Top Tips For Buying a Used Car!

Top Tips For Buying a Used Car!

In the UK, approximately 78% of households have one or more cars, which adds up to a significant number of cars being bought and sold every year and, with the cost of living still high, more and more people are opting to pick up a used car, rather than a brand new one.

With new car registration plates due to be released in just a few weeks (at the start of September), now is the ideal time to pick up a quality used car for less, so we’ve compiled some advice on getting maximum value for money when delving into the second-hand market.

Timing is everything.

The periods immediately before and after the release of new number plates are the best times to buy a used car, for two reasons:

1) as soon as new plates are available, people rush to part-exchange their old cars in order to get their hands on one, leaving dealers with a surplus of used cars they can’t wait to sell on, and…
2) ahead of the new plates being released, dealers start clearing out their old cars to make room for the new ones, meaning they’re more likely to accept a lower price in order to free up room on their forecourts.

It’s also a good idea to go to dealerships during the week as they tend to be much busier at weekends. This enables the dealers to focus their attention on you, increasing your chances of getting a better deal.

Know your trim levels.

Although you may think that buying a used car simply requires you to settle on a make and model you like the look of, there’s actually a lot more to it than that, such as choosing a car with the right trim level for your needs. 

Trim levels are essentially different variants of the same car – for example, if you decide to buy a Mini Cooper, you will then have to choose between the Classic, Signature or Iconic versions. While the names vary from car to car, what this basically means is how many optional extras do you want/need your car to have. The more you want, the higher the cost.

So if you just want to jump in and drive off, go for the cheapest version; if you need built-in sat-nav, leather seats and a sports mode option, you’ll be looking at something more expensive.

MOT, tax and service history.

When buying a used car, the only way to know for sure that it’s reliable and not going to cost you a fortune in repairs further down the line is to get your hands on its service book and go through the stamps that are in it – these will tell you the dates when the car was serviced and how many miles it had done between each service.

To be extra sure the car’s as good as it seems, you can also use the DVLA’s free Online Enquiry Service to check its current tax and MOT status by entering the registration number and vehicle make. Don’t be alarmed if the tax has been cancelled – that’s normal when a car is sold to a dealer – but remember to make a note of the date when it was cancelled or it expired.

Every car more than three years old must have its MOT renewed every year so you ideally want a car that has recently passed its MOT as this means you won’t have to pay to have it tested again for several months.

If the MOT isn’t current and/or the tax expired a long time ago, there’s a chance the car has been off the road for a significant period of time and, if so, it’s important to find out why. If the dealer can’t give you a good reason, it’s often a sign that the car’s not up to scratch and should be avoided at all costs.

Get help with an LCU Car Loan.

At Leeds Credit Union, you can borrow between £250 and £25,000 to help you buy the car of your dreams with one of our affordable car loans. To find out more, click here.