Modern Woman

view

Looking for used car sites

Anything other than autotrader I should be looking at?

Have about £3,600 to spend.

Have 'circled' a few autotrader cars, just wondering if I should be looking at any other websites too.

Ta all
GJ x

Keith

Check eBay a lot of small independant places place classified on there now.

Hintza

I agree with Keith and also your local paper might be worth a look.

goldspanners

also pistonheads classified adds are pretty good aswell,and prices seem a bit more realistic than autotrader.

scbk

Gumtree aswell, though not as user friendly as their partner site ebay

view

Thanks all I'll have a look at Gumtree and the local rags. Autotrader looked pretty good, but I know it's not the be all and end all.

If anyone else comes across a good site, please let me know.

Thanks all
GJ x

AdrianHi

The above covers the best of them.
Another thought is to search out the owners internet forums for the cars you are looking at and seeing if any are advertised there. You tend to get enthusiasts who look after their cars very well in places like this.

view

Thanks... just looking into Ebay. (However, might be doing something wrong?) you have to bid on a car to win it (obviously) but how can you check out the car (drive it, look it over properly) first?!

pandora205

Just a word of caution (having bought a second hand car from a garage to later discover that the 'one owner' was a car rental company) it is worth paying out for a vehicle inspection from the AA or RAC before you buy.

This will cost a bit (I paid around £200 after I'd bought mine) but will reassure you about basic safety and roadworthiness. It could save a lot of money too.

MX5huggy

GoldenJill wrote: »

Thanks... just looking into Ebay. (However, might be doing something wrong?) you have to bid on a car to win it (obviously) but how can you check out the car (drive it, look it over properly) first?!

There are 3 types of listings in eBay motors, the auctions some with a buy it now price, some just buy it now, and classified adverts these are just like the adds in Autotrader etc.

The 1st to you bid or buy it now and you are committed to buying at the price you bid as long a the description matches the car when you get there, if not you can walk away.

With the classified you go and see the car and haggle!

You can go and see any car on eBay before bidding ends to check it out and then go home and bid on it. Driving it may be a little harder if it is a private sale because you need insurance but you can get one day insurance for about £15 but this will be the case wherever the car is advertised, dealers normally have trade plates so you can take a car for drive.

Most of all remember buyer be where! with private sales you have almost no rights after you have parted with your cash.

Some people will say steer clear of eBay, but wherever you look there will be nails scammers.

spaceman5

GoldenJill wrote: »

Thanks... just looking into Ebay. (However, might be doing something wrong?) you have to bid on a car to win it (obviously) but how can you check out the car (drive it, look it over properly) first?!

get in contact with the seller, if they are local, they do tend to be willing to allow you to view the car before you bid on it, obviously you would need to organise the viewing before the auction ended, i have to be honest we got our current car from ebay without viewing, and we may have been lucky as it has been so far the best car we have ever had, but the seller was very open and honest with us, and when we purchased the car he made sure that there was 12 months tax, 12 months mot and he even delivered it free of charge from cumbria to me in somerset, all for under a grand for a P reg vectra estate, we have had it for 3 years now, and no problems with it at all apart from the usual niggles you get with age, just be careful though, as i say we may have been lucky, but with all the comunication and the way the seller went out of his way we thought it was a risk worth taking, which we are glad we did, dave