Buying a used car for £1000. Don't want to be ripped off.

sam959

It really depends on the driver! If its not done many miles its not a bad thing but i guess it may have done shorter journeys are just not used a lot! I have brought cars that are about 8 years old and only done 40,000 miles and had no problems! But you are right motorway miles are usually better as would have been easier on the clutch and gearbox than say being stuck in London all its life!!

sam959

With this sort of car i guess an average ileage ad fsh would be est as these cars are not the kind of cars people drive at weekends or down the shop! So normally are commuter cars.

Tobster86

At £1000 i.e. 10+ years old, expect at least 100,000 miles. Anything less and it will have spent most of it's life driving around town which is actually worse for engines, unless it's a biddy mobile that's spent it's life in a garage which has it's own pros & cons.

A 200,000 mile well serviced car would likely have a better condition engine than one with 80,000 or less miles, although possibly more wear of things like wheel bearings and other consumable parts.

fivetide

forgotmyname wrote: »

Plenty of 5 year old Mondeo's with 1 owner or ex lease. These are the only cars i look for.

Sometimes you find something a bit better, Serviced more often of a few optional extra's.

I look for cars that are serviced at less than the manufacturers limits. As i think thats too long between services.

Serviced at 8000 - 10,000 instead of 12,000 says to me they want it to last and be reliable.

Not sure about ex-lease. I've known a few reps and while they might be motorway miles they are hard miles at some good speeds. That or stop start traffice. Nothing so fas tas a car that isn't yours and all that.

My sister has one for example. It's loaded up until it creaks most days and the other half borrows it when they don't want to put miles on their own car.

Perhaps five years was a bit short though. Ex-lease I don't think counts as lots of one owner vehicles, I should have been specific on private ownership. I think most 'family' cars will move on at around 3 years old as people look to keep a car in warranty.

at the price point the OP is talking about anyway, you are certainly looking at potential patchy history and a lack of servicing.

Both W202 C-Classes I've had have been lowish miles and FSH. The last one had two owners from new and had been to the same garage twelve years running (main dealer) for a service and an MOT. Faultless motor.

The latest has only had one owners, again full dealer history. I think it would be hard to find a Mondeo with that at 15 years old. That's sort of the point. People with deep pockets will fix a car. People without will punt it on.

Spotting which is which is the key at this price level.

sun-n-moon

I go for high mileage x company Mondeo's. My current mk2 GhiaX has 162K on the clock and drives like new. No problems since I bought it 4 years ago. Last one had 180K and it was still running perfectly but the body was starting to go a bit. I did about 70K in it and it cost me a rear caliper and a front spring. My wife ran a mk1 for years. never spent a penny on it but we scrapped it rather than buy a new exhaust, change cambelt and MOT it as we were downsizing to one car. It had 170k on the clock and ran smooth as new but scrap price was too good to turn down.

Nightshade_2

I'd ignore the sweeping generalisations people are making about French cars. As mentioned, at 10 years old plus, it's down the the condition of the individual car you actually spend your money on.
Yes, some French cars aren't the easiest to work on, but will you be wielding the spanners?
I'm partial to old Peugeot Diesels myself as the engines are tough as old nails and Peugeot galvanise the chassis and body panels = no rust ever - my 15 year old 406 has done 350k and doesn't have a spec on it.
If you like the Picasso, go for it. They're a good family workhorse, and remember, you'll hear bad things about every car! Make sure you find one with plenty of service history and spend a good time looking at and driving it before parting with any cash. You don't need to be mechanically minded to be thorough.
In the 1k price bracket, rust and accident damage are your biggest worry, history and time with the vehicle are your best chance of finding a gem.
Good luck!

londonTiger

stick with vw, volvo and old mercs

mrcol1000

Nightshade wrote: »

I'd ignore the sweeping generalisations people are making about French cars. As mentioned, at 10 years old plus, it's down the the condition of the individual car you actually spend your money on.
Yes, some French cars aren't the easiest to work on, but will you be wielding the spanners?
I'm partial to old Peugeot Diesels myself as the engines are tough as old nails and Peugeot galvanise the chassis and body panels = no rust ever - my 15 year old 406 has done 350k and doesn't have a spec on it.
If you like the Picasso, go for it. They're a good family workhorse, and remember, you'll hear bad things about every car! Make sure you find one with plenty of service history and spend a good time looking at and driving it before parting with any cash. You don't need to be mechanically minded to be thorough.
In the 1k price bracket, rust and accident damage are your biggest worry, history and time with the vehicle are your best chance of finding a gem.
Good luck!

Thanks to be honest whatever car you stick into google someone how some horror story. https://www.honestjohn.co.uk seems a good site to find about used cars but every car they tell you to look out for something. Even Ford Mondeo which a few people have suggested doesn't come out too well. We have made a shortlist of 5 very different cars from different places and going to see them all Saturday and make a final decision, sleep on it and buy Sunday. Thanks for everyones input.

andygb

Nightshade wrote: »

I'd ignore the sweeping generalisations people are making about French cars. As mentioned, at 10 years old plus, it's down the the condition of the individual car you actually spend your money on.
Yes, some French cars aren't the easiest to work on, but will you be wielding the spanners?
I'm partial to old Peugeot Diesels myself as the engines are tough as old nails and Peugeot galvanise the chassis and body panels = no rust ever - my 15 year old 406 has done 350k and doesn't have a spec on it.
If you like the Picasso, go for it. They're a good family workhorse, and remember, you'll hear bad things about every car! Make sure you find one with plenty of service history and spend a good time looking at and driving it before parting with any cash. You don't need to be mechanically minded to be thorough.
In the 1k price bracket, rust and accident damage are your biggest worry, history and time with the vehicle are your best chance of finding a gem.
Good luck!

I agree with you about the engines, they are great lumps, but one of my mates has had a 306estate from new, and there is rust coming through everywhere (silver paint), he has had to have work done on the sills, which is something I thought happened decades ago.
To be fair, I like the 406 (particularly the Pininfarina coupe).

Rolandtheroadie

If you're willing to buy a £1000 car, I'd drop it a bit more.

Max £50 per months MOT (6 months minimum) and tax at cost.

Trawl ebay and find something with a good story. FSH might be a bit much (although possible) I'd look for people that have had a car a while, give a good description listing both the good and the bad and have a genuine reason for selling.

Check their feedback then ask a few "get out of jail" questions that will allow you to walk away if not as described (google the make/model and find common problems, ask about them).


Going with the above, if you are unlucky and buy a squib, you'll get a fair chunk of your money back (£100-£200 no probs I'd think) and you've still got enough left to try again.