Specialist/s who help you whilst buying 2nd hand car?

IC3

IC3

IC3

Soldato
Joined
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I remember there were specialists/people who came along with you whilst buying the car to inspect it. I just can't remember what they were called, and my googling skills have failed me this time. :(

I'm basically planning on buying Honda Civic 1.6 EP2 and I'm planning on taking it to the service for a health check which is around £69. The guy who's selling the car has agreed for the car to be checked without any questions "why?" "what for?" etc.
 
Don't you have any friends or family who know enough about cars to know what to look for when buying one?
 
Howard said:
Don't you have any friends or family who know enough about cars to know what to look for when buying one?
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snips86x said:
+1

This would be the easiest option!
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My uncle is a mechanic and my dad is going to be the one who's going to test drive it, as I'm still a newbie when it comes to driving. :p

But still I would like someone to have a look at the car more in-depth, when my uncle was buying a car we still got it checked at a service.
 
If your uncle is a mechanic then it's even more of a waste of money. As long as all the fluids are in the right place and there's no clonks, knocks, bangs, or grinding, and it stops, goes, steers, and changes gear like it should do. Other than that, use things like low tyre tread and worn out brake disks/pads as bargaining points. If you're not happy with the mechanical or cosmetic condition, walk away.

It's a basic, common car that doesn't really warrant a special 'health check' unless you really don't know anybody who knows their dipstick from their exhaust pipe. It's not a Porsche 911.

If you're having the car serviced at a garage, they'll generally give it a once-over as part of this.
 
Howard said:
If your uncle is a mechanic then it's even more of a waste of money. As long as all the fluids are in the right place and there's no clonks, knocks, bangs, or grinding, and it stops, goes, steers, and changes gear like it should do. Other than that, use things like low tyre tread and worn out brake disks/pads as bargaining points. If you're not happy with the mechanical or cosmetic condition, walk away.

It's a basic, common car that doesn't really warrant a special 'health check' unless you really don't know anybody who knows their dipstick from their exhaust pipe. It's not a Porsche 911.

If you're having the car serviced at a garage, they'll generally give it a once-over as part of this.
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The thing is that my uncle has changed his profession 5 years ago and hasn't really looked back. I don't blame him, he was the one who talked me out of becoming one. :)

We just have had bad experience of buying a car which looks nice, drives well and everything seems fine. But than when you take it, for it to be service you get this list of things to do... But if you're saying that if there's something wrong with it, you can easily see that by driving/checking it.. than I guess I have nothing to worry about? :)
 
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RAC and AA both offer this service. However for the amount of things they check, you'd be just as well checking it yourself. Heck, talk to a normal garage nearby and ask if you can bring a car in for them to give a quick once-over to see if there's anything glaringly bad with it. Offer beer tokens / an hour or twos labour charge and I'm sure they'd be willing to oblige provided they don't have a lot on.
 
The thing I was looking at was for free, I can't really remember what they were called ehh...

bJN said:
RAC and AA both offer this service. However for the amount of things they check, you'd be just as well checking it yourself. Heck, talk to a normal garage nearby and ask if you can bring a car in for them to give a quick once-over to see if there's anything glaringly bad with it. Offer beer tokens / an hour or twos labour charge and I'm sure they'd be willing to oblige provided they don't have a lot on.
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I might try this, hopefully they aren't going to be busy and paying 100 to RAC for checking my car when it cost 69 at official service is a little no-brainer... Shame honda don't list things they actually check on their website, Vaxuhall have this health check for free...
 
I think in some respects its always going to be the luck of the draw buying 2nd hand cars.
With mine for example; Bought a mk5 Golf a couple of years ago. Did the hpi check, read the mk5golf forums buyers guide and checked everything thoroughly when I saw it. Checked all the paperwork (FSH) and cross reffed the MOTs online. Everything was fine so I had it. Took it to the local guarage and got them to do a mini service and thier version of the RAC/AA check. Again, all OK.

Three or four months later loud grinding noises start and turns out the gearbox has had it. That will be >£1k repair bill please.

I honestly don't think anyone would have been able to know that would have happened no matter how thorough they checked the car when buying and you just gotta take the rough with the smooth!
 
Check out the owner's club forums online, there'll be numerous thread for this and I bet people have listed common things to look for time and time again. It should be relatively easy to cross reference a few until you pick up on the more consistently mentioned ones, then create a list.

A little bit of swatting up on common faults will help you know whether it's a dog, but also do you good when it comes to getting down to a price. Think about it from the seller's point of view - if a buyer is reliant completely on their tech mate/hired hand it shows that they don't really know whether the car is a decent example and this make it more likely for the seller to stick to their price, whereas if a buyer is asking all the annoying questions that the seller was expecting/hoping wouldn't get asked, they will know that the prospective buyer knows their stuff and aren't going to be as tolerant to being messed around.
 
Zefan said:
Check out the owner's club forums online, there'll be numerous thread for this and I bet people have listed common things to look for time and time again. It should be relatively easy to cross reference a few until you pick up on the more consistently mentioned ones, then create a list.

A little bit of swatting up on common faults will help you know whether it's a dog, but also do you good when it comes to getting down to a price. Think about it from the seller's point of view - if a buyer is reliant completely on their tech mate/hired hand it shows that they don't really know whether the car is a decent example and this make it more likely for the seller to stick to their price, whereas if a buyer is asking all the annoying questions that the seller was expecting/hoping wouldn't get asked, they will know that the prospective buyer knows their stuff and aren't going to be as tolerant to being messed around.
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I made myself an account on one of the honda's uk club forums and got lots of good advice from 1 member.

Gearbox noise will probably be the most important thing to check for (see other recent posts about that)

Gearbox should be quiet and slick in operation, with clutch biting roughly halfway through its total travel without juddering or slipping under power. If not bargain hard or walk away.

Some people complain about stiff Electronic Power Steering so check smooth operation and warning light stays off. If not - walk away.

Engine should fairly quiet from cold and pretty much whisper quiet once warmed up, as well as idling over smoothly and not hunting. Exhaust should be smoke/steam free once warmed up. If not - walk away

Check generally for corrosion, especially around rear wheel arches and tailgate hinges.

Check radiator core for corrosion - relatively cheap easy repair if necessary. Bargaining point?

Hondas don't generally leak oil, so if there are any leaks it could mean engine worn and breathing heavily. Most minor leaks fairly cheap to sort though.

Full service history is always a bonus, check cambelt done at 60,000m or every 5yrs. Not overly complicated to work on so doesn't really need to be dealer serviced, just nice to know somebody has lavished some love on it☺
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I wanted to see 1 car, but the guy was dodgy and was constantly trying to avoid me seeing the car in daylight and during the hours that services are open. I'll pass on this car, with his attitude I don't think someone will buy it. I'm going to see a 2 cars from 2 different dealers with mechanical warranty and full service history (1 has full honda's history but is a bit pricey).
 
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The buyer of my dad's Kuga arranged for an RAC inspection and I was very impressed at what they checked.

Silly little things, checked the locking wheel nut key not only was there but also worked on every wheel, ditto keys not only checked it had them all but checked they all worked. Plus it's impartial, comes with a HPI check and possibly 3 days insurance (maybe).

Brought a paint depth gauge, tested the antifreeze, battery, alternator, tread depth plus another hour I didn't watch and a road test.
 
Take it for a cheap MOT. £35 is cheaper than £69, and you will at least find out if it's road legal. Or what it may need soon. Just ask the MOT guy to be critical of it.
 
xs2man said:
Take it for a cheap MOT. £35 is cheaper than £69, and you will at least find out if it's road legal. Or what it may need soon. Just ask the MOT guy to be critical of it.
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I didn't think about that, but I usually say to the seller due to previous bad experiance... bla bla bla. I would like to check the car with a mechanic, if everything is as you say than I'm paying for the check and car, if not then you're paying for the check. That way I save myself time and money, I know the car isn't expensive to most. But for me as a student with a part time job 3k is quite a lot of money and I don't want to end up investing into the car.

maccapacca said:
The buyer of my dad's Kuga arranged for an RAC inspection and I was very impressed at what they checked.

Silly little things, checked the locking wheel nut key not only was there but also worked on every wheel, ditto keys not only checked it had them all but checked they all worked. Plus it's impartial, comes with a HPI check and possibly 3 days insurance (maybe).

Brought a paint depth gauge, tested the antifreeze, battery, alternator, tread depth plus another hour I didn't watch and a road test.
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So that £99 was well spent than, I wonder if that check is free when you have insurance with RAC. hmm... time for google
 
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The MOT guy won't check if your windows are working, if the AC is working etc. although literally you could do all this yourself, I would say make a list and inspect yourself, that way you will learn and gain experience on what to look out for in a car.
 
lemonade said:
The MOT guy won't check if your windows are working, if the AC is working etc. although literally you could do all this yourself, I would say make a list and inspect yourself, that way you will learn and gain experience on what to look out for in a car.
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I'm finishing the list off now, the cars are from dealers with mechanical warranties.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201501190273668

and

http://www.gumtree.com/p/honda/hond...r-supplied-with-a-6-month-warranty/1101464472
 
Take Vita with you, if he isn't happy to buy the Honda, walk away. :D

Both those are traders not dealers and the warranties won't be worth anything.
 
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