Used Car Buying Advice |
Buying a used car privately will always save you money.
The reason private used cars are cheaper lies solely
with the lack of come back if anything goes wrong - meaning higher risk.
However if you follow a few rules, steps & some advice you can easily
eliminate those risks & grab yourself a great deal.
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If you need technical assistance
or mechanical help when buying a used car,
have a look at our
mechanical help
pages for fault diagnosis or our past
mechanical Questions & Answer pages
We also have
mechanics available to help with any mechanical
problem. |
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Its always good advice to take
advice.
You already know what car you want and perhaps the colour but what you
don't want is a big garage bill after only a few weeks and even worse have the car repossessed and
loose all your money. Its always good advice to take advice and if you follow these simple rules you
should be well on your way to miles of happy motoring.
if you've not yet found the car you are
looking for you can
buy a
used car from the thousands or
cars for
sale we have advertised. |
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Contacting the seller |
- When you first contact a seller its important to ask as many questions as possible about the
car and make some notes to get a good overall picture before you decide to view.
1. Ask if they own the car. If they don't, be very wary. You need to know everything you can about
the vehicle. If they are not the owner they can't answer your questions and there is a greater
chance the vehicle could be stolen.
2. Ask how long they have owned the vehicle for. You can then check this against the V5 logbook if
you decide to view the vehicle.
3. What service history has the vehicle got? Have they got the service booklet with dealer stamps
and do they have receipts for each service?
4. Ask if the car has sustained any accident damage or had any insurance claims made against it.
Although at this stage you are taking their word for it if you later find out the answers don't
match you know to stay well away.
5. Make sure their insurance will cover you for a test drive and if they're not sure check to see
if yours will cover you. Insurers can be flexible and may be able to add the car to your policy for
a short period. If not there are specialist companies who can offer one day insurance such as
http://www.dayinsure.com
Info
6. If you are happy with what you have heard so far then arrange for a test drive from the owners
home. It's not a good idea to meet a seller at a motorway service station or some middle ground. If
you decide to buy there and then you may not be able to find the seller if something goes
wrong.
7. Ask for the vehicles registration number. When buying privately or even from a dealer it is
always good advice to get a car data check. There are many firms which offer this service with a
range of prices some of which you can find in our
car data checks section.
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Checking Documents |
- Its a good idea to take a copy of your insurance policy with you when you go to view the
vehicle and of course your notes. Any honest seller will not have a problem with you making as many
checks as you like and will be happy to answer your questions.
- Check the service history book to see if it has all the services and stamps stated by the
seller. Look for what has been replaced or renewed and ask for receipts. If the mileage is above
60,000 the vehicle may soon be in need of a cambelt service. This does vary depending on the make
and model so its a good idea to check with a franchised dealer when the service is due. A cambelt
service can be expensive and if its due you can negotiate this in the price.
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V5 Logbook Checks. |
- Check the V5 logbook to see if the address matches and the registration is the same as on the
vehicle. Also on the V5 is the VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) which you can check to see if it
matches the VIN on the car. The VIN can usually be found riveted on a small plate under the bonnet
half way up the wing and stamped on the chassis next to the drivers seat on top of the sill. The
VIN can occasionally be found on the leading edge of the windscreen or in the door pillar.
- Make sure the V5 document is genuine. In the digital age of scanners and digital cameras,
making a good looking fake does not need the hands of a master counterfeiter. If it is a
Genuine V5 DVLA document it will contain a water mark. If you have a V5 or can look at a friend's then its a
good idea to familiarise yourself with a genuine document before hand. If the seller can't produce
the original V5 document it is illegal for them to sell you the car.
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Used Car Checks |
- There are a number of checks you can perform on the vehicle before you take it for a test
drive, even if you don't have any mechanical knowledge. You
will find these displayed in detail in our
Car Checks section.
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Check the seller's address is genuine
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