Hi All,

I’m new here because like doggboy earlier, I’m looking to buy a Crossfire! To give you some background, I normally have a classic as a second car but my MGB GT V8 is currently being restored and so I want a fun second car until that’s ready. My fiancé can also only drive an Auto so as my daily hack is a Ford Mondeo manual it means there is a car to use on the rare occasions she needs to.

I am not looking for one this instant as I have to wait to sell my racing kart before getting one but I am a competent driver/car enthusiast so can do all maintenance work myself so that’s not a worry. I have loved the Crossfire ever since they came out, especially as I like cars that are different but with racing commitments couldn’t afford one but now I can, especially as they are so cheap now! I am looking to spend around £4,000 (though anything less would be awesome) and I know that will get me a 53/04/54 plate with anything between 60 and 80,000 miles, though I have seen some as low as £3150!

I finally got the opportunity to test one about 2 weeks ago and really liked it. The steering wasn’t horrific as I’d been led to believe though from my experience I found the automatic box to be a typical Mercedes ‘lazy’ box, like has been said here they are cruisers not racers. I would like a silver or black one. This one was an 04 plate with just 39,000 miles but it sold before I got the money together lol.

What I wanted to ask basically was what to look for when buying one? Because I can do repairs myself I don’t mind some minor issues BUT at the same time I don’t want to buy a dog that gives the xf a bad name. So what are things that I can consider ‘nothing to worry about’ and things I should avoid? Here’s what my research has showed me so far:

If the handling isn’t great, replace the steering stabiliser
Heated seats often don’t work (so I’ve been told)…why and easy fix?
Wheels often have kerb marks, worthwhile to repair or not?
ESP light comes on periodically, apparently this is fixed by a DIY procedure turning the wheel left and right in various states of ignition(?)
Tyres..i've seen a lot with cheap Nankang tyres on which I wont touch, what are the best tyres which aren’t big money?

Reliability and Servicing, what if any are the key points?

Finally, I’m based in Cardiff so will be hunting from there. Many thanks in advance!

 

Welcome to the forum good luck with your search for a Xfire, lots out there

 

well on the tyre side I'm with you on the nankangs (though by all accounts they are a LOT better than they used to be!). Icurrently I'm running Kumho 275/35/19 on the rear and Falkens on the front and have had no problems with grip and/or road noise

 

I just gone through a similar process to yours and as a consequence I had a look at all the possible issues that can arise.

I think you have most of them covered in your original post, the only other thing I would include is they all seem to rust under the tailgate where the release handle is, also check around the battery area to make sure there are no hidden problems there.

Good luck and happy hunting, luckily it only took me around 3 weeks to find my car, (you will have to travel around) although I ended up spending a lot more than I had initially budgeted, but an SRT6 Roadster came up at a price I could not resist.

 

Thanks guys, especially for those tips Dal. I've sen a couple fairly locally that look good but waiting till I have the funds to go look at them, I would like an 04 plate onwards really though there seem to be nice 53 plates around for my budget.

WIll keep you all updated and look forward to showing you my eventual purchase

 

Keep at it, the process can be painful but the rewards are worth it!

I love mine, I keep going to garage just to look at her

 

My other car has now had a deposit put on it so once the guy pays the rest and picks it up i'll be looking in earnest