hopefully buying my first car this afternoon!

[nish81]

The initial message was deleted from this topic on 18 October 2017 at 22:10

[mrtwisty]

What car is it?

Can you give us a link to an advert?

Do you know anyone with a little knowledge who could go along with you?

[Riley Blue]

Check the fuel level.

[tektas]

Based on his posts here on PH I would guess it will be a Mini Cooper Cabrio.

[g7jhp]

nish81 said:

driven a family car and then a string of rentals and short term leases for the last 9 or so years, finally buying my own one! I've got a checklist of things to look at in terms of the car's condition itself, I've got drive away insurance, and it'll be MOT'ed and road taxed before I drive off. anything else obvious that I'm missing?

Remember you have to add Road tax once you've bought it, the seller cancels what's left of their road tax.

Breakdown cover depending on the age.

[Shotaro]

nish81 said:

ha, I'm not sure if you were joking or not but I may actually have forgotten

That genuinely is a great tip, a fair few times I've bought a car and then started driving before realising the previous owner has nearly run it dry and I'm panicking to find the closest petrol station

[Whitean3]

Buying your first car is a wonderful thing- so don't forget to enjoy and remember the experience.

I absolutely love cars (and all things transport really), yet was unable to buy my own car for a very long time after passing my test. So when the moment finally arrived it was particularly sweet.

[Speary8]

I would definitely check oil and water levels. Has it had a recent service? Check tyre pressures as soon as you can. Check tyre condition before you drive off. Do all the light and gadgets work. Do a walk round to check for damage as difficult to prove after you have driven away

[Riley Blue]

nish81 said:

Riley Blue said:

Check the fuel level.

ha, I'm not sure if you were joking or not but I may actually have forgotten

I wasn't. I once picked up a new company car, drove three miles and it started to splutter - empty!

[kiethton]

nish81 said:

It is indeed a mini cooper s cabrio, 63 plate. I've done my research when picking the model to go for a production run that had sorted the various problems (engine, water pump, fuel pump) that earlier years had. It's also an approved used mini car so comes with a 12 month warranty and should have been inspected by their mechanics and everything, so that should be some peace of mind.

One question: what type of discount should I try to aim for with a used car from the official dealership? It's got 30k miles on it, and as I said is a 63 plate, with the upgraded hifi system, and they've priced it at around £13,800. I'm going to be paying cash, is £13,000 realistic?

Don't rule out suggesting that you'll take them up on their finance offer and then withdrawing from the finance within the 14 day cooling off period.

May get you some extra discount whilst allowing you to pay cash. (salesmen and dealerships often incentivsided on finance sales)

[M-SportMatt]

So how is the hairdressing business going?

Just kidding, enjoy your first car

[KungFuPanda]

Three things I always do when I get a new car. Go and show the parents, take it through a hand car wash, go to a drive thru.