Guide to Buying
You've decided to buy a used car in New Zealand, you've decided on the model, and you've got an idea of how much you can afford. Do you buy from a dealer or from a private seller? What else needs to be checked with the car?
Kea evaluating car near Homer Tunnel in Milford Sound, New Zealand
Pre-Test Checkover
You can learn a lot about a car you're considering buying by checking for:
- Bodywork
- Dents, scratches or ripples; does the paint on panels and doors all match. Has the car been crashed and repaired
- Paint overspray on trim, under wheel arches or underneath the car from repainting after crash or rust repairs.
- Rust in the bottom of doors or tailgates, in wheel arches or bubbling in the sills.
- Consistent gaps between panels and door and boot lid shut lines. Disparencies can indicate poor reassembly after crash repairs.
- Chipping or starring of the windscreen which may prevent the car getting a Warrant of Fitness (WOF).
Under the Bonnet, check:
- The level and condition of the oil. There should be no creamy sludge and the oil should still be relatively clean and transparent-looking.
- The level of the cooling fluid in the radiator header/catch tank. Look for signs of oil in the water.
- Cracks or wear in the hoses and drive belts.
- For burning oil smells or other out-of-the-ordinary fumes or excessive smoke. Look for signs of oil leaks.
Inside the cabin, check for:
- Wear on upholstery, pedal rubbers or carpeting that seems excessive for the car's mileage or age. Saggy seats on a low-mileage car can hint at odometer being wound back.
- Damp areas on the carpet, roof lining or carpet underfelt, indicating water leaks. Be suspicious if there are any musty smells.
- That all the controls work, and that the sound system and air-conditioning, power mirrors and windows are operating correctly.
- Odometer reading consistent with the car's age; most cars do between 12,000 and 20,000km a year. Company cars will often have done more. Be suspicious of cars that show too little mileage for their age or condition. High-performance, sports or classic cars may, however, have been used only on weekends. Quiz the seller if you think the odo reading is too low.
The Used Car Test Drive: a 12-Step test checklist
- Start the car yourself, preferably from cold, and listen for any out-of place mechanical sounds. Look for excessive smoke on start-up. There will be some light grey smoke till the automatic choke switches off as the engine warms up. Wait till the engine is fully warmed before starting off. The temperature gauge needle should be around halfway between cold and hot. Be wary of any car where the needle is too far towards hot.
- As you move off the engine should deliver its power smoothly and without hesitation. The clutch should engage cleanly on manual cars with no smell of burning clutch lining, indicating clutch slip. There should be no shrieking from drive belts.
- On manual cars the gear lever should shift smoothly between gears and the gears should engage crisply without any graunching or grinding sounds. Automatics should change smoothly and without jerking or thumping.
- Around 50km/h lift off the throttle abruptly and check the rear-view mirrors for signs of smoke indicating piston/cylinder wear.
- Check for burning oil or exhaust fume smells and reject any car which has either.
- Drive up a steep hill and look in the mirror for signs of smoke; worn engines will develop excessive smoke when they come under high load.
- Stop the car on the hill and apply the handbrake. The car should hold firm. On manuals, the hill start will also be a good check of the clutch's operation.
- Try to do some open road or motorway driving as well. You can gauge the acceleration, check for excessive exhaust smoke as the car accelerates. At speed, check for any shuddering through the steering wheel (commonly between 85 and 100km/h) indicating out of balance or misaligned wheels. Listen for any trim or bodywork rattles or squeaks.
- In an empty open space or car park, take your hands off the wheel and check whether the car pulls to either side: it should track straight ahead. Cars that don't may have steering or wheel alignment problems.
- On front-wheel drive cars, wind down the windows and drive circles on full lock in both directions. Any knocking or mechanical chatter from the front wheels will indicate worn constant velocity joints.
- Check the brakes efficiency by braking hard to a full stop. The car should stop in a straight line without pulling to one side or juddering.
- Before you take a car for a test drive, make sure it's insured.