Tips for problem-free second hand car purchase

APoc184

APoc184

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Bombard me with tips and knowledge when buying a second hand car please.

What to check for when inspecting the vehicle and taking it for a test drive.
How to get the best finance deal. Private? Dealership F&I?
Red Flags that should make you abort immediately.
Preferred Brands or dealerships. And then of course, which ones to avoid.
Anything else you can think of.

In short. We need to buy a car withing the next month. We would like to avoid any problems that could have been spotted, avoided.
 
I would love for this thread to explode like the Offer to Purchase one where hundreds of people have received valuable information on buying a home.

Lets do the same for a car purchase.

I will of course update our choices, experiences and final purchase in this thread as well.
Anybody else is welcome to share their journey and get help here.
 
My tips:
Wouldn't touch a car that hasn't got a record of annual oil changes
Cars with big engines most equal big issues after 120k milage - part of the issue is when things like timing chains (and guides) fail the engine isn't designed to be serviced and has to be lifted out of the car
 
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Yeah. Definitely one of our top priorities is a car with full (and on time) service history.
 
Tim_vb said:
My tips:
Wouldn't touch a car that hasn't got a record of annual oil changes
Cars with big engines most equal big issues after 120k milage - part of the issue is when things like timing chains (and guides) fail the engine isn't designed to be serviceg and has to be lifted out of the car
Click to expand...
How would anyone know for sure if regular oil changes were actually done?

A mechanic or dealership can just include it the bill/service records and not change it, especially when it comes to the gearbox.
 
SHL said:
How would anyone know for sure if regular oil changes were actually done?

A mechanic or dealership can just include it the bill/service records and not change it, especially when it comes to the gearbox.
Click to expand...
Looking forward to reading your solution here
 
have only ever bought second hand cars from the dealership that sells the same brand of car new

typically comes with manufacturer warranty and motor plan not only included, but sometimes extended to sweeten the deal

I'd avoid anything with an "aftermarket warranty" i.e. basically an insurance policy instead of a manufacturer warranty
 
APoc184 said:
Preferred Brands or dealerships. And then of course, which ones to avoid.
Click to expand...
Avoid any dealerships in the CMH Group like the plague. I'm still fighting with them, almost a year later, to come to the party to have a preexisting fault fixed.

Good suggestion above about the yearly service. Rather walk away if it hasn't been done.
If automatic, also ask whether the gearbox has been serviced, even for ones claimed to be "sealed for life".
Check the tyres to see whether they match. Also, on a luxury car, if they have cheap tyres on (Linglong, Landwind, etc.), walk away - the car has probably not been cared for the way you would want it to be.
 
Besides good advice received on the forum. I like to buy from my Mechanic. They service all the vehicles and know when I vehicle will have lots of issues, also when they do receive a vehicle that needs a service to go through the test they do an extra careful check knowing that I am looking. So when I am ready to buy I give him my budget and what I am looking for.

That's how I got my current 2006 Hyundai Accent. Had 35-40 000 km's on the clock and currently sitting at 150 000 km's. Been serving us really well. Parts are slowly staring to become an issue, so will probably start looking again in a year or two from now depending on finances. I also want something with a higher profile , probably an SUV or cross over as its very helpful here in the midlands. Also want something that can tow a tiny home.
 
I'm sure others will say this as well, stay away from We Buy Cars.

The usual Dekra and AA roadworthy certificates that second hand cars come with do not unfortunately do full sets of tests.

Get an OBD reader and inspection light. I usually demand the vehicle be put on a ramp so I can inspect in depth aspects (as an Engineer I know what to look for - generally you're looking for remake work, rust, oil where it shouldn't be. If you want more, you can get a borescope for the hard to see places). OBD reader allows you to look at the history (you can clear codes BUT you cannot clear history - look for abuse of vehicle).

I do usually prefer vehicles that were serviced at the OEM. Honestly I understand people will look to save money, but personally I stay away from any vehicle that was not done at the OEM.
 
RedViking said:
Besides good advice received on the forum. I like to buy from my Mechanic. They service all the vehicles and know when I vehicle will have lots of issues, also when they do receive a vehicle that needs a service to go through the test they do an extra careful check knowing that I am looking. So when I am ready to buy I give him my budget and what I am looking for.

That's how I got my current 2006 Hyundai Accent. Had 35-40 000 km's on the clock and currently sitting at 150 000 km's. Been serving us really well. Parts are slowly staring to become an issue, so will probably start looking again in a year or two from now depending on finances. I also want something with a higher profile , probably an SUV or cross over as its very helpful here in the midlands. Also want something that can tow a tiny home.
Click to expand...
Great advice and angle of approach.

Unfortunately I do not know any reputable mechanics in my area.

We are also upgrading to something a bit bigger. The i10 just ain't cutting it for the wife anymore with the kids growing up and all the school and sport bags.
For weekends and bigger trips I have the double cab bakkie but would like to get something for her now that we can use for all purposes.

Wife's priority list is of course completely different from mine. Look of the car being number one on her list.
Reliabilty and safety is top of my list, followed by fuel efficiency.
 
APoc184 said:
Great advice and angle of approach.

Unfortunately I do not know any reputable mechanics in my area.

We are also upgrading to something a bit bigger. The i10 just ain't cutting it for the wife anymore with the kids growing up and all the school and sport bags.
For weekends and bigger trips I have the double cab bakkie but would like to get something for her now that we can use for all purposes.

Wife's priority list is of course completely different from mine. Look of the car being number one on her list.
Reliabilty and safety is top of my list, followed by fuel efficiency.
Click to expand...
In the end it all comes down to budget as prices are absolutely insane.
 
APoc184 said:
Great advice and angle of approach.

Unfortunately I do not know any reputable mechanics in my area.

We are also upgrading to something a bit bigger. The i10 just ain't cutting it for the wife anymore with the kids growing up and all the school and sport bags.
For weekends and bigger trips I have the double cab bakkie but would like to get something for her now that we can use for all purposes.

Wife's priority list is of course completely different from mine. Look of the car being number one on her list.
Reliabilty and safety is top of my list, followed by fuel efficiency.
Click to expand...
Do you have a budget, so we could perhaps narrow it down. If you want something slightly bigger, I have heard good things about the Toyota Rav4, as it combines elements of traditional SUVs with those of passenger cars.
 
Avbob se stoep said:
Do you have a budget, so we could perhaps narrow it down. If you want something slightly bigger, I have heard good things about the Toyota Rav4, as it combines elements of traditional SUVs with those of passenger cars.
Click to expand...
We do but I was hoping to keep this thread a bit more generic and informative for every type of purchase. If that makes sense.

We are not looking to spend more than R300k. Hoping to get away with something decent in the R200-R250k range.
One of the non-negotiables is that we want an automatic this time round. Lots of city driving for her and she is not kind to a clutch :ROFL:


Wife really likes the CX-5.
I'm really liking the Corolla Cross and VW T-Cross but prices are out of our budget and I ignore too good to be true deals immediately.
Then I see cars like the Hyundai Creta, Suzuki Vitara, and Opel Crossland that falls in the budget.
 
APoc184 said:
We do but I was hoping to keep this thread a bit more generic and informative for every type of purchase. If that makes sense.

We are not looking to spend more than R300k. Hoping to get away with something decent in the R200-R250k range.
One of the non-negotiables is that we want an automatic this time round. Lots of city driving for her and she is not kind to a clutch :ROFL:


Wife really likes the CX-5.
I'm really liking the Corolla Cross and VW T-Cross but prices are out of our budget and I ignore too good to be true deals immediately.
Then I see cars like the Hyundai Creta, Suzuki Vitara, and Opel Crossland that falls in the budget.
Click to expand...
One of my friends had a CX-5, and I have only heard goods things about it. He wanted to go offroad for travels and stuff, which the CX-5 technically can do, but he got himself a Hilux at the end of the day, so bear in mind he did not own it for too long. The only down-side is that it doesn't hold its value that well, hence the lower price. But I think the market will catch up and its value will become "better" with time.
 
Just been through this myself recently.

My requirements were a seven seater, 4x4 or Awd. Considered Hyunday Palisade, Hyundai Santa Fe, Mitsibushi Pajero Sport and Isuzu M-UX. Decided to go for Japanese or Korean over German, because the only time my vehicle needs to go into a shop, should be for servicing.

Did a lot of enquires and test drives. Ended up with the Pajero Sport and almost two months in I am so glad I did.

Used Auto Trader and Change Cars a lot,

On Autotrader sort newest to oldest, then start with the older listings, they seem to be more open to offers. Obviously, the pricing needs to be market related.

Banks are throwing money at the moment, and good deals are about to be had, so push the dealer FNI, tell them your expectations before they start with your applications. Also try Marquis finance, they gave me the best deal.

In the end I did go through We Buy Cars and used their FNI, found one with some service plan left.
 
APoc184 said:
We do but I was hoping to keep this thread a bit more generic and informative for every type of purchase. If that makes sense.

We are not looking to spend more than R300k. Hoping to get away with something decent in the R200-R250k range.
One of the non-negotiables is that we want an automatic this time round. Lots of city driving for her and she is not kind to a clutch :ROFL:


Wife really likes the CX-5.
I'm really liking the Corolla Cross and VW T-Cross but prices are out of our budget and I ignore too good to be true deals immediately.
Then I see cars like the Hyundai Creta, Suzuki Vitara, and Opel Crossland that falls in the budget.
Click to expand...
CX 5, brilliant vehicles, great value for money.
 
APoc184 said:
Great advice and angle of approach.

Unfortunately I do not know any reputable mechanics in my area.

We are also upgrading to something a bit bigger. The i10 just ain't cutting it for the wife anymore with the kids growing up and all the school and sport bags.
For weekends and bigger trips I have the double cab bakkie but would like to get something for her now that we can use for all purposes.

Wife's priority list is of course completely different from mine. Look of the car being number one on her list.
Reliabilty and safety is top of my list, followed by fuel efficiency.
Click to expand...
Honda Jazz! Fuel efficient. Practical space wise. It's a Honda. And it even has VTec yo!
 
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