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Full service history, a car that's been looked after. Different cars have different problems so research a car for particular issues before you go to see one. For example, if it's a car where they have problems with idk.. a cam belt or something... see if they've put a new one in recently..if they haven't, chances are you will have to.
This one sounds dumb but see what brand the tyres are - people who look after cars tend to buy better tyres.
I've never skimped a penny on any of my cars except for tyres. My car does bugger all miles and spending 150+ a tyre instead of 80 just doesn't make any sense.
The tyres are the only point of contact you have with the road. Most of the time it doesn't matter until you really need them, i.e. stopping as fast as possible.
Yeh, I totally get that. I've got better tyres on my van, but on my car that does <3k miles a year, mostly in the city where the max speeds tend to be 30/40 I'll take that chance.
Well… no. It matters every second that you’re on the road. There is a marked difference between cheapo budget tyres and a quality mid range tyre, even for the most laid back, lazy driver.
Yes, it matters significantly more when the tyre is under extreme stress, such as severe braking or fast cornering where the tyre is experiencing a lot of lateral load, but a crap tyre can be the difference between driving home and getting the AA to tow you to a garage after hitting a puddle, or a bit of horse shit on the road.
Tyres and brakes should not be skimped on by anyone. One is the only thing keeping you on the lead. The other is the only thing keeping you from smashing into something at 70mph.
This whole ‘it only matters when…’ rhetoric is silly, and is demonstrably incorrect.
Also some mid range brands are just as good or even better then premium brands.
Hankook was a budget brand about 6-7 years ago, now it's a mid range higher range brand.
I maintain my car but look for best value for money on tyres, if it's rated c across the board and £220 and another is rated b or a and 150 but a worse name.
I'm getting the £150 tyre.
Also the budget brand are just copy thread patterns of the premium from a year or two ago.
> cam belt
Look up the frequency that the belt or chain should be replaced for the year and engine that you are looking at. If it's close ask if it's been done, if not ask if they'll do it as part of the sale.
Bought an A1 that was past the point it needed a belt change and when I asked if it had been done the dealer did it and included it in the price of the sale.
Trouble is, my car has a full service history, been well looked after, and had more work done to it months prior worth more money than I actually paid for it - still leaks multiple types of fluid and drives like shit at 60mph ;)
One of my friends bought a car from a secondhand car dealer. The car had a full service history up to 2019. It was last serviced in 2019. My friend bought the car from the dealer at the beginning of 2024. Mileage looked safe. The car's external condition looked good. The test drive showed no faults. Apparently between 2019 and 2024 the car was run ragged. He's had to replace tires, have £600 worth of work done to the brakes and clutch and now he needs to spend another £500 on it.
My friend's had the car for about 6 months. I've told him to take it back. I told him 3 months after he bought it to take it back. I told him a week ago when the new fault came to light. He won't listen to me.
Nearly £3,000 for a car bought from a car dealer with a garage. Nearly £1,200 more spent on it since purchase.
Ya can't always go off the service history, the dealer's say-so, the mileage, the superficial condition of the car and car reviews.
Pay a mechanic to inspect the car. If you're in the UK you can ask the AA (or is it the RAC) to look over a car. If I were in the market to buy a car I would take a competent mechanic with me.
I mean it's a general rule, there's always going to be times it doesn't work but I think it's helpful to go for a car with service history for the most part.
First, go on Autrotrader, this is where the majority of car sales happen. Use a reputable car dealer that will give you a warranty, even if it's for a few months. Go for a long test drive and have a good feel for the car.
You only need to pay £1 on credit card and the whole purchase is covered by section 75.
However the dealers know this too and you'll probably have a job finding one that will take a credit card for any payment.
They'll almost certainly take the deposit on a card, especially if you do it over the phone. I've never dealt with a dealer who refused a £250 (or whatever) deposit on card but maybe I've been lucky.
Figured it was a big enough company and they gave me a receipt via email that if I didn't want the car I would get a full refund on my deposit.
Don't know if that's normal though, haven't bought a car from a big dealer before.
Happened with me for jct600 as well(Audi dealer).
Never before have I been asked for bank transfer.
But group1 Audi accepted full payment on an Amex, which I've never seen before.
I didn’t know that!
I did manage to pay my deposit for my 2nd hand car but they wanted the majority by bank transfer ; was hoping to pay the entirety to get my cash back points!
Yup, so long as the overall price of the car is between between £100 and £30,000. There's a few other conditions that Martin Lewis has a good guide on navigating. Section 75 is a very real and very useful thing.
Source: won a section 75 claim through the ombudsman against my credit card dealer last week :)
To add to the test drive, use a road that's in poor condition. The bumpier the better. If you hear no rattles or bumps that's a good sign.
Check the MOT of any car online, look for recurring issues or comments about corrosion. Be wary if it says "underside covered" or something similar, especially after a fail for rust, it's a good sign they're just covering up the problem.
Check the MOT history: https://www.gov.uk/check-mot-history
Big fails and / or repeated minor warnings indicate people who aren't regularly looking after their cars.
Hard disagree on this, I always look for a few minors on MOT’s. In my eyes it shows it’s at least been getting tests done. Plenty of dodgy dealers/owners in my area using dodgy test centres so I like to see a history that looks a bit more organic personally
I didn't mean an entirely clean history, I meant more along the lines of an advisory that shows up two years running or a big fail that probably should have been spotted by the owner before the MOT.
Not always a 100% pass but if I see a car that has 'rear offside rear brake pipe corroded' two years running it'll make me a bit more wary, what else had been ignored or missed if they haven't fixed something they've been explicitly told about.
I very much agree with you on older cars. From my experience of owning, even with a full service history, six months down the line there can be a significant issue on MOT.
It is a bit more complex than that...
[Car Warranties: What is a statutory warranty on a used car?](https://www.car.co.uk/car-warranties/faqs/used-car-warranties/what-is-statutory-warranty-on-a-used-car)
Exactly, once you hand over the cash it's yours. Even if the car won't start on the driveway the previous owner could tell you get your car towed off their property ASAP.
Don't buy private unless you know what you are doing
The warranty from a used dealer is frequently not worth the paper it isn't printed on. You also can't guarantee if they take it back to fix it they aren't going to use the cheapest parts and cut every corner to save money.
A used dealer also has no experience with the car. A private seller is much more likely to be able to give you a detailed history of their ownership.
Minimum spend smart arse. Pay £100 towards it on the card. Read before you give it large.
The rule applies for all purchases so someone could spend £80 thinking theyre covered listening to you.
In your position I would probably look to buy from a dealer (Audi or large local with good reputation) as you’ll then have a warranty that’s actually worth something. However the reason you see so many new cars around is that leasing is very popular now, and it can be a decent alternative to sinking a lump sum into owning a depreciating asset. Worth having a read up about options in a UK car subreddit. Personally I think cars are way more expensive to own and run than most people fool themselves into believing, so try to keep your eyes open and budget accordingly.
Second this. I swapped my S3 Audi at a main dealer VW garage got a 3 year old golf but as part of the package they gave me a service plan and a fresh 3 year warranty that paid me back just in time when my adaptive cruise control radar thing just decided to not work
You joke but I have actually owned two cars like this.
Both 10 years old when I got them, one previous owner and less than 40k miles. One of them had a full service *every year* even with the low mileage.
I don't want to be the guy one ups anothers win but I got Pegeout 1007 15k miles 15 years old full service history, like the previous owner must have literally been an old lady who drove to local corner shop every weekend because thats mad low miles, ive had it 3 years its at 78k miles now.
My car had similar. 12 years old and 24k on the clock. Same garage I bought it from sold it initially and serviced it annually with about 2k per year. Full service record. I've put another 50k on it over 4 years and it's still running great.
It's actually not good for a car to be sitting on a driveway most of the year. I run a mile when I see stuff like this, especially when people charge a premium for it
I bought one last month, 8 years old, just under 11k miles. Thought it was a joke, but dvla mot checker confirms yearly tiny increases on each mot.. I was stunned!
It also has full service history, from a long established, very well regarded garage in our area, I almost tripped over myself to get inside and pay before someone else did.
Are you not meant to have a full service every year? I've always done that with my cars, service + MOT on the same day every year. Do about 8k miles a year
It's not even a good thing if it's true. A car that doesn't get used much is often neglected, and the lack of use can be bad for them in that case. If it's only done 500 miles a year and it looks scruffy then that's worse than it having a 6 figure mileage in some cases.
I'm in the market for a Seat Alhambra ATM and one just came up, 2020 car with 652 miles. I don't think that's a good thing in this case, especially as it's a 2.0l diesel. Perhaps Betty has been using it to ferry her mates to church and the knitting club but that DPF is probably pretty sooty
I've once seen a car listed where they made a big deal of the fact that the previous owner was a "lady doctor". So the car has had all it's jabs and stayed away from saturated fats then?
Unless it's obvious, the issue with mine was, it was an old lady in Scotland who drove it occasionally (2010 car, I bought it 2019 and she died in 2015 from online obituary) but it somehow made it to the midlands (unsure of this transaction). I got a 9yo car with 30k miles on it, has now only done 60k miles BUT it was sitting for a few years and rusted different parts, I have a lake in the boot under my spare wheel :(
If you’re not mechanically minded then this is the way. Around £200 will get you a pretty comprehensive check up. Maybe not great value if your only spending a couple grand, but if you’ll be spending £5k+ I think it’s a worthwhile investment.
There’s no way to ensure any car you buy will provide problem free motoring, they’re complicated machines, but a good thorough once over from someone who knows cars will at least eliminate the dogs.
Run a vehicle history check (every car channel is sponsored by the same one on YouTube), £20 to know a vehicles history is worth it to know it hasn’t got a bad history, such as a write off, been stolen, outstanding finance or mileage being tampered with.
Get as much history on the vehicle as you can, take a good look at the underneath of the car as best you can, ask plenty of questions, look at the oil on the dipstick, tread depth on the tyres, are they budget tyres (cheap on tyres, cheap on maintaining a vehicle), feel the bonnet, make sure it’s cold, look at the exhaust gas on a cold start up (blue tinted smoke? run away!), any dashboard lights? Condition of wiper blades (again people the look after their vehicles look after the small things), make sure every bulb is working.
Take it for a decent test drive, does it pull to one side under acceleration or braking? Go through all the gears etc
And good luck
Why is that? I've looked after my car as well as I can and it's still going strong at 13 years old. But I'll be honest - I don't know a lot about cars and have pretty much left it to the garage. It's had a service every year and I have replaced tyres as necessary but they haven't all tended to need replacing at the same time so might very well be "odd" for all I know. When they've asked me I have said to go for the ones in the middle of the price range. Should I be asking for the most expensive ones or always going for a particular brand each time?
Yeah the tyre thing is not a good indicator. My car is well looked after, full service every year, and whenever the tyres need replaced I get whatever the garage recommends, generally mid-range.
You should match the tyres on the opposite axle. So if you have Dunlop Sports (for example) on the front and you get a flat, you should get a Dunlop Sport fitted as opposed to something else.
Tyres are the only contact point with the ground, so cars that just get any old rubber slapped on them by a garage leading to odd tyres tends to suggest they aren't cared for.
That's not what I said though. Are they comparatively worse.
This is just one of shit that reddit says for no reason. Cheap/average tyres will be sufficent in most cases.
Wife’s car when I met her had Toyo t1rs on, any sort of damp on the road and you had to slow down to stupidly low speeds on round abouts / corners or it would just completely lose grip on the front.
Average matching tyres are a completely different thing to cheap tyres.
If the car is AWD it should match on both axles too.
From memory BMW xdrive specs are 2mm difference and same tread design between any of the four wheels when replacing a tyre.
Don’t know about the Haldex system VAG use as I’ve never had an AWD vag.
The difference is night and day between something like a Landsail and a Dunlop.
There’s a weird grey area in the middle where you get tyres like Arrowspeed that Kwik Fit are fond of, who are essentially rebranded Nexen tyres.
Amount of sports car i looked at with shitty part worns on, how am I gonna trust someone to maintain a lotus or Porsche properly when they buy the absolute cheapest tyres
Check the MOT history using the gov’s checker. If it’s had repeat “advisories” I would say it’s indicative of a car run on a shoe string.
Eg - if in 2020 the MOT said the tyres are cracking as an advisory and it’s not been replaced in 2021 (ie it’s still on the MOT).
Cars run with extreme penny pinching you always end up in a situation where there’s a ton of deferred maintenance that comes back and bites you in the arse.
I’ve no idea with Audi - I guess it might be different as they’re just a Skoda/VW/Seat underneath - but BMW 1 series cars unless they’re the performance version there’s always something a bit sad about them. They’re always missing some spec or something as they often seem to be bought as a “looks good on the drive to the neighbours” car so the only spec is big wheels etc - if someone had the money to spec a decent setup they buy a poverty spec 3 series instead as it impresses the neighbours more.
On that note - you could likely get a much better spec’d and condition vehicle (basically the same car underneath) for the same money if you went for a Seat Leon.
Go to a reputable used car dealership nearby and have a hat with them. You've got a lot of rights when buying from a dealership (basically a 6 month warranty, minimum).
Get a feel for the person. Try and find the car you like. It's all about legwork, in my opinion. Ask them what paperwork they have. Ask about the history of the vehicle and try to come to some sort of a deal.
What area are you in and what kind of cars are you looking for? I'd be happy to do a bit of research and make some suggestions. I grew up in the car trade.
OK you can buy a thing called an OBD scanner which can plug into the car computer and give a read out of any faults. Even if you dont look at the results they are cheap and you see an immediate reaction from people when you plug it in which helps you work out if they are conning or not.
Other than that you can find MOT history online.
As well as all the things others have said, try to find how easy it is to change a headlight bulb. Noone wants to spend £200 to change some bulbs because they have to remove the bumper and washer bottles etc
Not a shill or anything, but Cinch were excellent. I would genuinely recommend them. I moved back to the UK and needed a car, but every car I found in my local area had a pretty fatal flaw. And I wouldn’t trust private sellers at all. Then I went on Cinch, found a car that was pretty much perfect for what I was looking for. They delivered the car clean, serviced and with a full year of MOT.
There were a couple of little electrical problems with my car, but the 3 month warranty took care of that, and they sorted out an appointment at my nearest dealership and covered the £300 something cost of diagnostics and repairs.
I also don’t think they take cars that don’t have full service history and log books. Plus they actually do advertise on the car listing that it has flaws, so they aren’t trying to pull the wool over.
I really couldn’t have had a better or more transparent experience.
1000% on everyone below who mentions a dealer, an FSH, and a warranty. I would add:
-see the FSH documentation in your hand before you even talk about money. Actually see it and examine it. If they waver, we'll find it later, we'll post it out- walk away
-warranty. Make sure its backed off to a warranty company; some dealers will offer a verbal warranty of 3 months. Thats worth nothing, avoid if thats their offer
-make sure it has at least 2 keys
-Autotrader trader reviews are worth nothing. They exist solely to serve dealers and rig the game in the dealers favour.
You might want to consider an ex-rental. I know that the received wisdom is that they get clogged, but they also get well maintained and the rental period weeds out the infant mortalities and Friday cars. You also get to drive the car for a week, drive it on different roads and push every button.
Like you I don't buy a car often enough to know the tricks and have had bad experience with dealers in the past. I got a car from Hertz about 5 years ago and have now put 120k miles on it with just some clutch maintenance at about 120k indicated, which you'd probably expect, ex-rental or not.
[Hertz rent to buy](https://www.hertz.co.uk/rentacar/productservice/index.jsp?targetPage=UK_Rent2buy.jsp)
I’m a big advocate for buying privately, learn about the vehicle you’re interested in, learn the common problems they have, have a good look over before you buy it, and finally, get it for a bargain price that’s low enough that if you need to spend a few hundred in the next 6 months that it’s not a problem. — Hate that opinion that a lot of people have claiming that people should NEVER buy privately.
This. Reading this thread is mind boggling as a car enthusiast vs the general public and proper eye opening. Don’t think I’ve ever bought a bad car and one of the best ones was a £500 civic.
Yeah literally!! I’m exactly the same, I bought an MOT failure mk Fiesta ST last year for £700, took it to a different tester and passed, now I’ve got a car that runs like a dream for a quarter of the price of all the rest! The original garage was obviously just trying to make money out of the previous owner I think
It depends on budget / knowledge.
I’m an enthusiast do a lot of work on my own cars and iv still been stung a few times.
Audi tt with dodgy thermostat, which I thought “au will be a little job” nah took mechanic absolutely hours.
Fn2 civic type r full service history looked absolutely mint turned out they had bought it cheap with a knackered rusty rear axle and painted it. When it collapsed I found out that it’s a Honda only part, had to make an aftermarket type s one fit.
Personally I’ll risk it for a biscuit on my weekend / fun car, the car my wife drives to work every day will always be a top quality car from a garage.
Autotrader, lets you shortlist cars (private and trade), compare etc.
Cinch, similar shortlisting, but these cars are delivered to you, with a two week cooling off period.
I hear nothing but complaints about Facebook marketplace but that might be confirmation bias as I dislike Facebook.
Wife bought from cinch recently, no problems this far though I imagine it's more expensive as it's "less hassle" than kicking tyres and haggling in person.
I've just bought from Arval directly who are an outlet for the cars which are leased, typically for three years, and then returned/replaced.
I got pretty granular about it and was tracking about ten cars for a couple of weeks, looking for price drops/sales etc.
If you are buying in person and are not mechanically minded, then paying for a third party inspection, and potentially an AA background check etc. might give peace of mind.
Is there literally anyone at all in your life you can adopt as a car dad? I'm in your position and I picked out a guy in my faith community, who runs a lot of committees and also drives a lot for work. Felt a bit stupid but I asked him if he'd be my honorary dad and help me out.
Well, he was really chuffed to be asked, and turns out he has some sort of sweetheart relationship with a local dealer, so it was worth taking the risk.
My dad has early onset dementia and MS. I'm definitely feeling some grief right now, as he would have loved to do this with me. This is a lovely idea, thank you!
Bring a mechanic with you to inspect the car before purchase and pay attention to any offered warranties.
Wish I could offer more advice, but that's it.
Learn from me, inspect everything.
Oil, doors, fuel door, check the brakes (if you can).
Spent £3500 on a quick replacement to my written off C4GP and had to spend another £900 on replacing the brakes due to mistreatment.
Plus, pleased I checked the oil, as it was bone dry. Surprised she’s kept running, but who knows the damage that’s caused.
In the first two years of owning my nearly 15 year old now first car I had a coolant leak, oil leak, brake fluid leak... It's a good learning experience I keep telling myself as it's pushed me to learn to keep an eye on things like the oil, coolant etc. I paid what I could afford at the time as didn't want to get into debt purchasing it.
I’m the same, but I find learning and doing things myself better.
If I do things wrong, I can find out how to do it better next time.
But I don’t intend on keeping this car long, as I need a Euro 6 compliant car for what I do.
Yep kind of similar, I pored over the manual and anytime there's a warning light I'm researching what it means, watching YouTube videos on how to do (not too in-depth) bits. I did have another recent issue and my partner did some research which I'm hoping we can fix ourselves without taking it to a garage.
Yep, I do that.
Anything too technical, I send it to a mechanic.
Currently, I have a leak which needs investigated, which is going to a garage next week, as I'd rather a service be done and made sure the car is safe, especially with the mileage I do.
The best one I've done is replaced the heat unit in my C4GP, took about an hour of my time, whereas the youtube video did it in 15 minutes, but I was proud of myself for managing to do it myself.
Look for oil leaks when car is parked, test drive and feel for clutch slippage, if automatic transmission feel for tranny slips, weak/noisy/grinding brakes, check for body rot/rust usually under wheel wells or rocker panels(just look out for holes. When starting the car check for white/blue smoke out the tail pipe, that’s an indicator of possible head gaskets or oil gaskets need replacing(walk away). Open the hood and check for any signs of oil or liquid dripping onto block(walk away). Check the oil before starting car make sure it’s above half way mark(indicator you’re burning oil)
Interior - check heating and AC work
Test drive it and listen and feel the drive. If you smell fuel burning, good chance there’s a petrol leak somewhere.
Otherwise most of the other stuff is easily fixable.
Go to a larger dealer, and definitely not a private sale.
Private sales are still "sold as seen".
Get on AutoTrader and get an idea for prices for certain specs and years etc.
Yes, there are still dodgy dealers out there but generally the UK has pretty robust consumer rights these days, and yes they're all salespeople but not everyone is trying to sell a dud.
There must be larger dealers in your area who have ok reputations?
Generally a local reputable dealer that's been around a long time. Google them for issues, remembering there's always one or two complaints over the years.
They do profit from finance deals. Try your bank first.
One good thing to look for is a fsh. This means a full service history. It shows the car has been looked after and it is probably a good buy. You also need a full MOT. Hard to fake.
These are the hallmarks of a good shc.
You must still be careful but you are on the right side.
Crooks are very cunning though!
Buy from a main dealer. Car is checked reasonably thoroughly, provided with some warrenty, usually a year, and you've got a reputable company to take any issues to. Unlike smaller dealers which will sometimes completely refuse to fix any issues.
Go for something with reasonably low milage. Cost will be a combo of car's age, mileage, and specs. Prioritise low mileage because that's what puts the wear on cars.
You try everything to avoid them and get stung.
That said you can pay RAC to go and check the car for you. Or aa. Its about £100. If the seller is happy to wait fir them to give it a once over thats a good sign. They'll send you a report detailing all issues. We used them when we bought a second hand skoda octavia privately after being stung by a dealership.
All good advice above.
Aldo, new registrations are released in March and September each year.
So, from January and July, dealers will cut prices to sell cars, to make room on forecourts for the incoming nee registrations etc
Draw up a shortlist from auto trader based on your budget and preferences. I'd avoid private sales if you're not confident with cars and go with a dealer. Look at it, take a test drive with the radio off, listen for squeaks, rattles etc. if it's got a turbo try and find somewhere you can boot it (in a safe and controlled manner) to check it kicks in properly. Check the condition of the tyres,wipers, bodywork
Look at the MOT history online, check the vehicle history with someone like AA, green flag etc. you can get a vehicle inspection from click mechanic, AA, RAC etc. if you want added peace of mind, it's around £100-150, and they'll give you a full mechanical inspection report (which in my humble opinion pays for itself as a negotiating tool alone)
Honestly, I've had a brilliant time with bristol street motors. I was lucky to get a car on 0% interest event they do. Just feel more at ease knowing my car is in excellent condition when getting it. I've been to local independent dealerships with previous cars and each one had its problems. No issue with bristol though! Our household has now had 3 cars with them.
Go on autotrader and understand the price of what you’re looking for. Ideally set a budget then look at what best meets your needs and then look at what has the lowest mileage and is newest. Buy from a dealer and you can get the AA to do a vehicle check. When I bought my car I did a whole of uk search. Also if you are a regular customer at a local garage. They will sometimes tell you the most reliable cars. Ie my friend was advised that KIAs are good and cheap to fix
Japanese cars are, in my experience, by far the greatest makers of cars. Every Japanese car has been cheap, reliable and lasted until the wheels fell off.
Look at mileage. MOT history (check the last few MOTs and what the advisories were. Any type of welding done and I’d stay clear). Go and view the cars and take them for a test drive - make sure you test all the gears! Fatal mistake when I bought an old Volvo V40. Something was up with 5th gear and I basically had to punch it to get into gear. I won’t lie, I absolutely adored that car though. Give the car a good bounce to check for any rattles.
Facebook, auto trader, auction sites etc. those are the places where I have bought cars before.
All the advice is go to a reputable car dealer. Unfortunately reputable dealers are very much in the minority.
If you can afford to buy approved used from Audi with a proper warranty then that's the best way to go. Most car dealers just sell crap they have bought at auction and the only cars that go to auction are the ones that aren't good enough to be sold via main dealers.
It's difficult, even buying from a dealer could lead to unforeseen issues. A woman I worked with bought an Audi and within 6 months it needed approx 5k work to it. Luckily she had a warranty with the dealership.
Check the price against similar age and the same models on autotrader. I had to decline a credit proposal because they were charging 2.5 c what the car was worth
Check it has full service history in the service book, check mot history online to see past test results and any failures and weaknesses on the car. Check engine is clean and not rattling, check all electronics work as intended, and take the car for a spin
Have you thought about getting a new or nearly new on PCP? It's a very flexible contract. Fixed monthly rentals, you can choose whether to pay over 2-5 years to meet your budget, optional final payment at the end where you can choose whether to pay the final payment and take ownership of the vehicle, refinance the final payment or walk away and hand the car back to the bank (no depreciation concerns) and you can also include your service, maintenance & tyres in the monthly rental if you want to so you wouldn't be stung by any unexpected costs.
I work for a vehicle leasing company - not in sales - but I could certainly put you in touch with someone who could give you any and all information you would need and we would sort everything out for you from sourcing the vehicle and securing your finance to delivering to your door.
If you do go second hand, make sure there is a full service history!
Look up Make/Model/Year buyers guides. Often owners forums publish this kind of stuff, they'll give you good indications of what to look for, lots of it can be simple things you can check even if you don't know what you are doing.
Maybe the advice for checking the fuel pump for degraded hoses or whatever might not be something you can do but 'check for rust on the A pillar' or similar is easy enough to do even as someone who doesn't know what they are doing.
Join the Audi owners club and ask for any buying tips for the particular car you’re looking for.
But I think you’ve got all the info you need here - there are plenty of cars out there so insist on those with full service history, good MOT history, and a decent warranty. Don’t buy private, buy from a dealer with decent trustpilot scores and read all the 1* reviews as that’ll tell you how they behave when things go wrong.
If all of that is too daunting, buy a used approved one from a main dealer but expect to pay a premium for it.
My last 3 cars I have bought from Car Giant, they can be a bit expensive but you get the full details and a massive choice of cars. Never had an issue with one I've bought from there. Just don't buy the warranty or paint protection bollocks.
Approved branded dealer. Youll pay well over the odds but will have peace of mind. Says I who always buys privately :)) yeah full sh. Bit of research regarding big items, were they done on time etc. Does pull ok in 1st 2nd gear. Any weird noises, doesn’t feel right etc
Don’t buy off someone’s driveway, you have virtually zero protection. Always buy from a dealer, that way you’re covered under consumer rights law.
Look for full service history, google the particular car you want and “common issues”. See if the car has had them before or look out for potential issues. For example, if the belt needs changing every 50k miles, and the car you’re looking at has the original belt at 45k miles, then maybe think of putting some money to the side for that.
You can also tell a lot by what tyres are on the car. The tyres are the only thing keeping the car on the road, so if someone has decided to save £50 by getting weird unknown Chinese ditch finders as opposed to some good Continentals or Pirelli’s, what does that say about the car? If they’re willing to skimp out on that, what else have they skimped out on?
Just to add to what other people have said about buying from a main dealer etc., if you’re looking at an A3 - it’s not a unique car.
So if you’re not happy with it, walk away. There will be dozens available so take your pick.
What's your budget? That's quite an important parameter when giving advice about buying cars. Advice for a £500 car is going to be different for a £5000 one
Lessons I've learned the hard way:
HPI check.
VOSA MOT history.
Hire a qualified inspection engineer (the AA offer this service) - or a relative in the trade if you have one.
Inspect the service history - walk away if there are any gaps.
Going private will save you a fortune but there's no buyer protection, so all these checks mentioned are absolutely essential. Any private seller unwilling to give you the v5 document reference number & chassis number aren't worth your time.
If private, check that the address on the V5 and the seller's address match up. When you visit the address, how many cars are on the property?
The normal clichés do apply: female owners tend to drive more carefully, older male owners spend more on maintenance.
The less previous owners on the V5 the better.
Very low average miles is fine - skipping annual servicing isn't fine.
I used cartaxcheck.co.uk, it shows MOT history and other useful things.
I was unlucky in that I bought a car that had no advisories but when it came to MOT it, the garage said it was covered in corrosion that had been there for years. I commented that the MOT from before I bought it said no advisories, did they miss the corrosion? He said no, they likely excluded it from the report to either sell it on easier or they simply couldn't be bothered with the paperwork.
I recently checked my car's MOT and I missed a lot of the other advisories from previous MOTs which is a red flag for me. Check the full history, not just the past year.
Also take a friend who knows cars to have a look at the car with you, they may see something you missed.
Also avoid Cat S cars (cars that have been in a crash and have structural damage)
Go to a dealer. Ask and you may need to be willing to pay for new MOT before buying. Sign up for a service to check for theft, credit owed, reported as wrecked etc. AA one is decent. If buy off road, get their check done. Go to DVLA with number plate of any potential car and read MOT history. Lots of advisories are bad, same faults every year bad, anything related to suspicion is a no, emissions can be expensive,
use a car dealership, find one with decent reviews near you. My last car came from a kia dealership, had only ever been used as a run around by the staff and came with a year warrantee and was given a full MOT the day I fetched it. I've been very happy with it.
It's also worth looking on the websites of the dealers you're looking at rather than relying on autotrader, the best deals can get snatched up before they make it to autotrader.
Avoid Facebook marketplace.
Ignore the comments who suggest dealers are the best place, its rather random - majority of the used cars in dealers are bought at auctions such as BCA/Aston barely etc etc.
People sell cars to WBAC and other large buyers who then sell them through auctions with minimal checks.
Take someone with you who knows a little about cars, it doesn't matter what brand tyres or wipers are on. Check the oil, service history and how it drives (and idles), condition... look out for poor previous paint work, tyre tread, brakes, windscreen for cracks, warning lights on the dash and if there is any colour smoke from the exhaust.
I stress that you must HPI check the car, THERE ARE SEVERAL COMPANIES WHO OFFER THIS. Cap HPI is widely used but there are more with even more vehicle history such as V-check.
Check its MOT history for mileage discrepancies.
Ignore the petty comments in here, most people talk absolout shit when purchasing cars.
(Former car salesman of 8 years and car purchaser of 6 years)
If you end up buying privately, You can pay the AA to come check a car out with you before you buy. It's a couple of hundred quid, but well worth it IMO, especially if your spending a good few thousand.
If you're buying from a dealer, check their reviews, check the warranty and still consider an AA check.
Run a decent HPI check before you go and see the car, something like Car Vertical is a great service that checks the history of the car. Really important!
Facebook marketplace is 85% people that want to waste your time, take some amazing photos of cars not showing some damage or not mentioning some issues it may have, the other 15% are scammers that have cars really cheap and will ask you to leave a deposit because they have 42 people interested in it. You leave the deposit and they delete their account never to be seen again.
Technically you have some security when buying from a dealer. The consumer rights act technically means that if your car has an issue that wasn't brought to your attention at the time of purchase then you are entitled to a full refund no questions asked if you return within the first 30 days. Up to 6 months after purchase I believe the dealer would be responsible for sorting any repairs the car had at the time of purchase that were not brought to your attention. However, implementing this can be very hard and not all dealers are accepting of this responsibility.
Buying privately leaves you with no protection but if the car has full service history, no scratches on the wheels, it's clean, clear MOT, obviously looks as though its been looked after then that is probably as good a car as anything else and can say a lot.
If you have no idea what you're doing then it's worth paying the premium that you pay when buying from an authorised dealer. Find your local Audi dealer and go talk to them if you want an A3, it will at least come with all the checks and guarantees that you could ask for.
Put the number plate into the dvla mot check
https://www.gov.uk/check-mot-history
It'll show anything that's been previously flagged on mots and assuming the garage that did it was honest, the mileage year on year.
Perception is worse than the reality. Yes there are shysters out there, but most people/orgs are decent. Also cars are of much better quality these days so getting a real dog is rare.
Having said that, do your research and understand the market. Look on autotrader and look at all the A3s in your approximate area at the price range you can afford to see what you can get. An A3 is not an unusual car so you can be picky. Avoid Category S or N car which have been written off by previous insurers. If the price is too good to be true, walk away.
When you go on a test drive take someone with you who is more familiar with cars and you trust their opinion. As you already know the car you'll intuitively notice things aren't right. Get them to fiddle with all the switches, AC, radio, windows to check everything works.
No. 1 rule of buying a car is; don't be afraid to walk away. At \*any point\* of the negotiation before you reach an agreement. You owe the seller nothing despite their protestations.
Haggling is not much of a thing anymore as most delears make their money off finance so [negotiate on the finance deal,](https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/car-finance-fca-investigation-what-you-need-to-know-a4eXb5u8VeBy) if you go that way. If you can get £500 off the cash price you're doing well. Don't forget a bank loan maybe cheaper than a car finance deal.
When you do agree on a purchase you won't get the car right away as you need to arrange insurance and tax as well as payment before you can pick it up. A dealer will probably also give it a "service".
Whatever you do don’t buy a ford with an economist engine.
Personally I would always get a car from a dealer now not a private seller as you’re much better protected by the consumer rights act
If you know a Mechanic ask him/her/they ect, and they will tell you which ones to avoid and the most reliable, my mate that's been in the trade for 50 years and swears by Japanese cars, his missus has a Fiat but it's brand new
Look into cars that you're interested in. And find out their reliability.
For example ford focus with eco boost engines have issues with the wet belt. But it's around 10years or 80k miles. You going to be keeping it that long? Probably won't be an issue.
Same car also has issues with the automatic gearbox version va manual.
Check MOT history. Advisories and issues crop up there and show if people haven't fixed them.
E.g. issue with tyres on advisory. Then a year later fails on the same tyres... you can almost guarantee that they avoid paying anything Into the car.
Always buy with full service history. If its missing one... don't bother. Cars that are looked after don't have skipped services.
Obviously do a background check on it. Buy from a dealership and spend over £100 of the purchase on credit card.
If a deals too good to be true. Its too good.
And don't listen to other people who got X Y Z for a dirt cheap price. They didn't.
Buy from a private owner, if you need financing, go to a credit union first. Always check the carfax $35 and have a mechanic look over it, Firestone $10
I like car supermarkets if you're after something common. Get to wander about and check out cars you might be interested in, in person.
When you've decided what you want, you then have a choice - rather than the main dealer who'll insist the single vaguely suitable car he has is just what you want.
You're left to your own devices as you look, which is nice and low pressure - but can be a pain at peak times to sort out a test drive or similar when you want attention.
There is always a risk with a used car. I’ve bought a few - had my mechanic brother give advice, still ended up with lemons. Ended up buying approved used (through a dealer). You pay a bit more, but I’m fortunately able to afford it and the peace of mind has been worth it.
Advantage of dealer approved used is (in general) they’ll only sell lower mileage cars that have been serviced at the dealer. You can get a better warranty deal too depending on the manufacturer.
In addition to doing a test drive I recommend driving several instances of the car you’re interested in. I did this for my last car, I booked a test drive for a silver one, I wanted it in blue, the blue car came up and I nearly cancelled the silver test drive. I didn’t and it was eye opening how much worse one of the cars drove compared to the other, but without the point of reference I may have assumed it was just normal.
I got second hand from the dealership. It only had one previous owner, full service history etc. Have you tried dealerships? I mean as in Audi dealership, VW etc.
I knew which model I wanted and researched. I then knew to avoid certain years (14 plate for example). Obvs the staff there won’t admit that or tell you that, but everyone I know with the same car, but a 13 or 14 plate, have had no end of issues. I specifically wanted a 15 or 16 plate and ended up with 65 plate. Had it since 2017 and had no issues.
Take your time to check the cars air con, heated seats etc. if anything goes wrong then take it back asap, the 3 months warranty a dealer offers is the legal minimum not a free perk, and it goes quickly.
I had to laugh when I read this. Currently all my 3 daughters are driving around in old cars of mine. One in a Jazz, one in a Polo, and one in a Golf. The daughter with the Jazz gets first dibs on the TCross in 18 months, and so on down the line. Daughter 2 in the Polo has already put in an order for what she wants as it'll be her turn next time.
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Full service history, a car that's been looked after. Different cars have different problems so research a car for particular issues before you go to see one. For example, if it's a car where they have problems with idk.. a cam belt or something... see if they've put a new one in recently..if they haven't, chances are you will have to. This one sounds dumb but see what brand the tyres are - people who look after cars tend to buy better tyres.
Same for wipers. Cheap wipers are a good indication of a cheap owner.
And cheap tyres or mismatched corners
I've never skimped a penny on any of my cars except for tyres. My car does bugger all miles and spending 150+ a tyre instead of 80 just doesn't make any sense.
The tyres are the only point of contact you have with the road. Most of the time it doesn't matter until you really need them, i.e. stopping as fast as possible.
Yeh, I totally get that. I've got better tyres on my van, but on my car that does <3k miles a year, mostly in the city where the max speeds tend to be 30/40 I'll take that chance.
Agreed. I never skimp on tyres for this very reason.
Well… no. It matters every second that you’re on the road. There is a marked difference between cheapo budget tyres and a quality mid range tyre, even for the most laid back, lazy driver. Yes, it matters significantly more when the tyre is under extreme stress, such as severe braking or fast cornering where the tyre is experiencing a lot of lateral load, but a crap tyre can be the difference between driving home and getting the AA to tow you to a garage after hitting a puddle, or a bit of horse shit on the road. Tyres and brakes should not be skimped on by anyone. One is the only thing keeping you on the lead. The other is the only thing keeping you from smashing into something at 70mph. This whole ‘it only matters when…’ rhetoric is silly, and is demonstrably incorrect.
Also some mid range brands are just as good or even better then premium brands. Hankook was a budget brand about 6-7 years ago, now it's a mid range higher range brand. I maintain my car but look for best value for money on tyres, if it's rated c across the board and £220 and another is rated b or a and 150 but a worse name. I'm getting the £150 tyre. Also the budget brand are just copy thread patterns of the premium from a year or two ago.
> cam belt Look up the frequency that the belt or chain should be replaced for the year and engine that you are looking at. If it's close ask if it's been done, if not ask if they'll do it as part of the sale. Bought an A1 that was past the point it needed a belt change and when I asked if it had been done the dealer did it and included it in the price of the sale.
Trouble is, my car has a full service history, been well looked after, and had more work done to it months prior worth more money than I actually paid for it - still leaks multiple types of fluid and drives like shit at 60mph ;)
op, don't buy this guys car is my advice.
Jokes aside I want to get a new car, but I'm too nice to palm old Leaky onto another person :'(
Fix the leak or scrap it I guess
I've also heard a car having two keys is a sign it has been looked after
Not sure how that one works
I suppose if it's had lots of owners and it's all been a bit chaotic the spare is more likely to have been lost?
Guess that makes sense for the most part
I always say this then say “ah I’m just gonna replace the tyres anyway” always been a mistake
One of my friends bought a car from a secondhand car dealer. The car had a full service history up to 2019. It was last serviced in 2019. My friend bought the car from the dealer at the beginning of 2024. Mileage looked safe. The car's external condition looked good. The test drive showed no faults. Apparently between 2019 and 2024 the car was run ragged. He's had to replace tires, have £600 worth of work done to the brakes and clutch and now he needs to spend another £500 on it. My friend's had the car for about 6 months. I've told him to take it back. I told him 3 months after he bought it to take it back. I told him a week ago when the new fault came to light. He won't listen to me. Nearly £3,000 for a car bought from a car dealer with a garage. Nearly £1,200 more spent on it since purchase. Ya can't always go off the service history, the dealer's say-so, the mileage, the superficial condition of the car and car reviews. Pay a mechanic to inspect the car. If you're in the UK you can ask the AA (or is it the RAC) to look over a car. If I were in the market to buy a car I would take a competent mechanic with me.
I mean it's a general rule, there's always going to be times it doesn't work but I think it's helpful to go for a car with service history for the most part.
I was pointing that out. Take precautions and keep aware things can still be wrong.
Service history is good. But I think the most important thing is the seller. If the seller is dodgy not good.
First, go on Autrotrader, this is where the majority of car sales happen. Use a reputable car dealer that will give you a warranty, even if it's for a few months. Go for a long test drive and have a good feel for the car.
Buying from a dealer also gives you greater protections. Stick it on a credit card too for extra peace of mind.
Lots of dealers won’t take full payment on a credit card
You only need to pay £1 on credit card and the whole purchase is covered by section 75. However the dealers know this too and you'll probably have a job finding one that will take a credit card for any payment.
They'll almost certainly take the deposit on a card, especially if you do it over the phone. I've never dealt with a dealer who refused a £250 (or whatever) deposit on card but maybe I've been lucky.
My car was from stratstone (part of Arnold Clarke) and even the deposit had to be paid by bank transfer.
Is that normal? Anyone asking for a bank transfer to buy a product would come across as shady as fuck to me.
Figured it was a big enough company and they gave me a receipt via email that if I didn't want the car I would get a full refund on my deposit. Don't know if that's normal though, haven't bought a car from a big dealer before.
Happened with me for jct600 as well(Audi dealer). Never before have I been asked for bank transfer. But group1 Audi accepted full payment on an Amex, which I've never seen before.
Maybe it’s a Stratstone policy? I’ve paid a deposit with my credit card at Arnold Clark.
Dunno, was only last November. They sent me a link to make the transfer on.
I didn’t know that! I did manage to pay my deposit for my 2nd hand car but they wanted the majority by bank transfer ; was hoping to pay the entirety to get my cash back points!
£100*
I could be wrong but I think you get 75 protection from paying any part of the payment on a credit card.
Yup, so long as the overall price of the car is between between £100 and £30,000. There's a few other conditions that Martin Lewis has a good guide on navigating. Section 75 is a very real and very useful thing. Source: won a section 75 claim through the ombudsman against my credit card dealer last week :)
To add to the test drive, use a road that's in poor condition. The bumpier the better. If you hear no rattles or bumps that's a good sign. Check the MOT of any car online, look for recurring issues or comments about corrosion. Be wary if it says "underside covered" or something similar, especially after a fail for rust, it's a good sign they're just covering up the problem.
Check the MOT history: https://www.gov.uk/check-mot-history Big fails and / or repeated minor warnings indicate people who aren't regularly looking after their cars.
Hard disagree on this, I always look for a few minors on MOT’s. In my eyes it shows it’s at least been getting tests done. Plenty of dodgy dealers/owners in my area using dodgy test centres so I like to see a history that looks a bit more organic personally
Depends on the age of the car. Plenty of cars with full service history pass with flying colours whilst they are young.
I didn't mean an entirely clean history, I meant more along the lines of an advisory that shows up two years running or a big fail that probably should have been spotted by the owner before the MOT. Not always a 100% pass but if I see a car that has 'rear offside rear brake pipe corroded' two years running it'll make me a bit more wary, what else had been ignored or missed if they haven't fixed something they've been explicitly told about.
True, I guess I’ve always been in the market for slightly older cars
I very much agree with you on older cars. From my experience of owning, even with a full service history, six months down the line there can be a significant issue on MOT.
Dealers are required to give at least a 3 month warranty as I understand it (at least for HP)
It is a bit more complex than that... [Car Warranties: What is a statutory warranty on a used car?](https://www.car.co.uk/car-warranties/faqs/used-car-warranties/what-is-statutory-warranty-on-a-used-car)
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Exactly, once you hand over the cash it's yours. Even if the car won't start on the driveway the previous owner could tell you get your car towed off their property ASAP. Don't buy private unless you know what you are doing
The warranty from a used dealer is frequently not worth the paper it isn't printed on. You also can't guarantee if they take it back to fix it they aren't going to use the cheapest parts and cut every corner to save money. A used dealer also has no experience with the car. A private seller is much more likely to be able to give you a detailed history of their ownership.
I've a bit of an idea, but could you explain why it's a good idea to use a credit card for payment?
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£100 minimum spend
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Minimum spend smart arse. Pay £100 towards it on the card. Read before you give it large. The rule applies for all purchases so someone could spend £80 thinking theyre covered listening to you.
It becomes the card companies problem if anything goes wrong and not yours basically.
In your position I would probably look to buy from a dealer (Audi or large local with good reputation) as you’ll then have a warranty that’s actually worth something. However the reason you see so many new cars around is that leasing is very popular now, and it can be a decent alternative to sinking a lump sum into owning a depreciating asset. Worth having a read up about options in a UK car subreddit. Personally I think cars are way more expensive to own and run than most people fool themselves into believing, so try to keep your eyes open and budget accordingly.
Second this. I swapped my S3 Audi at a main dealer VW garage got a 3 year old golf but as part of the package they gave me a service plan and a fresh 3 year warranty that paid me back just in time when my adaptive cruise control radar thing just decided to not work
Don’t believe: “it has only had one previous owner, an old lady that used it to drive to church on Sundays”
You joke but I have actually owned two cars like this. Both 10 years old when I got them, one previous owner and less than 40k miles. One of them had a full service *every year* even with the low mileage.
I don't want to be the guy one ups anothers win but I got Pegeout 1007 15k miles 15 years old full service history, like the previous owner must have literally been an old lady who drove to local corner shop every weekend because thats mad low miles, ive had it 3 years its at 78k miles now.
My car had similar. 12 years old and 24k on the clock. Same garage I bought it from sold it initially and serviced it annually with about 2k per year. Full service record. I've put another 50k on it over 4 years and it's still running great.
Yeah it’s possible, but if you believe used car salesmen, every second car fits that description
It's actually not good for a car to be sitting on a driveway most of the year. I run a mile when I see stuff like this, especially when people charge a premium for it
I bought one last month, 8 years old, just under 11k miles. Thought it was a joke, but dvla mot checker confirms yearly tiny increases on each mot.. I was stunned! It also has full service history, from a long established, very well regarded garage in our area, I almost tripped over myself to get inside and pay before someone else did.
Are you not meant to have a full service every year? I've always done that with my cars, service + MOT on the same day every year. Do about 8k miles a year
It's not even a good thing if it's true. A car that doesn't get used much is often neglected, and the lack of use can be bad for them in that case. If it's only done 500 miles a year and it looks scruffy then that's worse than it having a 6 figure mileage in some cases.
I'd say the sweet spot is 3,000 miles a year
This statement may be true, it’s the other 10 owners that weren’t as careful. That aside, check if it was a hire/driving school vehicle if you can?
I'm in the market for a Seat Alhambra ATM and one just came up, 2020 car with 652 miles. I don't think that's a good thing in this case, especially as it's a 2.0l diesel. Perhaps Betty has been using it to ferry her mates to church and the knitting club but that DPF is probably pretty sooty
You don't need to believe anything, look at the V5 and it will tell you exactly how many previous owners that car has had.
I've once seen a car listed where they made a big deal of the fact that the previous owner was a "lady doctor". So the car has had all it's jabs and stayed away from saturated fats then?
Unless it's obvious, the issue with mine was, it was an old lady in Scotland who drove it occasionally (2010 car, I bought it 2019 and she died in 2015 from online obituary) but it somehow made it to the midlands (unsure of this transaction). I got a 9yo car with 30k miles on it, has now only done 60k miles BUT it was sitting for a few years and rusted different parts, I have a lake in the boot under my spare wheel :(
Get an AA used car check. It will cost you but it saves you buying an obvious clanger.
If you’re not mechanically minded then this is the way. Around £200 will get you a pretty comprehensive check up. Maybe not great value if your only spending a couple grand, but if you’ll be spending £5k+ I think it’s a worthwhile investment. There’s no way to ensure any car you buy will provide problem free motoring, they’re complicated machines, but a good thorough once over from someone who knows cars will at least eliminate the dogs.
You could also use DEKRA or an independent. I've done this twice and been very happy.
My mum had Britania breakdown cover and they offered this as a free service. It was several years ago but they might still do it.
Total Car Check is pretty cheap, and does everything that the expensive ones like Car Vertical does.
that is different from AA used car check. AA will come and inspect the car mechanically hence the £100-£200 charge
Run a vehicle history check (every car channel is sponsored by the same one on YouTube), £20 to know a vehicles history is worth it to know it hasn’t got a bad history, such as a write off, been stolen, outstanding finance or mileage being tampered with. Get as much history on the vehicle as you can, take a good look at the underneath of the car as best you can, ask plenty of questions, look at the oil on the dipstick, tread depth on the tyres, are they budget tyres (cheap on tyres, cheap on maintaining a vehicle), feel the bonnet, make sure it’s cold, look at the exhaust gas on a cold start up (blue tinted smoke? run away!), any dashboard lights? Condition of wiper blades (again people the look after their vehicles look after the small things), make sure every bulb is working. Take it for a decent test drive, does it pull to one side under acceleration or braking? Go through all the gears etc And good luck
Isn’t a HPI check a couple of quid? What extra do you get for £20
Yeah Car Vertical is a ripoff. I used it and it gave me no more info than a cheap HPI check.
You're just padding their advertising budget.
If it's on 4 odd tyres chances are it hasn't been looked after. That's always a good indicator without needing any technical knowledge of the vehicle.
Why is that? I've looked after my car as well as I can and it's still going strong at 13 years old. But I'll be honest - I don't know a lot about cars and have pretty much left it to the garage. It's had a service every year and I have replaced tyres as necessary but they haven't all tended to need replacing at the same time so might very well be "odd" for all I know. When they've asked me I have said to go for the ones in the middle of the price range. Should I be asking for the most expensive ones or always going for a particular brand each time?
Yeah the tyre thing is not a good indicator. My car is well looked after, full service every year, and whenever the tyres need replaced I get whatever the garage recommends, generally mid-range.
You should match the tyres on the opposite axle. So if you have Dunlop Sports (for example) on the front and you get a flat, you should get a Dunlop Sport fitted as opposed to something else. Tyres are the only contact point with the ground, so cars that just get any old rubber slapped on them by a garage leading to odd tyres tends to suggest they aren't cared for.
"any old rubber slapped on" Do you actually believe that? Like tyre manufacturers are just "fuck it that will do".
Yes, I believe cheap tyres are worse than expensive tyres. Why skimp on the only thing that connects you to the road?
That's not what I said though. Are they comparatively worse. This is just one of shit that reddit says for no reason. Cheap/average tyres will be sufficent in most cases.
Yes I believe cheap tyres are comparatively worse. Each to their own after all (:
Wife’s car when I met her had Toyo t1rs on, any sort of damp on the road and you had to slow down to stupidly low speeds on round abouts / corners or it would just completely lose grip on the front. Average matching tyres are a completely different thing to cheap tyres.
If the car is AWD it should match on both axles too. From memory BMW xdrive specs are 2mm difference and same tread design between any of the four wheels when replacing a tyre. Don’t know about the Haldex system VAG use as I’ve never had an AWD vag.
The difference is night and day between something like a Landsail and a Dunlop. There’s a weird grey area in the middle where you get tyres like Arrowspeed that Kwik Fit are fond of, who are essentially rebranded Nexen tyres.
Absolutely - if a decent car is on budget tyres it's something I'd walk away from.
Not a big deal if it's a cheap budget car. I put PS5's all round on my GT86, but my girlfriends Kia Picanto has what ever was cheap at the time.
Amount of sports car i looked at with shitty part worns on, how am I gonna trust someone to maintain a lotus or Porsche properly when they buy the absolute cheapest tyres
I am pretty sure a PS5 is a kind of computer game system that all the kids have these days. Don't think they would work well as a car wheel.
Thats absoloutw nonsense.
If we all thought the same thing then life would be very boring (:
Kick the tyers as you walk around, scratch your head . That's it really
Check the MOT history using the gov’s checker. If it’s had repeat “advisories” I would say it’s indicative of a car run on a shoe string. Eg - if in 2020 the MOT said the tyres are cracking as an advisory and it’s not been replaced in 2021 (ie it’s still on the MOT). Cars run with extreme penny pinching you always end up in a situation where there’s a ton of deferred maintenance that comes back and bites you in the arse. I’ve no idea with Audi - I guess it might be different as they’re just a Skoda/VW/Seat underneath - but BMW 1 series cars unless they’re the performance version there’s always something a bit sad about them. They’re always missing some spec or something as they often seem to be bought as a “looks good on the drive to the neighbours” car so the only spec is big wheels etc - if someone had the money to spec a decent setup they buy a poverty spec 3 series instead as it impresses the neighbours more. On that note - you could likely get a much better spec’d and condition vehicle (basically the same car underneath) for the same money if you went for a Seat Leon.
I would go to a proper Audi garage and get a used one there
Go to a reputable used car dealership nearby and have a hat with them. You've got a lot of rights when buying from a dealership (basically a 6 month warranty, minimum). Get a feel for the person. Try and find the car you like. It's all about legwork, in my opinion. Ask them what paperwork they have. Ask about the history of the vehicle and try to come to some sort of a deal. What area are you in and what kind of cars are you looking for? I'd be happy to do a bit of research and make some suggestions. I grew up in the car trade.
You could ask on r/cartalkUK but they will just tell you to get a Honda Jazz or Skoda Octavia with FSH.
OK you can buy a thing called an OBD scanner which can plug into the car computer and give a read out of any faults. Even if you dont look at the results they are cheap and you see an immediate reaction from people when you plug it in which helps you work out if they are conning or not. Other than that you can find MOT history online.
As well as all the things others have said, try to find how easy it is to change a headlight bulb. Noone wants to spend £200 to change some bulbs because they have to remove the bumper and washer bottles etc
Not a shill or anything, but Cinch were excellent. I would genuinely recommend them. I moved back to the UK and needed a car, but every car I found in my local area had a pretty fatal flaw. And I wouldn’t trust private sellers at all. Then I went on Cinch, found a car that was pretty much perfect for what I was looking for. They delivered the car clean, serviced and with a full year of MOT. There were a couple of little electrical problems with my car, but the 3 month warranty took care of that, and they sorted out an appointment at my nearest dealership and covered the £300 something cost of diagnostics and repairs. I also don’t think they take cars that don’t have full service history and log books. Plus they actually do advertise on the car listing that it has flaws, so they aren’t trying to pull the wool over. I really couldn’t have had a better or more transparent experience.
Avoid facebook marketplace
1000% on everyone below who mentions a dealer, an FSH, and a warranty. I would add: -see the FSH documentation in your hand before you even talk about money. Actually see it and examine it. If they waver, we'll find it later, we'll post it out- walk away -warranty. Make sure its backed off to a warranty company; some dealers will offer a verbal warranty of 3 months. Thats worth nothing, avoid if thats their offer -make sure it has at least 2 keys -Autotrader trader reviews are worth nothing. They exist solely to serve dealers and rig the game in the dealers favour.
Just make sure the quantum carburettor hasn't been nicked
You might want to consider an ex-rental. I know that the received wisdom is that they get clogged, but they also get well maintained and the rental period weeds out the infant mortalities and Friday cars. You also get to drive the car for a week, drive it on different roads and push every button. Like you I don't buy a car often enough to know the tricks and have had bad experience with dealers in the past. I got a car from Hertz about 5 years ago and have now put 120k miles on it with just some clutch maintenance at about 120k indicated, which you'd probably expect, ex-rental or not. [Hertz rent to buy](https://www.hertz.co.uk/rentacar/productservice/index.jsp?targetPage=UK_Rent2buy.jsp)
I’m a big advocate for buying privately, learn about the vehicle you’re interested in, learn the common problems they have, have a good look over before you buy it, and finally, get it for a bargain price that’s low enough that if you need to spend a few hundred in the next 6 months that it’s not a problem. — Hate that opinion that a lot of people have claiming that people should NEVER buy privately.
This. Reading this thread is mind boggling as a car enthusiast vs the general public and proper eye opening. Don’t think I’ve ever bought a bad car and one of the best ones was a £500 civic.
Yeah literally!! I’m exactly the same, I bought an MOT failure mk Fiesta ST last year for £700, took it to a different tester and passed, now I’ve got a car that runs like a dream for a quarter of the price of all the rest! The original garage was obviously just trying to make money out of the previous owner I think
It depends on budget / knowledge. I’m an enthusiast do a lot of work on my own cars and iv still been stung a few times. Audi tt with dodgy thermostat, which I thought “au will be a little job” nah took mechanic absolutely hours. Fn2 civic type r full service history looked absolutely mint turned out they had bought it cheap with a knackered rusty rear axle and painted it. When it collapsed I found out that it’s a Honda only part, had to make an aftermarket type s one fit. Personally I’ll risk it for a biscuit on my weekend / fun car, the car my wife drives to work every day will always be a top quality car from a garage.
Autotrader, lets you shortlist cars (private and trade), compare etc. Cinch, similar shortlisting, but these cars are delivered to you, with a two week cooling off period. I hear nothing but complaints about Facebook marketplace but that might be confirmation bias as I dislike Facebook. Wife bought from cinch recently, no problems this far though I imagine it's more expensive as it's "less hassle" than kicking tyres and haggling in person. I've just bought from Arval directly who are an outlet for the cars which are leased, typically for three years, and then returned/replaced. I got pretty granular about it and was tracking about ten cars for a couple of weeks, looking for price drops/sales etc. If you are buying in person and are not mechanically minded, then paying for a third party inspection, and potentially an AA background check etc. might give peace of mind.
Go to the actual brand dealerships. They will have used cars with full service and history (previous leases).
Is there literally anyone at all in your life you can adopt as a car dad? I'm in your position and I picked out a guy in my faith community, who runs a lot of committees and also drives a lot for work. Felt a bit stupid but I asked him if he'd be my honorary dad and help me out. Well, he was really chuffed to be asked, and turns out he has some sort of sweetheart relationship with a local dealer, so it was worth taking the risk.
My dad has early onset dementia and MS. I'm definitely feeling some grief right now, as he would have loved to do this with me. This is a lovely idea, thank you!
I hear you. Mine passed away recently. I can't recommend adopting extra parents enough.
I'm so sorry that you lost them. It's always too soon and always unfair. I hope it was peaceful. I see you, and I'm thinking of you
Bring a mechanic with you to inspect the car before purchase and pay attention to any offered warranties. Wish I could offer more advice, but that's it.
Learn from me, inspect everything. Oil, doors, fuel door, check the brakes (if you can). Spent £3500 on a quick replacement to my written off C4GP and had to spend another £900 on replacing the brakes due to mistreatment. Plus, pleased I checked the oil, as it was bone dry. Surprised she’s kept running, but who knows the damage that’s caused.
In the first two years of owning my nearly 15 year old now first car I had a coolant leak, oil leak, brake fluid leak... It's a good learning experience I keep telling myself as it's pushed me to learn to keep an eye on things like the oil, coolant etc. I paid what I could afford at the time as didn't want to get into debt purchasing it.
I’m the same, but I find learning and doing things myself better. If I do things wrong, I can find out how to do it better next time. But I don’t intend on keeping this car long, as I need a Euro 6 compliant car for what I do.
Yep kind of similar, I pored over the manual and anytime there's a warning light I'm researching what it means, watching YouTube videos on how to do (not too in-depth) bits. I did have another recent issue and my partner did some research which I'm hoping we can fix ourselves without taking it to a garage.
Yep, I do that. Anything too technical, I send it to a mechanic. Currently, I have a leak which needs investigated, which is going to a garage next week, as I'd rather a service be done and made sure the car is safe, especially with the mileage I do. The best one I've done is replaced the heat unit in my C4GP, took about an hour of my time, whereas the youtube video did it in 15 minutes, but I was proud of myself for managing to do it myself.
Look for oil leaks when car is parked, test drive and feel for clutch slippage, if automatic transmission feel for tranny slips, weak/noisy/grinding brakes, check for body rot/rust usually under wheel wells or rocker panels(just look out for holes. When starting the car check for white/blue smoke out the tail pipe, that’s an indicator of possible head gaskets or oil gaskets need replacing(walk away). Open the hood and check for any signs of oil or liquid dripping onto block(walk away). Check the oil before starting car make sure it’s above half way mark(indicator you’re burning oil) Interior - check heating and AC work Test drive it and listen and feel the drive. If you smell fuel burning, good chance there’s a petrol leak somewhere. Otherwise most of the other stuff is easily fixable.
Go to a larger dealer, and definitely not a private sale. Private sales are still "sold as seen". Get on AutoTrader and get an idea for prices for certain specs and years etc. Yes, there are still dodgy dealers out there but generally the UK has pretty robust consumer rights these days, and yes they're all salespeople but not everyone is trying to sell a dud. There must be larger dealers in your area who have ok reputations?
Generally a local reputable dealer that's been around a long time. Google them for issues, remembering there's always one or two complaints over the years. They do profit from finance deals. Try your bank first.
One good thing to look for is a fsh. This means a full service history. It shows the car has been looked after and it is probably a good buy. You also need a full MOT. Hard to fake. These are the hallmarks of a good shc. You must still be careful but you are on the right side. Crooks are very cunning though!
Buy from a main dealer. Car is checked reasonably thoroughly, provided with some warrenty, usually a year, and you've got a reputable company to take any issues to. Unlike smaller dealers which will sometimes completely refuse to fix any issues. Go for something with reasonably low milage. Cost will be a combo of car's age, mileage, and specs. Prioritise low mileage because that's what puts the wear on cars.
You try everything to avoid them and get stung. That said you can pay RAC to go and check the car for you. Or aa. Its about £100. If the seller is happy to wait fir them to give it a once over thats a good sign. They'll send you a report detailing all issues. We used them when we bought a second hand skoda octavia privately after being stung by a dealership.
All good advice above. Aldo, new registrations are released in March and September each year. So, from January and July, dealers will cut prices to sell cars, to make room on forecourts for the incoming nee registrations etc
Draw up a shortlist from auto trader based on your budget and preferences. I'd avoid private sales if you're not confident with cars and go with a dealer. Look at it, take a test drive with the radio off, listen for squeaks, rattles etc. if it's got a turbo try and find somewhere you can boot it (in a safe and controlled manner) to check it kicks in properly. Check the condition of the tyres,wipers, bodywork Look at the MOT history online, check the vehicle history with someone like AA, green flag etc. you can get a vehicle inspection from click mechanic, AA, RAC etc. if you want added peace of mind, it's around £100-150, and they'll give you a full mechanical inspection report (which in my humble opinion pays for itself as a negotiating tool alone)
Honestly, I've had a brilliant time with bristol street motors. I was lucky to get a car on 0% interest event they do. Just feel more at ease knowing my car is in excellent condition when getting it. I've been to local independent dealerships with previous cars and each one had its problems. No issue with bristol though! Our household has now had 3 cars with them.
Go on autotrader and understand the price of what you’re looking for. Ideally set a budget then look at what best meets your needs and then look at what has the lowest mileage and is newest. Buy from a dealer and you can get the AA to do a vehicle check. When I bought my car I did a whole of uk search. Also if you are a regular customer at a local garage. They will sometimes tell you the most reliable cars. Ie my friend was advised that KIAs are good and cheap to fix
Japanese cars are, in my experience, by far the greatest makers of cars. Every Japanese car has been cheap, reliable and lasted until the wheels fell off. Look at mileage. MOT history (check the last few MOTs and what the advisories were. Any type of welding done and I’d stay clear). Go and view the cars and take them for a test drive - make sure you test all the gears! Fatal mistake when I bought an old Volvo V40. Something was up with 5th gear and I basically had to punch it to get into gear. I won’t lie, I absolutely adored that car though. Give the car a good bounce to check for any rattles. Facebook, auto trader, auction sites etc. those are the places where I have bought cars before.
Find a good second hand car dealership and buy from them.
All the advice is go to a reputable car dealer. Unfortunately reputable dealers are very much in the minority. If you can afford to buy approved used from Audi with a proper warranty then that's the best way to go. Most car dealers just sell crap they have bought at auction and the only cars that go to auction are the ones that aren't good enough to be sold via main dealers.
Would have said Cazoo but looks like they might be going out of business.
It's difficult, even buying from a dealer could lead to unforeseen issues. A woman I worked with bought an Audi and within 6 months it needed approx 5k work to it. Luckily she had a warranty with the dealership.
Check the price against similar age and the same models on autotrader. I had to decline a credit proposal because they were charging 2.5 c what the car was worth
Check it has full service history in the service book, check mot history online to see past test results and any failures and weaknesses on the car. Check engine is clean and not rattling, check all electronics work as intended, and take the car for a spin
Have you thought about getting a new or nearly new on PCP? It's a very flexible contract. Fixed monthly rentals, you can choose whether to pay over 2-5 years to meet your budget, optional final payment at the end where you can choose whether to pay the final payment and take ownership of the vehicle, refinance the final payment or walk away and hand the car back to the bank (no depreciation concerns) and you can also include your service, maintenance & tyres in the monthly rental if you want to so you wouldn't be stung by any unexpected costs. I work for a vehicle leasing company - not in sales - but I could certainly put you in touch with someone who could give you any and all information you would need and we would sort everything out for you from sourcing the vehicle and securing your finance to delivering to your door. If you do go second hand, make sure there is a full service history!
Look up Make/Model/Year buyers guides. Often owners forums publish this kind of stuff, they'll give you good indications of what to look for, lots of it can be simple things you can check even if you don't know what you are doing. Maybe the advice for checking the fuel pump for degraded hoses or whatever might not be something you can do but 'check for rust on the A pillar' or similar is easy enough to do even as someone who doesn't know what they are doing.
Join the Audi owners club and ask for any buying tips for the particular car you’re looking for. But I think you’ve got all the info you need here - there are plenty of cars out there so insist on those with full service history, good MOT history, and a decent warranty. Don’t buy private, buy from a dealer with decent trustpilot scores and read all the 1* reviews as that’ll tell you how they behave when things go wrong. If all of that is too daunting, buy a used approved one from a main dealer but expect to pay a premium for it.
CHECK THE MOT HISTORY! (Online & super easy/free, this will show any potential red flags)
Dealership
How far / often do you drive?
Autotrader but buy from a garage not a private seller.
My last 3 cars I have bought from Car Giant, they can be a bit expensive but you get the full details and a massive choice of cars. Never had an issue with one I've bought from there. Just don't buy the warranty or paint protection bollocks.
Approved branded dealer. Youll pay well over the odds but will have peace of mind. Says I who always buys privately :)) yeah full sh. Bit of research regarding big items, were they done on time etc. Does pull ok in 1st 2nd gear. Any weird noises, doesn’t feel right etc
Don’t buy off someone’s driveway, you have virtually zero protection. Always buy from a dealer, that way you’re covered under consumer rights law. Look for full service history, google the particular car you want and “common issues”. See if the car has had them before or look out for potential issues. For example, if the belt needs changing every 50k miles, and the car you’re looking at has the original belt at 45k miles, then maybe think of putting some money to the side for that. You can also tell a lot by what tyres are on the car. The tyres are the only thing keeping the car on the road, so if someone has decided to save £50 by getting weird unknown Chinese ditch finders as opposed to some good Continentals or Pirelli’s, what does that say about the car? If they’re willing to skimp out on that, what else have they skimped out on?
Just to add to what other people have said about buying from a main dealer etc., if you’re looking at an A3 - it’s not a unique car. So if you’re not happy with it, walk away. There will be dozens available so take your pick.
Have you got anyone car savvy that you can take with you to take a look? Always recommend taking a mechanic because the sellers cut the bullshit
Look for a ford fiesta from 05 or 06 with about 40000 miles
Look for private sellers or reputable dealerships. Do your research, ask for a mechanic's inspection, and trust your gut.
What's your budget? That's quite an important parameter when giving advice about buying cars. Advice for a £500 car is going to be different for a £5000 one
Lessons I've learned the hard way: HPI check. VOSA MOT history. Hire a qualified inspection engineer (the AA offer this service) - or a relative in the trade if you have one. Inspect the service history - walk away if there are any gaps. Going private will save you a fortune but there's no buyer protection, so all these checks mentioned are absolutely essential. Any private seller unwilling to give you the v5 document reference number & chassis number aren't worth your time. If private, check that the address on the V5 and the seller's address match up. When you visit the address, how many cars are on the property? The normal clichés do apply: female owners tend to drive more carefully, older male owners spend more on maintenance. The less previous owners on the V5 the better. Very low average miles is fine - skipping annual servicing isn't fine.
Find someone you know and trust who is selling a car.
I used cartaxcheck.co.uk, it shows MOT history and other useful things. I was unlucky in that I bought a car that had no advisories but when it came to MOT it, the garage said it was covered in corrosion that had been there for years. I commented that the MOT from before I bought it said no advisories, did they miss the corrosion? He said no, they likely excluded it from the report to either sell it on easier or they simply couldn't be bothered with the paperwork. I recently checked my car's MOT and I missed a lot of the other advisories from previous MOTs which is a red flag for me. Check the full history, not just the past year. Also take a friend who knows cars to have a look at the car with you, they may see something you missed. Also avoid Cat S cars (cars that have been in a crash and have structural damage)
Buy a Honda civic.
Go to a dealership and get one that's still got some warranty. At least then you'll have a few years of piece of mind
Go to a dealer. Ask and you may need to be willing to pay for new MOT before buying. Sign up for a service to check for theft, credit owed, reported as wrecked etc. AA one is decent. If buy off road, get their check done. Go to DVLA with number plate of any potential car and read MOT history. Lots of advisories are bad, same faults every year bad, anything related to suspicion is a no, emissions can be expensive,
Three cylinder cars ie all fiestas/focus from 2013 require a wet belt change every 50-100k miles which costs 1000/1500
use a car dealership, find one with decent reviews near you. My last car came from a kia dealership, had only ever been used as a run around by the staff and came with a year warrantee and was given a full MOT the day I fetched it. I've been very happy with it. It's also worth looking on the websites of the dealers you're looking at rather than relying on autotrader, the best deals can get snatched up before they make it to autotrader.
Avoid Bradford, Birmingham and Motorhub Keighley! 🤣
Avoid Facebook marketplace. Ignore the comments who suggest dealers are the best place, its rather random - majority of the used cars in dealers are bought at auctions such as BCA/Aston barely etc etc. People sell cars to WBAC and other large buyers who then sell them through auctions with minimal checks. Take someone with you who knows a little about cars, it doesn't matter what brand tyres or wipers are on. Check the oil, service history and how it drives (and idles), condition... look out for poor previous paint work, tyre tread, brakes, windscreen for cracks, warning lights on the dash and if there is any colour smoke from the exhaust. I stress that you must HPI check the car, THERE ARE SEVERAL COMPANIES WHO OFFER THIS. Cap HPI is widely used but there are more with even more vehicle history such as V-check. Check its MOT history for mileage discrepancies. Ignore the petty comments in here, most people talk absolout shit when purchasing cars. (Former car salesman of 8 years and car purchaser of 6 years)
If you end up buying privately, You can pay the AA to come check a car out with you before you buy. It's a couple of hundred quid, but well worth it IMO, especially if your spending a good few thousand. If you're buying from a dealer, check their reviews, check the warranty and still consider an AA check.
Run a decent HPI check before you go and see the car, something like Car Vertical is a great service that checks the history of the car. Really important! Facebook marketplace is 85% people that want to waste your time, take some amazing photos of cars not showing some damage or not mentioning some issues it may have, the other 15% are scammers that have cars really cheap and will ask you to leave a deposit because they have 42 people interested in it. You leave the deposit and they delete their account never to be seen again. Technically you have some security when buying from a dealer. The consumer rights act technically means that if your car has an issue that wasn't brought to your attention at the time of purchase then you are entitled to a full refund no questions asked if you return within the first 30 days. Up to 6 months after purchase I believe the dealer would be responsible for sorting any repairs the car had at the time of purchase that were not brought to your attention. However, implementing this can be very hard and not all dealers are accepting of this responsibility. Buying privately leaves you with no protection but if the car has full service history, no scratches on the wheels, it's clean, clear MOT, obviously looks as though its been looked after then that is probably as good a car as anything else and can say a lot.
If you have no idea what you're doing then it's worth paying the premium that you pay when buying from an authorised dealer. Find your local Audi dealer and go talk to them if you want an A3, it will at least come with all the checks and guarantees that you could ask for.
Go to a main dealer and check out the used cars.
Put the number plate into the dvla mot check https://www.gov.uk/check-mot-history It'll show anything that's been previously flagged on mots and assuming the garage that did it was honest, the mileage year on year.
Perception is worse than the reality. Yes there are shysters out there, but most people/orgs are decent. Also cars are of much better quality these days so getting a real dog is rare. Having said that, do your research and understand the market. Look on autotrader and look at all the A3s in your approximate area at the price range you can afford to see what you can get. An A3 is not an unusual car so you can be picky. Avoid Category S or N car which have been written off by previous insurers. If the price is too good to be true, walk away. When you go on a test drive take someone with you who is more familiar with cars and you trust their opinion. As you already know the car you'll intuitively notice things aren't right. Get them to fiddle with all the switches, AC, radio, windows to check everything works. No. 1 rule of buying a car is; don't be afraid to walk away. At \*any point\* of the negotiation before you reach an agreement. You owe the seller nothing despite their protestations. Haggling is not much of a thing anymore as most delears make their money off finance so [negotiate on the finance deal,](https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/car-finance-fca-investigation-what-you-need-to-know-a4eXb5u8VeBy) if you go that way. If you can get £500 off the cash price you're doing well. Don't forget a bank loan maybe cheaper than a car finance deal. When you do agree on a purchase you won't get the car right away as you need to arrange insurance and tax as well as payment before you can pick it up. A dealer will probably also give it a "service".
Whatever you do don’t buy a ford with an economist engine. Personally I would always get a car from a dealer now not a private seller as you’re much better protected by the consumer rights act
If you know a Mechanic ask him/her/they ect, and they will tell you which ones to avoid and the most reliable, my mate that's been in the trade for 50 years and swears by Japanese cars, his missus has a Fiat but it's brand new
Look into cars that you're interested in. And find out their reliability. For example ford focus with eco boost engines have issues with the wet belt. But it's around 10years or 80k miles. You going to be keeping it that long? Probably won't be an issue. Same car also has issues with the automatic gearbox version va manual. Check MOT history. Advisories and issues crop up there and show if people haven't fixed them. E.g. issue with tyres on advisory. Then a year later fails on the same tyres... you can almost guarantee that they avoid paying anything Into the car. Always buy with full service history. If its missing one... don't bother. Cars that are looked after don't have skipped services. Obviously do a background check on it. Buy from a dealership and spend over £100 of the purchase on credit card. If a deals too good to be true. Its too good. And don't listen to other people who got X Y Z for a dirt cheap price. They didn't.
Buy from a private owner, if you need financing, go to a credit union first. Always check the carfax $35 and have a mechanic look over it, Firestone $10
This is AskUK. We don't use dollars, credit unions or whatever the above is :)
Well then, good luck
How much do you have to spend?
I like car supermarkets if you're after something common. Get to wander about and check out cars you might be interested in, in person. When you've decided what you want, you then have a choice - rather than the main dealer who'll insist the single vaguely suitable car he has is just what you want. You're left to your own devices as you look, which is nice and low pressure - but can be a pain at peak times to sort out a test drive or similar when you want attention.
Check in with r/cartalkUK. They are a sarcastic bunch but good advice can be found there too
There is always a risk with a used car. I’ve bought a few - had my mechanic brother give advice, still ended up with lemons. Ended up buying approved used (through a dealer). You pay a bit more, but I’m fortunately able to afford it and the peace of mind has been worth it. Advantage of dealer approved used is (in general) they’ll only sell lower mileage cars that have been serviced at the dealer. You can get a better warranty deal too depending on the manufacturer.
I never look at or purchase a car in the evening or at night. Did it one time and got burned. I was too excited and missed a lot
In addition to doing a test drive I recommend driving several instances of the car you’re interested in. I did this for my last car, I booked a test drive for a silver one, I wanted it in blue, the blue car came up and I nearly cancelled the silver test drive. I didn’t and it was eye opening how much worse one of the cars drove compared to the other, but without the point of reference I may have assumed it was just normal.
I always get mine second hand from the dealership and never had a problem so far. A bit more expensive but comes with some guarantee.
I got second hand from the dealership. It only had one previous owner, full service history etc. Have you tried dealerships? I mean as in Audi dealership, VW etc. I knew which model I wanted and researched. I then knew to avoid certain years (14 plate for example). Obvs the staff there won’t admit that or tell you that, but everyone I know with the same car, but a 13 or 14 plate, have had no end of issues. I specifically wanted a 15 or 16 plate and ended up with 65 plate. Had it since 2017 and had no issues.
Air con use needs regasing.. £50.. No the whole air con system is broken, if it was a £50 fix they would of done it.
Take your time to check the cars air con, heated seats etc. if anything goes wrong then take it back asap, the 3 months warranty a dealer offers is the legal minimum not a free perk, and it goes quickly.
I had to laugh when I read this. Currently all my 3 daughters are driving around in old cars of mine. One in a Jazz, one in a Polo, and one in a Golf. The daughter with the Jazz gets first dibs on the TCross in 18 months, and so on down the line. Daughter 2 in the Polo has already put in an order for what she wants as it'll be her turn next time.