Friday 29 March 2024
LIFESTYLE

What you need to know when buying a used car

Buying a used car is a great option, whatever type of car you want. It can save you a lot of money, and you can still end up with a great car. You can spend plenty of time choosing the right type of car for you, but what do you do when you find a vehicle that you might be interested in buying? Before you pay for your new car, make sure that you read through the advice below:

Check how much it will cost you to run

The cost of the car is not the last thing you will have to pay, so although you may be able to afford that, you need to make sure that you can afford all the other costs that come with having a car. If you buy the car using car finance, you need to be able to pay that every month as well as the other costs.

The fuel consumption is one of the costs you need to think about. Different cars and different engines use different amounts of fuel, so make sure that you can afford to fill your car up. Road tax and insurance can also range dramatically depending on the type of car.

What to check

Once you have chosen a car and verified that you can afford the running costs, it is time to view the car. When you are viewing the car, you are not just looking at whether or not you like the look of the vehicle, you need to make sure that it is in good condition. Some of the things you should check are:

  • Tyres – Check that the tread is above the legal minimum and look in good condition.
  • Bodywork– look at the car closely for any dents and scratches. Small ones can be used to negotiate, but bigger ones might be more of a problem and a cost to you in the future.
  • Car mileage – Make sure that the mileage is around the average for the age of the car. If it is significantly lower, make sure there is a reason and compare it to the figure on the last service check.
  • Oil and water – Make sure that the oil and water are at the correct level. If they are not, the car may not have been maintained well, or it may have a leak.
  • Electricals – Ensure that the lights work, the windows open and close, the air conditioning works, and that the radio and any other gadgets work.

Once you are happy with these aspects of the car, you should take the vehicle for a test drive.

Test drive

When you are test driving the car, you need to make sure that you drive it on roads with different speed limits so that you can test the gears. You need to make sure that it starts properly, and that you test the clutch and brakes.

When you are driving, make sure you are listening to the engine so that you can hear if there are unhealthy sounding noises. To do this properly, make sure that you don’t have the radio on.

If you are happy with everything, you may have found your new car!

** This is a collaborative post

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