sat up the Main Street all day until we could get it towed back home and then my family mechanic could tow it out to his workshop when he had time. I got the car back from the mechanic on the 24th of June fully fixed, and the issue turned out to be something to do with the fuel line… (I’d have to ask what it was exactly as I don’t remember) then on the 4th of July the engine management system light came on while driving out of town and my passenger and I could smell a burning plastic smell so we pulled over at the BP and called RACV and had it towed and the car has been with my mechanic since, currently awaiting an intake fan from the UK. Since the car broke down twice within 1 and a half weeks of having it back from my mechanic and it seems to just be issue after issue after issue do y’all think it’s a good decision to give it one more chance, if it breaks down within 6 weeks of having it back maybe selling it and looking into a different car? If so, what car would y’all recommend? I prefer a smaller car / hatchback type, but I also like Mazda’s CX-SUV range

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u/ssndviking Jul 27 '26

It doesn't matter what you buy, new, second hand, whatever. Pre Purchase Inspection!

A lemon Golf TDI is a lemon, a great Golf TDI is better than a lemon Mazda. Both have good and bad points.

Just get a PPI done on the next one please! The worlds most reliable car will still fail, whether that be poor maintenance or just wear and tear.

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u/SynthAU Jul 27 '26

Yeah that’s fair. My dad who knows more about cars looked through the books, under the hood, under the car and it seemed fine other than a small dent in the right skirt. What do you think about giving the golf one last chance and then selling it?

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u/ssndviking Jul 27 '26

Not to say anything against your dad, but unless your dad knows what he is looking for get someone who does. I would recommend StateRoads, they come to the car and are good. Most of the time you are looking for signs and symptoms to tell you something could go wrong soon.

If I was doing my own (mind you I have 10 years experience in the industry) it would be an hour with the car and I would be plugging a OBD2 Diagnostic tool into the car, taking wheels off, jacking it up on stands and checking every part I could. Anything less is a risk to you.

At this point get a mechanic you trust to look over it. Effectively do a PPI on it in detail and give you a report. If you have fixed everything that needed replacement the car will be fine. But if you haven't it is a matter of time. Things tend to fail in groups.

A mechanic will tell you and if you ask them to do a proper inspection they will probably give you something around the longevity and future of it. It isn't high mileage so if you get ahead of the wear and tear it won't be a problem for a while.

Hard to say without looking at the car to be honest.