Buying a car - would you go for an older model with lower mileage or newer car with higher mileage?

[Pesha]

Am looking at cars, mostly 01, 02 ish with mileage around 60-80k. Model was updated in 04 but all out of my price range However have just seen a lovely one in my price, 05 plate, FSH etc but 140,000 miles.

What should I do?!? Does the high mileage make it a bit of a no go really or with the FSH does it not really matter? Cars like this with lower mileage would normally be at least a couple of grand more.

OK 140,000 is high, so i would go older IMHO

Ususally I would say go new and high but that car has been thrashed by a salesperson for 3 years and although probably loads of motorway driving 140,000 would red flag to me.

FWIW I bought a year old car with 30,000 miles, when other 2 - 3 year old ones were the same ££. 6 years laster it has done nearly 130,000 and will start costing us soon I don't doubt. New cam belt FYI is at least £300 - £400, services will be at least that too

Depends on the car. According to DH.

He bought a car with 120 000 on the clock, and drove it until it reached 250 000 with no major problems. But he did his research first.

we got a car 4 years ago that had 130k on the clock and was 51 plate BUT it had been used as a taxi and we got full service history with it. The car has been brilliant for us and cost normal wear and tear each year only and has now done 180k.
My firend on the other hand got the same car with lower milage and newer and paid 3k more for it and already she has had to pay out for new exhause and cat converter!

140K is very high but as Crunchie says, generally a newer one with higher mileage will be in better nick than an old one with low mileage (motorway miles vs tootling around town, stopping & starting, never getting warmed up etc)

Is it a diesel or a petrol? And does it have a cambelt or a chain?

We bought a 99 diesel Toyota with 60K miles 18 months ago; mileage has doubled but it's still chugging along (had new cambelt at last service)

Its an Audi A3 1.9 TDI. Has full Audi service history, new brake pads and discs and last service was dec 07 at 130k.

I was talking to my sister a while ago and she'd been talking to her garage guy who said FSH is much more important than mileage and not to be put off by high mileage. But for 3 years it does seem very high!

So it is a diesel, that's good - and it does have FSH at Audi dealer? Find out if it is a belt or chain and make sure it will pass an MOT even though presumably it's not due just yet (make them replace the tyres if they're borderline)

It could be a good buy

Thank you

this is it

It does seem pretty good doesn't it?

Think I will have to go have a look at this and a few of the older models and see what I think.

i have a 96 fiat punto 1.2 that had 60 on its clock when i got it two years ago,it cost 1000 euro and has never let me down.at the time it was my first car and all i could afford and although i could afford something much newer now i wont until it sits down for good as its a great run around and so very reliable.my parents have a three year old ford focus[new on purchase]which they have nothing but problems with! so it goes to show its the car not the years and if your going to take the finacial gamble better the smaller one

oh and most cars about the 80ish mark will need a new timer belt about 2/3 hundred to get done so always ask if and when the timer belt was replaced

it will likely be motorway mileage by a salesperson and with the fsh it will go a long time.

Have you checked the road tax for it - cos if you didn't need such a big engine the VW Polo 1.4tdi has no road tax (after 2001)

Thank you, will have to write down all these things I need to check!

Had a 307 last year that I bought off my mum and it was pants. Had to have new exhaust and new sodding gear box in the year I owned iy despite my mum having had new gear box fitted 2 years before Cost me a fortune so been reading all parkers/what car type reviews to try and find something that scores high on reliability, and safety obviously.

And is fun!!

Def worth a look and a test drive. The older ones are a different generation, the newer ones seem so much tighter and better put together - DH's 99 one is a joke really, the tyres are about a foot across, when I fall into it I can barely get out again

His looks like this

3 years later they look like this!

(We will be running his into the ground though, he does so many miles it would be a waste of a nice newish one. He used to have a company car - boy did we take that for granted )

Yeah checked road tax and it was quite low, compared to the cars I've had before.

Think Polos might be too small as I have 3 dc but might investigate. Have just been looking at Golf's too. Bit worried boot space and space in back for dc is too small though really.

Thats one thing I liked about A3 as it seems quite spacious for type of car.

The older model every time. The 05 one will have been hammered to have done 140k in only 2 and a bit years. That is nearly 7 times the average mileage.

Our car has 125k on the clock. But it is over 10 years old and we bought it 6 years ago with only 35k on the clock. It still runs like a dream.

Not hammered necessarily. DH has regularly done 50-60K a year in his, both commuting and business trips (he's not a salesman) and his haven't been hammered.

Do salesmen generally get Audis?

Well, even so, the OP would be seriously limiting the amount of use she can get from the car before it starts to wear out. By the way, I still think of 01 or 02 as a new car.

The other thing is, it may have a FSH, but has it had 6 or 7 services a year? Strictly it should have done with that mileage, shouldn't it?

AS an Audi serviced at an Audi dealership yes, I would hope so (but the service interval for diesel engines tends to be longer than for petrol ones)

It says it has 7 stamps which is 1 every 20,000 miles which i think is right for a diesel.

I still think of 01/02 as new too. But they changed and improved them all in 03/04 (5 drs started in 04) which is why I'm tempted by this 1 as it is a better car than the earlier models. I think I need to have a look and test drive a few and see what I think. DP is also talkig about a4s which is what I started looking at in the first place!

We only bought a car a couple months ago but dp wrote it off. I've looked at so many cars over the past couple of months and read so many reviews that its all becoming a bit of a blur! Also beginning to wonder whether we should spend so much. Its the money from the settlement but when we bought last car our circs were different, not sure its very sensible now

I'm so confused!!!