How to buy a second hand car and not get ripped off? And, what to buy???

[lovely74]

Hiya,
DH and I have finally decided to get a family sized car. Neither of us really know anything about cars, and I'd love some words of advice on how to get the best out of our budget and avoid future issues.
I've only bought 2 second hand cars before and they were both nightmares. My current car was new (10 years ago) but we can't justify doing that again.
We don't want anything flash, feature-wise, and probably something 2-3 years old. We need 4 doors, a decent sized boot, i'd like air con (I use the car for work and spend a lot of time sitting in traffic..). Also very improtant is safety, and being in low insurance / tx banding (which should hopefully mean it'll be a greener model).

How do we maximise our budget (£7000 max but would like to spend less if we can) and avoid getting messed around and ripped off by second hand salesmen? Private sales scare me a little as there's no come back at all whereas if we get it from a garage we should get some sort of warranty I expect.

So, what shall we get? And how do we go about getting it? Help!

Can't help I'm afraid but just marking my place as I'd like to know the same thing. What cars are you looking at? I have my eye on a VW Passat estate, a Ford S Max or a Citroen C4 Picasso. But like you, no idea how to go about it!

Hi lovely, I just bought a 18 month old Citroen Grand Picasso from a Citroen dealer. Still had 18 months warranty. Check on Glass for current second hand values - you'll get ranges.

We went for the Grand Picasso as we (will shortly) have 4 kids but the normal Picasso is nice, good driving position and visibility too.I saw a 3 year old one for £7500 recently. We also considered the Renault Scenic and Ford S-Max or C-Max.

A Nice Ford Focus, C-Max or Galaxy is a good choice and ticks all your boxes - for that price I reckon you could get something with fewer miles and a more plush version - than bog standard and plasticky.

Decide whether you want petrol or diesel - the latter will cost more to buy but petrol won't be as effcient obviously.
I'd go to a good dealer like Marshalls, for example (cambridgeshier)who have a good reputation and good after sales service.

You can still haggle with a dealership and always ask for extras like a service and a years tax. If they won't budge on the yr, say "okay, 6 months tax would clinch the deal" .....

For reliability, a Ford is a good option or a Volvo. Our's is now 5 yrs old and we've not had any problems.
For a safe family car, the volvo V50 is perfect and you can get some really good deals. here

or this

Ohhh that was quick! Thanks for the advice so far. we have a Fiesta at the moment and I do like the idea of a Focus. I should qualify my list of what I want by saying that we don't really want an estate or anything too large (maybe next time if the family has expanded!). I also don't want any kind of 4x4 or people wagon. we live in London and the roads are stuffed with those already. Also I will be driving it for work each day (unavoidable) so a medium size car is all that is required. VW Passats are the biggest cars in the world!
Never thought about the petrol / diesel thing, hmmmm....
Will check out Marshalls, thanks.

If you're in London, then Marshalls isn't too far to travel to find a great car, although saying that, there's a fab car warehouse in North London (can't remember where)where you could get a really good bargain.

I think if you can spend up to 7 grand, then spending a nearer to the limit than a lot less, will get you a better Focus. DH bought a second hand one to commute and whilst it's solid and bomb proof, it's a bit plasticky and a real basic oone so try to get one that is a comfortable version with less miles and air con and a few nice bits, like colour coded bumpers etc.

A diesel Focus will be more sluggish unless you get a 1.8 or more but if you're mainly travelling around London, you'll save stacks on fuel with a diesel.

Have you thought about the Auris? My parents have a really nice grey one that does about 70mpg!!! It's amazing on fuel, has a better shaped boot than our Volvo V50 and the back seats are actually really spacious.

Ooohh thanks for that, will check out the Auris. We hired a Corolla is NZ a few years ago and really liked it (apart from the fact it was an automatic, oh dear!)
Never really thought about diesel. I'd rather have a smaller engine if we can, so does that rule it out? We drive about 100 miles on the motorway every couple of weeks, and 500 miles 4-5 times a year.

No - doesn't rule anything out - just that Focus is a bit gutless below 1.8 if I remember correctly.

If you mean what you say about not wanting anything flash, there's no need to spend anything like £7000. Rather than thinking 2-3 years old, you could think 5-7. Most of the depreciation has gone by then, and since modern cars should last 15 years plus if they're properly maintained, there should be loads of use value left.

£4000 should buy you a decent low-mileage something which should last for years. You can cut costs further by buying something unfashionable but reliable (think KIA, Hyundai, some Fiats).

If you want to save more money, you could buy something seriously ugly. I drive a Fiat Doblo, so have practiced what I preach! It's not going to make you look cool, but it's perfect for carrying lots of small children/stuff and is v v cheap.

Hi fourunderfor.

I am following this discussion, and I like what you're saying, as my current car looks like it's about to conk out. If it does, I will have no choice but to go for the cheapest but safest second-hand car I can find. I am not bothered in the slightest about looks or speed. My requirements are: safety, decent boot space, aircon. That's it.

I know absolutely nothing about cars. I have never bought a car in my life (my current car was my company car from my last job, given to me as part of my redundancy package). What do you think I am looking at spending? I live in the West Midlands - do you happen to know the area for second car dealerships?

Thanks in advance.

64zoolane - I'm not an authority on this sort of thing at all - just had some good and bad experiences.

It just strikes me that lots of people spend far too much money on cars which do things they don't really need or want. If you do need or want them, fine, it's your money. But if you don't, why spend more than you need to.

I think there are at least four completely different ways of thinking about buying cars.

1. Buy new, replace every couple of years. OK, so you always have something newish and it probably won't break down. But you have to shell out £5-10,000 every couple of years just to remain mobile.

1. Buy "nearly new", i.e. something 2-3 years old, probably recycled from someone doing 1 above. This sounds like a good idea, but there's still loads of depreciation to go (£1-2,000 a year depending on what you buy). And if it breaks, you're probably out of warranty.

1. Buy something more than 5 years old. Value has stopped dropping like a stone and provided you get a good one, you should get 5-10 years out of it.

1. Buy a proper banger, i.e. something for £500 or less with some Mot on it, drive it until it's dead, then throw it away and get another one.

I try to do 3 - I would do 4 (and admire those who do) but don't have strong enough nerves and am no good at fixing things.

Can't really advise about what to buy - depends mainly on how many DCs you need to cart about (I've got four). Looking at a site like Autotrader should give you an idea of what you can buy for what money and you can play around with variables like aircon etc. in the searches. Honest John has lots of advice about models etc. and the internet is awash with price information to make sure you're not getting ripped off.

Don't know W Mids I'm afraid - I'm in SE.

Buy a Honda. Or a Toyota. More reliable than everything else. Especially Honda! Civic is a great looking car, and the diesels get fantastic mpg. I really regret selling my old Honda civic, have had Vauxhalls since. I was asking our local, very well respected mechanic for advice on buying a second hand car recently, and he was unequivocal...buy a Honda!

Buy a Honda. Or a Toyota. More reliable than everything else. Especially Honda! Civic is a great looking car, and the diesels get fantastic mpg. I really regret selling my old Honda civic, have had Vauxhalls since. I was asking our local, very well respected mechanic for advice on buying a second hand car recently, and he was unequivocal...buy a Honda!

When I had to buy a very very cheap car a few years ago I entrusted my £700 to my then boyfriend and he bought me a Honda (yes, I give women a bad name). It was very battered on the outside but motorwise it seemed to be fine.

But I don't think I could do it now - especially since my DH doesn't drive and knows even less about cars then me. What concerns me now mostly is safety. I have one child, and she's five, so will be out of a full carseat soon. I need to feel that the car I buy is the safest for her that I can afford.

by the way, fourunderfour, I googled Fiat Doblos and they look really cute! I'd be delighted with one of those.

Thank you both for your advice, I'll bear it all in mind.