buying my first car

I found a good price for a Volkswagen Polo 1.2 2012 with 100,000 miles on it for a first car with £120 insurance each month. I was wondering what kind of things should I ask the seller when I go view the car. I'm guessing I should ask them about the service history and about when the cambelt was last changed? I want to make sure the car doesn't breakdown as soon as I buy it :smile:

If anyone knows on what type of things I should be looking out for when looking at the car let me know, thanks.
(I did a MOT check on the car and it seemed fine it had issues with back shock absorbers and indicators 2 years ago but it's been fixed and it has passed every MOT apart from 1)

(edited 4 years ago)

Reply 1

IWMTom

Original post by RichGalaxy

1.2 TSI or TDI? 100k is a bit high if it's TSI...

Reply 2

RichGalaxy

Original post by IWMTom

1.2 TSI or TDI? 100k is a bit high if it's TSI...

yeah it's a TSI, I'm only going to have this car for about 1-2 years and will be using it to get to work about 5k miles a year. Most of my friends have cars with 80-120k miles as first one so I thought this one would be ok.

Reply 3

IWMTom

Original post by RichGalaxy

I'd imagine this is relatively new in comparison to your mates cars.

The previous owner did a fair few more miles than the yearly average - many of the miles could be motorway, so might be alright.

Reply 4

Dunnig Kruger

Be aware that sellers can and do lie their heads off when selling cars.

It helps if you test drive a few same model cars. You get to feel which cars are in good condition and which aren't. Some cars can be the same age and mileage and feel and sound "loose" whilst others feel "tight" and fresh. Go for the tight and fresh.

There is a certain amount of risk in buying any car. All you can do is minimise it and try to buy cars at the best price.

The price difference between an auction car and a dealer forecourt car, for example, can be so much that even if the auction car requires hidden mechanical work it's still a better deal.

Reply 5

classic3296

I would recommend printing this checklist out as it’d help give you a guide to inspecting a car and identifying any main issues that could come up that the seller hasn’t disclosed.

https://chris-fix.com/upload/How%20to%20Inspect%20a%20Used%20Car%20Checklist%20%20FULL.pdf
Watch the video as well to further help you

I would also recommend buying an obd2 scanner from eBay (£6-10) and plugging that into the car and using your phone to scan it. Paid apps are better but free ones work just as well. The obd2 will scan the car and let you know if there are any faults with the car that the computer system has picked up but you haven’t.

Reply 6

arjanvirdi

Check mot again for past 5 years see if there are any recurring issues, or lots of advisories on some. Also check for service history, and last service, oil change and so on, and be sure to test drive it.

Reply 7

RichGalaxy

So I went to see the 2012 Polo with 100k miles with someone who knows about cars and it was a really good car for the price. It runs smoothly, no scratches had new rims and tyres, new discs and brake pads on each side and relatively new cambelt and other little things, the engine sounds quiet and healthy. It was last serviced 5000 miles and it has a lot of service records every 10,000 miles with some at the official Volkswagen service place. Had a look at MOT there aren't any serious issues that are occurring.

The same day I had a look at 2010 Polo with 70K miles however that one didn't look or sound healthy it was quite loose on the pedals, steering was pulling to one side was bumpy so it wasn't well looked after, some parts were corroded

I ended up going for the 2012 100k miles as it was very carefully looked after with 1 owner previously, hoping it will last me 1-2 years for a first car.

(edited 4 years ago)

Reply 8

Dunnig Kruger

As long as you don't crash it, and keep up with the servicing (mainly oil and filter changes) it'll last for 10 years. The 100k mile Polo is the one I'd have bought out of the 2.

Enjoy the freedom that having a car brings. I think you'll love your Polo.