What to Check Before You View a Used Car

Most bad used car buys could have been spotted before anyone left the house. A quick check online and a couple of straight questions on the phone will rule out a lot of cars, and save you a wasted trip.

Here’s what we’d check before viewing a used car, and what to look at once you’re stood next to it.

Before you travel

Start with the MOT history. It’s free on gov.uk and all you need is the registration. You’ll see the car’s MOT tests, the mileage at each one, what it failed on and any advisories. Mileage that goes down between tests, or the same advisory turning up year after year, are both worth asking about.

Then check the basics match the advert: the right model, engine, colour and year. If the seller can’t tell you how many keys there are or when it was last serviced, that tells you something too.

A history check (HPI or similar) shows whether the car has outstanding finance, has been written off or has been reported stolen. It costs around £10 to £20 and it’s worth every penny on a private sale. If there’s finance still owing, you could end up in a long dispute with the finance company, and on some loans they can take the car.

Questions worth asking

When you ring about a car, these are the ones worth asking:

• What work have you done to it? A dealer who’s inspected and prepared the car will tell you what they found and what they did.
• When does the MOT run out?
• Have any recalls been done? You can also check for outstanding recalls yourself on gov.uk with the make and registration.
• Is it a cambelt, a wet belt or a timing chain? If it’s a belt, ask when it was last changed. Wet belts in particular need watching, and we’ve explained why in wet belts explained.
• Can I pay by bank transfer? Most dealers take it, but check your bank’s daily limit before you travel. A lot of banks cap how much you can send in one go, so ring them first or have your banking app set up, so you’re not stuck at the desk waiting for a payment to clear.

Ask us any of these and you’ll get a straight answer. Every car we sell goes through our own workshop first.

When you get there

See it in daylight, and ideally when it’s dry. Rain hides a lot of paint and bodywork problems.

Walk round it and look along the panels for ripples, mismatched paint and uneven gaps, which can all point to accident repairs. Check all four tyres have decent tread. Cheap, mismatched tyres on a prestige car often mean corners have been cut elsewhere.

Ask for the engine to be cold when you arrive, and put your hand on the bonnet to check. A cold start shows up rattles, smoke and slow starting that a warm engine can hide.

Inside, check every button does what it should: windows, air con, heated seats, the screen and the sat nav. Warning lights should all come on with the ignition and then go out once the engine’s running. Any that stay on need explaining.

The test drive

Drive it long enough to get it properly warm, on a mix of roads if you can. Listen for knocks over bumps, check it pulls straight and brakes straight, and make sure the gearbox changes smoothly up and down. On an automatic, any jolt or slipping is worth taking seriously.

Make sure you’re insured to drive it before you set off. Don’t assume your own policy covers you.

The paperwork

Check the V5C logbook matches the car: the registration, the colour and the VIN, which is usually visible at the bottom of the windscreen. The name and address on it should be the seller’s. Then match the service book stamps and invoices against the mileages on the MOT history.

How we do it at GT

Every car we sell has been through our own workshop first. It’s serviced to the manufacturer’s requirements, comes with a 12 month MOT, is HPI clear and includes 6 months’ warranty. Ask us for the MOT history, the service records or extra photos before you travel and we’ll send them over, so there are no surprises when you get here.

If you can’t get to Sheffield, we can deliver to your door anywhere in England, Scotland and Wales at extra cost.

Why buy from GT →