Tell Co-op Insurance what you look for when buying a used car - £300 voucher to be won! NOW CLOSED

[EllieMumsnet]

Whether you are buying a small family car, something fun for yourself, or perhaps a first car for your teenager, there are many things to consider such as size, fuel economy, and comfort to name a few. Co-op Insurance think safety is really important but would like to find out what is most important to you when you are buying a used car.

Here’s what Co-op Insurance has to say: “We know safety is paramount when it comes to driving children around and finding an affordable used car that offers the best safety standards will be important to many mums. For this reason we have identified and unveiled the top 5 used cars (under £5,000) for passenger safety. Whether it's your teenager’s first car or your car, passenger safety is very important and often an afterthought with all the other aspects to think about.”

So what is important to you when buying a used car? Are you savvy in finding the best price or do you shamelessly want a nice colour? Perhaps it’s all about the in-car entertainment for you to avoid the dreaded ‘are we there yet’? Or are you adamant that you must be able to fit three car seats in the back? Whatever your most important features are, please share them below and you will be entered into a prize draw to win a £300 voucher of your choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

The first thing I look for is a Citroen as we've always found them very reliable even when they are really old/high mileage. Then I look for something with the number of seats I need for the whole family which only equates to a minibus! There aren't a lot of good condition minibuses on the market, but I got lucky last time and found something lower mileage and well looked after for half the market value that it should have been - the only snag was retrieving it from North Yorkshire when I live in the South-East (6hr drive!) The advantage of a minibus is also a lot of extra space for luggage, the pram and the ability to walk round the inside of the vehicle to put on seat belts easily.
If the vehicle has been well maintained and from a reliable source (mine was sold by a company that no longer needed it) then it's much easier. It's advisable to get a vehicle checked for outstanding finance against it before any purchase if it's a private sale.

Safety - and I'd include in that reliability, it's very rural here and you can wait a long time for the AA to reach you.
Low insurance group as I have 2 young drivers to insure
I'm not really into what cars look like but wouldn't pick a really ugly one....

I always think that cars have personalities like people, you have to find your best match even if it takes a while of looking. Go car speed dating (ie lots of test drives).
Personalities change over time too, so don't be afraid of trying something you were adamant against ten or so years ago.

The only thing I really understand about used cars is that the lower the mileage the better!

I would look to make sure there's no major bumps or scratch, if I was looking for a new car I would just want a newer model of my current brand of car which I already know has decent fuel economy and runs well from experience.

Good safety record, economical to run including cost of tax and insurance, no stupidly long bonnet or boot, small enough for my short legs but big enough for my husband's long legs, easy availability of spare parts so I don't have to go to 1 dealer who'll charge me £££ and make me wait ages.

Couldn't care less about the colour; I'd buy a custard yellow car if it saved me a few quid .

After reluctantly giving up our old camper van I searched on-line to see which makes of cars were relatively inexpensive but with a good track record. Skoda! And they are made by VW. It has been our second hand car of choice since. I look for a car with a reasonable insurance cost and running cost. And whatever colour that comes in is the colour we have.

I look for something cheap to run and cheap to fix. I prefer a small car

First thing I check is how many miles the car has done if I'm buying second hand. Then I look at other factors such as space, any scratches and price,

I look at the price then 1) does it work 2) is it cheap to run! So for me it's all money I'm worried about

Lots of boot space (and a nice colour!)

I need something reliable - with a big boot for shopping and pushchair. I need something that is safe and not going to cost me a fortune to insure.

A decent sized boot, comfort and safety.

I look for a smallish car so its easy to park, easy access to seats front and back, a decent size boot for shopping, and it must be in good nick with not too many miles on the clock.

Low running cost and insurance
Long MOT
Low mileage And good service history
Small engine as just need a city run about

Couldn't care less about colour or whether its trendy I prefer simple cars with minimal bells and whistles, the less electric stuff that can go wrong the better.

We have always been a high mileage family (though thankfully due to a job change this has come down) so we look for a low mileage car still in warranty

I compare on used car sites for the best price and haggle when I find one I like! Online prices are often lower than prices at the car years for the same car.

I'm not too fussy on colour as long as it isn't white, and last car I bought I looked for something safe, comfortable to drive, large enough for prams and dog to go in the boot and with parking sensors.

Low mileage- has made a big difference with previous cars we've bought.

Room for 3 car seats and a decent sized boot are essential for us with 3 young children so those are top of our list!

With two small children and a lot of commuting mileage the most important things to me are whether the boot is big enough to fit the double buggy in and fuel economy

Reliability, service history, mileage, number of previous owners, price.

From other half perspective;
Price
Fuel efficiency and engine size
Spacious interior and boot.
Insurance and road tax bracket
From my perspective: colour and shape of car

Service history
Low mileage
Space

We look for space and always with 5 doors. We now have a little girl and definitely need the space to get the car seat in and out of the car!

Very much look for reliability. We have twice gone away on holiday and had a car catastrophe, once the head gasket blew on our VW Sharan and we had to be towed back miles and miles from our holiday. The oil pump went in our car on our last holiday, it was a VW passat and we had to scrap it! Disaster! We now have a lovely Peugout which I am very pleased with, fully serviced and stamped log book and no advisories on the last mot (which I think is always worth looking at)

I always look for something that's practical for family life. With two kids and two very big car seats, plus a pushchair, it's important that it all fits in. Safety's important too, as well as whether the model is likely to run into common problems or faults.

I look at economy these days. How cheap is the road tax, fuel economy and cheap to insure.