What would you pay for this horsebox and anyone selling in the South West??

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TED2010

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Hi, I am still looking for a horsebox!

I am going to look at this box at the weekend, please could you give me an idea of what you would think it is worth and any helpful hints or advice you have. I have only ever had Ifor trailers before.

It is a 1989 (F reg) Mercedes 1314 7.5 tonne 3 horse box with full living, lighting, inside tack area, walk through from living to horses. Body work looks very tidy and the owner said it had been maintained to a very high standard and has just had a new floor in the horse area. MOT until Sept. For sale due to downsizing. Asking £6,500 but has said he is open to offers.

I stupidly hardly asked any questions as i saw the advert had been placed at the end of March and thought it would already be sold. He said he had been messed around by someone who agreed to buy it and then didn't come up with the cash and he hadn't bothered to re-advertise it. I know I should have asked about mileage and unladen weight but as the lorry isn't too far away i may just go and see it and ask all the questions then.

If anyone is selling and isn't too far away, I'm in Devon - South West please get in touch. I should probably mention budget is limited, would prefer not to spend more than £4,500 - £5k ideally with long MOT and some Tax, and don't want a rust bucket or a Ford cargo. Must be able to carry horses up to 17hh. Thanks for reading and any thoughts, much appreciated! :)
 
Unless its made by a 'name' eg oakley then that sounds rather pricey! We paid £5500 18 months ago for an L reg Merc.....
 
I thought it was a lot for that age too but thought perhaps merc's hold value better than other older boxes? That part of the reason for my post, because I thought he was asking way too much and if I could get that confirmed by a few people I would be more confident about making a lower offer for it, he can only say no! Horseboxes seem more expensive in the South West than up country, has anyone else noticed that? Anything i see on ebay that is half decent and i can afford is in Yorkshire or Scotland! :)
 
The thing is it's really quite a lot overpriced, the kind of offer I would put in would be almost half, even less?

I've seen a lorry I like the look of - 2 in fact but they are both in region of 5k, which realistically speaking is waaaaaaay too much for their age.

I think merc's are quite heavy as well so you might not have as much payload?
 
Way over priced and Mercs are heavy. Do ask about the payload, I think you'd only be able to carry two at a push. If I was selling, I'd be asking around £5.5 for my L reg Daf which has really good payload.
 
Thanks for the helpful replies, If I follow up the Merc I will be sure to ask about the unladen weight and perhaps ring and suggest that it is overpriced and see if he tells me where to go. One thing is for sure, there are a lot of old rust buckets out there and a lot of dodgy dealers trying to sell them. I just want a decent, solid, tidy and reliable box so I can get out again - I'm starting to go a little mad! I would much rather find something for around the £3,500 mark because I will then not bankrupt myself in the process!:D
 
We may consider selling ours- its baisically identical to the one you have described although is a B reg and we would want a lot less money for it. Really economical and always passes MOT with flying colours, cheaper than our car to run! If you want more info feel free to pop me a PM :)
 
I think it sounds really overpriced. It's ancient! At the end of the day even if the box is well maintained what about the chassis? How many miles has it done? We had an old lorry but newer then that! It needed a new exhaust, clutch, gear box ect ect and cost a fortune to keep on the road mechanically and it was VW so also a good solid make.
Keep looking for that price you should get something a bit newer.
We use a W reg Citroën 3.5 ton box, very tidy and reliable and that was brought for 4.5k!
 
Just out of interest, why not a Cargo? I am selling mine at the moment - it is a fabulous lorry, starts first time every time, and my mechanic (who put it through it's last plate for me) says it is a really good one and I should keep hold of it. The only reason I'm selling is because with only one horse to compete I would rather go back to a trailer, it's just too silly pulling up at a showground with just one 15.2hh on board :D
 
I am not that up to date on prices of older lorries, but surely the price you pay is what it is worth to YOU?
I recently looked for many months for a bigger box. Tried alot,in various price and age ranges, and HATED driving them,or they were mechanically unsound if I did like them. On the off chance rang a local dealer,who had something I liked and subsequently purchased, after my mechanic had checked it over. Mechanic said to me it was over priced, by about £2k. However, to me it isn't,because it is exactly what I was looking for, and is easy to drive. Being a dealer, it also comes with a warranty and he had to correct the few faults my mechanic found. I could have looked for much longer, spent a fortune both travelling to view, and paying mechanic to check boxes (which may well have still proved unsafe or needed loads of work).
But, at the end of the day the box, to me, was worth what I paid , as it suited both my requirements and my driving ability!!
So, if it suits you, it may well save your time travelling to view more, and if you have to pay a mechanic to check it over, it may well turn out to save more fees to him.
But, equally all prices are negociable, even the dealer budged from the original price!
Good luck in your quest!
 
Spottyappy said:
I am not that up to date on prices of older lorries, but surely the price you pay is what it is worth to YOU?
I recently looked for many months for a bigger box. Tried alot,in various price and age ranges, and HATED driving them,or they were mechanically unsound if I did like them. On the off chance rang a local dealer,who had something I liked and subsequently purchased, after my mechanic had checked it over. Mechanic said to me it was over priced, by about £2k. However, to me it isn't,because it is exactly what I was looking for, and is easy to drive. Being a dealer, it also comes with a warranty and he had to correct the few faults my mechanic found. I could have looked for much longer, spent a fortune both travelling to view, and paying mechanic to check boxes (which may well have still proved unsafe or needed loads of work).
But, at the end of the day the box, to me, was worth what I paid , as it suited both my requirements and my driving ability!!
So, if it suits you, it may well save your time travelling to view more, and if you have to pay a mechanic to check it over, it may well turn out to save more fees to him.
But, equally all prices are negociable, even the dealer budged from the original price!
Good luck in your quest!
Click to expand...

And if its sound and well maintained ,you will save that 2k in a very short while.
 
I haven't followed up the Merc after the initial posts about it being overpriced. I was told by the owner that it had been very well looked after and maintained and it did look very tidy so maybe it is worth the money, He also said that he wasn't that bothered if he sold it because he was only planning to go down to a 3.5t if he got a good price for it so I felt he was unlikely to go for a offer significantly less than his asking price.

Due to one or two other things happening over the last week I also now only have about £3.5k to play which I know is going to limit me to an older box so condition and reliability is very important. I have spoken to the chap who is selling the box on preloved in the first link posted by Vetwrap and he initially told me it was sold but has rung this evening to say he has been let down. Does anyone have anythoughts on this box, it is a Leyland Daf I think it is 1992 but he said has a personalised plate on it - it looks from the picture like it has a window in the middle of the back which looks a bit odd!?? :confused:
 
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